CHAPTER 224: CHAPTER 221: DON’T LOOK! HE’S NOT WEARING CLOTHES

Lian Rong did not say more and took his leave.

If Xu Yin’s hypothesis holds true, and Pei Zhan had secretly admired Liang Ning, then Fu Zhen, who resembles Liang Ning, would merely be a stand-in.

In this light, exerting effort on Fu Zhen would be somewhat unworthy.

After all, she wasn’t Liang Ning herself.

If it were Liang Ning herself, then without needing Xu Yin to explain, Lian Rong would have been thinking about how to cast her into hell forever, never to see the light again.

But Xu Yin was right, it’s rare for Pei Zhan to have a vulnerability, which deserves their close attention.

...

The Zhe Family resided in Ping’an Alley to the west of Prince Rong’s Mansion, which was, of course, intentionally arranged by Princess Rong to facilitate visiting the Prince’s Manor.

As the afternoon faded, Fu Zhen sent people to scout outside the Zhe Family, and when night was deep and quiet, she gathered a few individuals, donned their attire, and took a carriage to Ping’an Alley.

On the day she personally extracted the knife from Zhe Yu’s wound, Fu Zhen hadn’t intended to intervene in his treatment, because she had thought Princess Rong would do her utmost to save him.

What Princess Rong couldn’t save, Fu Zhen certainly had no means to resolve either.

But no one expected Yongping to intervene in the midst of it all!

If Zhe Yu died, no one would know Xu Yin killed him, and even if Fu Zhen stepped forward to testify, it’s still better to have Zhe Yu alive to accuse him himself, no?

In a sense, Xu Yin was the mutual enemy of both Zhe Yu and Liang Ning. Of course, it still depends on whether this fool could wake up from Yongping’s enchantment.

Speaking of which, Fu Zhen felt a mixture of emotions realizing how adept Xu Yin had become at killing.

She really didn’t know if it was a skill he originally possessed, or if after personally killing Liang Ning, his abilities in this area became so refined, now as easy as cutting grass by the roadside.

"The Zhe Family has a doctor guarding it day and night, brought from outside on Princess Rong’s orders, with the Imperial Physician visiting every morning to check the pulse and change the medicine.

"The Zhe Family spans three courtyards front and back, Zhe Yu resides in the main room of the main courtyard, with two shifts of night watch, each shift has three people, including two regular guards and a maid.

"The Zhe Family doesn’t have many people, a total of only ten servants inside and outside, he himself is trained, and there are no family members, so the defense isn’t strict."

On the way, Yang Tong carefully recounted the information they had gathered to Fu Zhen, just as they arrived near the Zhe Family.

Fu Zhen instructed, "You lure the people in his room away, then I’ll go in and take a look; I won’t be long."

After saying this, she put on her face mask, quietly using the carriage for cover, then climbed over the wall.

Upon landing, she found someone beside her...

"Why are you here?" Fu Zhen looked in surprise at Pei Zhan, also dressed in night clothes, "Weren’t you not coming?"

Pei Zhan said, "I never said I wasn’t coming."

"Then why were you hesitating, wasn’t it because you didn’t want to come?"

"Of course not." After stating this, Pei Zhan followed the shadows at the wall’s base, stepping towards the depths of the house.

Fu Zhen watched his back, hastily following him.

The house wasn’t big, and they quickly reached beneath the back window of the main room in the main courtyard.

The air was thick with the scent of herbs, and a lamp was lit inside, with slight movements coming from within.

Fu Zhen crouched by the wall base, tugged at Pei Zhan’s clothing, and made a gesture for him to crouch, waiting for Yang Tong’s signal.

Cricket calls echoed from the yard, followed by the sound of a door opening, soft footsteps approaching, and soon after, cat meows were heard.

Fu Zhen nudged Pei Zhan beside her, then opened the back window and leaped inside.

A dimly lit oil lamp illuminated the room, and within the gauze curtain, heavy breathing could be heard.

Fu Zhen approached the bed, drew back the gauze, and saw Zhe Yu lying with his eyes tightly shut, his face pale, and indeed he was emaciated, with his bare shoulders appearing significantly loosened of flesh.

Fu Zhen softly called "General Zhe," but he didn’t move. She stretched her hand to lift his quilt, intending to inspect his injuries.

A hand reached from the side, blocking her attempt again.

Pei Zhan said, "He’s not wearing clothes, and you want to look?"

Fu Zhen made a ’tsk’ sound, "What of it? His wound is beneath his right flank, not a private area, I just want to see the injury!"

Pei Zhan, without further argument, pointed outside: "You go over there, I’ll lift it."

Then he lifted the quilt.

The wound Fu Zhen saw that day was now bandaged, but it was evident that the area around the wound was swollen, with the red swollen areas extending under the armpit and across the chest.

Fu Zhen peeked a few times, frowning: "How many days has it been, why does it look worse?"

Then she leaned closer, inspecting the bed closely. The bed seemed fairly clean, yet Zhe Yu’s slightly parted lips were already chapped, and on the bedside table, a bowl of tea was down to its dregs, with no additional water prepared.

"It’s indeed like this!" Fu Zhen picked up the teacup, "In his state, eating is already a problem, and now even without water, how can the injury heal?

"If the people around were more attentive, he wouldn’t be in such a state."

Pei Zhan said, "Princess Rong ordered his treatment personally, no one would dare to disobey. If anyone is responsible, it would only be Xu Yin or Yongping."

"It confirms the saying, ’Not of one family doesn’t enter one door!’ These two are truly something!"

Fu Zhen said indignantly, pressing the cup to Zhe Yu’s lips, drip-feeding the remaining tea into his mouth.

The slight trickle barely touched his lips when, even in his stupor, he instinctively gulped rapidly.

But there wasn’t much tea, only two or three mouthfuls worth, and after it all flowed in, unable to drink more, he suddenly seized Fu Zhen’s wrist!

Fu Zhen froze, quickly handing the cup to Pei Zhan: "Go quickly, find some water!"

Pei Zhan glanced at her but didn’t move.

Fu Zhen said, "Hurry! He’s dying of thirst!"

Pei Zhan’s face darkened further as he stood up.

But he didn’t go immediately; instead, he suddenly gripped Zhe Yu’s wrist, pulling hard until he wrenched it far away, before walking to the corner to pour some tea, all the while being drawn to a medicine jar beside the table.

Fu Zhen swallowed her wordless frustration, turning her gaze back to Zhe Yu’s face. He was evidently extremely dehydrated, his breathing disrupted, muttering indistinctly.

Fu Zhen took a deep breath, pulled up her face mask, called out again, "General Zhe? General Zhe?"

"Stop calling, he can’t hear you!"

Pei Zhan returned to the bedside holding a bowl of water, spat out the words without a hint of warmth, "The water has sleeping pills, he won’t wake up!"

Then he handed over a medicine jar.

Inside the jar there were still remnants of medicine, the smell of which was easy enough for those familiar with herbs to recognize.

Fu Zhen was in disbelief, Zhe Yu was already in this state, and yet someone was still feeding him sleeping pills? Are they afraid he’ll wake up?!