Lian Zhi, Save Me
While the eunuch went to retrieve the cloth, Yu Jinnian picked up a pair of scissors, ready to cut open Min Xuefei’s bandages. Finally, the imperial physician, who had been nearly invisible, erupted with anger and grabbed his hand. “What are you doing? Minister Min’s wounds have already been bandaged!”
“They’ve certainly been bandaged,” Yu Jinnian replied. Before the physician could agree, his tone took a sharp turn. “Come here, press your ear against his chest and listen.”
The imperial physician, confused, bent down and listened. Through the thin layer of clothing, he could faintly hear an unusual *hissing* sound. Just as he began to wonder what it was, the insolent boy’s voice rang out sharply, “You call this bandaging? His chest is leaking air! The wind is practically blowing in! Did you wrap it so lightly because you’re afraid of hurting him? This is killing him! We need to cut it open and redo it.”
The words were technically correct, though the phrasing—“his chest is leaking”—sounded almost ridiculous, as though Min Xuefei were an inflated bladder. Still, the imperial physician wasn’t about to concede to a boy of unknown origin. He opened his mouth to argue but was immediately cut off as Yu Jinnian grabbed the scissors and snipped open the bandages.
Min Xuefei’s wound had punctured the chest wall. Though the injury was only the size of an arrowhead, it was an open chest wound. Just beneath the chest wall lay the lungs. If the wound wasn’t tightly sealed, external air pressure would enter the chest cavity, collapsing the lungs like deflated balloons and preventing them from functioning properly. Naturally, Min Xuefei felt suffocated and short of breath. The priority, therefore, was to seal the open wound and turn it into a closed injury, giving the lungs space to recover and expand.
As Yu Jinnian tore the cloth, Min Xuefei, who had been semi-conscious, suddenly opened his eyes and groaned. He even had enough strength to raise a hand to stop Yu Jinnian.
“Damn,” Yu Jinnian muttered, softening his movements. “The cloth has stuck to the blood around the wound… Someone, help me hold him down.”
A few eunuchs stepped forward at first but froze in place upon hearing his words. Hold down Minister Min and rip open his wound? Who would dare? What if something went wrong…
Yu Jinnian called out a second time. At the window, Lian Zhi, lost in thought, took a step forward. But before he could move, a gust of wind swept past—Ji Hong had already stepped in. Seeing this, Lian Zhi paused mid-step and silently retreated.
Ji Hong approached and called softly, “Xuefei.” Hearing Ji Hong’s voice, Min Xuefei seemed to relax slightly. Yu Jinnian, now wetting the cloth with clean water to help remove it, took the opportunity to speak to him. “Young Master Min, I’m trying to save your life. It’s going to hurt, but you need to bear with it.”
Min Xuefei, drenched in sweat, glanced weakly at Yu Jinnian and finally gave a faint nod.
The imperial physician’s expression darkened. “You—”
Lian Zhi, who had been silently observing the bed, seemed to snap back to reality. Finally regaining his composure, he addressed the imperial physician in a calm voice. “Physician Chen, you’ve tried many methods these past few days. Do you have any confidence you can save Minister Min? His Majesty has ordered that Minister Min must be saved at all costs, as he was injured while protecting the imperial carriage.”
Hearing this, Physician Chen deflated like a punctured balloon, his bluster disappearing as he stammered and fell silent. It wasn’t that the imperial physicians were incompetent or negligent. The truth was that Minister Min suffered from obstructed blood in his lungs, causing chest congestion and disrupted circulation. The condition was severe, rapid, and difficult to manage.
It was only thanks to the imperial physicians’ efforts that he had survived these two days. If it had been anyone else, they would have—
Physician Chen sighed deeply, not realizing he had muttered his thoughts aloud. The boy, now focused on carefully removing the bloodstained cloth from Min Xuefei’s wound, suddenly spoke up. Without even looking up, he declared boldly, “If you know his lungs are obstructed, why not draw out the blood?”
“You arrogant brat!” Physician Chen barked. “How do you plan to draw out blood trapped in the chest?”
Blood trapped inside the chest cavity—how could it possibly be drawn out?
