Chapter 378: Treatment

Chapter 378: Treatment

Tang Wanzhuang and Huangfu Qing were the same age, twenty-nine this year.

In twenty-nine years, she had never tasted what a kiss was like.

With her more reserved personality, this kiss left her even more dazed than Huangfu Qing had been back then. Huangfu Qing could still let her mind wander to all sorts of random thoughts, but at this moment, Tang Wanzhuang’s mind was utterly blank. Aside from the repeated echoes of “Didn’t we say we wouldn’t talk about matters between men and women?” and “Didn’t I say I was just a self-assured aunt? What are you doing?”—there was no other thought at all.

In truth, if she could analyze this very thought, she might wonder why she wasn’t resisting or feeling disgusted. Instead, she was thinking, *He called me aunt and still kissed me...*

Nor did she consider that there had never been any talk of love between them—what right did he have to kiss her?

In her daze, another thought surfaced instead.

*After all, there are only three months left.*

In a haze, she felt as if her soul were drifting, arriving at a place of beautiful mountains and clear waters. The air was fresh, the fragrance of flowers pleasing, and everywhere there were fragrant grasses, brimming with the vitality of spring. A clear stream flowed from the mountaintop, its murmuring sound faintly audible. In the vast sky, wild geese returned, their cries echoing through the heavens. Lifting her head, she saw an endless azure expanse.

A heroic young man, dressed in crisp and neat warrior attire, clean and tidy, with handsome brows and eyes, stood in the west, smiling as he looked at her.

She gazed back. Did the young man have a scar on his face?

Yet it did not mar his beauty; instead, it added a touch of wild elegance to the gentle and ethereal landscape.

It was as if some divine hand of heaven had painted this scene.

Seeing her look, the young man smiled faintly and sat cross-legged.

Before him, a zither appeared as if from nowhere. The youth reached out and lightly brushed it, and the sound of the instrument flowed forth.

Baoqin, clutching a stack of books, stood timidly nearby, peeking curiously.

She sat down contentedly, casually picked up a scroll, and leaned against a rock to read.

A gentle breeze brushed her face, and the music entered her ears—so wonderfully comfortable.

Was this the life she dreamed of, after settling the affairs of the sovereign and the realm, retiring from the martial world?

With mountains and water, books and music, a heroic and handsome man smiling as he looked on... Hmm... no... What are you doing playing the zither here? Shouldn’t you be governing your kingdom?

Tang Wanzhuang suddenly snapped back to reality. Where were the mountains, waters, and vast sky? Where were the books, music, and serene joy? The young man was still there, right before her, kissing her.

Tang Wanzhuang regained her clarity and was about to push the bastard away, but then she noticed a change in her body.

His true qi was being transferred through their lips and tongues, circulating endlessly with heaven and earth, yin and yang exchanging back and forth like a bridge.

In this union of yin and yang, the revitalizing energy was more than ten times stronger than what she had felt earlier when he transmitted it through his hand. The spring blossoms she had seen in her dream likely came from this...

But at the same time, what was being transferred was not limited to this.

Just as Xia Chichi could transfer the Azure Dragon’s intent to Zhao Changhe through this, Zhao Changhe could likewise use this to present to Tang Wanzhuang’s sea of consciousness the insights of mountains and waters, the beauty of nature, and the sounds of heaven and earth that he had gained from the second page of the celestial book.

His eyes were closed, and he was fully focused on channeling these things. There was not a trace of lustful thought; his lips and tongue did not move to suck or nibble, and his hands made no other movements. He was entirely absorbed in transferring his qi and intent back and forth.

This was an extremely taxing task, leaving no room for distraction.

“Then cooperate with me.” Yes, that was what he had said.

It seemed to have some effect... The dual cultivation method, combined with his strange transmission of natural mountain-and-water intent, was a good supplement for what she had lacked when she forcibly broke through. Additionally, he seemed to have the Azure Dragon’s rejuvenation technique from the Four Symbols Sect. The combination of these three elements seemed to be the only solution for her condition?

Tang Wanzhuang was astonished. How could this be?

The entire nation’s resources had found no solution, and even the world’s number one was at a loss. Yet he had somehow found a way?

Was he sent by heaven to save me?

Though it was still weak—his cultivation was insufficient—it might still be possible to slightly improve her condition, slightly repair her meridians, and reduce the dissipation and erosion of energy...

Whether it could cure her was uncertain, but it might buy her more time...

Tang Wanzhuang stared blankly, her hand already resting on his shoulder, but in the end, she exerted no force to push him away.

Her hand felt a warm, damp touch—it was the blood on his shoulder.

The wound from Yu Cixiu’s spear piercing his shoulder had not yet been treated... yet his only thought was to help her.

Perhaps because her hand touched his wound, Zhao Changhe felt a slight pain, frowned, and finally opened his eyes.

The treatment abruptly stopped, and their eyes met.

Their lips were still pressed together, and neither could tell what was in the other’s gaze.

