Marry a Northern Song Dynasty civil servant

Chapter 44

Throughout this time, Song Xiaohua never let go of Lu Ziqi's hand.

It wasn't that she didn't want to, but Lu Ziqi, who was unconscious, seemed to be possessed and wouldn't let go no matter what. Yuan Hao tried a lot of effort but couldn't pry him open. Instead, he made Song Xiaohua grimace and scream.

Finally, after entering the house, Yuan Hao had no choice but to use silver needles to prick the acupoints on her hand, finally freeing Song Xiaohua's poor little hand, which had been almost deformed, from the crab claw.

Later, Yuan Hao wrote a prescription and had someone prepare a large bath tub, filled with hot water and medicinal herbs, saying that Lu Ziqi should take a medicinal bath to dispel the cold that had already seeped into his lungs from the nearly twenty days of exposure to the elements.

Then, she brewed a bowl of calming herbal tea for Song Xiaohua, whose face was pale and who was desperately trying to hold back vomiting. Under the intense visual, gustatory, and psychological shocks, her emotions were clearly fluctuating and difficult to calm.

Watching Yuan Hao help Lu Ziqi into the house, Song Xiaohua suddenly felt a pang of regret. If only she hadn't managed to pry his hands off, she could have openly seen the handsome man's 'naked body'...

Yuan Hao glanced at Song Xiaohua, who was standing awkwardly at the door and no longer going in, and seemed a little strange. However, he nodded to her as if he hadn't noticed anything, indicating that she could rest assured, and then closed the door.

Alas, at this time when she, as the wife, most needed to step in and serve, she couldn't personally take the lead because she hadn't yet "openly revealed herself" to her husband. Although she longed to, after saying those words…

I drank the herbal tea listlessly, then vomited violently for a while, and then collapsed onto the bed in a daze, starting to have endless nightmares. I tossed and turned until the rooster crowed, and finally got up half dead and sat here in the cold wind.

Looking at her hands, which still bore a few faint bluish-purple marks, Song Xiaohua felt quite conflicted.

She initially thought he'd abandoned her and left, but instead he led his troops in pursuit. She initially thought he didn't care much for her and didn't have deep feelings for her, but it seems that wasn't the case...

I originally thought she could turn around and leave, strong and free-spirited, not weak. But in the end, she was still a fussy, indecisive, and clingy person.

Upon learning that he had gone to the battlefield where life and death hung in the balance, and seeing him collapse with blood on his lips, her heart stopped beating. It was as if she had turned into a stubborn rock in an instant, or as if she had shattered into dust in the blink of an eye.

If he were not here, what meaning would this world have for her? Without him, even the riches and splendor of life would only leave her with incompleteness, ruin, and desolation.

Her life must include him. He must be there for her in his life.

She is the one whose heart is set on, the one whose soul is bound to. She cannot escape or avoid her.

Women, once they fall in love, all their principles and pride become meaningless. To put it simply, they run further and further down the road of 'being shameless' without ever looking back...

As Song Xiaohua was sighing to herself, a nearly new thick cotton pad suddenly appeared in front of her: "In such cold weather, you're just sitting on the ground like this, do you want to recover from your illness too quickly?"

With a grin, she took it and used it as a cushion: "Good morning!"

Yuan Hao looked her over, shook his head, and sat down on the ground, lifting his shirt: "I seem to rarely see you looking so clean and pretty."

She rubbed her dark circles apologetically: "I didn't sleep well last night..."

"You've done a great job, seeing a corpse for the first time like this."

At the mention of this, Song Xiaohua couldn't help but feel nauseous again: "Stop, stop, stop, let's leave it at that, don't mention it to me again."

Yuan Hao couldn't help but chuckle, saying nothing more. He placed his finger on her pulse, tilted his head slightly, and pondered, "Fortunately, her constitution is still quite good. After a few more doses and three to five days of conditioning, she should be almost recovered."

"Oh..." Song Xiaohua responded absentmindedly, then hesitated for a moment: "What about him?"

"It's rather troublesome."

Startled, she grabbed his forearm: "What do you mean?!"

Staring intently at the tension on her face, the corners of his eyes suddenly widened: "If there's no hope, what will you do?"

"No...no hope? How could that be? It's just a stomach ache, how could it be so serious? Aren't you supposed to be very capable? If you can't save him, then hurry up and get another doctor! What are you standing here for? Let's go!"

