Chapter 27 Evasion
To say he knocked her unconscious wouldn't be quite right.
Cen Yan was already very weak. If he were to be hit on the head again, Zhuang Dongqing feared that he might not be killed by the enemy, but would instead be killed by his own people.
It was obvious that they couldn't carry it all away like that. The guards had only treated the snake venom; the arrow wounds and sword wounds on their bodies also needed to be quickly cleaned up before they could carry it on their way.
"Can't we pull out the arrow here?"
For this type of penetrating wound, once the arrow is removed, the bleeding must be stopped immediately, but they currently do not have the means to do so.
Furthermore, it takes some time for the bleeding to stop after the tube is pulled out. Otherwise, carrying it on your back with blood flowing down the grass would be the best waypoint, telling the enemy, "We're in this direction, come and chase us!"
"No, but we have to break the arrows first, otherwise we can't carry them," the guard said.
Zhuang Dongqing: "Okay, okay."
"Please bear with it, Master."
The guard held the arrow by the tip with one hand and the fletching with the other, preparing to break it in half.
Cen Yan remained silent, only closing his eyes.
With a snap, Cen Yan made no sound, but the wound was aggravated, and blood seeped out again. Zhuang Dongqing didn't know if it was her imagination, but she felt that Cen Yan's face seemed to have turned even paler.
Apply the medicine powder and bandage the wound.
The sword and knife wounds on his body were treated in the same way.
After tidying up, a guard carried Cen Yan on his back and nodded to Zhuang Dongqing.
"Young Master, where do we go now?"
Zhuang Dongqing: "Let's follow the original tributary."
Cen Yan lifted his eyelids, but found he couldn't see very clearly, so he closed them again, only instructing, "Don't walk on the path I'm drifting towards."
“I know, no,” Zhuang Dongqing replied.
Continue on the road.
Cen Yan, his face pale, was on the guard's back with his eyes closed. The arrow was lodged in his shoulder, and he was slightly tilted to avoid collision. Zhuang Dongqing glanced at him from time to time, looking somewhat nervous.
Several times, in another turn of her head, she suddenly met Cen Yan's eyes.
Zhuang Dongqing: "..."
Zhuang Dongqing pretended nothing was wrong and looked away, but after a moment she glanced back and found that he had closed his eyes again.
Does it know that I'm looking at it?
Ahhh, my toes are digging into the ground.
On the surface, Zhuang Dongqing acted naturally, adhering to the principle that as long as she wasn't embarrassed, no one could tell that she was embarrassed, and she walked steadily step by step.
After calming down, Zhuang Dongqing realized something else: this must be very uncomfortable.
After thinking about it, with arrows stuck in his body, snake venom, and sword wounds, it would indeed be difficult for him to feel comfortable.
After walking for a while, the confluence of the tributary and the main stream was no longer visible. Zhuang Dongqing asked, "Is he alright like this? His clothes are all wet. Does he need to change?"
After saying that, he muttered to himself, "Did you bring his clothes?"
Liu Fu: "Let me see."
Opening the backpack, Zhuang Dongqing indeed found three pieces of clothing. She recognized one set as her own, another as Liu Fu's, and the last set must have been prepared by Liu Qi for Cen Yan.
Taking advantage of this moment, the two guards switched places, and Cen Yan was transferred to the other guard.
He hadn't even wanted to speak, but after hearing these words, Cen Yan said expressionlessly, "Have you forgotten that we're fleeing?"
Zhuang Dongqing whispered, "I know, but..."
Cen Yan opened his eyes again, and under his gaze, Zhuang Dongqing completed the sentence, "But you're prone to catching a cold like this, and you're injured. If you develop a fever in the middle of the night, that would be difficult to handle, wouldn't it?"
“…” Cen Yan closed his eyes. “I thank you for being so thoughtful.”
The words were almost squeezed out one by one, and Zhuang Dongqing could hear the gritted teeth in their voice.
Sensing that Cen Yan was in a bad mood, he shut up.
The guards, however, were waiting for their orders: "So, where are we now...?"
Cen Yan: "Keep walking, we'll talk again once we find a place to stay."
"yes."
"yes."
