La pluie écarlate submerge la ville

Chapitre 62

"Sir," I said, resting my forehead on my hand and smiling at him through my disheveled hair, "I think it's more fun to be a bad guy, what should I do?"

He immediately felt that I was hopeless and sighed heavily. At that moment, the lady-in-waiting entered the garden, bowed, and said, "Your Majesty requests that you two come over."

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I followed the magician to the Licheng Palace, my face veiled. The moment I stepped into the palace, I regretted it.

King Licheng was in the hall, while Baoze sat to one side, slumped weakly on his jade throne, looking sickly. Two other people were sitting below him.

This is what they mean by "enemies meeting on a narrow road".

The Left Protector and the newly appointed Right Protector sat there side by side. The new Right Protector was beautiful and charming, and Lotus Sister looked radiant and full of vigor after just a few days apart.

I followed Miaoshou in, head bowed and eyes down. King Licheng warmly invited Miaoshou to sit down, and while asking him to take Baoze's pulse, he said, "The Medicine King has arrived at just the right time. I was just about to send someone to Medicine King Valley to fetch you, and here you are."

"I just happened to be passing by," the skilled healer said modestly.

The King of Licheng smiled broadly, pointing at the Left Protector and Ye Baizhi, and said, "These two are distinguished guests of the Saluo Sect. They have come today to present me with a generous gift. Medicine King, guess what it is?"

The skilled healer smiled gently and said, "I am rather dull-witted."

King Licheng was overjoyed and waved his hand, saying, "Guards, bring up that generous gift."

Immediately, four guards carried in an iron cage covered with a black cloth. With a clatter, I heard the clanging of chains inside, and my heart sank inexplicably.

The King of Licheng was overjoyed. He personally got up and went down to the palace, and lifted the black cloth.

I heard the miracle worker hiss in great surprise, and then the King of Licheng laughed loudly: "My precious treasure can be saved. Medicine King, don't you think this is a great gift?"

I dared not look up, dared not look.

Who is it?

"I truly don't know how to express my gratitude for the generous gift sent by Young Master Ruan!"

"I'm glad Your Majesty is pleased." Ye Baizhi replied with a smile, "The fact that the leader was able to ascend to the position of leader is largely due to Your Majesty's lending of troops, which enabled the leader to eliminate Yan Shu so smoothly. This gift is merely a token of the leader's goodwill."

It turns out that Ruan Lianhua used the troops of Licheng to eliminate Yan Shu.

In the firelight that day, Yan Shu stood there, covered in blood, bow drawn...

This scene keeps popping up in my mind and I can't suppress it.

"Xiao Xie?" Miao Shou suddenly nudged me and whispered, "He's watching you..."

who?

I looked up and met those eyes in the iron cage. Yan Shu, Yan Shu…

He lay sprawled in the iron cage, his white clothes soaked in blood. Chains bound his neck, wrists, and ankles. He was like a dying beast chained in the cage, his pale face raised, staring straight at me. Blood flowed from the old scar on his forehead, down his eyebrows and onto his eyelashes, hanging tremblingly like red coral.

"Didn't the Medicine King say that as long as his heart is given to Baoze, Baoze will recover?" King Licheng pulled Miaoshou over, his face beaming with joy. "Medicine King, please proceed!"

Author's Note: Sorry for the late update!

Finally, this storyline begins! I've generously introduced the priest, and now we're starting this complicated and melodramatic plot! Believe me, the priest is the male lead; as the saying goes, "Heaven will entrust great responsibilities to those who are first tested with physical and mental torment..."

He covered his head.

74

Ye Baizhi and the Left Protector presented Yan Shu to the King of Licheng and then withdrew.

King Shang of Licheng stood below the throne, looking eagerly at Miaoshou.

"This..." Miaoshou hesitated for a moment, then bowed to the King of Licheng and said, "I just took Prince Baoze's pulse. The prince is too weak right now and I'm afraid he can't withstand such a big ordeal for a while."

"What should we do then?" King Licheng asked anxiously. Baoze looked sickly and frail, which was truly alarming to see, and he feared that he might not be able to hold on at any moment.

Miao Shou thought for a moment before saying, "How about this? I'll prescribe some medicine to help the prince recover first, and I'll also need to prepare the medicine for a few days. I'll treat the prince's illness after I return from the Central Plains, is that alright?"

"Is the Medicine King leaving?" King Licheng frowned slightly.

