Chapter 490: Chapter 176 Wind and Moon_3
Du Changqing: "..."
Pei Yunmeng looked at him, "A weak girl?"
After a while, Du Changqing slammed his sleeve, "I’m really superfluous in speaking!"
He turned and lifted the felt curtain to go outside.
Lu Tong had no idea what sudden madness had seized him; she simply turned to Pei Yunmeng, "Why have you come?"
"To see you."
He walked over to Lu Tong’s side and scrutinized her.
After such a period of care, her spirits seemed not too bad, yet her complexion was slightly pale. She was more frail than before, like a female ghost who had just feasted on humans, disheveled and wild.
Pei Yunmeng bent down, picking up the half-processed deer in Lu Tong’s hands, "You’re injured, why not rest properly?"
Lu Tong watched him place the deer in a large basin, skillfully using a ladle to wash away the blood, then she said, "Duan Xiaoyan brought too much game; the kitchen couldn’t hold it all, making it impossible to prepare medicines."
Pei Yunmeng paused for a moment.
Lu Tong’s face was accusatory.
So many carcasses piled in the kitchen; anyone not in the know would have thought it was Dai’s Butcher Shop. In the heat of summer, the meat couldn’t be kept for long, and Du Changqing was too stingy, feeling that the game from the hunting grounds was too precious to give away.
In the end, only Lu Tong and Miao Liangfang took turns dealing with the game in the kitchen.
"Next time, if you don’t like it, just refuse," Pei Yunmeng said. "Or you could have him prepare it for you before coming back."
Next time?
Lu Tong fell silent for a moment, then said, "I appreciate it, but it would be better if there is no next time."
She watched Pei Yunmeng place the basin filled with deer meat on the stone table in the courtyard. Yin Zheng came out with a jar of salt, ready to marinate it, before going into the house.
Seeing Pei Yunmeng standing without moving, she called out again, "Come in."
In summer, darkness fell late; it was only around the hour of chen that it gradually began to darken. Lu Tong lit a lamp inside the house and was just sitting down when she noticed a grass-woven food basket being placed on the table before her.
The basket was exquisite, with a deep green color, as if made of bamboo. Lu Tong looked at Pei Yunmeng, "What’s this?"
"Jasmine flower cakes from Shi Ding Xuan."
Pei Yunmeng withdrew his hand and sat down opposite her, "They should suit your taste."
Lu Tong was taken aback for a moment.
She had heard Du Changqing mention this pastry shop in South City. Not only was their fare expensive, but it was also hard to get due to the long queues. Once, Ah Cheng had a birthday, and Du Changqing wanted to buy a box of Ruyi cakes. He went early before dawn to queue up, only to find out that they were sold out just when it was his turn, which infuriated Du Changqing so much that he swore for half a day back at the clinic.
Lu Tong asked, "Why buy this?"
"Visiting a sick person, I can’t go empty-handed."
"I thought the Marshal came to tell me some other news."
He looked at her with interest, "Like what?"
"For example, how you made Qi Yutai swallow this loss."
It had been five or six days since she returned to West Street to recuperate, and during this time, everything was calm, and no incidents occurred. There was no news from the Medical Officer Institute, and it seemed as if the confrontation at Huangmao Hill had been quietly settled.
Given the Qi Family’s way of handling things, this was completely out of character. Even if Qi Yutai wouldn’t go after her life publicly right now, it would have been easy for them to make her life difficult, not to mention that Cui Min had foul intentions from the start and was lurking in the shadows.
The only possibility was that Pei Yunmeng had interfered.
"What did you do?" she asked.
Pei Yunmeng looked at her, a hint of amusement in his eyes.
"Nothing much, just added a few men among the forest guards at the hunting grounds," he said.
"Men recommended by the Qi Family."
Lu Tong was suddenly taken aback.
With the Crown Prince and the Third Prince each encountering a tiger on the hunting grounds and an assassin in the mountains, respectively, the enclosures searched by Ban Wei should not have had such dangers. If anything went wrong, someone would surely be held accountable.
And it was the men recommended by the Qi Family.
She was a newly appointed Imperial Medical Officer at the Medical Officer Institute, who hadn’t even become an Imperial Physician, let alone understand the whirlpools and undercurrents of the imperial court. But even so, she knew the gravity of the matter.
Preoccupied with handling the emperor’s suspicions, the Qi Family truly had no spare energy to deal with her, a minor disturbance.
"How about that?" Pei Yunmeng looked at her, his lips curling into a smile, "Is the Doctor satisfied with this gift?"