Cen Yan was willing to give orders, and Zhuang Dongqing would definitely listen to him, since he didn't have much experience in wilderness survival either.
After walking for a while and passing through a grove of trees, the group decided to rest. Cen Yan was put down and sat against a tree. Zhuang Dongqing reached out and touched his clothes, which were soaked through, and sighed.
Cen Yan ignored him and asked the guard to look at the snake bite on his leg.
The bandages were removed, revealing a large swelling, but the guard's voice was somewhat excited: "The blackening hasn't spread!"
Zhuang Dongqing, who was standing nearby, reached out and pressed the skin on his leg, asking, "Can you feel anything?"
Cen Yan shook his head, but no longer said anything about asking them to abandon him.
Zhuang Dongqing guessed that it should be the situation he had predicted. It was a venomous snake, but since it was released in such a large area, the snake should be confused. The ones trampled by the horse's hooves were startled and naturally secreted venom to bite the horse in self-defense. But the one that bit Cen Yan was probably still dizzy and did not see him as prey. It just bit him out of the stress.
Even if it's not poisonous, many of the proteins secreted by the venom glands are sensitizing, and it will probably take some time for the swelling to subside.
Cen Yan looked at the sky and asked Zhuang Dongqing, "How's the sky?"
Zhuang Dongqing hesitated, "...Very good?"
Only then did I realize, "What's wrong with your eyes?"
"Your eyes are playing tricks on you."
It's likely due to the venom secretions from the snake's venom glands.
Cen Yan said softly, "It would be nice if it rained."
Zhuang Dongqing: "?"
Seeing his shock, the guard explained to him, "Although the scene has been cleaned up, many traces will still remain. If they examine it carefully, they will find that rain can wash away many traces."
For example, footprints, bloodstains, and the transformation of trampled grass and riverbanks.
Zhuang Dongqing understood.
He glanced at the sky again and muttered softly, "Maybe we shouldn't go for now. It's already like this, and if we get caught in the rain again, we'll probably get a fever."
Cen Yan: "..."
Cen Yan: "Can't you wish me something good?"
Zhuang Dongqing shrank back, her voice becoming even softer, "I'm just hoping it won't rain."
Cen Yan fell silent. She didn't want to.
After resting for a while and having some water, they continued on their way.
After about an hour, they saw the village. They stayed outside the village, while one of the guards went to investigate.
"It's called Yushui Village, with about thirty households. Judging from the tools at the door, most of them are hunters."
The guards returned and reported back.
It wasn't Wangshan Village after all. Zhuang Dongqing was a little intimidated by the plot and thought it would be better to go to the village where the male lead had stayed.
But not knowing how to say it, he scratched his head, trying to think of the right words, when Cen Yan spoke up.
"Keep going. This village relies on the hunting grounds for its livelihood. The imperial palace hires hunters from there to clear the hunting grounds from time to time. The villagers have a lot of contact with the imperial palace, so it's not safe."
Zhuang Dongqing felt relieved.
Indeed, it has a brain comparable to the original owner's.
We set off again, and this time, the journey took much longer.
It was getting dark, and there was still no village in sight. Zhuang Dongqing asked anxiously, "Is there no village behind us?"
Could it be that Wangshan Village isn't actually here? Is the plot wrong?!
Cen Yan remained calm: "If there's no one else, we'll rest in the wilderness and continue our journey tomorrow."
He asked the guard, "Is there anyone else around?"
"We've already passed three forests, Master. The surrounding area looks like the middle of nowhere."
"Um."
The one who was most seriously injured was the calmest.
After hearing what he said, Zhuang Dongqing felt relieved. At worst, she could just walk the rest of the way, which wasn't impossible.
Horses cannot roam freely in the woods. There is a dense and large grove that they had a hard time traversing. If the pursuers wanted to ride across it, it would probably take them some effort as well.
After resting again, the guards went to check the surrounding area, and Zhuang Dongqing fed Cen Yanshui.
They carried a total of five water bags. Each guard carried one, Liu Fu carried three, and Cen Yan, who was said to be a germaphobe, was given a new one by Zhuang Dongqing.
He fed him carefully, and when he felt it was about right, he loosened his grip and looked up to find Cen Yan watching him from nearby.