With a slight exertion, he stopped Song Xiaohua, who was like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. Her tilted face looked even more alluring in the rising sun, and her downturned eyebrows still held a smile. However, something seemed to be shattering in her amber eyes: "'Since you have no intention of me, I will leave.' Have you changed your mind?"

Song Xiaohua froze for a moment, then slowly sat down again. "Yes, I've changed my mind. Even if he has no feelings for me, I won't give up. He's my husband, and I'm his wife. We're meant to walk this path together, to support each other through life, and never abandon each other! I've already lost family twice, and this time, I will never give up easily. He's my closest relative, and also my dearest love. As for his feelings for me..." She gave a soft snort: "He'll fall in love eventually. I refuse to believe I can't handle him!"

"Of all the waters in the world, do you truly only want to drink from this one?"

"Though the forest is vast, I'm only hanging myself on this one crooked tree." Song Xiaohua touched her nose, chuckled dryly, and muttered, "That seems a bit pathetic... My IQ is probably negative two hundred right now."

Yuan Hao lowered his eyelids, then raised them again: "I was just teasing you. He's fine, he just needs some rest. He should wake up soon. Go check on him, he's in the east wing."

"Really? I knew you were the best!" Song Xiaohua jumped up and ran away with a big smile, then paused as if remembering something, turned around to face Yuan Hao who was smiling at her, and showed her eight tiny teeth: "Thank you, it's so good to have you here!"

Yuanhao, I'm sorry. You've stayed by my side and helped me so much, and yet I can never repay you...

A hawk circled in the sky. The letter in her hand was torn into scraps, which drifted out of the courtyard and scattered in all directions.

With the marriage alliance with the Liao Kingdom finalized and war with the Uyghurs imminent, it was time for him to leave.

I wanted to take her with me, but she was so deeply in love with me, without any complaints or regrets.

That person deserves her deep affection...

During the examination, it was discovered that the man's stomach had suffered from depletion over the previous years, coupled with damage during this recent period, resulting in significant bleeding. It could no longer withstand any further stimulation. In other words, from now on, he must eat three meals a day at regular times, with appropriate temperatures, and strictly avoid certain foods; otherwise, a relapse would be extremely dangerous. Furthermore, he would never be able to return to the battlefield.

He couldn't help but feel a little regretful, because his wish to have a real fight with him was definitely going to be dashed.

But he seemed to have seen through something and said calmly, "I, Lu, am but a scholar, and am not suited to lead troops on the battlefield. This time, it was purely due to the suddenness and urgency of the situation that I had to bite the bullet and don my armor. Our Great Song has many valiant warriors who are well-versed in military strategy and familiar with battle formations; we will surely keep the enemy out of our borders. As for me, although I cannot personally kill the enemy to serve my country, I can still ensure that the soldiers at the front can concentrate on fighting the enemy without any worries. Brother Yuan must understand that in the event of war, the battles at the rear will also determine the outcome!"

Besides, this one time has already been enough to cause my wife worry; how could I bear to let her suffer like this again? I owe my wife so much, and I can never repay it. I only wish that she can live a happy and peaceful life in the future. I also believe that my debt to her ends here, and I will never again owe her the slightest thing!

Her words were so frank that they even made him a little jealous. For a moment, he did indeed have the thought of adding a poison to the prescription…

Enough, enough. Since that's how it is, why be the third party who interferes? He has already tasted what it's like to want something but not get it, so how can he bear to let her follow in his footsteps?

Lu Ziqi is a man of his word and a man of great loyalty and righteousness. Now that he has made up his mind, he will never let her suffer any more grievances.

And she...

Will I be happy following Lu Ziqi, the man I deeply love? ...

Yes, yes...

It's time to let go, it's time to move on...

Author's Note: Little Yuan is a real handful when it comes to Little Flower's feelings for him!

However, I think this is the attitude a real man should have. Since Xiaohua has made things so clear, he should be able to let go gracefully, without forcing or clinging on. When it's time to let go, he should let go and walk away freely...

Also: By the way, severe stomach bleeding can cause vomiting blood, right? I remember a boy in middle school who had a stomach hemorrhage and vomited blood spectacularly!

If my memory is faulty, then let's just say that Xiao Lu's stomach ailment is rather severe. In fact, I think this unfortunate kid's illness is indeed quite severe... (A certain monster who almost never gets sick passes by...)

Additionally: In 1028 AD, Li Yuanhao fought a battle against the Uyghurs, so this story takes place between the 67th and 68th years after the founding of the Northern Song Dynasty.