A pained gasp filled the room as Min Xuefei sucked in a sharp breath. Yu Jinnian had ripped away the cloth stuck to the wound, taking with it a small crust of blood. The exposed wound revealed itself as a gaping hole, and Yu Jinnian frowned at the sight. Tossing the soiled cloth into a nearby copper basin, he asked, “If this condition continues untreated, what will happen to Minister Min?”
Imperial Physician Chen hesitated. “I fear… the outcome will not be good.”
Yu Jinnian let out a short laugh. “If this method is bad, and that method is bad, why not take a gamble with my approach? If he’s doomed either way, we might as well fight for that slim chance of survival.” He turned and glanced at the bedridden Min Xuefei, continuing with a tone bordering on mockery. “What do you say, Minister Min? Do you want to be a dead horse, or do you want to live like a healthy one?”
“…” Min Xuefei was momentarily speechless. A matter of life and death had been reduced to dead horses and live horses. Even though he’d already been treated once by this impudent boy, hearing such words now nearly caused him to faint from sheer frustration. His chest throbbed even more.
Ji Hong shot a quiet look at him and said softly, “Jinnian, don’t jest.”
“—Does Master Yu truly have a way to save him?” A sudden, anxious voice broke through. Yu Jinnian looked up and saw Lian Zhi, who had remained silent until now. He strode over quickly, standing at the bedside and gazing down at Min Xuefei with an expression of naked concern. Surprisingly, Min Xuefei, though hovering at death’s door, still managed to turn his head away and glare at Lian Zhi with disdain, as though deeply irritated by his presence.
Lian Zhi froze for a moment, then stepped back two paces to move out of Min Xuefei’s sight. “Can you really save him, Master Yu?” he asked again.
Yu Jinnian grew serious, answering calmly, “This is no longer a question of whether I can or cannot save him. I have a method, but right now, we don’t have the conditions to apply it. Even if we proceed, there’s no guarantee of success. If we try to save him, we’re gambling on his luck.”
Lian Zhi pondered this briefly, then hesitated. “How confident are you?”
“Fifty percent,” Yu Jinnian replied.
Fifty percent!
To Lian Zhi, who had assumed Min Xuefei was beyond saving, fifty percent was already far better than expected. Before he could show any hint of hope, however, Min Xuefei, from the bed, doused him in cold water with a sneer. “When did my life become something to be decided by a eunuch like you?”
Lian Zhi looked at Min Xuefei, as though wanting to explain something, but his expression hardened instead. “Minister Min, you’re mistaken. It’s precisely because you’re in trouble that someone like me has to serve you day and night. In other words, as long as you cannot leave this sickbed, you will remain at the mercy of a eunuch like me.”
Min Xuefei gasped in anger, then abruptly closed his eyes and fainted.
Yu Jinnian leaned over to check him and assured the others, “It’s nothing serious. He’s simply too weak and couldn’t handle the pain, so he passed out.”
At that moment, the eunuch who had gone to fetch the cloth returned. Lian Zhi’s shoulders sagged slightly as he signaled for the cloth to be handed directly to Yu Jinnian. With a sigh of resignation, he asked, “Is there anything else you need, Master Yu? I will send someone to fetch it.”
Yu Jinnian felt the cloth in his hands—it was pristine white cotton silk, finely woven but not too dense, smooth to the touch, and slightly translucent. It was undoubtedly a fine material for summer clothing, far too luxurious to be used for bandaging a wound. Yet, despite his thoughts, his hands showed no hesitation. With a decisive *rip*, he tore off a large piece, folded it into a square slightly larger than the wound, and pressed it firmly against Min Xuefei’s injury.
Even in his unconscious state, Min Xuefei furrowed his brows deeply in response.
Yu Jinnian then tore off a long strip of cloth, using it to tightly secure the square pad over the wound. Once it was firmly bound, he bent down to listen to Min Xuefei’s chest again. Hearing no more *hissing* sounds of air escaping, he finally calmed down. Now he could think carefully about the next steps. Although he had spoken boldly about drawing out the blood, putting such a risky plan into action was far from easy. If there had been any other choice, he wouldn’t have considered such a dangerous method.
Yet with nowhere else to turn, he was left with no other option but to take the gamble.
