Lament of a Woman in Her Boudoir
Inside the bamboo hut, the aroma of medicinal herbs was rich and refreshing.
The windows were bright and clean, and medical books were laid out on the desk, the ink still fresh.
Xuan Ruzheng held his pen with focused concentration, propping his head up with one hand as he read the medical scroll and meticulously annotated the pulse diagnosis records in small, vermilion characters.
The door opened slightly, and Gu Jinghong slowly entered, her face showing surprise.
Xuan Ru looked up at the sound and saw a faint, unyielding sorrow between Gu Jinghong's brows, and an indescribable... resentment.
Seeing her like this, a mischievous smile flashed across his eyes, and he put down his purple brush: "Oh, isn't this our hardworking and meritorious Miss Jinghong? You've finally decided to leave that gentle haven?"
She deliberately dragged out her words, stood up to greet her, and paced halfway around Gu Jinghong, her gaze lingering on her face. "It's one thing to stay out all night, but look at your face... tsk tsk, did you upset the prince as soon as he woke up?"
Gu Jinghong had never shown such a state before, which Xuan Ru found quite novel.
She leaned closer, lowered her voice, and said teasingly, "Tell me quickly, how did he offend you? Did he say something hurtful, or did something to anger you?"
Gu Jinghong ignored her playful banter. Her usually clear and sharp eyes were now shrouded in the misty rain of Jiangnan, deep and melancholy, filled with three parts grievance and seven parts accusation, as she stared straight at Xuan Ru.
Xuan Ru was taken aback by her gaze, then burst into laughter, covering her mouth with her sleeve and shaking her shoulders: "Hahaha... Gu Jinghong, Gu Jinghong, I never thought you would act like this today, it's truly an eye-opener!"
She laughed until her breath caught in her throat, and it took her a while to catch her breath. She wiped her eyes and said, "Tell me quickly, what kind of magic did the prince use to make you, Gu Jinghong, who is usually so arrogant, show such a look of melancholy?"
Gu Jinghong's brows furrowed at her laughter, her resentment almost tangible. She pursed her lips, remaining silent, her eyes, which seemed to speak volumes, silently accusing Xuan Ru of her "gloating."
Xuan Ru had laughed enough and felt relieved. Just as she was about to ask another question, she saw Gu Jinghong suddenly suppress all her outward emotions, as if that little bit of childish behavior from before had never happened.
"Xuanru, what did you add to the medicine you gave me?"
“Calming herbs…” Xuan Ru seemed to suddenly remember something, “…They slept in each other’s arms?! Haha! To be honest, the prince…is a good person.”
Gu Jinghong didn't reply to Xuan Ru. Instead, he walked straight to the futon opposite Xuan Ru and sat down. Then, under Xuan Ru's still smiling and questioning gaze, he carefully took out an item from his bosom and gently placed it on the table between the two of them.
The ancient and warm-looking double fish pendant, shaped like two fish intertwined, lay quietly on the medical table, radiating a restrained and mysterious luster. It instantly captured Xuan Ru's entire mind, causing the smile on her lips to vanish abruptly.
"What is this?" Xuan Ru asked, her voice slightly tense, her gaze fixed on the jade pivot.
"I obtained the key to activate the array from the depths of the miasma core." Gu Jinghong's voice was clear and calm as she pointed her fingertips at the intricate and ancient patterns on the jade pivot. "Aru, the desolate miasma was cast by your mother, wasn't it?"
Xuanru paused for a moment, then slowly nodded.
“I’ve been in the Frost Mist, and I know what it’s like there. Not only are there hallucinogenic poisons, but there are also numerous intricate and mysterious mechanisms. Aru, do you understand what I mean?”
Xuan Ru looked up at Gu Jinghong and swallowed hard, feeling as if her chest was being squeezed. Her hands instinctively twisted together: "Ah Hong, what... what do you want to say?"
Gu Jinghong stood up and grabbed Xuan Ru, his eyes flashing like lightning: "These two layers of miasma defend against powerful enemies on the outside and guard the core on the inside. Their fundamental purpose is not to harm people, but to protect, to protect the lifeline of Medicine Master Valley, and to protect the people in the valley from external disturbances!"
“Aru, tell me, is your mother… truly just an ordinary, reclusive physician within the Great Yong Kingdom? What is it that she is protecting with her life deep within Medicine Master Valley?”
Xuan Ru remained dazed, her eyes clearly looking at Gu Jinghong, yet seemingly unfocused.
Gu Jinghong handed the Pisces Pivot to Xuanru: "Aru, look at this Pisces Pivot. Its shape and patterns are all remnants of the ancient Nanfeng Kingdom. If your mother is really a descendant of Nanfeng, then you should have seen these patterns when you were young, hmm?"
The engravings on the warm jade pendant pierced his eyes, and Xuan Ru was suddenly jolted awake, his mind forcibly pulled back, and a storm suddenly appeared in his eyes!
The patterns on it... she seemed... she had indeed seen them before!
"Ah Hong, come with me!"
Xuan Ru grabbed Gu Jinghong's wrist and, without saying a word, pulled him quickly toward a dusty, secret chamber deep within the Medicine Master Valley.
The heavy stone door slid open slowly with the sound of a mechanism, and a damp smell mixed with strong herbs and stale moisture rushed out.
The stone chamber was deep and dark, its walls covered with countless strangely shaped plants, which, in the dim light of the torches, displayed eerie and beautiful colors. The floor was slippery, and water droplets dripped slowly down the cold stone walls, echoing monotonously in the deathly silence.
Xuan Ru held the torch high in one hand and gripped Gu Jinghong tightly in the other: "Stay close to me and do not touch the flowers and plants on the wall! These flowers and plants were all cultivated by my mother herself and contain deadly poison."
