“Sister-in-law, I want to take off Big Brother’s clothes and tear them into strips to splint his broken bones.”
His bloodstained tunic was already hanging off him like a rag, barely covering his body. There was no point in keeping it.
“No.”
Cheng Yao hurriedly stopped him.
Zhan Haoting’s underclothes were torn too. Without his tunic, the bulletproof vest underneath would be exposed.
Zhan Haochen looked at her in confusion.
“Well… your big brother is rather conservative. He’d be uncomfortable being naked… Anyway, don’t take it off.”
Cheng Yao couldn’t think of a better excuse.
“Oh, there’s no need to tear anything. I have cloth.”
Xiao Fu slapped his forehead and went to rummage through his bundle.
It was filled with fine silk bandages and all kinds of bottles and jars containing medicine. He had prepared them long ago, but he had completely forgotten about them in his old age!
“Good. Haochen, bring that earthenware jar over. First help your brother wipe himself down, then apply the medicine.”
Cheng Yao intended to leave the work to someone else.
But just as Xiao Fu squatted down, before he had even touched Zhan Haoting’s wounds, a muffled groan escaped him, his voice filled with pain.
“Careful! Be gentler.”
Cheng Yao’s heart ached.
Xiao Fu’s eyes shifted, and he put on an apologetic smile. “Madam, Master is badly injured, and these old hands of mine are rather clumsy…”
Cheng Yao thought about it and realized he was right.
Zhan Haoting was covered in wounds from head to toe, as fragile as a shattered porcelain doll. If someone handled him carelessly, they could easily cause further injury.
“Forget it. I’ll do it.”
It was better to avoid unnecessary trouble. At most, she would be a little more tired.
Xiao Fu stood up, and Zhan Haochen carried the earthenware jar over.
“Sister-in-law, let me do it.”
“I’ll do it.”
Cheng Yao lowered her head and got to work.
“Madam is more careful. She should look after Master. Haochen, the two of us are big, clumsy men. We’ll only get in the way here.”
Xiao Fu pulled Hongxiu and Zhan Haochen away with him.
The night wind swept through the corridor, while the lanterns beneath the eaves cast a hazy, yellow glow.
The warm water washed away the sticky discomfort from Zhan Haoting’s body. Cheng Yao wiped him down with such gentle movements that it was as if she were afraid of breaking him.
He secretly watched her focused profile from the corner of his eye, unexpectedly growing attached to this brief moment of closeness. Even if he was in such a wretched state, at least she was still by his side.
Cheng Yao worked until she was drenched in sweat, cursing that bastard emperor’s ancestors a hundred times over.
“Zhan Haoting, you have to keep your spirits up. Once you rise again, give that bastard a crushing blow!”
Zhan Haoting couldn’t make a sound, but through his dark, clear eyes, Cheng Yao understood what he was thinking.
He would. He definitely would.
Unable to help herself, she leaned over and kissed both his lips and cheek.
“Good boy.”
Zhan Haoting’s Adam’s apple bobbed. A faint blush spread across his pale face, and his breathing fell out of rhythm.
…
Second Madam Zhan woke from a brief doze. It took her a moment to remember that Cheng Yao still hadn’t brought her the ginger soup.
Furious, she marched over, only to find Cheng Yao and Zhan Haoting lying side by side, fast asleep.
Second Madam Zhan was livid. She raised her foot to kick them, but Zhan Haoting suddenly opened his eyes.
What kind of gaze was that?
Cold. Bloodthirsty. Devoid of any emotion a human being should possess, like something that had crawled straight out of hell.
With a cry, she hastily pulled back her foot. She stumbled and fell, then scrambled and rolled all the way back to her own side.
Terrifying!
The next morning.
Before dawn, the bailiffs began urging the prisoners to get moving.
Cheng Yao noticed the unnatural flush on Zhan Haoting’s face. When she touched his forehead, she found that he was indeed running a fever.
After suffering such serious injuries, it would have been strange if his wounds hadn’t become inflamed.
She had wanted to give him an anti-inflammatory injection the previous night, but he had remained awake the entire time. She had been so exhausted that she had fallen asleep without realizing it.
Hongxiu came to discuss something with her. “Madam, I want to go with Uncle Xiao to buy a carriage nearby.”
