Chapter 66: A Clear Sign of Poisoning!

October 31, 2022Merchie

The small man in the wooden tub suddenly felt a strange chill against his back. He blinked several times, but he only caught a glimpse of what appeared to be a layer of black fog. He couldn’t suppress the fear that was rising in his chest, gripping the edge of the tub with his fingers.

“Xiao Zhuzi, is that you?”

He thought that the young soldier who had been attending to him had returned. He turned his head, but it was too dark; he could only see the faint outline of a figure standing behind him.

But that person didn’t reply.

The small man didn’t think too much of it. He turned back around and continued to soak in the bath.

“Xiao Zhuzi, the candle went out, could you relight it?”

The figure stayed silent.

“The water has already cooled down…” The little prince murmured.

The person behind Qi Changyi picked up the basin beside him and poured some hot water into the tub. Wisps of steam suddenly curled upward.

A bit of hot water splashed onto the small man’s arm, scalding him. He quickly lifted his arm out of the tub, held it, and began to blow softly on the patch of pink skin.

“Huu~hah, huu~ hah, huu~”

That small, slender arm was as white as a slice of lotus root, and it seemed to emit a soft glow against the darkness. But this beautiful sight was fleeting; in a flash, that patch of bright, snowy skin was submerged in the murky black medicinal bath once more.

Having soaked in the bath for so long, the small man’s limbs were limp and relaxed; it was as if his bones had been turned to jelly. He was also a little dizzy from the herbal aroma.

“Xiao Zhuzi, have I soaked for long enough? Can I get out now?”

The person standing behind him still didn’t respond. Instead, a pair of hands suddenly gathered Qi Changyi’s ink-black hair and draped it over his bare left shoulder, while a small handkerchief was placed on his right.

“Xiao Zhuzi, what are you doing this for?”

The hand holding the handkerchief reached down into the tub. The cloth was dipped into the black medicinal juice and placed on the little prince’s shoulder once again. The person began to wipe Qi Changyi’s smooth, tender skin, making sure that the parts of his body that hadn’t been submerged in the bath were rubbed with the dark liquid.

“Oh, so you left to get a handkerchief?” His exposed shoulders were drenched in the steaming medicinal bathwater and the small man sighed blissfully.

“Haaah~”

He suddenly began to cough.

That same cool hand gently patted his back.

The little prince hacked for quite a while before his coughing finally subsided, and he panted for breath. Along with the bitterness of the medicinal brew, a sweet, fishy taste filled his mouth as well.

“I don’t feel good…” Qi Changyi said as he clutched his chest, which felt a little tight, unable to catch his breath.

“Xiao Zhuzi, tell me, what kind of illness do I have? Why do I always feel so uncomfortable…”

The hand wiping his shoulders paused.

“Brother Tang doesn’t tell me anything. I have to drink a ton of medicine every day, and now I need to take a medicinal bath too. Am I, am I…”

Qi Changyi’s voice trailed off. He couldn’t bring himself to finish his sentence. Instead, he pressed his lips shut as his eyes reddened.

He didn’t say anything more; he simply allowed that pair of hands to continue wiping his shoulders with the soaked handkerchief.

After an unknown length of time, the gentle rubbing movements ceased.

Qi Changyi stayed in the tub for a little longer, before he asked, “Xiao Zhuzi, I don’t want to soak in the bath anymore, I’m dizzy, can I get out now…”

His request was met with silence.

Qi Changyi thought that to be a bit strange. He looked behind him; there was no sign of anyone.

“This Xiao Zhuzi…when did he leave? Why didn’t he tell me…”

Qi Changyi stood up by himself and tried to step out of the wooden tub. But just as his legs straightened, he was overcome with dizziness; it was as though his eyes were covered in a layer of blood-red mist that blurred his vision.

Qi Changyi clutched the edge of the tub and bent over, a paroxysm of violent coughs escaping him. Fresh blood surged up through his throat. He finally couldn’t hold himself up any longer and collapsed back into the tub.

