The Foolish Agent

Chapter 17

Leng Jie thought that since he had saved her earlier, she would let him vent his anger on her as a way of repaying his kindness. Ignoring his unreasonable shouts, she replied curtly:

"I was just practicing my lightness skill! But a small accident happened! The branch suddenly snapped. Out of instinct, I yelled, which caused my internal energy to dissipate, so I could only close my eyes and pray for a miracle." Then, sincerely, she said to him, "Anyway, thank you for showing up! Thank you for saving me!"

Faced with Wuming's sincere gratitude, Xuanyuan felt somewhat uncomfortable. In fact, he himself didn't understand why he had been so angry just now.

After finishing his official duties, he was on his way to check on Qingfeng's medicine preparation. While passing through the Imperial Garden, he inadvertently caught sight of the maple forest. Suddenly remembering the strange events Fu Gonggong had mentioned about the forest, he became curious and wanted to investigate. However, as soon as he entered the forest, he saw a small, dark figure dressed in night clothes leaping and bounding among the trees like a monkey. "So Wuming is practicing his lightness skill here! This place is indeed nice, at least it's quiet." Xuanyuan unconsciously followed. Seeing that there were no trees ahead, he had to stop, intending to wait for the figure to return before greeting him. Little did he know that the breathtaking scene he had just witnessed would unfold.

"You don't need to thank me. You saved me once, and I saved you once. We're even!" Xuanyuan unconsciously used "I" instead of "I, the Emperor."

"If that's the case, you still owe me a life?" Leng Jie thought to herself.

[Main Text: Chapter Fifty Rekindles Old Wounds]

"You don't need to thank me. You saved me once, and I saved you once. We're even!" Xuanyuan unconsciously used "I" instead of "I, the Emperor."

"If that's the case, you still owe me a life?" Leng Jie thought to herself.

Her gaze inadvertently drifted to the person opposite her, and she suddenly noticed that he seemed shorter; she could see his face without even tilting her chin up. But why did his complexion look so frightening? Sweat poured down his forehead, his brows were tightly furrowed, revealing a clear, deep furrow, his face was as pale as paper, and his lips were dry and colorless. He seemed to be trying desperately to suppress some unspeakable pain. Leng Jie's gaze involuntarily moved downwards, seeing his back hunched over, the yellow brocade robe on his chest stained with a bright red liquid, forming a sun that was rapidly expanding and growing larger.

"Oh my God! Has the wound reopened?" she exclaimed in surprise, rushing forward to check the wound. How could she have forgotten that he was injured?

"It's nothing, just a little crack!" Xuanyuan shook his head weakly and asked, "Are you a cake seller?"

This person is truly speechless; even in such pain, they can still find fault with someone's words.

"Yes! I sell invincible plaster. So, quickly sit down against the tree trunk and let me put one on for you. I guarantee it will cure you." Leng Jie agreed, and helped him to sit down under the withered tree that had almost sent her back to her hometown.

She reached out to unbutton his clothes to stop the bleeding, but the blood-soaked buttons were locked on, no matter what she did, she couldn't open them. The bleeding showed no signs of stopping, and his shirt was almost completely stained. In a moment of inspiration, Leng Jie reached for his waist, her eyes lighting up – there it was, a cold, soft sword.

He reached out with his other hand, as if to untie it. But a pair of large, cold hands grasped it just in time. The owner of the large hands seemed to freeze for a moment.

Leaning against the tree, Xuanyuan kept a close eye on Wuming's expression. Although the reopening of his wound was indeed painful, it was nothing to him. However, seeing Wuming's tense expression gave him a strange sense of satisfaction. Especially seeing Wuming struggling with the button, he found it both amusing and endearing, which seemed to lessen his pain considerably. When he saw Wuming's eyes suddenly flash with a sharp light as he reached for the sword at his waist, he knew what Wuming intended to do with it.

If it were anything else, Xuanyuan might have let Wuming do as he pleased, but this precious sword was a gift from his mother, embodying their shared dream. It was a treasure he valued more than life itself. To let Wuming use it to cut clothes would be nothing short of a desecration of the sword!

So he stepped in to stop them. But the instant his hands touched Wuming's, his heart involuntarily trembled. Heavens! How could Wuming's hands be so warm, small, soft, and delicate as jade? He couldn't help but wonder if these were men's hands. Then he thought, Wuming was just a boy, and he didn't wield swords; it was normal for him to have such hands.

