Sixty-five
Inside Kaifeng Prefecture, the lights remained on all night.
Zhan Zhao's breath was as faint as a spider's thread, teetering on the edge of life and death. The three-hundred-year-old Crimson Sun Ginseng was brewed into a ginseng soup by Gongsun Ce using a secret method, and Zhao Zhen personally and carefully fed it to Zhan Zhao bit by bit. The potent yang energy of the ginseng barely protected the last faint pulse of his heart, preventing him from immediately succumbing to exhaustion. The power of the Nine-Turn Rejuvenating Pill was also slowly dissolving, nourishing his nearly depleted life force, but all of this was merely delaying the inevitable.
The "Heart-Corroding and Bone-Rotting" evil poison, entrenched in the heart meridian, was like a malignant tumor clinging to the bone, constantly eroding the life force brought by the Crimson Sun Ginseng and the Rejuvenating Pill. Black energy still lingered around the wound, even showing a faint tendency to spread outwards. After examining the pulse again, the head of the Imperial Medical Academy shook his head heavily and whispered to Zhao Zhen, "Your Majesty, Guardian Zhan's heart meridian has been deeply corroded by the evil poison, showing signs of depletion. Although the Crimson Sun Ginseng and the Rejuvenating Pill can prolong his life, they cannot eradicate the evil poison. At this rate, he can only... at most hold on for two or three more days. If the evil poison is not resolved, his heart meridian will completely collapse, and even a Great Luo Golden Immortal will be gone..."
He didn't finish his sentence, but the meaning was clear.
Zhao Zhen closed his eyes briefly and waved for the imperial physician to leave. He sat in a chair beside Zhan Zhao's bed. Overnight, the young emperor seemed much more haggard, his eyes bloodshot. Looking at Zhan Zhao's pale face, he felt a churning pain and helplessness in his heart. He was the Son of Heaven, possessing the entire world, yet he couldn't save his own blood-related brother. *Tianyi, you must come back soon.*
“Your Majesty, you have been on guard all night. Your health is of utmost importance. Please return to the palace to rest. We will keep watch here,” Bao Zheng stepped forward and advised in a low voice.
Zhao Zhen slowly shook his head, his gaze never leaving Zhan Zhao: "I am right here. If he... I will stay with him." His voice was hoarse, but firm.
Bai Yutang paced back and forth in the corner of the room like a trapped beast, his eyes bloodshot. The message had been sent by carrier pigeon for a day and a night. Trap Island was too far from Bianjing. Even if his sister-in-law received the letter and set off immediately, traveling day and night, it would still take at least several days to reach Bianjing... Cat, we can't wait that long!
He abruptly stopped, looking at Zhao Zhen and Bao Zheng, his voice sharp with urgency: "Your Majesty, Lord Bao! We can't wait any longer! We must think of another way! Jiang Yuan... Jiang Yuan's medical skills are divine, especially adept at curing all kinds of strange poisons and illnesses! Perhaps... perhaps he has a way!"
"Jiang Yuan?" A glimmer of light flashed in Zhao Zhen's eyes. "How could I have forgotten him?"
“Yes! Jiang Yuan!” Bai Yutang exclaimed as if grasping at a last straw. “He and Tianyi are bosom friends. He saved Mao’er’s life last time, so he definitely won’t stand by and watch her die! It’s just that few people know the exact location of Shennong Valley, and Jiang Yuan has a strange temper and is reluctant to take action easily…”
Zhao Zhen suddenly stood up: "I know where he is!" He immediately went to his desk, spread out a silk scroll, and personally picked up a brush. He wrote a letter of desperate plea for help. The letter detailed Zhan Zhao's injuries, the poison he had been poisoned with, and his current critical condition.
After writing, he took out his personal jade pendant, sealed it along with the letter in a waterproof pouch, and handed it to Rong Wei: "Give this to the Imperial City Guard. At all costs, deliver this letter to Shennong Valley and personally deliver it to Mr. Jiang Yuan! At the same time, order all the post stations along the way to prepare the fastest horses and escort it with all their might. There must be no mistakes!"
"Your subject obeys the decree!" Rongwei knew the weight of this letter, so he solemnly accepted it, turned around, and rushed out.
A moment later, several fine horses from the Imperial City Guard galloped out of the city.
Waiting became the most agonizing form of torture.
Time ticked by, and Zhan Zhao's condition, supported by the Crimson Sun Ginseng and the Rejuvenating Pill, maintained an extremely fragile balance. However, everyone could sense that his life force was irreversibly and slowly slipping away. His once golden-paper-like face began to show a deathly ashen gray.
Gongsun Ce tried every possible method, including several detoxification acupuncture techniques and medicinal baths recorded in ancient books, and even risked using the method of fighting poison with poison, but all of them had little effect. On the contrary, they caused Zhan Zhao's aura to drop sharply several times, which frightened everyone into not daring to try again.
