Chapter 75 [VIP]
Wuweizi's trip to the capital was at the invitation of a young friend from Shangqing Temple. In addition, his good-for-nothing disciple insisted on going to the capital, a vortex of complex human nature, power, and interests, to pursue worldly cultivation. He was worried and decided to come and take a look.
However, after stepping into the capital region yesterday, he observed the celestial phenomena at night and saw two imperial stars shining in the sky.
This has never happened before.
One of them, as before, was accompanied by destiny and shone brightly, while the other was newly formed and had only a faint light. However, Wuwei discovered that it was accompanied by his little disciple.
When did I gain an apprentice?
At that moment, Wuweizi even wondered if he was about to ascend to immortality, which was why his old eyesight was failing and he could no longer accurately observe the celestial phenomena.
He cast another divination, and the result still showed that he had indeed gained a new apprentice.
My disciple can fall from the sky?
He lived to be eighty-two and had never seen anything so strange.
Wuweizi decided to follow the divination to see what the aptitude and character of this disciple whom Heaven had given him for free were like.
He walked up the stairs to the second floor and first looked at the blood on the floor. The blood was exceptionally bright red, indicating an illness originating in the internal organs; the person vomiting blood was in critical condition. Besides a large pool of blood at the top of the stairs, scattered drops of blood continued into the corridor.
People came and went to join the fun, leaving behind one bloody footprint after another.
Wuweizi followed the bloody footprints and saw a girl with her back to him. With that one glance, he confirmed that this was the disciple he had taken in.
Her voice was calm and composed, showing no sign of helplessness even in the face of such a dangerous illness.
"Don't touch the needle in your throat."
"yes."
Qin Chen agreed and carefully carried Prime Minister Song into their private room. Gu Zhizhuo did not turn around; all her attention was on Prime Minister Song.
The Yellow Springs hexagram is an extremely ominous one, and it does not allow her to be distracted.
Gu Zhizhuo quickly followed into the private room, reminding Qin Chen not to close the door, and then gestured for Qin Chen to put him on the ground first.
Xie Jing tried to follow, but someone raised their hand to stop him.
“Jing, my cousin.”
This title sent chills down Xie Jing's spine. He slowly raised his head and noticed that there was not only Gu Zhizhuo in the private room, but also Xie Yingchen.
Xie Yingchen had a faint smile on his lips, and his indifferent eyes conveyed a sense of aloofness that kept people at a distance.
Why are you here?!
Xie Jing blurted out, thinking: Could he have followed me here? How despicable. He's probably afraid I'll win over the Duke of Wei and the Grand Secretary before him. This thought surged wildly in his mind, almost bursting forth, when Xie Yingchen calmly uttered two words: "Watch the show."
Xie Jing looked incredulous.
Hmph, hypocrite!
He looked into the private room. On the octagonal table were two teacups, but no wine. There was also fruit syrup in a glass cup. The syrup was about half drunk, and there were traces of lip rouge on the rim of the cup.
There were only two pairs of chopsticks, and four or five plates of snacks, all of which showed signs of use. There were also only two round stools next to the octagonal table, one on the left and one on the right, very close to each other.
All of this proves that there were indeed only him and Gu Zhizhuo in the private room.
Did they really come to see the show together?
He stared at Gu Zhizhuo, who was kneeling beside Chief Minister Song taking his pulse, and felt a strange mix of emotions. Hmph, he had initially thought she would be a widow, but the arranged marriage had only lasted a little over a month, and now the two of them were inseparable.
"What's wrong?!"
Heavy footsteps approached hurriedly, followed by the anxious voice of the Duke of Wei, "Where is Brother Song?
Duke Wei came with Gong Hai.
Xie Jing pointed to the private room, suppressing the urge to storm out. He told himself that the Grand Secretary's fate was uncertain, and he couldn't just leave like that.
The Duke of Wei gasped, "This blood..."
“It was all vomited out,” Xie Jing said heavily.
Duke Wei was so frightened that his hands and feet went numb. He looked at Chief Minister Song inside, whose clothes were soaked in blood, so red that it made one's heart tremble.
