Chapter 270: Chapter 248: Love Brain Can Be Quite Clever Sometimes!
Xu Yin’s gaze lingered on the steward’s face, and after a moment, he looked around, "Where are the assassins?"
"In response to Assistant Minister’s question, one of the two assassins escaped, and another was hit. However, before we could catch him, he also fled. Fortunately, our General was unharmed, otherwise—"
The steward paused here, letting out a long sigh and slapping his thigh.
Xu Yin’s eyebrows twitched, "Who hit him?"
"I don’t know either!" The steward raised his head, saying, "When it happened, I was handling matters outside. Suddenly, I heard noise from our General’s room and rushed over, only to find someone attempting to harm him! The servants in the mansion and I were so frightened that we could barely move, so we didn’t care about anything else. By the time we came to our senses, the person was already gone!"
"And the person who hit the assassin is also gone?" Xu Yin raised an eyebrow.
"Exactly!" The steward nodded deeply, "None of us saw clearly who that person was, and they just left!"
Xu Yin looked at the subservient face of the Zhe family’s servant in front of him, then finally withdrew his gaze and stepped into the room.
The room was still a bit disordered, with two maids cleaning up broken porcelain on the floor in front of the bed.
On the bed lay Zhe Yu, severely emaciated, staring at the newcomers with open eyes.
"General Zhe, how are you doing?" Xu Yin approached the bed, glancing around the room before finally focusing on his face.
Zhe Yu replied, "It’s so late, why is Assistant Minister here?"
Xu Yin sat down on a chair the steward had moved over for him, "I’ve wanted to visit to check on your injury, but as you know, I couldn’t get away due to the Crown Prince’s ceremony until tonight."
Zhe Yu replied, "I appreciate the Assistant Minister’s concern."
Xu Yin smiled, "Why so formal? We are relatives, after all, we should visit each other often."
He then reached out to lift Zhe Yu’s blanket, "Let me see how your injuries are healing."
Zhe Yu instinctively wanted to stop him, but the movement pulled on his wounds, and how could his arm move with such injuries?
Xu Yin gazed at his reddened, festering wound for a while, then covered him back up with the blanket, saying, "Do you have any idea how you got this injury?"
"My mind is foggy; I can’t remember the events of the day clearly."
"What did the Imperial Physician say about your wound?"
"He said it was caused by someone using a sharp weapon."
Xu Yin paused for a moment, looking around, "Could you have offended someone, prompting them to attempt this?"
Zhe Yu shook his head, "I’ve always been careful in my life; how would I have offended anyone? This time, being innocently caught in this disaster, if my condition improves, I must report to Aunt to get to the bottom of this and ask the culprit what grudge they have against me!"
Xu Yin held his breath for a moment, "I heard you were just attacked again. It’s quite a coincidence that someone else managed to fend off the assassin for you?"
Zhe Yu looked at him, "Since the Assistant Minister is here to visit my illness, I thought you would care about my injuries. I didn’t expect you to be more interested in the assassin."
"You are over-thinking it. I’m just curious; your courtyard seems peaceful, not like a place where an assassination took place."
Zhe Yu called out, "My small household has limited people; they also aren’t clear about the circumstances."
Upon hearing this, Xu Yin stood up, "Since that’s the case, let me help inspect around to ensure there aren’t any hidden dangers."
After saying this, he turned and headed towards the door.
Zhe Yu kept staring at his back until he disappeared from sight, and only then did he withdraw his gaze.
Xu Yin exited the courtyard and immediately signaled to the guards who had followed him. The guards then hollered at each other, "Look around everywhere! Properly check for General Zhe’s safety!"
The eight guards immediately dispersed, scattering to all corners of the courtyard.
Xu Yin stood in the courtyard, the night wind brushing past his ears, the faint rustle amplified in the extreme silence, booming as if it were thunder.
Regarding Zhe Yu’s current position, he still doesn’t quite qualify as a General, just a mid-level officer. This residence of his, though spacious for one person, is modest among the official residencies in the capital city. If not for his connection to Princess Rong, the few servants he has would have likely left.
In such a situation, a few determined individuals breaking in isn’t much of a mystery. If Xu Yin’s guards could enter, naturally other experts from elsewhere could as well.
The returning guard reported that our injured companion was detained, but the Zhe family’s servants claimed both the person who hit him and the injured guard had left.
Are the statements of the Zhe family servants true?
If true, then the identity of the person who acted from the shadows is significant.
If false, then there’s a problem with the Zhe family!
"Sir! The surroundings have been inspected, and there’s no unusual discovery."
The group of inspecting guards gathered, the one who replied looked serious, evidently informing him that there was no trace of the injured companion in the Zhe household.
