Chapter 47: Prince Yan. The current Prince Yan, the future emperor.

Shen Ji often traveled and had once journeyed a thousand miles to the capital. He kept a few items hidden in his belt for emergencies.

Su Zhenyue carefully untied his belt and inspected it closely. Sure enough, she found several small porcelain vials, as well as tinder, silver fragments, a private seal, and other objects.

Her heart settled slightly. Thank goodness, there was medicine.

Shen Ji’s eyes were slightly closed. Without opening them, he said directly, “The red one is for external application, the white one for internal use.”

“Okay.” Su Zhenyue had no time for shyness. She unfastened the front of his robes and saw a diagonal wound, about an inch deep, with flesh torn open—a ghastly sight. The cloth strip that had been hastily used as a bandage was long gone.

She opened the red porcelain vial, a strong medicinal scent wafting out. She carefully sprinkled the powder inside onto Shen Ji’s wound, then tore off a corner of her skirt’s inner lining with some effort.

It was clean, fine cotton cloth. At a time like this, there was no better option.

By the time Su Zhenyue had managed to bandage both wounds, a dense layer of sweat had beaded on her forehead.

Nanxing, for her part, was also efficient. Though fearful, she still helped Ping An bandage his wound.

They hadn’t realized it before, but now they could see that the wound on Ping An’s back was severe. It stretched from his shoulder almost down to his waist. Yet he was so tough that he hadn’t uttered a single word about it.

Su Zhenyue had initially thought Ping An only had a wound on his shoulder.

After dressing the external injuries, Su Zhenyue faced another dilemma. “Cousin, you said the white one is for internal use, but which white bottle?”

There were two white porcelain vials in the belt, and she didn’t dare administer one randomly.

Shen Ji managed to open his eyes and glance over, pointing to the one on the left. “The smaller bottle.” After a pause, he explained, “The larger one is for treating snake venom.”

The moment he finished speaking, the man with the bushy beard in the southwest corner of the main hall, who had been staring at them, immediately jumped up and rushed over in a few strides.

Before Su Zhenyue could react, he snatched the two white porcelain vials from her hand and barked, “What did you say? What treats snake venom? Which bottle can treat snake venom?”

Su Zhenyue was startled. “What are you doing? Give us back our medicine!”

Shen Ji’s consciousness cleared a little. He opened his eyes and managed to assess the current situation. He pressed her hand and gently shook his head.

He was not one to swallow insults, but at this moment, both he and Ping An were injured. It was not wise to clash head-on with others.

Su Zhenyue understood in her heart, but she still felt a pang for the lost medicine. A wave of regret washed over her; perhaps they shouldn’t have taken shelter from the rain here.

But it was too late for regrets now.

The man with the bushy beard, however, wouldn’t let them go and continued to press, “Quick, tell me, which bottle is for treating snake venom?”

“Shi Jun! Don’t be hasty.” A middle-aged, scholar-like man from the southwest corner also stood up. “Ask slowly.”

The middle-aged man approached, took the two medicine vials from the bearded man’s hand, and faced Shen Ji with a very amicable expression. “My good brother, you just said your medicine can treat snake venom? Might I ask which bottle it is?”

Shen Ji frowned and didn’t answer. Su Zhenyue was also a bit bewildered.

The middle-aged man explained, “It’s like this. Our young master mischievously went out and was accidentally bitten by a venomous snake. Although we sucked out the poisoned blood, he has been unconscious ever since. The family physician hasn’t arrived yet, and we’re afraid the poison will spread, so we don’t dare move him rashly. Otherwise, so many of us wouldn’t be staying in this dilapidated temple.”

Su Zhenyue blinked, recalling that when she entered the hall, she had noticed someone lying motionless in the southwest corner. He hadn’t moved at all, even when they came in, as if he were asleep.

Could it be that he was injured by a venomous snake?

“Just now, I heard this brother say you have medicine that can treat snake venom. I wonder if that’s true?” The middle-aged man stared intently at Shen Ji, his face a mixture of hope and anxiety.

With some medicine applied to his wound, the bleeding had mostly stopped, and Shen Ji had regained a bit of strength. He leaned against a pillar. “This medicine can treat snake venom, but there are so many types of venomous snakes in the world. It can’t cure every single one.”

“Then what kind of snake venom can yours treat?” the middle-aged man asked anxiously.

“Banded krait.”

On the way to the capital, Ping An had been accidentally bitten by a venomous snake. Shen Ji had asked a local miracle-working physician to treat him. The physician had prepared this medicine, saying that while he couldn’t guarantee it would work on other poisons, it was a sure cure for the banded krait.