"I have some business to attend to in the Central Plains," Miao Shou said with a cupped hand and a smile. "Please forgive me, Your Majesty. I will be back in a few days."

"No, no, no!" King Licheng grabbed Miaoshou's wrist and said urgently, "You've seen it yourself, Baoze is getting weaker every day. What if he can't wait for you to come back... Besides, now that you've made up your mind, even if you need to recuperate Baoze's body, the Medicine King must stay!"

The skilled hand looked back at me with some embarrassment, "I was truly entrusted by someone..."

"Who entrusted you with this?" The King of Licheng frowned. "Can't I even keep you here?"

"I have been entrusted with this task, and I must fulfill my duty... Your Majesty, please do not make things difficult for me." The skilled hand was so stubborn that he simply couldn't understand reason or logic.

King Licheng's face grew increasingly grim, and I guessed he was about to lose his temper, but then I heard someone outside the hall say, "Since His Majesty has said so, it would be best if you, sir, stayed to treat Prince Baoze for the time being."

The sound drifted in from outside the hall, faint as wisps of smoke. My brow twitched, and I looked up to see someone in a moon-white robe standing outside the threshold, smiling slightly at the hall from behind his sleeves.

The moonlight was bright and clear.

I suddenly realized that there were some things I had known all along, but I had resisted believing them.

"Young Master Ruan?" Miao Shou greeted him with a smile, bowing respectfully. "Didn't you return to the Central Plains? Why are you still in Licheng?"

Ruan Bicheng's eyes slowly swept over me and landed on me. She smiled faintly and said, "I had some things to take care of, so I stayed a few more days. I also heard that you had come to Licheng, so I waited for you."

"Since Alliance Leader Ruan has said so, if you, Medicine King, continue to refuse, I might really misunderstand and think that you don't want to treat Baoze." King Licheng said to Miaoshou with a stern face.

The skilled doctor hurriedly bowed and said, "How could I dare? A doctor's heart is like a parent's, and I do not wish to see the prince suffer more from his illness." He pretended to hesitate for a moment, then said, "Well then, I will cure the prince's illness first before setting off for the Central Plains."

"That's more like it!" King Licheng reached out to help Miaoshou up and laughed, "It's a rare honor to have Alliance Leader Ruan grace us with his presence today. I've hosted this banquet to celebrate receiving such a generous gift!"

He then invited Ruan Bicheng to come in as well.

Ruan Bicheng cupped his hands and said, "I have brought a few friends with me. May I ask if they may enter the hall together?"

The King of Licheng hurriedly had a servant invite him in.

Suddenly I heard the sound of a baby crying. My heart tightened, and I looked up sharply to see the person who came in with Ruan Bicheng. He was wearing a green robe, holding a child in his arms, and had a sorrowful look on his face. It was Shen Qing!

How could they actually be together?

Before I could even open my mouth in surprise, Miao Shou said urgently, "Junior Brother!" and rushed over. "Junior Brother... I've been looking for you so long, it's so heartbreaking..." He sniffled and was actually about to cry.

Shen Qing looked at him with a pained expression and said through gritted teeth, "That's enough! It looks awful crying like that!"

Miao Shou wiped away her tears, tugged at his sleeve, and said, "Senior brother is just too happy. I never expected to actually see you here." Suddenly remembering something, she turned to thank Ruan Bicheng, "I must thank Young Master Ruan. May I ask how you found him?"

"It was just a chance encounter," Ruan Bicheng replied casually, then followed the palace maid into the main hall and took her seat in the hall not far away.

Shen Qing had just sat down when she clicked her tongue and stood up again. She took a few steps to the iron cage and stared at Yan Shu inside in surprise, saying, "Yan Shu? You... how did you get here?"

Yan Shu remained silent in the cage, staring at me with his eyes wide open, as if he were oblivious.

The King of Licheng spoke first: "This is a generous gift from Young Master Ruan to me. It is the key to saving Baoze!"

"A medicinal ingredient?" Shen Qing frowned and glared at Miao Shou. "Are you going to make another medicine man for a heart transplant?"

"Junior brother, listen to me," the skilled hand hurriedly stood up to explain, "Although I haven't actually tried it yet, I'm absolutely confident in this heart-swapping technique..."

Shen Qing scoffed, "Somewhat? You're risking your life for something you're fairly confident about? Are you really doing this to save someone, or just because you want to try it out?"

