Chapter 59

Compared to doctors who actually open clinics and practice medicine to help the world, Su Huaijing has truly examined very few pulses.

His medical skills were taught to him by his Imperial Mother. His first ‘patient’ was his Imperial Father; the first person to test his medicine was Crown Prince gege, and the first person to try his acupuncture was his san ge.

Apart from his relatives, the only other pulses Su Huaijing had ever examined were those of the maids and eunuchs in his palace, and Xingfeng and Liuyun, who had been following him all the way. After teaching his medical skills to Bi Xin, even Liuyun and the others no longer bothered Su Huaijing.

His imperial mother once said he had an extraordinary talent for medicine. His san ge, who occasionally sneaked out of the palace and returned drunk, feared falling asleep during lessons or tests by their imperial father. Early in the morning, he would sneak into Su Huaijing’s palace with a stick of candied haws, wake up his six- or seven-year-old didi, and ask for a few acupuncture treatments.

Since he was young, Su Huaijing never thought that treating illnesses and saving people were difficult.

So even after he detected Rong Tang’s pulse at the Li Mansion on Songjing Lane, he only paused slightly.

At that time, he didn’t want to save him, but later, he felt that he could always cure him.

But as the afternoon sun scattered its rays and the heavy rain that covered Suzhou city dissipated, all the vitality buried in the soil was revived. When Rong Tang curled up and nestled into his arms, absorbing whatever heat he could, Su Huaijing was momentarily stunned.

At first, he was very happy that Tangtang was unconsciously taking the initiative. But when he fully woke up from the accumulated fatigue of many days and noticed that Rong Tang was instinctively biting his lips in his sleep, he hesitated before reaching out to him and probing his wrist.

The rhythm of the pulse beating beneath his fingertips was very clear—it clearly told Su Huaijing what kind of unbearable pain the owner of this pulse was enduring.

Outside the room, birds are chirping, and summer insects are emerging from the ground again. Teams of soldiers are patrolling the streets in Suzhou, and the damaged houses are about to be repaired. People from the villages were setting up porridge stalls everywhere with their rice supplies, and the rice fragrance once again swept through this land of fish and rice.

But Su Huaijing was abruptly at a loss.

He originally had no desire to save this world. His sole purpose was revenge. Later, because of Rong Tang’s appearance, he also wanted to stay with Tangtang forever.

If something else is added, the burden would be too heavy and tiring for him to bear.

But Rong Tang wants to save the world, so Su Huaijing would help him.

He initially thought that he only wanted to help Rong Tang. But actually seeing the dyke drawings sent by Zhou Zihai and others, hearing them talk about the conditions of the residents in the villages and towns along the way, personally living in Suzhou city during seven days of heavy rain, and hearing the cries of the people there, Su Huaijing thought again: It would be good if they could be saved.

Even though the whole world misunderstood him, his imperial father was indeed diligent in government and loved the people. His da ge died fighting against foreign enemies, and his san ge died trying to quell civil unrest.

Even the Fourth Princess, the most charming and lovely girl in the palace, jumped off the city walls just because she saw the irony of this preposterous rebellion.

How could there be such a coincidence?

There had just been a revolt on the northern border, and the Crown Prince had just led the troops on a campaign. All of a sudden, a vassal king in the south raised troops?

That good uncle of his, in order to put himself on the throne, colluded with foreign countries to harass the people at the border. He never considered that if any link in his plan went wrong, the entire Dayu would probably have to be handed over to others. How would he be able to sit on the golden throne and enjoy the admiration of his subjects every day?

From Su Huaijing’s perspective, everyone in his family was a hero. So, when he had discussions with the officials brought by Sheng Chengming every day and thought about whether there were better countermeasures to resolve the disaster, he unconsciously got immersed in it.

The moment the rain stopped, he inadvertently breathed a sigh of relief. He still held a brush in his hand, but as soon as he relaxed, he fell asleep straightaway.

