Chapter 36: Said Correctly

 Chapter 36: Said Correctly

Yun Zhan's fingers tightened slightly around the prescription.

These past few days, he had indeed felt some weakness and soreness in his right hand, especially at night, when it occasionally went numb. Yesterday, he almost couldn't hold a cup steadily.

However, Yun Zhan didn’t think much of it.

After battling in the northern territories for so many years, his body inevitably carried some injuries. The recent days of continuous rain and his long journey from the north to the capital had left him somewhat unaccustomed to the climate. So, occasional joint soreness and numbness seemed normal, didn’t it?

But—

He hadn't mentioned this to anyone, not even Mo Chen.

Could it really be as serious as she suggested? 

Mo Chen glanced deeply at Yun Zhan. Knowing Yun Zhan’s temperament, if this young physician had said anything incorrect, Yun Zhan would have immediately refuted it.

Which meant that Yun Zhan’s hand was indeed weak and numb, just as she described.

Mo Chen narrowed his sharp, dark eyes and took the prescription from Yun Zhan’s hand to examine it. The script was written in beautiful regular script—upright and vigorous, with strokes that seemed to pierce through the paper. This handwriting carried a certain strength, faintly reminiscent of his own prince’s.

Mo Chen carefully scrutinized the prescription. It listed herbs like raw astragalus, angelica, red peony root, earthworm, and Ligusticum chuanxiong—all commonly used ingredients. Even though Mo Chen wasn’t well-versed in medicine, he could see that the prescription mainly consisted of herbs for replenishing qi and blood, promoting circulation, removing stasis, and clearing heat to unblock the meridians.

Given Yun Zhan’s symptoms, Mo Chen was confident the prescription wasn’t random.

He handed the prescription to the shop assistant to have the medicine prepared and asked, “Will there be a follow-up consultation needed?”

His tone was concise, his voice icy. The shop assistant couldn’t help but shiver again, silently admiring how Chu Qianchen had remained completely unfazed in the presence of such an intimidating figure.

Chu Qianchen calmly replied, “Come back after three days of taking the medicine.”

Once the shop assistant finished wrapping the medicine, Mo Chen and Yun Zhan left the clinic together.

Chu Qianchen watched their departing figures.

Although she hadn’t met the blue-robed gentleman accompanying Mo Chen in her previous life, just from their brief interaction, she could tell that this person would likely not use the medicine right away.

It wasn’t a matter of whether he trusted her medical skills. Instead, he would wait ten days to see if, as she predicted, his right hand would lose sensation. At that point, he would return to see if she could treat him.

For the sake of his prince, he would surely act this way.

“See you in ten days,” Chu Qianchen murmured softly, her words barely audible. Her phoenix-like eyes, exposed above her veil, shone brilliantly, as dazzling as the sun.

Then, she called Hu Po to leave the clinic with her. In high spirits, she said, “Hu Po, is that pastry shop around the corner newly opened? I saw a long line earlier. Let’s buy some to take home.”

Chu Yunmu loved sweets, and Chu Qianchen planned to bring some back to cheer him up.

“Sure!” Hu Po replied with a cheerful smile. “I was already tempted when we passed by earlier—I’m feeling a bit hungry now.”

The two of them chatted and laughed as they walked toward the shop.

Turning a corner, they saw a winding line of people. The air was filled with a sweet, enticing aroma, which even made Chu Qianchen feel hungry.

“Miss, please rest here for a moment. I'll go line up,” Hu Po said, motioning for Chu Qianchen to wait by the street while she rushed off to join the queue.

At that moment, a batch of freshly baked red bean cakes had just come out of the oven, and the line was moving quickly. Seeing Hu Po almost at the front of the queue, Chu Qianchen's mood lifted even more.

“Well, well, after all these years, you're still alive, huh?”

Suddenly, a frivolous male voice came from the doorway of a nearby tea shop. The speaker was a richly dressed young man wearing a gold crown, flanked by two muscular bodyguards armed with long swords.

