Chapter 90 Scalpel
In the warm room of Chengxin Hall, the warmth of Chenshuixiang was almost drowned out by the increasingly howling sound of wind and snow outside the window.
The emperor casually threw Pei Ji's secret letter back into the rosewood tray without even looking at it.
He leaned back on the soft white tiger skin pillow, tapped lightly with his fingertips on the smooth rosewood armrest, and turned his deep eyes to Ying Shuo who was still kneeling on the ground.
"Pei Ji... was drugged," the emperor said, his voice unremarkable, as if discussing a trivial matter. "Have you found out who was responsible?"
Ying Shuo lowered his head, a drop of sweat quietly sliding down his temples. He didn't dare wipe it away. "Your Majesty, our subordinates are still accelerating the investigation. The 'Midara Flower' is not from the Middle-earth, and its origin is mysterious. They even mixed it into the tea given to Lord Pei. The method is very sophisticated. The clues are not clear at the moment, so I dare not make any rash conclusions."
"Oh."
Unexpectedly, the emperor sitting high on the throne did not show any anger at all. Instead, he let out a very light but meaningful laugh from the depths of his throat.
"No hurry." The emperor's tone was even tinged with a hint of joy. "This person always brings me some unexpected surprises."
His gaze was far-reaching, as if it had penetrated the thick palace walls and landed somewhere.
"Every time I review a secret report, why can't I help but turn to his first? It's because of this kid's matter." The curve of his lips deepened a little, "There are always a few more surprises."
Ying Shuo's back stiffened for a moment as he lay prone on the ground. The weight of these words weighed more than a thousand pounds.
The emperor's gaze finally withdrew from the void and fell on the densely folded folders.
He stretched out his well-maintained hands and accurately picked out another one.
This document was obviously different from the others; the wax used to seal it was a kind of cinnabar with a dark gold tinge. His fingertips traced the seal.
"Look at Prince Jin." The emperor's tone returned to normal. He opened the letter and glanced quickly over it.
For a moment, the only sound in Chengxin Hall was the faint rustling of pages turning.
After a few breaths, the emperor closed the memorial.
At that moment, an extremely complex light seemed to flash across his deep eyes.
"Hmm..." A deep, murmured voice rang out from the emperor's throat, and the corners of his lips curled up again, "This son of mine is quite cruel, and his methods are truly dirty."
"This tone and demeanor..." He paused, as if searching for the right words, and finally uttered half a sentence with a half-smile, "It's more like me back then."
The words sounded so light, but when they fell into Ying Shuo's ears, they were like thunder out of the blue.
The emperor's mind is as deep as the abyss of the sea. He dared not think deeply about such an evaluation of his own son.
"Heh." The emperor seemed pleased by his frightened reaction, but also seemed to be just immersed in his own thoughts.
He threw away the secret letter from King Jin, relaxed his body again, leaned back into the large and comfortable rocking chair, rocked with a slight creaking sound, closed his eyes, and spoke in a leisurely tone.
"This...is becoming more and more interesting."
There was a moment of silence, broken only by the soft rustle of the rocking chair and the subtle crackling of the spices burning in the stove.
The emperor slowly opened his eyes and looked at the window frames outside the warm room that were beating against the wind and snow. Outside was the thick and impenetrable darkness.
His voice was extremely low, almost like he was talking to himself, but it echoed in the empty hall:
"Then take a good look."
Ying Shuo didn't move, like a solidified stone statue.
…
The west warm room in Zhuoming Pavilion.
The windows were tightly closed, and the thick cotton curtains blocked out the howling wind and snow outside.
A pot of charcoal fire burned quietly in the middle of the room, emitting warm warmth.
The candlelight flickered, casting several human figures on the plain wall.
Pei Ji was half leaning on a thickly cushioned Arhat couch. His face was still pale and his lips were pale, but his spirit was much better than when he was tortured by the foul drugs during the day.
He was covered with a thin blanket, and his exposed hands were unconsciously playing with a warm jade pendant - it was left to him by Old Chu.
Ling Ji, Jing Chen, and Jiang Xi stood quietly with their hands hanging not far from the couch.
Mr. Chu had already gone to bed.
"Young Master," Ling Ji's voice was low and steady, breaking the silence of the warm room, "As you instructed, several of my subordinates were at the designated location deep in the winter plum forest, and indeed, they encountered the spies sent by Prince Rui's Mansion. Their whereabouts are extremely secretive, and their martial arts style seems to be quite impressive. Two of them have arrived."
Pei Ji's eyelashes moved slightly, but he didn't interrupt, indicating that he should continue.