Yu Jinnian glanced at Ji Hong, as if seeking his opinion.
After all, back in Xin’an County, he had been lucky to heal Qing Huan’s broken leg, but Ji Hong had warned him not to use such unconventional methods again. Ji Hong wasn’t wrong—such methods were indeed seen as unorthodox in these times. The prevailing belief that “one’s body, skin, and hair are gifts from one’s parents” made the idea of cutting additional openings into the body for treatment hard to accept. Let alone the concept of “adding injuries to heal injuries”—no one could easily comprehend such a practice.
Physician Chen’s earlier outrage, treating him like a reckless lunatic, was a far more reasonable reaction.
Ji Hong quickly understood the meaning behind Yu Jinnian’s gaze and returned it with his own, silently asking: “Is this the only way?”
Yu Jinnian nodded.
Beside them, Lian Zhi looked down at the unconscious Min Xuefei. In the room, the two who mattered most—the childhood friend Ji Hong and the “miracle doctor” Yu Jinnian—were present. Even the helpless Physician Chen stood by to observe. Meanwhile, Lian Zhi, who had no real ties to Min Xuefei, felt completely out of place, as though he lacked even the right to speak. He quietly turned and left the room, standing outside to wait, staring up at the sky in silent patience for Yu Jinnian’s final decision.
After a moment, Yu Jinnian emerged.
Lian Zhi turned to him.
“I’ll need your help, Supervisor Lian,” Yu Jinnian said. “Boil some hot water, prepare a thin tube—duck intestine or sheep intestine will do. If that’s unavailable, any animal skin will suffice. I also need a glazed jar with a sealable lid.”
Lian Zhi understood immediately—this was to treat Min Xuefei. Without a word, he turned to leave, but Yu Jinnian called him back. “One more thing…”
—
The small kitchen of the Siqi Courtyard bustled with activity, not for cooking meals but for an unusual task. Several clay pots sat atop stoves, each filled with clear water. A bamboo tube stretched out from each pot, its end leading to fine-necked white porcelain bottles. These tubes and bottles had first been sterilized in boiling water, and the gaps around the clay pot lids were sealed with mud. The eunuchs and palace maids working busily had no idea what they were doing, only that they were following instructions.
Before long, Supervisor Lian arrived with a group of people carrying two large ice chests into the kitchen.
At this time of year, even the emperor had just begun using ice, mainly to chill fruit or drinks. To see two full ice chests carried in was astonishing. Though Lian Zhi held an unshakable position in the palace, the sight left the young eunuchs speechless and even more reverent toward him. They quietly lowered their heads and focused on their tasks.
Yu Jinnian followed and directed the eunuchs to surround the bamboo tubes with the ice. Before long, water began to condense inside the tubes, dripping down into the waiting porcelain bottles.
Lian Zhi asked, “So this is how you produce what you call… pure water?”
In truth, it was distilled water, but since the term *distillation* was far too unfamiliar, Yu Jinnian had chosen a simpler, more comprehensible name. Given the constraints of his current situation, producing saline solution was impossible, so he settled for distilled water to clean Min Xuefei’s deep wound. A wound this close to the heart demanded the purest, most uncontaminated water to ensure safety.
Yu Jinnian nodded. “No one must touch the water in these porcelain bottles. Once they’re full, seal them immediately and bring them to the room.” He then opened his medical kit and retrieved the tools he had prepared earlier: small scissors of white copper, gold and silver acupuncture needles, curved iron needles plated with silver for suturing, and various other surgical instruments. “Everything we use today—anything that can be boiled—must be sterilized in boiling water. When they’re taken out, place them directly onto clean trays.”
Lian Zhi turned to the eunuchs. “Did you all hear that?”
The eunuchs quickly nodded, affirming they understood.
Lian Zhi turned his head and asked, “Sir, do you need anything else?”
Yu Jinnian replied, “The fine tubes I mentioned earlier to Supervisor Lian—can you find transparent ones? Ones where you can see the contents inside?” He thought for a moment, then shook his head, feeling the request was unreasonable, and dismissed it. “Never mind, reed tubes will do.”
Lian Zhi was stunned for a moment and then asked, “Would thin glasswork suffice?”
