Chapter 149: Chapter 149: I Already Have a Beloved, He Is a Star in the Sky
They were pouring water filled with ice blocks into it.
Ji Qingwu stood at the door, her brow furrowing as well.
’In a brothel, there are many ways to induce a miscarriage. Besides forcing down potent, harmful concoctions, there’s also the method of viciously striking the lower back with a laundry pestle. And this ice water bath is another one of them.’
Duan Mingfeng’s hands, hanging at his sides, were already clenched into tight fists.
He said in a low voice, "Princess, the child in her womb is Lord Li’s, after all. If you act so recklessly, aren’t you afraid of damaging your relationship with Lord Li?"
The corner of Princess Qingyun’s mouth curled into a cold sneer, her eyes glinting with disdain.
"Mr. Duan, your desire to play the hero saving the damsel in distress is admirable, but I’m afraid this brothel girl has no room for you in her heart."
Mo Lingling’s moans of pain grew louder. Duan Mingfeng said no more and forcefully shoved one of the old crones aside.
Princess Qingyun pointed at him and raged, "When did it become your place to criticize my actions? Men, ’escort’ Duan Envoy out!"
Several guards standing behind Qingyun closed in. Duan Mingfeng’s hand was already on the Soft Sword at his waist.
Ji Qingwu’s gaze never left Mo Lingling. She could see the woman was about to collapse.
She pushed the door open and strode to the tub.
Everyone was startled by the sudden intrusion of the female figure who swept through them like a gust of fresh wind.
Ji Qingwu asked, "How are you? Can you hold on?"
Mo Lingling’s consciousness was fading. Ji Qingwu patted her face. "Wake up. You can’t fall asleep."
In her urgency, she patted hard enough to turn the woman’s face red. Mo Lingling’s eyes flew open, and she said in disbelief, "Fifth Miss Ji, you’re here."
Seeing Ji Qingwu’s sudden appearance, Princess Qingyun’s arrogant demeanor subsided considerably. But then she saw her run straight over and show concern for that lowly female servant first.
"Fifth Cousin, come here."
Ji Qingwu looked back. "Qingyun, let her go for now. She’s in very bad condition."
Ji Qingwu didn’t want to get involved in their tangled grievances—nor could she—but she couldn’t just stand by and watch a vibrant life be tortured to death right in front of her.
Ji Qingwu stared intently at Princess Qingyun.
Her gaze was no longer gentle. Deep within her clear eyes, a dark glint swirled, giving rise to an unyielding resolve.
Princess Qingyun found the look very familiar.
During the hunt, when her Fifth Cousin had risked danger to leap onto her horse and save her, she had worn this very same expression.
Qingyun stubbornly pressed her lips together and said nothing, but she didn’t try to stop them either.
Ji Qingwu said to Duan Mingfeng, "Come here. Don’t just stand there like a statue. Give me a hand." His body swayed slightly as if startled from a dream.
The two of them quickly untied the ropes binding the trembling Mo Lingling and were about to pull her out of the water.
With a high-pitched, shrill scream, Mo Lingling looked at the water in the tub and slid back in, terrified.
In the light-brown wooden tub, the once-clear water began to bloom with the color of blood. Because the water was so cold, the blood hadn’t floated to the surface; much of it had already clotted and settled at the bottom. The ice water had numbed the pain, so it was only after she tried to get up that Mo Lingling realized she was bleeding.
Duan Mingfeng’s hand, which was holding Mo Lingling’s arm, began to tremble unnaturally—shaking even more violently than she was from the cold water.
Ji Qingwu glanced at him and said calmly, "Carry her into the room and lay her down flat."
Then she said to the old crones at the side, "Go prepare hot water, a clean knife and scissors, and bring a jar of strong spirits."
The crones, naturally, wouldn’t obey her command.
Duan Mingfeng carried Mo Lingling away first, leaving a trail of crimson dots on the path he walked.
Ji Qingwu looked at Princess Qingyun and said urgently, "Zhao Jiayun, tell your people to hurry!"
Princess Qingyun was startled by her suddenly sharp gaze. The way her Fifth Cousin said her name was just as terrifying as when her Imperial Brother did.
