Chapter 169 Yuwen Hao identifies Han Ying
Bai Xiao was dragged there by Han Ying. He pushed through the crowd and saw Su Luoxue crying so hard she was almost fainting and Yuwen Hao lying lifeless on the ground.
"Get out of the way!" he growled, grabbing the limp Su Luoxue from the ground and shoving her into Yuwen Che's arms. "Hold on tight!"
Yuwen Che immediately hugged Su Luoxue, who could barely stand, his voice trembling with hope that he himself didn't even realize: "Bai Xiao... is there any hope for him?"
As if grasping at the last straw, Su Luoxue looked at Bai Xiao through teary eyes, sobbing uncontrollably, "Mr. Bai...please...save him...save Hao'er..."
Bai Xiao didn't have time to respond. He quickly squatted down, pried open Yuwen Hao's eyelids to check his pupils, and then probed his nose and the side of his neck.
His face grew increasingly grim, and he suddenly looked up at the imperial physician beside him: "It's too late! Silver needles! Give them to me quickly!"
The imperial physician trembled at his sharp gaze and hurriedly rummaged through his needle pouch and handed it over.
Bai Xiao took the silver needles and, with lightning speed, precisely pierced several acupoints on Yuwen Hao's head and chest. Then, he placed his hands together and began rhythmically and forcefully pressing on Yuwen Hao's cold chest for a few moments.
He bent down again, pried open the child's mouth, and began artificial respiration without hesitation.
Time passed slowly, and fine beads of sweat appeared on Bai Xiao's forehead. His hand movements and the circulation of qi continued without stopping.
Yuwen Che held Su Luoxue tightly in his arms, who was trembling and whose clothes were soaked with tears. His eyes were fixed on Bai Xiao and his eldest son, who was unresponsive on the ground.
His heart was filled with unprecedented panic and... guilt. If only he had let go of his prejudice sooner, if only he had given this child more attention and protection, would... this have prevented what happened today?
Seeing this, Han Ying immediately stepped forward and, following Bai Xiao's instructions, took over and continued to rhythmically press on Yuwen Hao's chest.
Time seemed to freeze, each second stretching endlessly. Sweat beaded on Bai Xiao's forehead, and just as his eyes dimmed, and he was about to give up—
"Cough...cough cough..." Yuwen Hao beneath him suddenly coughed violently, choking out large shovels of lake water from his mouth and nose!
"Hao'er!" Su Luoxue exclaimed in surprise, struggling to rush over.
"Don't stop! Keep pressing!" Bai Xiao shouted immediately, stopping Han Ying from her subconscious pause.
He turned and roared at the stunned imperial physician beside him, "What are you all standing there for?! Get over here and help! Clean the water from his mouth and nose, and prepare some warm ginseng soup!"
The imperial physician was startled by the shout and quickly stepped forward, frantically wiping the water off Yuwen Hao's face and checking his breathing.
Bai Xiao bent down again to carefully examine Yuwen Hao's pulse and breathing. Although it was still so weak that it was almost imperceptible, it had indeed reappeared! He dared not relax in the slightest and continued to cooperate with Han Ying to perform first aid.
Yuwen Che held Su Luoxue tightly, and could clearly feel her body trembling violently, a reaction to suddenly seeing hope after extreme fear.
Without even looking up, Bai Xiao asked Han Ying urgently, "Do you have any medicine on you? The kind from Shadow Pavilion that can keep you alive!"
Han Ying reacted immediately, quickly taking out a thumb-sized white jade bottle from a hidden pouch in her bosom, uncorking it, and pouring out a translucent pill that emitted a strange fragrance: "Yes!"
Bai Xiao took the pill and yelled at the imperial physician who was still busy cleaning up, "Quick! Dissolve it in water and try to force it down his throat! Quick—!"
The imperial physician dared not delay. He quickly took the warm water handed to him by a palace maid, carefully placed the pill in, and watched as the pill dissolved upon contact with the water, quickly turning into a bowl of pale golden liquid.
He carefully lifted Yuwen Hao's still cold little head and used a silver spoon to slowly and painstakingly feed him the medicine.
Everyone's eyes were fixed on Yuwen Hao, and they held their breath. Bai Xiao and Han Ying continued their pressing and breathing exercises without daring to relax for a moment.
A moment after the medicine was administered, Yuwen Hao's originally frighteningly pale face seemed to faintly reveal a trace of life. Although he was still unconscious, the slight rise and fall of his chest seemed a little more obvious than before.
