A full moon hung in the sky, and its clear, bright light streamed through the window into the room. Yun Qing held Yuxi in his arms, kissed ...
A full moon hung in the sky, and its clear, bright light streamed through the window into the room. Yun Qing held Yuxi in his arms, kissed her, and said, "We won't be able to see each other again for more than half a month."
Yuxi was also reluctant to part, but their separation this time was easier than the last. Last time, their future had been perilous, but not this time. "Once things have settled in Haocheng, we won't ever have to part again."
Yun Qing was not one for sweet words and honeyed talk1. He said, "The Western Sea region is still unsettled. I may have to go there at some point to quell the rebellion." Because Yuxi had insisted on the Western Sea, they had already taken a few prefectures there. Otherwise, Zhao Hao would never have been appointed to assume office there.
Yuxi shook her head. "The Western Sea matters aren't urgent. Right now, the pressing task is to stabilise the situation in Shaanxi and Gansu." Rice must be eaten one mouthful at a time—if you rush it, you'll choke2.
The couple talked for half the night. Only when they were exhausted did they finally manage to sleep for a little while. After getting up, Yun Qing handed his personal seal to Yuxi.
Yuxi did not take it and asked, "If you give it to me, what will you do later when things come up?" Any document bearing this seal would compel the subordinates to obey.
Yun Qing smiled and replied, "At that time, stamping the documents with the Commander's Seal will be just the same." Since he had already promised to let Yuxi take charge of external affairs, he would not eat his own words3.
Only then did Yuxi stop refusing and hold the seal close to her body.
After breakfast, Yuxi left Yu City with her guards. This time, her departure was grand and imposing: she had twelve carriages at her disposal, accompanied by six hundred guards for protection.
Momo Quan climbed into the carriage and commented, "The General is truly thoughtful." This carriage was three times the size of an ordinary one and could seat more than ten people. It was so spacious that if they had to camp outdoors, it could even be used as a bed for them to sleep in.
Yuxi smiled and said, "I never expected him to be this attentive." He had actually prepared such a spacious carriage in advance.
Mama Lan responded, "It is precisely because the General holds his wife and two daughters close to his heart that he is so thoughtful." Yun Qing treated Yuxi and the two girls so well that the women around Yuxi were pleased.
After Yuxi left, Yun Qing had Yu Cong deliver the powdered fleshy lingzhi to Fu Tianlei and Zhao Feng. As for the others, he handed it over himself.
Yu Cong endured and endured, but finally could not hold back, and asked, "General, has Yifu4 taken this medicine?"
Hearing this, Yun Qing's anger subsided slightly. He replied, "Uncle Huo is unwilling to use this stuff. He says that if he takes it, it will shorten his lifespan." Huo Changqing was a very stubborn man—once he had made up his mind, no one could change it.
Yu Cong honestly hadn't expected it to be like this. "Even if Yifu4 doesn't want to take it, you must persuade him! This concerns his very life—whether he wants it or not, we can't ignore it."
Yun Qing responded, "I have my sense of proportion. Yu Cong, do you all think that I only care about my own family and not for the greater cause?" On the second day after returning to the Yun residence, he had already spoken to Huo Changqing about it. However, Huo Changqing himself was unwilling to take the stuff. Later, Yuxi told Yun Qing that taking it would cause diarrhoea, so he had stopped urging him, intending to bring it up again once they reached Haocheng. Yet, with Gao Song, Xu Wu, and now Yu Cong all saying the same thing, Yun Qing could not help but think more deeply about it.
Yu Cong quickly shook his head. "General, I'm only worried about Yifu4's health. We all know very well what kind of person you are." He hadn't truly thought deeply about it; he just felt that, since the medicine was effective, Huo Changqing's coughing should have stopped by now. He never imagined that Huo Changqing simply refused to use the stuff himself!
Yun Qing stated, "All of you have crawled out of the pile of corpses5 with me. I will not treat you poorly." Yun Qing did not believe in the saying 'women are like clothes, brothers are like limbs6." To him, brothers were important, but so were his wife and children.