Because the medicine was so effective, he had kept it and carried it with him ever since.

“Is that true?” The man with the bushy beard, Shi Jun, was ecstatic. He immediately turned his head and shouted, “My lord, Master, the young master is saved! This is wonderful!”

However, another person said, “How do you know this medicine will definitely work? These people are acting suspiciously. What if this is a pre-arranged trap?”

Su Zhenyue felt a surge of indignation. Though she was afraid, she boldly said, “Since you don’t trust it, then don’t use it. But my cousin is injured and needs to take his medicine urgently. Could you please return the smaller bottle of wound medicine to us?”

She made no mention of the one for snake venom.

The middle-aged man hesitated for a moment before tossing the smaller white porcelain vial back to her.

Su Zhenyue opened the vial, tipped out one pill for Shen Ji, and another for Nanxing to give to Ping An.

Meanwhile, the group in the southwest corner held the bottle of snake venom antidote, unable to make a decision.

One person said, “Master, heaven has blessed us. Since there is an antidote, we should give it to the young master immediately.”

Another argued, “We can’t. What if it fails to cure the poison and harms the young master instead? We should wait for Physician Xu to arrive.”

“It’s been over three shichen since the young master was bitten. His face is already turning dark. Who knows when Physician Xu will arrive? Are we just going to let the young master wait like this if he doesn’t show up?”

…

The men argued incessantly, as if the four people in the northeast corner didn’t exist.

Su Zhenyue remained silent, secretly feeling that these people had extraordinary backgrounds. But now was not the time to dwell on that. She only paid close attention to Shen Ji and Ping An.

Perhaps because the bleeding had stopped and they were no longer running, or perhaps because the internal and external medicines were taking effect, the color gradually returned to their faces, and Ping An’s breathing became steady.

The heavy weight on Su Zhenyue’s heart finally lifted, and a long-suppressed weariness washed over her. She leaned against Shen Ji and, without realizing it, closed her eyes.

She was too tired. She needed to rest for a while.

Just a little while would be enough.

In the southwest corner of the main hall, a half-grown boy lay on a makeshift mat of several old cattail cushions. His eyes were shut tight, his face had a faint dark tinge, and his forehead was alarmingly hot.

“Master, please make a decision soon,” the middle-aged man said, presenting the white porcelain vial to a man in his thirties with a resolute face.

—It was the same man who had allowed Su Zhenyue and the others to enter and take shelter from the rain.

The “Master” took the medicine vial, his hand stroking its surface. Just as he was about to speak, his expression suddenly changed.

The bearded man called Shi Jun also wore a grave look. “Someone’s coming.”

The sound of horse hooves, like rolling thunder, galloped from far to near, sounding particularly eerie in the deep night.

Nanxing was helping wipe sweat from Ping An’s brow. Hearing the hoofbeats, her heart lurched in panic. “Miss…”

Su Zhenyue, in a daze, heard the commotion and woke with a start. She subconsciously looked at Shen Ji, only to see that he had already opened his eyes, his expression more solemn than ever before.

The rain had stopped at some point.

In the blink of an eye, a dozen or so men dressed in black and wearing bamboo hats appeared at the entrance of the dilapidated temple’s main hall.

Like phantoms.

They were dressed identically to the people who had ambushed them earlier.

The leader let out a strange laugh. “So you were here. You really made us search!”

A chill ran down Su Zhenyue’s spine.

She wanted to escape, but the door was blocked. She wanted to retreat, but there was no way back.

She had thought they had shaken them off. How had they been caught up to again?

The bearded man, Shi Jun, couldn’t help but say, “Master, be careful. These people might be in it together, setting a trap for us.”

The “Master” said nothing, only waving his hand, his eyes fixed on his son.

The “young master” looked to be about seven or eight years old. His features were quite handsome, but his face was veiled in a dark aura, and his lips had turned purple.

…

The men in black were also quite surprised to see other people in the temple. They stood their ground and observed. Seeing that Shi Jun and his group had no intention of stopping them, they raised their sabers and charged toward Shen Ji and the others.

Su Zhenyue turned to look at Shi Jun’s group, tears in her eyes, and pleaded, “Help, please help us!”

However, Shi Jun and his men didn’t move an inch, as if they hadn’t seen a thing.

With no other choice, Su Zhenyue quietly touched the ring on her right hand.

—There were only two short arrows left.