Duke Wei, a man of military background, had seen plenty of blood and even dead bodies, but the way he was vomiting blood was truly strange. They had just drunk with the Prime Minister, and now he was vomiting blood like this; even he himself would be tempted to suspect that he had poisoned the Prime Minister.
"Brother Song!"
We need to call a doctor right away, no, I mean the imperial physician!
Otherwise, it would be impossible to explain.
"Don't go in."
Xie Yingchen offered a reminder.
Duke Wei froze, and without bothering with formalities, hurriedly asked, "Young Master... what are you doing here?"
"Did the Grand Secretary...call a doctor?"
As the Duke of Wei was about to rush inside, Xie Yingchen glanced at him sideways and repeated, "Don't go in."
His eyes were cold and clear, and his usually gentle features were now imbued with an undeniable pressure from someone in a superior position, making him appear arrogant and domineering.
After Gongzi Chen returned to the capital, he left the impression of "gentle and harmless" on the Duke of Wei. But now, a single glance was enough to make him as silent as a cicada in winter.
Duke Wei withdrew his foot, cupped his hands, and said, "Yes..." His voice trembled slightly at the end.
He didn't quite understand why Xie Yingchen would meddle in such trivial matters.
The Grand Secretary was drinking with him and the Third Prince. If he dies from his illness, they will bear a heavy responsibility. He might even be suspected of deliberately killing the Grand Secretary for the sake of factional struggle. The Emperor has been ill recently and has no interest in state affairs. Xie Yingchen could take advantage of this situation and seize control of the court by eliminating any dissidents.
Why did he get involved?
If Chief Minister Song were alive, that would be fine.
If he dies, even he might not be able to shirk responsibility.
Xie Yingchen, the grandson of the late emperor who was taught the art of imperial strategy, could hardly be a great sage who was devoted to serving others.
"Have your men spread out."
After giving his instructions, Xie Yingchen turned to look at Gu Zhizhuo. She was completely oblivious to the commotion. She didn't close the door because Prime Minister Song was already struggling to breathe, and closing the doors and windows would hasten his death.
Gu Zhizhuo's entire focus was on Chief Minister Song, and he took out a small golden compass.
After the magnetic needle on the Tianchi compass spun wildly, it suddenly came to a stop. She stared at the compass and murmured, "A trapped dragon finds water, the south is the direction."
"Qin Chen, move him to the window for me."
Qin Chen didn't understand, but that didn't stop him from doing as instructed.
Qin Chen easily lifted Prime Minister Song up and moved him to the round chair on the south side, without touching the silver needle in his throat at all.
Sunlight streamed through the window onto Prime Minister Song. Even though he was unconscious, he continued to vomit blood, small mouthfuls of blood gushing out one after another, as if he were trying to purge every last drop of blood from his body. His body was covered in blood, a shockingly bright red.
Qin Chen's heart trembled as he watched. He felt that the Prime Minister was on the verge of death; if the needle in his throat were removed, he would surely die immediately.
"Miss Gu, can she be saved?"
Qin Chen asked cautiously.
Gu Zhizhuo remained noncommittal. Her divination results were all extremely ominous, and saving the person was tantamount to fighting against the King of Hell for their life.
But she likes it!
As Gu Zhizhuo walked over, he took out a silver needle about three inches long from his needle case. The needle was as thin as a hair and reflected a faint white light in the sunlight.
The first needle, to strengthen the heart and soul.
Gu Zhizhuo raised his hand, picked up the needle, and decisively pierced the temple.
Her movements were extremely slow, her fingertips gently twisting the needle with a unique rhythm. When the silver needle had penetrated an inch, the Grand Secretary stopped vomiting blood.
At two inches, he slowly opened his eyes, his vision blurred as if veiled by a thin mist.
When the needle reached three inches, Gu Zhizhuo finally released her grip on it. This single needle prick had taken the full time it takes to brew a cup of tea. She gently flicked the end of the needle with her fingertip, and the silver needle emitted a soft hum.
Chief Minister Song uttered a muffled sound: "Gu..."
Is it really alive?
