Chapter 120 "Sir Song, why don't I...
The sound of the white-crowned crane is shrill and sharp, like the cry of an owl at night.
Wen Yu could imagine Zhi Bai's pain without thinking too much. Avoiding the gaze of the people at the end of the bed, Wen Yu tucked her hands into her sleeves, still insisting on transmitting her magic power to Zhi Bai.
"Stop talking now and save your energy for the birth." Wen Yu, assuming Zhibai was about to shower her with gratitude, quickly advised, "Once you get through this, you can be reunited with your family."
Wen Yu was talking while watching over the midwife's side. Suddenly, she felt a tightness on her wrist.
Zhibai used all his strength to hold Wenyu. Wenyu looked down along his arm and saw that Zhibai's eyes were firm, as if he would not stop until he had said something.
"No, Wenyu." Zhibai gasped in pain, but still managed to say, "I didn't bring that lunch box."
Wen Yu seemed to hear loud noises and explosions in her ears, and all the doubts came flooding in like a tide, almost drowning her.
"I helped prepare the soup and rice that was sent to you and Lord Song at night." Zhibai gritted his teeth. "Why would I send you another food box at this time?"
Zhibai said something else, but Wenyu acted as if she didn't hear it. She just murmured, "If it's not you, then who else could it be..."
…
Jiangyang Prefecture, dungeon.
As soon as Song Linsheng entered the dungeon, he was overwhelmed by a strong smell of blood, which seemed unstoppable and went straight into his nostrils.
His heart sank, and an extremely bad feeling came over him, prompting him to quicken his pace and walk towards the deepest part where Chen Mian was imprisoned.
The dungeon was very dark, mixed with the dim candlelight, as if a layer of wax was applied to people's eyes.
Song Linsheng frowned to concentrate himself. When he turned the last corner, he finally saw Chen Mian's slumped figure in the few rays of light leaking through the skylight.
"Who beat you like this?" Song Linsheng was shocked and quickly asked the jailer to open the door. "Chen Mian? Chen Mian?"
After a series of jingling sounds of keys, Song Linsheng stepped into the cell and arrived in front of Chen Mian in just three or two steps.
He was wearing a thin, bloodstained garment, tattered and indistinguishable, not even its original color. His untended hair, mingled with damp, moldy grass debris, had long since vanished, leaving Chen Mian without the elegance he had once worn on the long street.
Even though it was so... indecent, Song Linsheng didn't feel embarrassed at all.
He raised his hand and rested Chen Mian's head in his arms, but he didn't dare to shake it too hard for fear of hurting Chen Mian. He could only call out softly and repeatedly to confirm: "Chen Mian? Chen Mian?"
"Well……"
Chen Mian said nothing, only responding to Song Linsheng's cry with a long low hum.
The long-term lack of water made his throat crack like the land that had not seen rain for a long time. Although he used all his remaining strength, he could only make a slight sound.
"Chen Mian?" Song Linsheng called out as he examined Chen Mian's wounds. Not a single inch of his exposed skin was intact, and the crisscrossing whip marks were shocking and unbearable to look at.
"How could it be like this!" Song Linsheng's tone darkened, anger rising. "He's just a suspect, not a confirmed guilty person."
"Why would he receive such a severe punishment? Is it true that torture and forced confessions are the norm in the Jiangyang government office?"
Even though Song Linsheng's words were not particularly harsh, they were still like thunder and lightning, a sign of impending disaster, to the jailer standing hunched outside the cell.
Although this Lord Song was new, and was said to be well-educated and easy to get along with, they had never met him before and were unsure of his temperament. Furthermore, his status was there, and ultimately intimidating.
There was another sound of keys clanging, and the jailer outside fell to his knees.
"Sir, calm down! Sir, calm down!" The leader was the one who held the dungeon key and had just opened the door for Song Linsheng. "I was only assigned to the dungeon yesterday. I was originally..."
