Chapter 127: Terror in the Carriage

When Han Songyan arrived, An Yi had just woken from a short nap. She was at her desk in Mingzhu Pavilion, practicing calligraphy by copying Master Yan’s tablets. The daffodils on the table had bloomed quietly, and a faint, refreshing fragrance permeated the air, soothing to the senses.

Shanyu walked in and curtsied, saying, "Miss, Young Master Han has come. He says he has something to discuss with you, and the Madam asked you to go over."

An Yi set down her brush and stood up to leave, but Xiangqin stepped forward to stop her, smiling, "Miss, you should change your clothes before seeing a guest."

An Yi looked down at her silver-blue short jacket and purple skirt. "These are new clothes; I only just put them on today. No need to change."

"Miss, even if you don't change your clothes, you should at least redo your hair. That is a casual sleeping bun," Xingren said with a smile.

"What a nuisance," An Yi said, sitting down at the dressing table. "Make it simple; I’ll have to change it back to a sleeping bun tonight anyway."

Xingren pursed her lips and smiled, nimbly styling An Yi’s hair into a cloud-like bun and selecting matching accessories to tuck in.

Once ready, An Yi headed to Jili Garden to meet Han Songyan.

Han Songyan had already explained his purpose to Madam Luo. As soon as she entered, Madam Luo said, "Xi'er, the young master has a female patient who is very ill. He would like to ask you to go and check her pulse. Go with him and take a look!"

"Oh, very well." Since Madam Luo had already agreed, the obedient An Yi found it difficult to refuse.

An Yi took Xiangqin with her and boarded the carriage with Han Songyan. As they set off, Han Songyan said apologetically, "The patient is a woman suffering from a severe condition that requires acupuncture. I couldn't find a suitable person to assist, so I had to ask for your help. Please forgive any impropriety."

"I don't mind at all," An Yi said with a gentle smile. "What kind of complex ailment is it?"

"The patient is a woman who gave birth several days ago. She is suffering from severe constipation, vomiting, inability to eat, and dizziness. I prescribed a decoction of Bupleurum, Scutellaria, Pinellia, Ginseng, Licorice, Ginger, and Jujube, and she seemed to recover. However, yesterday she began vomiting again, complaining of splitting headaches, spitting up saliva, and suffering from chest and abdominal pain. The previous prescription was ineffective, and her condition has worsened." Han Songyan sighed helplessly.

An Yi frowned. It was not a strange disease, but due to the differences between the sexes, no matter how skilled Han Songyan was, it was difficult for him to provide treatment.

"I heard from Berning that you attended the Flower Appreciation Gala. Did you make any new friends?" Han Songyan asked with concern.

An Yi smiled faintly and nodded. "I did."

"Did you write poetry or paint that day?"

"I wrote poetry."

Han Songyan looked at her expectantly.

An Yi lowered her eyes. "I don't remember; I just scribbled something down."

Han Songyan laughed. "I remember you can play the zither."

"I am only a beginner; I wouldn't dare show off."

The two chatted idly for an hour until the carriage pulled into a large estate. It stopped at the second gate, and after disembarking, Han Songyan led An Yi and her maid around a rockery, through a garden, and into a courtyard.

Inside the main room, a young man was pacing anxiously. Seeing Han Songyan, he exclaimed, "Songyan, you're here! Did you manage to bring someone?"

"I did. This is Miss An," Han Songyan introduced.

The young man looked at the young girl beside Han Songyan and paused. Such a young girl, could she practice medicine? His skepticism was evident. Han Songyan remarked, "Xi'er's medical skills are better than mine."

"My skills aren't necessarily better than the young master's, but when it comes to treating women, I am more convenient," An Yi stated truthfully.

The young man smiled. "Miss An, please follow me."

Following the young man into the bedroom, they were met with a heavy scent of medicinal herbs. An Yi frowned slightly. Besides two maids and the young woman lying on the bed, there was also a young girl dressed in a goose-yellow satin jacket.

When the girl saw An Yi, she cried out in disbelief, "Nineteenth Junior Sister!"

"Eighteenth Senior Sister!" An Yi exclaimed in surprise.

"Why are you here?" both sisters asked in unison.

Han Songyan looked on in astonishment; he had no idea they knew each other, let alone were fellow disciples.

"I'm here to treat a patient," An Yi explained.

"So you are the famous doctor Han was talking about!" Hu Qingyue laughed.

