Chapter 7: Delighted
The Princess Dowager offered no verdict on how Xiao E's immortal arts compared to the Imperial Physicians', but she was far more pleased than when she listened to them describe her pulse.
As they walked out of the Princess Dowager's courtyard, Zhao Chengzhi couldn't stop smiling.
"You rascal, what did you learn on Qingcheng Mountain? How do you know so well how to make people happy?" he said.
Xiao E smiled. "Immortal cultivation, of course. Immortals—everyone is happy to see them."
Zhao Chengzhi burst into laughter again.
"Fine, fine. Immortal cultivation it is," he said. "Then you won't have to be like us, tossed into the army camps by His Majesty, living a miserable life."
Xiao E looked at him. "Chengzhi, even if I didn't cultivate immortality, I wouldn't have to go to the army. I'm not a member of the imperial clan."
"How are you not? Your mother is Princess Luyang," Zhao Chengzhi blurted out.
Xiao E looked at him and said flatly, "But my surname is Xiao."
Zhao Chengzhi's words stopped abruptly. He averted his gaze and gave a light cough. "...You are a Commandery Prince enfeoffed by His Majesty, so of course you are a member of the imperial clan."
He didn't want to dwell on the topic and quickly found something else to change the subject.
"The rouge was poisoned, and used for a long time—do you think it was a gift from the woman's lover?"
He clicked his tongue twice as he spoke.
"A woman adorns herself for one who delights in her. If a lover sent the rouge, she would certainly use it."
Xiao E shook his head. "I don't know."
Zhao Chengzhi stroked his chin again. "What about that one who got beaten—unlucky, isn't she? Innocently caught in a scheme..."
Before he could finish, Xiao E beside him shook his head again. "I don't know."
Zhao Chengzhi stared at him wide-eyed. "What do you mean you don't know? You uncovered the truth, brought the cause of death to light, and saved the wrongly accused from execution. You know it all best."
"I only know that the deceased was poisoned, and I know where the poison came from," Xiao E said. "I can see clearly the surface of these things, but who the killer is, and who is innocent—that, I do not know."
He looked at Zhao Chengzhi, a faint sigh in his expression.
"Cousin, the human heart cannot be seen clearly."
Zhao Chengzhi laughed in spite of himself. "Spend too long with that old Daoist, and you start talking like a mystic." He clapped him on the shoulder. "You just arrived and ran into this business—busy for days. Come on, I'll take you out for a drink."
Xiao E smiled, said nothing more, and followed him.
...
...
As dawn broke, Lin Lin woke up and stretched lazily in bed—the first stretch she'd made since coming back to life.
She had thought she would never stretch again in this lifetime.
Who would have imagined she'd die and come back?
But then she came back and was beaten half to death.
Though her injuries had actually healed considerably, she couldn't stretch while pretending to be badly hurt.
But now, at last, she had a room to herself, and she had refused the maids' company. At this moment, the space belonged to her alone.
Lin Lin gently extended her body on the bed for a moment, then made a noise by reaching for the teacup on the bedside table.
"Miss Lin, you're awake?" A voice came from outside the door. Two maids entered and looked at Lin Lin lying face-down on the bed. "You look much better today."
They swiftly cleaned up the bedpan and withdrew, while two more maids came in carrying a basin of water, attending to Lin Lin as she wiped her face, hands, and rinsed her mouth.
"Is the Princess Dowager in good health?" Lin Lin asked with concern as she chatted with them.
This apprentice asked about the Princess Dowager's health every day, the maidservants thought to themselves—this female apprentice was afraid.
Her fellow apprentice had died, and she had nearly been beaten to death herself.
If the Princess Dowager's health took a turn for the worse, she might still end up beaten to death.
The maidservants smiled to reassure her: "The Princess Dowager is doing very well, don't worry."
Lin Lin looked uneasy: "That's good to hear. I came here to serve the Princess Dowager, but instead I caused her to be startled and troubled—I truly cannot escape blame for that."
Through probing conversations over the past two days, Lin Lin had learned why she was here.
She was an apprentice of the Imperial Medical Academy.
The Imperial Medical Academy served the imperial family. With so many women in the inner court, some gynecological conditions were better handled by female physicians, so the Academy employed female doctors and consequently took on female apprentices.
This time, when the Princess Dowager of Qi fell ill, male imperial physicians had been sent, but for easier care, the Academy had assigned five female apprentices.
Now only four remained.
"It's already been investigated thoroughly—Miss Yao's rouge was poisoned on its own, it has nothing to do with you all."
"The Princess Dowager won't hold you responsible."
The maidservants comforted her.
As they were chatting animatedly, Zhang Yalan's voice came from outside the door.
She had brought the medicine.
A maidservant went out, but unlike the previous two days when she only took the medicine and came back in, Zhang Yalan followed her inside.
Lin Lin, who had been laughing and talking with the maidservants, immediately dropped her smile and deliberately turned her head away.