Shen Ji and Ping An were seriously injured, she and Nanxing knew no martial arts, and the people in the southwest corner were just watching. Were they really going to die here today?

In that split second, countless thoughts flashed through her mind. Ever since she had that dream, she had taken every step with extreme caution. She thought that by avoiding the arranged marriage, she would have a good life ahead of her. Was it all to end in death after all?

With things having come to this, Su Zhenyue felt she had wronged Nanxing the most. If she had begged Gu Yuanzhen back then to let Nanxing stay at the Jing An Marquis Estate, perhaps Nanxing wouldn’t have had to suffer this calamity with her today.

She turned her head to glance at Nanxing, who happened to be looking back at her.

There was not much fear in Nanxing’s eyes. Instead, she even smiled at her, appearing exceptionally composed.

A sour feeling rose in Su Zhenyue’s heart, and tears streamed from her eyes. She looked away, thinking, If I must die, I must die. At least I haven’t suffered much torture.

Since she couldn’t change her fate, she might as well take a few of them down with her.

The men in black drew closer. Just as Su Zhenyue was about to turn her ring, a cold glint flashed. The first man to charge forward spurted blood and fell backward.

It was Shen Ji.

He had propped himself up with his sword. Though he was swaying and unsteady, he still shielded Su Zhenyue behind him, his voice extremely low. “The one they want to kill is me. It has nothing to do with you. In a moment, I’ll do my best to hold them off. You all take the chance to escape. Flee on horseback.”

Su Zhenyue’s eyes grew hot. “Cousin…”

She wanted to say, You’re so foolish. How could they possibly let me go? But she couldn’t bring herself to criticize a man who, at the brink of life and death, seriously injured himself, was still shielding her.

“Courting death!” one of the men in black cursed, swinging his saber.

With a clang, Shen Ji raised his sword to block, simultaneously asking, “Who exactly wants to kill me? Can you give me a straight answer?”

He knew who it was, but he still wanted to stall for time.

“Go ask King Yama yourself,” the man in black refused to say, following up with another slash.

At the same time, several other men in black swarmed forward.

Even though Su Zhenyue didn’t understand martial arts, she could see that after being seriously injured, Shen Ji’s movements were much slower than before. And he was fighting one against many. If this continued, he would sooner or later die of exhaustion.

The fight was so intense that she wanted to help Shen Ji but was afraid she might accidentally injure him instead.

As she was thinking, someone had already bypassed Shen Ji and was attacking her.

Without a second thought, Su Zhenyue pressed her ring.

A short arrow shot out silently.

A man in black was hit, but the anesthetic didn’t take effect immediately. The man cursed and swung his saber at her.

Shen Ji, distracted, turned to protect her, and his back was nearly cut.

At that very moment, the “Master” in the southwest corner suddenly spoke. “Shi Jun, help them out. Make sure to keep these people alive!”

“Yes, sir!”

The moment he finished speaking, Shi Jun and several other tall, sturdy men attacked the men in black in unison.

Su Zhenyue was overjoyed.

With help, the situation on the field changed instantly. Shi Jun, in particular, was exceptionally valiant. With a swing of his great saber, he cut down several men.

The men in black, who had seemed highly skilled, were quickly defeated.

One of them took a deep look at the “Master,” his expression changing abruptly. He suddenly shouted, “Retreat!”

The remaining few followed him, hastily rushing out the door and fleeing on horseback.

Shi Jun was about to give chase, but the middle-aged man stopped him. “Shi Jun, protecting the Master and the young master is what’s important.”

The “Master” also said, “Don’t pursue them. Clean this place up.”

“Yes, sir.” Shi Jun stopped in his tracks and turned to deal with the injured and dead men in black on the ground.

The Dragon King statue looked as dilapidated as before, only now the ground was stained with much more blood.

After the fierce battle, the already heavily injured Shen Ji was nearly exhausted. He could only lean on his sword against a pillar, panting. After a moment, he turned his gaze to Su Zhenyue. “How are you?”

Su Zhenyue hurried forward. “I’m fine.” Seeing that blood was seeping from his chest again, her heart ached. “Cousin, you… you…”

“Don’t be afraid. The wound just split open. I won’t die.” Shen Ji curled his lips, forcing a reassuring smile at her. He then said apologetically, “Sorry for getting you involved.”

This assassination attempt was because of him. If he had known, he would have insisted on having someone escort her to Qingzhou, regardless of her objections.

Su Zhenyue’s eyes reddened. She didn’t speak, only shaking her head gently.