The sisters didn't rush to catch up. An Yi first checked the pulse of Hu Qingyue's sister-in-law, Madame Hu. She pressed on her abdomen and carefully examined her tongue coating, complexion, and fingernails. After confirming the diagnosis, she walked to the outer room and told Han Songyan, "After childbirth, Madame Hu is suffering from a deficiency of both Qi and blood, with cold pathogen trapped in the Jueyin meridian affecting her head, causing headaches. Furthermore, blood stasis has not been fully expelled from the womb, leading to abdominal pain. I suggest using Evodia, Codonopsis, Ginger, and Jujube to treat the cold condition."

Han Songyan trusted An Yi's medical skills implicitly and had no objections to her prescription. "You write it down."

An Yi wrote the prescription, and Hu Qingyue's eldest brother, Hu Qingfang, sent a servant to fetch the medicine. An Yi returned to the bedroom and pressed several acupuncture points on Madame Hu to help drain the stagnant blood from her womb, which eased her abdominal pain. This was the convenience of being a female physician; a male doctor could not touch the patient's body in such a manner.

The medicine arrived quickly. An Yi never delegated the task of decocting medicine to others and went to the small kitchen in the courtyard to prepare it herself.

After a while, Hu Qingyue walked in and sat beside her. "When did you come to the capital?"

"I arrived at the end of August. When did you come?" An Yi asked.

"Half a month ago. I didn't know you were here; if I had, I would have come to find you long ago," Hu Qingyue laughed.

"You mentioned last time that your family had arranged a marriage for you. When is the wedding?" An Yi asked.

Hu Qingyue’s cheeks flushed, and she chided playfully, "Nineteenth Junior Sister, you're becoming more and more like our Master—asking questions so directly."

An Yi chuckled. "My apologies, I've already asked, so there's no turning back. Just answer me."

"It's set for the sixth day of the second lunar month next year. I wrote to Master, but I don't know if he'll come," Hu Qingyue said, unsure of their eccentric Master.

"The scenery in Hangzhou in the second month is lovely; Master should go there," An Yi said, checking the medicine pot.

"It's not in Hangzhou, it's in the capital. It's so far and so cold here; Master won't want to come," Hu Qingyue lamented, hoping that Ji Fanyi would be there to see her off at her wedding.

"A wedding is a major event; Master should come." An Yi removed the pot, poured the decoction into a bowl, and took it inside for Madame Hu to drink.

After drinking the medicine, the effects began to take hold within a quarter of an hour; Madame Hu's headache subsided, and her condition improved.

An Yi wrote another prescription for Madame Hu, including Codonopsis, Atractylodes, Poria, Rehmannia, White Peony, Angelica, Chuanxiong, and Licorice. "After finishing three doses of the first prescription, switch to this one and take it for seven days."

Hu Qingyue invited An Yi to stay for dinner and personally cooked a table full of delicious dishes for her.

After dinner, Han Songyan escorted An Yi home.

The winter night was cold, and there were no pedestrians on the road. The crescent moon cast a faint light, making the surroundings blurry and silent, save for the crisp sound of horse hooves striking the cobblestones.

An Yi was leaning against the side of the carriage when she suddenly heard a strange sound outside. Listening intently, she realized it was the sound of clothes rustling through the air. Someone was traveling by night. The sound grew closer, and with a loud "thud," a hole was smashed through the roof of the carriage, and a head poked through.

"Ah!" Xiangqin shrieked.

Han Songyan gasped. Fortunately, the roof was sturdy; had the person crashed through entirely, all three of them would have been injured.

An Yi suppressed her own scream. By the candlelight inside the carriage, she recognized the person falling from the sky. Her mouth twitched as she said, word by word, "Little Lord Gong!"

The carriage stopped. The driver opened the door and gasped, "Young Master..." He was stunned to see a head protruding from the roof.

"Xi'er, do you know him?" Han Songyan asked.

"Yes. Let's get him down first." An Yi noticed Little Lord Gong's face was pale and guessed he was likely injured again.

An Yi jumped out of the carriage and leaped onto the roof. She carefully widened the hole and slowly pulled Little Lord Gong's head out bit by bit. Fearing he might fall, she held onto him, gasping for breath. "Young Master, I'll lower him slowly; you catch him."

"Alright, let him down." Han Songyan and the driver caught Little Lord Gong below.

Just as the two men lifted him into the carriage and An Yi was about to climb back in, she heard the sound of clothes cutting through the air again. Listening carefully, she heard multiple figures approaching. Her heart sank—were the assassins chasing Little Lord Gong finally here?

"Xi'er, why aren't you coming in?" Han Songyan asked, poking his head out.

"Someone is pursuing us; it's likely the people hunting him," An Yi said nervously.

"Get in quickly, we must leave at once," Han Songyan decided decisively.