Bai Xiao breathed a slight sigh of relief, but his hands continued to move. He quickly said to Yuwen Che, "His life is temporarily hanging by a thread, but whether he can pull through depends on himself... and on God."
Su Luoxue immediately broke free from Yuwen Che's embrace and rushed to Yuwen Hao's side, carefully holding his cold little hand. Tears streamed down her face, her voice choked with sobs yet incredibly clear:
"Hao'er... Hao'er, can you hear your mother?" She leaned down, close to his ear, and promised again and again, "From now on, your mother will love you, okay? Love you like she loves Cheng'an and Ning'er, and make up for everything you lacked before, okay?"
She raised her head, her eyes blurry with tears, and looked at Yuwen Che standing to the side. Then she turned back to Yuwen Hao and said softly, "Your father will know how to do it too... He will personally teach you swordsmanship, archery, and play chess with you... Whatever our Hao'er wants to learn, Father and Mother will teach you..."
She gently stroked her son's cold, wet face, and sobbed, "Hao'er... you can hear me, right? Hang in there, for your mother's sake, okay?"
Perhaps it was the life-extending elixir that took effect, or perhaps it was Su Luoxue's heart-wrenching cries that pierced through the heavy darkness, but Yuwen Hao's long eyelashes trembled a few times, and he opened his eyes very slowly and with great difficulty.
His gaze was initially unfocused and confused, but it slowly sharpened as he saw Su Luoxue, who was standing close by, her eyes red and swollen from crying.
“...Mother…” he uttered in an extremely weak, barely audible voice.
"Hao'er! Mother is here! Mother is here!" Su Luoxue was overjoyed and quickly held his little hand even tighter.
"Hao'er, from now on... from now on, let your mother be your biological mother, okay? We are family, and we will always be together."
Seeing the undisguised heartache and tears in his mother's eyes, Yuwen Hao felt the pent-up grievances and longing that had been suppressed in his heart finally find an outlet. Large tears slid down his cheeks, and with barely any strength, yet with crystal clarity, he nodded, choking back sobs as he replied:
"……good……"
Yuwen Che immediately stepped forward, took his other cold little hand in his, and tried to keep his voice steady: "Hao'er, tell your father, how did you fall into the lake?"
Su Luoxue and Bai Xiao both glanced at Yuwen Che subconsciously, and then their gazes were fixed on Yuwen Hao's pale face.
Upon hearing his father's question, Yuwen Hao's small body seemed to flinch. He spoke haltingly in an extremely weak voice, "Father... Your son... Your son left Fengyi Palace this morning, intending to go to Sizheng Hall to find you and Mother... But... Just as I reached the Imperial Garden... someone covered my mouth from behind... And then... I don't know anything anymore..."
Yuwen Che's eyes turned cold: "Who is it? Can you see what that person looks like? What are they wearing?"
Yuwen Hao's gaze wandered somewhat blankly, as if he was trying hard to recall.
When his gaze swept over Han Ying, who stood to the side with an equally solemn expression, his pupils suddenly contracted, and his small hand gripped Yuwen Che's fingers tightly, pointing at Han Ying with a terrified, tearful voice:
"He...he was wearing that mask! And...he was also dressed in black!"
These words were like a thunderclap!
Han Ying froze, his face turning deathly pale beneath the mask. He looked at Yuwen Hao in disbelief, then abruptly turned to Yuwen Che and knelt down with a thud.
His voice trembled with extreme shock and injustice: "Your Majesty! I...I am innocent! I have been ordered to secretly protect you all day, and I have not left the Sizheng Hall for a moment! It was only after I heard that Prince An was in trouble that I came to the Imperial Garden with you. Before that, I had not left at all! And...and there was no way I could have harmed Prince An!"
Bai Xiao was also taken aback by the sudden accusation, but he immediately realized that he was really afraid that Yuwen Che would kill Han Ying in a fit of anger.
He hurriedly stepped forward to testify for Han Ying: "Yuwen Che! It couldn't possibly be Han Ying! If he really did it, why would he go to all this trouble to come to me for help? It just doesn't make sense!"
Yuwen Che's gaze swept over his terrified and weak son, his confidant kneeling and pleading his innocence, and his anxious friend trying to defend himself. His eyes were as deep as an abyss, churning with a terrifying storm.
He slowly stood up, his voice as cold as ice:
“I know it wasn’t you.” He looked at Han Ying, his tone chilling, “but someone… impersonated you.”
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