Leng Jie stared at her hands, which had been stopped, and inwardly remarked on the emperor's considerable vigilance. She then looked up and sincerely explained:

"Don't worry, I'm just using this to cut your clothes. You need to stop the bleeding immediately. Besides, if I wanted to harm you, I would have plenty of ways and opportunities; you can't prevent it even if you try."

Unbuttoning his clothes was just to stop the bleeding? Wasn't he supposed to be applying ointment? And he seemed to misunderstand that I didn't trust him, which was why I wouldn't lend him the sword. Didn't he consider that if I didn't trust him, why would I risk my life to save him knowing I couldn't use my internal energy? Without explanation, Xuanyuan released Wuming's hand and quickly pressed several acupoints on his chest. Then he slowly said:

"Stopping bleeding does not require taking off your shirt."

Leng Jie stared blankly at the emperor's actions, then her expression changed drastically. A raging fire, previously as clear as water, now burned fiercely in her eyes! The fire intensified until it finally erupted:

"Shit! Are you sick? You know how to stop bleeding with acupressure, why didn't you use it sooner? The blood has all been drained, what's the point of stopping it now!" Leng Jie cursed while habitually using body language.

Xuanyuan stared in astonishment at Wuming, who was baring his teeth and roaring at him like an angry little lion, and found him even more genuine and endearing. The pain in his body also vanished without a trace, and he couldn't help but smile gently:

"I thought you were taking off your shirt to apply ointment for me, and I didn't know your master hadn't taught you acupressure. But it's alright now, the bleeding has stopped. You don't need to be angry anymore."

Seeing that his bleeding had truly stopped, and the suppressed pain on his face seemed to have eased somewhat without him realizing it, Leng Jie secretly breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed she had successfully diverted his pain. However, she still replied with a hint of annoyance:

"It's nothing serious. You eat abalone, sea cucumber, shark fin, and fish every day, and you're tall and strong. Losing a little blood is really nothing. Since that's the case, I don't need to feel guilty, right?"

When they first started their special agent training, the team members were often covered in injuries, and pain was inevitable. At first, they pitied and comforted each other, but found the pain only increased. However, after the instructor arrived and gave them a good scolding, everyone felt the pain lessen. Sometimes, out of resentment towards the instructor's ruthlessness, they even unconsciously forgot the pain. Later, after studying psychology, they understood the instructor's good intentions.

“You don’t need to feel guilty! You didn’t inflict this wound. If you hadn’t saved me last time, I might have bled to death by now,” Xuanyuan replied matter-of-factly.

"You know that much. So, are you going to go to the medicine hut yourself and have your senior brother bandage you, or are you going to stay here and wait for me to call him over?" Leng Jie replied coldly.

Qingfeng had repeatedly warned him not to use his internal energy for a month; if he saw him like this, he might really run off to the epidemic area in Qizhou in a fit of anger. Xuanyuan hurriedly said:

“No need. Your senior brother is busy practicing the antidote for the plague. Don’t let him know about this. This place is closest to Dragon Ascension Palace; there’s medicine there. I can just go back and apply it myself.” He said, bracing himself on the ground, trying to stand up. But the moment he moved, excruciating pain instantly spread throughout his body. His body immediately began to convulse and tremble.

"Are you alright?" Leng Jie was startled by his sudden convulsions and her anxious concern was evident.

Xuanyuan paused, gritted his teeth, and stood up, bracing himself against the tree with both hands. Gasping for breath, he weakly replied:

"It's alright, I'm leaving now. You should go back too! Remember, don't tell your senior brother."

Before Leng Jie could answer, he started walking forward with unsteady steps. Leng Jie quickly caught up with him and supported him, saying firmly:

"I'll take you back and help you apply the medicine while I'm at it."

It's quite a distance from here to Longteng Palace, a ten-minute walk for an average person. However, supporting a wounded person along the way is not so easy. Fortunately, they didn't encounter any unwanted people on the road.

Half an hour later, two figures, one tall and one short, panting, finally stood before the magnificent Dragon Palace. A round figure immediately rushed forward, reaching out to support their master, whose face was ashen. They asked anxiously:

"Your Majesty! What has happened? Someone come quickly!" Before the imperial physician could finish his cry, he was stopped by the emperor's gaze.

"His old injury has flared up again. Please help him inside. I'll apply the medicine for him," Leng Jie replied softly.

