Before this, Mu Lingsu could never have imagined that at this critical moment, Yu Linzhi would actually put his own life and death aside and block a knife to protect her. She was obviously unharmed, but when she saw the blood on her hands and the deep knife wound on Yu Linzhi's back, Mu Lingsu felt as if her heart was cut by a knife. As a doctor, she was used to seeing bloody scars, but now looking at the man in her arms with a pale face lying in a pool of blood, she was actually a little at a loss.
"Yu Linzhi..." The bright blood color stimulated Mu Lingsu's vision. She covered his wound with trembling hands and couldn't say anything else.
She could no longer think, she only wondered if he was in pain, and why he blocked the knife for her. Everything happened too fast, she only saw the cold light of the sword flash before her eyes, and then Yu Linzhi protected her with his back, and then... there was blood everywhere.
Mu Lingsu could never have guessed that Yu Linzhi would help her block a fatal danger one day. She believed that her friendship with Yu Linzhi was not deep enough to make her life more important than his own. Even in the critical moment just now, Yu Linzhi at most pulled her aside to avoid it, instead of blocking a knife for her when there might be a chance to ensure the safety of both of them.
She had always thought that Yu Linzhi treated her as a friend in the underworld, no different from the leader of this gang or the head of that faction.
Doesn't it hurt? It hurt so much when it pierced her skin and caused so much blood to flow, why did he still try to protect her from the danger? The bearded man was coming towards her, why didn't he choose to pull her aside, but instead blocked it himself?
Mu Lingsu's thoughts were in a mess, with thousands of thoughts flooding into her eyes. She couldn't make sense of anything. She just hugged the man in front of her with a dull look in her eyes, pressing his wound numbly .
Yu Linzhi was in great pain and lost blood quickly. Although he was conscious, he had no strength to speak. He moved his right hand, and the pain from the wound made him gasp, but he insisted on raising his right hand and covering the back of Mu Lingsu's hand. Although this action was simple, it made him break out in a cold sweat.
Mu Lingsu held his hand in hers, her heart aching as if being cut by a thousand knives. She saw countless patients covered in blood in front of her, but she couldn't accept that Yu Linzhi would have such a day.
The bearded man saw Yu Linzhi injured and, regardless of the original target being Mu Lingsu, waved his hand and said, "Take the princess and that Kushan away!"
Without anyone noticing, Sutija had already been captured by them, and he seemed to be injured.
Mu Lingsu paid full attention to Yu Linzhi's injuries, without paying any attention to others. When Su Tijia was taken away from her, she didn't even remember to check him to see if he was really injured or if there were any signs of fighting or resistance on his body.
Shen Qingyu turned around and took out his sword, then drew it out and stabbed the robber who was holding the unconscious Shen Hanyan in the back: "Let her go!"
He didn't know where these people would take Shen Hanyan, and he was so anxious that he just wanted to snatch his sister back from them.
The bearded man probably had expected Shen Qingyu to do this, and he calmly placed the dagger in his sleeve on Shen Hanyan's face: "My Lord, don't refuse a toast and drink a forfeit."
With a "ding" sound, Shen Qingyu dejectedly put down the sword in his hand and let them go.
Mu Lingsu brought Yu Linzhi back to the Yu residence and bandaged him to stop the bleeding. After a flurry of activity, it was almost three quarters past midnight. She told the servant to pack up her medicine box, stood up from Yu Linzhi's bed, and took a nap on the chaise longue that was prepared for her to keep watch, ready to get up at any time to check on him. Although she was lying down, her spirit was still tense.
After the incident, the people from the Yu Mansion arrived too quickly. The housekeeper told her that someone had sent him a message in her name, saying that Yu Linzhi was injured in Wulin Dream, and asked the housekeeper to quickly prepare a carriage and medicine to pick him up. Who informed the housekeeper, and how did the person who informed the housekeeper know that Yu Linzhi would definitely be injured?