He didn’t know how long he had fainted for this time, but he was in the midst of another long dream. Yet it felt so real and vivid that he could even hear Pei Zheng’s soft voice against his ear, “Your Highness, Your Highness…”

His eyes opened halfway; his vision was still blurry, and everything in his sight was dyed red. Qi Changyi blinked hard, but instead of disappearing, the bloody haze became even more intense.

“Why…is the sky red…”

A hand reached under the blanket and clasped his palm.

“You’re awake?”

Qi Changyi’s body froze before he began to shiver, and his breaths became quick and shallow.

In a panic, he grabbed the hand that was holding his and tore his palm out of its grasp with all his might. Then pushed the blanket aside and tried to get out of bed, but he only staggered a few steps before collapsing to the floor.

His palms and knees had been rubbed raw and were stinging with pain, but Qi Changyi couldn’t feel it. He tried desperately to lift himself to a standing position but with every attempt, he merely fell back onto the floor.

He had just woken up and was already extremely weak. The small man had exerted all his energy in this bout of struggling, and could only stay sprawled over the ground, his entire body trembling in fear.

The sound of footsteps reached his ears. A pair of boots stopped in front of him before the little prince was pressed firmly into a slightly frigid embrace.

“Where do you think you’re going? Hm?” Pei Zheng’s voice was smooth and thin, “The moment you see me, you try to run away? Do you really think that I won’t break your legs?”

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Qi Changyi was too weak to struggle. He had no choice but to let Pei Zheng carry him back to the bed and lay him back down.

It had been quite some time since they had last seen each other. The small man seemed to have gotten thinner; he felt extremely light in Pei Zheng’s arms.

“Zhao Litang took you away, and you’ve been reduced to this state? I thought he would be capable of taking care of you, but you somehow look even more lifeless.”

Pei Zheng’s fingers gently traced the little prince’s face, and finally rested upon his small, delicate chin.

“Ugh…” Qi Changyi cried out in pain, “It hurts…Brother Tang…he…treats me very well…”

“He treats you very well? He leaves you here all alone just so he can head off to battle in the name of his so-called righteousness?”

Pei Zheng grabbed his chin and forced the small man to face him, before staring into Qi Changyi’s dull eyes without saying a word.

That pair of eyes shouldn’t look this dead; where was the spirit and vitality that was once present?

Pei Zheng finally noticed that something was off about him. He reached forward and waved his hand in his face, but the little prince didn’t react in the slightest. Instead, a few crystal tears seeped from the corners of his eyes.

“Look at me.”

Qi Changyi’s eyes shifted, but he could not tell where Pei Zheng was.

“I told you to look at me!” Pei Zheng’s voice rose.

Qi Changyi was frightened by his sudden roar, and an unending torrent of tears began to roll down his cheeks, “I…I can’t see you…it’s so red…just like…like blood…”

Just as he finished speaking, the small man burst into a coughing fit, and his tears flowed out even faster. He bent over and sank into the blanket, and then, a large mouthful of blood sprayed out of his mouth all over the bed.

That smear of bright red stabbed deeply into Pei Zheng’s eyes. In the past, the small man would only bleed from external wounds. But now, he was vomiting blood due to internal injuries. He couldn’t help but think back to the previous night, to what the small man said as he soaked in the medicinal bath.

He was ill, uncomfortable, and had to drink medicine every day…

If he hadn’t been provoked by the little prince’s words and hadn’t forced him to stay in the bath, maybe he wouldn’t have fainted in the tub.

At this point, Pei Zheng was beginning to panic. With shaky hands, he reached out and pulled the small man into his chest.

“Cheng Feng!”

Cheng Feng immediately rushed into the barracks.

“Find that soldier who understands medicine, quickly!”

