Chapter 106 The Long Night (3) If you won't sew it up for him, am I supposed to...?
Mr. Wei and Li Fanniang, the old man and the young woman, were still arguing about today's wedding. Mr. Wei was full of resentment about the fact that the bride's father's position at the wedding had been inexplicably replaced, and he kept nagging about it.
"Anyway, the chestnuts have been scattered, and I'm famous now. Everyone in the world knows that Master Duan can enter and leave the heavily guarded Hanjiacang as if it were empty! Don't mock me here. If it weren't for saving your son-in-law, I would have escaped long ago!" Duan Zhixuan suddenly gained strength, and his voice was loud, startling the other three.
"I don't care if Zhang Liang lives or dies! If you keep yelling, Zhang Liang will be number one among the people I want to kill, you'll be number two, and Li Shimin will be number three!" Mr. Wei roared angrily, then asked suspiciously, "Were you just screaming like a madman? You shouldn't be able to scream after losing so much blood. Gao Xiaojing, tie him up tighter, the drug has taken effect..."
"Don't tie me up!" Duan Zhixuan struggled wildly as he was restrained.
"Mr. Wei, don't joke with us. Madam Li, come and help us quickly." Changsun Qingjing beckoned to the other two to help him tie Duan Zhixuan up so he couldn't move. "Don't move, or the bleeding won't stop!"
"I treated you like a brother, and you actually conspired with that old scoundrel to scheme against me!" Duan Zhixuan suddenly shouted in a desperate and shrill voice.
“You’ve drunk the datura wine, so it’s understandable that you’re delirious. I won’t hold it against you.” Changsun Qingjing tied his arms to his torso.
"Hmm, of you four bastards, only Gao Xiaojing is somewhat human." Mr. Wei found a plank and tied Duan Zhixuan's legs to it, mockingly saying, "The other three scoundrels didn't consider Fan Niang's life or death at all when they were planning to run away tonight. It was only thanks to Gao Xiaojing's reminder that the other three little brats remembered to properly take care of Fan Niang... I was so angry when I heard this in the woods that I originally planned to dig a hole and bury you one by one, then take Fan Niang home and remarry. But when I heard that you bunch of brats finally came up with a good idea to hide Fan Niang and her mother and younger brother, I changed my mind. The other three bastards are still alive today thanks to Young Master Gao's righteousness!"
Mr. Wei's enthusiastic praise of Changsun Qingjing always made her feel uneasy. Perhaps, as the rumors suggested, the old man really did have some ulterior motive hidden behind it.
“Mr. Wei…” She was somewhat apprehensive, hesitant to accept this forced praise.
A fierce wind was howling outside. Changsun Qingjing hurriedly ran to the window. The shadows of the trees outside were menacing, and the branches had a strange reflection, as if someone was hanging there and swaying.
She didn't scream, but felt utterly exhausted and saw hallucinations, so she quickly closed the window.
"Fan Niang, quickly go to the Lianzhi Lantern, heat the silver needle again, and thread the mulberry bark thread."
Duan Zhixuan's scalp tightened at the sound, his tongue becoming slightly sluggish as the datura wine began to take effect: "You old bastard, you better sew it up properly! Otherwise..."
"What else do you want? Kill me?" Mr. Wei mocked the impetuous and arrogant young man in an exaggerated tone.
"Shut up!" Changsun Qingjing wished she could stuff Duan Zhixuan's mouth with tattered cotton.
"What!" The three young men exclaimed in disbelief.
Changsun Qingjing felt that although the old man was joking, what he said was indeed irrefutable, so he braced himself and pretended to be calm, saying, "Alright!"
Duan Zhixuan let out a scream: "Gao Xiaojing, when was the last time you mended your own clothes?"
"Did you sew it securely?"
"certainly!"
"Alright, you have a steady hand. Let me chant a few prayers for Guanyin before you start." Duan Zhixuan encouraged both the person about to have their needles inserted and the person about to have their needles inserted.
"Then recite it a few more times." Changsun Qingjing looked up at the non-existent "Guanyin," then looked down at Duan Zhixuan and winked, pretending to be calm as she smiled.
“Not bad.” Changsun Qingjing mustered his courage and agreed, taking the silver needles from Li Fanniang’s hands.
"Alright, we know the datura wine is working for you." Mr. Wei stepped forward and pressed Duan Zhixuan down. "You're still in pain when we insert the needle and tie the knot. I'll find a piece of silk to block it..."