Duke Wei was stunned. He wanted to rush in and see what was happening, but he hesitated because of Xie Yingchen and dared not do anything rash. He nervously twisted his hands together.
"Has your abdomen ever been injured?" Gu Zhizhuo asked quickly, not allowing him to say anything unnecessary.
"yes."
Have you been drinking alcohol?
There was actually no need to ask; Gu Zhizhuo could tell just by smelling it. He just wanted to check his mental state.
Chief Minister Song nodded.
How many cups?
"three……"
"really."
The diagnosis was the same as Gu Zhizhuo's.
"Has no one told you that you can't drink alcohol?"
Gu Zhizhuo's brows furrowed slightly, and his voice was sharp as a blade.
Under her gaze, Prime Minister Song felt guilty.
He was breathing weakly, his lower abdomen felt like it was being stabbed with a knife, waves of pain came over him, and his whole body trembled uncontrollably.
His injury was inflicted ten years ago when he was ordered to inspect Huaizhou. At that time, Huaizhou was infested with bandits, and the people lived in hardship. Not only were traveling merchants robbed, but ordinary people were also killed and robbed when they went out. Even villages and towns were often massacred. The bandits were very arrogant, but the local government did very little.
Chief Minister Song uncovered a massive case of collusion between officials and bandits, implicating nearly 70% of the officials in Huaizhou. Knowing that his best course of action was to return with the evidence while preserving his life, he secretly departed under the escort of several imperial guards. On the way, they were ambushed by bandits. The three hundred imperial guards given to him by the late emperor nearly all perished protecting him. He was stabbed in the abdomen and was on the verge of death. Finally, an old servant desperately carried him on his back, and the remaining imperial guards sacrificed themselves to hold off the bandits' pursuit. The old servant then jumped into the river and swam to the other side.
When he woke up, the old servant was dead. He stuffed the account book and evidence into the wound in his abdomen, borrowed a needle and thread from a farmer's house, and secretly sewed up the wound. After resting for a few more days, he stumbled back to the capital.
Before the late emperor, he cut open his abdomen and took out the account book.
His illness was also the result of that time.
When I was young, I was fine. After eating some cold or hard foods, my stomach would feel slightly bloated and painful, and I would occasionally have rectal bleeding. The imperial physician prescribed some health-preserving formulas to help me recover slowly, and it was nothing serious.
But the older he gets, the less he can manage. Especially recently, he has been experiencing intermittent cramps in his lower abdomen. Sometimes they are just fleeting, but other times the pain is so intense that he breaks out in a cold sweat and rolls around on the bed.
Why.
I really shouldn't have drunk this today.
Gu Zhizhu snorted repeatedly: "He definitely couldn't resist his cravings."
Song, the chief minister, looked ashamed. It was true that he wanted to refuse the Duke of Wei under the influence of alcohol, but it was also true that he was craving something sweet.
The aroma of wine wafted around his nose, and that old scoundrel, the Duke of Wei, kept drinking cup after cup right in front of him, splashing wine all over the table. Even the sage couldn't resist.
"Those who can't control their appetite deserve to suffer."
Chief Minister Song: "..."
Being scolded by a little girl who wasn't even as old as his granddaughter, Prime Minister Song really wanted to find a block of tofu and smash his head against it to die.
"Don't move."
"You're still alive."
Seeing that he had regained his senses, Gu Zhizhuo took out a second long needle.
The second acupuncture point is used to boost Yang energy.
"It will hurt a lot, you have to bear it."
After Gu Zhizhuo finished speaking, she quickly dropped the needle before he could react.
In her previous life, she often performed acupuncture on Xie Yingchen through his clothes, her needle placement incredibly accurate. The three-inch needle was unaffected by the clothing and pierced his lower abdomen. The Prime Minister Song immediately felt a burning sensation in his navel, as if scorched by a raging fire. He suddenly realized that it was Miss Gu who had saved him.
"you……"
He wanted to ask her how she knew medicine. The Duke of Zhenguo's family had a long tradition of martial arts; he'd heard the Duke boast that the young men and women in his household could walk and practice horse stances. But he'd never heard him mention that his daughter had studied medicine!
"Ahhh."