"Junior brother, you've misunderstood me..." Miao Shou anxiously tried to explain.

Shen Qing didn't meet his gaze, but instead turned to look at Yan Shu in the iron cage and said, "Yan Shu, you've fallen to this state again, you deserve it." He sighed and added, "Why not just die and end it all?"

I looked at Yan Shu. He lay in the cage, quietly watching me, as if he hadn't heard anything. He didn't speak or answer, didn't struggle or resist, like a tamed beast with its claws and teeth pulled out, devoid of any life.

"Yan Shu? Yan Shu?" Shen Qing suddenly became annoyed, reached into the cage and grabbed Yan Shu's collar, pulling him face to face with him, the chains clanking loudly. "I'm talking to you! What are you doing!"

The force was too great, and he lost his balance, accidentally hitting his forehead on the iron fence. Blood beads immediately appeared on his fair forehead, trickling down his eyebrows and eyes, falling onto his white clothes, staining them with red flowers.

He frowned slightly and said in a barely audible voice, "It hurts..."

I was suddenly stunned. Is this... Yan Shu?

Shen Qing was also a little stunned. She slowly loosened her grip, squatted down to look at Yan Shu, and asked, "Yan Shu, didn't you hear me?"

Did you hear that?

Yan Shu blinked the blood droplets on his eyelashes, looking at him with a flick of his eyelashes, but didn't speak. Instead, he turned his eyes to look at me, still expressionless and emotionless, just staring at me.

"What did you do?" Shen Qing turned to look at Miao Shou.

Miao Shou hurriedly waved his hand and said, "Junior brother, how could you misunderstand me! I just arrived in Licheng today, and there's no time to do anything!"

King Licheng chuckled in a deep voice and said, "Master Ruan went to great lengths to capture him. Fearing he might resist and escape again, she poisoned him to make him stupid, thus preventing him from escaping and causing the same chaos as last time."

He's been poisoned to the point of madness.

He looked at me, beads of blood dripping from his forehead. He was quietly watching me from inside the iron cage, more docile than ever before.

Yan Shu was dumbfounded.

For a long time, I didn't hear anyone speak in the main hall. It was Shen Qing who laughed first and said to Yan Shu in the cage, "Retribution, Yan Shu, this is retribution. One day you will be like a dog, unable to live or die."

The child in his arms suddenly burst into tears, causing a commotion throughout the hall. Yan Shu blinked, then turned to look at the child, tilting his head slightly.

Shen Qing picked up the child, but after trying to soothe him for a long time, he still couldn't stop crying. Just as I was about to step forward, Ruan Bicheng stood up first and said, "Your Majesty, the child is probably feeling unwell. I will take my leave for today and apologize to Your Majesty another day." She then bowed and clasped her hands in greeting.

The Prince of Licheng also wanted to stop them, but seeing the child crying and making a fuss, he waved his hand and said, "Alright, let's leave it at that for today." He then ordered a palace maid to take Ruan Bicheng and Shen Qing back to the side hall to rest.

I was about to follow them out when Miao Shou grabbed my sleeve and whispered, "Don't wander around. The Demonic Sect members are still in the palace. If we're discovered, we'll be in trouble again."

I paused and watched Shen Qing carry the child away.

The Prince of Licheng had someone take Yan Shu to the newly prepared pharmacy. Miao Shou followed Bao Ze back to the palace to treat him, but I declined, saying I was tired, and went back to the side hall first.

Miao Shou asked in surprise, "Aren't you going to catch up with Prince Baoze?"

Want to catch up...?

I smiled and said, "No need. Most of his memories of me are unpleasant, there's nothing worth recounting."

He didn't stop me, but just told me not to wander off.

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I never imagined that the pharmacy where Yan Shu was imprisoned was located in the side hall where Miaoshou and I were staying, just a few steps away, separated only by a wall.

I stood under the corridor, watching the palace maids and guards methodically push Yan Shu into the room, extinguish the lights, and retreat. Just as they were about to lock the door, I heard the rattling of chains inside the room.

Yan Shu seemed to panic and spoke in the dark room, his words coming one after another, hurried and chaotic, and his words could not be heard clearly amidst the clanging of the iron chains.

The guards were also puzzled. They opened the door again and shouted, "What are you yelling about!"

"Thank you!"

My foot, which was about to go back to my room, stopped.