Why is he so frail?

When Ling Zhao returned to the monastic room, Physician Zhang was already waiting in the small courtyard.

"Young General Ling, the Heir Apparent has ordered me to examine your injuries."

Ling Zhao let out a light snort. "He still has a shred of conscience." With that, he raised his foot and stepped into the room.

Physician Zhang first took his pulse, then carefully cut away the front of his robe. At this moment, his flesh and the fabric were mended together with dried blood, and the severed garment was stained with strips of flesh. Even Physician Zhang could not help frowning slightly at the sight. "Although the General's fall from the horse did not damage the bones and tendons, the injury is still severe. I am about to clean the damaged flesh before applying the ointment. This will inevitably disturb the wounds, so I must ask Young General Ling to bear with it."

"It is of no consequence."

Ling Zhao lay flat on the stomach across the bed, not even lifting an eyelid.

"How is she?"

Those who managed to survive in the imperial palace were all consummate schemers.

Physician Zhang naturally understood what Ling Zhao was asking. While neatly and efficiently stopping the bleeding, he prudently replied, "This old man has already tended to the young lady's wounds. The General need not worry; these are merely superficial injuries caused by the whipping of rattan branches, so she will recover completely after a period of quiet recuperation. Furthermore, I have added Jade-Restoring Powder to the topical ointment, so the young lady is certain not to leave any scars."

Ling Zhao closed his eyes, resting his face on his arm, and let out a soft "Mn." Then he opened his eyes again. "Physician Zhang..."

"This old man understands. General Ling may rest assured."

To navigate the imperial palace, the most fundamental rule was to act as both a blind man and a mute.

As Physician Zhang continued applying the ointment with utmost care, Ling Zhao grew so bored he was nearly falling asleep.

Jinsheng cast a glance at the gruesome injuries on Ling Zhao's back and bit his lower lip. "My Lord, this humble servant has already secretly informed Lord Yan that you saved Miss Ming. Presumably..."

Before he could finish, Suifeng's voice suddenly echoed from outside the door: "He is here, he is here! Eldest Young Master, Miss Ming has arrived!"

Upon hearing this, Jinsheng's eyes lit up. He hurriedly stepped aside by two paces, terrified of blocking the prime viewing position by the bedside.

The door of the monastic room was pushed open gently. Qingzhu and Chun'er supported Xiao Ming as she walked in with unsteady steps. At a glance, she saw Physician Zhang treating him. Ling Zhao was lying face down on the bed, his muscular upper back completely bare, revealing wounds that were incomparably ferocious and startling to the eye.

He slowly opened his half-closed eyes, his brow furrowed slightly. In the flickering candlelight, his handsome face appeared pale and weak. "Why have you come?"

Xiao Ming lifted her veil and turned pale at the sight of the blood-drenched back. "You—how are you feeling?"

"A mere trifling injury, it is of no consequence. Hiss..."

The Physician Zhang, who was in the midst of applying medicine, was so startled that his hands paused for a moment. He had been applying the medicine for quite a while, so why did the general suddenly find it unbearable now?

"General Ling, are—are you alright?" Physician Zhang asked with trembling trepidation.

"It is nothing," came the slightly hoarse and feeble voice.

Where had Xiao Ming ever witnessed such severe injuries? Anxious, she asked, "Physician Zhang, is he going to die?"

Physician Zhang had already guessed the truth of the matter to a great extent. He secretly chuckled to himself twice, but his reply to Xiao Ming was both respectful and grave. "My lady, the General's injuries are terribly severe. I fear they may have affected his bones and tendons. Yet the external wounds are secondary; what is most to be feared is that his inner constitution cannot withstand the trauma. Though this old man has practiced medicine for decades and has done his utmost to treat him, barely stabilizing his condition, the next few days are the most critical. If a high fever were to break out suddenly, it could indeed prove fatal!"

"Then how long must we wait before he is completely out of danger?" Xiao Ming's expression shifted drastically, her heart suspended in her throat.

