Chapter 31#
Chapter 31#
The clouds scattered and the wind cleared, the moon peeked out again, its soft light spilling over the entire earth. Stars dotted the sky; the Jiangnan night sky was brighter than the northern one.
Su Yang could no longer hear Ji Wuyou saying not to drive him away, that he’d shut up.
His ears were now only left with that voice from just now.
It was Lin Huaiyu; there could be no mistake.
Seven words, yet they made Su Yang’s eyes turn red.
For the past year, he could only hear Lin Huaiyu’s voice in his own hallucinations, repeated over and over until it had long lost its true quality. No one had used that cold voice to speak a single word in his ear again.
Hearing it again now, Su Yang actually felt as if it were a lifetime ago.
He wanted to hear Lin Huaiyu say a few more words, even if it were to lose his temper, just like just now.
But his feet were nailed to the spot, not daring to take a single step forward, nor daring to make any more noise.
Lin Huaiyu’s voice was clear, but his tone was lazy, with a hint of indignation. Su Yang had finally found him and didn’t want to make Lin Huaiyu angry again.
He suppressed the urge to rush in and see Lin Huaiyu. His chest heaved rapidly, showing his current excitement.
He had finally found Lin Huaiyu; he finally saw Lin Huaiyu and heard his voice again.
The wind blew past his hem, the dark patterns on the skirt surging like green waves.
Seeing him like this, Ji Wuyou lowered his voice and sneered: “I said it’s someone you’re not worthy of. Your Majesty, do you think you should be humble now?”
Su Yang gave Ji Wuyou a cold glance, his eyes deep as a bottomless abyss.
Yet Ji Wuyou was not afraid of him. He wanted to take revenge for the setbacks he’d just suffered, his mouth chattering non-stop: “Speaking of which, Lord Lin was once the Chancellor of Great Yong, yet he used a fire to escape through fake death, living under an assumed name in this small town. Who do you think he has to thank for that?”
Su Yang didn’t speak. If before he wasn’t sure it was Lin Huaiyu and was still parrying Ji Wuyou’s words with ease, now he didn’t say a single word more.
Seeing him like this, Ji Wuyou was even more delighted. For the dignified Emperor of Great Yong to have such a day of falling from grace was truly satisfying.
“But I must also thank Your Majesty. Now that Master Yuxi is no longer Chancellor Lin, it has given me an opportunity.” Ji Wuyou spoke without regard for the consequences.
Su Yang’s gaze was gloomy. Looking at Ji Wuyou, although he didn’t say a word, his eyes had already turned into sharp swords piercing the other with ten thousand arrows. If it weren’t for Lin Huaiyu resting, he would have long ago slammed this person’s head into the ground.
However, at this moment, he seemed nailed to the spot.
And one sentence from Lin Huaiyu was that invisible nail.
Looking at Su Yang’s cold gaze, Ji Wuyou was momentarily stunned, but then at the thought that the master here was Lin Huaiyu and the history between Su Yang and Lin Huaiyu, he couldn’t help but stab Su Yang’s heart: “Your Majesty, what have you come here for? Master Yuxi tried every possible way to leave the capital; your coming here now—isn’t it causing him trouble? Or do you think Chancellor Lin would still want to see you?”
Su Yang could no longer endure it, closed his eyes, and said in a heavy voice: “Shut up; you’re disturbing him.”
He kept his voice very low, but one could still hear the boundless rage contained within.
At Su Yang’s reminder, Ji Wuyou took a cautious look toward the room. Seeing no other movement inside, he finally let out a sigh of relief, feeling somewhat like a thief.
He also lowered his voice and retorted: “What kind of good person is Your Majesty pretending to be now? Master Yuxi has plenty of people taking care of him now. Even if you’re the Emperor of Great Yong, he has no relation to you anymore. You have to wait in line too.”
Su Yang glared at him and let out a cold snort: “No need for your concern.”
Ji Wuyou saw him being stubborn and laughed: “Oh, I forgot. You’re even more pitiful than us; you might not even have the qualification to wait in line. After all, Master Yuxi likely only has hatred left for you.”
Su Yang suppressed the surging rage in his chest. If it weren’t for the fear that Lin Huaiyu would vanish from his eyes again, he really wanted to drag Ji Wuyou out and beat him up right now.
The stars shifted and the east grew white. The sunlight slowly brightened, turning half the sky into bright golden light, then slowly rose with the passage of time.
It was dawn.
Su Yang just stood in the courtyard outside Lin Huaiyu’s door all night. Ji Wuyou leaned against a tree, watching Su Yang.
