Chapter 39 Blood Hibiscus: Tang Yu
Unless... you spit them all out.
Tang Yu put her hand on his shoulder and gently pressed Xie Xingzheng, who was trying to get up, back down. Then she turned around, placed a clean cloth on the side, and spread out the rolled-up fabric.
As she prepared the acupuncture needles, she told him about her morning visit to the palace.
Upon hearing that she had been invited to the Tianhua Hall by the Celestial Master, Xie Xingzheng was visibly stunned for a moment, his tone tinged with surprise: "There are many charlatans in the world who claim to understand destiny and reason, but most of them are frauds. Very few can truly hear the will of Heaven and obey its commands. The Celestial Master is one of them, yet you only ask me?"
Tang Yu: "What? You trust him a lot?"
As if thinking of something, a trace of sorrow appeared between Xie Xingzheng's brows: "Whether you believe it or not, you still need some comfort."
Years ago, when the Xie family went to war in the north, the Celestial Master bestowed upon them a brocade pouch, which mysteriously saved the eldest brother's life. Although his legs were crippled, he ultimately survived.
So whether he believed it or not, he always held it in high esteem.
Tang Yu raised the corners of her lips slightly and teased, "Is it because he's too beautiful, unlike any ordinary person?"
Xie Xingzheng shook his head slightly.
While such an ethereal appearance certainly makes it easy to gain people's trust...
"You look good too."
At that moment, a light, airy voice drifted into Xie Xingzheng's ears, causing his heart to skip a beat. But the darkness before him, coupled with the temporary loss of his internal energy, made him certain that it was a hallucination.
Just as he was convincing himself that he had misheard, Tang Yu, the instigator, was smiling at him, looking into his slightly confused and unfocused eyes.
His eyes were very beautiful, something Tang Yu knew from their first meeting.
If the Heavenly Master's shallow eyes were as clear and clean as a bottomless lake, beautiful beyond compare, then Xie Xingzheng's eyes were the other extreme.
His pupils were as black and shiny as obsidian, as deep and unfathomable as an abyss, seemingly possessing an alluring magic that made it impossible to look away. Even when they were empty and listless, they only added to his bewitching mystery.
Therefore, he is also good-looking.
Tang Yu withdrew her gaze. The needles were already prepared. She spoke softly, "General, please take off your shirt."
"What are you doing?" Xie Xingzheng's breath hitched, and a strange tension welled up in his heart.
A wicked thought arose in Tang Yu's mind, and she leaned close to his ear: "Of course, I'll give you acupuncture."
The warm breath and whispered words made the battle-hardened, fearless young general instinctively back away.
After hesitating for a moment, he finally took off his clothes.
Due to poisoning, his face was somewhat pale and weak. However, against his wheat-colored skin, his clearly defined muscles, along with his broad shoulders and narrow waist, gave him a proportion that was not at all clumsy like a martial artist, but rather just right.
Even though his body is covered with dark scars from old swords, it adds a kind of broken beauty.
Tang Yu's soft fingertips had just touched his shoulder when she noticed his muscles tense up instantly. She found it amusing and deliberately increased the pressure of her fingertips, poking him: "General Xie, relax a bit, or the needle won't go in."
Upon hearing this, he stiffened at first, but eventually forced himself to relax. However, his slightly clenched knuckles betrayed his tension.
Her fingertips searched for the acupuncture points, and the sharp silver needle pierced the skin, immediately drawing out beads of dark blood, demonstrating the severity of the poison. Tang Yu's movements, however, were not as swift as before, as her attention was drawn to the crisscrossing wounds.
The wounds were so numerous and varied, some deep, some shallow, some long, some short, that it was hard to imagine that they belonged to a young boy.
She couldn't help but gently touch the still-fresh scar. It was a cut she had sustained not long ago when she was chasing the "human-faced dog" and trying to save herself and her child from being hit by a rock; it hadn't completely healed yet.
When Xie Xingzheng was stroked by those soft fingertips, he felt a strange tingling sensation that almost made him tense up again, but he was worried about affecting the acupuncture, so he endured it.
Tang Yu, being quite perceptive, withdrew her hand and continued administering acupuncture. "How come you have so many injuries?"
"Most of them are old battlefield wounds, and the rest are unavoidable in ordinary cases." He spoke in a light tone, as if he were describing something that had nothing to do with him.
"Ordinary? Like jumping into a pool of blood?"
Tang Yu's sudden question startled him, and he couldn't answer for a moment.
