A fast horse galloped madly toward the western suburban camp. Seeing that the rider was dressed in the same uniform as them, the guards were just about to lift the barricade when they realized the rider had no intention of stopping. At breakneck speed, he leaped over the barricade and bolted toward the tent area.
The two guards stared in astonishment at his rapidly retreating back. Wasn't that one of the soldiers who had just left for the city with Duke Zhenguo and his men?
Why was he back? He looked frantic, as if something terrible had happened.
Inside the main tent, Chu Liuyun, who was in the middle of a military discussion, frowned at the sound of the approaching hooves. "Who is riding a horse inside the camp?"
Just as his lieutenant turned to go check, the soldier burst into the tent in a panic, as if chased by fierce beasts, and crashed right into him.
Glaring at the soldier who had fallen to the ground, the lieutenant scolded, "Why are you barging in like your tail is on fire? Have you no sense of military discipline?"
The soldier scrambled to his knees and crawled all the way to Chu Liuyun's feet, his face pale with absolute terror.
"My Lord, disaster has struck! Duke Zhenguo encountered an avalanche on his way back to the city. He is missing and still hasn't been found!"
The words struck like a thunderbolt. The generals in the tent stared at him in disbelief, their gazes as sharp and piercing as swords.
"What did you say?" Chu Liuyun's pupils contracted. He took a long stride forward, looming over the soldier, and demanded, "The road back to the city doesn't pass near any snowy mountains! How could there be an avalanche?"
The soldier looked as though he were about to cry. His voice stuttered in his panic. "It was at Mount Xiaomao. Duke Zhenguo went missing in the fir forest."
"Halfway through the journey, His Highness Prince Ying spotted a herd of elk and insisted on hunting them. After they were lured into the fir forest, an avalanche suddenly occurred. His Highness's horse was spooked, and to save Prince Ying, Duke Zhenguo fell down a steep slope near the forest. The snow is so thick that we still haven't found him."
Images of his own father falling off a cliff and freezing to death just to save Xiao Rongyan flashed through Chu Liuyun's mind. His tightly clenched fists trembled uncontrollably.
A cavalry of three hundred men charged out of the western suburban camp at top speed, leaving the guards at the gate staring at each other in utter bewilderment.
"What's going on? Why is the Duke of Qing taking so many men out?"
Having failed to find the missing man after so long, Xiao Rongyan stood with his legs buried in the snow, his clothes already soaked through. Looking out over the pale snowfield, his mind was already scheming about how to absolve himself of blame once he returned.
The massive cavalry charged over from the distance. When Chu Liuyun saw Xiao Rongyan standing motionless, safely surrounded by his guards, he could no longer suppress the raging fire in his mind.
He didn't say a single word as he dismounted and walked past, but his face was livid, and he shot him a vicious, venomous glare.
That single look made Xiao Rongyan feel a genuine murderous intent.
The three hundred-plus men quickly fanned out in the direction where Duke Zhenguo had fallen. They cleared the snow on the ground as fast as they could. When they encountered steep slopes, they lowered themselves with ropes and crawled down; when they met sheer cliffs, they detoured and kept searching.
As time ticked by, Chu Liuyun's heart grew increasingly frantic. If they didn't find him soon, he would freeze to death even if he hadn't been injured in the fall. The snow was so thick that if he couldn't climb out, he would suffocate.
The sun shifted from directly overhead to the west. Nearly two hours had passed since Duke Zhenguo went missing.
Suddenly, a sharp cry pierced the air. A soldier holding a shovel shouted toward Chu Liuyun, "My Lord, we found him!"
Everyone quickly gathered around, but upon seeing Duke Zhenguo's condition, they all froze in place, their blood running cold.
Sharp tree branches had pierced through Duke Zhenguo just above his collarbone and into his abdomen. His head had struck a rock and was split open. Had his eyelashes not been fluttering slightly, it would be entirely believable to say he was dead.