A complex emotion welled up inside her. Reluctantly, she said, "Do as my Fifth Cousin says."
Ji Qingwu entered the room with two of the crones.
Mo Lingling lay on the wide Agarwood bed, seemingly devoid of any sign of life.
Duan Mingfeng stood beside the shark-silk gauze curtains, his hands stained with blood. As he stared at the person on the bed, a gloomy aura filled the entire room.
The room felt like Yama Hall, and the crones were too afraid to step forward.
Ji Qingwu walked up and gave Duan Mingfeng a direct shove, making him stagger and snapping him back to his senses.
"Don’t just stand there like an idiot. Take this prescription, get the medicine, see to it that it’s decocted, and bring it here immediately."
Duan Mingfeng had never seen the delicate Fifth Miss Ji act so fierce. A piece of paper was shoved into his hand.
He looked down at it. Because of the urgency, the characters on the prescription were written with uneven strokes, like a kite with a broken string.
Seeing him frozen, staring motionlessly at the prescription she’d written, Ji Qingwu said in exasperation, "The apothecary’s physician will be able to read it!"
’In such a dire emergency, who has time to worry about penmanship? My calligraphy isn’t good to begin with.’
Then, she practically threw Duan Mingfeng out. In a critical moment like this, there was no time for him to be dazed.
「More than an hour passed.」
When Ji Qingwu opened the door again, the faint smell of blood still lingered in the room.
The moment she pushed open the door, she saw Qingyun and Duan Mingfeng glaring at each other like two fighting cocks.
Seeing Ji Qingwu appear, Duan Mingfeng immediately asked, "Miss Ji, how is she?"
Ji Qingwu nodded. "Her life is no longer in danger, but the child couldn’t be saved."
Princess Qingyun let out a long sigh of relief.
Ji Qingwu’s voice returned to its usual gentle softness.
"Mr. Duan, give her the decoction. Please, no matter what it takes, you must make sure she drinks it."
The feeling of being ordered around by this Fifth Miss Ji still lingered.
Without thinking, Duan Mingfeng nodded quickly. Just then, the medicine finished brewing. He took the bowl and went inside.
Ji Qingwu said, "The child is gone now. You should go back, Princess."
Princess Qingyun exclaimed, "You’re going to stay here and take care of her?!"
Ji Qingwu looked up at Qingyun, her eyes soft and bright. It was as if the severity Qingyun had seen in them before was just a figment of her imagination.
"Please, go back first, Princess."
"Fifth Cousin."
Princess Qingyun said with a wronged expression, "This Mo Lingling is an outsider! You won’t help me, and instead, you choose to help her! She’s the one who shamelessly seduced my Prince Consort!"
"An outsider?"
’How amusing,’ Ji Qingwu thought. ’Since when was I on the same side as this tyrannical little princess?’
"You’re my Fifth Cousin. You saved my life last time without a care for your own. What happened before... I, I was wrong. I’ve been grateful to you in my heart, but you can’t conspire with an outsider to humiliate me."
The more Qingyun spoke, the more aggrieved she felt, and her eyes reddened as she stared at Ji Qingwu.
It was as if Ji Qingwu were the heartless scoundrel...
Ji Qingwu was silent for a moment before saying, "Princess, you have a noble status. As long as your Imperial Brother is here, no one can bully you. I don’t want to get involved in your affairs. I am merely fulfilling my duty as a healer."
Princess Qingyun said, "Fifth Cousin, you’re being terribly biased. Is it because you still have feelings for Li Chengxun, so you wanted to save his child?"
This absurd accusation made Ji Qingwu’s brow tighten.
She said, "You’re madly in love with Li Chengxun. Shouldn’t you love everything about him? Why would you want to get rid of his child?"
Qingyun was rendered speechless by her retort.
Ji Qingwu pressed her lips together and continued, "I will only say this once. I already have someone in my heart. He is a star in the heavens; Li Chengxun is but dust on the ground. Please do not tarnish the one I love."
"Who is it?" Qingyun pressed.
Neither of them noticed a figure standing in the shadows of the second-floor corridor.