Actually, he couldn't figure it out either.
Clearly, there were still enemies outside the blood pool to be dealt with; clearly, there were safer ways to save people; clearly, he shouldn't have ended up in such a sorry state. But back then, he chose the stupidest, yet fastest, option.
He attributed it to his own impatience and lack of consideration.
Before the topic could be continued, there was a knock on the door, accompanied by a cold female voice: "The medicine pool is ready. Has Young Master Su finished administering the acupuncture?"
As the last needle was inserted, Tang Yu stopped with satisfaction, a faint smile playing on her lips.
*
The room was filled with a strong medicinal smell, which made people feel suffocated.
Behind layers of curtains, one could faintly hear deliberately suppressed breathing. Xie Xingzheng was immersed in the medicinal liquid; the poisonous blood seeping from the acupuncture points spread in the water, while the medicinal properties penetrated his meridians, causing a burning pain throughout his body. Every breath, every subtle movement, felt like his flesh was being torn apart. If not for his strong will, he would likely have struggled to remain conscious without the support of his internal energy.
Outside the curtain, Tang Yu was deliberately talking to him, trying to distract him, but he was too preoccupied with his pain to pay attention.
Even so, he still clearly remembered one sentence.
"My name is Tang Yu, Tang as in Tang Clan, and Yu as in rain."
By the time Xie Xingzheng finally emerged from the medicinal pool, removed the silver needles from his body, and changed into dry clothes, it was nearly dusk. Even though he couldn't see, he could still discern the temperature difference in the air.
Tang Yu gently applied the prepared ointment to his eyes. The cooling sensation seeped in, a world of difference compared to the potent effects of the medicine earlier.
"The eyes are extremely delicate and sensitive, and can only be treated with gentle medicine and wet compresses every day." Tang Yu explained as she loosely wrapped a bandage around his eyes. "Otherwise, he will really go blind in less than half a month, before we even return to the Tang Clan. After all, I have a younger brother at home who is chronically ill and waiting for medical treatment, so your eyes will have to take a backseat."
Xie Xingzheng: "So, the medicine you stole from the Xia Nan Prince's Mansion and Wangyuan Escort Agency was for your brother's medical treatment?"
"What, now you want to interrogate me?" Tang Yu finished bandaging the bandage and finally had some free time. Her expression lightened, and she began to deliberately misinterpret his meaning.
Xie Xingzheng explained, "If the blood hibiscus petals bestowed by His Majesty can indeed cure all poisons, then those stolen and unjust things should be returned. After all, they were stolen."
“But the uses of Blood Hibiscus are unclear, only mentioned in a few words.” Tang Yu curled her lips, her tone tinged with distress: “If I’m unwilling to return those medicinal herbs, will General Xie imprison me?”
Before Xie Xingzheng could answer, Wang Shanyue rushed in, carrying a bowl of medicinal soup.
He smiled and handed over the medicine, saying, "I've been brewing this all afternoon!"
Tang Yu glanced at the bowl of dark medicine, pulled Xie Xingzheng's hand to the rim of the bowl, and chuckled, "You should listen to the doctor and drink the medicine."
Without a second thought, Xie Xingzheng brought the medicine to his lips and drank it all in one gulp. But as the liquid entered his throat, he felt a little dazed: "Why is it so sweet?"
Tang Yu replied matter-of-factly, "Of course it contains rock sugar."
"Rock candy?" Xie Xingzheng asked, puzzled.
Tang Yu answered matter-of-factly, "Of course we add sugar. In our family, it's always seven parts sugar and three parts medicine. After all... nobody likes drinking bitter medicine, right?"
Xie Xingzheng was momentarily stunned upon hearing this.
Nobody likes drinking bitter medicine...
People often say that good medicine tastes bitter, and they often advise that if the medicine tastes bitter, you should just bear with it and swallow it.
He had always thought so. That's why, when he discovered the medicine was sweet, he felt a strange, indescribable feeling well up inside him.
Before he could even begin to explore the stirrings in his heart, Tang Yu had already taken the bowl of medicine from his hands. She then leaned close to his ear with a smile and said, "Oh dear, General Xie. Now that all the stolen goods have gone into your stomach, even if you arrest me, you can't return them."
She raised an eyebrow and added with a smile, "Unless... you spit them all out."
Xie Xingzheng finally couldn't help but laugh.
At that moment, all the unease caused by poisoning and blindness faded away, leaving only a faint smile in my heart.
