Aquatic plants tangled around the floating body along both banks of the river, slowing the person’s drift through the rushing current and preventing them from being battered against rocks.
Murong Yun held her breath.
The person’s fingers were still moving.
It was a woman.
She wore black clothing, and a hairpin lodged in her hair swayed precariously, on the verge of falling out.
Without a second thought, Murong Yun leaped into the river.
Splash!
The current was swift, and Murong Yun immediately choked on two mouthfuls of water. For the past few days, she had been applying flesh-regenerating herbs to the wound on her chest, and it had begun to heal. But the icy river water caused a dull ache to spread through her injury.
Only then did she realize that this body’s original owner had never learned how to swim.
She quickly adjusted her movements, desperately paddling with both arms and legs. Finally, she managed to grasp the woman’s hand. Controlling her body with sheer determination, she forced herself to learn how to swim on the spot.
The woman had lost consciousness. There was a wound across her neck. Fortunately, it was not deep enough to be fatal, but perhaps because she had lost too much blood, she had yet to awaken.
“Murong.”
Shangguan Xuan’s eyes saw nothing but Murong.
The blood drifting through the water reminded him only of Murong’s own injuries.
Murong’s frame appeared frail and slight in the river, and with another person’s weight dragging her down, she could easily be swept away by the current.
Without hesitation, Shangguan Xuan jumped into the river.
The aquatic plants were a constant hindrance. His legs became entangled, and only after considerable effort did he break free. Swimming toward Murong, he dared not tug forcefully on her injured arm. Instead, he took over the woman’s weight.
“You get out. I’ll carry her.”
Supporting the unconscious woman with one arm, Shangguan Xuan swam toward the shore.
Once ashore, Murong Yun rubbed her chest. She was soaked through, and her tied-up hair had come loose in disarray, though she paid it no mind. Kneeling on the pebbled bank, she brushed the woman’s waterlogged hair away from her face and pressed both hands against her chest.
“She’s still breathing!”
Murong Yun had intended to perform mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, but just as she lowered her head toward the injured woman, a hand stopped her.
Shangguan Xuan’s voice was icy.
“What are you doing?”
This person had already endangered herself to save a complete stranger.
The bruises blooming across Murong’s knees only fueled his anger.
“Your injuries haven’t healed yet. What does this person’s life have to do with us?”
Murong was anxious.
This was someone the system had guided her to find. If she managed to save the woman, perhaps there would be unexpected gains.
She understood the system. The reason it had instructed her to go fishing by the river was because the rewards it offered were often exactly what she needed.
But she had no way to explain that to Shangguan Xuan.
“A life is at stake. I can’t explain it to you.”
Ignoring his obstruction, she proceeded with mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
Shangguan Xuan slowly withdrew his hand and stood up, his expression cold.
This was utterly improper.
Leaving aside the fact that Murong was supposedly a man, this woman was unconscious. Such actions could easily be seen as taking advantage of her vulnerability. If word spread, Murong would never be allowed to remain at Qingshan Academy.
After only a short while, the woman coughed up several mouthfuls of water.
Murong immediately checked to confirm that she was still alive.
“Thank goodness… thank goodness.”
Murmuring softly, Murong Yun felt for the woman’s pulse.
It was erratic, alternating between fast and slow. Her circulation was obstructed, and there were signs that her heart meridians had suffered damage.
“Could she have been poisoned?”
The woman’s lips were pale with a faint purplish tint. At first, Murong had assumed it was due to prolonged immersion in the river.
But upon reconsideration, if she had truly been submerged long enough to become that deathly pale, her heart pulse should not still exist.
Murong withdrew a silver needle and pierced the woman’s blood vessel.
When she pulled it back out, the portion that had entered the body had turned completely black.
“She’s been poisoned!”
As she spoke, Murong Yun removed her outer robe and wrapped it around the woman’s head, leaving only her nose exposed for breathing.
“You run faster than I do. Carry her back to Granny Wei’s house. I’ll stay behind and gather medicinal herbs.”
The bleak winds of October swept through the mountains. By the time they had finished their ordeal, dusk had already arrived.
Murong Yun’s clothes were soaked through, and with one less outer garment, the contours of her body became plainly visible.
A trace of ruthless intent flashed through Shangguan Xuan’s eyes.
This half-dead stranger could easily become a future threat.
It would be simpler to eliminate her now.
As Murong turned away, he considered using the poisoned silver needle to kill the unconscious woman.
He did not understand the acupuncture techniques used to save lives.
But he knew perfectly well which pressure points could kill with a single strike.
Yet just as he was about to act, Shangguan Xuan caught sight of Murong’s drenched clothing.
His movements faltered. Why did Murong’s body resemble a woman’s?
Removing his own outer robe, he hurriedly layered all his spare clothes onto Murong Yun.
“I’ll be back soon. We’ll meet again along the route we came from.”
As he retied her loosened hair, restoring her appearance as a young scholar, he noticed something else.
Viewed from behind, Murong’s throat lacked the prominent Adam’s apple expected of a man.
He forced calm onto his face.
