Being lifted up in front of others, Gu Jianli felt it was not quite appropriate. As soon as they entered the inner room, Gu Jianli lowered her voice to avoid being heard by people outside, saying, “Why did you carry me? I can slowly walk with my crutch, or you can support me.”
“Slow.”
Gu Jianli fell silent. It could be slower, but what difference did it make?
Ji Wujing glanced at her displeased face and asked, “Are you relieved now that you’re not pregnant?”
Gu Jianli looked at Ji Wujing’s expression cautiously and replied, “Yes.”
“Then are you disappointed?”
“No.” Gu Jianli was honest this time.
Ji Wujing placed Gu Jianli on the bed and covered her with a quilt.
Gu Jianli said awkwardly, “I don’t need to secure the pregnancy now…”
“It’s okay. Let’s rehearse how to secure it. Let’s work harder and strive to conceive soon.” Ji Wujing’s hand brushed Gu Jianli’s eyes. “Take your nap.”
Gu Jianli waited until Ji Wujing left before opening her eyes. She stared blankly in the direction of the door for a while, slowly feeling drowsy. She yawned and closed her eyes again. Since Ji Wujing mentioned yesterday that the doctor would come today to check on the pregnancy, she hadn’t slept well last night and felt very tired.
Back in the outer room, Ji Jingyi had already prepared the silver needles. Luo Muge, carrying pre-packaged medicine, was heading to the kitchen to prepare it.
“Just let Changsheng do it,” Ji Wujing said.
Luo Muge, who had just reached the doorway, turned back and smiled at Ji Wujing, saying, “Only someone who understands medicine can control the heat just right.”
Ji Wujing didn’t say anything more. He sat down, rolled up his wide sleeves, and offered his arm to Ji Jingyi. Ji Jingyi held the thin silver needles and inserted them densely into the acupoints on Ji Wujing’s forearm.
When Luo Muge arrived at the kitchen, Jixia was cooking porridge and stir-frying vegetables. Seeing Luo Muge, Jixia asked, “Miss Luo, the stone pots for boiling medicine are here. Which one do you want to use? Can I help with anything?”
“You focus on your tasks; I can handle it,” Luo Muge watched as Jixia sprinkled salt into the pot and added some instructions, “Madam’s health isn’t good, so she needs light meals lately. Fifth Master can’t tolerate too much salt either. It’s better to use less oil and salt.”
“Got it!”
Luo Muge picked a pot, carried it out of the kitchen, and started boiling medicine in front of the kitchen.
Through the open kitchen door, Jixia sized up Luo Muge and thought that this Miss Luo was different from the noblewomen in the capital. Although Luo Muge was also exceptionally beautiful, Jixia didn’t admit that there was a woman more beautiful than Gu Jianli in the world. She just felt that Luo Muge, dressed in a simple white dress, was like a branch of lilac. Yet, she was distant, even a bit cold, as if she were the cold snow on the plum branches.
Ye Yunyue hurried over and stood in front of Luo Muge, smiling, “Long time no see, Mugong.”
Luo Muge adjusted the fire with her fan, glanced at Ye Yunyue, then lowered her head casually, “Indeed, it’s been a while.”
Ye Yunyue gritted her teeth, “Were you deliberate back then?”
“I don’t understand what you mean,” Luo Muge’s tone remained indifferent.
The moment Ye Yunyue appeared, Jixia became alert. Seeing Ye Yunyue directly approaching Luo Muge, Jixia became even more vigilant, standing at the door, pressing her ear against it to carefully listen to their conversation.
“Ji Zhao’s temperament is eccentric, with unpredictable mood swings. He enjoys killing and often abuses others. The number of people who died at his hands is countless. He strips bones and skins, wears clothes made of human skin, and decorates his home with bone sculptures. He has a sadistic tendency towards women, raping countless of them. The two children he brought home today are illegitimate children, and he has even more outside! He’s poisoned and will soon die a violent death!”
Luo Muge listened silently. She nodded and calmly said, “I seem to have said something like that back then, but I don’t remember clearly.”
“But back then, you didn’t tell me you were Fifth Master’s junior sister!” Ye Yunyue exclaimed angrily.
“Was it necessary for me to mention my relationship with him?” Luo Muge looked up at Ye Yunyue, “Those things were what I heard. You were the one who asked about Fifth Master, so I kindly shared what I knew with you. If you don’t believe it, go ask him yourself.”
“Don’t think I don’t know you were intentionally belittling Fifth Master, hoping I wouldn’t marry him! Tell me, is it because you want to marry him yourself?”
Luo Muge furrowed her brows slightly and said, “You’re overthinking it.”
Ye Yunyue unwillingly took a step forward, placing her hand on Luo Muge’s shoulder, intending to pull her up. As her hand touched Luo Muge’s shoulder, Luo Muge slightly turned sideways and inserted the silver needle in her hand into Ye Yunyue’s shoulder socket. Ye Yunyue screamed in pain and immediately knelt down, breaking out in a cold sweat.
Jixia, who was eavesdropping behind the door, was shocked. Did Luo Muge deliberately belittle Fifth Master in front of Ye Yunyue? Was it just something she casually mentioned as Luo Muge claimed? Jixia wasn’t sure, but she felt she should tell Gu Jianli about this.
Luo Muge pulled out the silver needle from Ye Yunyue’s shoulder socket and casually tossed it aside. She continued to adjust the fire with her fan, ignoring Ye Yunyue.
Ye Yunyue knelt on the ground gasping for breath for a while, then looked at Luo Muge with a guess in her mind.
“Fine. I understand,” Ye Yunyue sneered, standing up and leaving with heavy steps.