After a moment of eye contact, Cen Yan asked him, "Are you feeling unwell?"
Zhuang Dongqing told the truth, "My legs are a little weak, but otherwise I'm fine." Thinking that Cen Yan probably wanted to ask about the thing he was carrying, Zhuang Dongqing added, "I don't feel any discomfort in my body either."
Cen Yan nodded, his face pale, and closed his eyes again.
Zhuang Dongqing touched his collar, and this time, as soon as her hand touched it, she received Cen Yan's reply: "It's still wet inside, we'll have to wait until after tonight."
"oh."
Zhuang Dongqing withdrew her hand again and obediently sat down next to him to rest.
Amidst waves of dizziness and headaches, Cen Yan thought to himself, "Zhuang Dongqing doesn't talk much, thankfully, he's not troublesome."
A guard brought back new information: "There's a small village ahead; let's go check it out."
Zhuang Dongqing nodded quickly, a hint of anticipation rising in her heart. She walked outside the village and waited for the scouts to return, and sure enough, they arrived.
"It's called Wangshan Village. It's very small, with fewer than ten households. Two of them must be hunters."
Found it!
Zhuang Dongqing's eyes lit up as she looked at Cen Yan. Cen Yan said, "Don't look for hunters, find a farming family and ask if they can let us stay, and give us our things..."
Zhuang Dongqing: "Oh, oh, oh, there's silver and loose gold in the bag, what should I take?"
Cen Yan: "...Take the copper coins."
There were indeed two strings of copper coins, not many. After Cen Yan heard them report the number, he asked them to add a silver hairpin.
The guards went to discuss the matter, while Zhuang Dongqing, Cen Yan, and the others waited outside the village until they had a result before going in.
Before long, the guard returned. "Found them. He gave us two strings of copper coins. It was a family of four: the father, mother, and two sons. One of the sons was about to get married. There was a new house being built nearby that no one was living in yet, so I stayed there. We agreed that when I left, I would leave them half a string of copper coins, and they would take care of our food and lodging during this time."
Zhuang Dongqing: "What did he say?"
Cen Yan was injured; no one knew about it tonight, and it wouldn't be hidden from him tomorrow.
Guard: "He fell ill while traveling. Take care of his wounds and bring a change of clothes. Tomorrow, Master can rest in bed."
Oh, that's one reason.
Cen Yan chuckled, "As if you could have made it up better."
Without even asking, Zhuang Dongqing knew it was meant for him.
"..."
Entering the village!
By the time they entered the house, it was already completely dark. The farmer couldn't see Cen Yan's condition very clearly. The guards stopped them at the door. Perhaps because they were guards of the Prince's mansion, they had an unusual aura. The farmer brought them food and supplies, told them where the village well was, and then left.
It's called a new house, but there aren't many rooms; only two are habitable.
After discussion, the two guards and Liu Fu shared one room, while Zhuang Dongqing and Cen Yan shared another.
His clothes were half-wet and half-dry. They weren't put on the bed when he came in. The guards first laid out a layer of straw and then placed Cen Yan on the straw.
Having found a place to settle down, it's time to remove the arrowheads.
The clothes were already damaged, but without much trouble, they simply ripped open the clothes where the arrow had struck. Zhuang Dongqing looked at the wound and felt nervous.
Perhaps it was true, as Zhuang Dongqing had predicted, that the venomous snake that bit her had not released any venom. After walking for a while, Cen Yan's eyes had become much clearer. Seeing Zhuang Dongqing swallowing repeatedly, Cen Yan said, "If you're afraid, then go out."
Zhuang Dongqing: "No, I'm not scared, it's just..." After thinking for a moment, she said truthfully, "It looks kind of painful."
This is the first time I've seen an arrow wound.
"..."
He cut open the wound with a burnt knife, and before pulling it out, Zhuang Dongqing took out the wine he had brought, saying, "Let's disinfect it first, to kill the germs."
The guard, not understanding, looked at Cen Yan. Cen Yan looked at Zhuang Dongqing for a while and then nodded.
The wine was poured onto the wound, and Cen Yan snorted.
Zhuang Dongqing couldn't help much either. He held his right hand with his left and watched as Cen Yan bit a piece of gauze and tilted his head back.