She wanted to force herself to rest, but as soon as she closed her eyes, she saw the scene of Yu Linzhi lying in a pool of blood. When she took off his clothes just now, she found that the wound was only an inch long, but she didn't expect that it had pierced a large blood vessel, so so much blood flowed out. She actually didn't want to recall the scene of applying medicine to him, but her brain was out of control. As long as she closed her eyes, she saw the scene of Yu Linzhi being injured. Fortunately, everything is fine.
After an unknown amount of time, Mu Lingsu finally felt a little sleepy and fell asleep. Unfortunately, this hard-earned sleep did not last long. She was soon awakened by the sound of tables and chairs colliding. She opened her eyes and saw that Yu Linzhi had gotten out of bed and was stumbling towards the table.
"What are you doing?" Mu Lingsu didn't even have time to put on her shoes. She rushed over and held his left arm to prevent him from falling down. When she got closer, she found that Yu Linzhi's forehead was covered with beads of sweat, and his fingernails were white because of excessive force. It was obvious that he was in pain.
Yu Linzhi said weakly: "I want to drink some water... I wanted to ask you to help me, but you are asleep, so I can't disturb you..."
Mu Lingsu helped Yu Linzhi lie down on the bed while saying, "I stayed in your room just to wait for you to wake up. Why don't you bother me?" She gently uncovered the clothes on Yu Linzhi's back and breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that there was no bleeding from the wound. "Fortunately, the wound is fine, otherwise I would have worked in vain tonight."
"Thank you for your hard work." Yu Linzhi had an injury on his back, so he could only lie prone on the bed. He looked down at the ground and saw Mu Lingsu standing in front of the bed with a pair of bare white feet.
Yu Linzhi looked at the carefully painted red nail polish on Mu Lingsu's toes and for some reason found it cute. He had never realized that she was such a thoughtful person, even her toes, which were not visible to outsiders, were decorated so delicately.
He said, "Xiao Mu, sit down."
Mu Lingsu didn't even notice that she wasn't wearing shoes. She was about to pour him a glass of water, but he wanted to sit down by himself: "You don't want to drink water?"
Yu Linzhi shook his head and said, "You are not wearing shoes, and the ground is cold. Don't stand there. Put your feet on the bed."
"Huh?" Mu Lingsu then looked down at her feet and found that she was really not wearing shoes. She was suddenly embarrassed and quickly ran back to the chaise longue to find shoes to put on.
Yu Linzhi looked at her back, his heart moved, and asked: "Xiao Mu, have you never hated me, and never thought of killing me?"
His grandfather indirectly killed her adoptive father, and her family fell into decline, mostly due to Gu Cheng's advice to the emperor. The hatred of killing his father and exterminating his family, if it were an ordinary person, he would probably want to cut his enemy's grandson into pieces. But Mu Lingsu never wanted to kill him, not even once. Yu Linzhi wanted to ask this question countless times, but he always felt that the time was not right. I don't know what happened tonight, he suddenly had the courage to ask this question.
Mu Lingsu had just put on her left shoe with her right foot still on the ground. When she heard Yu Linzhi ask this question, she couldn't help but tense up all over and the toes of her right foot curled up.
Yu Linzhi was weak and sickly, and as his doctor, she had countless opportunities to kill him. But she never took advantage of the situation and killed him in the name of treatment. If she said that she couldn't bear it because of her professional ethics as a doctor, it would definitely be a high-sounding lie.
At first, she didn't want to kill him because he saved her life and gave her the ability and capital to support her family. Later, she didn't want to kill him because she found that in the vast world, only Yu Linzhi could be relied on - not relying on him to survive, but a comfort to her soul. Only in front of Yu Linzhi could she get away from the heavy family responsibilities, ignore those family matters, and take a breath. But if she confides all this to him, will he believe it?
"I am not an ungrateful person. You saved my life, and I will only repay you double, not repay kindness with resentment." She said softly.
To Yu Linzhi, her voice was like misty clouds, which he could not grasp or hold tightly. At this moment, Mu Lingsu had her back to him. He was lying on the bed and could not move easily, so he could not see her expression at this moment.