"Our subordinates acted quickly and subdued them without causing any major disturbance." Ling Ji's tone was slightly grave. "However, those two were very stubborn. After some conventional interrogation, they insisted that Prince Rui was worried about the young master's health and was afraid that some scoundrels would disturb him, so he sent them to protect him secretly."
Guard? A faint, cold arc crossed Pei Ji's lips.
What a good "guard".
"Didn't you find out anything new?" His voice was a little hoarse from his illness.
"It's my subordinates' incompetence!" Ling Ji said immediately, "Physical pain is useless to them, and if we really try to pry them open, we're afraid of leaving traces that will give King Rui an excuse." The implication was that the person had been captured, but it was just a formality and the expected value could not be squeezed out.
Pei Ji slowly closed his eyes, as if the light in the room was a bit dazzling. "It's just bait to muddy the water. I asked you to 'wait' for them so that I can tell some people that I know they are moving, and I also know who is moving."
He said softly, "It's not a big deal if I can't get a confession."
Ling Ji's eyes flashed, and he understood: what the young master wanted was the "I captured Prince Rui's men" action itself.
This action is a signal, an attitude.
Prince Rui's palace sent spies, but Pei Ji dared to counter-attack and alert the enemy, and the target was Prince Rui, the big snake.
As for whether the snake would change its tactics, restrain itself, or even counterattack, the young master must have already planned the follow-up measures.
He hesitated for a moment, then added, "There's one more thing. When I captured the first spy, I seemed to catch a glimpse of a fainter figure flickering in the darkness in the other direction. It was incredibly fast, and it felt extraordinary. I wanted to rush over to investigate, but by then another spy from King Rui had already approached from the other side, near the path you had taken that day. Concerned about your predicament, I didn't dare take any risks. I immediately gathered my men and, according to our established strategy, relocated the captured spy to ensure their safe evacuation. Therefore, I never investigated the shadow."
Pei Ji suddenly opened his eyes.
His sharp gaze lingered on Ling Ji's face for a moment, as if he wanted to see the scene at that time through the scene he described.
Then, a hint of understanding flashed across the depths of his slender eyes, even with a hint of mockery.
"They don't have to worry." He only said a few words, but his tone was clear.
Ling Ji understood the "they" he mentioned. Who else could it be? Who else could it be, other than the Supreme Being sitting in the Chengxin Hall, who would have arranged such a master to spy on him in this palace?
It seems that the young master had already expected that person would send someone!
Today, King Rui's men rushed to the front and became an open target, but by accident they covered up the actions in the dark.
Once Prince Rui's men started making a fuss, the spies from the Tianji Camp would naturally hide or even retreat in order to avoid exposing their identities and getting involved in the conflict.
By accident, he had actually made the situation even more muddy. This muddy situation, at the moment, seemed to be working in his favor.
Pei Ji rubbed his brows tiredly: "Let's all go and rest. Get enough rest and follow me back to the Changning Marquis' Mansion tomorrow."
"Yes!" Ling Ji and Jing Chen responded, clasped their fists and bowed, preparing to retreat.
"Sir, I'll stay and keep watch!" Jiang Xi, who had been silent the whole time, suddenly spoke up. He took a step forward and looked at Pei Ji eagerly, his face showing a hint of worry and eagerness. "You're not fully recovered yet."
Pei Ji looked at Jiang Xi, the boy's clear eyes were filled with stubborn worry and loyalty.
Although this little fellow is young, he is the one chosen by Master Chu himself. He has a good understanding and is very loyal.
"No need for night watch." Pei Ji's tone softened a little, "There are guards taking turns outside the pavilion. But..."
He looked at Jiang Xi's serious face and changed the subject, "Do you still remember those things I asked you to memorize last year, that set of first aid techniques?"
When this was mentioned, Jiang Xi's eyes lit up instantly.
He nodded vigorously like a chicken pecking at rice: "I remember! I remember it very clearly! According to the young master's instructions, I also taught it to Brother Ling, Brother Jingchen and others!" He gestured excitedly and repeated quickly, "The 'Hei's compression method' for stopping heavy bleeding from external injuries, the boiling water and wine washing method for cleaning wounds, the use of a hard board to fix fractures and not to move the joints, and don't apply anything to burns! And... if the heart stops beating, you have to hit the heart hard and do that... that..."
Jiang Xi scratched his head, unable to remember Pei Ji's strange choice of words.
"Cardiopulmonary resuscitation." Pei Ji added helplessly.
"Right, right, right! CPR!" Jiang Xi's face flushed with excitement. "What the young master taught me is amazing! Brother Ling and the others all said it's great! It's much better than ordinary bandages with gold medicine! It's a little scary, though. If you really hit someone's heart that way, it feels like you could break bones."