Yu Jinnian asked in surprise, “Does Supervisor Lian actually have glass tubes?”
Lian Zhi nodded. “I do have some, though I’m unsure if they’ll meet your needs. I’ll have someone bring them for you to see if they’ll work.”
With that, he turned and left, walking briskly out of Siqi Courtyard and back to his temporary residence. Pushing open a door, he stopped in front of the desk and pondered for a moment before saying, “Break it.”
The young eunuch following him hesitated, holding a small hammer, swallowing nervously as he looked at Lian Zhi. After a while, he still didn’t move. “Really break it? Supervisor, this thing… If we break it, it’ll be ruined forever. Didn’t the doctor say reed tubes would work? You could just find him a few reed tubes—”
Annoyed by the eunuch’s chatter, Lian Zhi grabbed the hammer himself and raised his hand to strike. The young eunuch, terrified, quickly grabbed Lian Zhi’s arm and pleaded, “Supervisor! Supervisor! You just tore apart Supervisor Feng’s Yunling cloth; you don’t even know what punishment you’ll face for that. Now you want to shatter your glass tree? Isn’t this your most treasured item? Why do this? Please think it over!”
“Let it be ruined; stop nagging.” With that, he shook off the eunuch, raised his hand, and—*ding*—a sound rang out.
When everything was ready, Lian Zhi finally arrived, late, carrying the items. He entered the room, followed by a young eunuch with red eyes, holding several thin glass tubes. Lian Zhi turned to close the door behind him and said, “Apologies for the delay. I had someone boil the thin glass just now, and one accidentally cracked. Sir, see if these will do?”
Yu Jinnian was just instructing the room to be cleaned when he walked over to take a look at the items in the eunuch’s hands. He was astonished—what Lian Zhi called “thin glass” was not the ancient glasswork he had imagined but actual glass products as he understood them! These slender, light-colored glass tubes were finger-thin and about a foot long. Slightly curved but relatively uniform, the craftsmanship wouldn’t have been impressive in his previous life, but in the current Daxia era, they were delicate as “wings of a cicada” and crystal clear.
Surprised, he asked, “This glass… It’s no ordinary object. Where did Supervisor Lian acquire it?”
The red-eyed eunuch immediately replied, “Sir, you don’t know—this glass comes from the Supervisor breaking his glass tree. That glass tree was a family heirloom, said to be a treasure from foreign lands, worth a thousand gold coins and rarely seen! Now, now… aside from these few pieces, the rest is just shards! Sir, this—”
Before he could finish, Lian Zhi barked, “Who gave you permission to speak so much in front of the doctor? Leave and accept your punishment!”
The eunuch set down the items and, sniffling, withdrew.
Yu Jinnian, though he had mentioned wanting transparent tubes, never said reed or bamboo tubes wouldn’t suffice. He hadn’t expected the tubes to come about this way, nor had he thought his words would cause someone to break a family heirloom. He felt uneasy, as if these few pieces of glass weighed a thousand pounds. But then he found it curious and puzzling—was there really someone willing to damage their treasure for a stranger?
He lifted his gaze to study the young eunuch but couldn’t discern anything unusual about his expression.
Forget it. Perhaps he was just born with a saintly heart.
Yu Jinnian withdrew his gaze, checked the items on the table, and turned to everyone. “From now on, only two people who understand medicine can stay to assist. The rest must leave.” As soon as he spoke, Physician Chen requested to stay, ostensibly to observe, though it was clear he wanted to see what Yu Jinnian was up to. Naturally, Yu Jinnian couldn’t refuse. The other person who requested to stay was Lian Zhi.
From the start, Yu Jinnian had found Lian Zhi hard to understand. If he sought to flatter the powerful, he didn’t seem particularly attached to material things—breaking a family heirloom without hesitation. But if he were lofty and selfless, he was still clinging to the Grand Supervisor of the Palace Directorate, a notorious sycophant. Yu Jinnian thought it over and allowed him to stay, also picking a young eunuch to keep the lamps lit. He then turned to Ji Hong and said, “Ah Hong, you know my requirements. Go outside and supervise. These are matters of life and death, so make sure they don’t slack off.”