Before he passed out, he even thought that his parents and siblings might be happy, and so would Tangtang.

He had finally done something good since he was eight years old, and he was somewhat happy about it.

But when Su Huaijing awoke in Rong Tang’s bed and felt his pulse, he fell into deeper confusion.

He is a doctor; how could he not see it?

How could he not see that Rong Tang endured the pain in his body as he went to the study to remind them to eat? How could he not hear the suppressed tremor in Rong Tang’s throat when he suggested where they could improve?

He wanted to save the world because of Rong Tang, but in the end, his little Buddha fell ill.

Su Huaijing was a little dazed.

What if he had examined Rong Tang’s pulse even once in the past few days?

How could it have come to this?

He almost fled the room in defeat and immediately went to find medicinal ingredients to prepare a bowl of medicine to nurse Rong Tang back to health.

But as he held the medicine, the ingredients slipped through his fingers.

Su Huaijing was stunned for a moment. Looking down, he discovered that his hands were shaking uncontrollably.

He finally recognised a fact that he didn’t want to recognise or admit.

It seems that…… he won’t be able to stay with Tangtang forever.

According to his imperial mother, he is the most powerful little doctor, but it seems he is unable to save Rong Tang.

When they first met, Rong Tang said he could only live for three to four years. Su Huaijing thought that in three or four years, he could search for famous doctors and precious medicinal ingredients all over the world and continue to treat Rong Tang.

But that’s not the case. No patient suffers pain to the point of trembling all over and still manages to keep a calm face.

No patient who can’t sleep well every night still smiles.

No patient…… after his careful treatment, gets worse instead of better.

Su Huaijing didn’t even dare to think about how much longer Rong Tang could live. He was afraid that if he thought about it, he would realise that three to four years was an overly optimistic expectation.

At this moment, smoke was rising in spirals outside the courtyard, and a curtain of stars was gradually descending. He looked at Rong Tang through the white fog rising from the medicine stove and, for the first time, spoke to stop his approach.

This wasn’t even like that time when he woke up after fainting in Song Garden. Su Huaijing felt distressed but infuriated at the same time.

This time, he couldn’t even muster any anger. If he really thought about it, he only felt agitation and unspeakable regret.

What do the people of this world have to do with him? And what does it have to do with Rong Tang?

Su Huaijing was immersed in almost obsessive contemplation and didn’t notice that Rong Tang, who’d stood there for a moment, started to move again.

He walked around the medicine stove and smoke to stand before Su Huaijing. He lowered his head and silently stared at his nominal wife. His voice was extremely soft, without any hint of fear. Enduring the pain, he took the initiative to ask, as if to comfort him: “Has the doctor been here?”

Su Huaijing was somewhat startled and raised his head to look at him.

Rong Tang squatted down, lifted his head a little, then reached out to hold Su Huaijing’s hand, which was on his knee: “What did the doctor say?”

“……” He said you’d be dead soon.

“He didn’t say I was going to die now, did he?”

“……” You can only live for another three years at most.

“He didn’t?” Rong Tang’s eyes curled as he tilted his head and smiled at Su Huaijing. He held his fingertips and squeezed them like one would comfort a child, coaxing in a soft voice, “If not, why do you need to be so worried?”

Su Huaijing didn’t say anything. He glanced down at him and noticed the marks on Rong Tang’s lips from the involuntary biting while enduring the pain in his sleep.

There was only one lit candle in the kitchen, and most of the fire in the medicine stove was obscured. There was no one else around, and the outer courtyard was dim. The figures of the two of them, one sitting and the other squatting while holding hands, were reflected on the wall by the candlelight, making them appear inseparable. The gentle breeze passing through made their shadows sway a little.

Rong Tang’s voice mingled with the crackling of the firewood: “Huaijing, I’m actually very happy.”

“……Why?” Su Huaijing finally asked.

Rong Tang smiled broadly: “You have done a monumentally good thing.”

