The Kidnapped Little Doctor (x)
Edited: 04.03.2024
In the next week, in order to prevent people with evil intentions from harming Yu Shu, Ruan Qing begged Xiao Ziheng to let him stay in the residence to recover. During this period, Yu Shu’s “father and mother” wanted to visit him several times, but Ruan Qing kept them away on the grounds that “His Second Imperial Majesty doesn’t allow outsiders into the residence.” As a result, they quietly went to the small door late at night to call Yu Shu out, chatting with him for a long time.
When Ruan Qing saw this, he just smiled and said nothing. Yu Shu became more and more dependent on him and even had to live with him for food, clothing, housing, and transportation. It was obvious that he completely regarded him as his savior. Ruan Qing was not afraid that he would betray him, and he could also confuse the enemy by telling the Eldest Imperial Prince some lies.
The weather was getting colder and the plum blossoms hanging on the branches outside the residence were stained with white frost. Yu Shu was afraid of the cold, so Ruan Qing burned a charcoal fire for him, fed him medicine, and then sat and talked with him.
“Brother Ruan, when can I get better?” Yu Shu drank the medicine and obediently ate the candy Ruan Qing gave him, blinking his big eyes.
Ruan Qing touched his little head and smiled: “Almost. Drink three more doses and your body should be fully detoxified.”
Yu Shu nodded gratefully. He came over and hugged his arm while leaning his soft little face against his chest, “Brother, my parents came to see me again and asked me about the current situation between you and His Second Imperial Majesty, what should I do?”
Ruan Qing pondered for a long time, wondering how General Wang Qian’s investigation was going. Xiao Ziheng was busy comforting the refugees and taking care of the sick, making it difficult for him to step away. Most of the time, he was left alone in the residence. Last night, Ruan Qing saw a few sneaky figures on the eaves and knew that the Green Uniform Guards were always nearby. It seemed the Eldest Imperial Prince was still hung up on him but just couldn’t find the opportunity to act.
Ruan Qing instructed him with a few words. Since Yu Shu grew up in a brothel, he was a people-pleaser. He wasn’t afraid that he would let it slip, but his situation would become more difficult in the future.
“Mr. Ruan, Mr. Ruan! Are you there?” A Fu’s anxious shout came from outside the door. Ruan Qing was stunned for a moment, then stood up and opened the door, asking: “What’s the matter?”
A Fu took out the medicine bag and said pitifully: “Mr. Ruan, there are many more patients today. The antidote you prepared based on the black snake has all been used up. I have gone to several stores to get it but couldn’t find any.”
Ruan Qing frowned when he heard this: “What should we do? This epidemic is coming so violently. A day without an antidote means another day of danger. I have not yet fully formulated a prescription that can cure this epidemic at its root.”
Hearing this, A Fu couldn’t help but say anxiously: “Mr. Ruan, you have to think of a way. His Second Imperial Majesty is trying his best to pacify everyone, but it can’t stop the victims from causing trouble. They are about to start a fight!”
Ruan Qing was slightly startled. He knew that everyone suffering from the epidemic was in danger and would inevitably do many extreme things. If Xiao Ziheng’s body was injured or touched, none of them, especially Ruan Qing, would be able to get away with it.
“Alright, you look after Yu Shu, I’ll go up the mountain to collect the herbs.”
Without further ado, Ruan Qing went to the warehouse to get a basket and hoe. Taking advantage of the fact that the snow hadn’t picked up yet, he might be able to return before the city gate closed if he headed out now.
Ruan Qing didn’t know how to ride a horse, so he had to rely on his legs to leave the city. The refugees on the street were taken to other places by Xiao Ziheng, which made him feel much safer. He wrapped himself tightly in cotton clothes and shrank himself into a small ball.
He was only worried about Xiao Ziheng and the patients and didn’t realize that there were several pairs of wolf-like eyes behind him, following him out of Liangzhou City one after another.