Luo Muge glanced back at the direction of the kitchen, then put down her fan and walked into the kitchen. Jixia quickly turned around and sprinkled red dates into the pot. When Jixia turned back, she pretended to know nothing and asked, “Miss Luo, why did I hear voices just now? Did someone come? Was it a servant?”
“No one came.”
“Oh.” Jixia turned back.
Luo Muge casually placed her hand on Jixia’s waist and inserted a tiny silver needle.
Jixia grunted softly, confusion flashing in her bright eyes.
Luo Muge removed the needle and gently patted Jixia’s shoulder.
Jixia turned her head groggily to look at Luo Muge, surprised, “Miss Luo, how did you get here? Do you need to use the kitchen? Look at me, the sound of cooking is too loud, I didn’t even notice you coming up behind me.”
Luo Muge smiled lightly, “Yes, I came to get a pot for boiling medicine.”
“The stone pots for boiling medicine are all here. Which one do you want to use? Can I help with anything?”
Luo Muge nodded with a smile and casually picked one.
Jixia continued cooking, but inadvertently glanced towards the corner where the pots for boiling medicine were placed and noticed one was missing. She walked to the doorway in astonishment and saw that there were now two pots placed in front of Luo Muge.
“Oh, did she take two just now?” Jixia muttered to herself, “She actually needs two…”
Jixia didn’t think much of it and continued cooking.
When Luo Muge returned with the brewed soup medicine, Ji Wujing’s forearm was already filled with silver needles. He kept his eyes closed, his face pale with little expression. But Luo Muge knew how much pain Ji Wujing would be in at this moment.
Luo Muge poured the brewed soup medicine into a wooden basin filled with clear water, immediately filling the room with a peculiar fragrance.
Ji Jingyi glanced at the burning incense on the table and began to remove the silver needles from Ji Wujing’s forearm one by one. With each needle removed, a trace of black bloodstain would follow.
When half of the silver needles were removed from Ji Wujing’s forearm, he opened his eyes and looked towards the inner room.
Gu Jianli, leaning on her crutch, slowly walked out from the inner room.
“What’s wrong now?” Ji Wujing casually asked.
Gu Jianli shook her head and slowly moved to sit beside Ji Wujing, staring intently as Ji Jingyi continued to remove the silver needles from Ji Wujing’s forearm.
Luo Muge took out the cloth soaked in the medicine and wrung it slightly before starting to wipe Ji Wujing’s forearm.
“Let me do it,” Gu Jianli reached out.
Luo Muge hesitated for a moment before handing the cloth to Gu Jianli, saying, “You need to apply a bit more pressure to let the medicine soak in.”
Gu Jianli nodded and carefully wiped Ji Wujing’s forearm.
Ji Wujing looked at her lowered profile and suddenly leaned close to her ear, lowering his voice, “Can’t sleep without Uncle holding you?”
Gu Jianli’s hand paused for a moment, and she forcefully kicked Ji Wujing’s foot under the table.
Ji Wujing burst into laughter.
Gu Jianli frowned, cursing silently in her mind: Shameless!
“Is this okay now?” Gu Jianli asked.
Before Ji Jingyi could speak, Ji Wujing preempted, “No, you need to wipe the hand too, wipe it carefully.”
“Oh,” Gu Jianli responded and pulled Ji Wujing’s hand, meticulously wiping it. She wiped each finger carefully, not missing even the gaps between them.
Ji Wujing watched with amusement at Gu Jianli’s focused expression.
Ji Jingyi brought a small knife and cut Ji Wujing’s hand, which he then placed into the bowl of pale white medicinal liquid. Soon, the larvae swam out.
Ji Jingyi said, “Next, we need to administer acupuncture every seven days. After seven sessions, we can probably implant the mother larvae.”
Ji Jingyi reiterated, “Master, please don’t use your inner energy casually.”
Ji Wujing casually acknowledged.
Ji Jingyi sighed. He didn’t actually believe that the master would follow medical advice. If Ji Wujing had really taken good care of himself, why couldn’t he implant the mother larvae until now?
Although the mother larvae were not a cure, they could at least prolong his life.
Ji Jingyi and Luo Muge bid farewell and left. Ji Wujing lazily looked at Gu Jianli sitting beside him and asked, “Not sleepy?”
“Not sleepy for now.”
“Then let’s go, practice walking.” Ji Wujing stood up and without a word, picked up Gu Jianli and headed towards the inner room.
In the moment of being lifted, Gu Jianli hurriedly grabbed the crutch next to her and held onto it tightly.
Ji Wujing placed Gu Jianli at the doorway of the inner room, took the crutch from her hand, then stepped back towards the bed, saying as he stepped back, “Come over and take your crutch.”
Gu Jianli tentatively took a step forward with her left foot, but as soon as the sole of her foot touched the ground, the pain made her quickly retract her leg.
“Gu Jianli.”
“It’s, it’s not fully healed yet, just wait a bit more…” Gu Jianli nervously whispered, “Uncle…”
Ji Wujing licked his lips.
One refused to take a step, the other refused to step back, locked in a standoff.
Suddenly, Ji Wujing walked towards Gu Jianli.
Watching Ji Wujing approaching with a cold face, Gu Jianli felt uneasy, with a very bad premonition.
Gu Jianli looked at Ji Wujing standing in front of her warily.
Ji Wujing lifted the corner of his mouth slightly, revealing a smile that was far from friendly. He forcefully began to remove Gu Jianli’s clothes, his movements swift. By the time Gu Jianli reacted, she had almost been stripped clean, leaving only a delicate pair of undergarments and socks.
She hugged her chest, glaring angrily at Ji Wujing who was stepping back, demanding, “What are you doing!”
Ji Wujing shook the undergarment in his hand, smiling as he stepped back, “Come and get it then.”
TL: Updated 13 chapters!
