"How is he?" Chu Dingjiang asked.
Mo Sigui immediately grew wary. "Listen here, I won’t let you lay a finger on him. Killing someone in my room isn’t the act of a hero. If you’ve got the guts, wait till he recovers and fight him outside."
Chu Dingjiang sat down on a stool, his expression unchanged. "When have I ever wasted words before killing someone?"
Mo Sigui thought about it and realized it was true, so he relaxed. "Anyway, I won’t let him die in this room. As for the rest..."
"His lifespan shortened?" Chu Dingjiang glanced at the man on the bed, whose breathing was faint.
"Normally, yes. But since he saved A Jiu, I’ll gift him a few extra years." Mo Sigui sat on the floor, nearly buried in piles of medicine, his posture casual. Yet once those words left his mouth, no one could doubt him.
After a pause, he asked suspiciously, "Aren’t you the type who frets over the nation and its people? Why aren’t you killing him?"
Chu Dingjiang was someone who would stop at nothing to achieve his goals. If he wanted someone dead, nothing would stand in his way.
"I’ve left the Crane Control Army and am no longer a subject of the Song Dynasty." That was only part of the reason. Chu Dingjiang’s thoughts ran far deeper. Back when he had the chance to kill Wei Yuzhi, he hadn’t done it—and he still wouldn’t now. Because without Wei Yuzhi, the situation in the Liao Kingdom would quickly stabilize, and that would truly be the Song Dynasty’s nightmare.
Mo Sigui neither agreed nor disagreed with his explanation and didn’t press further, as it wasn’t important to him. "Wei Yuzhi will wake tomorrow, but A Jiu... sigh! I can’t say for sure."
She might wake soon, or she might lie unconscious for ten days, half a month, even years—or never wake again. This was Mo Sigui’s first attempt at using blood to nourish someone with damaged mental strength. According to medical texts, it should work in theory, but reality didn’t always follow theory. Mo Sigui wasn’t one to blindly trust medical books; he constantly verified and refuted the knowledge left by predecessors while accumulating his own experience.
"It will work." Chu Dingjiang didn’t know if he was comforting himself or speaking to Mo Sigui, but his tone was firm, as if he had personally confirmed it. After a moment of silence, he reminded, "I won’t act against Wei Yuzhi, but that doesn’t mean no one else will. Don’t forget—this is the Hua residence."
The residence of the Song Dynasty’s prime minister! Hua Rongjian and Mei Jiu often visited An Jiu here.
"Got it." Mo Sigui lit a pipe, the medicinal fragrance spreading with the smoke. Leaning against the bed, he squinted at Chu Dingjiang. "Never thought we’d sit peacefully under the same roof. Guess I’m just too kind—otherwise, I’d have poisoned you a thousand times over by now."
Chu Dingjiang replied indifferently, "Thank you for your mercy, Miracle Doctor."
"Tch!" Mo Sigui scoffed, smoke curling from his lips. "What do you know?"
"I know you’re enduring this to trade for a favor—so that one day, you can save Lou Mingyue in her time of need."
Lou Mingyue had ventured deep into the Liao Kingdom alone. Sooner or later, she would be discovered, and when that happened, escape would be impossible. Only a Transformation Realm Master would have the power to extract someone from such peril.
Mo Sigui raised his peach-blossom eyes. "Honestly, I don’t get how two boring people like you and A Jiu ended up together."
Chu Dingjiang didn’t respond. Their kind of amusement was something others couldn’t understand.Mo Sigui finished his pipe, his eyes glazed with drowsiness. Chu Dingjiang quietly left and returned to his room, lying down beside An Jiu. Soon, he too fell into a deep slumber.
During the six months An Jiu had been unconscious, Chu Dingjiang had never slept so soundly—he even dreamed.
In his dream, he was in the State of Zhao. The countryside was blanketed with peach and apricot blossoms, a sea of pink and white under the bright sun. He lay napping on a woolen mat, petals falling like rain, nearly burying him in their soft embrace.
He opened his eyes, the light glaring, and vaguely saw someone standing nearby with arms crossed, watching him. Even after his vision adjusted, the person’s features remained indistinct.
"Are you awake?" a slightly hoarse voice asked.
Chu Dingjiang’s eyes flew open. Sunlight streamed through the window, and An Jiu stood silhouetted against the light, arms crossed as she gazed down at him intently.
Perhaps it was the brightness of the sun, but a tear suddenly slipped from the corner of Chu Dingjiang’s eye.
An Jiu bent down and embraced him.
Chu Dingjiang’s heart swelled with emotion. He thought to himself that after lying unconscious for so long, An Jiu had finally learned the warmth of human connection—this time, she had actually taken the initiative to hug and comfort him. It was truly rare.
As he mused, An Jiu sighed and said, "You’ve suffered all these years."
"All these years?" Chu Dingjiang asked, puzzled.
An Jiu released him, touching his face and the white hair at his temples. "I must have been lying here for at least ten years, right? You’ve aged so much."
An Jiu was genuinely moved, thinking that for Chu Dingjiang to care for a living corpse all these years, it must be true love.
Chu Dingjiang sat up, rubbing his temples with a wry smile. "The moment you open your eyes, you manage to infuriate someone."
After calming himself for a moment, Chu Dingjiang turned to An Jiu. "You were only unconscious for half a year."
An Jiu’s eyes widened slightly. "In just half a year, you went from uncle to grandpa! Why the rush?"
"..." Chu Dingjiang stared at her wordlessly for a long moment before pulling her into his arms.