He didn't know what she was thinking, nor could he judge whether he was wrong to bring up this topic. He only knew that once this topic started, it would not end easily. Maybe Mu Lingsu had been paralyzed for many years, or maybe she didn't dare to think about revenge anymore. But as long as it was brought up, the past grievances would be revived between the two people.
"Your grandfather was Defei's man, and my father was the Queen's man. When two parties fight, they always need a pawn." Mu Lingsu's tone was light, as if the dead person was just a passerby who had nothing to do with her.
She remembered that she had one shoe that was not put on properly, and she lowered her head to find the shoe, but she found that her eyes were blurry and she could not see anything clearly. She then realized that she was about to cry.
Mu Lingsu put on her shoes and tried to hold back her tears. She went to the table and poured a glass of water for Yu Linzhi. She walked to the bed and handed it to him: "Can you drink it yourself?"
Yu Linzhi didn't know what was wrong, but he immediately knew that something was wrong with Mu Lingsu's voice. He reached back and held Mu Lingsu's hand: "Xiao Mu, don't cry."
When Mu Lingsu felt her skin touching Yu Linzhi's, she couldn't hold back her tears any longer. She had never felt so tired in her life. She had been running around all her life, but Yu Linzhi was the only one who comforted her like this. They had walked hand in hand for eight years. They were not friends, and the hatred had faded. Their relationship was complicated, but they could rely on each other. But they had never been close.
Maybe others would think she was vulnerable, and the comfort of others could make her cry instantly. But who knew that without Yu Linzhi, her life would be a million times more difficult than it is now.
"It was the Queen who framed my father and put the blame on Concubine De." Mu Lingsu had to bring up the past again. The struggle in the harem was never limited to framing the concubines, but also their children and their family power. The roots were intertwined and one move could affect the whole body.
She had left the palace for many years, but still could not escape from the center of the storm. I am afraid that Yu Linzhi is also the same. Although he is the son of the leader of the martial arts world, he is also the most valued grandson of the prime minister. If he wants to get out of this unscathed, it will be even more difficult than Mu Lingsu.
Yu Linzhi said: "Of course I know about Concubine De's affairs. How could I not know what you said?"
Yu Linzhi knew that his grandfather's memorial impeaching Mu Simiao was written because of Concubine De's letter. If Concubine De had not collected evidence in advance, a cautious civil servant like his grandfather would never have written an impeachment memorial while serving as the prime minister. Only a personal order from Concubine De could have allowed him to write an impeachment memorial.
Mu Lingsu was still crying. Yu Linzhi could only stand up slowly because of the wounds on his body. He moved slowly and gently, kneeling on the bed. His eyes fell on her hands, and the next second, he hugged her from behind as if possessed by a ghost: "Xiao Mu, you have suffered so much for nothing."
"I'm sorry." These three words were like thousands of arrows piercing her heart, instantly breaking down Mu Lingsu's psychological defenses. She felt weak all over, and if Yu Linzhi hadn't been behind her, she would have collapsed long ago.
Does she need to apologize? No, she doesn't, but someone always needs to apologize to her.
Any apology that cannot change the established facts is useless. However, unlike her indifference when Shen Qingyu apologized to her before, Yu Linzhi's apology made her feel relieved instantly. Perhaps in a corner that she herself did not realize, she had actually been waiting for an apology from Yu Linzhi in her heart so that she could completely let go of her hatred.
It is so tiring to be sustained by hatred.
The next day before dawn, the butler knocked on Yu Linzhi's door, as if it was an emergency. When he heard the noise said, "Master, His Royal Highness Prince Yi Yang knows that you are temporarily safe and has already left for Beijing."
The housekeeper had no idea that Mu Lingsu, a girl, had stayed in Yu Linzhi's bedroom until dawn, and naturally didn't know that the noise was actually the sound of Mu Lingsu falling off the chaise longue when she was half asleep. Mu Lingsu was awakened by the pain, and when she heard that it was the housekeeper, she didn't dare to cry out in pain, and walked quietly to the bed to wake up Yu Linzhi.
Mu Lingsu pointed at the door awkwardly, and Yu Linzhi guessed that it was the housekeeper who came, and asked, "What's the matter?"
