Chapter 1202: [Visiting the Sick] (Part 2)

Liang Da Zhuang stopped in front of the courtyard where Hu Xiaotian lived, smiling and said to the several people: "Several Sirs, please wait patiently; I need to go see whether the Divine Physician Qin has finished her treatment—she is currently giving acupuncture to my young master."

Su Yuchi smiled and said: "Go ahead, we'll wait here."

Liang Da Zhuang said: "Then I'll trouble you several Sirs." This fellow stepped into the courtyard. Su Yuchi and the others waited outside; waiting left and right, they didn't see him come out, and thus stood outside for a full half hour before finally seeing Liang Da Zhuang walk out leisurely from inside, apologetically saying: "Sorry to keep you several Sirs waiting; my lord has just finished the acupuncture and is now waiting in the room."

Su Yuchi smiled and said: "No problem, of course Lord Hu's treatment is the priority."

Liang Da Zhuang glanced at the four people behind him and said: "Sir, please let General Su enter." His meaning was crystal clear—Hu Xiaotian had only invited you, General Su, to come in, and had not arranged for anyone else.

Su Yuchi laughed and said: "These several are all famous doctors I specially invited; hearing that Lord Hu's illness has lingered uncured, I asked them to come help with the diagnosis and treatment."

Liang Da Zhuang was lost for words, not knowing how to respond for a moment; Su Yuchi said: "Please lead the way ahead."

Several people arrived at the gate, just seeing Wei Sa escort Qin Yutong out; this veiled female divine physician glanced at Su Yuchi and the others, coldly saying: "Lord Hu has just finished acupuncture and is not suitable to see too many people."

Liang Da Zhuang deliberately spoke loudly: "General Su specially invited several doctors to help treat the illness."

Qin Yutong's pair of clear, watery eyes coldly fixed on Su Yuchi; Su Yuchi's heart involuntarily jolted—he had been through countless battles, seen many formidable figures in his life, yet he still felt this divine physician's gaze extraordinarily penetrating, as if it reached straight to the heart, able to see his deepest secrets.

Before Qin Yutong could speak, Wei Sa already said: "No need, master is not suitable to receive many guests at the moment."

Su Yuchi chuckled: "I mean well; if you don't appreciate it, then there's nothing to be done. However, this Imperial Physician Yang came by the Emperor's order, and the Emperor personally granted him a Coiling Dragon Gold Medal, sending him to treat Lord Hu to show his concern; Lord Hu surely wouldn't refuse the Emperor's kind intentions."

Hearing this, Qin Yutong frowned; she was extremely familiar with the Imperial Hospital, yet among these four people there was no familiar face. But Su Yuchi probably wouldn't lie.

Behind Su Yuchi, a middle-aged man in a green robe with an expressionless face stepped forward, raising the Coiling Dragon Gold Medal in his hand; everyone, including Qin Yutong, lowered their heads. Although Qin Yutong had expected that no good would come, she still underestimated the gravity of the situation.

Since the other party had already shown the Emperor‑granted Coiling Dragon Gold Medal, they could not be forcibly stopped, otherwise it would be defying the imperial order.

Qin Yutong stepped aside first; Wei Sa bit her lip and said: "General, please come in!" She secretly thought: Regardless, from outward appearance one cannot see the Shadow Warrior's flaw; as long as he doesn't speak, there will be no problem.

Su Yuchi said in a low voice: "You two wait outside; I and Imperial Physician Yang will go in."

Wei Sa led Su Yuchi and the other into Hu Xiaotian's bedroom; Su Yuchi looked over and saw Hu Xiaotian lying on the bed, face as pale as gold paper, eyes tightly shut. Wei Sa went to the side of the fake Hu Xiaotian, leaned close to his ear and whispered softly: "Master, General Su has come to visit you!"

The Shadow Warrior grunted, still keeping his eyes closed.

Wei Sa said: "Master has been like this these past two days—sometimes lucid, sometimes muddled."

From behind came Qin Yutong's voice: "I just gave him acupuncture; I'm afraid he'll need another two hours to wake up, General Su, you might as well wait a bit longer."

Su Yuchi smiled: "No problem, no problem; I have nothing else to do today anyway. The Emperor has some words that must be personally conveyed to Lord Hu. The imperial edict cannot be defied; the Emperor's orders I must fulfill—whether it's waiting two hours or two days, I will deliver the Emperor's message."

Qin Yutong and Wei Sa both felt their hearts sink; this Su Yuchi is surely up to no good—he must be suspicious of Hu Xiaotian's illness, so he came personally to check. Now they only hope Su Yuchi won't see through that the Hu Xiaotian before them is an impostor.

Standing behind Su Yuchi, Imperial Physician Yang's ears twitched slightly, his deep eyes growing more gloomy and inscrutable. He was carefully listening to everyone's heartbeats; Qin Yutong remained calm, her heartbeat unchanged, while Wei Sa's quickened. Liang Da Zhuang's heartbeat stayed strong and steady from start to finish. As for Hu Xiaotian lying on the bed, his heartbeat was clearly accelerated and the rhythm had gone awry.

Su Yuchi whispered: "Lord Hu!"

The Shadow Warrior on the bed slowly opened his eyes a slit, looking fatigued and powerless.

