“What leftover poison? What wind all night?” Qingya frowned. “What exactly were you two doing?”
Ah Da realized he’d said too much and mumbled something vague. Qingya saw he didn’t want to explain and couldn’t be bothered to pry in the cold wind. Hugging her arms, she jogged back inside.
Doctor Bai, now a regular at the Marquis estate, often stayed there overnight. She quickly arrived with Li Yan. Upon entering, she saw Qian Jiaoniang and Qingya struggling to turn over Xing Muzheng’s massive body. Qian Jiaoniang was only in her inner garments, her hair loose and sweaty from head to toe. Marquis Xing was lying on his back, eyes shut, brows furrowed, lips red like blood.
As soon as she saw Doctor Bai enter, Qian Jiaoniang called out and tried to climb over Xing Muzheng to get out of bed. But despite his fevered delirium, Xing Muzheng seemed to sense she was about to leave. He suddenly opened his eyes, and in a daze, grabbed her waist and pressed her down onto his body. “Don’t go,” he muttered.
That fiery heat all over his body brought back memories of his worst days under the poison’s influence. Xing Muzheng was restless and agitated, overtaken by a helpless feeling of loss of control. There was a deep fear inside him, but knowing the person in his arms was Jiaoniang slowly calmed his mind. No matter what, as long as he had Jiaoniang, he could get through anything.
Caught off guard, Qian Jiaoniang landed sprawled atop Xing Muzheng. With so many people watching, the indecent position made her cheeks burn red. Xing Muzheng, like a child clutching his doll, wrapped both arms tightly around her, as if afraid she’d run away.
The others in the room turned crimson at the sight.
Qian Jiaoniang desperately wished she could grab the kitchen knife under her pillow and chop off his hand.
“Don’t go… I’ll treat you well…” Xing Muzheng murmured in her ear.
Qian Jiaoniang stiffened. She was the only one who heard that clearly.
It’s already too late for that, Xing Muzheng. She gritted her teeth. “What are you all standing there for? Help me!”
Everyone snapped out of it and rushed forward, trying to “pry” her free. It took several people working together to loosen his grip slightly—but just as they managed, Xing Muzheng suddenly opened his eyes. They were clear and sharp, with no trace of fever. Just one sweep of his glare made everyone, including Doctor Bai, shiver.
“Marquis, you’re ill. Madam called me to check on you,” Doctor Bai said softly.
“No need. I was poisoned by a snake, and the toxin likely hasn’t cleared. Ah Da has the antidote pills—have him bring them,” Xing Muzheng said calmly, his large hand slowly stroking Qian Jiaoniang’s hair.
His voice was perfectly normal. If not for the burning-hot body pressed against hers, Qian Jiaoniang would’ve suspected he was faking it. And now he was petting her head? What was she, a dog?
Grinding her teeth, she said, “Marquis, since you’re still conscious, would you mind raising your noble hand and letting me go?”
Xing Muzheng pretended not to hear. Qian Jiaoniang secretly pinched his waist hard. He grunted in pain and finally let her go. She slid off him.
Qingya brought over a small jacket and draped it over her.
Doctor Bai was in a difficult position. Ah Da had indeed slipped her a bottle of pills on the way over, saying they were antidotes. But as a doctor, she couldn’t just prescribe medicine without a proper diagnosis. She looked to Qian Jiaoniang, who said, “You’re the doctor. Do your job.”
Doctor Bai nodded and reached to check Xing Muzheng’s pulse. This time, whether he was too weak or simply obeying Qian Jiaoniang’s words, he didn’t resist and let her take his hand.
Doctor Bai carefully felt his pulse—it was indeed irregular, not a typical illness. Most likely poison, mixed with wind chill. She had him take the antidote and then prescribed a decoction to go along with it.
“Ah Da and the others must still be outside. I’ll go have them boil the medicine,” Qingya said, taking the prescription and leaving.
Xing Muzheng lay in bed, brows furrowed, eyes closed, his breathing heavy as if he were suffering terribly. Qian Jiaoniang, however, yawned.