Pain surged up like a tidal wave, shattering his thoughts. It felt as if someone had ripped open his abdomen, pulled out all his internal organs, and churned them into a jumbled mess. His ten fingers were clenched tightly, and his pale face was contorted in agony.
"What happened?"
The Duke of Wei, who was anxiously waiting at the door, was terrified by the agonizing screams.
As the gleaming silver needle pierced his lower abdomen, Gu Zhizhuo pulled out the needle from his throat, causing the Prime Minister Song to spit out a mouthful of blood.
His face was deathly pale, and he was on the verge of death.
"Brother Song!"
Duke Wei exclaimed in surprise.
Does Miss Gu even know how to treat this? She's almost killed him.
He rushed inside in a hurry, but Xie Yingchen gave him a look, and he stopped abruptly.
Duke Wei gritted his teeth and shouted, "Young Master, look, the man is about to die." He added anxiously, "If Brother Song dies, you won't fare well either."
This is not a threat, but a fact.
Even if Chief Minister Song dies, the Duke of Wei's crime won't be too serious if Xie Yingchen interferes without authorization; at least he won't be accused of plotting an assassination. But Xie Yingchen himself will definitely suffer a thankless task.
"Won't."
Xie Yingchen said with deep eyes, "The blood is black."
This time, Prime Minister Song vomited black blood.
Unlike the bright red blood on the stairwell outside, this blood was pitch black, like ink, and even had a foul, fishy smell.
While the Duke of Wei was still in a daze, Chief Minister Song spat out another mouthful of blood, this time even blacker and thicker.
"He can't stop vomiting blood," Duke Wei said, shaking his head. "He's also in a lot of pain."
Duke Wei couldn't bear to watch any longer and sighed, "It's no use."
Indeed. The sweat on the Prime Minister Song's forehead was fine and dense, and painful groans escaped from his lips. Duke Wei had always known that although this old friend was a civil official, his tenacity was in no way inferior to that of a military general. When the account books were cut out of his stomach back then, he had never heard him utter a sound of pain.
Now, I'm afraid the pain is severe.
"Manager," the waiter couldn't help but ask, "what should we do?"
That's the Grand Secretary, could he really have died in their theater?
"Never mind."
The shopkeeper was a middle-aged man who usually had a smiling face and was always trying to make money. But now, his smile had vanished, and he was extremely cold and hard, as if he could take a life with every move he made.
He countered, "Didn't you see Miss Qingmei?"
The girl Qingmei is currently with spent a long time with her master in the private room last time, and her master even ordered someone to help her find her child.
It's just the death of a prime minister, what's the big deal?
"Send someone to report to the master."
The waiter agreed and hurried off.
Hearing the cries of pain from the second floor, which sounded like the roars of wild beasts, the shopkeeper stepped upstairs.
There were still many opera enthusiasts blocking the corridor. Duke Wei was pacing around the door, wondering how to persuade them, when he saw Gu Zhizhuo take out another long needle.
"Don't do anything reckless!"
"Young Master, please stop her!"
The third injection brought about rebirth.
This injection is taken from the chest.
The Prime Minister Song, who was crying out in pain just a moment ago, suddenly fell silent. He convulsed violently and then remained motionless.
He stopped struggling, stopped crying out in pain, and even stopped vomiting blood; he was as if he were dead.
"Oh dear, he died from the treatment."
One of the audience members couldn't help but sigh, "Women should be devoted to their husbands and children. Why do they have to be so strong and cause someone's death?"
"Women have no ability to cure diseases and save lives."
"That's enough, that's enough. There's nothing more to see."
"..."
The bustling noise had no effect on Gu Zhizhuo at all. She stood up, took the white handkerchief handed to her by Qingmei, and slowly wiped the blood off her hands.
"No."
In the crowd, an inconspicuous old Taoist priest said softly, "He's alive."
Wuweizi's face was filled with satisfied joy, his eyes shining as if he had discovered a rare treasure.
The Three Needles of Soul Reversal were his own creation, and none of his clumsy and foolish apprentices had ever learned them. Unexpectedly, this clever apprentice who fell from the sky actually used them.
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