Yuwen Jin arrived with a team of soldiers and freed Ling Zhang from the surrounding circle of enemies.
Ling Zhang’s eyes searched the group for quite a while but the one he wanted to see was not among them. “Where’s your cousin?” he asked Yuwen Jin.
Yuwen Jin said, “He’s in the encampment.”
In the encampment? Ling Zhang furrowed his brows. “What happened to him?!”
Yuwen Jin was astonished at the piercing look in his eyes. “No–Nothing. My cousin is safe and sound.”
Ling Zhang looked incredulously at him. Feeling that Yuwen Jin didn’t seem to be lying, he gradually relaxed and said, “You guys handle the rest of them. I’ll go out of the city to see him.”
“All right,” said Yuwen Jin subconsciously. Not until Ling Zhang leaped out of the surrounding circle and whooshed towards the city gates by jumping from one rooftop to another did Yuwen Jin recall he had a question to ask Ling Zhang. “Wait, Brother Zhang! You still haven’t told me why you’re here! Don’t leave yet!”
However, Ling Zhang who had gone far away ignored him. Watching Ling Zhang’s receding back, Yuwen Jin felt hurt.
…
In the encampment of the army of the Great Wen.
“Dispatch delivery!”
“The city gates have been battered open. Our main force has gained entry.”
Yuwen Tong was somewhat surprised. So soon?
“Someone helped open the city gates from within.”
Someone helped open the city gates? The expression in Yuwen Tong’s eyes immediately changed at the report and with that he sprung to his feet. However, he had just straightened himself when his face abruptly blanched, and even his breathing became difficult, but he clenched his teeth. The man kneeling on the ground didn’t dare raise his head and thus failed to notice it.
“Where is that person?” enunciated Yuwen Tong.
“We–We haven’t seen them yet,” answered the man, nervously lowering his head further.
Yuwen Tong made towards the door but had just gone two paces when his breathing became increasingly difficult. He had no choice but to halt. After a while, unreconciled to the situation, he commanded, “Send some men to find him and keep him safe. Now!”
“Yes, Sire!” The man immediately took his leave. Before long, he led a group of soldiers towards the exit of the encampment with the intention to find that person, but he had just walked through the gate when something occurred to him and he paused. Damn it! How was he supposed to find that person when he didn’t even know who had helped open the city gates?
At this time, Ling Zhang had gone through the city gates. His bodyguards, who happened to be not far away from the gates, all felt relieved at the sight of him and hastily clustered around him. A while ago, when Ling Zhang had disappeared from their sight in an instant, all of them had been startled to such an extent that cold sweat had broken out all over their backs.
“Liuzi, pick a couple of men and stay here to help. Dashan and all the others are to go with me to the encampment outside the city.”
“Yes, Sire.”
Ling Zhang led his bodyguards in a direction precisely opposite to that of the army flooding into the city. Halfway to the encampment, they met the team of soldiers detailed to look for them. Both groups halted.
“Who are you?” The man leading the team had never seen Ling Zhang before, but he was surprised that Ling Zhang and the others had exited the city safely without being stopped by any soldiers, so he cautiously asked them to identify themselves.
Wang Dashan walked up and showed that man his ID plate.
At the sight of the words on the plate, the man leading the team was taken aback and hastily flipped aside the lower part of his coat armor with the intention to kneel to pay his respects to Ling Zhang.
“Don’t. There’s no need for formalities,” said Ling Zhang.
The captain hurriedly straightened himself again and a flash of inspiration occurred to him as he looked at Ling Zhang. Recalling his task, he hastily asked, “I wonder if it would be impertinent to ask whether Your Highness were the one who helped open the city gates.”
Ling Zhang gave a nod and looked in the direction of the encampment. “Where’s His Majesty?”
The captain was overjoyed. “His Majesty is right in the encampment waiting for you, and it was His Majesty who sent us here to go into the city to look for you and protect you.”
Ling Zhang, however, slightly furrowed his brows at these words. He was positive that the Yuwen Tong he knew, after having guessed that it was him who had helped open the city gates, would have personally come out to meet him instead of quietly waiting in the encampment. Thinking about this, he asked, “Is he occupied with something urgent?”
The captain answered, “No.”
No? Ling Zhang resumed progressing at a much quicker pace, his bodyguards on his heels. The captain hastened to order his men to follow in their wake.