The butler repeated, "Master, His Royal Highness Prince Yi Yang knows that you have nothing to do for the time being, and has already set off to return to the capital."
Such a hurry must be because of Princess Yongjia's matter. Yu Linzhi didn't ask any more questions, asked the housekeeper to leave first, and said to Mu Lingsu: "If Shen Qingyu brings the court people here, will I die?"
He was not actually afraid of death, but he was annoyed by the fact that there were too many people in the court. The people in the Jianghu were originally unemployed vagrants in the eyes of the court, disturbing social order and threatening the country. Now that the queen's precious daughter was missing, their situation could only get worse.
"How could your grandpa bear to do that?" Mu Lingsu asked him to lie down, checked his wound, and changed his dressing. "Although the prince is the queen's son now, Concubine De is the one who controls the power of the six palaces and favors the concubine. On the surface, the queen is glorious, but in reality, Concubine De got the upper hand."
Mu Lingsu took the medicine bottle beside her, poured the ointment on the gauze, and gently applied the medicine to him: "As long as Concubine De is not in power, the candidate for the Eastern Palace will change; as long as Concubine De does not fall out of favor, the court will have no way to deal with you. "
Of course, Yu Linzhi is Yu Linzhi, and Yu Jianwu is Yu Jianwu. No father in this world would forgive a man who induced his daughter to elope.
Yu Linzhi also thought of this, and was a little frustrated: "What should I do with my father?"
"Perhaps, this case of Princess Yongjia being kidnapped is a great opportunity for you to negotiate , achieve an exchange of interests, and save your father's life." Mu Lingsu took the large scissors beside her and cut the gauze with a "swish" sound, and began to bandage. "The kidnappers are obviously gangsters from outside the Great Wall. Compared with you, the court may not have any good solutions."
Mu Lingsu's idea was correct. The children of Jianghu, to put it nicely, were wandering around the world with swords, to put it bluntly, they were refugees and bandits. There was no essential difference between them and these robbers. They could be considered "fellow travelers" and their codes of conduct were actually not that far apart.
The imperial court always thought highly of itself and might not be able to deal with the robbers. They had never looked at the people of Jianghu seriously and thought that the vagrants and bandits were not worth fighting with personally. Naturally, some ministers would advise the emperor to entrust the Wulin League to negotiate with the robbers.
Yu Linzhi savored Mu Lingsu's words and felt that they made some sense: "That's good. My grandfather won't agree to let my father go. When the queen sees that my grandfather disagrees, she will definitely disagree with him. I hope the queen can persuade His Majesty to save my father's life."
In this life, Yu Linzhi's luckiest thing was that he had a grandfather who was an official in the court and a father who was a gangster, but his unluckiest thing was also that he had a grandfather who was an official in the court and a father who was a gangster. Being caught between the two, he felt like his days were passing by like years.
When he was young, he lived in his grandfather's house. His grandfather either didn't mention his father, or said that his father was a gangster, a bad guy, and a heartless man who cheated on his mother and abandoned her. Later, when he returned to the Yu Mansion to recognize his ancestors and found that his father had never married and didn't even have a maid, he realized how deep his grandfather's hatred for his father was.
But as a junior, he couldn't stand up and accuse his grandfather. Although his grandfather was at odds with his father and even wanted to kill his father, he couldn't forget his grandfather's kindness in bringing him up and blindly side with his father.
Love, hate, and vengeance in the world are like this. Once these emotions blind one's eyes, one will subconsciously have prejudices when looking at others. He could not change his grandfather's prejudice against his father, so he could only work hard to deal with the two and seek a balance.
A few days later, a letter was delivered to the Yu Mansion. There were no other items in the letter, only Sutijia's jade disk and Shen Hanyan's princess seal, and then the token of the Western Region Chongguang Sect, the black iron lion token.
He never expected that Chongguang Sect would reorganize its forces and make a comeback in just three years.
The Central Plains martial arts world has been peaceful for only a dozen years, and is about to return to a turbulent time.