Chapter 637

Hu Xiaotian laughed and said, "Eldest Princess, you still misunderstand me. I am not making excuses; I truly believe the Eldest Princess is already beautiful enough, there's no need to add frills. But I still respect the Eldest Princess's own wishes. If you decide on the surgery, I will certainly give it my all."

Xue Lingjun heard him agree to perform the surgery on her, and instantly her brows relaxed and she smiled sweetly, coquettishly saying, "Don't worry, I won't let you work for nothing. Once you succeed in doing this for me, I will surely reward you handsomely."

Hu Xiaotian said, "Before performing surgery on the Eldest Princess, I still need some necessary instruments. Those instruments from last time are kept with the Empress Dowager; I hope the Eldest Princess will go borrow them."

Xue Lingjun said, "What's the difficulty? We don't need to use those old ones; let's go find Magic Artisan Zong Yuan and have him forge a new set."

Hu Xiaotian said, "Magic Artisan Zong Yuan?"

Xue Lingjun said, "You haven't heard of him? He is the finest craftsman in the world; if you can think of it, he can make it. Come, let's go now."

"Where are we going?"

"The blacksmith shop!"

Blacksmith shops can be found everywhere in towns and villages, but there is only one that bears the imperial gift signboard—the blacksmith shop at Purple Cloud Mountain's Everlasting Spring, about ten li from Cien Garden, far from the world's clamor.

Sitting in Xue Lingjun's luxurious carriage, warm and comfortable, a faint fragrance wafted inside, refreshing the heart and almost making one drunk. Eldest Princess Xue Lingjun sat beside Hu Xiaotian, clutching a white fur stole, leaning against the carriage wall. She began to chat with Hu Xiaotian, but the bumps along the road lulled her into sleep without her realizing it, revealing a section of her white, tender calf beneath her long skirt, smooth and warm like jade. Her sleeping pose was languid, inviting imagination.

Hu Xiaotian's gaze traveled from her calf along the curves of her body up to her pink neck; the Eldest Princess's figure was truly stunning. Seeing this, Hu Xiaotian felt a heat rise in his chest. He turned his head, lifted a corner of the carriage curtain, and looked outside. The carriage was winding up the twisting mountain road, and by the roadside many golden rapeseed flowers had bloomed. Hu Xiaotian drew a deep breath of the fresh air, seeming to catch a faint floral scent. Since arriving in Yongdu, everything seemed to be progressing ideally: first he had cured the Empress Dowager, then Prince Yan Xue Shengjing had fallen ill with a hidden ailment and had to seek his help, and now Eldest Princess Xue Lingjun had come to him of her own accord, asking him to perform double-eyelid surgery. Leaving aside other matters, just the consultation fees from these few people would be enough to let him live in comfort forever.

The more Hu Xiaotian thought about it, the prouder he became. He never expected that the medical skills he had no intention of picking up again would prove so useful here. Suddenly he remembered that the seven-day deadline he had agreed upon with Prince Yan the day after tomorrow had arrived; during this time Prince Yan Xue Shengjing should have been following his medical orders: taking virility pills daily and masturbating three times a day, no doubt chafing his skin raw. Thinking of Prince Yan's embarrassed state, Hu Xiaotian almost laughed out loud.

Eldest Princess Xue Lingjun let out a soft sigh behind him, her delicate hands resting on his shoulders. She cooed, "What are you looking at?"

Only then did Hu Xiaotian realize she had awakened. He hurriedly lowered the carriage curtain, sat upright, and said, "The spring scenery outside is picturesque; I was just taking a look. I hope I didn't disturb you, Your Highness the Eldest Princess."

Eldest Princess Xue Lingjun gave a wanton smile; her bright eyes rippled like spring water. Hu Xiaotian realized that the Eldest Princess was utterly seductive to the core—every gesture, every movement, every frown and smile constantly displayed her feminine charm. No wonder she attracted so much trouble, and no wonder others gave her the title of the world's most wanton woman.

Xue Lingjun said, "Your words really are hurtful."

Hu Xiaotian exclaimed in surprise, "What did I say wrong?"

Eldest Princess Xue Lingjun said, "Do you mean I'm not as lovely as the flowers and grasses outside?"

Hu Xiaotian said, "Your Highness's beauty could topple a city; how could those mere flowers and grasses compare?"

Xue Lingjun giggled, and after her laughter subsided she gave Hu Xiaotian a three-word evaluation: "Unscrupulous!"

The carriage had arrived at the entrance of the blacksmith shop; its main gate was shut tight. Xue Lingjun's guard went to knock, and after a while someone came to open the side door.

Xue Lingjun spat, "This old man is just eccentric by nature; he doesn't allow any outside carriages or horses to enter, not even me."

Hu Xiaotian said, "People with talent always have a bit of airs."

Xue Lingjun laughed, "You're quite talented too, but I haven't noticed you putting on any airs."

Hu Xiaotian said, "In front of the Eldest Princess I wouldn't dare put on airs, but with others I occasionally do show off and throw my weight around." His remark was clever—it flattered the Eldest Princess while subtly telling her that seeing him for treatment wasn't so easy either.

The two stepped down from the carriage. Although Xue Lingjun's reputation in Yongdu was not good, her status was still there; yet even the Magic Artisan Zong Yuan refused to open the main gate for the Eldest Princess, showing that this man indeed has a strong personality.

Xue Lingjun had the coachman and guard wait outside, and brought only Hu Xiaotian into the blacksmith shop.

Entering through the side door, a dark-skinned sturdy man strode forward, clasped his hands, and said, "I am Zong Tang, paying my respects to Your Highness the Eldest Princess."

