It took the three of them, master and servants, a lot of effort to bring the stranger they found into the courtyard. They pried open the lock of the storage room and went through a lot of trouble before finally settling him inside.
Back inside, when Zhang Mama saw Qingying, her eyes widened in surprise. "What happened to you, Miss? Why are you covered in dust?" she asked.
Yu Yue, who followed her in, looked at her upon hearing this and was also startled.
Qingying wore a moon-white dress when she went out today, but now she was covered in grime, with dirt and scratches on the left and right. Her delicate white skin was covered in stains, and her hair was covered in cobwebs. To say she was covered in grime would be an understatement.
Since she couldn't see it herself, she naturally didn't know. She casually wiped her cheek with her sleeve and said with a smile, "I tripped and fell on my way back, but it's nothing serious."
A stain remained where her sleeve had wiped the area.
Zhang Mama narrowed her eyes slightly and said, "In that case, Miss, please go and take a bath. I have already ordered someone to prepare hot water."
After saying that, she looked at Yu Yue, who was shrugging her neck to the side, gave her a look, and then walked towards the door. Yu Yue sighed silently in her heart and obediently followed her out of the house.
As they reached the corridor, Granny Zhang stopped, turned around, and said, "Tell me the truth, what did you go to do, young lady?"
Granny Zhang was always sharp-eyed, and Qingying's appearance clearly showed that it couldn't have been caused by a simple fall. Yu Yue had no choice but to explain the whole story.
"Nonsense! The young lady is not yet of marriageable age, how can she bring a man into her private quarters without permission? Don't you know how to stop her?"
Yu Yue lowered her head and whispered in protest, "I...I didn't bring it into the inner chambers..."
"It's the same whether it's placed in the yard or not. If outsiders find out, who knows what kind of trouble it will cause."
"But we can never stop a young lady from doing what she wants."
That's true. Qingying may appear to be a gentle woman, but she has a stubborn streak inside. Once she's made up her mind to do something, nothing can change her mind.
Granny Zhang sighed softly, waved her hand, and said, "That's enough, there's no use saying anything more now that things have come to this. Since the person has been brought back, we should at least help keep it a secret for now."
As night deepened, the mountain mist grew thicker. After bathing, Qingying dismissed everyone else, leaving only Yuyue to keep watch. When the time was right, the mistress and servant each took an oil lamp and quietly slipped out of the house.
Pushing open the door to the storage room, one could see broken tables and chairs piled haphazardly inside, along with some broken cushions. There was no bed; a thin blanket had just been taken from Tong Xia's room, spread on the floor, and the person lay down on it.
She hadn't had a chance to look closely before, but now, with the help of the dim light, she could finally see the man's face clearly.
He was an extremely handsome young man with striking features, including sword-like eyebrows and bright eyes. His sleeping appearance was very pleasing to the eye, with long, thick eyelashes, a delicate nose, and smooth facial lines with a touch of sharpness. However, his lips and complexion were very pale, probably due to his injuries.
Qingying handed the oil lamp to Yuyue. She had no experience in treating injuries and relied entirely on her senses. Her soft, boneless hands groped around the man's body, pressing and pinching until she pressed a spot on his chest. The man let out a muffled groan, and when she looked up, her fingertips were stained with blood.
"Black blood? So it's poisoning."
Yu Yue was so nervous she barely dared to breathe. Hearing this, she asked in a low voice, "Miss, we don't know anything about medicine, how can we detoxify him?"
Qingying unbuttoned the man's clothes, revealing his strong chest. Just an inch below his right collarbone was a short but deep wound that exposed the bone. The wound was now festering, with the flesh turned inside out and the blood flowing out was black.
She gasped, trying to appear calm, and pulled out a dagger she had prepared beforehand from her bosom. She said, "I saw a military doctor treat similar wounds when I went to the military camp with my brother. He said that the rotten flesh had to be removed first in order to save the patient's life temporarily."
"But...but do you know how, young lady?"
"No, I don't think so," Qingying said, heating the dagger over the fire. "But we should still give it a try."
"What if we don't handle it properly and it makes his condition worse?" Yu Yue couldn't help but worry.
"Then he'll just have to accept his bad luck."
After roasting it, she took out a handkerchief to wipe away the black marks left on the dagger and instructed Yu Yue, "Hold him down."
Yu Yue had no choice but to do as she was told, pressing down hard on the man's shoulders with both hands. Then Qing Ying stuffed a handkerchief into his mouth to prevent him from biting his tongue in pain.
As the sharp dagger slowly approached the wound, Yu Yue dared not look any longer and quickly turned her gaze away.
Qingying was also extremely nervous, but she didn't dare to tremble at all. The moment the first knife was cut, the man was in so much pain that he suddenly opened his eyes.
He stared at her with bloodshot eyes, but because his mouth was stuffed with a handkerchief, he couldn't speak for a moment.
"Just bear with it, just bear with it," Qingying said softly, while her hands continued to work.
Without hesitation, she quickly cut away the rotten flesh, applied the medicine she had brought to the wound, and casually tore a piece of cloth from her dress to bandage it.
"This is the wound medicine I always carry when I travel. It works very well for me, but I don't know if it will be suitable for you. But right now, there's nothing else to stop your bleeding, so just use it for now."
Presumably due to the intense pain, the man's forehead was covered in a thin layer of sweat, and his face appeared even paler.
Qingying removed the handkerchief from his mouth and used her sleeve to wipe the sweat from his forehead.
The man squinted, seemingly trying to see more clearly, but no matter how hard he looked, he could only make out a rough outline, blurry and indistinct.
"Thank you." His voice was like the cawing of a crow, hoarse and unpleasant.
"You're welcome, it was no trouble at all." Qingying wrapped up the bloodstained dagger and handed it to Yu Yue, saying, "I don't know how to detoxify, and the people with me don't understand medicine either, so there's nothing more I can do to help you."
"Abbot..."
"What?" She didn't hear clearly, so she leaned closer.
The man coughed and said with difficulty, "Go find the abbot."
Qingying was stunned for a moment, and wanted to ask more questions, but found that he had fainted again.
Yu Yue asked, "Miss, what should we do next? Do we really want to help him find the abbot?"
She pursed her lips, pondered for a moment, and said, "Since he said that, he must know the abbot. If we leave him here, he might die from the poison at any time. But... how should we get him to the abbot?"
Yu Yue shook her head, also extremely troubled. She felt a vague unease, as if the young lady shouldn't have gotten involved in this mess.
Qingying returned to the main house, dealt with the bloodstained dagger, changed her clothes, and lay down on the bed. However, she tossed and turned until late into the night and still couldn't fall asleep.
Looking up at the canopy above, she thought: I must find a way to get rid of that person.
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