Gu Jinghong held his breath and focused his attention, his gaze sweeping over the plants and trees that seemed to be lurking in the darkness, following closely behind.
After several twists and turns, a more secluded and quiet room suddenly appeared before us.
Inside, there was only a cold stone table and a stone stool of the same material. With the erosion of time, the corners had long been occupied by tenacious vines and moss, but the area around the stone table, about ten feet in size, was clean and new, barren of any vegetation, as if isolated by an invisible force, completely out of place with the vibrant life around it.
Xuanru's gaze fell on the smooth stone tabletop, a hint of hazy reminiscence in her eyes. She murmured, "My mother was an expert in poisons, almost to the point of madness... This land is barren because she used to refine poisons here. The poison's aura permeated the area so deeply that nothing could penetrate it..."
At this point, she seemed to suddenly remember the key point and leaned down to reach into the hidden compartment under the stone table.
After a moment of fumbling, a box that was pitch black and cold to the touch was taken out. On the lid of the box, there were blood-red patterns winding around. The trend and rhythm of the patterns were exactly the same as the ancient patterns on the Pisces Pivot!
Their eyes met suddenly in mid-air, and their hearts trembled violently!
Gu Jinghong took a deep breath and slowly extended his fingertips toward the exquisite yet sinister-looking hidden lock in the center of the box lid.
A soft "click" sound could be clearly heard in the deathly silent stone chamber.
The box lid opened with a click.
The two women held their breath simultaneously, the torchlight flickering on their tense profiles. The lid slowly rose, gradually revealing the deep interior of the box in the dim light…
Once the box lid was fully opened—
The torchlight shone directly into the bottom of the box without any obstruction!
Their pupils contracted sharply, and their bodies stiffened instantly!
Inside that dark, heavy box was—
There was nothing there!
...
Inside the bamboo hut, the night was still and quiet.
Two figures in plain white lay side by side on the couch, their black hair cascading down their pillows, their eyes gazing blankly at the ceiling, both burdened with worries.
“Ah Hong,” Xuan Ru’s voice drifted through the silence, “Tell me… where did the contents of that box go?”
Gu Jinghong turned his head slightly, his gaze falling on Xuan Ru's beautiful profile.
The flickering candlelight made her features even clearer—her straight nose, her slightly pursed lips, and especially the slight furrowing of her brows when she was concentrating… She bore a striking resemblance to the dignified and composed head of the Imperial Medical Academy, Director Tan!
Ever since Gu Jinghong last met Dean Tan, he felt that he looked quite similar to Xuan Ru.
Xuanru had been orphaned since childhood and had never experienced the warmth of family. Gu Jinghong herself was also alone and knew the loneliness all too well. Seeing her so tormented by the mystery of her origins, a strong thought arose in his mind: perhaps, she was not entirely without support?
The words were on the tip of his tongue, but he swallowed them back down.
At this moment, Xuanru's mind was in turmoil. To rashly mention a "father" she had never met and who might be involved in a wide range of matters would not be a comfort, but rather a disturbance.
Gu Jinghong turned back again, looking at the top of the tent, and gently changed the subject: "...Aru, there is something else I don't understand. Your mother was an expert in poisons, with unparalleled skill, so why did you... inherit the medical profession of saving lives?"
Upon hearing this, Xuanru sighed softly, "...I don't know either, it seems I was born this way. When I was young, my mother taught me the art of poison and analyzed the properties of the medicines, but what always came to mind was how to neutralize their malevolent energy and turn them into life-saving remedies...Those insidious formulas that kill without leaving a trace swirled in my mind, and somehow they became life-saving remedies."
Gu Jinghong lowered her eyes and sighed softly. She carefully chose her words, as if she were simply murmuring to herself, "Do you think it's possible that your talent didn't come from your mother, but was inherited from your father? Perhaps... he was a master healer?"
The words had barely left her lips when Xuan Ru abruptly sat up! Her movement was so swift it stirred a gentle breeze. She stared directly at Gu Jinghong, her eyes filled with surprise and uncertainty: "Ah Hong, you…!"
Gu Jinghong felt a slight tension in her heart, but she didn't show it on her face. She slowly sat up straight and met Xuan Ru's probing gaze.
Xuan Ru stared at her for a moment, the storm in her eyes subsiding, and she slowly nodded, with an almost absurd realization: "...What you said makes sense."
Seeing that she did not resist, Gu Jinghong felt a little more at ease and then probed again: "...If that's really the case, do you think he might be a highly skilled doctor?"
Xuanru: "A master? How much of a master?"
Gu Jinghong: "...For example, the imperial physicians of the Imperial Medical Academy?"
"...The imperial physician?" Xuan Ru repeated in a low voice, her brows furrowed slightly.
Gu Jinghong held her breath, nodded again, and stared intently at Xuan Ru, waiting for her deeper reaction.
However, Xuan Ru remained silent for a moment, then suddenly looked up and asked, "Then... what is the annual salary for the position of Imperial Physician?"
Gu Jinghong: "..."
Xuan Ru seemed oblivious to Gu Jinghong's shocked and helpless expression, continuing to daydream: "If I had a father who was a royal physician, I wouldn't have to stay here in Medicine Master Valley dealing with those damn herbs. I could go out and open shops, opening one and closing one, opening another, doing whatever I pleased?"
"Slap, slap, slap—"
Clapping sounds rang out. Gu Jinghong pursed her lips, her eyes brimming with smiles as she looked at Xuan Ru—wonderful! After all the twists and turns, she had come full circle back to these yellow and white things! She had returned to the shop where she had repeatedly opened and closed, only to fail again and again!
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