Chapter 77 Another Wave Rises: The Story of Prince Yong's Re-taming ~
The old man recognized them.
His absolute rationality made him tense up, and he gripped Ying Dang's short knife even tighter in his sleeve.
This wasn't the first time he had killed someone.
Is the other party friend or foe?
Yingxi's heart was pounding.
The old man was in front, and the two men were behind.
The old man walked to the candlestick and lit the candle with his withered fingers. The candlelight emitted a faint glow, barely illuminating the entire pharmacy.
The three walls of the pharmacy were filled with small boxes containing medicinal herbs.
Ying Xi tried hard to make out his surroundings in the darkness, feeling that he had been to this place before, yet also feeling that all the pharmacies looked the same.
"There's a bed inside; put the person on it."
It turned out that there was a small room inside the pharmacy.
But it was too dark inside, and Ying Xi didn't dare to go in.
Ying Xi stopped outside the house.
"May I ask your name, sir? If you can save my brother, I am willing to bestow upon you a title of nobility and a fief, which will be hereditary."
Ying Xi was the first to offer the old man terms.
If he can escape danger, he can do far more than Jia Ruzhen.
But the old man showed no joy whatsoever upon hearing these words.
Instead, he let out a cold snort:
“Prefect Jia issued a strict order in the city: anyone who dares to harbor the two will have their entire family wiped out.”
"I may not live to enjoy this wealth."
Ying Xi shuddered violently.
The emperor remained calm and observed the pharmacy again, as if fearing that someone might jump out, but in reality, nothing did.
Ying Xi asked, "Why did that old man take me in?"
The old man did not answer.
"Let him lie down and expose the wound."
Ying Xi did as instructed.
This puzzled Ying Xi, and she even felt somewhat uncomfortable.
Whether he was the heir of the Yongning Prince's Mansion or the emperor, few would dare to disregard him.
Ying Xi scrutinized the old man, but still couldn't discern his origins.
He was just an ordinary doctor who had passed on his skills to his son and no longer saw patients. Because of the war outside, the old man hid in this place.
Has he ever treated me?
Was he acquainted with his father?
he……
"Bring the candlesticks," the old man said hoarsely.
Ying Xi went to pick up the candlesticks. He was someone who had never been ordered around by anyone, yet he was not arrogant. He was flexible and adaptable.
Yingxi kept a close eye on the old man's behavior, not daring to relax.
Ying Dang was then turned over by the old man.
The candlestick was in Ying Xi's hand. The light source flickered as it approached. When Ying Xi came over again, Dang'er's upper garment was off, and her back was covered with medicinal powder.
Ying Xi wasn't too worried about the two external injuries on her arms.
"Doctor, his sword wound..."
"Assassinated by the prefect?"
It seems that the Fish Intestine Sword has become Jia Ruzhen's trademark; one can tell who it is just by looking at the sword wound.
Ying Xi nodded: "Yes."
The old man said coldly, "This person actually still has the strength to wield a sword?"
Ying Xi answered truthfully: "Dang'er and I climbed over the wall to avoid danger. He also climbed over the wall, but fell down. I suspect he suffered internal injuries."
The old man nodded slightly, but his face was ashen, and the light revealed the twitching muscles in his cheeks.
"I'll go brew the medicine," the old man said.
Ying Xi disregarded the difference in their social status and cupped her hands, saying, "Thank you, sir."
The old man's figure disappeared in the dim light.
Noises kept coming from the main room; the old man was rummaging through the medicine cabinet.
Ying Xi somewhat eased his guard. Taking this step, he was willing to trust others, and the old man had not harmed him and his brother.
Ying Xi secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
She placed the knife from her sleeve under Ying Dang's pillow and smelled the aroma of medicine being boiled. A bitter and sour taste filled Ying Xi's nostrils.
"Although this old man is strange, I will repay him," Ying Xi thought.
He wiped the sweat from Prince Yong's brow.
Sitting by Prince Yong's bedside, Ying Xi could still hear the sounds of siege outside. He dozed off for half a cup of tea's time, feeling exhausted and his heart was pounding.
Then he was startled awake by the sound of the city wall being rammed, and he opened his eyes with a start.
