Chapter 51: Tell me honestly, can you actually use any immortal arts?

On the desk, Du Ruhui was nearly on the verge of collapse, gasping in large, ragged breaths.

The entire desk was soaked with blood and sweat.

Logically, he should have passed out by now.

But Du Ruhui, seeing Chen Yan holding a red‑hot branding iron as if about to press it down at any moment, simply could not lose consciousness.

He said in a trembling voice, "Marquis of Weinan, are you planning to scorch me with this thing?"

Chen Yan's mood gradually relaxed a bit, and upon hearing Du Ruhui's words, he teased:

"That depends on whether the wound bleeds heavily; if it does, for the sake of Cai Duke's life, I would have no choice but to use this extreme method."

After speaking, he paused, a hint of a smile in his tone, "Of course, I advise Cai Duke not to move recklessly or speak loudly, lest he aggravate the wound, and then......"

Before he could finish, Du Ruhui had already shut his mouth, lying still on the desk.

Seeing this, Chen Yan smiled, tossed the branding iron back into the fire pit, and said, "Alright, Young Master Du, untie Cai Duke, and be gentle."

"Ah, ah, okay," Du Gou said, his emotions stirred.

He recalled that Chen Yan had said, if the treatment failed, Du Ruhui would die on the spot.

And now Du Ruhui had survived; does that mean the treatment succeeded?

Du Ruhui doesn't have to die?

Du Gou wasn't sure whether his guess was wrong, but he thought the odds of success were higher, which is why he was so excited.

Du Ruhui was bound tightly, and since Du Gou dared not apply too much force, he untied him very slowly.

It took a considerable amount of time to free him.

Chen Yan then had him clean the desk carefully and wipe Du Ruhui's body once.

Afterwards, Chen Yan sprinkled white talc powder on the wound and bandaged it with gauze.

He did not choose to apply penicillin to Du Ruhui.

Because his penicillin had not been purified, applying it would instead cause infection.

Moreover, penicillin works mainly through the bloodstream, so at this moment giving Du Ruhui liquid penicillin to drink was the correct approach.

After Du Ruhui took three drops of penicillin, he could no longer hold on and fell into a deep sleep.

Seeing this, Chen Yan said to Du Gou, "Later, have someone move Cai Duke to another room to rest, keep him off the bed for now, and let him eat only light foods for the next two days."

"Also, make sure Cai Duke doesn't stay coiled in blankets all the time; remember to let fresh air in, understand?"

Du Gou listened attentively, committing all the instructions to memory.

Then, hesitantly, he asked, "Marquis of Weinan, may I inquire about my father's condition… how is it?"

"That depends on how the wound heals," Chen Yan explained. "You should have heard that many soldiers on the battlefield, after being wounded, sometimes develop ulcerations (wound infections) that lead to death."

"If Cai Duke does not develop ulcerations, he can survive; if he does, then......"

Chen Yan did not finish the sentence, but Du Gou and the others understood his meaning.

Li Shimin was silent for two seconds, then said, "Let's go out first and let Ke Ming rest properly."

"......"

As everyone stepped out, Xiao Shi, who had been waiting outside, hurriedly bowed to Li Shimin, then, with a nervous face, asked Du Gou, "Son, how is your father?"

Du Gou didn't want Xiao Shi to worry, and comforted, "Don't worry, mother; Marquis of Weinan's medical skill is superb, father should be fine, and after a proper period of rest he will recover."

"Really?" Xiao Shi's eyes glistened with tears, her voice filled with incredulous joy.

"Really, I would not dare to deceive mother."

Xiao Shi steadied herself, and after calming down, led Du Gou and Du He to Chen Yan, and knelt directly before him.

"Hey, hey!" Chen Yan hurried forward a step and grabbed Xiao Shi, "Madam Xiao, you are an elder; this manner might shorten your life."

Back then his father had worked together with Du Ruhui; although their relationship wasn't as close as Cheng Yaojin's, they could still be called friends.

In terms of seniority, Xiao Shi indeed qualified as his elder.

Xiao Shi, after hearing this, hesitated briefly, then had her two sons kneel before Chen Yan, "Marquis of Weinan, you saved my husband today; the Du family has nothing to repay you."

"In the future, should you need anything, feel free to command..."

"Alright, alright," Chen Yan suddenly felt a headache, "Madam Xiao, I merely did what a healer should do; you need not act like this."

"Compared to that, you should promptly take the two young masters and find a clean residence for Cai Duke, preparing some light porridge for him."

Xiao Shi thought for a moment, then still led her two sons to bow deeply to Chen Yan.

"Since that is so, please have His Majesty, the Marquis of Weinan, and the other gentlemen excuse us; this wife will now take her leave."

Li Shimin waved his hand and said, "You may go. In the future, if Ke Ming needs anything, send someone directly to the Marquis of Weinan's residence to find Zi An."

Xiao Shi respectfully replied, and led her two sons into the room to visit Du Ruhui.

After she left, Li Shimin's gaze instantly fell on Chen Yan.

Coincidentally, the latter also looked back at him.

As their eyes met, Li Shimin smiled, "Zi An, this time was thanks to you."

"Otherwise, I would have likely lost Ke Ming."

Chen Yan was not as optimistic; Du Ruhui was still not out of danger.

If the wound becomes infected, the situation would be dire.

"His Majesty, Cai Duke has not truly escaped danger; this humble minister does not dare to claim credit."

"Let everything be discussed once Cai Duke's condition improves."

Li Shimin was in good spirits, patting Chen Yan's shoulder, "With you here, I trust Ke Ming will certainly be fine."

The others, hearing this, nodded in agreement.

At first, when Chen Yan cut open Du Ruhui's abdomen, they even thought Chen Yan and Du Ruhui harbored a personal grudge.

They wanted to seize the chance to kill him.

I never expected that Chen Yan was actually treating Du Ruhui.

After opening the abdomen, it could even be stitched back up.

But in the end Du Ruhui didn't die, and the illness seemed to have recovered.

With such unfathomable medical skill, could he fail to cure a sore?

Fang Xuanling asked curiously, "Marquis of Weinan, what was that thing you cut out of Brother Ke Ming's body earlier...?"

His words immediately reminded Li Shimin and the others of that black, very disgusting thing, and their expressions became indescribable.

They could hardly imagine that Du Ruhui's body actually contained such a nauseating thing.

Chen Yan said with a grin, "Regarding this, I'm sure you wouldn't understand even if I said too much."

"Hmm… to put it simply, that thing is the cause of intestinal ulcer flare‑ups; as long as it's removed, you'll never get intestinal ulcers again."

Li Shimin asked, "If we cut that thing out, will it affect Ke Ming's future life?"

"It won't," Chen Yan shook his head. "That thing is like our hair and nails; removing it won't affect normal life thereafter."

"I see…."

Li Shimin nodded thoughtfully, then stared into Chen Yan's eyes and asked seriously, "Zi An, tell me honestly,

do you actually know any immortal arts?"

Chen Yan: "......"

"......"