Why didn’t Wen Qingci go get the medicine box?
Even Xie Bufeng had a rare look of confusion in his eyes.
The fresh blood at the corner of his lips slid into the slightly open collar.
Wen Qingci didn’t care about his own condition. He looked back at Xie Bufeng deeply and smiled relievedly, “Fortunately, cough… Your Highness is not injured.”
With that said, he finally used the white silk handkerchief he carried with him to wipe away the bloodstains from the corners of his lips and neck.
Seeing that the young man was unharmed, the heavy stone pressing on Wen Qingci’s heart finally lifted.
Xie Bufeng was brought to the mouth of the Wanghe Valley by himself, and Wen Qingci absolutely couldn’t stand by and watch him get into trouble here.
Not only would it be against his conscience, but it would also easily offend the future big boss and incur his resentment.
After a moment of silence, Xie Bufeng suddenly shifted his gaze away from Wen Qingci and towards the ice floes. “The medicine box is buried there,” his tone unusually cold.
Wen Qingci had been preparing for the preparation of medicine for many days, pouring his heart into it. He should have gone to get the medicine box instead of… staying here with him.
The ice in the riverbed seemed to have stopped moving at some point.
Xie Bufeng’s ears fell quiet again.
“Cough… I said,” he saw Wen Qingci adjusting his breath while shaking his head slightly with a smile, “Your Highness’s life is the most precious thing.”
My life?
This wasn’t the first time Wen Qingci had said this.
Reason told Xie Bufeng that even if the Fuxuan flower was gone, he could go elsewhere to find it, but the person testing the medicine for the emperor could only be himself.
But today, for a moment, his heart was in turmoil because of Wen Qingci’s words.
…
The ice blocked the entrance of the valley, and the group was temporarily trapped here.
Fortunately, the ice on the gravel beach was not thick. After the physicians cleared it for a while, they dug out the Fuxuan flower again.
While the physicians and accompanying attendants were clearing the ice from both ends of the valley, Wen Qingci began to work on the herbs.
He lit a silver lamp and roasted the Fuxuan flower and the other prepared herbs together.
After noon, the towering peaks on both sides of the river blocked the sunlight behind them, making the surroundings extremely cold.
Only the silver lamp flickered, illuminating Wen Qingci’s brows and eyes.
From preparation, grinding to refining, it took nearly half an hour.
When Wen Qingci handed the semi-finished pills to Xie Bufeng, most of the ice at the entrance of the valley had been cleared.
Drug development required clinical trials. When Wen Qingci was in school, some of his classmates served as volunteers in drug trials.
But voluntary and involuntary were completely different concepts.
In his view… the original owner’s behavior was really despicable.
So Wen Qingci never watched Xie Bufeng test the medicine, only periodically checking the effects and side effects through pulse diagnosis.
But today, there was only a small space by the riverbank in Wanghe Valley, and Wen Qingci had to watch the whole process.
The young man slowly picked up the pill, twirling it lightly in his hand under the still-lit silver lamp.
Then, he put the pill into his mouth.
Xie Bufeng didn’t hesitate for a moment, his expression unusually calm, obviously familiar with this process.
For him, this was just part of the transaction.
Wen Qingci couldn’t help but tighten his grip.
Xie Bufeng’s overly calm attitude made Wen Qingci feel guilty. His gaze towards the young man also became complicated.
As the light red pill melted in his mouth, there was no bitterness, just a hint of the unique fragrance of Fuxuan flower.
Xie Bufeng didn’t drink any water. After swallowing the pills, he turned to look at Wen Qingci.
The next second, he noticed Wen Qingci’s eyes were slightly different from before.
“What else do you want to do?” The young man’s voice was tinged with confusion.
…The future big boss Xie Bufeng was not someone easy to fool.
Wen Qingci’s mood suddenly became tense.
“Nothing,” he withdrew his gaze, put the remaining pills into the brocade box, and chuckled lightly after a pause, “I just envy Your Highness a little.”
Envy?
Why did Wen Qingci say that?
The sky was getting darker, and the cold stone walls and ice around them made the temperature drop even lower.
Wen Qingci coughed lightly, adjusted his collar casually, and said, “Your Highness never seems curious about the side effects of these medicines.”
After testing the medicine and diagnosing the pulse, Xie Bufeng always left directly without caring about the results.
“If I were curious, would there be no side effects?” The young man’s tone was faintly disdainful.
Wen Qingci smiled and looked up at the dark blue sky.
Finally, he shook his head lightly and said, “The Fuxuan flower pill is not poisonous, but if used excessively, it can lead to dependence and even resistance. In extreme cases, one pill may not have an analgesic effect, and it takes three to five pills, or even more than ten, to take effect.”