“Remember to give her some hot water. Tell Granny Wei to buy some angelica root and brew it for her first,” Murong reminded him.
Without another word, Shangguan Xuan departed.
Using his internal energy to travel, he moved much faster.
Night descended quickly.
By the time he settled the injured woman in Granny Wei’s home, the world outside had become pitch-black.
“Shangguan, Murong will be back soon. It’s so dark out. The two of you might miss each other,” Granny Wei said as she lit another candle inside the dim room.
“We won’t. We agreed on where to meet.”
Carrying a fresh candle and a bundle of clothing borrowed from a neighbor’s son, Shangguan Xuan ventured back into the mountains.
The forest at night concealed countless unknown dangers.
Snakes, insects, wolves, perhaps even worse creatures stirred among the undergrowth.
“Murong! Murong!”
Sweat soaked through Shangguan Xuan’s clothes.
He should never have left Murong alone.
The candlelight grew weaker with every passing moment.
Clenching his fists, his heart pounded violently.
In the silent forest, only his own voice echoed, accompanied by the rustling of unseen creatures moving through the leaves.
Murong, where are you?
He returned to the riverside, venturing into darker areas. His steps were swift, his hawk-like gaze sharp and searching, yet he found no trace of her.
The river rushed onward.
Could Murong have fallen in and been carried away?
Panic gripped him.
As he hurried toward the water’s edge, the frigid night wind lashed against him. Lost in increasingly dreadful possibilities, he tripped over aquatic plants near the shore and crashed to the ground.
His palm scraped against the earth, skin tearing as blood seeped out.
Yet his hands felt icy and numb.
“Murong… Murong…”
Shangguan Xuan had never appeared so disheveled.
Had his adoptive father seen him like this, he would surely have called him pathetic.
The candle flame flickered weakly.
Forcing himself upright, Shangguan Xuan retraced his steps.
His footing was unstable.
His thoughts spiraled uncontrollably toward the worst possibility.
If Murong died, then he…
No! Since childhood, everything he desired had eventually become his.
Driven by stubborn determination, he moved quickly and silently, straining to catch every sound along the path.
At last, he heard it.
“Help…”
It was Murong. That faint voice sounded nothing like Murong Yun’s usual carefree demeanor.
Instead, it carried a feminine softness and fragility.
Shangguan Xuan clenched his fists.
His voice trembled slightly. “Where are you? Where are you?”
His eyes burned, but he forced himself to remain composed.
Bending low, he pushed through the brush along the narrow mountain path.
Finally, he spotted Murong’s hand.
She was hidden behind the tall grass. Shangguan Xuan rushed forward and gathered her into his arms.
Murong Yun’s body was freezing.
She had fallen. Bruises covered her limbs and abdomen.
“Shangguan… it’s so cold.”
The candlelight prompted Murong Yun to crack open her eyes.
Even now, she still tightly clutched the herbs she had gathered before slipping from the rocks and losing consciousness.
“I know, I know.”
Holding her close, Shangguan Xuan tried to warm her with his own body heat.
With the last remnants of awareness, Murong weakly attempted to push him away.
Yet his embrace was warm.
Nestled against him, she felt an overwhelming sense of security.
Carrying her down the mountain, Shangguan Xuan relied on his photographic memory for routes. His adoptive father had once praised him, saying he possessed the makings of a military commander.
The reason he had insisted on bringing a candle was because he worried Murong would be unable to see in the darkness.
“Shangguan…”
Murong Yun murmured weakly against his shoulder.
The night wind chilled her to the bone, causing her to curl into herself as she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck.
Fortunately, Shangguan Xuan’s body radiated warmth.
After leaning against him for a while, she gradually regained some heat.
Meanwhile, Shangguan Xuan’s mind was in complete turmoil.
He replayed every moment since they had first met.
Murong had always been shorter than the others.
She had refused to bathe with them.
She had once asked him whether he preferred men.
Even when they shared a bed, she had deliberately kept her hairpiece on while sleeping.
When Murong had suffered her chest wound, Song Qi’s mother had personally cared for her…
Shangguan Xuan pressed his lips together.
There had been so many clues. Yet he had never noticed.
Murong Yun simply behaved nothing like the sheltered young ladies people expected.
No one would ever have guessed she was a woman.
Feeling the steady rhythm of her breathing against his shoulder, Shangguan Xuan’s heart gradually settled.
Then again, Murong had never allowed herself to be confined by convention.
Whether as a scholar or as a woman, she had always remained true to herself.
Granny Wei stood waiting outside with a lantern.
Shangguan Xuan’s steps were swift but light.
“Murong is soaked through. She needs dry clothes.”
“Of course, of course. Hurry inside before she catches a chill.”
Granny Wei quickly shut the doors and windows before removing the bedding from the wooden bed.
“Lay her down here.”
“Shangguan, you…”
He said nothing. Closing the door behind him, he remained outside, leaning against it.
Raising his hand, he noticed the dried blood crusted across his palm.
His thoughts were blank.
Unable to define the emotions surging within him, he simply waited outside as his heart raced.
“The clothes have been changed.”