Su Yang calculated the time, estimating Lin Huaiyu should be awake. But at the time Lin Huaiyu used to wake up, there was no movement in the room.
Su Yang couldn’t help but frown slightly.
Could something have happened…
Su Yang set off to move, and Ji Wuyou spoke up immediately: “What are you doing again? Didn’t you say yourself not to disturb Master Yuxi?”
Su Yang didn’t turn his head, his voice like cracking ice: “He hasn’t woken up yet; I’m worried something happened to him.”
Ji Wuyou was used to it and even let out a yawn: “There’s no class today; Master Yuxi won’t wake up. He’ll only be woken when Physician He comes to treat him.”
Su Yang’s brow furrowed tight. Lin Huaiyu always woke at this time, even if before he was… exhausted by him, he would still wake up at this time the next day.
As if guessing what Su Yang was thinking, Ji Wuyou looked at the sky and laughed: “This is the time for morning court, right? Your Majesty, you wouldn’t think Master Yuxi is still the Chancellor of Great Yong and needs to attend court, would you?”
Su Yang’s expression paused.
Yes, Lin Huaiyu had long been ordered by him not to attend court. Back when Lin Huaiyu was still imprisoned in Qinchun Palace by him, he wasn’t allowed to attend court even if he wanted to.
A year had passed; Lin Huaiyu’s wake-up time was no longer this hour.
Su Yang slowly let out a breath and stood back in his place.
Nowadays, he didn’t even understand a bit of Lin Huaiyu’s lifestyle anymore.
Ji Wuyou actually knew even more than he did.
After another long time, the sun was high, and the intense sunlight hit Su Yang. His black robe was steamed with heat. Ji Wuyou hid under the large tree, watching him with a smile.
Footsteps suddenly sounded outside the courtyard. Su Yang looked toward the corridor and saw a person dressed in lake-blue robes, carrying a medicine box, hurrying over.
The person was already quite old, his hair and beard all white. But Su Yang recognized him as the former Director of the Imperial Academy of Medicine, He Qingli.
He Qingli didn’t raise his head at all and didn’t see Su Yang. He didn’t know how many people came to stand in Lin Huaiyu’s courtyard every day; he was too lazy to look at them one by one.
He Qingli only saw that eye-catching red under the tree and said to Ji Wuyou: “Your Highness the Crown Prince, please go brew the medicine.”
Ji Wuyou replied with a smile: “On it!”
His tone even had some element of showing off.
He Qingli didn’t care about him, his steps never stopping as he prepared to walk into the room where Lin Huaiyu was sleeping.
Su Yang hurriedly asked: “Is his poison still not cured?”
Only then did He Qingli stop his steps. This voice sounded somewhat familiar. He turned his head toward Su Yang and took a long time to react, stepping forward: “So it is Your Majesty. I was just focused on treating Master Yuxi and didn’t notice who was standing in the courtyard. Please forgive me, Your Majesty.”
Su Yang raised his hand, his expression unchanged: “Director He needn’t be so polite. Is Teacher’s poison still not cured?”
He Qingli nodded but didn’t say more, only saying: “I will go treat the illness first.”
Su Yang naturally had no reason not to agree.
He Qingli pushed open the door. The bed was empty; instead, on the daybed near the window, a thin figure was lying. His robes draped naturally; the person was very thin, and even wearing robes only made a small curve on the daybed. He seemed very light, as if a gust of wind blowing in from outside could blow both the person and his clothes away.
The light from the window hit the person, like a layer of light gauze covering him, gentle and quiet.
But the heaving of the person on the daybed was so slight, as if even a thin layer of invisible gauze could make him unable to breathe.
He Qingli watched for a long time. Even though he saw this scene every time he came, he still felt his heart hanging for Lin Huaiyu.
He still remembered the day he saw Lin Huaiyu again in Jiangnan.
Lin Huaiyu’s body was covered in blood—the robes were stained with the blood he had spit up. His fair face was devoid of color, only his lips were full of bright red blood.
He Qingli was startled when he saw him, but then he knew what was going on and hurriedly took his pulse and treated him.
He kept Lin Huaiyu alive by a thread, barely pulling him back from the gates of hell. But even so, Lin Huaiyu was still lingering outside those gates. He had read through all the medical books and used countless prescriptions, but he still couldn’t completely clear the poison from Lin Huaiyu’s body.
Just as Zhou Li had said, Lin Huaiyu’s poison was too old and had already eroded his heart’s meridians. To completely clear it was as hard as reaching the heavens. It required not only many rare medicinal materials but also bloodletting to draw the toxins out from the blood. But this was not the work of a single day, and he couldn’t guarantee whether it could truly be completely drawn out in the end.