Chu Liuyun stared at his father, his face deathly pale. He dropped to one knee and reached out a trembling finger to place it under his father's nose. A faint breath brushed against his knuckle. Utterly drained of strength, he supported himself with both hands on the ground, panting heavily.
...
A large group of men and horses rushed into the city. The moment the stretcher was carried into the Duke Zhenguo's estate, the steward grabbed the official seal, mounted a horse, and galloped madly toward the imperial palace.
The physician who had been rushed over felt his heart skip a beat when he saw Duke Zhenguo lying on the bed with two tree branches protruding from his upper body.
Blood was still seeping from around the wounds, and the branches quivered with his faint breaths. It was obvious at a glance that they had pierced very deep.
The physician carefully reached out to take Duke Zhenguo's pulse.
The pulse was floating, large, soft, and empty. His breath was like a gossamer thread. He was losing blood and vital energy—a critical sign of impending exhaustion of qi and blood.
He feared this man could not be saved.
"How is he?" Upon seeing him pause, the voice of the over ninety-year-old Dowager Duchess Chu rang out, choked with sobs.
Looking at her, the physician didn't dare tell the truth.
Dowager Duchess Chu was nearly a hundred years old and already in poor health. She certainly wouldn't be able to handle such a devastating blow.
"My medical skills are shallow. You must quickly invite the imperial physicians from the palace to treat him."
Hearing this, the hearts of everyone present stopped. They realized that Duke Zhenguo's life was hanging by a thread and that this physician could not save him.
Dowager Duchess Chu swayed unsteadily and collapsed backward. The maids and elder female servants hastily caught her, swarming around her with anxious cries.
The physician's expression changed drastically, and he quickly stepped forward to administer emergency aid.
An imperial physician in his forties was carried on horseback by the steward, galloping all the way to the Duke Zhenguo's estate. By the time they stopped, the physician had thrown up bile.
Upon entering the room and seeing Duke Zhenguo on the bed, the imperial physician conducted a thorough examination. He then looked nervously at Chu Liuyun. "I am somewhat uncertain. It would be best to quickly invite Director Gu over."
The Chu family felt as if they had been struck by lightning. They were on the verge of total despair.
While the imperial physician struggled to stop the bleeding, more than half of the physicians from the Imperial Academy of Medicine were hauled over in carriages by the Duke Zhenguo's estate all at once.
The commotion was so massive that Xiao Chengjing, who was reviewing memorials in the imperial study, caught wind of the news.
He furrowed his brows and questioned, "Wasn't Duke Zhenguo at the western suburban camp? How did he get injured?"
The head eunuch lowered his head and replied, "I heard that they encountered an avalanche on the way back. To save His Highness Prince Ying, Duke Zhenguo fell down a steep slope. Not only did he hit his head, but his body was also pierced by tree branches. His life is currently hanging by a thread."
Hearing this, Xiao Chengjing's eyes widened, and he stood up in concern.
"Is Prince Ying injured? What do the imperial physicians say?"
The head eunuch shook his head. "His Highness Prince Ying is unharmed, but Duke Zhenguo's situation is not looking good."
"Imperial Physician Xu, who went first, said he couldn't save him and requested that Director Gu be brought in. Now, more than half of the physicians from the Imperial Academy are at the Duke Zhenguo's estate, and the situation is still unknown."
Xiao Chengjing's anxious heart settled slightly, though he completely lost the mood to review his memorials. How could such a terrible thing happen out of nowhere?
He ordered loudly, "Send someone to the Duke Zhenguo's estate immediately to keep an eye on things. Tell the imperial physicians to do everything in their power to save him. Take the remaining physicians from the Imperial Academy over there as well, and tell Prince Ying to come see me at once."
"Yes, Your Majesty." The head eunuch bowed and hurried out, not daring to delay.
He dispatched someone to monitor the Duke Zhenguo's estate while sending another to summon the remaining doctors from the Imperial Academy of Medicine. Finally, he paused to catch his breath and ordered his apprentice to fetch the prince from Prince Ying's manor.
