Chapter 35: I Can

 [Chapter 35: I Can]  

 

"Miss," Hu Po gently called, intending to ask if Chu Qianchen wanted to return to the manor.  

Chu Qianchen snapped out of her thoughts and glanced at the empty entrance of Jishi Hall. Disappointment flickered in her eyes as she thought: It seems I won’t see them today either.  

Gu Jue's condition was known only to his closest confidants. Chu Qianchen couldn’t approach him directly; she needed to take a more indirect route—first establishing her reputation as a miraculous healer in the capital, so that his people would seek her out.  

"Let’s go," Chu Qianchen said, smoothing her skirt as she rose. "We’ll come back tomorrow."  

Just as Chu Qianchen turned to leave, two men, one dressed in blue and the other in gray, appeared at the entrance of Jishi Hall. The young man in blue had striking, handsome features and a spirited demeanor, while the man in gray had a stern, sharp face that exuded an air of danger.  

The two entered the clinic, one behind the other.  

Chu Qianchen's gaze locked onto the man in gray, and her pupils contracted.  

It was Mo Chen!  

Chu Qianchen quickly pulled back, stopping mid-step. She didn’t recognize the man accompanying Mo Chen, but she knew Mo Chen all too well.  

"Shopkeeper," Yun Zhan, the man in blue, casually addressed one of the clerks behind the counter, "we’ve come because of the healer everyone’s talking about. I hear there’s someone here capable of bringing people back from the brink of death?"  

Yun Zhan’s sharp gaze swept around the front hall, eventually landing on Chu Qianchen, whose face was hidden behind a veil. Could it be her?  

Four days ago, he had managed to corner Ming Xiyang to extract more details about the healer at Jishi Hall. That’s when he learned the healer was an underage girl.  

At the time, Yun Zhan found it hard to believe Ming Xiyang’s reliability.  

Over the next few days, Yun Zhan dug deeper into the so-called miraculous healer’s background. The only notable cases she’d handled were saving a dying peasant and stopping Ming Xiyang’s incessant bleeding. Nothing else of consequence.  

He even went to verify the peasant’s recovery in person. Ultimately, he decided to bring Mo Chen along to try their luck at Jishi Hall.  

"This gentleman," the clerk said with a smile, gesturing toward Chu Qianchen, "the healer you’re looking for is this young miss. You’re quite fortunate; she’s not here every day."  

So it really is her! Yun Zhan thought, glancing again at the green-clad girl a few steps away. The azure veil concealed her face, revealing only a pair of bright, phoenix-shaped eyes.  

Her hair was styled in twin buns, and judging by her petite stature, she couldn’t be older than twelve or thirteen.  

Yun Zhan frowned slightly.  

This is the so-called healer?  

Their master’s life was far too precious for them to gamble on a child.  

Mo Chen was also studying Chu Qianchen, his piercing gaze as sharp as a blade, seemingly able to penetrate the soul.  

Chu Qianchen was long accustomed to such scrutiny and even felt a strange sense of nostalgia under his gaze.  

"Miss… Physician," Yun Zhan cupped his hands toward Chu Qianchen, his tone polite but skeptical. "If someone were suffering from blood deficiency, chest tightness, and shortness of breath, prone to fatigue, experiencing left rib pain on rainy days, and severe heart pain at midnight that radiates to the back until dawn—coupled with cold intolerance, cold limbs, night sweats, blue-purple lips, tongue, and nails, and a faint, almost imperceptible pulse—can you treat it?"  

As expected! Chu Qianchen recognized Gu Jue’s symptoms immediately, having memorized them by heart.  

Her hand clenched into a fist inside her sleeve as she suppressed the excitement welling up within her. She nodded calmly and said, "I can treat it."  

Yun Zhan’s expression remained composed, though he held little hope. "Then tell us how."  

[The patient must have suffered a blade injury in the past, and when the blade was removed, a fragment remained lodged in the cardiac meridian. Subsequently, prolonged overexertion caused chronic illness, severely damaging the heart and lungs," Chu Qianchen explained, striving to keep her voice steady. "Afterward, in an attempt to heal, the patient likely consulted numerous physicians, but their careless use of medication led to toxin accumulation, turning his condition into a chronic and severe ailment."]  