It didn't matter where he was originally on duty. Song Linsheng's eyes dimmed, and he only heard half of the sentence "I was transferred to the dungeon for duty yesterday."
Having said that, why should we continue?
Obviously, someone had done something behind the scenes and deliberately murdered Chen Mian. He was lynched before he was charged with any crime, and Chen Mian would be severely punished if he didn't die.
Then, they adjusted the time and transferred all the prison guards involved, making it impossible for him to get hold of the clues directly.
That person must have anticipated that he would question Chen Mian again today. Even if he didn't come to Chen Mian because Zhi Bai Niangzi gave birth, he would have come to interrogate him because the old case was brought up again. Therefore, he set up the game in advance and withdrew in time.
Song Linsheng's nerves grew increasingly tense. The investigation into Cheng Lian had gone so smoothly, he'd assumed everything was as expected. But he hadn't expected that while the mantis was stalking the cicada, the oriole was lurking behind. He'd assumed Lord Jia was genuinely repentant for the Cheng Lian incident, but his actions toward Chen Mian had only made things more difficult for Song Linsheng.
But what’s the point of thinking about these things now?
Song Linsheng's breathing became disordered and he lost his composure. If he hadn't been careless, how could Chen Mian have ended up in such a situation?
Since they knew there was an injustice, they should have sent someone to protect Chen Mian. How could they take it for granted that there would be no accidents in the unresolved matter?
Just when Song Linsheng's heart was in a state of chaos, a hoarse and dry voice fell into his ears like a crushing blow.
"Song... Lord Song..."
——It’s Chen Mian.
Upon hearing this, Song Linsheng immediately reached out to feel his breath. Fortunately, he could still feel some warmth. Although his breath was barely moving, he was still alive.
"Chen Mian." Song Linsheng no longer cared about his duties. Chen Mian's health was the most important thing at the moment. "Chen Mian, listen to me."
"Mrs. Zhibai is about to give birth! Your baby is about to be born." Song Linsheng gathered his strength and pulled Chen Mian to sit up. "Take care of yourself. I'll take you out right away."
As he spoke, Song Linsheng wanted to help Chen Mian stand up. However, Chen Mian, who was originally frail, was now seriously injured and had lost his strength, and he felt as heavy as a thousand pounds. In addition, Song Linsheng did not dare to move easily, fearing that it would worsen his injuries, so he had to squat down with him again.
"Chen Mian? How do you feel?" Song Linsheng leaned forward and leaned in closer to hear Chen Mian's response. "Can you still walk?"
"Is that Mr. Song...Mr. Song? My wife..." Chen Mian's voice was intermittent and as thin as a mosquito's whisper. "Is my wife okay?"
Chen barely managed to hold on to his breath and tried to open his eyes. A faint light shone through his messy hair and onto his face, but he felt no warmth at all, only a faint coldness in his eyes.
Is it a moonlit night?
For days now, he had been unable to distinguish between day and night, and the time of day. Now he could only rely on the cold and warm light to guess.
"Fortunately, everything is fine. Madam Wenyu is taking care of her now." Song Linsheng said soothingly, "Don't worry."
"I believe that soon, Lady Zhibai will be able to give birth to a child and reunite with your family."
"Well... my wife, my child..." Chen Mian murmured, then paused, as if he had just realized what was going on. He then struggled to get up, "I want to go see my wife. My lord, I want to see my wife."
As he moved, the wounds on his body opened wide and bled. His already broken limbs were instantly inflicted with new wounds, and were surrounded by a bloody smell.
"Be careful!" Song Linsheng's heart tightened and he hurriedly supported Chen Mian.
"Hiss... Lord Song..." Somehow, although Chen Mian was so seriously injured, he actually managed to stand up.
"Let's go, Master Song." Chen Mian said as he stepped forward. "I'll go with you, but I don't know where my wife is now."
