Chapter 32 Qin Jiao Severely Injured

Chapter 32: Qin Jiao Severely Injured

Qin Jiao struggled to open his eyes to see who had come.

The newcomer was dressed in an ethereal white robe, with phoenix eyes, thin lips, and brows like trimmed feathers. He possessed an extraordinary bearing and appearance, like snow in the wind, a lone moon over a forest grove. Amid the flickering candlelight, none among the mortal world could match even a fraction of his ethereal beauty.

A barely noticeable smile tugged at the corner of Qin Jiao's mouth. It was Xie Nai.

Qin Jiao remembered that the Prince of Lingnan was usually languid, indifferent, cold, and aloof, but at this moment, his eyes were like icy stars, his anger palpable.

"Young Master Qin, are you alright!" Xiao Nianzhang's panicked shout rang out, and then the room flooded with people.

Qin Jiao felt the ropes on his hands and feet being untied, and a cloak was draped over him. He was pulled into someone's arms. Because he was so cold, he instinctively burrowed into the warmth.

Qin Jiao's icy hands slid through Xie Nai's lean waist and came to rest on his broad back. He was like a small animal drained of life, weakly nestled in Xie Nai's arms, his body trembling from pain.

Xie Nai glanced at the pallid-faced Qin Jiao in his arms, his dark eyes held a silent authority.

Beside them, Luo Bei and Luo Yue were subduing Zhao Yunzhi, too afraid to speak. Who knew in the brief time they were gone, the young master Qin had been mistreated like this.

Qin Jiao's cold breath hit Xie Nai's chest as he struggled to speak: "Your Highness, be careful. There is Puzhi grass in this room; it causes poisoning. Also, you must capture Xun Xi..."

The thin, frail young master in his arms had a voice as soft as a kitten's. Xie Nai bowed his head closer to him, and Qin Jiao continued, "Xu Rujin is actually Li Chengwei in disguise. Zhao Yunzhi helped him escape. You must find him."

"I know. Rest now and don't speak." Xie Nai tightened his hold on Qin Jiao without changing his expression. Xiao Nianzhang forced himself to speak up: "Your Highness, I've already sent men to catch the fleeing Li Chengwei. As for Xun Xi, she has been detained in the Zhaoxiu Tower awaiting your judgment."

"No need to catch Li Chengwei—he'll come back on his own. Zhao Yunzhi and Xun Xi are to be imprisoned first. I'll handle the rest after I return to the city."

When Xie Nai finished, Xiao Nianzhang quickly grasped the key point: "You're leaving the city?"

"His Highness is going back to camp to get the military doctor to treat Young Master Qin, right?" Xiao Yue, who had been hiding in the shadows, quietly sidled up to Xiao Nianzhang and said.

The toxicity of the Puzhi grass in this room was extremely potent. The reason their group was unaffected was that before they came, Luo Yue had given them the military doctor's Puzhi grass antidote.

The hands that had been on Xie Nai's back now hung limp. Xie Nai slid one arm under the young man's shoulder and back, the other under his knees, and lifted him up.

"Head back to camp now."

"Yes!" Luo Bei and Luo Yue led the way, while Xiao Nianzhang took over the task of escorting Zhao Yunzhi, following closely behind.

It was pitch-black, with fine snow swirling.

When they emerged from the hidden chamber, they realized it was snowing. Pure white snowflakes drifted down, landing on everyone's shoulders. The murky sky hung so low it seemed about to touch the distant mountains.

So the earlier wind and clouds had all been an illusion. From beginning to end, the sky had been brewing a snowstorm, not a rain.

And such is the way of the world.

Qin Jiao leaned limply in Xie Nai's arms. A cold snowflake landed on his forehead, and he groggily opened his eyes. In a corner of the Zhaoxiu Tower, he spotted the figure of an elderly woman.

It was Xu Rujin's mother, Aunt Wu.

At that moment, Qin Jiao suddenly understood. The last tangled thread in his mind was unraveled.

Unfortunately, Qin Jiao had no strength left to speak.

The north wind finally turned the gloomy clouds into heavy rain and snow, and the world's petty hustle and bustle were gradually covered by a blanket of white.

In the end, in his hazy dreams, Qin Jiao glimpsed the full picture of the Nan Zhou murder case.

It was a very sad story.

After the young Miss Xu stumbled upon Zhu Qi and Xue Lin, who had gone berserk from "Charming Spring," at the Zhaoxiu Tower, she died in the river that circles the city. Her body drifted and floated in the icy river, eventually being sent to the Nanzhou public mortuary as a Jane Doe. Her severed arm and mutilated face showed the agony she endured before death.

The young girl, like a flower at its peak, with a bright and promising future ahead, bloomed and died that very night. A demon had taken the treasure a young man swore to protect, so the young man abandoned his own identity and began to avenge his girl.