Bai Yutang stayed by Zhan Zhao's bedside almost non-stop, checking his breathing every now and then, afraid that his faint breaths would stop at any moment. He spoke to the unconscious Zhan Zhao over and over again: "Cat, hold on! You must hold on! Jiang Yuan will be here soon! Tianyi is still waiting for you! You haven't seen your child yet... You promised to wait for her to come back..."
After finishing his urgent official duties, Bao Zheng would immediately come over and stand silently to the side, his brows furrowed. Zhao Zhen even moved some of the memorials to Kaifeng Prefecture, handling state affairs while keeping watch over Zhan Zhao.
The entire Kaifeng Prefecture was shrouded in a cloud of sorrow and anxiety.
On the third day at dusk, just as everyone's hearts sank to the bottom, a series of hurried footsteps and a bailiff's excited announcement suddenly came from outside the courtyard:
"He's here! He's here! Mr. Jiang has arrived!"
Everyone in the room was instantly energized! Zhao Zhen stood up abruptly, and Bao Zheng, Bai Yutang, Gongsun Ce, and others rushed to the door.
Qingluan pushed Jiang Yuan in a wooden wheelchair, led by Rong Wei, towards Zhan Zhao's room.
He arrived so quickly! Clearly, he set off immediately after receiving the letter, taking advantage of the fastest route via the official road and post stations.
"Jiang Yuan," Zhao Zhen stepped forward first, no longer caring about imperial dignity, his tone filled with obvious urgency and pleading, "Zhan Zhao, he..."
Jiang Yuan raised his hand slightly to stop Zhao Zhen from speaking. His gaze swept calmly over everyone present before finally landing on Zhao Zhen's face. He nodded gently and said, "You have already given a general account of Zhan Zhao's situation in your letter. Let me take a look at him first."
His voice was gentle and clear, with a strange, soothing power.
"Alright!" Zhao Zhen quickly stepped aside to make way.
Qingluan pushed Jiang Yuan's wheelchair to the bedside. His gaze fell on Zhan Zhao, and his gentle smile gradually faded, replaced by focus and solemnity. He first carefully examined Zhan Zhao's complexion, pupils, and the wound on his back that was still shrouded in black energy.
Then, he extended his long, slender, fair fingers and gently placed them on Zhan Zhao's wrist.
The room was completely silent. Everyone's eyes were focused on Jiang Yuan, and they even unconsciously held their breath, afraid of disturbing his diagnosis.
Jiang Yuan closed his eyes and concentrated, feeling the faint, almost imperceptible pulse on Zhan Zhao's wrist with his fingertips. His brows furrowed slightly, and as time went on, they furrowed more and more tightly.
After a long while, he slowly opened his eyes and withdrew his hand.
"How is it? Mr. Jiang, is there any hope for Zhan Zhao?" Bai Yutang asked impatiently, his voice trembling.
Jiang Yuan didn't answer immediately. He hesitated for a moment, his gaze sweeping over the hopeful yet anxious faces of the crowd, before finally speaking slowly. His voice remained calm, yet it made everyone's hearts sink:
"The Heart-Corroding Bone-Corroding Blade is one of the three most potent poisons of the Black Witch Cult. This poison is vicious and domineering, not only corroding the physical body but also specifically devouring the life force of the heart and the power of the soul. When he was injured, the evil poison had already directly invaded the source of his heart, and now... the poison has entered his marrow, and his soul fire is about to be extinguished."
He paused, looking at Zhan Zhao's ashen face, and sighed softly: "The Chi Yang and the Nine-Turn Rejuvenation Pill are indeed life-saving treasures. Without these two items, he wouldn't have lasted this long. But that's all. The evil poison has become too deeply entangled with his heart meridian and even his remnant soul, almost merging into one. Ordinary detoxification methods, whether medicine, acupuncture, or using internal force to force out the poison, will completely destroy his already fragile heart meridian and remnant soul while removing the evil poison... The result will be no different."
The room was deathly silent.
Jiang Yuan's words were like a final verdict, completely shattering the last vestiges of hope in everyone's hearts.
Bai Yutang staggered and leaned against the wall, his face deathly pale. Bao Zheng closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Gongsun Ce slumped down, head bowed. Zhao Zhen swayed, and Rong Wei quickly stepped forward to support him.
Even the legendary healer Jiang Yuan... is helpless?
Could it be that Zhan Zhao... really...
Despair, like an icy tide, instantly engulfed everyone present.
“Unless Tianyi can return as soon as possible, and with her spiritual power protecting Zhan Zhao’s heart meridian, it might be possible to try to remove the poison.” Jiang Yuan finished speaking and looked at everyone. “But, I’m afraid he can’t wait.”
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