Eunuch Fu immediately dismissed the guards and palace servants who had rushed over upon hearing the commotion, leaving only one unassuming guard. The guard walked straight to the emperor, bowed respectfully, said, "Your Majesty, I apologize!" and then swept the emperor up in his arms, disappearing in a flash.

"Is this lightness skill or magic?" Leng Jie couldn't help but stand there, stunned, and asked in a low voice.

"Young Master Wuming, hurry up and go in!" Eunuch Fu urged, seeing that Wuming was standing there motionless.

[Main Text: Chapter Fifty-One: Healing and Repaying Kindness]

When Leng Jie followed Eunuch Fu into the emperor's bedchamber, the guards had already removed the emperor's blood-soaked robes. Several gruesome, mangled wounds were glaringly visible on his exposed chest. Eunuch Fu glanced at them and immediately turned deathly pale. Fearing he would faint again like last time, Leng Jie quickly blocked his view and pushed him out. She then instructed him:

"Eunuch Fu, hurry up and prepare needles and thread, strong liquor, and a bucket of warm water."

"Yes, this old servant will go immediately. Please trouble you, young master." Eunuch Fu bowed to Leng Jie, hurriedly left, and after a few steps turned back to ask, "What kind of needlework does the young master need?"

"A sewing stylist will do," Leng Jie casually agreed, already entering the room. Seeing the guard applying medicine to his wound, she quickly stopped him.

"Wait a minute, the wound needs to be treated before you can apply medicine."

The guard paused for a moment, glanced at Leng Jie dressed in black, then at the Emperor, and only when the Emperor nodded, signaling him to listen to Leng Jie, did he withdraw his hand from the medicine.

As they spoke, Leng Jie had already reached the bedside. The guard automatically made way for her to examine the wound. Leng Jie looked at the open wound; although it was bloody and frightening, it wasn't as serious as she had imagined. Surely he wouldn't have endured such an injury for so long? Then, with her delicate brows furrowed, she asked, "Do you have any other injuries? The bleeding from these wounds has stopped; they just need to be cleaned before they can be stitched up and treated."

"Internal injury!" "No," both voices answered simultaneously.

Leng Jie glanced at the guard who had spoken for the first time, noticing his still expressionless face, as if he hadn't been the one to answer. She then looked back at the deathly pale emperor. It was obvious who she should believe.

Leng Jie was absolutely shrewd when it came to treating external injuries; once, while on a mission abroad, she was shot in the leg and removed the bullet herself with a knife. However, using internal energy to heal internal injuries was a completely new concept for her. Although she possessed sixty years' worth of internal energy that she had somehow acquired after becoming mentally challenged, she had only been learning it for a few days. She hadn't even figured out how to heal herself, let alone save others! Otherwise, she wouldn't have needed Xuan Yuan's help.

Leng Jie looked at the guard again and asked:

"You know how to treat internal injuries, right?"

The guard remained expressionless, coldly replying "Yes" before falling silent.

If this weren't ancient times, Leng Jie would definitely suspect that this person was a cunning man.

“Yes, then treat him! He seems to be your master, right?” Leng Jie said coldly.

Upon hearing Leng Jie's words, the guard was taken aback at first, then glanced at her contemptuously before turning his head away, making it seem like he didn't care about her.

This guy is even more arrogant than the emperor? Who is he? He looks like he's just a shadow guard or something. Seeing that he ignored her, Leng Jie turned to the emperor with a questioning look, seeking an answer.

"To heal injuries through internal energy cultivation, you must first unblock the blood vessels, so you need to apply medicine to the external wounds first. Otherwise, once the acupoints are released, the bleeding will not stop," Xuanyuan explained.

Who is this kid? How could he get the usually aloof and taciturn Emperor to explain such a childish question to him while he was seriously injured? The guard looked at the Emperor with surprise, then at Leng Jie with a strange expression.

"But last time I saw my senior brother heal you, he also pressed your acupoints first, didn't he?" Leng Jie clearly remembered that in the tunnel, Qingfeng clearly pressed acupoints to stop the bleeding before transferring true energy to him.

Senior brother? He's Qingfeng Gongzi's junior brother? But the Jade-Faced Divine Doctor's junior brother doesn't even know common sense? The cold-faced guard glanced at Leng Jie with astonishment once again.

"At that time, he only channeled his inner energy into my dantian to protect my heart meridian; healing came later."

