Chapter 337 Two Confidants
Doctor You followed the county magistrate back to the county government office and found a secluded secret room.
The two men entered the house. Doctor You sat on the chair anxiously. The county magistrate leaned out of the door and looked around before returning and closing the door.
The county magistrate, Jiao Yong, was about sixty years old and had been transferred here from Anzhou twenty-five years ago. He had held the position until now, having neither been promoted nor demoted. Even the Second Prince's rebellion, when the empire was in turmoil, had no impact on him. Local residents privately remarked that Master Jiao was a portly man with no ambitions and no desires, and that he would likely remain in office for the rest of his life.
Doctor You said, "Brother Jiao, I see that woman is quite agile. I'm afraid those idiots in your yamen won't be able to catch her."
Magistrate Jiao also found a chair and sat down. He said, "Let them catch her. Even if they can't catch her, at least scaring her away will be fine. You and I have guarded this place loyally for over twenty years. Now it's time to report to our master."
Doctor You's expression suddenly changed, and he whispered, "Brother Jiao, don't forget what the master once said. You can only wait for her order."
Magistrate Jiao glanced at him and said with some dissatisfaction, "Brother You, you are too useless. We are the master's most trusted subordinates. Look at me, I am at least a county magistrate, I have a sedan chair to go in and out, and people to serve me food and drink. And you, you are just a doctor in Daliang Village, and you haven't even found a wife. Most of your life has passed. Are you addicted to it?"
"Isn't this what the master ordered?" Doctor You said with his head held high. "The master has also treated me well. If she hadn't sent people to scare the Hua family away, I wouldn't be able to take over these two clinics."
Magistrate Jiao laughed and said, "Brother You, you don't understand. Do you think the master is such a kind person? When Shen Yuexi asked Doctor Hua to treat Xiao Zhuo's arrow wound, from what I know, the master was actually very unhappy."
Doctor You asked in surprise, "Did the master want to kill Xiao Zhuo at that time?"
"How could that be? No matter how unhappy she is, she will still let her son kill Xiao Zhuo with his own hands."
"It doesn't matter who kills me."
"Haha, Brother You, you've been a doctor for so long that you don't like to use your brain anymore," Magistrate Jiao leaned towards Doctor You. "If the master really wanted to kill Xiao Zhuo, she would have asked you to poison him while treating his arrow wound. But the master just wanted to prove that her son was better than Xiao Zhuo. People fight for their pride, and Buddha fights for his life."
Doctor You asked, "Master, do you harbor such deep resentment towards that person?"
"Look at what the master has done," Magistrate Jiao leaned back in his chair. "Doctor Hua has treated me several times. But if the master really wants to kill them, I will do it ruthlessly."
Doctor You said, "Forget it. Let's not talk about the past. Now someone is looking for Mu Zhongren. What should we do?"
"Brother You, you can't stay here any longer," County Magistrate Jiao said, closing his eyes. "Pack up and go to the capital to find your master."
Doctor You was stunned for a moment, then stood up and said, "How can I leave if my master doesn't let me go?"
County Magistrate Jiao chuckled, "You'll only cause more trouble if you stay. People already know you're related to Mu Zhongren, and there's no guarantee they won't get to the bottom of this. This matter can no longer be concealed. To be on the safe side, don't return to Baohe Hall. I'll give you two hundred taels of silver, and the horse is tied at the door. While it's still dark, go to the capital tonight and report this to your master. I'll take care of the rest."
As he spoke, County Magistrate Jiao reached into his sleeve and took out two silver notes with a face value of one hundred taels each and placed them on the table.
Doctor You didn't take the banknotes, but hesitated and said, "I'm afraid the master will be angry. You also know that the master can't tolerate anyone disobeying her orders."
Magistrate Jiao said, "Think carefully. Staying here will only do harm."
Doctor You shook his head repeatedly and said, "I won't leave. If that woman comes looking for me, I'll just insist that I don't know where Mu Zhongren is."
Magistrate Jiao stood up helplessly and said, "Well, you and I are both serving our master, and I can't boss you around. I'm going to urge my men to search for this woman. Until we catch her, you're going to hide here and don't go anywhere else."
Doctor You agreed, and Magistrate Jiao left.
It was late at night, and Doctor You was sitting alone in the room, looking at the banknotes on the table, recalling the time when he accompanied his master to the capital.
The master was only six years old at the time, visiting Beijing for the first time, and everything she saw was new to her. She and her sister were running at full speed ahead, while the servants hurriedly chased after them. Unexpectedly, just as the master had rushed out of the alley, they heard a horse neighing, followed by a boy's scream.
He learned the lesson that children must be watched closely; if you let go for a moment, something bad could happen.
They chased him out of the alley, hoping to show off their power by claiming they were servants of Duke Pei, but they discovered the boy who had fallen from his horse was actually the prince Xiao Man...
After the master was rescued by Xiao Ming, there was nothing unusual about him. He just kept admiring the Longhuan jade pendant all day long.
