Chapter 198 -

Chapter 198: Chapter

Wenzhe went completely limp, his dead weight crashing right into Yueqing.

"Hey—Wenzhe!"

She barely caught him before he slid off the bench, his head thudding heavily against her shoulder. His breathing came in ragged, shallow gasps.

"Wenzhe?"

She pressed her hand to his cheek. It radiated intense, searing heat. Yet just a minute ago, he had whispered that he was freezing.

Something is terribly wrong.

Yueqing slipped her hand beneath his dark robe, and her stomach instantly plummeted. A dark, ugly patch of fresh blood had soaked through the fabric near his shoulder. His stitched wound had violently torn open, the surrounding skin swollen and inflamed into a furious red.

He’s been bleeding this whole time.

How long had he sat there, gritting his teeth and pretending everything was fine?

"Wenzhe, wake up," she urged, giving his shoulder a firm shake.

She shook him harder, panic rising in her chest. "Wenzhe!"

Still unresponsive.

Without a second thought, Yueqing shoved the carriage door open and yelled out across the clearing, "Dong Li! Get over here right now!"

Dong Li dropped the reins of his horse and sprinted toward them, his face dropping the second he saw the scene. He scrambled into the carriage, checked Wenzhe’s neck for a pulse, and cursed under his breath. "His pulse is dangerously weak."

Before Dong Li could even try to revive him, the door whipped open again. Duchess Lin Meiyun pushed past, her eyes widening in horror as she took in her son’s pale, sweat-soaked face.

"Wenzhe!" she gasped, touching his burning forehead before her hand dropped to the blood staining his robe. Her breath hitched. "His wound... it reopened."

Outside, the rest of the family had gathered. Lanyin stood frozen by the wheel, tears streaming down her face, while Qianqian gripped her arm in sheer anxiety. Yunhao pushed through the guards, his jaw locked tight as he looked inside.

"He was fine a moment ago," Yunhao said, disbelief cutting through his voice.

"He wasn’t fine at all," Yueqing muttered, her hands steadying Wenzhe’s heavy head. "He was faking it."

Meiyun gently brushed a damp lock of hair from her son’s forehead, her voice thick with heartbreak. "He has done nothing else since he came home. Every single time we asked, he insisted he was recovering."

"We need a physician," Yueqing demanded, looking straight at Dong Li.

"I’ll send someone ahead to the capital—"

"No, get one right now," Meiyun interrupted sharply. She turned to the guards. "Find the nearest doctor immediately. Tell them it’s General Xi Wenzhe."

Yunhao glanced down the road toward the looming capital walls. "We are almost there. Do we keep moving?"

Meiyun hesitated only for a second before hardening her expression. "We keep going. But the moment we arrive, we bypass the crowds and take him straight to our quarters. And send word to the Emperor: the General has collapsed."

Outside, Lanyin pressed her hands against the carriage window, her voice trembling. "Wenzhe... you just came back to us. Please don’t do this."

Meiyun pulled her daughter close, burying her face in Lanyin’s hair as she whispered, "He’ll be fine. He has to be."

Inside, the carriage grew quiet again.

Yueqing adjusted his heavy cloak, trying to make him as comfortable as possible. That was when she noticed his hand. Even unconscious, his fingers were locked in a tight, unyielding grip around the fabric of her sleeve.

She stared down at his hand, any annoyance she had felt completely vanishing.

You stubborn idiot.

She placed her palm over his cold fingers, squeezing gently.

Wake up, Wenzhe.

Just wake up.

The medical kit was brought out in a flash. Lanyin rolled up her sleeves and jumped right in to help. Together, they cleaned away the fresh blood, rubbed on healing medicine, and wrapped clean bandages tightly around Wenzhe’s torn shoulder. Lanyin’s hands shook just a little as she tied the cloth, her jaw set with fierce determination to keep her brother safe.

Once the wound was tied up and Wenzhe’s heavy breathing calmed down a bit, the family packed up their things and climbed back into their carriages. The caravan didn’t waste any time. They picked up the pace, rushing straight toward the capital.

Inside the bumpy carriage, Yueqing kept a close eye on the unconscious General.

[System 009: Host, your heart rate is high. Are you worried about your patient?]

Yueqing shot a sharp mental glare at the ceiling. [Shut up, Nine. I’m just making sure he doesn’t die and ruin my peace.]

[System 009: Of course. It has nothing to do with the fact that you haven’t let go of his hand for two hours.]

Yueqing looked down and realized her fingers were still holding Wenzhe’s. She dropped his hand like hot iron, crossing her arms tightly with an angry huff.

The sun sank below the trees, painting the sky in deep orange and purple. Right as evening set in, the caravan finally reached the giant gates of the capital. Instead of stopping, the Xi family’s carriages thundered straight toward the imperial palace.

The moment they pulled into the outer courtyard, chaos broke out. A welcoming line of palace guards, silk-robed eunuchs, and nervous servant girls stood waiting to greet the hero.