Zhang Yalan didn't mind her attitude and said softly, "We're about to set off."
Lin Lin immediately looked at her, asking in surprise, "What?"
The maidservants quietly withdrew, leaving the two of them to talk.
"The Princess Dowager's health has improved considerably, and now that Yao Ying's cause of death has been determined, the Princess Dowager has ordered us to return to the capital," Zhang Yalan explained. "First, to report to His Majesty, and second, to thoroughly investigate Yao Ying's death."
Lin Lin looked at her: "But I'm still injured..."
"Secretary Chen intends to take you along," Zhang Yalan said quickly. "However, I've persuaded him to let you stay behind and recover for a while before traveling."
Good, very good—leave these familiar people behind, stay at the Prince of Qi's Mansion, then take leave on my own when the time is right, and disappear on the road. From then on, I'll have a completely new identity and a new life.
Lin Lin was delighted inside, but she didn't forget to follow "Lin Lin's" nature. She stared at Zhang Yalan with a suspicious expression: "You're being this kind? You're not plotting against me again, are you?"
Before Zhang Yalan could speak, Qiao Man's voice rang out from outside the window: "Sister Yalan, I told you your kindness would be wasted!"
Huang Qin went even further, pushing the door open directly and glaring at Lin Lin: "We testified against you before, and you can't blame us for that—who told you to leave yourself exposed! You used to bully Yao Ying, and now that Yao Ying is dead, you're bullying us."
Lin Lin propped herself up and shouted, "Who's bullying you? It's you who's bullying me!"
Zhang Yalan hurriedly steadied her: "Lie down quickly, don't move, be careful with your wounds."
"You're injured—Secretary Chen won't look after you, and traveling will only make your wounds worse," Qiao Man also walked to the doorway and said angrily from outside, "To get you permission to stay and recover, Sister Yalan knelt outside the Secretary's door for half a day!"
Zhang Yalan turned back and looked at them helplessly: "Stop talking."
Qiao Man and Huang Qin stamped their feet in indignation. "Who cares if she lives or dies?" "Good intentions get no thanks." And with that, they stormed off.
Lin Lin made a show of exhaustion and collapsed back onto the bed. Zhang Yalan hurried over to check her wounds, but Lin Lin pushed her hand away.
Then, however, she lifted her head and looked at Zhang Yalan.
"You..." she said through gritted teeth, "thank you."
With that, she turned her head away.
Zhang Yalan was startled for a moment, then pursed her lips into a smile.
...
...
The room fell quiet again, filled with the scent of medicinal herbs.
Zhang Yalan brought the bowl of herbal medicine over from the desk and fed Lin Lin spoonful by spoonful.
"After all, Yao Ying is dead, and Secretary Chen is in a hurry to return to the capital to report the situation, so the journey will certainly be rushed," she said softly. "Superficial wounds fare worst with jostling. If you stay here to recover for half a month before traveling, it'll be much better."
After thanking her, Lin Lin fell silent, but she drank the medicine Zhang Yalan fed her.
"Also, don't worry about the disciple examination," Zhang Yalan added.
The disciple examination—a flicker of information passed through Lin Lin's mind. Right, earlier she had heard them mention that one of the reasons they accused her of being the murderer was her struggle with Yao Ying over the position of Physician Liao's disciple.
This must be something very important.
Lin Lin reacted immediately, stopping mid-sip of her medicine and looking at Zhang Yalan with a tense expression.
Zhang Yalan quickly said, "I'll explain to Physician Liao that Yao Ying's death has nothing to do with you—you've been dragged into this instead." She smiled again as she spoke. "Stay here and recover, review your lessons well, and once we return to the capital, we'll take the selection exam together."
From this statement, Lin Lin gleaned another piece of information—was Zhang Yalan also competing for the disciple position?
That made sense. With so many female apprentices, everyone probably had the right to compete.
She pressed her lips together and looked at Zhang Yalan. "You all should review your lessons well on the road too."
Zhang Yalan fed her the last spoonful of medicine. "No matter how much I review, I can't match you. I'm just joining in for the fun of it—you and Yao Ying were the best students."
So that could also mean—now that Yao Ying was dead, she was the only best one left. Lin Lin looked at the empty medicine bowl before her and ended the conversation. "Then we'll meet in the capital."
...
...
When Zhang Yalan left Lin Lin's side and returned to the courtyard of the Imperial Medical Academy apprentices, the others were already bustling about loading the carts.
Qiao Man and Huang Qin were waiting for her.
"Secretary Chen is urging us again," Qiao Man said. "We shouldn't have made that extra trip over there. Why bother with her?"
Zhang Yalan replied, "How could we not bother? We all came together."
With that, she looked at the cart belonging to their group of apprentices.
Five people had come in two carts; only three were returning, so only one cart had been arranged.
A faint smile gradually crept across her lips.
"We're heading back—happy, aren't you?" Huang Qin noticed the smile and asked.
Zhang Yalan's smile deepened. "Yes, I miss home."