Ji Hong squeezed his hand. “Be careful.”
After sending him out, Yu Jinnian placed both hands on Min Xuefei’s chest and ribs, with his thumbs meeting at the centerline of the chest. He waited quietly for Min Xuefei to breathe a few times. Physician Chen, unable to understand this operation, leaned closer to observe carefully. Yu Jinnian was momentarily reminded of the days when he led his junior brothers and sisters during medical rounds and unconsciously began to explain: “Watch my thumb movements. On inhalation, my left thumb moves farther out, while the right thumb barely changes. What does this indicate?”
Physician Chen suddenly realized. “Could it be that the left lung isn’t taking in enough air?”
Yu Jinnian nodded slightly, then placed his middle finger on Min Xuefei’s trachea and his index and ring fingers on either side of the collarbone. Clearly, the middle finger was leaning toward the uninjured side. This suggested that the left half of Min Xuefei’s chest contained either trapped air, trapped fluid, or both, pushing the trachea toward the uninjured side.
After checking the trachea, percussion was the next step. This involved placing the left hand on the chest, using the right fingers to tap the left middle finger, and listening to the sounds reflected from the chest cavity to diagnose the internal condition—a reliable method when open-chest exploration wasn’t an option.
After percussing both sides of Min Xuefei’s chest, even Physician Chen could hear the difference, though he didn’t fully understand it. His curiosity as a physician surpassed all else, and he humbly began learning from the young man.
The injured lower side produced a dull sound, while the upper part gave a tympanic sound. This complex situation indicated a hemopneumothorax—both air and blood were trapped in the chest cavity, compressing the lung and causing severe pain and difficulty breathing. The longer it was delayed, the graver it became. Without timely treatment, by this time next year, they might have to visit Second Young Master Min’s grave.
Hearing how severe the condition was, Lian Zhi nearly knocked over the nearby stand.
Yu Jinnian asked curiously, “Does Supervisor Lian have some connection with Young Master Min? I see you’re quite concerned about his condition.”
Lian Zhi pursed his lips into a slight smile. “In this court, who doesn’t have some connection to Minister Min?”
That made sense. Yu Jinnian nodded and instructed everyone to wash their hands thoroughly with soap pods, soak them in strong alcohol, and let them air dry. Only then did they gather around Min Xuefei’s bed. Scissors and other instruments were already prepared on a tray, and curved needles were pre-threaded with silk. Lian Zhi nervously held the white porcelain bottle filled with distilled water, watching him closely.
Yu Jinnian once again cut open Min Xuefei’s bandages and asked Lian Zhi to pour water into a clean dish. Using gauze soaked in water, he carefully cleaned the wound, removing the clotted blood and trimming away necrotic tissue with small scissors. At first, Min Xuefei was asleep and unaware, but after enduring such treatment, even the dead would be in pain. Before long, he began to moan softly.
As Yu Jinnian prepared to suture, Min Xuefei, writhing in pain, began to move uncontrollably. Yu Jinnian frowned. “Hold him down.”
Physician Chen hesitated, but Lian Zhi was the first to set the porcelain bottle aside and press down on Min Xuefei’s arms. The young eunuch holding the lamp trembled as he approached to illuminate Min Xuefei’s raw wound. Yu Jinnian bent his head, threading the needle as though stitching a sandbag, and began sewing up Second Young Master Min. By this time, Min Xuefei had regained some consciousness through the pain and stared furiously at Yu Jinnian.
Yu Jinnian said, “Second Young Master Min, this is to save your life! You’re a man; endure it a little longer. If you can get through this, you’ll live. Otherwise, you really will become a dead horse.”
Though Min Xuefei was in immense pain, he knew Yu Jinnian was genuinely trying to save him. Despite wanting to strike someone, he gritted his teeth and endured it. Yet with every stitch, the pain worsened, and soon he was drenched in cold sweat.
Lian Zhi freed one hand to wipe the sweat from Min Xuefei’s forehead.
Min Xuefei finally realized who was beside him and his face immediately changed. Gasping, he said, “Lian… Zhi!”