Lu Tong looked at his seemingly nonchalant smiling face, her heart feeling somewhat complex.
She hadn’t expected Pei Yunmeng to start from this angle.
Although this action plunged the Qi Family into a difficult situation, given the Qi family’s means, it was probably only temporary. Once this affair was over, Qi Qing might well trace it back to Pei Yunmeng.
Just a few days ago, Qi Qing had thought of winning him over to become his son-in-law. Now that this had happened, there was no longer any possibility of that.
He didn’t leave any way out for himself.
Seeing Lu Tong staring at her unblinkingly, Pei Yunmeng was puzzled, "Why are you not speaking?"
Lu Tong shifted her gaze, "I was just thinking, by losing the marriage alliance with the Grand Preceptor’s Mansion, Lord Pei has suffered a great loss this time."
Pei Yunmeng’s smile stiffened on his face, "What nonsense are you talking about?"
"It’s simply the truth."
Just as Pei Yunmeng was about to say something, he seemed to recall something, his gaze suddenly shifted, he cocked his head to look at her, and slightly curled his lips, "You shouldn’t speak recklessly, after all, I am already betrothed."
"..."
This time it was Lu Tong’s turn to color change.
"I already said it wasn’t you."
Pei Yunmeng nodded indolently, "Oh."
Lu Tong became anxious, his demeanor clearly showed disbelief.
It was silent in the room; Yin Zheng had finished sweeping the yard and was splashing water into the basin outside, the water hitting the stone slabs with a gentle "splash."
His smile slightly faded as he asked Lu Tong, "How is your injury?"
In fact, on that day coming down from Huangmao Hill, Lin Danqing had already examined her. Although the wound was bloody and looked frightening, at the time Lu Tong had protected the vital parts, and the injury was much better than expected. The only concern was the potential for scars.
However, Ji Xun had sent Immortal Jade Skin Ointment. It was said that this ointment worked quickly to heal scars, and Miao Liangfang also highly praised it, "If the people don’t recognize its value, the money does. The ointment used by the nobles inside the Palace is truly good."
With this in mind, Lu Tong said, "Thanks to the Marshal for the Jade Skin Ointment, it’s almost healed. In another five or six days, I’ll be able to return to the Medical Officer Institute."
Pei Yunmeng followed her gaze and then his eyes slightly narrowed.
Two identical medicine bottles were placed side by side on the table. He picked up one bottle, his expression somewhat strange, "Why are there two bottles?"
The Immortal Jade Skin Ointment ingredients were precious, and the Imperial Apothecary had almost no surplus; it was distributed among the nobles’ palaces. The bottle Pei Yunmeng had was a reward from the Empress Dowager, but there were two bottles on Lu Tong’s table.
He asked, "Who else gave you a bottle?"
Lu Tong, "Doctor Ji."
"Ji Xun?"
He paused for a moment, his eyebrows slightly furrowed, "The last time I saw you, you were being chastised by him."
Then, pondering, he said, "Also, at the hunting field, when Qi Yutai was giving you a hard time, he spoke up for you, too."
"Strange." His beautiful eyes stared at Lu Tong, thoughtfully saying, "When did you two become so close?"
Lu Tong was seated at the table, calmly replying, "Doctor Ji is like a white crane in the clouds, upright and unselfish, a gentleman out of the common mold. Seeing Qi Yutai bullying others with his power, he naturally wouldn’t stand idly by."
"Any previous grievances have been resolved, and misunderstandings cleared up a long time ago, they no longer matter."
"Colleagues giving medicine is also quite normal."
Pei Yunmeng’s eyes and brows moved, "A gentleman?"
He looked deeply at Lu Tong, his tone turning slightly cool, "You do have a high opinion of him."
Lu Tong didn’t understand his abrupt sarcasm.
"Even if he is a gentleman," Pei Yunmeng didn’t linger on the subject but instead switched to another topic, "But you just said that you’d go back to the Medical Officer Institute in five or six days, don’t you need to rest for a few more days?"
He reminded, "The Qi Family is currently too preoccupied to pay any attention to you. But after some time..."
"I need to return to the Medical Officer Institute," Lu Tong interrupted him.
Pei Yunmeng paused.
"In Lord Pei’s eyes, do you see me as someone who just waits for doom?"
Her expression was calm, her pale face, under the lamp light, her eyes black and deep, like a spring well with dark currents swirling within.
"Qi Yutai unleashed a vicious dog on me. Either he kills me, or he goes to his own death."
Pei Yunmeng looked intently at her, "What have you done?"
Lu Tong lowered her eyes.
"I did what I had to do."