Song Linsheng breathed a sigh of relief. If he could still walk, it at least meant that Chen Mian's physical condition was not too bad. When he asked about the whereabouts of Lady Zhibai, Song Linsheng replied, "It's in the courtyard that the government office assigned to me earlier. Let's go there together now—"
A loud "boom" interrupted Song Linsheng's words, and he swallowed the unfinished words. It was only a moment, so fast that Song Linsheng had no time to react. He only saw Chen Mian's figure collapsing like a mountain and collapsing.
"Chen Mian!" Song Linsheng exclaimed and quickly reached out to grab Chen Mian, but unfortunately he was a step too late and didn't even catch half of his clothes.
Song Linsheng saw Chen Mian's fallen body curled up into a ball, and he seemed to have returned to the original appearance of a baby, shivering and protecting himself.
"Hurry up and invite the doctor into the house!" Song Linsheng's heart tightened, and he suddenly felt that something was wrong.
When Chen Mian stood up, Song Linsheng thought he was still strong enough, but he suddenly collapsed like a kite with a broken string. It seemed that he had been trying to see Lady White, forcing himself to move with his last breath, and in the process, he had overdrawn his body.
The jailer beside him shrank his head, but was reluctant to move. "Sir, it's late... Now, I'm afraid it will be difficult to ask the doctor... I'm afraid..."
"Just go and ask for him, be respectful, and pay him ten times the consultation fee." Song Linsheng glanced at the jailers kneeling in a row. "Leave two of you to find a stretcher, and the rest of you go and get the doctor. Distribute them anywhere in the city and make sure they bring the patient back to me!"
"Yes! Yes, yes! My lord!" accompanied by a rustling sound, everyone filed out.
Song Linsheng looked at Chen Mian, who was not quite conscious, and sighed in his heart. He thought that in such a condition, it might not be appropriate to move him. He could only wait for the doctor to examine him first.
"Go get some warm clothes and hot water," Song Linsheng ordered.
The jailer outside the door took the order and left. For a moment, only Song Linsheng and Chen Mian were left in the room.
Song Linsheng frowned. No matter how calm he had been in the past, he couldn't sit still now.
He reached out to touch Chen Mian's forehead, only to feel it burning hot. It seemed that the fever was caused by inflammation of the wound, and he needed treatment as soon as possible.
Faint light leaked in from the skylights on all four sides, its color was cool and clear, contrasting sharply with the dim candlelight in the dungeon.
Song Linsheng looked out in the moonlight, only to see darkness in the four corners. He wondered if everything was going smoothly over there with Wen Yu.
The prefect's villa, the delivery room.
"It's going very smoothly! Madam, try a little harder, I can already see the baby's head!" said a midwife in surprise.
Wen Yu's nervous heart finally relaxed for a moment after hearing this. "I'll leave everything to the maids!"
Unable to figure out what had just happened, Wen Yu simply stopped dwelling on it and focused solely on Zhibai production. Right now, this was the top priority.
"Did you hear that?" Wen Yu squeezed Zhibai's palm and comforted him softly, "Mammy said she saw the child's head. Don't worry, it's okay, it will be fine."
"Ah! Wenyu, Wenyu." Zhibai was sweating profusely and in unbearable pain. "Ah - Wenyu, I'm scared..."
Wen Yu's eyelashes trembled and her lips shook. She knew what Zhibai was afraid of.
Zhibai is a demon, transformed from the gardenia in the mountains, while Chen Mian is a real mortal.
She wondered what the child she and Chen Mian had would look like...
Wen Yu had only been practicing cultivation for a short time and had not seen much, but she had heard that some less advanced demons would give birth to children with human faces and animal ears, or that they would start out in human form but gradually find it difficult to maintain and would return to their original form.
Wen Yu couldn't predict what Zhibai's pregnancy would be like.
But at this moment, she couldn't let Zhibai be distracted.
Thinking of this, Wen Yu leaned down and whispered in Zhi Bai's ear, "Don't worry, I'll take care of everything."