"The General's constitution was already frail to begin with, and the severe trauma from falling off the horse today has shocked his body further. I shall go and brew the medicine presently, have the General take it, and observe him through the night. If he can manage to pull through this night without developing a high fever, perhaps there will be no further major problems."

Xiao Ming nodded repeatedly. "Then I must trouble Physician Zhang."

A sour, aching sensation wrung her heart. Had it not been for shielding her, with his superb horsemanship, he surely would never have suffered such grave injuries.

Lowering her gaze to look at Ling Zhao, she thought that perhaps because he was truly hurt too badly, the oppressive hostility that usually surrounded him had entirely dissipated. He looked as fragile as a little kitten, docile and submissive as he lay there, seemingly unconscious and entirely at the mercy of the physician.

In the span of their conversation, Physician Zhang had already finished applying the healing powder to Ling Zhao and wrapped the wounds with clean gauze.

"This old man will go brew the medicine for the Young General first." Physician Zhang rose to his feet.

Jinsheng immediately said, "I will accompany you."

He turned to Xiao Ming. "I must trouble Miss Ming to watch over my master for a moment on this servant's behalf. I will return as soon as I fetch the medicine."

Xiao Ming was still in a state of chaotic panic and nodded incessantly. "Go quickly."

Jinsheng hastily withdrew along with Physician Zhang, taking the opportunity to exchange a knowing look with Qingzhu and Chun'er.

The bedchamber, which had just been bustling, quickly quieted down, leaving only Xiao Ming and Ling Zhao behind.

Ling Zhao's blood-stained outer garments had already been cut away and discarded, leaving him clad in only a pair of sleeping trousers, exposing his robust upper body.

The atmosphere suddenly turned inexplicably awkward.

Seeing a clean cloth towel on the bedside table, Xiao Ming picked it up, dipped it into a basin of hot water, and wrung it half-dry. "Shall I help you wipe the remaining blood off your back?"

"Very well." He closed his eyes and nodded weakly.

Clearly, this man before her always inexplicably lost his temper with her, gave her the cold shoulder, loved to mock and satirize her, used the pretext of investigating her parents' case to threaten and vex her everywhere, and was moreover an incorrigible old lecher who frequently took blatant liberties with her. Yet today, he had risked his life to save her, leaving her unable to truly like him, nor capable of hating him thoroughly.

Xiao Ming bit her lip, suddenly lowering her gaze in a fit of vexation.

The warm cloth gently wiped against his skin, washing away the crimson traces of blood on his back. Her fingers, holding the cloth, occasionally brushed against his skin, sending tremors straight to the core of his heart.

He could not suppress a low groan.

She panicked and halted her movements. "Does it hurt?"

Ling Zhao nodded. "It hurts."

"Then I will be gentler." Xiao Ming softened her movements even further, blowing softly as she wiped. When she heard Huaixi say that Ling Zhao had been severely injured falling off his horse to save her and was on the verge of death, she had been so frantic that she hadn't even combed her hair, rushing out hastily with just a veil over her loose locks.

Fortunately, although Physician Zhang said the injuries were grave, he was still alive for the moment, which allowed her to feel somewhat relieved.

She had to take good care of him and help him through this most perilous night.

With his head pillowed on one arm, Ling Zhao rested his gentle gaze steadily upon her. She had changed out of her dazzling red daytime dress and now wore only a single, thin, moon-white long gown. Sitting by the bedside with her lowered gaze, she meticulously helped him wipe his shoulder, her unpainted, delicate face flushing with an imperceptible blush.

She was so close to him that even the fine peach fuzz on her cheeks was clearly visible.

How utterly adorable.

When she suddenly raised her eyes, she caught herself crashing unexpectedly into his warm, burning gaze. Her expression flickered, and she quickly averted her eyes in avoidance.

"Why are you not sleeping?" she murmured.

Even someone utterly dense in matters of the heart could tell that the way he looked at her was far from innocent.

Ling Zhao's throat bobbed. "I am thirsty."