Facing each other
Looking back, she saw half-dried bamboo leaves drifting down from the mountain bamboo forest, landing on Qi Heng's shoulder. Even through the veil, his silhouette was still remarkably clear. Perhaps because it was obstructed by something, Yuanli's face was filled with the unbridled joy of seeing him again.
"Can I speak to you alone?"
"There's nothing much to say. Whether it's Chi Li and Qi Heng, or A Jin and the Queen, it's all in the past."
After saying this calmly, Yuanli took Cha Suxun's hand and was about to leave. When she walked past him, Qi Heng reached out and held her back.
"Now that you have someone new who wants to talk, you have nothing to say to me, the old one? Ah Li, how much more do I have to compromise before you're willing to stop kicking me out?"
"Concessions are useless, only affection is useful. Don't you understand this, Ah Jin?"
Qi Heng took out the contract, tears streaming down his face. He angrily sobbed, "Does everything that happened before mean nothing?"
Listening to his grievances, Yuanli felt uncomfortable, even a little soft-hearted. Cha Suxun squeezed her hand with a little force, then bent down, tilting his head to look her in the eye. His eyes, sparkling with a faint smile, were signaling to her, seeking her opinion.
Finally, she looked at Qi Heng longingly, and carefully felt the warmth of his grip on her arm. Yuanli squeezed Cha Suxun's hand tightly in response.
Cha Suxun took a few steps forward, intending to pull her to his side so that Qi Heng would let go of his dirty hand, but Qi Heng refused to let go and even moved forward a few steps with them.
"Ali, please don't leave me." Qi Heng pleaded.
Seeing this, Cha Suxun immediately added sarcastically: "Dog skin plaster."
"Qi Heng, what do you want to say to me? Do you think that if you say a few words to me, I will say, 'Ah, you love me so much, I can't leave you~' and then stay with you forever, and then go back to marry you? But you can't even guarantee my freedom, or even my life. Why do you think I can go back with you with just a few words? Ah Xun would rather bear the crime of exterminating his entire clan for me than help me escape from the palace. But where are you? My parents and the entire clan are more important than me. This is a common filial piety, but in your heart, I am not as important as the jade hairpin you are looking for."
After hearing this, Qi Heng slowly released his grip on her hand, silently stepped back a few steps, and made way.
Just as she was about to leave, she was struck by a pain like ants gnawing at her bones. It felt like a knife was repeatedly stabbing into her heart, the pain was unbearable. Yuanli endured it and took less than two steps before she fainted from the pain.
Upon seeing this, the three men hurriedly helped him back to the temple and sent a fast horse to fetch a doctor from the foot of the mountain to treat him.
The road was bumpy and winding, with a cliff next to the roughly three-meter-wide dirt road. A fall would have meant death. Chu Xiao, preoccupied with rescuing Chi Li, rode his horse at such speed that dust and rocks rose in the air. Doctor Li was so frightened that he clutched the saddle tightly, not daring to let go.
After finally arriving, before he could even recover from the shock, Chu Xiao had already lifted him off the horse and brought him into the house. Chu Xiao repeatedly reminded him that he must heal her.
As soon as Doctor Li took the patient's pulse, his brows furrowed.
Qi Heng saw the doctor's expression and understood that Yuanli's condition was not optimistic. He hurriedly asked, "How is it?"
Doctor Li took out a silver needle from his medical kit and pricked her finger lightly, squeezing out a plump bead of blood. He then dipped the needle into the blood. Instantly, the needle reacted, turning black upon contact with her blood.
"Hiss~ I've been a doctor for many years, but I've never felt such a strange pulse. Does this girl often come into contact with poison? Or has she been poisoned recently?"
Qi Heng was still pondering the doctor's question when Cha Suxun answered, "Yes, she was poisoned three days ago, but she has already taken the antidote. It's not the poison that caused her coma. It's true that she often comes into contact with poisons. She is good at making poisons and has been exposed to them since she was young. She often tests poisons on herself, but she always takes the antidote."
"Even for those skilled in poisons, it's best not to test them too much on yourself. Even if you take the antidote, it will still harm your body. Although the girl's pulse is extremely disordered, there is order within the chaos, and the various residual poisons are balancing each other. However, the residual poison that accumulated bit by bit has seeped into her blood and must have penetrated into her bones. Remember not to poison her again. Even a small amount of poison will disrupt the balance of the residual poison in her body, so remember to be careful."
"Is there any way to cure the remaining poison?" Qi Heng asked worriedly.
Doctor Li shook his head helplessly. "My medical skills are limited. I can't completely eliminate the remaining poison in her body. I can only prescribe some medicine to keep her alive. I see that you two nobles are dressed in extraordinary clothes. I think if you can find a doctor with more advanced medical skills than me, maybe she can be saved."
"You mean..."
"Well. If we can't find a doctor who can remove the remaining poison from her body, she can only last three months at most."