What Yun Qing never expected was that giving this thing away would also cause trouble. After Fu Tianlei received it and learned how to use it, he immediately took one packet.
Although the Taisui did not have detoxifying powers, it could stimulate blood production and strengthen the constitution. Once this had been achieved, the body would naturally recover more quickly. Of course, a full recovery was impossible in Fu Tianlei's case. Yet after taking it, his complexion improved dramatically — even the physician called it a miracle. It was impossible to hide such a dramatic improvement in Fu Tianlei's health from the people in the household.
Mama He told Chen Shi, "Madam, General Yun gave the Master a miraculous medicine. He has been taking it for two days, and his health has improved considerably."
Chen Shi smiled bitterly. "If such a miraculous medicine truly existed, Yun Qing would have kept it to himself a long time ago—how could others know of it?" Even if word of it were accidentally leaked, no one would possibly give it away. After all, nobody ever felt they had enough of such a treasure.
Lowering her voice, Mama He said, "Madam, it really is a miraculous medicine. I heard that General Yun's wife's elder brother, General Han, was once down to his very last breath, nearly dead. Madam Yun gave him this medicine, and he came back to life." The fact that Han Jianye had survived after nearly losing his life, thanks to the fleshy lingzhi, could never be concealed.
A thought stirred in Chen Shi's heart, and she said, "Have someone discreetly find out more." Her body was deteriorating, and her son could only be kept alive by constant medication. If this miraculous medicine truly existed, it could save them both.
Chen Shi had also planted many of her own people in the front courtyard. Since Yu Cong had come to deliver the medicine without evading detection, Chen Shi soon obtained confirmation that her husband truly had a life-saving medicine in his possession.
At this point, Chen Shi could no longer care about propriety. She went straight to ask Fu Tianlei. "Master, I heard that General Yun gave you a life-saving medicine—is this true?"
Fu Tianlei admitted it without a moment's hesitation. "Yun Qing does indeed have miraculous medicine. But he distributed it among many people, and what I received was not much—only six small packets." Yuxi had Momo Quan grind the medicine into powder, one tael per packet, making it easier to take. He had already taken four doses, and only two small packets remained.
Chen Shi's eyes nearly bulged from their sockets. When she came back to her senses, she was overjoyed. "Husband, let us go and beg Yun Qing. Let's beg him to give us some more. With this miraculous medicine, our Qi-er can be saved." Not only could her son be saved, but she herself could be too.
Hearing this, Fu Tianlei looked at Chen Shi in surprise and reminded her, "Didn't I already tell you? Yun Qing has already divided this thing up." When Yu Cong delivered the medicine, he made it very clear that, as it was a miraculous medicine, Yun Qing had given it to them to safeguard their lives. For him to give any away proved his generosity. Asking for more would be greedy.
At that moment, all Chen Shi cared about was the medicine that could save her and her son's lives. "Husband, for the sake of our many years as husband and wife, please save me and Qi-er!"
Fu Tianlei was determined never to go to Yun Qing again to ask for medicine. After a moment's thought, he said, "There's still some medicine left. Take it back and use it yourself."
However, after Chen Shi had brought the medicine back, she did not use it herself. Instead, she told the wet nurse to bring the child over, preparing to feed him the medicine.
Mama He, with her heart startled and her gallbladder trembling7, advised, "Madam, although this is a miracle medicine, the young master is still very young. Without a physician's instructions, you mustn't give him medicine at will."
Chen Shi argued, "That little girl, Liu-er, is only one month older than Qi-er. If she can take it, why can't our Qi-er take it too?"
Mama He was astonished and asked, "Madam, how do you know that Miss Liu-er took this medicine?" Yuxi's close attendants could not be bribed, but Chen Shi had bribed the old women servants who were responsible for sweeping and cleaning the outer courtyard of the Yun residence. She hadn't intended to uncover any secrets; she had only wanted to find out about Liu-er's health, which was easy enough to inquire about. However, all such matters went through Mama He's hands first.
Chen Shi replied, "Wasn't it said earlier that Liu-er had already recovered and was well enough to travel to Haocheng? If it wasn't because she took the miracle medicine, then what else could it be?"