Su Huaijing: “……”

There was another muted sound from the crucible. He looked away, bent down, took the small pot off the medicine stove, and fetched a bowl from the cupboard. Slowly, he poured the medicine into it.

The already strong smell of Chinese medicine intensified instantly. Before even tasting it, the bitterness made Rong Tang wrinkle his nose and eyebrows together. The mere smell disgusted him, and he felt the bitterness seeping into his body.

But he was mindful of Su Huaijing’s mood, so he followed him closely and asked softly from behind, “Huaijing, are you still angry?”

The smoke rose, and the medicinal aroma permeated the air, blending and clashing with the fresh scent of grass and trees after the heavy rain.

Su Huaijing didn’t respond. After a long time, he said hoarsely, “No.”

Rong Tang was momentarily dazed, neither believing nor reassured. He leaned in, looked up, and was completely stunned on the spot.

Looking at a beauty under the lamp is the most profound and affecting. In the past three lifetimes, the memories of meeting Su Huaijing will always be the most profound.

Watching the profile of a peony flower under the sunset in Song Garden.

Leaning on the railing upstairs in Liujin Parlour, observing the lanterns. He glanced over and asked, with a smile, if he wanted to share a pot of tea.

In Fengyue House, the young man stood alone, confined in a small space by a narrow chain, looking at him with determination and abandonment.

Twilight, river lights, candles……

His main villain can always divert all the bright light sources onto himself, making people forget to look at the lanterns when they notice him, and think of the bright moon in the sky when they see him.

But now, in such a cramped and dark kitchen, Rong Tang saw Su Huaijing crying.

He wasn’t heartbroken or crying his heart out, and he couldn’t even be considered a weeping beauty. He didn’t have any expressions on his face. He just stood there quietly, with his head hanging down, letting the smoke from the medicine soup waft up. Pearl-like tears slipped silently from the corners of his eyes, one drop at a time, leaving a trail in their wake.

Rong Tang’s heart suddenly trembled. He panicked and frantically looked for a handkerchief, but found nothing. In his flustered state, he could only lift his sleeve to wipe Su Huaijing’s tears. His heart hurt as if someone were pounding it with a small hammer.

No one had seen Su Huaijing cry. He hadn’t cried since he was eight years old. Those who had seen him cry were all buried beneath the dust in the chaos of war.

He is cold-hearted, cruel, and vicious. To him, millions of lives in the world are merely pawns in a chess game that can be swallowed up or discarded at will.

Then, has anyone seen him cry?

Rong Tang was so alarmed that he didn’t feel any pain in his bones for a while. All the pain surged out of his heart. He apologised without thinking: “I was wrong. I’ll never do this again. I will definitely tell you when I feel pain next time. I won’t endure it anymore……”

He was anxious and panicked, making promises one after another without hesitation. In the end, he had no choice but to beg in a low voice, “Don’t cry anymore, okay?”

In this life, Rong Tang only wanted to protect Su Huaijing, but in the end, the person who made him cry turned out to be Rong Tang himself.

He felt consumed by guilt. The soup on the stove had just cooled slightly. Rong Tang reached out, feeling the warmth of the bowl. Without hesitation, he lifted it to his lips, hoping to ease Su Huaijing’s sorrow.

But it was still too hot—bitter and scalding. After swallowing it with difficulty, Rong Tang couldn’t help but stick out his tongue.

The pale bite marks on his lower lip flushed red from the heat. His delicate pink tongue cautiously explored his lips, while Rong Tang continued to pant and fan himself, trying to alleviate the overwhelming bitterness.

“Tangtang,” Su Huaijing’s voice suddenly called softly, hoarse and deepening.

Rong Tang looked up, his vision momentarily darkening. In the dim room, the fire crackled in the medicine stove, casting flickering shadows. Su Huaijing leaned down, capturing his lips, erasing all traces of bitterness and heat.

Outside, the breeze rustled the leaves, while inside, tears fell onto Rong Tang’s face, creating tiny splashes.