Later, Song Fengsui dismissed the attendants, sterilized the silver needles, and treated only Duan Yan with acupuncture.
His right hand had been cut by his own animal bone, and was now wrapped in herbal bandages, but his arm still ached, causing his grip on the silver needle to tremble slightly. Though everything was prepared, he still hesitated to make the first insertion.
Seeing this, Duan Yan reassured him: "It's fine, just go ahead. Even if your hand shakes, it's only a bit of flesh pain, nothing to speak of."
Besides, he was also eager to know whether he really had been poisoned.
Hearing this, Song Fengsui steadied himself briefly, then carefully inserted one long silver needle into Duan Yan's tiger's mouth acupoint, one at the crown of his head, and one in his leg.
Duan Yan's brow tightened in secret—it did hurt a little.
But the pain wasn't from the needles piercing flesh; rather, it was a soreness spreading through his entire body.
Song Fengsui had hoped to gauge the severity of the illness from Duan Yan's expression, but seeing the man's utterly calm and composed demeanor, how could he expect to read anything from a young man who cared so much about saving face?
So he could only say: "I've inserted needles into several of your acupoints. In a moment, when I remove them, if there are signs of discoloration, then my earlier diagnosis is correct. If the needles remain pristine, then your body is fine as well."
Duan Yan acknowledged with a grunt and waited.
The wait wasn't long. Before long, Song Fengsui carefully withdrew the needles one by one. When he pulled the first needle from the leg, both of them saw at nearly the same moment that the originally gleaming silver needle had turned a dull grey-black, as if it had touched something unclean—then the second and third needles came out, all the same...
Song Fengsui stared at the needles with a grave expression, his breathing growing even lighter: "The needles discolored this quickly—the poison in your body must have been there for a year or two!"
Duan Yan gazed grimly at the needles laid out on the cloth. The cloth was white, making the discoloration on the needles all the more striking.
He murmured: "…So it really is poison."
Phew—thank goodness it was only poison that had caused those strange physical reactions, and not that he had indecent thoughts toward a young man. Not a pervert, not a pervert, then...
"Do you have any idea how dangerous your condition is with that poison in your body? If you drink strong liquor, engage in intimate acts, or even do your usual blacksmithing—anything that stirs your blood—it could very well kill you!"
Song Fengsui likely already had some inkling before he inserted the needles, but he hadn't expected Duan Yan's condition to be this critical.
Given the poison in his body, the fact that he had braved the torrential rain yesterday and moved through such treacherous mountain paths, and still returned alive, was nothing short of miraculous!
Duan Yan heard Song Fengsui's words, and the relief that had risen in his mind suddenly came to a halt.
Following Song Fengsui's diagnosis, a train of thought clicked into place. He had been puzzled earlier about why the original body had suddenly died after drinking alcohol—now he understood it wasn't without cause, but because the poison in his body had flared up and taken his life.
The most terrifying part was that even if the original body hadn't died from the strong drink, there was still a next hurdle waiting to finish him off.
That night, when Song Fengsui had been tied to the original body's bed, had the two engaged in vigorous activity, the consequences were easy to imagine—and the insidious part was that Song Fengsui would have taken the blame for it.
Those under the original body's command, each harboring their own selfish motives, would have used the original body's death as an excuse to exact all manner of private vengeance on Song Fengsui...
Duan Yan knew, given the chaotic plotlines the author had written in the book, that the author could never be so kind as to let Song Fengsui suffer only at the hands of the original body. But he hadn't expected the story's progression to be so brutal.
His emotions were extremely complicated—both shocked that the original body had been killed by someone's meticulous scheming, regretful that he now inhabited a body already deeply poisoned, and pitiful of Song Fengsui's subsequent fate in the book.
Song Fengsui didn't know how much Duan Yan was thinking. He only saw the man's face turn ashen, and assumed he was struggling to accept the reality of his condition.
He could have taken advantage of this situation to be mysterious and manipulate Duan Yan into giving him more benefits, but facing a man like Duan Yan, he couldn't bring himself to be so calculating.
So he said in a gentle tone: "Don't worry. Though your condition isn't optimistic, the good thing is that it's been discovered.
From now on, stay vigilant, keep a careful eye on your food and drink, and I'll administer acupuncture every day to draw out the poisoned blood. Take your medicine diligently, avoid anger and heavy labor, and you won't be in danger. With time, you can slowly recover."
Duan Yan, hearing Song Fengsui's instructions, pulled himself back from the original book, and a hint of light returned to his eyes: "It can still be cured?"