"Master, pull it out."
After talking about his master, he actually made his move, aiming to catch his master off guard.
Even if it was cut open beforehand, the barbs of the arrowhead would still reopen the wound, causing flesh and blood to fly everywhere. Large beads of sweat dripped from Cen Yan's forehead. Zhuang Dongqing held a handkerchief in her hand. Cen Yan was fine, but Zhuang Dongqing's hand trembled slightly as she wiped his sweat.
After the wound was removed, it was time to bandage it. The guard was about to come over, but Zhuang Dongqing stopped him, "No, no, if you want it to heal quickly, you need to clean the wound first?"
He heard Cen Yan's exhausted voice beside him, asking, "What was that?"
"Just clean the wound with alcohol to flush out the dirt and disinfect it..."
In the end, Zhuang Dongqing realized, under the guards' astonished gazes, that this was akin to torture, and her voice grew increasingly soft.
Cen Yan took a breath and asked him in a shrill voice, "Are you retaliating against me?"
"No! Really! Otherwise, if there's a foreign object in the wound, it will get inflamed repeatedly, and if it gets inflamed, it might cause a fever."
"I can tell, you've been waiting for me to get a fever all this way."
"No, I..."
Before she could finish speaking, she noticed Cen Yan laughing. Zhuang Dongqing: "..."
Cen Yan: "Let him come."
The guard handed the alcohol and cotton to Zhuang Dongqing, but perhaps finding the scene too cruel to bear, he went out to help.
The wound was reopened by the arrowhead's barb, looking quite gruesome. Zhuang Dongqing's Adam's apple bobbed as she cautiously said, "It hurts a bit, you should bear with it."
Cen Yan replied, "Otherwise what?"
"..."
Zhuang Dongqing realized that the other party was just arguing with him, so he shut up.
The strong liquor was poured down, and Cen Yan didn't say anything, but his back trembled. Zhuang Dongqing also broke out in a sweat. He tried to be as gentle and quick as possible with his hands, cleaning the wound while intermittently blowing on it. When he finished cleaning, Zhuang Dongqing was covered in sweat, and Cen Yan's brows were furrowed.
They're really good at enduring things.
He didn't even utter a sound; he's a ruthless person.
"I've bandaged you up."
There were also scissors in the backpack, which shows that Liu Qi had fully anticipated and prepared for the injury.
While bandaging the wound, Zhuang Dongqing's hand accidentally touched Cen Yan's skin and felt the cold sweat from the pain. Zhuang Dongqing's heart skipped a beat.
He said softly, "It's just the two of us. If you're in pain, go ahead and yell. I'll pretend you're deaf."
Cen Yan's voice was already completely hoarse when he spoke, but he still couldn't resist spoiling the mood by saying, "Isn't it a little late for you to say that?"
"...Whatever."
Zhuang Dongqing wrapped the wound with gauze, and then blew on it twice. Cen Yan saw this and lowered his voice, saying, "That's how you coax a child."
Zhuang Dongqing considered it for a moment and, realizing it wasn't a sarcastic question, replied, "Just consider it an unnecessary gesture of mine."
It won't affect anything anyway.
"so."
The last syllable was almost gone, but you could tell he was in a lot of pain. Zhuang Dongqing felt a little sorry for him and reached out to cover Cen Yan's eyes. "If you don't want to talk, you don't have to. You should rest."
Cen Yan brushed his palm twice with his eyelashes, and Zhuang Dongqing was waiting to be teased again, but unexpectedly, after a moment, Cen Yan obeyed and closed his eyes.
After treating the wound, Zhuang Dongqing wiped the sweat from Cen Yan's forehead.
She secretly rubbed his clothes with her fingertips, sighing inwardly; they were still wet.
Liu Fu was already boiling water outside. When Zhuang Dongqing went out to dispose of the blood cells and blood-soaked gauze, she was stopped by the guards.
The guard hesitated, "Um, young master, since you brought an extra set of your master's clothes, could you...?"
"?"
The guard gritted his teeth and said, "Could you please wash up my master and change him into clean clothes?"
Oh, this.
Guard: "Our master usually doesn't allow anyone to get close to him, so he probably won't ask us to do anything."
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