Yuwen Tong was not otherwise engaged but was not here to meet him. This was very uncharacteristic of him. Ling Zhang who had felt relieved only a few moments ago became apprehensive again.
He quickly entered the encampment, but Yuwen Tong was still nowhere to be seen. He further quickened his pace in spite of himself.
When he reached the main tent, the fly was lifted and Yuwen Tong walked out. Ling Zhang involuntarily came to a halt, his eyes appraising Yuwen Tong. Yuwen Tong, however, strode towards him at the sight of him.
He walked faster and faster until he stopped before Ling Zhang. “You went to open the city gates? That was so dangerous. Are you hurt?”
As he stopped speaking, he raised his hand and lightly tucked a strand of loose hair of Ling Zhang’s behind his ear, and then he looked Ling Zhang all over very carefully to see if he had any visible wounds. “I didn’t bargain on you arriving so soon. I thought it would take you another two days. You must be quite anxious during the journey. I tightened the security after receiving your letter. Nothing happened.”
But Ling Zhang stood still, fixing him with an unblinking stare, his eyes so sparkling it was difficult to tell what he was thinking about. Yuwen Tong looked away after a brief moment’s eye contact with Ling Zhang. “What aren’t you talking? Is it because you’re tired?”
Yuwen Tong slowly reached out a hand and held Ling Zhang’s wrist, looking seriously at him. “Or is it because you’re hurt?”
“No.” Ling Zhang finally spoke, looking from Yuwen Tong’s eyes to Yuwen Tong’s hand which was holding his. Something feverish was gleaming in his eyes, but his voice was as calm as usual. “I’m fine. I’m just a little tired. I’d like to have some rest.”
Yuwen Tong furrowed his brows slightly and immediately drew him towards the main tent. “Then go inside and get some rest. The city gates have been opened, and there’s no need for us to worry about the rest. Yao Yi, get some hot water here. And a meal.”
“Yes, Sire!” answered Yao Yi immediately. He looked from Yuwen Tong’s seemingly unruffled face to Ling Zhang and hastened off to make preparations as Yuwen Tong twisted his head around to look warningly at him.
Ling Zhang glanced over his shoulder at Yao Yi and then said to his bodyguards, “You guys may go and have some rest as well.”
“Yes, Sire.”
Yuwen Tong drew him into the tent without pausing, sat him on a chair and then stretched out a hand with the intention to undo his overgarment to check whether he was wounded. Ling Zhang grabbed Yuwen Tong’s hand and put a finger on his wrist to feel his pulse. After a few moments, his fingers quivered, and the look in his bright eyes which had been calm all along started flickering uncontrollably. Even his voice hoarsened instantly. “You … ”
As Yuwen Tong looked at Ling Zhang’s eyes which were turning sorrowful, his heart began to ache so badly as though someone were trying to kill him by squeezing it. The pain blinding him, he abruptly freed his hand from Ling Zhang’s grip, opened his arms and swept Ling Zhang into his embrace, holding him with all his might.
Ling Zhang felt a lump in his throat, barely able to breathe. Yuwen Tong’s terribly irregular pulse threw him into panic. “What’s going on exactly? Why is your pulse so–”
Before he could finish his sentence, his whole body stiffened. Yuwen Tong was holding him so sightly that he could feel Yuwen Tong’s heartbeat. His heart was hammering so madly as though it were going to …
He abruptly freed himself from Yuwen Tong’s hug and pressed his palm against Yuwen Tong’s heart. After a few moments, his palm started shivering as though its owner had been instantly drained of energy. “Wh–What happened? What happened to you exactly? You’ve got to stop scaring me like this.”
After saying this, he looked at Yuwen Tong’s eyes in a flurried manner only to find that Yuwen Tong was also looking at him, a scarily inscrutable expression in his eyes. It was as though the look in Yuwen Tong’s eyes were going to devour him, but it also seemed as if Yuwen Tong’s mind was wandering.
“Yuwen Tong!” shouted Ling Zhang hastily.
Yuwen Tong blinked and with that the alarmingly inscrutable glint in his eyes ebbed away. “Take it easy. I’m fine,” he smiled.
Naturally, Ling Zhang wouldn’t believe him. “Xie Shi! Xie Shi!” he called out.
Xie Shi immediately rushed inside, appearing panic-stricken. He mistakenly believed that something happened to Yuwen Tong, but after entering, he discovered that Yuwen Tong was safe and sound, while Ling Zhang was staring at him, the look in his eyes becoming frightening. “What happened to him exactly? Why is his pulse so irregular, his heartbeat so rapid? Speak!” Ling Zhang demanded.