*
Late at night, at the Xiao Family Ancestral Hall.
The ancestral tablets were enshrined in countless oil lamps, which illuminated the bluestone floor with a cold, shimmering light, but brought no warmth whatsoever.
Xiao Fangliang knelt on the prayer mat, looking up at the ancestral tablets of his clan, his heart unmoved, let alone filled with remorse.
As a child, he couldn't understand why his father was so strict with him, when those self-proclaimed outstanding young men were neither as smart nor as hardworking as him.
Despite being so good, I never receive praise, and if I slack off even slightly, I will be punished.
Before meeting Wang Shanyue, although he felt sad and wronged, he didn't think his father had done anything wrong. He believed that he was not good enough, so he had to work harder. After all, he was a member of the Xiao family and was destined for a career in government, which meant he was destined for greatness.
So when he first met Wang Shanyue, he felt a sense of disdain. How could someone so stupid be in the same school as him?
He is also ignorant, unambitious, and unruly!
He should be driving me crazy, but no matter how mature he pretends to be, he's still a child at heart. Whenever that person excitedly talks about catching fish and teasing birds, he can't help but prick up his ears, and he can't concentrate on his book at all.
The pages turned before his eyes, but all he felt in his heart was:
That's really interesting.
That was the first time he had ever felt curious about the world outside of studying for a government job.
Later, as he grew older, Wang Shanyue began accompanying his father on escort missions, and he was told about the customs and culture outside of Zhongjing. And he began to genuinely yearn for the outside world.
He wanted to see the world of martial arts, free from literary rules and regulations; he wanted to witness the unbridled joy of eating meat and drinking wine, singing to his heart's content, in the borderlands.
Rather than the predictable path of officialdom.
He gradually realized that his father wasn't always right. He himself might be excellent, but that "idiot" who couldn't even memorize a book wasn't entirely useless either.
Moreover, that "idiot" can't function without his brain.
So when Wang Shanyue was about to escort goods to the southern border alone, he asked his father to let him go with him. It seemed to be for Wang Shanyue's sake, but in reality, it was because he couldn't give up his longing for the world outside Zhongjing.
He recorded everything during his trip to southern Xinjiang, making it a precious treasure that he may only have once in his life.
"A-Liang." A guilty voice sounded from behind.
Xiao Fangliang's sadness vanished instantly. He raised his eyes and coldly glanced at Wang Shanyue, who was sneaking over.
Wang Shanyue lowered his voice: "His Majesty ordered Brother Su to go to the Tang Clan to unpack a box and treat my senior brother's poison. So I will be going to Sichuan with him tomorrow morning."
Xiao Fangliang remained expressionless and coldly uttered three words: "Understood."
The other person scratched their head, hesitated for a moment, and then cautiously asked, "So... do you want to come with us?"
His heart skipped a beat, and he asked, "How can I travel with you?"
Wang Shanyue's eyes sparkled. "Time is of the essence. We'll leave tomorrow morning. If you want to go, I'll take you out right now. By the time your father finds out tomorrow, it will be too late to catch up."
...My heart fluttered.
So, by the time Xiao Fangliang realized what was happening, he had already followed her to the backyard of the Xiao residence.
There was a section of wall that was lower than the others, so Wang Shanyue brought a ladder and carefully laid a clean silk cloth on top of the wall before holding onto the ladder and letting him climb up.
Then, Wang Shanyue leaped over the wall and stood outside, looking up at A Liang sitting on it. Moonlight shone on his face, making him look like a painting.
"Ah Liang, jump down, I'll catch you."
Xiao Fangliang looked down at Wang Shanyue, who had a simple and honest smile and opened his arms to him.
Suddenly, I remembered the first time I sneaked off to the Lantern Festival when I was a child. My family never allowed me to go to such places, saying that such entertainment would corrupt my mind.
That night, just like tonight, Xiao Shanyue brought a ladder for Xiao Aliang, frantically trying to help him slip away. The small figure with outstretched arms back then overlaps with the tall and upright figure of the young man today.
It looked particularly dazzling in the night.
He smiled and said with relief, "Then catch me carefully, but don't drop me like you did when we were kids."
Wang Shanyue smiled even more broadly and lowered his voice to assure her, "Don't worry, I'll definitely catch it."
The lights in the ancestral hall remained on, and he leaped out into the night.
[Author's Note]
Tang Yu (serious face): Xie Xingzheng is the best looking!
Author Ququ: Some people are really blinded and can't see who the adjectives are piling up on :)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com