Xuanyuan didn't find anything wrong with Wuming's question; on the contrary, he thought it was normal for him to ask such a question. He would have been suspicious if Wuming's medical and martial arts skills were as formidable as Qingfeng's! Because Wuming knew far too much that ordinary people didn't. And it was knowledge that even the emperor, Xuanyuan, found himself inferior to and deeply admired. For example, "the way of a ruler, the art of controlling people," "openly repairing the plank road while secretly crossing the enemy's lair," "a smile concealing a dagger," and "reform plans for the format of memorials," and so on.

After hearing Xuanyuan's explanation, Leng Jie couldn't help but sigh: So that's how it is! It seems that if I want to survive in ancient times, I really need to learn a lot!

Just then, the sound of Eunuch Fu instructing a young eunuch to place water at the door could be heard from outside.

Xuanyuan looked at the guard and said, "Ying, go and bring it in."

A crisp "Yes!" echoed in the air, and the figure was already outside the door. This was the second time Leng Jie had witnessed such a bizarre movement technique. Although she was still amazed inside, she didn't show it as she had the first time. Instead, she looked at Xuan Yuan and asked:

"Your Majesty, is he your bodyguard?"

"yes"

"Why is he never there when you're in danger? Is he derelict in his duty?" Leng Jie had also carried out missions to protect national leaders, and she had never been derelict in her duty.

"I sent him to do something else."

Here's what you wanted.

Before Xuanyuan could finish speaking, a shadow guard brought a water bottle to Leng Jie. Eunuch Fu also hurried in, carrying a sewing kit and a wine pot. Leng Jie took the sewing kit and wine pot from Eunuch Fu, pointed to the water, and said to the shadow guard:

"First, wipe the bloodstains off the Emperor's body with water. I need to make some preparations."

Before the shadow guards could react, she turned around and asked:

"Your Majesty, do you have a sharp dagger here? I need to borrow it to clean the dirt from the wound. Now that your shadow guards are protecting you, you don't need to worry about your safety."

Is he still holding a grudge about borrowing the sword? Xuanyuan looked at Wuming with a wry smile and said to the shadow guard:

“Shadow, lend your ‘Blood Chant’ to Nameless.”

What? He wants to use his treasure to clean up the rotting flesh? His 'Blood Chant' is a divine blade coveted by everyone in the martial world! To this day, no one who has seen it has survived. But now, this reckless nobody is not only ordering me around, but also wants to use his treasure to clean up the rotting flesh!

The shadow guard was furious, but he couldn't disobey the emperor's orders. He glared fiercely at the culprit who was threading a needle and pouring wine. Then, reluctantly, he took out his treasure from his waist and handed it over.

Leng Jie only needed a small dagger; little did she know that the shadow guard before her possessed one. However, from the hostile look in his eyes, Leng Jie saw how much he cherished the dagger, just as she cherished her gun. Putting herself in his shoes, Leng Jie didn't accept the 'Blood Chant', but instead said to the emperor:

"Is there anything else? A knife will do."

"You ignorant brat, how dare you look down on my 'Blood Chant'!" Staring blankly at the hand holding the treasure suspended in mid-air, the Shadow Guard finally seized the opportunity to erupt.

"I suggested using something else because I saw you were reluctant to part with it. Since you're willing, then I won't stand on ceremony." As she spoke, Leng Jie reached for the dagger in his hand.

The shadow guard, realizing what was happening, immediately withdrew his hand and quickly put the treasure back at his waist. Then he said:

"I went to look for one for you."

With a flash, he disappeared again.

Seeing that Eunuch Fu was already wiping the emperor's body, Leng Jie soaked the prepared needle and thread in wine, and then found a white cloth for bandaging and some wound medicine in the medicine box beside the bed. At this moment, the shadow guard reappeared with a gleaming dagger in his hand. Leng Jie took it and soaked it in wine as well.

Because he didn't use his 'Blood Chant', the Shadow Guard's goodwill towards Wuming increased. He retreated to the side and quietly observed.

With preparations complete, Leng Jie first used silver needles to anesthetize the emperor. Then, skillfully, she used a dagger to remove the putrid substances from the wound, rinsed it with wine, and began to thread needles, apply medicine, and bandage the wound. All her movements were clean, efficient, and seamless.

The three men stared in disbelief, speechless. They had seen acupuncture needles used for acupuncture and alcohol used for disinfection, but they had never seen human flesh sewn into clothing.