Chapter 179

Ling Feng hurriedly helped his own Prince to a side couch; at this moment Xiao Yin's expression was not quite right, his handsome cheeks alternating red and white, his brows furrowed tightly, his body trembling severely, as if something were wildly roaming through his limbs and bones.

Gu Jiu Ling stumbled to her feet and walked to Xiao Yin's front, focused her gaze on him, raised her hand just about to pull open his collar, but was shoved away by the frantic Xiao Yin.

He had become so deranged he was unrecognizable, as if he were a different person; even a sedative shot from Gu Jiu Ling could not calm his soul.

"Princess Consort, be careful!" Ling Feng finally realized, the Prince had poison onset, this time the onset came earlier.

He hurriedly stopped Gu Jiu Ling, not letting her continue approaching Xiao Yin, then turned and went out, shortly returning with a box carved from mutton-fat jade.

"Princess Consort! You had better not touch the Prince's body; the master is having a gu poison outbreak, the more people nearby disturb him, the more likely to provoke his fury; let him take the medicine and lie quietly for a while and he'll be fine."

Gu Jiu Ling also dared not move; at this moment Xiao Yin would not accept her treatment, she decided to first let Ling Feng stabilize his condition using their old method.

After Xiao Yin recovers, she will then examine him carefully; before she only took his pulse, now she just wants to take off his clothes to see if anything has grown on his skin.

Xiao Yin's appearance just now was truly terrifying; she felt the gu poison in his body was definitely not ordinary.

Back then, what exactly did he experience in Qi Sha Gu? In just a few days, from a hero praised by all, he fell into hell.

She decided not to add to the chaos, stepping back one step.

Ling Feng took something out of the box; Gu Jiu Ling thought it was a pill, but it turned out to be a wholly black worm, shaped like a golden beetle, about the size of a peanut, even slightly wriggling.

"Princess Consort, would you mind stepping aside?"

Gu Jiu Ling shook her head: "I've seen all kinds of bloody scenes; you do your work, I might still be able to lend a hand."

Ling Feng also couldn't afford to dwell on this; mainly, the Prince's poison-onset detox method is truly horrifying, ordinary people might not be able to bear watching it.

He took a breath, placed the worm on the huku of Xiao Yin's wrist, made a cut with a small silver knife in the flesh there, then immediately put the worm inside.

The worm needed no help, it nimbly burrowed into Xiao Yin's flesh and blood.

Xiao Yin suddenly shouted loudly; Gu Jiu Ling was instantly stunned, she watched the worm wander through Xiao Yin's eight extraordinary meridians, that kind of pain is not something ordinary people can endure.

Gu Jiu Ling's body swayed as if about to collapse; she finally could not bear to watch any longer, panicked she fled the study and plopped down on the cold steps.

Ling Feng had apparently ordered earlier that all nearby Wangfu guards and hidden dark guards be dismissed; the entire Dong'an was silent as a tomb, further adding a gloomy atmosphere.

From the warm pavilion came Xiao Yin's beast-like howls, intermittent; Gu Jiu Ling crouched on the steps, arms clenched tight around her shoulders, a chill rose from her heart, making her feel icy.

Finally the howling inside subsided; the door creaked open, and Ling Feng walked out exhausted.

Gu Jiu Ling stood up, just about to push the door open when she heard Xiao Yin's hoarse voice from inside.

"Ling Feng!"

Ling Feng answered with a sound, brushing past Gu Jiu Ling's shoulder as he entered; unexpectedly, the bedridden Xiao Yin, who had just undergone a life-and-death trial, slowly said: "Ling Feng, where is the Princess Consort?"

"My eyes are blurred, I can't see clearly; don't let the Princess Consort come near me, I... look rather unsightly now..."

Ling Feng froze on the spot, furtively glancing at Gu Jiu Ling.

Gu Jiu Ling stood at the doorway, her body slightly stiff, staring fixedly at that figure on the bed.

The study was not originally a bedroom; this low couch was where Xiao Yin would lie down temporarily to rest after reading.

Now his tall body lay on it, making the couch feel a bit cramped; from Gu Jiu Ling's angle she could only see his pale jaw and his outstretched slender hands, dangling at the edge of the couch.

Gu Jiu Ling had seen Xiao Yin full of schemes, mighty and overbearing, wicked and unrivaled; she had never seen him so fragile.

He struggled to maintain the last shred of dignity of his former Southern Qi war god, gritting his teeth and insisting to everyone that Xiao Yin had not been defeated.

But he suffers severe post-traumatic stress; the bloody battle in Qi Sha Gu became a nightmare he can never wake from; even after barely shaking off the nightmare, his body betrays him.

According to rumors from Shang Jing's commoners, seven years ago when Xiao Yin was carried out of Qi Sha Gu, he was already a bloody mess, all his meridians severed, rendered a cripple.

Moreover, he was poisoned with a deadly toxin, nearly dying.

Later, some famous doctor was summoned from who-knows-where, using some unorthodox methods, and only then was he pulled back from the gates of death.

Thinking of this, Gu Jiu Ling felt waves of heartache; she had originally wanted to go in to examine his wound, but hearing him say this, she understood he cared more about his personal dignity, not wanting her to see his ruined state.

Ling Feng looked at Gu Jiu Ling in difficulty; she nodded at him and turned to leave, whereupon Ling Feng breathed a sigh of relief.

For several days straight, Xiao Yin did not come to Peach Blossom Pavilion, nor would he let anyone see him; even if Gu Jiu Ling went, she could not enter Dong'an.

Gu Jiu Ling's heart sank to the bottom, she gritted her teeth and spat: "Still being pretentious! Jiu Yue! Put the medicinal meal I prepared into the food box!"

Jiu Yue these past days also felt the relationship between the Prince and her master was strange, not knowing what had happened; since the last time the Prince invited the Princess Consort to discuss Su Wanrou's dowry, the Princess Consort's face has remained grim.

The Prince's side in Dong'an also sealed off the news tightly, making it impossible to find out.

No matter how busy these days have been, the Prince would still come to Peach Blossom Pavilion to sit, eat, and chat; yet after all these days, he still hasn't come to glance at his master.

Everything was fine; what on earth happened?

Jiu Yue hurriedly packed the medicinal meal into the food box; Gu Jiu Ling personally carried the food box to Dong'an, and indeed Ling Feng was personally guarding the gate, letting no one through.

Ling Feng watched Gu Jiu Ling approach slowly, a fine layer of cold sweat beading on his forehead; though he put on a smile, he still stepped forward to block her way, bowing and saying: "Princess Consort, please halt! The Prince has ordered……"

"To hell with his order; if you're capable, make that bastard never see me again!"

"Fine! Still being pretentious! Okay! He won't see me, right? If he doesn't see me for a day, I'll sit here waiting for a day, cold or freezing, sick or hurt, he can judge for himself!"

After saying that, Gu Jiu Ling put the food box on a piece of bluestone at the side, lifted her skirt and sat down on the threshold of Dong'an.

"Princess Consort, what are you doing……" Ling Feng was dumbfounded.