He found their mutual friend, Zhao Yunzhi, and wove a net of all-consuming hatred.

Using the hallucinogenic effects of Puzhi grass and Datura flower powder, Li Chengwei killed Zhu Qi, chopped off his limbs, cut up his genitals, and bashed in his face. Then, at the Kela Tea House, he lured Xue Lin, who dropped like a kite, his belly stabbed open, guts spilling out, dying in agony.

Step by step, Li Chengwei and Zhao Yunzhi investigated the Zhaoxiu Tower, advancing step by step, deliberately disguised, until they reached the final step.

But from the beginning, Li Chengwei never intended to let his friend get blood on his hands. He was the one who did the killing; his friend only lent him money. He also retrieved the Puzhi grass himself from the Liming Academy. If the officials ever questioned it, his family could bribe them to get him out.

He knew how officials handled cases—he'd learned that lesson as a kid. So he never trusted the authorities; he only trusted himself.

Li Chengwei was not afraid to die, but he wanted to protect his friend.

Therefore, Qin Jiao, the only eyewitness at the scene, could not live.

Qin Jiao understood the chain of events in his dream.

But in the end, Li Chengwei couldn't bring himself to do it. He was not a demon; he couldn't bring himself to harm the innocent.

The story eventually ended in a messy, hurried conclusion. Those painful, sorrowful pasts were finally brought to light under the sun.

————

On the wide official road, a carriage sped by, leaving a clear track in its wake. The dense snowflakes in the sky were pushed apart by the strong wind, then drifted and swirled before landing on the ground.

In the distance, large patches of light lit up. In the pitch-black night, the tents clustered together shone like a river of stars in the night sky.

They had reached the Lingnan Army camp.

"Whoa—!" Luo Yue pulled hard on the reins, and the galloping horse came to a sudden stop.

"Your Highness, we've arrived at the camp!"

Luo Bei had already ridden ahead in haste and was now waiting with the military doctor in the main commander's tent. Luo Yue lifted the carriage curtain, and Xie Nai quickly carried Qin Jiao toward the tent.

Hou Hong, the army doctor of the Lingnan Army, was an old hand brought from the Lingnan Prince's Mansion by Xie Nai, with unmatched medical skills. Once Xie Nai placed Qin Jiao on the bed, Military Doctor Hou stepped forward to take his pulse.

Qin Jiao's exposed wrists were mottled with red marks, and his previous wounds were oozing a little blood, making him look utterly wretched and pitiful.

After feeling the pulse on Qin Jiao's left hand for a while, Military Doctor Hou switched to the right hand. Finally, he pried open Qin Jiao's eyelid and took a look.

"How is he?" Xie Nai asked.

Almost sixty, Doctor Hou had a habit of stroking his white beard when troubled. At the moment, he was tugging and stroking his beard, indicating that the situation was complicated.

After a long moment, he said, "The poisons from the Puzhi grass and Datura flower powder are easy to cure, but it seems there are other residual toxins in this young master's body. It seems the three toxins counteract each other, making this rather tricky."

Xie Nai looked at the lifeless Qin Jiao on the bed, and he also frowned with worry.

How could there be three kinds of poison?

"However, poisons differ in severity and urgency. May I ask the prince and the others to step outside? I will first perform acupuncture to expel the Puzhi grass toxicity from his body."

"Mild Puzhi grass poisoning can be treated with plain water, but in a case like Qin Jiao's, where the poison has set in deeply, acupuncture must be used to draw out the toxin."

"I will stay here. Luo Bei and Luo Yue, go outside."

'"But..." Military Doctor Hou wanted to persuade further, but Luo Yue tugged his sleeve. "Alright, then the prince will stay." The military doctor didn't say anything more, turned back to the table, and opened his medical box.'

"Luo Bei and Luo Yue had already withdrawn. Acupuncture to draw out the poison required him to take off his clothes. The charcoal fire in the commander's tent was burning fiercely, so there was no worry about cold. Since Xie Nai had volunteered to stay, Military Doctor Hou naturally had him assist. "Your Highness, remove his clothes.""

"Xie Nai didn't reply, hesitating where he stood. When the military doctor saw him not moving, he urged again: "Hurry up. Also, the needles will hurt a bit. Hold him down and keep him still.""

"Military Doctor Hou had essentially watched Xie Nai grow up. Others might not dare to order him around, but Military Doctor Hou did not mince words."

"In the end, the noble and aloof young man stepped forward and drew Qin Jiao into his arms. The boy's body was as delicate as a frost flower in winter, as if a light touch would break it. Holding him, Xie Nai could even feel the outline of his ribs."

"Xie Nai gently untied the young man's sash, and one by one the garments slipped away, gradually revealing Qin Jiao's slender body, white as jade, with his bones clearly visible."

"He was as thin as expected."

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