Hearing this, Mama He turned pale. "Madam, this is only your guess; it hasn't been confirmed. This concerns the very life of the Second Young Master — how can you act on just a supposition?" Anyone sensible would know that this kind of medicine must not be taken recklessly. If taken incorrectly, it could cost someone their life. Moreover, the young master's body was already weak — even the slightest mistake could be fatal.
Chen Shi argued, "This is not a guess — I am certain that Liu-er must have taken the miracle medicine." If her son had taken the miracle medicine, he would no longer have had to suffer.
No matter what Mama He said, she could not persuade Chen Shi. Fearing disaster, she had no choice but to send a young maid to inform Fu Tianlei.
Upon receiving the news, Fu Tianlei hurried over. Unfortunately, the lingering poison in his body had not yet been cleared, so he could not walk on his own and had to be carried. This delay cost precious time: by the time he arrived in the inner courtyard, Chen Shi had already fed the medicine to the child.
Seeing how anxious and agitated Fu Tianlei was, Chen Shi quickly said, "I knew the child was too young, so I didn't dare use much. I only gave him one-fifth. An adult takes one full packet at a time, so giving the child one-fifth should not be a problem."
Fu Tianlei was furious beyond control and cursed, "Are you insane? Without a physician's permission, how could you just use this medicine at will, huh?" This kind of strongly replenishing miracle drug was not something that even adults dared to take casually, yet his wife had dared to feed it to their son.
However, Chen Shi did not feel she was in the wrong and argued, "This is life-saving medicine — why shouldn't my son take it? Besides, I only used a fifth of the dose; there's no way it could cause a problem." It was precisely because her son was so frail that she could not restrain herself. She only thought that if he took the miracle medicine, he would recover quickly.
Seeing this, Fu Tianlei no longer wished to waste words with Chen Shi. He immediately ordered one of his trusted aides to ask Yun Qing how the medicine would affect a child, before quickly sending for a physician.
Before the one sent to fetch the physician returned, the aide had already come back. He reported to Fu Tianlei. "Master, General Yun said that this miracle medicine is a powerful tonic. A child is far too young to withstand such a supplement, so he never let the Second Young Miss take it."The attendant himself found it strange — after all, anyone with children knew that little ones should not be given medicine casually!
When Chen Shi heard this, she cried out, "Impossible! If that girl didn't take the miracle medicine, then why did her health suddenly improve?"In truth, Liu-er's good health was actually related to Momo Quan. Once a baby reached three months, supplementary foods could be introduced. Momo Quan had taken great pains to prepare nourishing and easily digestible food for Liu-er. The more Liu-er ate, the stronger her body naturally became.
The trusted attendant said, "Madam, these were General Yun's own words. There can be no mistake. For such a matter, General Yun would have no reason to conceal the truth."
Chen Shi's health had never been good. Upon hearing this, and then looking at her son's flushed face as he cried so miserably, she collapsed stiffly to the ground.
Footnotes Full List
- 甜言蜜语 (tiányánmìyǔ) is an idiom, meaning flattering or romantic speech.
- Here, "饭要一口一口地吃,太着急了会噎着的 (fàn yào yīkǒu yīkǒu dì chī, tài zháojí le huì yēzhe de)" is a metaphor: progress must be made step by step, not too hastily, or it will backfire.
- This term, 食言 (shíyán), is a classic idiom used to describe the act of breaking a promise, going back on one's word, or failing to keep an agreement. It has the same figurative meaning as its literal translation in English: "to break a promise" or "to go back on one's word."
- 义父 yìfù: adoptive father
- 从死人堆里爬出来 (cóng sǐ rén duī lǐ páchūlái) is a metaphor for surviving deadly battle together, symbolising deep brotherhood through shared life-and-death.
- This idiom, 女人如衣服 (nǚrén rú yīfu), 兄弟如手足 (xiōngdì rú shǒuzú), means treating wives as disposable but brothers as indispensable, a view that Yun Qing rejected.
- The idiom 心惊胆颤 (xīnjīngdǎnchàn) vividly describes being terrified.
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