She was so thin—holding her felt almost weightless.
"Master Chu, Hua Furen is here to see A Jiu," Mei Yanran called from outside, knocking on the door.
"Come in!" Chu Dingjiang replied, his mood bright.
Mei Jiu was nine months pregnant, nearing her due date, yet she insisted on visiting An Jiu every day. Supporting her belly, she stepped inside and froze at the sight of An Jiu standing by the bed.
Mei Yanran was also stunned.
"How did you get so fat!" An Jiu blurted out, thinking Mei Jiu had grown far too comfortable in her life as a noblewoman. But then she remembered that Mei Jiu had already been pregnant before she fell unconscious.
Overjoyed, Mei Jiu burst into tears and moved to hug An Jiu, but suddenly stiffened. "Mother, my water broke!"
Mei Yanran immediately raised her voice. "Someone, come quickly!"
A crowd of maids rushed in. The lead midwife, hearing that Mei Jiu’s water had broken, quickly ordered her to be carried to the delivery room.
Hua Rongtian, worried about emergencies given Mei Jiu’s active lifestyle so close to her due date, had prepared three delivery rooms in the estate. One was right next to this courtyard.
"Lie down and rest for a while. I’ll prepare some food for you," Chu Dingjiang said.
At the mention of "food," An Jiu’s stomach growled. Having stood for so long since waking, she now felt weak and sweaty, so she obediently lay down.
Chu Dingjiang first went to Mo Sigui’s room, finding the man sprawled among piles of Medicine, reading a medical text. In the calmest tone he could muster, he said, "She’s awake!"Mo Sigui scrambled to his feet. Before Chu Dingjiang could even ask what An Jiu could eat now, he had already dashed out like a gust of wind, leaving one shoe behind on the threshold without bothering to retrieve it.
Someone was lying on the bed, eagerly waiting for food, when suddenly a madman kicked the door open. Upon seeing she was truly awake, he hugged her and began wailing.
"Mo Sigui." An Jiu recognized him by the medicinal fragrance on his body. Thankfully, her reflexes had dulled after lying still for so long—otherwise, she would have struck him down with a palm strike long ago!
Chu Dingjiang sighed and went to the kitchen. Finding that Mei Yanran had already prepared plain congee, he took the entire pot along with some bowls.
Inside the room, Mo Sigui had already composed himself and was sitting on a stool, checking An Jiu's pulse.
"She's deficient in qi and blood. She shouldn't talk much for the next half month," Mo Sigui said with a dark expression.
Chu Dingjiang knew full well this had nothing to do with qi or blood—An Jiu had probably offended him again with her words. So he didn't respond directly and instead said, "There's congee in the kitchen. Have some first."
Mo Sigui rubbed his stomach and leaned over to grab a bowl. "I'll have some too."
The three of them gathered around the bed and finished the entire pot of congee while next door, Mei Jiu's screams were heart-wrenching.
At first, the flood of news had been too overwhelming for Mei Yanran, leaving her dazed. But after confirming An Jiu was fine, she went to Mei Jiu's side.
"She's screaming so miserably. Is she alright?" An Jiu asked.
"Her voice is full of energy—what could be wrong?" Mo Sigui smacked his lips. "Some pickles would've been nice."
Mo Sigui had already examined Mei Jiu. Her baby was in the correct position, and she was well-nourished, so there shouldn’t be any issues.
After dinner, An Jiu washed up in the bathhouse but soon felt dizzy. She returned to her room and quickly fell into a deep sleep.
Meanwhile, Mei Jiu alternated between resting and screaming, her voice growing hoarse.
Mo Sigui calculated the time—Wei Yuzhi should be waking up soon too.
As he picked up the things he had scattered in his earlier rush, he returned to the room.
"Miraculous Doctor Mo," Wei Yuzhi said.
"Huh, you woke up earlier than I expected." Mo Sigui tossed the items in his hands into a basket and slipped on his shoes.
"I just woke up not long ago," Wei Yuzhi replied weakly. "Who's screaming?"
"The Madam of the Hua family is giving birth. You just woke up—don't talk too much. The freak next door woke up, ate, and even took a bath. Never seen anyone more lively than her!" Mo Sigui sat back on the couch, picked up a book, and poured a bowl of medicine from the medicine stove, bringing it to Wei Yuzhi's lips. He inserted a straw into the bowl. "Drink it with this—easier that way."
Hearing this, Wei Yuzhi's face broke into a faint smile. Without asking anything, he drank the medicine through the straw.
The medicine had been prepared earlier by Mo Sigui and kept warm on the stove, so it was just the right temperature.
After finishing the medicine, Wei Yuzhi looked a little better. "I slept very well last night."
It was the best sleep of his life.
In the past, his sleep quality had been high, so even though he slept little, it was enough to meet his needs. But this time was different—he knew he had slept for a long time, and upon waking, his mind and body felt unprecedentedly relaxed, as if all burdens had been lifted.
"Of course," Mo Sigui said without surprise. The medicated smoke he had used last night was a newly formulated prescription. Even someone with severe insomnia and high drug resistance like him could sleep soundly—let alone an ordinary person."I can sustain your life for a few more years, but you know, heart blood is the essence of human vitality. Your appearance has aged considerably compared to before," Mo Sigui said.
Wei Yuzhi maintained his gentle and refined demeanor, with fair skin that made him appear largely unchanged. However, his once jet-black hair had turned completely white, even his eyebrows. (To be continued...)
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