“Your Highness, don’t you find this interesting?” With that said, Wen Qingci finally returned his gaze to Xie Bufeng.
The moon had risen at some point, hanging high on the branches.
The excessively thick eyelashes blocked the moonlight, but the pupils were still dark, as calm as a bottomless abyss.
But Xie Bufeng felt an almost morbid obsession from his eyes…
Without waiting for Xie Bufeng’s answer, Wen Qingci gave the answer himself: “The accumulation of dosage and the change in ‘quality’ are invisible and intangible but have their own rules.”
At first, Wen Qingci just wanted to tease Xie Bufeng, but as he spoke, he couldn’t help but become sincere.
The beating of his heart quickened.
“Cough… Although it’s said that ‘healing the disease does not heal life,’ if there really is a ‘destiny’ and gods in this world, perhaps only by practicing medicine can one directly contend with them.” Wen Qingci’s tone was gentle, like the moonlight slowly melting away.
But the young man heard a bit of madness and arrogance in his words that were usually invisible.
In this world, perhaps only Wen Qingci was qualified to say such things.
Xie Bufeng’s gaze seemed to be drawn by something, firmly locked onto Wen Qingci.
During the conversation, there was suddenly a loud noise not far away, followed by cheers from the crowd.
— They finally cleared the valley entrance, and they didn’t have to stay in this ghostly place tonight!
Wen Qingci couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief. “Let’s go, Your Highness. We can go back to Yongdu.” With that, he picked up the medicine box and wanted to leave.
“Wait—” Xie Bufeng suddenly stopped Wen Qingci, “What do you mean by ‘envy’ just now?” he asked, frowning.
Xie Bufeng was already a little taller than Wen Qingci, and now he was standing upstream of the river, blocking the moonlight behind him.
The cold light reflected from the ice entered Xie Bufeng’s eyes, and there was even a hint of blue in his amber eyes.
In an instant, Wen Qingci became the prey trapped by him in the river valley.
“Do you still remember, Your Highness, that I am a Medicinal Person,” Wen Qingci took a step back and looked at the distant ice floes, saying, “For a Medicinal Person, almost none of the medicines in this world have any effect.”
There were many notes and books left by the original owner, and Wen Qingci had never looked carefully at the part about the medicinal people before.
Therefore, he only discovered this matter two days ago.
No wonder he tried to take medicine to recuperate his body after he came here, but it had no effect!
Thinking of this, Wen Qingci couldn’t help but feel a little scared.
He was only a “half Medicinal Person.” It was fine if the medicine didn’t work, but if there was any chemical reaction in his body, it would be deadly.
“So in my opinion, it’s a pity not to feel this kind of change.”
After saying this, Wen Qingci smiled faintly at Xie Bufeng, and finally, carrying the medicine box, he left the river valley with slow steps.
Xie Bufeng’s heart suddenly felt empty.
Wen Qingci was like a deep pool. In a trance, he seemed to glimpse the turbulent undercurrents beneath…
The ice rushing out of the valley just now made a deafening noise.
The horse outside the valley was also startled.
The coachman led the startled horse out, and the return carriage was now only half full, requiring several people to share one carriage.
In ordinary circumstances, it would be a joy to ride in the same carriage with the prince or the emperor’s trusted confidant for the physicians.
But for these two… one was the notorious “Immortal-faced Demon”, and the other has “don’t approach me” written all over his face.
No one dared to get close to them.
In the end, only Wen Qingci and Xie Bufeng ended up sharing a carriage.
The narrow carriage could only accommodate one person.
After getting on the carriage, Wen Qingci and Xie Bufeng tacitly sat leaning against the window, drawing an invisible boundary in the middle of the carriage.
The night enveloped the outskirts of the city, and everything around was quiet.
Wen Qingci, tired from the day’s events, fell asleep at some point.
His disheveled black hair made his brows and eyes appear even softer.
A strand of stray hair covered the vermilion between his eyebrows, and the faint red on his lips became the only color on his face.
The road on the outskirts of the city was not smooth. During the bumps, Wen Qingci’s forehead gently tapped the young man’s shoulder.
Xie Bufeng’s body suddenly stiffened.
…The moonlight slipped in through the cracks in the window, illuminating the young man’s ears, which had turned pale red at some point.
T/N: I was supposed to post this earlier but then I end up binge watching ‘deep night’, but atleast the scenes are worth it. You can expect a double update today 😉
What a somber and thoughtful chapter. I’m enjoying getting to know more about these guys!
Como me encanta como progresa esta historia!