Duoduo stared at Li Jin with her big eyes.
"Master, don't you believe I can cure my father?"
Li Jin didn't know whether he should agree or disagree.
Duoduo was his student; if anything happened, he would definitely be held responsible.
Moreover, they were the only two people in this room.
If anything really happened to the Prince of Pingyang, he wouldn't be able to escape the blame.
Li Jin looked into Duoduo's eyes.
"Princess, I admit that you are very excellent."
"But you have only just started learning medicine. You haven't finished your apprenticeship yet, and you are not qualified to treat patients and save lives!"
"If Master Zhang knew, he would definitely be angry!"
"Right now, His Highness's condition has stabilized."
"We can totally wait a while and see. If His Highness's condition changes, we'll think of another way, alright?"
Duoduo stared fixedly into Li Jin's eyes.
After a long while, she finally spoke.
"Alright."
Li Jin breathed a sigh of relief and sat down on a chair.
"Master, I'm thirsty."
Duoduo looked at Li Jin pitifully, and Li Jin stood up.
"I will pour you some water."
Li Jin walked to the table, picked up the teapot, and shook it. There was no water inside.
"Princess, sit there and don't move around. I'll go find some hot water."
Duoduo nodded obediently.
"Okay."
Li Jin hurriedly walked out.
Duoduo turned her head and looked at her father beside her.
"Father, I said I would protect you!"
Duoduo picked up the silver needles again. This time, the golden light above her head began to swirl.
As Duoduo inserted the needles, the golden light eagerly seeped into the Prince of Pingyang's body.
Before long, the Prince of Pingyang's body was once again covered in silver needles.
Duoduo placed her hand on the Prince of Pingyang's forehead.
An endless stream of golden light continuously vanished into the Prince of Pingyang's forehead.
The flush on the Prince of Pingyang's face disappeared.
His previously furrowed brows, caused by the high fever, relaxed.
Duoduo's hand slowly brushed over the silver needles.
The golden light also softly blanketed the Prince of Pingyang's body.
Calculating the time, Duoduo began to remove the silver needles.
"Princess, the water is here!"
Li Jin's voice came from outside the door.
Duoduo had just pulled out the last silver needle and placed it in a bowl.
"Princess, what are you doing?"
Seeing Duoduo's actions, Li Jin was startled and dashed to the bedside in a single stride.
Duoduo looked up with an innocent expression.
"Master, I didn't do anything."
Li Jin looked at the Prince of Pingyang on the bed and noticed that his condition seemed much better than before.
"It's nothing, I was just worried about you. Right, weren't you thirsty?"
Li Jin handed the bowl in his hand to Duoduo.
"Drink up, it's warm."
"Thank you, Master!" Duoduo took it and drank the water in small sips.
Li Jin stepped forward and reached out to check the Prince of Pingyang's forehead.
It was no longer burning hot.
"Princess, it's getting late. You should go back and rest."
"I will keep watch over His Highness here."
Li Jin wanted to send Duoduo away, worried that she might try to administer acupuncture to the Prince of Pingyang again later.
"No! I want to stay and watch over Father too. I want to wait for him to wake up."
Duoduo handed the bowl back to Li Jin.
Then, she curled up and lay down beside the Prince of Pingyang.
"Princess! You'll easily catch the illness like this."
Duoduo blinked.
"I won't! Father is already well! He's just asleep!"
After saying that, Duoduo hugged the Prince of Pingyang's waist and closed her eyes.
Li Jin sighed. He turned around and placed the bowl on the table.
He sat on the stool by the bed, looking at the Prince of Pingyang.
"Your Highness, your luck is truly extraordinary."
"To have such a wonderful daughter, your good fortune is truly enviable!"
After speaking, Li Jin leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.
After a grueling day, he was exhausted too.
He needed to catch some rest; he figured he'd be up again in the middle of the night.
Li Jin fell asleep, and Duoduo, snuggled against the Prince of Pingyang, fell asleep as well.
A soft golden light enveloped both the Prince of Pingyang and Duoduo together.
At first, the Prince of Pingyang felt as if he were in a sea of fire; it was scorching hot everywhere.
He felt utterly powerless. He wanted to open his eyes, but his eyelids felt as heavy as a thousand pounds.
So hot! So hot!
Could someone give him some water?
The Prince of Pingyang was extremely uncomfortable, feeling as though he were being roasted over an open fire.
Also, he smelled the scent of alcohol.
Who?
Who was trying to roast him to go with their wine?
Despicable!
The Prince of Pingyang tried to reach for the dagger in his sleeve, but he found that not only was he unable to move, someone was also rubbing things all over his body.
Were they rubbing seasoning on him?
Despicable!
He would definitely kill this person!
After the seasoning was fully applied, the Prince of Pingyang felt a bit more comfortable.
Suddenly, a soft little hand was placed on his forehead.
Then, he heard Duoduo's childish, milky voice.
"Master, Father doesn't seem to have a fever anymore!"
The Prince of Pingyang froze. He had a fever?
It seemed that besides Duoduo, Li Jin was also in the room.
Where was everyone else? Why wasn't anyone else here?
The hand on his forehead made the Prince of Pingyang feel very comfortable; he even wished it would stay there forever.
He heard the ensuing conversation between Duoduo and Li Jin clearly.
He even knew that Duoduo had tricked Li Jin into leaving so she could administer acupuncture to him a second time.
Hearing Li Jin say that his typhoid fever was contagious...
The Prince of Pingyang instinctively pulled a long face, wanting to scold Duoduo and tell her to stay away from him.
Unfortunately, his lips only twitched a few times; he couldn't utter a single word.
The Prince of Pingyang couldn't tell if he was dreaming or if this was really happening.
Otherwise, if he clearly wanted to speak, why was there no sound at all?
Moreover, shouldn't acupuncture be painful?
Yet, he felt no pain, only comfort.
It seemed he must be dreaming!
It was because he had sent Duoduo away and felt guilty, leading to these thoughts turning into dreams.
Yes, that must be it.
The Prince of Pingyang drifted off to sleep.
As dawn approached, Li Jin was jolted awake.
"Quick, doctor, over here!"
A guard dragged a doctor in, running frantically.
Li Jin opened his eyes.
He saw that the guard was covered in mud, and the doctor's clothes were disheveled.
Panting, the doctor jogged to the bedside.
"Who is the patient?"
He looked over Li Jin and the other two.
"Him!" Li Jin pointed at the Prince of Pingyang on the bed.
A look of confusion flashed across the doctor's face as he stared closely at the Prince of Pingyang.
"Are you sure he's the patient?"
Li Jin and the guard nodded.
Half-doubting, the doctor sat down and reached out to take the Prince of Pingyang's pulse.
On the bed, the Prince of Pingyang slowly opened his eyes.
Everyone's eyes were on the doctor; no one noticed that the Prince of Pingyang was awake.
The doctor furrowed his brows, feeling the pulse beneath his fingers.
After a moment, he withdrew his hand.
An angry expression appeared on his face.
"Nonsense! He is clearly not sick at all!"
"You dragged me here in the middle of the night just to treat a man who has no illness whatsoever?"
"This is absolutely outrageous!"
The doctor was so furious that he stood up, ready to storm out.