Before the officials could even open their mouths, Duchess Meiyun threw open her carriage door, looking absolute deadly.

She didn’t care about manners. She locked eyes with the head eunuch, who was already shaking. "Listen to me! The General’s old injuries broke open and he collapsed. Go get the doctor right now!"

The head eunuch turned pale as paper. "B-But Duchess, the party—"

"The banquet can wait!" Meiyun roared, her voice sharp enough to slice glass. "If my son dies in this palace because you were slow, I will report you to the Emperor.. Move!"

Terrified, the eunuch bowed so hard his forehead almost hit the dirt, then turned and ran for his life.

Without losing a second, Dong Li and the strong guards lifted Wenzhe out of the carriage on a soft stretcher. They carried him fast through the long halls, heading straight for the private rooms set aside for the Xi family.

Aunt Ronghua hurried over, gently placing a hand on Meiyun’s arm and urging her to lower her voice. "Calm down, sister. He will be fine. Shouting at the eunuchs won’t help Wenzhe heal any faster."

Meiyun took a sharp, steadying breath, her shoulders finally dropping an inch as she forced her panic back down.

Gu Zhen stepped forward, his expression grave as he looked at the bustling palace staff and the closed doors of Wenzhe’s assigned quarters. "We cannot avoid the Emperor entirely," he said quietly. "If we do not show ourselves immediately, rumors will spread that we are defying the crown. The rest of us must go pay our respects and formally inform His Majesty of the General’s condition."

Meiyun nodded slowly, wiping her palms on her skirt. "You’re right. Go. Make sure the Emperor hears it from us first before some petty official twists the story."

Before the family could split up, Meiyun turned her gaze to Yueqing. "Yueqing, stay here. Guard him."

Yueqing blinked, surprised. "Me?"

"Yes," the Duchess said firmly, her eyes holding absolute trust. "Keep him safe while we are gone. Do not let anyone disturb him."

Yueqing swallowed the protest rising in her throat and nodded. "I’ll stay."

With a final, lingering look at the door to Wenzhe’s room, Gu Zhen, Meiyun, and the rest of the Xi family turned and allowed the eunuchs to lead them away toward the grand imperial hall, leaving Yueqing standing guard in the quiet hallway.

Yueqing followed closely behind as the guards carried Wenzhe’s litter down the candle-lit corridor. Lu Yue hurried right at her elbow, while Nine trailed behind them in his human form, looking completely unbothered by the grand imperial setting.

They finally reached the bedchamber assigned to the General. The guards carefully lifted Wenzhe and laid him out flat on the large, velvet-draped bed.

Soon a flustered palace physician dragged along by the terrified eunuch, bur through the doorway, clutching his wooden medicine box with shaking hands.

"Step aside! Make way!" the physician wheezed, rushing straight to the bedside.

He didn’t waste a second. He pulled out a set of silver needles, rolled back Wenzhe’s blood-soaked bandages, and went right to work examining the inflamed, torn flesh of the shoulder wound.

Yueqing watched anxiously from the edge of the bed, her arms crossed tightly over her chest. Lu Yue stood right behind her, wringing her hands, while Nine leaned lazily against the wooden doorframe, whistling a quiet, random tune.

After what felt like hours of poking, prodding, and checking Wenzhe’s weak pulse, the physician finally let out a long breath. He wiped the sweat from his forehead with a cloth, packed his needles away, and turned around to face Yueqing.

"Well?" Yueqing demanded, stepping forward. "Is he going to live?"

The old doctor bowed low, his gray beard shaking as he packed his needles.

"The General’s body is totally worn out," the doctor whispered. "His internal energy is all mixed up from the poison, and reopening that wound made him lose way too much blood. If he had gotten here even an hour later..." He stopped, looking nervous.

Yueqing crossed her arms. "Will he wake up?"

"Yes," the doctor nodded quickly. "I cleaned the cut, put medicine on it, and gave him a pill to break his fever. But he needs total rest. No traveling, no stress, and definitely no fighting for at least a month. If his fever comes back tonight, the poison could act up again."

Yueqing let out a long breath. "Good. Write down the medicine recipe. Lu Yue, go with him to the palace pharmacy and make sure they brew it right now."

"Yes, my lady," Lu Yue said, leading the doctor out the door.

Nine pushed off the doorframe as they left, a cheeky grin on his face.

[System 009: Look at that. Your tough General is actually pretty weak.]

Yueqing glared at him. [Shut up, Nine, or I’ll find a way to delete your smart mouth.]

Nine just smiled and went quiet.

Yueqing walked over to the big bed and looked down. Wenzhe was still fast asleep, his skin pale and damp against the dark pillows. The fresh bandages looked clean, but he still looked way too frail for a guy who always acted so tough.

She pulled up a wooden chair, sat down, and sighed. The palace was quiet, her family was still talking to the Emperor, and she was stuck watching over the most stubborn man in the world.

She reached out and pulled the blanket up over his chest.

Wenzhe didn’t move, but his eyebrows twitched, like he was still getting ready for a fight even in his sleep.