"Protect the Emperor!" Ying Xi replied naturally.
Of course, Lang Xun would not appear; Lang Xun and his guards were far away in Chang'an.
Ying Xi had just lost her composure and knocked over several medical books on the bedside table. The books contained prescriptions and several bookmarks made of herbal specimens, all of which were scattered all over the floor.
He quickly picked it up, carefully tucking the prescription back into the book, still on that same page.
The herb specimen had a chipped corner, and he picked up the broken pieces.
The descendants of Prince Yongning have a refined upbringing ingrained in their very being.
Beside the small bed, Ying Xi silently put it back in its original place, sat up straight again, and behaved with elegant and proper manners.
Unbeknownst to him, the old man, fanning the fire with a tattered palm-leaf fan, was watching him intently as he lifted his droopy eyelids. The once renowned prince of Guangling, now the unparalleled emperor of Jiangbei.
A flicker of fire danced in the old man's eyes. The medicine was poured into a medicine bowl.
The powder I just applied had an unusually peculiar effect.
Inside the house, Ying Dang stopped the bleeding.
Prince Yong's consciousness gradually returned: "Brother...elder brother..."
When he opened his eyes, Ying Dang revealed deep gray pupils. His phoenix eyes usually held countless sneers, but now, on the verge of life and death, Ying Dang had suppressed his unpleasant sharpness, leaving only longing for his brother.
With all his might, Prince Yong pointed a finger at Ying Xi: "Why...why would that person know...Taihu...Stone...Cave..."
Prince Yong's voice was too weak.
The Fish Intestine Sword not only severely injured Prince Yong, but also made him extremely suspicious.
He used his cold hands to draw warmth from Ying Xi's body, struggling to recall what had happened years ago.
Inside Fangzhi Palace, it was just the two of them. He shared secrets with his brother, which was a matter between them. Why would it be leaked to the enemy army in Guangling?
Could there have been other people present at the time? Was someone else watching my brother?
The more Prince Yong thought about it, the more his blood boiled, and sweat beaded on his forehead!
Prince Yong coughed several times, panting heavily, but fortunately, he didn't cough up blood this time.
He wanted his brother to come closer, to sit next to him, and to touch him.
He expressed his pleading with his eyes and found that as long as his brother didn't think it was too much, his brother would really grant his every request.
A burning sensation spread from my eyes to my heart.
Prince Yong's lower lip trembled slightly, his nails digging deeply into Ying Xi's skin.
—Then why have you ignored me for so many years?
"The medicine has cooled down."
"Thank you, old man. I will feed you myself." Yingxi took the bowl.
Prince Yong felt a porcelain spoon pressed against his lips, and the warm medicine slid into his mouth, filling his mouth with a bitter taste.
The medicinal soup must have contained ingredients that numbed the body. Prince Yong felt that his wounds were not so painful anymore, and he became very tired and sleepy.
He dared not sleep. Firstly, he was in a completely unfamiliar environment, and Ying Dang was very worried. Secondly, he was afraid that Ying Xi would leave. The better his brother treated him now, the more ashamed Ying Dang felt. He anxiously forced himself to stay awake, his phoenix eyes wide open in a daze.
"elder brother……"
After Yingxi finished feeding the medicine, she covered Yongwang's eyes.
Ying Dang's nose was filled with his brother's cool fragrance, and he gradually lost sensation in his limbs, struggling with himself.
"Your Highness's sword wound was located between the two shoulder blades, and was blocked by the bones, so it did not injure your heart or lungs from behind, which is truly fortunate," the old man said.
Ying Xi's anxiety subsided considerably.
Inside the cabin, the dim candlelight flickered, and the secluded environment gave one a rare sense of security.
Ying Xi recalled the moment when she was wearing the cloak, her dark gray eyebrows half-closed, and how, at the critical moment of life and death, the corners of her mouth slightly lifted.
He didn't know that this was palpitation.
"Old man, do you recognize us? Was it more than ten years ago when my father brought me here for a medical check-up? I have been sickly since childhood, so perhaps you have forgotten."
Old man: "How is the siege going?"
Ying Xi was taken aback.
He once again examined the frail old man by the candlelight.
Why is this old man, hiding in a clinic, concerned about the war?
