Cold. Truly cold.
Wei Qingchen pressed a hand against her chest, stumbling along the winding path. To evade the pursuit of enemy scouts and spies, she had long since discarded her armor and blade. Now, she wore only a half-worn cotton coat stained with mottled mud and bloodstains, resembling the frail youths common to this bitterly cold land beyond the Great Wall.
Thick, swirling evening snow obscured the path behind and blurred the way ahead. She forced herself to take another step, but collapsed at last into this world of ice and snow.
Will Father Marshal find me?
Wei Qingchen blinked slowly. Snowflakes settled on her eyelashes, colder than any armor.
Will Father Marshal blame me?
“Hyah! Hyah!”
Outside a border town straddling the Eastern Radiance Kingdom and the Northern Chen Kingdom, a caravan struggled through the snow. A coachman cracked his whip, urging the horses onward.
“Whoa…” The coachman squinted for a moment, then guided the horses with practiced skill, bringing the carriage to a slow halt. He turned and said, “Miss, Brother Min is back.”
The cargo carts and accompanying staff trailing behind also came to a stop. Lei Min, the scout, a capable young man just past twenty, rode up to the carriage window. From beyond the curtain, he said, “Miss, there’s someone in the snow ahead, about to be buried. Hmm…” He paused, then continued, “Looks like a kid, still clinging to a last breath.”
A brief silence fell within the carriage before a clear, cool voice emerged: “First, take the person to the cart at the back. We’ll discuss this when we return to town.”
“Yes, Miss,” Lei Min responded. Turning his horse, he rode back to the front.
“Miss, you didn’t even ask if it was a man or a woman before bringing the person along! What if it’s a villain!”
Only two people were inside the carriage: the Miss and her little maidservant, Qingdai, a girl of fourteen or fifteen. She was fretting incessantly. Miss’s heart was far too kind, but she couldn’t just rescue anyone she came across!
The carriage rumbled into motion once more. Frigid wind and snow beat against its frame, making the journey even more arduous, and inevitably, gusts of cold air seeped inside. Chu Mingxi pulled her cloak slightly tighter. Above the collar of white fur, a face of delicate beauty was revealed, eyes holding a liquid light, skin like snow-white ice.
“Is it wrong to save a man, or wrong to save a woman?” Chu Mingxi raised an eyebrow at the remark and gave her a bland look. Seeing Qingdai lower her head, aggrieved, she understood the girl was merely concerned for her. Softening her tone, she comforted her, “Besides, the person hasn’t even woken up. How can we know if they are good or bad?”
Qingdai was about to argue further when Chu Mingxi averted her gaze. The carriage curtain swayed faintly before her, and her sightline pierced through the beaded screen, reaching into the distance.
If Father were here, he would definitely choose to save the person too…
Her gaze was distant and tinged with remembrance. Qingdai was slightly taken aback and, though not fully understanding why, finally settled down and closed her mouth.
Through wind and snow, step by step, the light beyond the Wall had dimmed. The group finally rushed back to Seven-Mile Town just before nightfall.
Though called a town, it had originally been rather prosperous. Every autumn and winter, merchants seeking to buy furs and medicinal herbs were endless, leading to the establishment of related inns, taverns, and traveling merchant houses—all sorts of businesses. However, due to the Northern Chen Kingdom’s invasion during the harsh winter at the end of last year, the wartime situation had inevitably left the streets somewhat desolate.
“The Miss has returned!” As soon as the carriage stopped steadily in the courtyard, the old gatekeeper came out to greet them. Seeing the carriage curtain raise a crack, revealing half the face of the young maid Qingdai, he quickly stood, hands lowered, beside the carriage.
The Chu family had been in the medicinal herb business for many years. Almost every deep winter, the family head would personally make this trip to this bitterly cold region to buy herbs. Therefore, although this residence wasn’t very large, it was fully equipped inside. The supervising maids and matrons each performed their own duties. Soon, hot water and soup were brought up. Qingdai assisted her Miss in removing her heavy overcoat, and washed her hands and face. When she was about to offer hot tea, Chu Mingxi waved it off, tucked a handkerchief into her sleeve, and walked straight out.
After asking and confirming that the found child was still in the carriage shed, Chu Mingxi walked gracefully over. Reaching the shed, the mixed smell of horse bran and dry hay hit her nostrils. The matron following her, being more prudent and already aware of the situation, advised, “Miss, this place is filthy. Why not first have someone move the child to the servants’ quarters? It will save you from being offended by the squalor.”
Chu Mingxi shook her head. “I fear it may be a critical condition. I’ll look first.” So saying, without waiting for anyone, she lifted the wool felt curtain and entered the shed.
The smell inside was even worse than outside, and Chu Mingxi couldn’t help but frown. Several horse lanterns hung from the beams, illuminating the horses that had returned in the night, which were now chewing their hay. Lei Min and the others were off busy with their own tasks. Only an old groom remained beside the cart. He had found a piece of cloth somewhere, wet it with water, and was wiping the child’s face.
Chu Mingxi walked closer. Qingdai held the lamp for her. She knelt down on one knee and examined the child by lamplight… a child, perhaps only slightly younger than herself, thirteen or fourteen years old. Under the dim light, the child’s features were clear and bright, a faint trace of dirt staining the face, brows slightly furrowed as if in pain from some unseen wound. Chu Mingxi took out the silk handkerchief she had tucked in her sleeve and laid it over the youth’s wrist. Calming her mind and focusing her spirit, her jade-green fingertips touched the pulse through the silk handkerchief.
The pulse-taking took slightly longer than usual. Qingdai craned her neck, curious. The matron beside her shot a look. Qingdai stuck out her tongue and settled down. Chu Mingxi withdrew her hand, a trace of perplexity flickering across her back-turned face—a look no one saw.