“Doctor Bai, thank you. You should head back and get some rest. Li Yan, stay and watch over the Marquis. I’m going to sleep.”
“Understood…” Li Yan replied with hesitation.
Qian Jiaoniang left briskly, but paused at the doorway and glanced back once. Snake poison? What the h*ll had that man been up to?
Li Yan was stunned—her master was bedridden, and yet his wife just left like that? So this was what being the Marquis’s wife was like?
The next morning, Xing Muzheng awoke and touched his forehead—his fever had mostly subsided. Last night he had dreamed he was once again being controlled by gu poison, and then dreamed of Jiaoniang smiling gently at him. He inhaled, and her fragrance lingered faintly in the air. Letting out a light sigh, he asked where his wife was. Li Yan stammered, not daring to say that Madam had gotten up long ago and hadn’t come to see him.
At that moment, Qian Jiaoniang was having breakfast with Xing Pingchun and Li Ding, who had just returned from morning drills. Dongsheng and Zhaodi, who were on duty, stood nearby waiting on them. The two children hurriedly gobbled down several meat buns and gulped a bowl of porridge before rushing off with their schoolbags on their backs—if they were late, their teacher would smack their palms with a ruler.
Li Yan came to report that the Marquis had awakened and was asking for Madam. Qian Jiaoniang didn’t hurry. She leisurely finished her breakfast, then took the dog food to the west wing to feed the one-eyed dog.
The dog was already awake, gnawing on the embroidered ball she’d made for it. When it heard someone enter, it dropped the ball and was about to dart under the bed. But upon seeing that it was Qian Jiaoniang, it paused and stared at her intently. She placed the dog food on the ground, and waved the dog’s favorite snack back and forth in her hand to tempt it. After hesitating a while, the one-eyed dog slowly shuffled toward her, took the snack from her hand, and sat down to chew. Qian Jiaoniang gently reached to pet its head. The dog paused its chewing for a moment, then continued munching with its paws hugging the treat.
Qian Jiaoniang smiled and softly coaxed, “Good boy, good boy.” When the dog finished its treat, it lifted its head and barked at her once, even tilted its head up to lick her fingers. That bark was almost like a spoiled child’s whine, and the soft tongue brushing her fingers made her heart melt. She barked back playfully, and the dog returned the gesture. Amused, Qian Jiaoniang got caught up in the moment and played along with bark after bark, eventually laughing until her belly ached.
Suddenly, she felt as if someone were watching her from behind. She turned around, but the doorway was empty. Thinking she was just being overly sensitive, she looked away again.
Xing Muzheng was hiding just around the doorway. Leaning against the wall, he couldn’t help but smile when he recalled her childlike playfulness from a moment ago. After a while, he peeked in again, unable to resist.
Behind the curtain, Qingya had also caught sight of General Xing’s youthful expression. She had originally come looking for Qian Jiaoniang, but now, seeing this scene, she bit her lip and quietly slipped away.
Inside, Qian Jiaoniang had sat herself down on the floor and was testing to see if the one-eyed dog would let her hold it. Surprisingly, it allowed her to scoop it into her arms. She was overjoyed. “Good dog, good dog.”
Her face beamed with warmth as she gently stroked the dog’s head. Suddenly, she remembered the scene from last night when Xing Muzheng had rubbed her head the same way. Her smile froze. She shook her head to banish the thought. She let the dog go to eat its food, then pulled a tiny coat from her sleeve, clearly wanting to try dressing the dog up.
The one-eyed dog’s ears perked. Suddenly, it limped and quickly darted under the bed.
Qian Jiaoniang: “……”
Was it some kind of spirit? She hadn’t even tried to dress it yet, just took the coat out.
The one-eyed dog kept one eye fixed not on Qian Jiaoniang, but on something behind her. Then it abruptly turned around and scurried deeper under the bed.
Qian Jiaoniang gave up, stood up, and—turning around—smacked right into a hard chest. She gasped and covered her nose. Looking up, sure enough, it was Xing Muzheng. This man walked like a ghost—day or night, not a sound. If this kept up, her nose would collapse one day.