If anything unexpected happened, she would use magic to preserve the child's appearance, making her appear normal. At least for a while, so that no one around her would notice. Later, she would return to the Spring Temple and ask her master for help.
After saying that, Wen Yu patted Zhibai's hand soothingly and told her not to worry.
Zhibai smiled gently. With Wenyu's promise, she finally felt a little relieved.
However, she only felt that her fingertips were getting heavier and heavier, and she had no strength left. Even her eyelashes wanted to close uncontrollably.
It turns out that once a person's biggest fear is resolved, he or she will lose the last breath of holding on, and monsters are no exception.
She had lost her spiritual power during her pregnancy, and to escape the bandits, she had forced her way through the restrictions and used magic, suffering a backlash from her demonic energy, leaving her life hanging by a thread. Fortunately, Wen Yu rescued her, but that only delayed her life. Now, with labor approaching, her vital energy and blood surging, she felt her demonic energy becoming increasingly unstable, almost unaware of its presence.
During her years in the human world, she had seen that giving birth was extremely dangerous and life-threatening for ordinary women. However, she had not experienced it herself at the time, so she could never understand it.
Now, she finally knows what it feels like.
Zhibai closed her eyes, concentrated her mind, and listened carefully to the midwife's instructions. She no longer thought about other things and just pushed in accordance with the midwife's rhythm.
——This is all the strength she has left.
"Madam! Don't sleep, push harder!" the midwife shouted. Seeing Zhibai close his eyes, she quickly got up from the end of the bed and came to Wen Yu.
"This lady is too weak and may have lost her strength. Why not use some medicine to induce labor?" Her hands were covered in blood, indicating that the delivery was not going smoothly.
Wen Yu nodded in response and stood up to go to the table. Lord Mu had also prepared the medicine and had just sent it in. It was now warming on the stove.
The temperature is just right, one degree more would be too hot, one degree less would be too cold.
Wen Yu did not delay for a moment and brought the bowl of medicine to feed Zhibai.
"Zhibai? Zhibai" Zhibai drank half and spilled the other half, just making do with what he had.
As soon as she took the medicine, Zhibai sensed something was wrong. It was as if spiritual energy had entered her body, filling her with strength. A warm feeling swirled through her qi sea, instantly relieving her pain.
"This, this is..." Zhibai felt a spiritual power helping her to restore her demonic power, "Ah——"
Zhibai cried out in pain. Wen Yu thought the medicine was too strong and she couldn't bear it, so she quickly reached out and injected spiritual power into her in order to relieve Zhibai's pain.
——Not Wen Yu.
Zhibai clearly felt Wen Yu's spiritual power entering his body, but it was not the same as the one just now.
Cold and warm are intertwined, although they do not blend, they do not conflict either.
She felt strange, but didn't have the energy to delve into it.
Just when she felt her stomach was stable, she suddenly felt a piercing pain, causing her to unconsciously tighten her limbs.
"It's born! It's born!"
The midwife's surprised cry reached Wen Yu's ears. Wen Yu, who had been throwing her whole heart on Zhibai, looked up. She had not forgotten what she had promised Zhibai.
But what he saw was a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes in the midwife's arms, her head and face covered in scarlet blood, which had not yet been washed.
But even so, Wen Yu still saw it clearly. Except for a light blue birthmark on the forehead, it was clearly a child who looked like an ordinary person.
Wen Yu finally breathed a sigh of relief, feeling both relieved and incredulous. Had Zhibai become a human? The child she and Chen Mian had conceived wasn't actually a demon.
"Congratulations, my lady, you've given birth to a little girl!" The midwife was very happy and held the child up to show Zhibai and Wenyu.
Wen Yu helped Zhibai up and asked her to lean on his arms, "Zhibai?"
Zhibai woke up slowly, was confused for a moment, and then turned to look at the child she had given birth to with great effort.
He was nervous at first, but only after seeing that the child was healthy and appeared normal did Zhibai breathe a sigh of relief.