Duke Pei and his wife didn't care. They thought the master was still a little girl who just liked pretty jewelry. The master had once seriously told Duke Pei that she didn't want to marry someone like Xiao Man when she grew up, but Duke Pei just smiled and said that a marriage arranged since childhood couldn't be changed. Besides, what did a six-year-old girl know?
Three years later, on a trip, he followed his master as usual. His master stood on a high hill, holding the jade pendant, looking down at it, his thin body swaying in the wind.
After standing for a moment, the master turned around, his young face showing determination, as if he had made some important decision.
"You Bingjun, I have to ask you to do something. This is something only you and I know, and it will take a long time. You will remain anonymous from now on, and I will announce to the public that you fell off a cliff and died."
He is loyal to his master. If his master tells him to go east, he will never go west.
However, when he finished listening to his master's narration, he could hardly believe that this was something that a nine-year-old girl could come up with.
"Master, this matter is too big, and I am afraid I can't take it on." He admitted that he was not capable enough.
"It's okay. I'll arrange the money and people you need, and Jiao Yong will also help you," the master said calmly. "I've asked him to prepare for the imperial examination. Once he passes, I'll find a way to transfer him to Tongliao County to help you. You two are the people I trust the most. Don't let me down."
This sentence was simple, but it made him burst into tears of gratitude.
In his eyes, a word of recognition from his master was more precious than shining gold. This was also the reason why he could stay in Daliang Village for 26 years in obscurity.
Jiao Yong was right. If he stayed any longer, it would only do more harm than good. It would be most reasonable to report this matter to his master. Although he had violated his master's orders, he doubted his master would blame him for his loyalty.
He figured it all out, and immediately stood up, grabbed the banknotes, and slipped them into his pocket. His horse was tied outside, saddled and ready. He mounted it and slipped out of the county office through the back door.
It was late at night and there were few pedestrians on the streets of the county town. Only yamen runners holding torches were searching everywhere.
He walked like a thief all the way to the county gate. The gatekeeper had received orders from Magistrate Jiao and did not say a word when he saw him coming. He immediately opened the gate a crack to let him out.
Fearing to attract attention, he didn't light a torch and rode away in the darkness towards the capital. He was puzzled by the fact that, ever since leaving the city, his horse's hooves had felt heavy, as if it was carrying two people, and it ran a bit slowly.
He ran for a distance and stopped his horse by the roadside, intending to dismount and check to see if the horse's hoof was injured or something. He had just removed the stirrup and before he could lift his leg, someone pushed his shoulder and he fell off the horse with a thud.
He was old and not as strong as he was in his youth. The fall made him dizzy and almost fainted.
He propped himself up with trembling hands and opened his eyes, only to see a long streak of bright light shining under his nose. However, it was not gold, but the cold sharp blade of a long sword.
He was shocked and just as he was about to open his mouth to cry for help, the tip of the sword was thrust into his mouth. He had no choice but to raise his hands in surrender.
As a former guard, he hadn't wielded a weapon in twenty-six years, and his skills were already rusty. But he still had a keen eye. The black-clad woman before him wielded the longsword with the most steadiness he had ever seen. The sharp tip of the sword pressed against his tongue, the cold blade pressed against his teeth, yet it didn't cut his mouth at all.
"If you dare to shout," the woman in black said coldly, "I will move my sword three inches further. Do you understand?"
The woman in front of him was the one who came to the clinic to look for him. It turned out that after he left the city, this woman quietly got on his horse. No wonder the horse was running so hard.
He wanted to nod to show that he understood, but the sword couldn't interrupt, so he could only hold up a finger to show that he understood.
The woman in black nodded: "Very good, where is Mu Zhongren?"
Doctor You wanted to shake his head, but if he did, the blade would slice his mouth open. He could only raise a finger and shake again.
"It was you who brought the news to Madam Lin. How could you not know?" The woman in black raised her eyebrows and thrust out the tip of her sword.
Doctor You felt a sharp pain in his throat, as if pricked by a small steel needle. He dared not move, but his upper and lower teeth began to chatter, knocking against the sword's spine with a tinkling sound, like two little blacksmiths hammering away.
The woman in black seemed a little impatient and was about to ask again when the sound of horse hooves could be heard faintly in the distance.
Doctor You didn't dare turn his head, but just turned his eyes in the direction of the horse's hooves sound. Soon, he saw two horses galloping towards him. The riders were not very clear in the darkness, but from their figures, they seemed to be two women.
"Whoa!" The leading woman ran forward and pulled the reins, "Sister Ji, we're coming."
Doctor You felt the voice was familiar, and when he looked in the moonlight, he saw that it was Shen Yuexi.
I had always thought it was just a nosy woman who came to stand up for Madam Lin, even making up a lie in her mind, but I didn't expect it to be Shen Yuexi who came to mess things up herself. Seriously, she's pregnant, and she came all the way from Shengjing to stand up for a commoner?
He vaguely felt that something was wrong and that this matter might not be that simple.
Shen Yuexi walked over with a smile and waved: "Doctor You, long time no see. You have to tell the truth, otherwise I will be angry."
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