Initially, Chu Qianchen had no intention of paying attention to the commotion. But out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that the youth being stopped by the finely dressed man was the same blue-robed young man who had accompanied Mo Chen to Jishi Hall earlier.

He must have been here to buy tea for the prince. She recalled that the prince particularly liked the tea from this Qingming Tea Shop.

Raising an eyebrow, Chu Qianchen fixed her gaze on the shop, but Mo Chen was nowhere to be seen.

“What’s this?” The elaborately groomed young man sneered while fanning himself lightly, looking at Yun Zhan with contempt. “You’ve returned to the capital, yet you didn’t go back to the manor? What’s next, having Father personally visit the Chen Wang Mansion to fetch you?”

Yun Zhan frowned but ignored him, attempting to walk past him out of the shop.

The richly dressed man took a step forward, blocking Yun Zhan’s path. “What, does having the Chen Wang backing you make you so special? You’re nothing more than a mere servant.”

“A bastard is still a bastard, just like your lowly servant mother—utterly disgraceful, with the word ‘lowly’ written all over you!”

Yun Zhan’s face darkened. He said coldly, “Shut up.”

“Oh, look at this! Following a good master really changes things, doesn’t it? So domineering now,” the young man sneered disdainfully. “Remember this, you’re just a servant. Don’t even dream of climbing above me, just like your despicable servant mother—seeking glory and wealth but lacking the life to enjoy it.”

The veins on the back of Yun Zhan’s hand bulged as he reached for the hilt of his sword, gripping it tightly.

No! Chu Qianchen’s lips moved slightly behind her veil, and she took half a step forward, almost calling out.

In the next moment, she saw Yun Zhan slowly release his grip on the sword and turn to leave.

To the richly dressed man, it seemed Yun Zhan had been intimidated. Having run into Yun Zhan by chance, he was unwilling to let the opportunity to humiliate him slip by.

“What’s this? Trying to escape?” The young man strode forward, slapping Yun Zhan heavily on the right shoulder. “How about this: kneel and beg me, and I, your elder brother, might just spare you.”

Yun Zhan gritted his teeth and spat out, “Yun Hao, don’t push me too far.”

“And what if I am?” Yun Hao laughed maliciously. “What can you, a useless coward, do? Today, either you kneel and beg, or I’ll take one of your hands. Let’s see if the Chen Wang will still keep you then.”

Yun Hao wasn’t bluffing. He drew his sword, its blade gleaming, and slashed towards Yun Zhan’s right arm.

The scene shocked the nearby onlookers. Some quickly fled, others kept their distance, and a few stopped to watch the drama unfold.

Yun Zhan swiftly stepped back, drawing his own blade to block the strike.

“Clang!”

The clash of sword and blade echoed crisply.

With a flick of his hand, Yun Zhan deftly used his blade to disarm Yun Hao, almost causing him to lose his grip on his sword.

Yun Hao’s hand throbbed faintly from the impact, and his anger surged.

This bastard born of a lowly maid!

Yun Hao attacked again, slashing wildly multiple times. Yet Yun Zhan only defended, his footwork agile, wielding his blade as if it were an extension of his body. He effortlessly parried every strike.

Yun Zhan’s expression was icy and unreadable, but it seemed to silently mock: Is that all you’ve got?

Furious, Yun Hao roared at his two guards, “What are you standing there for? Go and take him down!”

At that moment, Yun Hao had forgotten his original intention. All he wanted was to vent his anger.

The two bodyguards unsheathed their swords and closed in on Yun Zhan. Facing their combined assault, Yun Zhan had no room to retreat. He raised his blade to parry but suddenly felt a numbness in his right hand. It lost all sensation, and his blade slipped from his grasp, clattering to the ground.

The next instant, Yun Hao’s sword slashed across Yun Zhan’s neck.

And then—

Blood sprayed everywhere.

(End of Chapter)