When Lei Min and Chen Yu finished their work and returned, hearing that the Miss had placed the found child in her own courtyard, they both widened their eyes in shock.
“Hey! Where are you going?” Chen Yu saw Lei Min turn and leave and quickly followed.
“I have to check. Miss is too kind-hearted. Don’t let her be deceived!” Before leaving home, Lei Min’s father had repeatedly warned him that this was Miss’s first journey to the Northern Border as the Head Proprietor. He absolutely had to protect Miss’s safety, no mishaps allowed. Thinking of this, Lei Min quickened his pace, taking three steps for every two.
“Hey! What, what are you doing?!” Qingdai, holding a basin of water, had just emerged from the room when Lei Min crashed into her. Water sloshed from the basin, spilling over her hand. In this freezing weather, she was so angry she stomped her feet.
“I came to see Miss. I heard that little imp was brought here. How could you let him into the house?! This is so unclear, how do you know he’s not a villain?! You’re far too careless!” Lei Min said, attempting to barge in again.
Still holding the water basin, Qingdai had no choice but to block him head-on. “Off with you! Is Miss’s room a place you can just barge into?! That child was placed in the outer wing room. Miss said this illness came on fast and fiercely, she has to personally look after them a bit.” As she spoke, she lowered her voice and muttered, “Villain or not, you’re the one who brought this trouble here. You picked him up!!” She glared sideways at him and gave another huff. “If anything happens to Miss, I’ll hold you solely responsible!”
“You…!” Lei Min was both furious and anxious, but this trouble was indeed something he had brought upon himself.
Qingdai warned him a couple more times not to enter the room, and only after he agreed did she leave with the water basin. Chen Yu patted his shoulder. “Let’s go. We can’t just barge into our mistress’s chambers. Are you so eager to get nagged to death when we return home? Besides, Miss has come to the Northern Border with the Old Master before, not just once or twice. Even if the sky falls, she’ll have a plan.” He paused, then added with a smile, “It’s just a little imp with a sudden illness. If you’re worried, we can just stand guard in the courtyard.”
Lei Min lowered his head in thought for a moment, looked at the lit lamp in the outer wing room, and nodded.
Several large tallow candles were lit inside the wing room, making it bright inside and out. Chu Mingxi half-sat on the edge of the bed, applying a heated wound poultice to a conspicuous blade wound on the arm. The sharp, stinging pain caused Wei Qingchen, still in a deep slumber, to struggle unconsciously. Chu Mingxi pressed one hand on her wrist, frowning and scolding softly, “Don’t move! This is to save your life!”
Her voice was cool and clear, like a cup of tea in winter, penetrating straight to the heart.
Wei Qingchen’s eyes were tightly shut; whether she heard or not, the struggling stopped. Candlelight streamed in from all around. The freshly cleansed face was bright and handsome. Though its features hadn’t fully matured, one could already faintly see she would surely grow into a most handsome person.
Seeing she had stopped struggling, Chu Mingxi waited a moment and then released her hand.
A few quiet knocks sounded from outside the door. Qingdai entered with a basin of freshly drawn hot water. After she set down the basin, Chu Mingxi handed a prescription she had just written over. “Watch the heat carefully with these herbs. Go down to the kitchen and personally oversee it; make sure it isn’t over-brewed.”
Qingdai let out an “Ah,” looking at the half-dead boy on the bed and then at her young Miss. She wanted to speak but stopped herself.
Chu Mingxi had already opened her needle case and taken out a silver needle. Without looking at her, she simply said, “Go on. This injury is rather delicate. Don’t let anyone disturb me.”
Qingdai had no choice. She gave a curtsey and withdrew.
Once the door was shut, Chu Mingxi’s fair hand lifted slightly and gently peeled back the blood-stained clothing on the person lying in the bed. Beneath the lapels, the thin body was wrapped in layer upon layer of cloth. The fabric was soft and dense in texture—the finest Crossing Light Gauze, worth a hundred gold pieces a bolt in the Capital City.
Just what kind of person is this child?
The question flickered through her mind but left no deep impression.
“Whenever patients suffering from illness or injury come seeking help, one must not question their status—noble or low, rich or poor, old or young, beautiful or ugly, enemy or friend, native or foreigner, wise or foolish. All shall be treated as equals, with the same consideration as close kin.”
Only her father’s earnest teachings from childhood always remained in her heart.
Chu Mingxi calmed her mind and, with practiced ease, steadily inserted a silver needle precisely into an acupoint.
Wei Qingchen felt as though she had fallen into a bottomless abyss. The surroundings were oppressive; there were no enemy soldiers, no friendly troops. She was alone, exhausted to the extreme, her mind in a daze. She couldn’t distinguish night from day, but vaguely knew she was hovering at the edge of life and death. She was unwilling. Father Marshal had not yet forgiven her, and she had yet to atone for the mistakes she had made.
But she was so tired. So spent. She desperately waved her arms, trying to struggle, but once again closed her eyes, sinking down heavily.
In her dazed confusion, it seemed someone was speaking. That voice was cold and clear. What did that person say? Her head hurt too much; every single breath was labored, and she couldn’t distinguish a single thing.
Suddenly, a violent, sharp pain, like a blade slicing through the chaos, jolted her sharply toward wakefulness! She wanted to cover her head, but someone held her hand down. With great effort, she forced her eyes open. Amidst the overlapping light and shadows, she saw a graceful woman looking down at her with lowered eyes. The woman was extremely beautiful, surrounded by a halo of faint light, her brow showing a hint of concern.
“Are you… a Bodhisattva?” Wei Qingchen murmured, her voice lingering with a hint of coquettishness, but unable to resist the exhaustion, her eyelids drooped, and she sank back into chaos once more.