Looking at Lin Huaiyu on the daybed, He Qingli let out a soft sigh and woke him as usual: “Time to get up; the sun is high in the sky!”
The person on the daybed then moved. Lin Huaiyu lightly raised his eyes, and after focusing for a good while, his gaze fell on He Qingli. Looking at the medicine box by He Qingli’s hand and the other taking out needles from it, he silently withdrew his gaze and complained: “I see your needles as soon as I open my eyes now, and they are in my dreams too. You are even more terrifying than the King of Hell those children speak of.”
He Qingli smiled as he walked to the side of the daybed and scolded him: “Do you think I want to run over here every day to give you needles?”
“Hand out,” He Qingli said unceremoniously.
Between the lines, he was very familiar with Lin Huaiyu, and didn’t treat him as the Imperial Teacher or the Chancellor of Great Yong at all.
Lin Huaiyu reached out his hand, pushed up his sleeve, revealing that fair arm. The arm was covered with dense needle holes.
He Qingli pricked the needle into Lin Huaiyu’s hand and said again: “The other one.”
Lin Huaiyu obediently reached out his other hand. This arm was different from the other; it was covered with knife marks.
He Qingli also took out a small knife with a cold silver gleam, gave Lin Huaiyu a glance, and pressed it against his arm.
Lin Huaiyu closed his eyes and in the next second let out a “hiss” while frowning.
Su Yang stood outside the door. Ever since He Qingli entered, he had been carefully listening to the movements inside. Hearing Lin Huaiyu’s soft cry now, his eyes turned red.
He wanted to rush in and see Lin Huaiyu. Lin Huaiyu had always been afraid of pain; He Qingli’s treatment was likely not easy, and Lin Huaiyu must be in pain.
But he didn’t dare go in at this moment, fearing that Lin Huaiyu seeing him would affect the treatment, and also fearing…
Fearing that seeing Lin Huaiyu’s reaction, he would see hatred in his eyes toward him…
He could only stand in place, waiting quietly.
After a good while, He Qingli took the needles from Lin Huaiyu’s hand, bandaged it well, and put it back on the daybed.
Except for the moment the knife cut the skin, Lin Huaiyu felt a bit of pain; he could no longer feel the subsequent bloodletting and other actions.
His five senses were sealed by He Qingli with needles; He Qingli would do this every time he performed bloodletting to draw out the poison, otherwise he would have long ago died of pain.
At this moment he couldn’t see, hear, or feel. Just as he was thinking of sleeping again, He Qingli stopped disturbing him and just sat nearby watching him to prevent any bad reactions.
Outside, Su Yang still stood, waiting for Lin Huaiyu. It seemed that as long as he didn’t see Lin Huaiyu, he would keep standing there.
The courtyard seemed to have returned to silence.
But not long after, another voice came from outside. Lin Fei was blocking a person, but the other insisted on coming in, with two servants behind him carrying two boxes.
Seeing he couldn’t block him, Lin Fei had no choice but to run to the door of Lin Huaiyu’s room to block it.
Fortunately, the newcomer didn’t intend to force his way in, only putting the boxes down in the courtyard. He adjusted his clothes and spoke to the person in the room: “I am Jing Fei, the second prince of Daxing. I wish to see Master Yuxi. Hearing that Master Yuxi needs rare medicinal materials, I have prepared some as a meeting gift.”
However, no one paid him any attention at this moment.
Jing Fei blinked, didn’t speak, and looked at Lin Fei, who didn’t explain either.
Jing Fei then looked at Su Yang standing nearby, a trace of surprise flashing in his eyes, then he understood.
Who didn’t know that Su Yang had announced to the world to find Lin Huaiyu, with wanted posters all over Great Yong that hadn’t been taken down for a year.
It wasn’t strange for him to appear here.
Since even the Emperor of Great Yong was standing here, he would also stand and wait together.
The courtyard remained quiet, and the breeze was gentle.
The window of Lin Huaiyu’s room suddenly made a sound, and everyone looked over.
It wasn’t Lin Huaiyu who opened the window, but He Qingli. He propped the window up to let in some air.
Lin Huaiyu was lying on that daybed. The wind entered the room, lightly brushing his hem and hair. The person lay there quietly with eyes closed, looking like a scroll unfolding before everyone’s eyes.
They were only afraid that if they made a sound, this beautiful scroll would vanish.
Looking at the quietly lying Lin Huaiyu, Su Yang’s breathing stopped.