"That's an emergency life-saving method," Pei Ji emphasized. "Don't use it unless you're in a desperate situation. If you don't have enough strength or use it in the wrong place, it can really kill someone. Just remember it. It can save a life at a critical moment."
Jiang Xi was even happier after receiving the young master's affirmation. As if eager to show off, he lowered his voice and said, "Young master, there's one more thing! Those knives you drew last time. Yes, those thin, narrow, strange-looking scimitars marked on the picture. I secretly found the most powerful blacksmith outside the city, Old Liu!"
He carefully took out two folded papers from his arms. The edges of the papers were a little rough, obviously they were read frequently.
His face was filled with a mixture of pride and mystery. "According to your drawing, I revised it seven or eight times. Old Liu used all of his best wrought iron! Finally, I managed to create three of them!"
He unfolded the paper as if presenting a treasure. "Look, this is what the finished product will look like. He made a copy of it in full size. Take a look!"
Three knives of peculiar shapes were depicted on the paper in a crooked but extremely detailed manner: one had an extremely slender and sharp tip like a needle, one had a blade curved like a willow leaf but so thin that it was almost transparent, and the other was slender and straight, with a thick back and a thin blade.
Pei Ji's gaze fell on the copies of the pictures, and a strange light flashed across his slender eyes.
He watched silently for half a cup of tea.
Jiang Xi looked at him eagerly, somewhat puzzled. "Young Master? What do you call this sword? Now that it's sharpened, how do you use it? I saw Old Liu practicing with it for a long time, but he still couldn't figure out how to use this unique weapon."
Pei Ji finally raised his eyes and looked at Jiang Xi, who looked eager but confused. He sighed silently, "That's not a Qimen weapon. This thing is called a 'scalpel'."
"Surgical...knife?" Jiang Xi repeated this unfamiliar word he had never heard of before in a daze.
"Yeah." Pei Ji's gaze returned to the drawings, his eyes distant and deep, as if he saw another bizarre world through the cold paper.
"That's a far-fetched idea. It's a tool specifically designed to cut open flesh, treat internal injuries, remove foreign objects, and repair broken organs."
Jiang Xi took a deep breath when he heard this.
Cutting open the flesh? Processing the body? Taking something out? This... sounds even more terrifying than just stabbing someone with a sword!
It's like a ghost story!
Looking at Jiang Xi's instantly pale face and wide-open eyes, Pei Ji knew that this was beyond the boy's cognitive limit at the moment.
He put away the unusual emotion in his eyes and returned to his usual calm demeanor. "There's no rush now. Just keep it after you've printed it out. The other half of the pattern is more intricate, and I'll explain it to you in detail later. There's no need to print any more for Old Liu, either."
He emphasized the last sentence, as if to emphasize, or perhaps to himself, "This 'surgery' is a thousand times more difficult than you imagine. Without the right environment, the right materials, and strict aseptic handling procedures, forcing the operation is like killing someone with a sharp weapon. Let's talk about this later."
Jiang Xi seemed to understand, but not quite. Although he thought the "scalpel" sounded magical and scary, he took whatever the young master said as his own.
He nodded vigorously and put the drawings away carefully.
Pei Ji waved his hand. Ling Ji and Jing Chen had already quietly retreated.
The candlelight flickered in the warm room, and the charcoal basin quietly emitted a peaceful warmth, blocking out the increasingly howling sound of wind and snow outside the window.
Pei Ji's face was still pale from his illness. He leaned on the soft pillow with his eyes slightly closed, his knuckles tapping unconsciously on the edge of the couch.
Jiang Xi stood a few steps away with his hands hanging down. His brows were twisted into knots on his pretty face. His eyes were glued to Pei Ji's face, and his worry was about to overflow: "Master, you still don't look good. You just recovered a little. Stop wasting your energy and rest quickly! If there is anything, we can talk in the morning!"
The boy's voice was low and filled with undisguised anxiety.
Pei Ji's fingertips paused, and he opened his eyes and looked at the youngest guard.
He didn't insist, but nodded slightly, his tone gentle: "Okay, I understand. Tomorrow morning, go tell Lai Fu to put aside the things he's doing and make sure to return to the Changning Earl's Mansion within the next two days."
"Ah? Brother Lai Fu?" Jiang Xi was stunned and almost blurted out, "You asked Brother Ling, Brother Jingchen, and me to come together. Now you want to call Brother Lai Fu back as well?"
He counted on his fingers, his eyes widening in surprise, "Are all four of us here? This..."
The four close bodyguards around the young master each have their own duties. In normal major events, only one or two people are mobilized, and it is very rare that all of them are recalled like this.
Jiang Xi's heart instantly rose, and his face tensed, "Master! Is there something important that needs to be done..."
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