Initially, Yun Zhan had a casual attitude, but as Chu Qianchen elaborated, his expression turned to shock, his eyes widening in disbelief. Even Mo Chen, usually impassive, showed a slight change in demeanor.  

The clerk, however, looked proud, lifting his chin slightly. "The young miss’s medical skills are extraordinary!"  

Yun Zhan straightened his posture, his expression serious.  

This young girl, barely in her teens, could deduce the prince’s condition so accurately from just a few words?  

It was unprecedented!  

Could someone so young truly possess such extraordinary talent and mastery of medical skills?  

Under the intense gazes of Yun Zhan and Mo Chen, Chu Qianchen stood gracefully, outwardly calm though far less composed internally.  

The prince’s condition was far more complex.  

They had likely concealed the most critical details, sharing only part of his symptoms to avoid drawing attention.  

Fixing his eyes on Chu Qianchen, Yun Zhan asked pointedly, "You—can really treat him?"  

Chu Qianchen nodded solemnly. "Yes, I can."  

"How?" Yun Zhan pressed.  

Chu Qianchen replied, "By opening the chest cavity and removing the broken blade fragment—"  

"Ridiculous!" Mo Chen interrupted sharply, unable to listen any longer.  

He took a step forward, and with that single movement, his tall and lean figure emanated a menacing aura, as if he were a ghostly emissary from the underworld.  

"Opening the chest cavity—how could he possibly survive?" Mo Chen said coldly, his voice cutting.  

Chu Qianchen raised her head, meeting Mo Chen’s dark gaze with unwavering determination. "He can survive," she declared firmly.  

"I can keep him alive!"  

The last five words were spoken with strength and conviction.  

In her previous life, she had never had the chance to utter these words, but now, she could.  

With her here, she could save him!  

Yun Zhan, fearing that the intimidating Mo Chen might scare the young girl, quickly reached out to tug his sleeve, but Mo Chen avoided the gesture.  

Chu Qianchen noticed their subtle interaction, a trace of intrigue flashing in her eyes.  

Yun Zhan, accustomed to Mo Chen’s aversion to physical contact, smoothly stepped in front of him. Turning to Chu Qianchen, he asked again, "So, young miss, you’re saying you can do it?"  

"Yes." Chu Qianchen smiled, her phoenix eyes sparkling brightly as she repeated once more, "I can!"  

Although Chu Qianchen didn’t recognize Yun Zhan, she knew Mo Chen well. Mo Chen was the prince’s closest confidant, utterly devoted to him.  

For the prince, Mo Chen wouldn’t easily dismiss even the faintest glimmer of hope.  

Before they could ask further questions, Chu Qianchen took the initiative and turned to Yun Zhan. "Sir, have you recently experienced numbness, weakness, or stiffness in your right upper limb?"  

Yun Zhan raised an eyebrow, neither confirming nor denying her observation.  

Chu Qianchen knew she had hit the mark. When Yun Zhan had reached out earlier to pull Mo Chen, she had noticed muscle atrophy near his right thumb and unnatural movements in his fingers. Coupled with his sallow complexion, indicative of spleen and stomach deficiencies, she had deduced the issue.  

Gesturing toward a seat by the window, Chu Qianchen said, "Let me take your pulse."  

Yun Zhan sat down, placing his left hand on the pulse pillow.  

After carefully checking his pulse, Chu Qianchen said, "Your condition is due to liver and spleen deficiencies, leading to blocked meridians. I’ll write you a prescription. After taking it for three days, you’ll feel significant relief."  

She immediately wrote a prescription, handed it to him, and advised, "Take it three times a day without fail."  

Yun Zhan accepted the freshly written prescription, casually flipping it in his hand. "And what if I don’t take it?" he asked nonchalantly.  

Unperturbed, Chu Qianchen replied calmly, "If untreated, your right hand will continue to experience numbness, slow responses, and, eventually, loss of sensation. The duration of numbness will increase—from moments to minutes, and eventually, within ten days, your right hand will become entirely useless. You won’t be able to wield a sword or draw a bow; it will be as good as crippled."  

Her steady gaze, measured tone, and unhurried delivery carried a quiet authority that reverberated in the small hall.  

(End of Chapter)