“Go ask the bailiffs first. And…” Cheng Yao lowered her voice. “You’ll need to give them some benefits.”
“Madam, I understand. I’ll—”
Before Hongxiu could finish, they heard the sound of hooves striking the ground and wheels rolling over the road.
She instinctively looked ahead. A carriage was speeding toward them and soon arrived right in front of them.
A sturdy, brisk-looking older woman climbed down from the carriage with the help of a maid.
Her complexion was somewhat pale, but her eyes were bright and full of spirit. A few strands of silver had appeared at her temples, and her hair was loosely pinned up with an ebony hairpin. Her back was ramrod straight, and she walked with vigorous strides.
Cheng Yao thought the petite old woman looked familiar. It wasn’t until the woman called out, “Yao’er,” that she remembered who she was.
This was the original body’s maternal grandmother, Madam Qi!
The bundle carried by the maid looked stuffed to bursting. Had she come to bring them something good?
Cheng Yao’s mind raced.
“Hongxiu, your grandmother has come to see you.”
She grabbed Hongxiu and ran toward Madam Qi, urging her repeatedly, “Quick, Hongxiu, greet her! Have you gotten so happy you’ve gone silly?”
Although Hongxiu didn’t understand what she was trying to do, she cooperated and called out, “Grandmother!”
Madam Qi sensed that something was off. She stopped and narrowed her eyes at the two of them as they ran toward her.
“Grandmother,” Hongxiu called again, growing more natural with each word. “Did you come to see me?”
Cheng Yao desperately signaled to Madam Qi with her eyes. After hesitating for quite a while, Madam Qi finally answered, “Yes.”
Hongxiu immediately linked arms with her and led her aside. Cheng Yao followed and whispered to Madam Qi, “Grandmother, supplies given to us by relatives will be confiscated. But my maid here is a free woman. You can say that you’re her grandmother, and then you’ll be allowed to give things to her.”
Madam Qi suddenly understood. Then, angrily, she said, “Your uncle and I had guessed that thieves pretending to be officials would come and search you for your valuables. We deliberately waited outside the city gate to stop them. Who would have thought they’d be so shamelessly corrupt, right out in the open?”
The more she spoke, the angrier she became. One moment she was cursing Cheng Jiahui for being faithless and sending his own daughter into a pit of fire, only for her to be exiled a thousand miles away. The next, she was cursing the treacherous officials and the useless court, which had sentenced meritorious subjects to exile while the empire fell into disorder.
Cheng Yao was speechless.
She had never expected this petite old woman to be so talkative—and so bold.
“Grandmother, walls have ears. Please say a little less.”
“I’m only this upset because I’m worried about you, you ungrateful child. Once you leave, who knows whether we’ll ever see each other again in this lifetime.” Madam Qi choked up and repeatedly wiped away her tears. “Your mother had only two daughters, you and your elder sister. Now you’re separated by vast distances, unable to look after each other or even meet…”
Cheng Yao felt as though the old woman might shatter into pieces. She quickly hugged her and whispered in her ear, “Grandmother, I’ll come back. So will my elder sister.”
Madam Qi’s entire body trembled. She raised her eyes and looked at Cheng Yao. When she saw the determination in her gaze, joy surged into her heart.
Perhaps the War King still had a chance to rise again!
With this hope in her heart, the grief weighing on Madam Qi eased considerably.
“Come here, child.” Madam Qi gestured for the maid to hand over the bundle, but then hurriedly tugged at her sleeve and passed it to Hongxiu instead.
“I packed some food, gold, silver, and other valuables for you. The banknotes are from Huimin Bank and can be exchanged anywhere. Use the smaller things on the road, but make sure you hide the rest carefully.”
Hongxiu glanced toward the head constable, her eyes reddening as she nodded.
Cheng Yao was deeply moved as well. “Grandmother, so much has happened at home, and the business is doing only a fraction of what it used to. It’s barely making enough to get by. How could you still give me banknotes? Where did you get them?”
“Don’t worry about that.” Madam Qi gave a proud snort. “Even a rotten ship still has three pounds of nails. Who do you think you’re looking down on, you silly girl?”
Madam Qi still wanted to say more, but the procession had already moved some distance away, and the bailiffs had begun shouting at them.