Song Fengsui said: "If you follow my instructions, then yes, it can be cured."
Duan Yan's heart relaxed somewhat. Good—still a chance to live. Otherwise, he'd only just gotten a new lease on life, and to lose it within two days would be a terrible loss.
He looked at Song Fengsui, hearing that he was willing to treat his poison and nurse his health, and felt a stir in his heart. Such a flesh-and-blood, kind-hearted young man—yet in the book he met such a cruel fate. It was truly lamentable.
To be honest, he didn't want Song Fengsui to end up miserable.
Those cunning and malicious people could live well, wield power and influence—must the chaotic world truly use a good person as a sacrifice to demonstrate the sorrow of the times?
Duan Yan's gaze deepened as he pondered secretly: since he had been able to come here, was it possible he could also change Song Fengsui's future misfortune?
After all, Rock Town was so remote and insignificant. Even if the world descended into chaos, it would be a difficult place to reach.
They were small people, living humbly and honestly in this little corner of the land, not meddling in the outside world's power struggles. Perhaps as long as they didn't interfere with the main storyline, small changes wouldn't have much impact.
Many side characters in the original book weren't given detailed storylines—didn't that leave plenty of room for flexibility?
"...Duan Yan?"
Seeing the man remain silent with an inscrutable expression for so long, Song Fengsui softly called out: "I'm not trying to scare you. If you don't believe me, you can go to the county or prefecture to seek other renowned physicians for a second diagnosis.
Of course, if you do trust my diagnosis, there's truly no need to worry too much. Follow my instructions, and it'll be fine."
Duan Yan snapped back to reality at the sound: "I don't distrust you."
He naturally couldn't tell Song Fengsui what he'd been thinking, so he paused and said: "I was thinking—to fall victim to such an insidious poison, it must have been someone close to me. That's what chills me."
Song Fengsui actually had a suspect in mind, but given that person's connection to Duan Yan, he hesitated to voice it outright, so he asked instead: "This is no small matter. Do you have anyone you suspect?"
At that, Duan Yan spat out two heavy words: "Chen Hu."
Based on the original body's memories, it wasn't hard to guess who it was.
It wasn't that Duan Yan held a grudge against Chen Hu and tried to pin every misdeed on him. Even if it were the original body here, reluctant as he might be to believe it, when he thought about who could have poisoned him, Chen Hu was really the only suspect.
As mentioned before, the original body rarely stayed at the headquarters, spending most of his time eating and drinking at the forge. The meals there were cooked in one big pot and everyone ate from it, yet no one else showed any signs of poisoning.
The only difference was that fellow Chen Hu, who would sometimes bring the original body food separately, cooking for him alone.
Back then, the original body thought Chen Hu was just being considerate of his big brother, never giving it a second thought. Not wanting to waste the man's goodwill, he ate it all clean, the two of them as thick as thieves.
Thinking about it now, it was truly terrifying.
Even without the separately delivered meals, Chen Hu had the closest relationship with the original body out of anyone. Besides him, it would be hard for anyone else to find opportunities to slip poison to him year after year.
Duan Yan's eyes frosted over: "And you were brought here on his own initiative. That day, he somehow got his hands on a bunch of strong liquor, claiming it was to celebrate, and coaxed people into drinking."
Though these events weren't something Duan Yan had personally experienced, as an observer, he watched Chen Hu rise to the position of second-in-command through the original body's patronage, yet still remain unsatisfied, plotting relentlessly to take the original body's life and seize everything he had. It was pure greed.
The original body was a local boss—not exactly clean himself—but to end up in such a state after being schemed against by someone he trusted, it was still a pitiful fate.
Song Fengsui was taken aback, not expecting Duan Yan to guess Chen Hu's involvement so quickly. At least the man still had some wits about him.
He normally didn't like meddling in others' affairs, but considering how Duan Yan had delivered grain to his household and had risked life and limb to find medicine for him, he couldn't help but speak up:
"That brother of yours, Chen Hu, he's no good. When he came to the house earlier, he was ordering people around left and right like he owned the place, and in private he even told me that everything would one day be his."
"I originally thought he was just some ruffian blowing hot air. But thinking about it now, he must have been confident he had a ten-out-of-ten chance of bringing you down, which is why he spoke so brazenly to me. Your suspicion of him is well-founded."
Song Fengsui then asked: "Now that it's come to this, what do you plan to do?"
When Chen Hu had come causing a scene earlier, Duan Yan had expressed intentions to discipline him, saying it quite earnestly, but who knew whether he was just trying to smooth things over on both sides.