Doctor Li turned to look at the beautiful young woman lying on the couch and sighed inwardly. What a pity... She had been raised so carefully by her parents, and had two such noble and elegant lovers, yet she died so young. Therefore, he was extremely cautious when writing down the prescription, trying to recall the most useful recipes he had learned throughout his life.
After the two of them stuffed a heavy bag of silver into their pockets and politely sent the doctor away, Qi Heng put aside his hostility and jealousy and said to A Xun in a gentle manner, "You heard what the doctor said just now. Even if you want to leave, now is not the best time. I will use all my connections, power, and personal connections to ensure that I find a doctor who can treat her. If you truly care about her and consider her health, I hope you can work with me to convince her to stay for treatment."
"Wait until she wakes up."
"Let's talk about it after she wakes up? If she insists on leaving, will you let her do what she wants? How can you treat her when you have no power or influence? Are you just going to watch her die in three months?"
Cha Suxun was too lazy to pay attention to him. He walked around him and went straight back to the house. As soon as he reached the door, Chu Xiao's sword was already against his neck.
"Qi Heng, stop wasting time with him! Miss Chili is still unconscious, and he doesn't care whether she lives or dies. He might as well just kill her with two swords. When Miss Chili wakes up, tell her that this guy has left without saying goodbye. Even if she'll be heartbroken for a while, it's better than risking her life with him."
"Follow me and lose your life? Does following Qi Heng mean you will definitely survive? A Dali Temple official, a master of investigating cases, can let his own father almost burn your unmarried wife to death at home. How ridiculous. Who is more likely to lose your life by following?"
Hearing this, Chu Xiao pressed his sword tighter, "Shut up!"
The sword pierced the skin on Cha Suxun's neck, and a small amount of blood flowed down his slender neck. His hand, hidden by his large sleeves, quietly opened the small bamboo tube containing the Gu worm. Seeing the Gu worm slide down his clothes and crawl towards Chu Xiao, Cha Suxun's mouth curled up slightly.
"You can't take her away whether you like it or not."
"That's not necessarily true."
As soon as Cha Suxun finished speaking, Chu Xiao let out a cry of pain, as if a bug had bitten him hard.
"Don't touch me anymore. If you do, you'll die faster. My poison has already entered your body. If Master Qi insists on trapping Ah Li against her will, then I can only let the poison be trapped in you as well. Ah Li or Chu Xiao, who is more important to you? Master Qi, please choose."
"You also know Gu, who are you?"
"Master Qi, are you addicted to investigating cases? Even a person's household registration and identity are questioned. You can doubt my identity, but don't doubt my ability to cast a curse."
While Qi Heng was still hesitating, Chu Xiao said disdainfully, "Whether what he said is true or not is still unclear. Qi Heng, don't listen to his nonsense. I might just have been bitten by a bug by chance. Don't be confused at the critical moment. Miss Chi Li is more important."
"Lift up your sleeve and take a look before you draw any conclusions."
Chu Xiao hesitated for a moment, then chose to lift the sleeve of the hand holding the sword. He saw a small bump slightly arched under the skin of the arm, about the size of a thumbnail, faintly visible and slightly black, and still crawling around.
He subconsciously wanted to raise his head and slap it to death, but he heard Ah Xun say quietly, "I fed this insect with poison, so you can slap it."
"you!"
With the capital to threaten, Cha Suxun easily pushed away Chu Xiao's sword. Before entering the house, he turned around and said, "Master Qi, if you have made up your mind, tell me. Keep an eye on your people, and don't do anything rash."
After saying that, he went into the house and stayed by her bedside without moving a step.
It was almost dusk when Yuanli woke up. As soon as she opened her eyes, Cha Suxun and Qi Heng immediately surrounded her, asking about her condition. Yuanli stared at Qi Heng blankly, feeling a mixture of emotions.
She knew why she fainted. It was not because of poisoning, but because the love poison she had planted with her own hands finally backfired today.
He doesn't love her, the mission is going to fail...
She didn't have time to feel sad that he didn't love her in this life. She was only worried about failing in her tribulation and how she would report to heaven. Countless questions flooded in, making her head dizzy and the more she thought about it, the more annoyed she became.
"What's wrong? Are you still feeling unwell?"
Yuanli didn't have the heart to talk about love with him now. She was only worried about the consequences of failing in the tribulation, so she just shook her head in response.
"If you still feel unwell, be sure to tell me immediately and I'll ask a doctor to come and see you. Ah Li, the doctor just took your pulse and said that your previous poison test has damaged your body. The remaining toxins need to be completely eliminated, so it's not suitable for you to travel. Why don't you stay in my house and rest for a while? It won't be too late to leave once you've fully recovered."
"Master Qi, aren't you afraid that my presence in your house will bring trouble to you and the entire clan behind you? Can your father really tolerate a grain of sand like me? I'm still young and don't want to die so early. Thank you for your kindness, Master Qi."
Perhaps because the result of her failed tribulation was about to be finalized, Yuanli was too worried and didn't even realize that her tone of voice was a bit sarcastic and irritating.
"Get out." After saying that, Yuanli turned over and faced away from them.
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