With just these few houses, if the person were here, where could they still be hiding?
Xu Yin looked around once more and finally let his gaze linger on Zhe Yu’s room before turning to leave, "Let’s go."
The steward escorted all of them to the street, then closed the door and went directly to Zhe Yu’s room.
"Master..."
"Extinguish the lamp. I’m tired."
Zhe Yu weakly and quickly gave the order before he finished speaking.
The steward paused, nodded, extinguished the lamp, then left the room.
The room was engulfed in darkness.
Beyond the sound of breathing from the person on the bed, there was no movement.
But soon, a figure appeared against the window; pressing close against it, until after a sip of tea had passed, they moved back and quietly slipped away.
Crickets abruptly chirped on the wall, crooning in long and short bursts until the chirping gradually ceased, followed by the light in the room flickering back on.
Fu Zhen came out from the inner room and sat back down on the previous chair, "General Zhe’s thoughtful ways are truly impressive."
Xu Yin had initially brought eight bodyguards, but he departed with only seven. Fu Zhen, already acquainted with his complexity, didn’t expect Zhe Yu, lying in bed, to also notice this detail.
Zhe Yu said, "I’ve been reliant on others since childhood, how could I have survived if I wasn’t perceptive?"
Fuzhen raised her eyebrows, remaining silent.
Fu Zhen knew what kind of person Princess Rong was. When she brought Zhe Yu to the Prince Manor, it was purely to use him as a tool and not to show him any sincere care. Zhe Yu surviving until now is indeed due to his agility.
"Did they all leave?"
Fu Zhen nodded, "After the person outside the window didn’t find anything unusual, the people Xu Yin brought all left."
"And the captured assassin? Did he notice anything?"
Fu Zhen folded her arms, "Of course, we couldn’t let him find anything. Before I entered your room, they had already taken him out of Zhe Manor.
"So the steward’s report wasn’t lying because neither of the assailants nor the injured was here anymore.
"Besides, those people Xu Yin brought would certainly find traces of fighting and escape during their inspection."
Zhe Yu looked at her deeply, "With such seasoned handling, who exactly are you? I’ve met most young ladies from the military families in the court but have never seen you."
"Once you’re better, you will soon meet me and know who I am." Fu Zhen smiled.
"Better?" Zhe Yu gave a bitter smile, "Can I really expect to get better?"
"Why not?"
Fu Zhen called out for "Doctor Lu," and Lu Chongyang immediately came in carrying a medicine chest and holding a lamp, drawing close to examine Zhe Yu’s complexion before taking out silver needles and heating them over the light.
Zhe Yu was puzzled, "Who is he? What is he doing?"
Fu Zhen replied, "He was a military doctor in the northwest for many years. His family has practiced medicine for generations, specializing in treating arrow injuries. I haven’t shown up for half a month because I was waiting for Doctor Lu to come to the capital.
"Doctor Lu, tell him whether he can recover?"
Lu Chongyang snorted coldly a few times, retrieved the heated silver needles, and approached the bed, saying, "As long as you don’t seek death deliberately, you will not die!"
Then he carefully examined several points on Zhe Yu’s head and neck and first inserted three needles.
Having been bedridden for a long time, Zhe Yu was already beyond resistance. Moreover, at this moment, he might not have the intention to resist either.
He looked blankly at Lu Chongyang continuously treating him with needles, an unconcealed tension in his expression.
But in just the time it took Fu Zhen to drink a cup of tea while sitting by the side, he felt his breath becoming smoother.
Fu Zhen asked, "How do you feel now?"
Zhe Yu took a deep breath, unable to ignore the marked change in his body. Perhaps this change was temporary or deceptive and did not signify a true return to vitality, but still, it ignited a glimmer of hope in his heart.
He was still so young; who would want to die if given a choice?
Even such a tiny thread of hope made many things possible once again.
He laboriously adjusted his breath until it was completely stable, then looked at Fu Zhen, saying, "Please, tell me everything you know! Including everything that happened to the Xu family recently!"
...
Xu Yin returned to the mansion, and Lian Rong hurriedly met him at the front door, "How did it go?!"
Xu Yin’s brow was furrowed as tightly as a lock, "The person is gone!"
"Gone?!"
Lian Rong was stunned.
Xu Yin looked at him, "The people from the Zhe family said our person was indeed hit, but then they ran away. And the person who hit him left too."
"How could it be so coincidental? No clues left at all?" Lian Rong frowned, "Could the Zhe family be deceitful?"
Finishing, he also realized the words were a bit reckless, given Zhe Yu’s current state, making it hard to believe he could still deceive anyone.
Xu Yin gazed at the night sky, silent for a long time before finally saying softly, "It seems I need to visit Prince Rong’s Mansion tomorrow."