Just outside Liangzhou City was Guanyin Mountain. This mountain was located on Dayan’s dragon vein[1]. The mountain was green all year round, with gurgling hot springs and countless rare herbs. It was said that the founding Emperor of Dayan went on a personal expedition to defeat the enemy here. He was later poisoned but survived thanks to the herbs on this mountain. As a result, he named the mountain Guanyin in gratitude.
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However, Ruan Qing came here not for the rare herbs but to find the culprit——the black snake.
There was an old saying: “There’s an antidote for every poison in the world within five paces.” Ruan Qing believed that if one were to raise venomous snakes to cause an epidemic, there must be a snake nest on the mountain. Where there were snake nests, there would definitely be antidotes. However, he didn’t recognize what herb it was, so he could only look for the poisonous snakes first.
“Where is it?” Ruan Qing poked around with a stick. He used to be afraid of snakes, but now he really hoped that a poisonous snake would suddenly jump out. Unfortunately, even though he was halfway up the mountain, he didn’t even see a shadow of a snake. With sweat soaking through his inner garments, Ruan Qing decided to sit down and rest for a while. He took out the water bottle he brought and took a few sips as he looked at the sun that was gradually setting in the west with worry.
Suddenly, he seemed to hear crying in the distance, but it was very weak. In a huge mountain like this, it was considered quite haunting and scary. Ruan Qing pricked up his ears and listened for a while. Yes, it was crying, and the frequency kept rising and falling. It felt like there was more than one person.
Ruan Qing’s heart moved slightly, and he quickly stood up and walked in the direction of the sound based on his feelings. After pushing aside a few bushes, a man in green clothes and a bamboo hat suddenly appeared in front of him. He was holding two swords in his hands and looked at him with what seemed to be a smile.
Oh no, the Green Uniform Guards! Ruan Qing felt his heart jumping to his throat. He hurriedly turned around and ran. But before he could make it a few steps, a few more green-clothed guards with swords popped up in front of him. He fled in all directions in a panic, but in the end, he was firmly trapped in the circle.
“You……what do you want to do?” Ruan Qing swallowed his saliva, his hand clenching the strap of the small basket.
One of the Green Uniform Guards laughed: “You are His First Imperial Majesty’s distinguished guest, what could subordinates like us do to you? If we want to kill or cut you into pieces, we would have to ask His First Imperial Majesty.”
Before Ruan Qing could react, a few people stepped forward and knocked him unconscious with a palm strike. They tied him up easily and carried him deep into the mountain.
Not long after, several figures appeared on the trail. They were all dressed in black and their faces were covered. Even though their faces couldn’t be seen, based on their movements, they seemed to be good at martial arts. When they noticed that the area was sparse with a noticeable section being flattened, they couldn’t help but freeze in place.
“General, what’s going on? This wasn’t like this yesterday.”
Wang Qian pulled down his veil and looked around puzzledly. Suddenly, he noticed the basket and hoe lying innocently on the ground. He couldn’t help but squat down to take a closer look.
“This basket and hoe are both made by the government. This person should be from the residence. The person who can come to the mountains to collect medicine at this moment is……”
Wang Qian seemed to have thought of something. He looked stern and ordered his men: “Not good, I’m afraid it’s Mr. Ruan. The Green Uniform Guards have been making moves here in recent days. Could it be that they kidnapped Mr. Ruan?”
His men were also a bit anxious when they heard this, “Kidnapped? General, up ahead is……Will Mr. Ruan be in danger?”
Wang Qian sighed and pulled up his veil again: “You, hurry back to the city and report this to His Second Imperial Majesty. The rest of you, follow me into the mountains to rescue Mr. Ruan.”
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[1] A terrain that resembles a dragon. ↩
☽ ⋆ℍalf 𝕄oon 𝕋ranslations⋆ ☾ 
Oh no, now I nervous! (｡ŏ﹏ŏ)
Thank You for the new chapter (◞ꈍ∇ꈍ)◞⋆*✚ ♡
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