She knew those people were after Shen Ji, and she was terrified of dying. But for him to treat her this way at the brink of death, and to apologize afterward for implicating her—how could she possibly harbor a single shred of resentment toward him?

He could have been a little meaner to her.

But he just had to be so good to her.

Shen Ji closed his eyes slightly, trying to conserve his energy. He then asked, “How is Ping An?”

Nanxing quickly replied, “After taking the medicine, his breathing is steady, and his condition is stable.”

Ping An was still unconscious, completely unaware that a fierce battle had just taken place here.

“Good.” Shen Ji’s breathing calmed a little. After re-dressing his wound, he walked toward the “Master.” Unfortunately, he was injured and had just been through a fight, so he had little strength left. He walked extremely slowly, one step at a time.

Seeing this, Su Zhenyue quickly went to support his arm.

The two of them stood before the “Master.”

Only now did Su Zhenyue secretly size up this person. He looked to be in his thirties, dressed in a semi-new long robe, with a few fine lines on his forehead. In terms of looks alone, he was merely above average, but he naturally possessed an air unique to those in high positions.

She had been too far away to see clearly before. Now that she was closer, she noticed that the man actually had six fingers on his right hand.

Six fingers?!

Su Zhenyue’s heart skipped a beat.

The anomaly of having six fingers was not common. In the book from her dream, it was mentioned that there was one person who was like this. That was the current Prince Yan, the future new emperor.

Thinking back to how Shi Jun had twice started to say “Prince” before correcting himself to “Master,” it seemed more like a habitual slip of the tongue from addressing him as “Your Highness.”

Su Zhenyue’s heart pounded in her chest.

It can’t be, can it? What a coincidence! Did I just run into the future emperor?

But based on just these few points, she didn’t dare jump to a conclusion just yet.

Shen Ji, however, bowed solemnly. “Thank you for saving us. I will never forget this great kindness.”

Su Zhenyue’s mind was in turmoil, but she followed suit and curtsied.

The “Master” waved his hand and said in a warm voice, “It was a small effort, not worth mentioning. I apologize for not acting sooner due to the unclear situation, which put you all in danger.”

Shen Ji said sincerely, “You are too kind. In that situation, the fact that you were willing to help at all is a great kindness. The timing is of no consequence.”

The “Master” smiled. “That’s true. Your medicine is quite good, very effective. My son’s life is no longer in danger.”

It turned out that after the men in black had burst in, the “young master” had suddenly started convulsing. In their desperation, with no better option, they had given the medicine to the “young master.”

In just a short while, the “young master” had vomited two mouthfuls of black blood, and the dark tinge on his face had faded considerably.

Although he hadn’t woken up yet, it was clear the poison’s effects had been alleviated.

Su Zhenyue quietly glanced in the direction of the “young master.” Unfortunately, someone was blocking her view, and she couldn’t see anything.

Shen Ji smiled. “It’s good that it was useful.”

He understood in his heart that this man had initially watched from the sidelines and only later intervened, and that it had something to do with the snake venom antidote. But some things were better left unsaid.

Suddenly, Shi Jun, who was dragging away the bodies of the men in black, let out a surprised “Huh?” He then strode forward and presented a token to the “Master.” “This seems to be something from the Eastern Palace.”

Hearing the words “Eastern Palace,” Su Zhenyue’s heart jumped again. She turned her gaze to Shen Ji.

Could it be that the person who wanted to kill him was the Crown Prince? But why would the Crown Prince want to kill him?

Shen Ji’s heart sank. As expected.

He wasn’t surprised.

The “Master” took the token and examined it carefully, frowning. “It is indeed someone from the Eastern Palace.” He then asked Shen Ji, “Do you have a feud with the Eastern Palace?”

Shen Ji’s gaze inadvertently flickered, noticing a bit of xanthic cloud brocade showing at the man’s cuff.

According to the dynasty’s regulations, the color xanthic was reserved for those of princely rank or higher.

This man was from the imperial family.

Considering his age, his bearing, his entourage, and their current location, his identity was all but revealed.

Shen Ji lowered his eyes and replied, “How would I dare have a feud with the Eastern Palace? I only seem to have offended the Crown Prince at the Qionglin Banquet.”

The “Master” was taken aback. His eyes narrowed slightly as he looked Shen Ji up and down, his expression becoming quite meaningful. “The Qionglin Banquet? You are the new Number One Scholar, Shen Ji?”

“I am.” Shen Ji took a step back and bowed again. “Shen Ji of Qingzhou pays his respects to Your Highness, Prince Yan.”