Su Yuchi said: "I am Su Yuchi, specially sent by the Emperor's order to visit Lord Hu, and also to thank him—for providing us with 100,000 shi of grain."

Wei Sa's heart leapt to her throat; fortunately the Shadow Warrior only grunted and did not speak.

Su Yuchi said: "The Emperor specially dispatched Imperial Physician Yang to come treat Lord Hu." He turned his face slightly: "Imperial Physician Yang!"

Imperial Physician Yang approached the bedside and said respectfully: "Lord Hu, please let me take your pulse."

The Shadow Warrior on the bed had no intention of pulling his hand out from under the covers; Qin Yutong coldly said: "General, what do you mean by this? Are you looking down on the medical arts of Xuantian Guan?"

Su Yuchi smiled: "Mr. Ren of Xuantian Guan is also an old friend of mine; his disciple naturally excels in medical skill, but specialties differ and knowledge has its order—regarding wind‑cold, Imperial Physician Yang has some accomplishments, so having another opinion can't hurt."

Imperial Physician Yang softly said: "Lord Hu, may I take your pulse?" His voice was extremely yin‑like, carrying an indescribable strangeness; the Shadow Warrior felt each word seemed to drill into his ears, his eyes involuntarily opening to gaze at Imperial Physician Yang's eyes—when their eyes met, he instantly felt the other's eyes pull him like a magnet.

Wei Sa kept watching the fake Hu Xiaotian's expression; seeing his face suddenly lose all awareness, she instantly sensed something grave—this Imperial Physician Yang who came with Su Yuchi was actually skilled in soul‑capturing technique, a master of that art. Wei Sa turned her lovely eyes and quietly pushed the medicine bowl on the table; everyone's attention was focused on Hu Xiaotian, so they didn't notice her move—the bowl fell to the ground and shattered into pieces, and Wei Sa let out a startled cry.

That cry startled the Shadow Warrior, whose mind had been lost in confusion, back to awareness.

Wei Sa feigned extreme fright, thudding to her knees before the bed: "Master, I'm at fault! I accidentally disturbed the honored guests!"

The Shadow Warrior had not yet fully regained his senses, unclear why his mind had just gone foggy.

Su Yuchi's eyes narrowed; he already realized what had happened, and smiled: "Lord Hu, there's no need to blame her—everyone has moments of carelessness. Miss, please step out first."

The Shadow Warrior's expression was dazed; he dared not speak, his eyes merely gazing at Liang Da Zhuang nearby.

Liang Da Zhuang said: "Wei Sa, go out first!" He took the chance to step forward, his bulky body blocking between Imperial Physician Yang and the Shadow Warrior, and said to the Shadow Warrior: "Sir, why are you sweating so much? It's all Wei Sa's clumsiness—did she frighten you?"

Qin Yutong asked: "Where in the Imperial Hospital did Imperial Physician Yang rise to prominence? How come I've never seen you before?"

Imperial Physician Yang glanced at Qin Yutong and said: "I only recently transferred to the Imperial Hospital; when I went there, Miss Qin had already left, so we never crossed paths." His deep eyes fixed on Qin Yutong; he had not used soul‑capturing technique on her, for from her heartbeat and breath he had judged that Qin Yutong was of extremely firm character, and such a person's consciousness is hard to control.

Seeing Wei Sa still kneeling, Su Yuchi smiled: "Miss, please rise."

Wei Sa stubbornly shook her head: "Master hasn't told me to rise, I dare not!" Her aim was to throw the scene into chaos, preventing Su Yuchi and Imperial Physician Yang from getting a chance to act against the Shadow Warrior.

Su Yuchi seemed to appreciate her, nodding and saying: "You are truly loyal to Lord Hu!" He lifted his head to look at the Hu Xiaotian on the bed and said: "Lord Hu, you should still forgive her."

The Shadow Warrior dared not speak; he lifted his left hand slightly upward, signaling Wei Sa to rise—just then, Imperial Physician Yang suddenly shot out his hand and already placed it on his pulse; his move was like lightning, astonishingly fast, and Qin Yutong and the others never expected him to do that, freezing in place for a moment.

Imperial Physician Yang, however, remained calm and said: "Lord Hu, you needn't be nervous; I am Yang Fanxu, sent by the Emperor to treat your illness."

The Shadow Warrior's face filled with shock, mouth half‑open, feeling an icy current surge along his pulse like lightning into his meridians, straight to his innermost being, as if a sword pressed directly against his chest; his eyes brimmed with fear.

Qin Yutong and the others dared not make any big move; the Shadow Warrior's pulse was in Yang Fanxu's hand—from his just‑seen strike, his martial arts had reached perfection, and controlling his pulse meant controlling his life and death.

Seeing Yang Fanxu already in command of the situation, Su Yuchi smiled: "Imperial Physician Yang's medical skill is superb; let's quickly take Lord Hu's pulse."

Yang Fanxu said: "Lord Hu doesn't seem ill at all!" His eyes flashed with sharp light, like two needles shooting into the Shadow Warrior's pupils; from the pain, the Shadow Warrior turned deathly pale, his gaze filled with fear.

First update delivered—please guarantee the monthly ticket! (To be continued~^~)