Lian Zhi flinched, instinctively trying to pull away, but Yu Jinnian snapped, “Where are you going? Do you want him dead? He can shout all he wants—what can he do to you?” Lian Zhi snapped out of his daze, steadied himself, and held Min Xuefei down. “Minister Min, just pretend a dog licked you. Your life is more important, isn’t it?”
Min Xuefei: “…”
After suturing the wound, Yu Jinnian cut a piece of cloth to bandage Min Xuefei. Only then did he free his hands to take out a few fine needles for acupuncture to relieve the pain. However, with the pain eased, the suffocating sensation became even more apparent. Min Xuefei’s complexion alternated between pale and purplish, his struggles grew weaker, and he no longer had the strength to scold Lian Zhi.
Lian Zhi panicked and asked, “Little doctor, how is he?”
Yu Jinnian packed away the needles and thread into an empty tray, then picked up a slender, single-edged scalpel. The cold gleam of the blade reflected across Lian Zhi’s face, making him uneasy as he stared nervously at the menacing instruments.
Physician Chen assisted by connecting the glass tubes with duck intestines, extending one end into a pre-prepared sealed glass jar. The jar was filled with pure water and corked tightly, with a small reed tube inserted into the seal for ventilation.
Yu Jinnian gripped the scalpel in one hand and a thin silver tube in the other. Walking to the bedside, he found the appropriate spot between the ribs. This slanted silver tube, originally designed for drainage at Ji Hong’s request, was now first being used on Second Young Master Min. Even Yu Jinnian couldn’t help but sigh at Min Xuefei’s misfortune—why did he always end up under his knife?
Physician Chen, sweating, held the end of the glass tube and asked nervously, “This method of draining blood—how exactly does it work…”
Before he finished, Yu Jinnian thrust the knife mercilessly into Min Xuefei’s skin. The scraping sound of the blade against flesh, combined with Min Xuefei’s agonized screams, was chilling to hear—it hardly seemed like healing but rather a brutal form of torture!
Forcing the knife in like this was no ordinary pain. Min Xuefei’s body jerked violently, nearly causing Yu Jinnian’s hand to slip. He immediately barked at the eunuch holding the lamp, “What are you standing there for? Hold him down!”
The young eunuch fumbled and pressed down on Min Xuefei’s waist and legs, closing his eyes tightly, unable to bear watching.
Yu Jinnian continued to make an incision, cutting into the skin before inserting the silver tube. Min Xuefei’s face turned ashen with pain, sweat dripping heavily as he slurred, “Yu Jinnian!”
Since it was impossible to pinpoint the exact location of the accumulated blood in his chest, Yu Jinnian had to proceed by trial and error, prolonging the pain. Min Xuefei called out Yu Jinnian’s name a few times but received no response. He tried to move his arm, but it was held firmly in place. As a noble son born with a silver spoon, he had never endured anything worse than family discipline. This torment was beyond his limits.
In his hazy consciousness, he felt like a fish tied to a chopping board, utterly hopeless. At that moment, a soft voice sounded above him, “Minister Min, it’s almost over. Just hold on.”
Min Xuefei, muddled and desperate, grasped at this straw of comfort and weakly called out, “Lian Zhi, Lian Zhi, save me…”
Lian Zhi immediately replied, “I’m here! I’m here, Minister Min. I have no ability to save you. If it hurts too much, you can bite me.” He grabbed Min Xuefei’s hand and offered his wrist. “Bite me if you need to. I’m not afraid of pain.”
As soon as he spoke, Min Xuefei didn’t hesitate to bite down hard.
After a long while, Yu Jinnian finally found the correct spot, and blood began to flow slowly through the silver tube. He immediately called, “Bring the tube, connect it quickly.”
Physician Chen hurriedly handed over the glass tube and connected it to the silver tube using the duck intestine. The blood, mixed with trapped air, flowed gradually through the transparent tubing and into the jar on the ground. The clear water in the jar was soon stained red, bubbling as air escaped. Min Xuefei’s face, previously dark with cyanosis, lightened slightly, and his breathing began to ease.
Yu Jinnian secured the silver tube and covered the puncture wound with clean cloth. Only then did he wipe the sweat off his forehead.