Just one glance and Zhibai felt an infinite attachment. From then on, she had another connection in this world.
This child doesn't look like her, but looks very much like Mianlang.
Kenro...
"Wenyu." Zhibai turned away, as if tears would fall if he looked at her any longer. "Tell them to leave first. I want to talk to you."
Wen Yu didn't ask any more questions when she heard this. Instead, she took the child from the midwife's hands and said, "Mammy, you've worked hard. Go down and rest first."
The midwife cried out "Hey!" and led all the maids and servants out of the house.
Wen Yu could only hear the sound of people outside congratulating Mu Tong. "Congratulations, sir!" The voices kept coming one after another. Mu Tong, not knowing what was going on, frantically tried to explain, his voices sometimes helpless, sometimes charming, interweaving. Everyone was delighted at the arrival of a new life.
But the house was so quiet that it seemed like another world.
Wen Yu was silent. The laughter and noise outside the house were caused by everyone's ignorance. Wen Yu, who knew it well, naturally couldn't laugh. The child's father, Chen Mian, was now in prison, and no one knew what his situation was.
As she thought about this, Wen Yu's gaze unconsciously darted outside. It was only when her gaze bumped into the tightly closed door that she burst into laughter. What was she thinking? She hadn't yet mastered the art of shrinking the earth by a thousand miles or seeing things from a distance.
Why hasn’t Song Linsheng brought Chen Mian back yet?
Government office, dungeon.
Half asleep and half awake, Chen Mian felt that his eyelashes were as heavy as a thousand pounds, and he could not open them at all. He had to stay in his dream. In his dream, there were deep green mountains, crisp bird songs, cool wild springs, and... and half-opened gardenias.
He wandered around, and although he knew it was a dream, he seemed to be able to smell the rich fragrance of gardenias.
Along with the fragrance, an extremely beautiful and clear face gradually emerged, which was very familiar to him.
——His wife, Zhibai.
He naturally moved towards Zhibai, but the closer he got, the less clear he could see.
"Madam? Madam?" Chen Mian lifted his robe and ran after her. "Madam, where are you?"
But the faster he walked, the thicker the fog in the mountains became. He hurried and hurried, but in the end he was lost in a vast expanse of white and had no idea where he was going.
Chen Mian's heart tightened and he struggled to dive into the fog.
"My wife—"
"Chen Mian?"
A person's voice interrupted this beautiful and bizarre dream, and Chen Mian woke up from his slumber.
As soon as he opened his eyes, dim light rushed in, stinging his eyes and causing them to hurt.
Chen Mian unconsciously stretched out his hand to block it, until a wave of pain swept through his body. Only then did he realize that he had wounds all over his body and was afraid that he would find it difficult to move.
He squinted his eyes and saw two people not far away through the gap.
One of them had his back to him, and only his thin and tall figure could be seen. His face could not be seen clearly, but from his appearance and demeanor, he should be Lord Song.
As for the other person, he looked so unfamiliar to him that he couldn't recognize him at all.
The man whispered something, bowed to Lord Song, and then retreated. He turned a corner and was no longer seen.
"Chen Mian?" Song Linsheng called softly. He seemed to have just seen Chen Mian open his eyes.
Chen Mian only felt that Lord Song's figure was walking towards him, but it was so blurry that he couldn't see it clearly.
"Sir...Song..."
Chen Mian called out, thinking that even though he was in prison, he should not be rude, so he struggled to stand up and greet Lord Song.
"Hurry up and lie down." Song Linsheng held Chen Mian's shoulders and pressed him onto the makeshift bed. "You are so seriously injured, don't act rashly."
Song Linsheng looked at Chen Mian after he had been cleaned. He could not see that he was dirty just now. It turned out that he had more injuries than he had imagined.
"Sir Song, my wife..." Chen Mian refused to relax and continued to struggle. Although he was weak, he still had some strength.
Song Linsheng didn't dare to argue with him and could only speak to comfort him.