Granny Wei opened the door before carrying hot tea inside for Murong Yun.
Murong gradually regained consciousness.
“Granny Wei, the herbs I brought back… give them to me…”
Shangguan Xuan had already wrapped the medicinal herbs Murong had painstakingly gathered in a clean cloth.
“These are schisandra berries and licorice root. Use one part licorice with three parts mung beans, and feed it to the woman three times daily.
“Give the schisandra twice a day, morning and evening. She must finish the licorice mixture first, then wait an hour before taking the schisandra.”
Granny Wei nodded. “I’ve remembered it.”
Glancing out the window at the moonlit sky, she added, “It’s getting late. You two should return to the academy before the masters come looking for you.”
Murong Yun shakily climbed to her feet, and Shangguan Xuan immediately moved to support her.
As they walked back toward Qingshan Academy, Shangguan Xuan unexpectedly noticed a network of fine abrasions across her back.
The marks had not broken the skin, but they were red, as though she had suffered an injury.
“What happened here?”
He instinctively reached out, narrowing his eyes in the darkness to examine the back of her neck.
Then reality struck him.
Murong was a woman. His hand froze before retreating.
Following his gaze, Murong understood.
“My clothes rubbed against my skin. It’s easy to grow accustomed to luxury, but difficult to return to hardship. I suppose my body has become delicate too.”
She was wearing the clothes Shangguan Xuan had lent her.
“I’ll carry you,” Shangguan Xuan offered.
“You’ve become rather talkative.”
Breathing heavily, Murong Yun refused.
“I’m only trying to distract myself. Otherwise, this mountain path feels unbearably long.”
Shangguan Xuan fell silent.
Every so often, he stole glances at Murong Yun’s profile.
She looked peaceful and beautiful, smiling faintly, her eyelashes fluttering gently.
They were friends. Yet Murong Yun had never revealed that she was a woman.
She did not love him. For now, his feelings remained entirely one-sided.
No one knew of Shangguan Xuan’s disappointment.
Fortunately, they returned before curfew.
Ever since Song Qi’s death, Master Xu had personally inspected every room each night.
Anyone found absent would be punished the following day.
Lying in bed, Shangguan Xuan felt utterly exhausted.
His limbs ached, and he lacked the energy to care for the cuts on his hands.
After staring at the moon outside for a long while, he extinguished the candle.
“The examination results are out!”
By early morning, excitement once again swept through the academy.
This major examination had most closely resembled the provincial exams, and everyone was eager to learn their rankings.
Master Xu was busy overseeing academy affairs today, leaving the grading to Master Wang.
The students welcomed the arrangement.
Master Wang had taught many accomplished scholars. If he judged the papers, the rankings would undoubtedly be accurate.
Murong Yun had given this examination to her all.
Only after everyone else had crowded around the posted rankings, leaving disappointed or relieved, did she slowly approach the list.
“Zheng Yuan ranked first!”
“Completely deserved!”
“Of course. Zheng Yuan is always the most diligent in class and with assignments, unlike certain people.”
The implication was obvious.
They were referring to Murong Yun.
“He came in dead last this time!”
“I wonder whether there was something suspicious about those earlier exams. It’s hard to say.”
Passing by, Yu Ziyang glared at them.
“Be careful what you say. Once you enter officialdom, you’ll need to guard your words even more closely.”
“Oh, now you’re teaching us how to behave?” Xiao Heng crossed his arms and sneered. “Perhaps you should worry about yourself first. With scores like yours, do you really think you’ll pass the metropolitan examination?”
Yu Ziyang’s lips trembled.
He hurried away amid their laughter.
As he rushed past, he bumped into Murong Yun before lowering his head and changing direction.
“Yu…”
Murong Yun stared at the rankings. She knew Yu Ziyang must be devastated.
He had worked incredibly hard, yet his results continued to worsen.
Then her eyes landed on the final name.
Murong Yun. Her heart skipped a beat.
This time, she had refused the system’s task.
Without obtaining Ten Strategies on Canal Transportation, she had been unable to answer that section of the exam.
Returning to her room, Murong Yun sat down and resumed memorizing texts.
She had always possessed exceptional talent for rote learning.
Small slips of paper covered in brush-written notes were pasted all across her walls. The moment she lifted her gaze, she could begin reciting them, forcing herself to review everything from beginning to end.
If she failed the imperial examinations, she and her family would have no future but ruin.
Meanwhile, Shangguan Xuan had not sought her out for several days.
He seemed to have vanished entirely.
She did not even see him in the dining hall.
When classes ended, Murong Yun instinctively turned around.
This time, Shangguan Xuan had not left early.
He remained seated.
“Granny Wei said the woman has awakened. She wants to see you.”
Seven days had passed. She had finally regained consciousness.
“Benefactor…”
The woman’s speech was still slurred, but she forced herself to address Murong Yun.
“I… I am a death warrior…”
Murong Yun’s heart sank.
She asked Granny Wei to step outside.
“Does Song Qi’s death have anything to do with you?”
“My name is Xie Yuan. The people responsible were death warriors serving the Governor-General’s Office…”