An Yi leaped into the carriage and sat down.

"Turn into the alley ahead," Han Songyan ordered.

The driver shut the door, shook the reins, and urged the horses forward.

The carriage was heavily loaded and could not outrun those using light-foot skills. They had barely turned into the alley when they were intercepted.

"Open the carriage door."

The driver tried to remain calm. "Who are you? By what right do you stop this carriage? Do you know who is inside?"

"Open the door. Don't make me say it a third time." The cold voice was filled with killing intent.

An Yi blew out the candle in the carriage and lifted a corner of the curtain. "Captain Mu."

Li Guyu squinted his eyes. "Who is it?"

"Captain Mu, it's me." An Yi raised her voice slightly.

Recognizing her voice, Li Guyu walked over. "Why are you here?"

"I was out for a medical visit and am on my way home," An Yi replied.

Li Guyu subconsciously glanced into the carriage, but An Yi's face blocked his view, and with the interior pitch-black, he couldn't see what was going on inside.

"Don't stay out so late in the future," Li Guyu said, waving his hand. "Let the carriage pass."

The five men in black blocking the road moved aside. In the dim light, they did not notice the hole in the roof, and the carriage slowly drove past them.

The carriage traveled in silence for a long distance. Once sure they were not being followed, Han Songyan relit the candle.

Little Lord Gong lay on the cushions, his swollen eyes slightly open. His face was devoid of blood, and his breathing was shallow.

Just as An Yi reached out to check his pulse, Han Songyan beat her to it. "He is severely injured..."

Hearing the voice, Little Lord Gong suddenly snapped awake and sat up, his face showing signs of vigilance.

"Don't move around. We are not bad people; we just saved you," Han Songyan reassured him.

"Who are you?" Even though Little Lord Gong could not see, he could tell by the sound of their breathing that there was more than one person. They didn't seem hostile, or they would have attacked him already. Still, having just escaped, his defenses remained high.

"Little Lord Gong, it's me, An Yi," An Yi said softly.

"Xi'er?" Little Lord Gong asked, unsure.

"It's me. What happened to you? Why are you..." An Yi asked.

"Xi'er? Are you really Xi'er?"

"I am Xi'er," she confirmed.

Little Lord Gong relaxed slightly, finally certain of her identity, and collapsed into An Yi's arms, losing consciousness.

An Yi frowned and reached out to push him away, but Han Songyan hurriedly cried, "Xi'er, don't move! There's a dagger in his waist."

An Yi looked down and saw a dagger plunged firmly into his right side. She gasped; she hadn't noticed while they were on the roof and worried if she had touched it or worsened his condition.

"Han Liu, take the carriage to Jihuaitang," Han Songyan commanded.

Han Liu whipped the horses hard, and they bolted forward. An Yi couldn't let go, so she held onto Little Lord Gong tightly, trying to maintain her balance in the bouncing carriage.

When An Yi felt she could no longer hold on, the carriage finally arrived at the back door of Jihuaitang. Han Songyan knocked, and they drove inside. The night watchmen, Han Si and Han Liu, carried Little Lord Gong into the room.

Han Songyan tore open Little Lord Gong's outer robe and undergarments, revealing his skin. The blood around the dagger had already congealed, and the blade was buried inches deep. "Xi'er, if we pull the dagger out, I'm afraid he will die on the spot."

"But if we don't, he won't survive the delay. Bring me the silver needles. I will protect his heart meridian, and then you pull the blade," An Yi said calmly.

Han Songyan handed her the needle case.

An Yi unfastened Little Lord Gong's clothes and noticed his chest was crisscrossed with scars. She furrowed her brows—what kind of trouble had this man gotten into? It was one thing to be hunted by martial arts practitioners, but why would someone like Li Guyu, who was affiliated with the Princess's estate, want him dead?

This was not the time for such questions. The thought flashed through her mind, but she didn't dwell on it. She applied needles with both hands, swiftly sealing his major acupoints. "Ready."

Han Songyan gripped the hilt and pulled hard. Blood gushed from the wound, and he quickly pressed a clean cloth against it.

An Yi took two more needles and placed them in the acupoints above and below the wound to slow the bleeding.

Jihuaitang had high-quality styptic powder. Han Songyan applied it, bandaged the wound, and treated the other injuries on his body.

Han Si found some vegetable oil, and Xiangqin cleaned Little Lord Gong's eyes.

Looking at the lime on the cloth, Han Songyan was indignant. "What a despicable method, using lime to blind someone."

An Yi's eyes darkened. She hadn't expected Li Guyu to sink so low.