"There's something you don't know yet, and I want to congratulate you."
The most important thing right now is to awaken Chen Miansheng's will.
"Mrs. Zhibai gave birth smoothly, and I haven't congratulated you on the birth of your daughter yet."
It was like living water flowing into a stagnant pool, the wind whistling through the mountains and rivers, and Chen Mian was like a dying tree. Song Linsheng's words undoubtedly painted his branches and leaves with a new green color.
His gray eyes lit up with a light that almost illuminated the equally gray cell.
"It's a daughter? It's a daughter!" Chen Mian stopped struggling and lay down deflated, muttering, "It's good that it's a daughter. A daughter looks like her."
As he spoke, Chen Mian began to struggle again, "How is my wife? How is she?"
Song Linsheng was even afraid that he would break his body apart.
"Don't worry, the birth went smoothly, mother and daughter are safe, and Madam Zhibai is fine." Song Linsheng said comfortingly, "Madam Wenyu is taking care of her, don't worry."
Song Linsheng wrung out the handkerchief again and replaced the one on Chen Mian's head. The temperature seemed to be even hotter than before.
He was silent for a moment, and when he spoke again, his tone was relaxed.
"Your injuries are so severe that it's really not appropriate to move you. When you're better, I'll take you back to visit them. How about that?"
No one answered for a long time, and Song Linsheng's voice floated in loneliness.
"List……"
Just as Song Linsheng was about to speak, Chen Mian finally spoke.
"Master Song, can I still go back?"
"Of course I can. Why not? You should take good care of yourself. Lady Zhibai and the child are waiting for you to return and reunite with the family... You—"
"That man just now was the doctor, wasn't he? I heard everything he said."
The heat has entered the lungs and there is no way to recover.
The scene fell silent again, and the dark and damp dungeon became even more gloomy because of the silence.
This time, even the eloquent Song Linsheng couldn't say anything else.
Although Chen Mian was not proficient in medicine, he knew that what was fatal was not the flesh wounds but the high fever caused by the infection after the wound.
After days of burning, his internal organs must have been destroyed.
How could he face his wife in this state? He didn't want to scare her, nor did he want to make her cry.
"Don't worry, you're in this situation today because of my negligence." Song Linsheng's voice was not very loud, but still resounding. "I have sent people to find famous doctors and I will definitely cure you."
He has already written a letter, asking his brother to invite a doctor from Shangdu to see him, and also asking Sister Shen Chuo to be able to transfer an imperial physician to him.
No matter what, Chen Mian must not be in any danger.
"Master Song, there's no need to be so nervous."
Chen Mian's voice was flat and indifferent, and apart from being a little hoarse, no other emotions could be heard.
He really didn't have any other thoughts.
During his time in prison, he spent every day in tension.
It's not that he is worried about himself, but he is afraid that he will not come back from buying rouge that day, which will make his wife worried; he is afraid that he will not be seen for several days, which will make his wife angry; he is afraid that he will be busy with trivial matters at home, which will make his wife work hard; he is also afraid that something might happen to his wife when he is not around.
But now, I heard from Lord Song himself that his wife was safe and sound, and had given birth to a child smoothly.
All his tension was soothed at this moment, and he reached an unprecedented calmness.
As long as his wife is fine, he will be fine too.
Chen Mian turned his head and looked at the skylight that was leaking a faint light, and he didn't even notice that the handkerchief on his forehead had fallen.
A slight night breeze blew through the window lattice, and when the coolness touched Chen Mian's cheek, he felt the long-lost freedom.
"Sir Song, how about I tell you a story?" Chen Mian spoke slowly.
This is the story of him and Zhibai.
In the past, he had never mentioned it to others, but now... Lord Song and Madam Wen were people worthy of trust, and he wanted to tell them about it.
As the light and shadow flickered, Song Linsheng moved slightly, leaned down in front of Chen Mian's couch, and looked out like Chen Mian—
"Rinsheng, I'd like to hear the details."
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