“S–Sire is … ” Xie Shi sneaked a glance at Yuwen Tong and, taken aback by the admonitory look in his eyes, he continued through gritted teeth, “Sire is under the influence of a kind of poison. I’ve been trying to detoxify it, but I still need a little more time to finish the job. Don’t worry. It’s not life-threatening.”
“Poison?” Ling Zhang raised his voice, pressing Yuwen Tong down onto a chair. “What kind of poison?” he asked.
“It–It’s a kind of common poison that influences the victim’s mood. The poisoner’s objective is to provoke Sire and make him irritable. Fortunately we detected it in a timely manner. With the help of the alexipharmic pills given by Mr. Mu, the poison is slowly being detoxified,” replied Xie Shi, keeping his head down. In the beginning his voice had been rather jerky, but after a few moments he had become fluent.
Ling Zhang squinted at him. “Really?”
Xie Shi hurriedly bobbed his head. “Yes, of course. I don’t dare joke about Sire’s health.”
Ling Zhang twisted his head around to look at Yuwen Tong and, still holding Yuwen Tong’s hand, said, “Mr. Mu’s alexipharmic pills can detoxify any poison except for ‘Mrs. Pistil’, and there are no longer any poisons as rare and strong as ‘Mrs. Pistil’ in this world. If it’s a common poison, you would have easily detoxified it. How come it’s taking you so long?”
Yuwen Tong said, “Although we call it a poison, it actually doesn’t seem like one. It’s not very harmful to the victim’s health, and I heard that it spontaneously disappears from the victim’s body after a certain amount of time. Maybe that’s why the alexipharmic pills don’t work on it.”
Skeptical as Ling Zhang was, he felt that Yuwen Tong and Xie Shi had no reason to lie to him about it. “I’m glad to hear that the poison is detoxifiable. Was it that envoy who came out of the city that day that administered the poison to you?”
Yuwen Tong looked at him. “You know about the envoy?”
Ling Zhang inclined his head and then related to Yuwen Tong what he had heard from others and what he had found out in the enemy’s base that day. “It never crossed my mind that Chen Jing would be so cold-blooded as to sacrifice his blood relation to achieve these ends of his,” said Ling Zhang.
Yuwen Tong looked at Xie Shi, who had a grave face.
“I pursued Chen Jing, but an old gray-robed man came to his rescue and whisked him away. The storekeeper of that variety store said that the old man’s kung fu and lightness skills are excellent. I suspect that he was the very person Shan Congyi once told Xue Yi about,” Ling Zhang continued.
Yuwen Tong finally came to know some information about the one who wanted him dead, but he had no recollection whatsoever of anybody matching that description.
“I forewarned you but you fell prey to his trick nevertheless. Fortunately Xie Shi has some alexipharmic pills made by Mr. Mu. Also, I’ve sent a letter to Mr. Mu. Given the time of his departure, he should soon reach Shengzhou Pass. I’ll have him examine you after he arrives here.”
Ling Zhang looked apprehensively at Yuwen Tong’s body, still unable to have complete peace of mind. What kind of poison was a poison but didn’t function like one and couldn’t be detoxified even by an alexipharmic pill?
At this moment, Yuwen Tong’s back was soaking wet with cold sweat, his chest numbed with pain. Also, he was barely able to keep his breathing normal. He wanted to release Ling Zhang’s hand, fearing that Ling Zhang would find out about it if he kept holding it. However, his hand seemed unwilling to loosen its grip, as though it had its own will. And then he noticed the lingering apprehension in Ling Zhang’s eyes and came to realize that he might not be able to conceal the truth for long. If Mr. Mu had just left Shengzhou Pass, it would be several days before he reached Jifang City to rendezvous with him. He was not sure whether or not he would be able to keep Ling Zhang in the dark about his real condition before the arrival of Mr. Mu.
Xie Shi standing on the side observed that Yuwen Tong’s face was gradually blanching, which unmistakably indicated Yuwen Tong’s pain was going beyond endurance. He was worried that there might be unexpected consequences if Yuwen Tong kept subduing his pain like that. Then he noticed that Ling Zhang was lost in thought and hadn’t spotted the change in Yuwen Tong’s complexion, but at any moment Ling Zhang could raise his head and see it!
He could feel his pulse throbbing in his throat, his nerves being strained like never before.
