Learning martial arts from Man Yi would not only enhance his self-defense capabilities, but also serve as a reason to persuade Man Yi to accompany him to Jiangbei.
Lou Guyu was also easy to deal with. She would only remove a little bit of the poison from him each day, slowly keeping him alive. In order to survive, he had no choice but to go with her.
As for whether they will work for Shen Muzhi in the future, let's talk about that after we've lured him to Jiangbei.
Thinking this through, Yan Xiao nodded in agreement.
“Okay, let’s do it that way. But I have to go to Jiangbei to find my relatives. We’re almost in Jiyang, so you’ll have to come with me.”
Man Yi looked somewhat embarrassed upon hearing this, and his gaze shifted to Lou Guyu.
They are master and servant, and Man Yi is not the one who can make the decisions. Even if he agrees now, he cannot guarantee that Lou Guyu will not have other ideas after Lou Guyu wakes up.
Yan Xiao, seeing his expression, understood what he meant and continued:
"I forgot to tell you, although I can cure this boy's poison, it's very troublesome and can't be cured in a day or two. So, if you want to save him, you'll have to come with me."
Since it concerned Lou Guyu's life, Man Yi had no time to hesitate and immediately nodded in agreement.
They are now only half a day's journey away from Jiyang.
Yanxiao dislikes trouble and even more so, he dislikes scheming against overly clever people.
Therefore, to prevent Lou Guyu, who was all bark and no bite, from causing trouble after waking up, she only protected his heart meridian and had no intention of waking him up.
Once they arrived in Jiyang and boarded the ship, Lou Guyu had no choice but to stay put and didn't bother arguing with him.
Even this half-day journey was not easy for them.
After being ambushed once again, they finally arrived at Jiyang Wharf safely before nightfall.
Yan Xiao patted Shen Qiyue, who had finally fallen asleep after being frightened, to indicate that they had arrived.
Shen Qiyue groggily opened her eyes, glanced outside, and then used the loose silver in her hand to settle the remaining payment with the coachman.
After doing all that, the group didn't linger and headed straight for the ferry crossing on the north bank of the Yangtze River.
But when they arrived at the ferry terminal and were about to pay and board the boat, Yanxiao's face darkened.
For no other reason than that the cost is too high, and it is simply not something that ordinary families can afford.
She only asked for two ordinary rooms, which cost two taels of silver per person, and breakfast was provided.
For other Chinese and dinner meals, if you don't bring your own and want to eat on the ship, you'll have to pay extra.
Yan Xiao took a deep breath, then another, and finally, with a cold face and a heavy heart, handed over eight taels of silver.
Then, turning to look at Man Yi, who was carrying Lou Guyu and following behind him, he said very seriously:
"Consider this a loan from you. Give me a written agreement after you board the ship."
Over the past two days, Man Yi had come to realize that the stern-faced doctor in front of him was a greedy man who didn't dare to offend Yan Xiao, so he nodded in agreement.
After the group boarded the ship, a servant led them to their cabins.
The guest room was small and simply furnished, with only a few stools, a small wooden table for dining, and a wooden bed.
Fortunately, there were mattresses and blankets on the wooden bed, so they should be able to get a good night's sleep.
Man Yi and his group's room was next to Yan Xiao and his group's.
When Yan Xiao introduced Shen Qiyue to Man Yi, he said she was his younger sister, so even though she was currently dressed as a man, Man Yi didn't think there was anything wrong with the siblings sharing a room.
It's common for people to joke that they don't feel comfortable leaving their younger sister in a separate room when she's away from home.
They were all quite tired from the journey, and Man Yi even had both new and old injuries, so they all went to sleep after returning to their rooms.
Meanwhile, in a VIP suite on the same ship, a man and a woman were sitting facing each other.
The man was dressed in a white brocade robe with a cinched waist; he was handsome and had an extraordinary bearing.
The woman wore a floral, misty green pleated skirt. She was beautiful and elegant, and every smile and frown revealed her gentle and quiet nature.
The man and woman were Wei Wuxiu, whom Yan Xiao had unintentionally saved, and Jiang Xinrui, who had come to meet Wei Wuxiu.
Jiang Xinrui withdrew her hand from taking Wei Wuxiu's pulse, looked at him with a gentle smile, and spoke in a soft, melodious voice:
"Aside from being a little weak, the young master is fine and just needs to rest for a few days."
"Yes, thank you for your trouble, Miss Jiang."
Wei Wuxiu was well aware of his physical condition, but he didn't want to disappoint his good brother, so to put Shen Muzhi at ease, he still asked Jiang Xinrui to diagnose him.
"Your Highness is too kind. It is all I should do. It is truly a pity that I was unable to meet the senior who cured Your Highness's poison."
Wei Wuxiu had heard of Jiang Xinrui's story and knew that although she was a woman, she was a medical fanatic. Upon hearing this, he could only sigh with regret.
"These things can't be forced; it all depends on fate."
“Your Highness is right.”
The two were not familiar with each other, and they fell silent at this point.
Wei Wuxiu originally thought that Jiang Xinrui should say goodbye and leave by now, but she remained sitting in the same place, looking like she still had something to say but was hesitant to speak, making the atmosphere in the room somewhat awkward.
He raised his eyebrows in confusion and took the initiative to ask:
"Is there anything else, Miss Jiang?"
"I have something I'd like to ask the Crown Prince."
Jiang Xinrui paused for a moment, as if she hesitated, but in the end, her thoughts overcame her reason.
She bit her lip lightly, lowered her head, and asked softly:
"I heard that the reason why the young master took the risk of detouring here on his way to Jiangbei was because he heard some news about General Shen's family. I wonder if this is true?"
Upon hearing this, Wei Wuxiu looked at Jiang Xinrui with a more scrutinizing gaze.
After seeing Jiang Xinrui's current state, a look of understanding flashed in his eyes.
After a moment's hesitation, I decided to tell the truth:
"Yes. Just as I was setting off for Jiangbei, I received news of Brother Shen's wife and sister from my men."
Unfortunately, I was too late. By the time I arrived, they had already gone off with some group of refugees in some direction, and I had lost contact with them again.
But one thing is certain: if the people in that message really were them, then they should still be alive.
Half a year ago, Wei Wuxiu heard that after Shen Muzhi successfully occupied Jiangbei, he sent people to his hometown to pick up his wife and sister-in-law. However, they were too late and the refugee riot broke out, resulting in his wife and sister-in-law disappearing without a trace.
He believed that his brother's affairs were his own affairs, and immediately sent people to search for him.
Although he had never met Shen Muzhi's sister-in-law, he had heard Shen Muzhi mention that his sister was charming and cute, and his wife was dark-skinned and stronger than the average person. So he started looking based on this information.
There were just too many refugees, and even for people of their status, finding two such people was like finding a needle in a haystack.
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