For the sake of their bond, cutting ties with a sworn brother wasn't really necessary—but the fear was that even now, after the man had tried to poison him, Duan Yan might still cling to their past brotherhood.
Duan Yan knew Song Fengsui had been wronged that day, and he didn't mind sharing the mess of troubles he was currently facing. He explained bluntly:
"I used to trust and even rely on Chen Hu heavily. I handed him many tasks, and over the years, the men under me came to follow his orders. If we were to have a falling out now, I'm afraid most of the men would side with him instead."
"The fact that the poisoning is likely his doing—that's what chills me and makes this so difficult. If it were anyone else, the problem wouldn't be half as troublesome."
Song Fengsui's brow twitched slightly, and he asked Duan Yan a pointed question: "If you gave all your affairs to him, then what were you doing with your time before?"
Duan Yan searched through the original body's memories for an answer, but it was rather embarrassing. He glanced at Song Fengsui sheepishly: "Back in the countryside, there was a young man I grew up with. I was quite taken with him, and I spent all my effort trying to win his favor, my mind consumed by him day and night.
But in the end, that young man married someone else, and I fell into a slump for a long time after. Naturally, matters of work... fell by the wayside."
He saw Song Fengsui's expression shift visibly and promptly shut his mouth.
Indeed, he himself thought the original body had been a bit too love-struck. If he had put all that useless energy into more productive pursuits, maybe the young man would have ended up with him instead of him wallowing in despair.
And then later, when he happened to come across Song Fengsui in Liu Village, he was enchanted all over again. But after having his childhood sweetheart stolen away, he was insecure in matters of the heart. As attractive as Song Fengsui was, he had the desire but not the courage.
And that dear, loyal brother of his, Chen Hu—hadn't he used Song Fengsui to set up a lethal scheme, one trap after another?
"Ah, well, that's all in the past. I've learned my lesson from the consequences of my own idleness and folly, and now I'm left with this mess to clean up."
Song Fengsui cast him a sidelong glance, the corner of his mouth twitching: "You certainly let yourself off the hook easily."
Duan Yan thought he heard a faint snort from Song Fengsui, though he couldn't imagine why he would snort.
He gave an awkward laugh: "Life goes on. We have to keep moving forward."
Song Fengsui steadied his thoughts, looking at the straightforward Duan Yan before him. Earlier, seeing how different he was from his men, he had harbored some doubt that Duan Yan was merely putting on a show of good character for his benefit.
But after this conversation, he now understood that Duan Yan had also been victimized by Chen Hu.
Song Fengsui paused for a moment, then said slowly: "Those men under you were originally yours. But you neglected them in favor of other matters and left them all to Chen Hu, who took advantage of the gap to win them over.
But with that many people, not all of them would have been bought by him. Yet Chen Hu, backed by your trust and the power it gave him, suppressed those who refused to side with him. Over time, those who were loyal to you had no chance to get close to you, and to keep their jobs and their livelihood, they had no choice but to bow to Chen Hu."
"If you put in the effort yourself, reach out to them privately without going through Chen Hu, there will bound to be those who remember past loyalties and are willing to realign with you. Win back one heart at a time, and each one you reclaim is one less loss."
Duan Yan straightened up, nodding in agreement.
That was exactly what he was thinking—to win back people's loyalties one by one, like he was doing with Gou San'er. He just hadn't yet figured out how.
"As much as I'd love to put an end to that tumor of a man right away, for now I have to keep people steady. First, purge the poison and recover my health. Second, find ways to rally people to my side."
Seeing that Duan Yan was thinking clearly and was no blockhead, Song Fengsui felt somewhat reassured.
Hearing Duan Yan's private affairs today, he couldn't help but feel the man was something of a pitiable soul. Now that the two of them each understood something of the other's difficulties and circumstances, and had opened up to each other, it stirred in him an unexpected sense of kinship.
Song Fengsui lowered his gaze to look elsewhere, speaking with slight unease: "You've helped me so much, so naturally I'm on your side. If we deal with each other honestly, then from here on, we can support each other."
Duan Yan saw Song Fengsui offering such a gesture of goodwill and his brows lifted with pleasure.
Song Fengsui had been exiled here after his family's downfall, with no kin to turn to. And Duan Yan, likewise, had been betrayed by those closest to him, under attack from all sides. Both of them were pawns in the book, each with their own misfortune. If they became enemies, it would only be adding frost to snow. But if they could treat each other sincerely, it would be like offering coal in a snowstorm—truly a lifeline.
"Good. From now on, whatever you need, or whatever difficulties you face, you can always tell me."