When Wu Quan hurried over, he didn’t even bother to ask why His Highness was in Pei Zheng’s room. When he saw that part of the bed was covered in blood, he was terrified. He ran over and grabbed Qi Changyi’s arm to check his pulse.

“His pulse is extremely weak, and he’s hardly showing any signs of life! What the hell is going on!” Wu Quan was so anxious that a layer of sweat appeared on his forehead. He quickly pulled Qi Changyi’s eyelids up to check as well.

“Something is wrong with His Highness’s eyes, what happened?”

Pei Zheng had been holding the small man’s other hand the entire time. That little palm felt so soft and weak in his grasp.

“Just now, he said that everything in his vision was blood-red. It seemed like he couldn’t see.”

Pei Zheng’s voice was low and didn’t reveal any emotions.

Wu Quan was shocked when he heard this, and immediately shouted at the top of his lungs.

“Lord Pei! Since my general has brought the little Highness here, it’s too late for you to try to regain his trust. How could he become like this just after seeing you again?! As a general, he has an important role; if it weren’t for him having no choice but to go to the battlefield, His Highness, wouldn’t have…he wouldn’t have fallen into your hands!”

“What did you say?” Pei Zheng looked at Wu Quan, his eyes cold and murderous. He was only worried for the little prince. But it was true that not everyone was trying to abuse and conquer him1.

Wu Quan had spoken out of turn. Since Zhao Litang wasn’t around, all of the words he had been itching to say suddenly poured out of him.

“This subordinate is crude and simple-minded and is not nearly as clever or as thoughtful as you. However, during the past few days, this subordinate has diligently cared for the little Highness. This subordinate has heard stories about His Highness’s tragic past from the general. He spent his entire life in as twisted of a place as the royal palace, but His Highness is still so pure, so kind, and so sweet. Anyone else would want to protect his innocence at all costs; only you can bear to be so cruel to him!”

“When the general first rescued His Highness, do you know what kind of terrible condition His Highness’s body was in? A doctor said that he didn’t have long to live, and that the only person who could save His Highness was actually in the royal palace. His Highness had finally escaped from that hellhole, but if he wanted to survive, he would have no choice but to go back…”

Wu Quan paused, “His Highness’s illness…was actually caused by acute emotional stress and heartache, which has only intensified over time. Combined with his physical pain, it has become a chronic ailment.”

Before Wu Quan could finish speaking, the unconscious little prince nestled in Pei Zheng’s arms suddenly broke into another violent coughing fit. Pei Zheng noticed that he was about to vomit blood again, so he quickly pulled a soft, clean white handkerchief from his sleeve and pressed it to the small man’s lips.

Sure enough, Qi Changyi spat out another large mouthful of blood, dying the white handkerchief red. His face turned even paler. Aside from the scarlet blood, there was a touch of black staining his lips as well.

That was a clear sign of poisoning!

Pei Zheng jerked his head up to look at Wu Quan, who had also noticed the black spot on the small man’s mouth. He hurriedly took Qi Changyi’s pulse again.

“T-there are indeed signs of a low-toxicity poison in his body! The bath…the poison was probably administered through the medicinal bath…that means that His Highness’s vision problems could also be related to this! Fortunately, he only soaked in that medicinal juice and didn’t drink it. Otherwise, the poison’s effects would only be magnified.”

Wu Quan’s eyebrows knitted together, “But I personally made a trip to the city to buy this medicine, I even watched as it was being made. Who could’ve been able to poison it?”

Pei Zheng’s eyes narrowed, “There is one person who could have.”

 

Notes

OOHHHHHHHH WHO COULD”VE DONE ITTTT

Also, it is still the 31st where I live, so, unrelated note, happy birthday Wei Wuxian!!!

Thanks for reading~~

1. The original text is: 但也不是谁都能对他作威作福的, I believe my interpretation, ‘but it was true that not everyone was trying to abuse and conquer him’ is correct in this context, but this can also be interpreted as ‘but it was true that he couldn’t be abused and conquered by just anyone’

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