With pain beyond endurance, Min Xuefei drifted into unconsciousness, his body finally relaxing. When the resistance in his hand disappeared, Lian Zhi released his grip, tore off a piece of cloth to wipe the sweat from Min Xuefei’s body, and pulled a thin blanket over him. He stepped off the bed and asked, “Doctor Yu, is this enough? What happens next?”
“This tube must stay in for a few days until the blood and air in his chest are completely drained. Whether he survives these days depends on his own fate.” Yu Jinnian washed his hands with the remaining distilled water and turned around, noticing blood on Lian Zhi’s fingertips. Surprised, he said, “Supervisor Lian, what happened to your hand? Let me see.”
Lian Zhi clenched his hand, hiding it behind his back. “It’s nothing. His Majesty is still waiting for an update. Now that Minister Min is out of danger, I’ll take my leave.”
With that, he gathered his men and left Siqi Courtyard without lingering for even a moment.
Yu Jinnian found it strange. Earlier, Lian Zhi had been so anxious, fearing that Min Xuefei might not make it, yet now that he had snatched him back from death’s door, he seemed in a hurry to leave. If he truly cared, wouldn’t he stay and monitor his condition for a while?
Standing at the door, feeling the breeze, Ji Hong approached with a bowl of water, handing it over while lightly scolding, “Why is there blood on your robe?”
Yu Jinnian looked down and, sure enough, there were bloodstains—likely splattered when inserting the drainage tube. He didn’t mind much, brushing at it casually and teasing, “This is your Xuefei’s blood, you know—it’s precious!”
“Nonsense.” Ji Hong inspected the garment, noticing that the blood had seeped into the underlayer, making it difficult to clean. He called for Duan Ming and instructed him to retrieve several sets of clothes and daily essentials. “We’ll likely be delayed here for a few days. Bring more clothes and all the items the young master usually uses. Go now.”
Afterwards, he entered to check on Min Xuefei’s condition.
Yu Jinnian rested on a chair beside the table, propping his head on his hand and musing, “Hey, Ah Hong, that Supervisor Lian… What’s his story?”
Ji Hong touched Min Xuefei’s hand, then lifted the blanket to check the wound. Seeing that everything was handled meticulously, true to his young master’s skill, he let out a breath of relief and replied, “Lian Zhi? I’m not entirely sure. I only know he entered the palace as a child and now serves under Feng Jian.”
“He has family outside the palace?” Yu Jinnian asked.
Ji Hong poured tea for the two of them and replied, “I’ve heard he’s the son of a criminal official. His family assets were confiscated, so he was sent into the palace.”
Yu Jinnian rested his chin in his palm. “So, he was originally a young master too.” He gestured with his mouth toward the drainage tube. “Look at that. Thin glasswork from a foreign nation, worth a thousand gold, and yet he smashed it straightaway just to retrieve a few tubes to drain Young Master Min’s blood. Never mind how he managed to bring it into the palace—such sincerity isn’t simple.”
Ji Hong added, “Xuefei has a history with him.”
Yu Jinnian perked up, intrigued. “Oh?”
Ji Hong explained, “About three or four years ago, Xuefei had a straightforward and upright schoolmate who offended Feng Jian and was framed, ending up imprisoned. Xuefei ran around trying to help him, even approaching Supervisor Lian to ask him to intervene with Feng Jian.”
Yu Jinnian, fully absorbed, pressed, “And then?”
Ji Hong sighed. “Lian Zhi refused to help and even humiliated him. Later, the man’s property was confiscated, and he was exiled a thousand miles away. The decree was even delivered by Lian Zhi himself. At the time, Xuefei was helping settle things at his friend’s residence. They ran into each other, and Lian Zhi mocked him for not knowing how to adapt to the times.”
“Oh,” Yu Jinnian nodded slowly. “No wonder. I was wondering why Young Master Min, a man who always smiles at everyone, completely loses his composure around Supervisor Lian, practically ready to curse him out. So that’s where the grudge started.”
While they were chatting, a young eunuch arrived at the door. Yu Jinnian quickly recognized him as one of Lian Zhi’s attendants.
The eunuch knocked on the door and announced, “Shizi, Young Master Yu, His Majesty summons you.”