"Don't you dare shut me up!" Duan Zhixuan protested in a muffled voice. "I can clearly take it, but that old scoundrel comes up with some vicious and wicked ideas to humiliate me!"
Changsun Qingjing suppressed her trembling and fainting reactions, and following the mark that Mr. Wei's finger had drawn in the air above the wound, she used a silver needle to pierce one end of Duan Zhixuan's wound.
Large beads of sweat appeared on Changsun Qingjing's forehead. Duan Zhixuan's ferocious face as he endured the pain made her realize how terrible her medical skills were!
Li Fanniang held a candlestick in one hand and wiped away her sweat with the other.
"Zhixuan, does it hurt?" Changsun Qingjing prepared to administer the second needle.
"I can endure it," Duan Zhixuan said through gritted teeth, trembling. "I have a Buddha statue hanging over my head; she told me Gao Xiaojing is reliable!"
"Please thank her for my kindness."
“Young Master Gao, sew upwards stitch by stitch, making sure the stitches are close together. Fan Niang, keep the lamp lit and don't look anywhere else, especially at the window where the shadows of the trees are. They look like this in the middle of the night when the wind blows, there's nothing to see. Both of you, keep your hands steady. Hold Duan Zhixuan down when he tries not to tremble, so you don't poke the wrong spot. I'm going to find some Scutellaria baicalensis and honey ointment. Don't pay attention to any noise you hear.” A faint smile seemed to appear on his face. “I underestimated him. This kid has the makings of a general.”
Although he was supposed to be looking for Scutellaria baicalensis and honey paste, Changsun Qingjing clearly caught a glimpse of Mr. Wei leaving the thatched hut with a knife in his peripheral vision.
She didn't have time to think about anything else; she held her breath and continued stitching upwards, finally gradually closing the wound.
"Zhixuan, Zhixuan!" She looked at Duan Zhixuan, whose face was contorted in pain, "If the pain is unbearable..."
"It's alright, the Bodhisattva is still protecting me from the beam."
"The last two knots..."
There was a loud "thud," as if something heavy had fallen outside. Remembering Mr. Wei's instructions, Li Fanniang held the candlestick steadily, undisturbed by anything outside.
"Alright." Changsun Qingjing threw down the needle and thread, knelt on the ground, her hands trembling.
A hand slowly moved from the couch to her eyes, groped for her shoulder, and gently patted her: "Thank you... The Bodhisattva is gone. She said that if I survive this time, I will be granted a title and a good family in the future."
“Of course. Someone as righteous as you shouldn’t have died so young.” Changsun Qingjing rubbed his eyes and put the cold hand back in its place. “Don’t move around, it will aggravate the wound.”
The sound of Li Fanniang sobbing came from beside her.
It was unclear how long the effects of the datura would last; the candlelight illuminated the patient's pale face.
"I knew Young Master Gao would handle things properly..." A strong smell of blood wafted over as Mr. Wei approached the group with a scutellaria and honey ointment in hand, instructing Li Fanniang to clean the stitched wound with strong liquor and then apply the ointment.
"He won't die, right?" Li Fanniang asked helplessly.
Mr. Wei's lips trembled slightly: "Fan Niang, I'm not sure. With a wound like this, the chances of life or death are fifty-fifty."
"But you clearly promised him he wouldn't die," Li Fanniang pressed. "Are you kidding him?"
“I’m afraid the other two boys will do something mad if they hear he’s going to die, which would be detrimental to his treatment,” Mr. Wei sighed. “Fan Niang, you don’t want Zhang Liang to get back into trouble after just escaping death, do you? Young Master Duan is young, he can handle it. Stop crying, it’s no use crying, we’ll know whether he lives or dies tomorrow morning.”
"Xiaojing, talk to me..." Duan Zhixuan's voice was barely audible, his courage and the strength gathered by the datura wine almost completely exhausted. His hand groped in the air, as if searching for someone to whom he could entrust his last words.
Author's Note: Fishbone: It's fair to say that A-Jing single-handedly rescued Xiao-Duan from the jaws of death. [Sunglasses]
Senior Brother: With my junior sister's needlework skills, do you believe that Xiao Duan was saved by her or that I am the King of Hell's favorite son?
Erfeng: What is the Red-Crowned Old Shu Yan?
Senior Brother: Old White Goose.
Erfeng: What do you mean?
Senior Brother: It means we must first kill the blond guy, then randomly kill you or the chatterbox!
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