Xue Lingjun said, "Where is your father?"

Zong Tang replied, "My father is currently forging swords in the sword forge; please, Your Highness the Eldest Princess, go have some tea and rest first."

Hearing this, Xue Lingjun was visibly displeased, but she knew better than anyone the temperament of Magic Artisan Zong Yuan—when he is forging swords, no one may disturb him, not even her, and even if the Emperor himself arrived in person, Zong Yuan would not come out to meet him.

Zong Tang led the two of them to a nearby grass pavilion, where tea was served. The tea set was entirely cast from raw iron, ancient and rugged yet possessing an indescribable simple beauty. Hu Xiaotian held the iron cup, took a sip of tea, and said, "This tea set is quite unique." Actually, in the past he had also collected a set of Japanese iron tea ware; upon coming to this era, he found that tea utensils were mostly made of porcelain, and such ironware was rarely seen.

Zong Tang said, "Sir, please excuse my shortcomings." Actually, this tea set was his own work.

Xue Lingjun said to Zong Tang, "This is Sir Hu. We have come to ask Master Zong to help us craft some items." This statement made it clear that they wanted Magic Artisan Zong Yuan himself to do the work, not delegate it to others.

Zong Tang laughed, "I don't know what the Eldest Princess would like to have made."

Xue Lingjun turned her gaze to Hu Xiaotian, who said, "I've drawn them all here." After agreeing to operate on Prince Yan Xue Shengjing, Hu Xiaotian had obtained a small notebook and sketched the needed surgical instruments on it. He had originally planned to give the notebook to Xue Shengjing so he could prepare the tools, but then Eldest Princess Xue Lingjun appeared unexpectedly; since he carried the notebook with him anyway, he simply took it out to show Zong Tang.

Zong Tang took the sketchbook, turned to the first page, and saw a willow-leaf blade; his brow involuntarily furrowed, then he continued flipping through. The instruments marked in Hu Xiaotian's little book were practically everything one could need—almost everything he could think of was drawn in. Compared to the hasty surgery he had performed on the Empress Dowager in Cien Garden earlier, there were many more items; he had originally intended to use the operation on Xue Shengjing as an opportunity to have a full set of surgical tools ready.

After Zong Tang finished flipping through the sketchbook and closed it slowly, he fixed Hu Xiaotian with a piercing gaze and said, "The day Eunuch Dong came over to forge instruments, he must have been acting on your commission, Sir Hu."

Hu Xiaotian thought to himself, "I haven't commissioned anyone to come find you; it was the Eldest Princess who insisted on dragging me here."

Xue Lingjun chuckled, "Zong Tang, when did you become so inquisitive? These things are all mine; hurry up and make them for me. By the way, when will your father be free? I'll speak to him."

Zong Tang accompanied his words with a smile, "Eldest Princess, please be patient; once the precious sword is out of the furnace, it shouldn't be long. How about this: you wait here, and I'll go check."

Xue Lingjun nodded, but little did she expect that after Zong Tang left, half an hour would pass without seeing him return. She grew a bit impatient, stood up, and gazed toward the sword forge, muttering to herself, "That old fellow, why won't he come out?"

Hu Xiaotian, however, was able to endure the wait.

Xue Lingjun picked up his sketchbook from the table, flipped through it, stopped at a certain page, pointed at the diagram, and asked Hu Xiaotian, "What is this?"

Following the direction she pointed, Hu Xiaotian's gaze landed on the diagram, and he felt as if thunder were rolling in his ears—she was actually pointing at the vaginal speculum. He dared not plainly tell her what it was, so he smiled and said, "This is a duckbill forceps."

Xue Lingjun said, "Duckbill forceps? Hmm, it really does look like a duck's bill. What is it used for?"

"Um..." Hu Xiaotian hesitated at her question, then replied, "It's used to open the mouth so one can see clearly inside the throat."

Xue Lingjun suddenly understood, "Ah, I see. Your instruments are indeed quite ingenious."

Hu Xiaotian said, "They'll do."

At that moment, Zong Tang arrived accompanied by an elderly man in a gray robe, about sixty years old—this was his father, Magic Artisan Zong Yuan.

Xue Lingjun appeared quite familiar with Magic Artisan Zong Yuan; she rose and chided, "Master Zong, you're putting on more and more airs—I've been waiting for you over an hour."

Magic Artisan Zong Yuan chuckled, "Please don't blame me, Eldest Princess; this is a critical moment for the casting, and I must keep watch." He narrowed his eyes at Hu Xiaotian and said, "And this is…"

Xue Lingjun said, "This is Envoy Hu Xiaotian, Sir Hu, from Dakang."

Magic Artisan Zong Yuan clasped his hands toward Hu Xiaotian, his expression clearly perfunctory.

Zong Tang picked up the sketchbook from the table and presented it with both hands to his father.

Magic Artisan Zong Yuan unfolded the sketch, page by page, his expression growing solemn. After he had examined the entire document, he put it back on the table and asked Xue Lingjun, "Eldest Princess, you want me to forge these instruments for you?"

Xue Lingjun said, "Yes!"

Magic Artisan Zong Yuan said, "If I recall correctly, a few days ago Eunuch Dong from Cien Garden came by, but at that time he only had a few items made." His deep gaze fell on Hu Xiaotian's face, as if he wanted to scrutinize this young man thoroughly.

Xue Lingjun said, "Master Zong, making these things shouldn't be difficult for you."

Magic Artisan Zong Yuan said, "These diagrams were all drawn by Sir Hu?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "I drew poorly, please give me more guidance." (To be continued~^~)