The historical idiot is passing by again~

Chapter Forty-Eight: Listening to His Story of the Past

It's been 25 days, and I can finally get a good look at him up close and in peace.

His tightly closed eyelids concealed the captivating brilliance in his dark eyes, and his pale face showed only weariness and exhaustion. His dry lips were covered with fine cracks, and his furrowed brows made the mark between his eyebrows look like it had been carved by a knife, never to be erased.

I couldn't help but raise my hand and trace the outline of that thin, bony figure, finally touching his forehead and temples, his burning skin, and his icy sweat.

She hurriedly got up, wrung out a cloth from the basin of water beside her, gently wiped her forehead, and placed it on her forehead.

As if sensing something, her brow furrowed and relaxed, her eyelashes fluttered, and she slowly opened her eyes. Her slightly scattered gaze sharpened and brightened when it caught sight of the figure before her.

Taking a deep breath and gathering her strength, she reached out from under the covers and cupped the cool, soft fabric in her palm: "Yaoyao, I promised you, and I will never let go." Her voice was hoarse, soft, low, and gentle, yet it carried an undeniable resolve.

In one sentence, all of Song Xiaohua's grievances, fears, anger, confusion, sadness, and sorrow were brought out. She snorted angrily, "That sounds nice!"

Lu Ziqi smiled wryly and struggled to sit up: "The person I went to see in the prefectural capital was my elder brother Lu Ziheng, who is also your uncle."

"...Huh?" My attention was successfully diverted once again.

"Because my trip was so tight, I didn't have time to meet you. I was planning to tell you the details after I got back, but I didn't expect..."

"You...you have an older brother?"

"Yeah, how come you didn't know?"

"...I can't remember right now."

Song Xiaohua silently lowered her head, choosing to remain silent. Before the wedding, both families would inevitably report their situations to each other, but unfortunately, this 'imposter' knew nothing about it. She had previously assumed Lu Ziqi was an orphan with no parents, brothers, or sisters based solely on a few words from others; now it seemed her assumptions were wrong…

Lu Ziqi, unsuspecting, continued, "It was precisely because of him that I was able to obtain the order to mobilize troops. The Song and Liao dynasties have enjoyed peace for many years, and the border garrisons have become increasingly lazy in their training, even disorganized. The local magistrate and general are both cowardly and incompetent, greedy for life and afraid of death, only concerned with keeping their official positions. Faced with the invading Liao people, besides keeping the city gates tightly shut, they immediately falsify battle reports in an attempt to claim credit, ignoring the cries and groans of the people under the iron hooves and swords!"

He coughed lightly twice to calm himself, then said, "Winter came early this year, and the Liao Kingdom suffered a severe drought in the autumn, killing countless cattle and sheep. Seeing our bountiful harvest, they are probably already green with envy and harboring restless intentions. This invasion is likely just a test. If our Great Song allows them to bully us without resistance, then what follows will be an even greater invasion and more ferocious plunder. Therefore, we must completely extinguish their delusions once and for all!"

"So, you volunteered?"

"It happened so suddenly. When I received the urgent report, my brother and I were there. After a quick analysis, we concluded that it was unlikely that the Liao Kingdom would send a thousand cavalrymen to test the waters. So, we dispatched skilled scouts to quickly ascertain the enemy's situation, and discussed who should lead the troops to pursue them. Just then, I received an urgent message from the county's Flying Eagle, and that's when I learned that your..." He paused, tightening his grip on Song Xiaohua's hand, "I wanted to rush to your side immediately, to be with you, but I wanted even more to avenge you and comfort the spirits of your deceased family members. Yaoyao, I was never there when you needed me most. I'm so sorry."

Song Xiaohua sniffed, looking at his face, which was so thin it was almost unrecognizable: "Are you stupid! Why would someone who's never been in a war want to be the first to step forward and show off? Since those bastards dared to come, they're definitely not good people. If things go wrong, it's one thing if we can't get revenge, but if... if something happens to you... then I..."

Upon hearing this, Lu Ziqi raised an eyebrow slightly, a faint smile playing on his lips: "Although I have never personally experienced the battlefield, I have studied military strategy since childhood due to family tradition, so I still have the ability to talk about war on paper. Yaoyao, when you proposed marriage, you only said that my Lu family was an ordinary gentry family in the capital. In fact, I concealed part of the truth. Because at that time, I only wanted to stay away from everything related to my family and live a peaceful life as a local official who benefits the people in this vast land with its simple and honest customs and far from strife."