Ying Xi couldn't understand it at all.
But since the old man had asked the question, the emperor answered it seriously.
Ying Xi pieced together what he had heard and combined it with his own analysis: "The imperial army is focusing its attack on the south gate and is still fighting fiercely. My generals know that I am in the city and are doing everything they can to distract Jia Ruzhen."
Ying Xi added, "Jia Ruzhen is trying to turn the tables by any means necessary and is doing everything she can to hunt me down."
"Does Your Majesty have a solution to break this deadlock?" the old man asked.
Ying Xi's brows furrowed, and she found the old man increasingly strange, as he seemed to exude a mixture of despair and compassion. Ying Xi sat up even more upright.
The emperor certainly considered this as well.
He gathered his thoughts and said solemnly, "Guangling is a large prefecture, and it is extremely difficult to attack. Even if we just throw stones from inside the city to outside, the people below the city will not be able to withstand it."
"But Guangling has more than one main gate, as well as two side gates on the east and west sides."
“The main gate is where a large number of enemy troops are located.”
"If we can draw the mobile forces in the city to the east gate, our army can break through the west gate nearby. I do not believe that all the city gates are impregnable."
This is not the military council office.
The old man was not Ying Xi's general.
Ying Xi's eyes reflected the candlelight, and her gaze gradually became intense.
"This is a feint attack."
The dim firelight illuminated the small house, revealing a group of three people who would never normally be together.
The old man lifted his eyelids.
The old man asked, "If the king wins, will the people of Guangling be guilty?"
"What have the common people done wrong? Why are they guilty?" Ying Xi was puzzled.
The old man's facial muscles twitched slightly, then he shook his head with a bitter smile.
Ying Xi felt a chill run down her spine.
If it weren't for the old man's genuine concern for his treatment, given Ying Xi's extreme paranoia, he probably wouldn't have been able to stay at Anren Pharmacy for even a moment longer.
Ying Xi asked, "Old man?"
The old man suddenly stood up!
A long, dark shadow instantly stretched across the ground.
Ying Xi was filled with panic.
The old man raised his cane and struck a spot on the floor in front of the bed with great force, causing a square tile about half a meter in size to bounce up high.
There's a hidden compartment under the floor tiles!
The hidden compartment is not deep; it can only accommodate two people at most.
There was a water bag and some dry food in the hidden compartment, and the four walls were not smooth.
Ying Xi peeked inside.
He guessed that this was because the people were trying to escape the war, or were afraid of being massacred after the city was breached, so they hurriedly built shelters in their houses in addition to the four gates being tightly closed.
How difficult it is for ordinary people to survive!
But before Ying Xi could express her feelings further,
The old man, leaning on his cane, said, "Your Majesty, take Prince Yong down immediately!"
Ying Xi was slightly taken aback, when she suddenly heard the sounds of dismantling planks all around her.
The originally dimly lit little house was now illuminated by the bright light of torches shining through the window panes, one after another.
Such a bright fire must mean there's a large army outside!
Ying Xi almost lost her breath at that moment, realizing in an instant that they were surrounded by enemy soldiers.
The old man was thin and frail, yet his back stood firm and unyielding like a mountain.
With his left hand, which wasn't using a cane, he swung it backward with all his might!
Ying Xi's eyes were sore and painful, and her chest felt like it was being choked by a heavy boulder.
Ying Xi moved Yong Wang.
Prince Yong opened his eyes.
The two brothers stared intently at the elderly man from their hometown, whom they had perhaps met by chance but now knew nothing about, before falling into the pit.
Press down on the floor tiles.
The light source gradually dimmed, forming a slit that became narrower and narrower.
The hidden compartment is completely secured!
Ying Xi hugged Prince Yong tightly, while Ying Dang held his breath.
Inside the dimly lit compartment, the stench of blood lingered and permeated the air, while the bitter taste of medicine almost choked one's throat.
Someone entered the pharmacy.
A pair of boots stepped directly onto the dark floor tiles above their heads, and the sound of their footsteps could be clearly heard.
The shadow asked in a cold voice:
"There's blood on the pharmacy door, the smell of medicine inside, and embers from the charcoal fire are still burning. Where is the young emperor?"
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