Zhao Changhe could not read the emotion in her eyes, but he could tell she was fully conscious. He dared not linger on her lips any longer and slowly pulled back a little, whispering, “Sorry... this was the only way I could try... I didn’t have the patience to go back and forth with you about ‘whether it’s allowed.’”

Tang Wanzhuang did not respond, just looked at him.

“It... it seems to have worked a little?” Zhao Changhe was a bit flustered under her gaze. His earlier dominance had vanished without a trace. He scrambled back awkwardly and muttered, “If... if you’re upset, just hit me, but go easy...”

In his heart, he wondered whether this counted as taking advantage or a total loss, because he hadn’t experienced anything at all—his mind had been entirely focused on channeling the techniques. Only at the very end, as he pulled away, did he feel a hint of softness, and even then, her unwavering stare made him too afraid to continue.

What did the ginseng fruit taste like? A total loss.

Tang Wanzhuang watched him retreat in his flustered state with an expressionless face, but somehow, she only felt like laughing.

Yet she said coldly, “What kind of sorcery did you learn? What illusion did you inject into me?”

“Ah? That wasn’t an illusion; it was the intent of nature.” Zhao Changhe said, “If you were missing something when you broke through the secret vault back then, I suspect it’s because your martial arts intent aligns with landscapes and paintings, but you’ve been consumed by military affairs and bureaucratic toil. You understood the intent, so you could break through, but you couldn’t live it, so you forced it. That’s the root of your ailment.”

Tang Wanzhuang was truly astonished. How could he, with his level of cultivation, see the root of this?

This was a matter concerning the highest level of the third secret vault—he hadn’t even touched its edge.

Of course, Zhao Changhe had thought of it after Blind Girl’s reminder. If Tang Wanzhuang’s injury was in her soul, why was it there? And why would the second page of the celestial book be useful to her? He might not have reached that martial realm, but his logical analysis was still sharp. Putting it together, wasn’t it roughly that?

In theory, if Tang Wanzhuang truly wanted to break through properly, she would need to resign from her duties and retreat into nature. But she couldn’t, so she forced it, and it went wrong. For a complete cure, besides the right method, she would still need to resign and rest...

Seeing Tang Wanzhuang’s silent demeanor, as if she wasn’t going to hold his impropriety against him, Zhao Changhe grew bolder and said softly, “I told you, don’t overexert yourself... I’m here.”

At this moment, saying this again was a blatant confession, tearing apart the veil of their earlier claims of “no involvement between men and women” and “self-assured aunt.”

Tang Wanzhuang seemed not to understand and asked something irrelevant: “You said that was the intent of nature, but why were there people? Isn’t that an illusion?”

“People?” Zhao Changhe was puzzled by the question. He scratched his head and said, “The intent I transferred to you was only about mountains, waters, and nature—what does it have to do with people? Oh, if there were people, it’s because my rejuvenation technique was awakening your hope for life. Combined with the intent of nature, it might have made you yearn for a kind of life you’d like to live. If there were people, it’s because you imagined them yourself—the life you want to see.”

*The people I imagined myself. The life I want to see.*

Baoqin was there, timid and adorable. He was playing the zither, his eyes smiling, his expression gentle.

Tang Wanzhuang pressed her lips tightly. Her calm and composed demeanor suddenly shifted. She shoved Zhao Changhe fiercely: “Don’t think you can use healing as an excuse to take liberties with me, especially since you haven’t even cured me!”

With her strength restored, how could Zhao Changhe withstand it? He stumbled backward, and in the cramped secret chamber, his legs soon hit the edge of the bed.

Tang Wanzhuang pushed him onto the bed with one hand, and with a flick of her slender fingers, his upper garment fell off.

Zhao Changhe clutched his chest in panic: “What are you doing?”

*Is this how you get revenge? Then please, do your worst!*

But Tang Wanzhuang expressionlessly took out a jar of ointment, scooped some, and applied it to his shoulder, saying bitterly, “You’re always scolding me for not taking care of myself, but are you any better? With your meager cultivation, you always think you’re made of iron. If you don’t treat this wound properly, it’ll ache on rainy days, and you’ll regret it!”

As she scolded, her hand seemed to punish him by pressing harder, making him break out in a cold sweat.

Zhao Changhe winced at the pain in his shoulder, watching her angry expression, and suddenly smiled: “That’s good.”

Tang Wanzhuang snapped, “Not painful enough for you?”

“When you’re too calm, it makes me uneasy, because I don’t know if you’ve given up on life, thinking you only have a few months left... But when you get angry, I know you still have joy and anger, and you still want to live.”

The force of Tang Wanzhuang’s “punishment” softened by three parts. She sighed quietly in her heart.

"And…" Zhao Changhe gazed into her eyes, his voice dropping as he continued, "When you're angry, you come alive… like that time when Buqi shattered your composure… like a lifeless figure in a painting stepping into the mortal world."

Tang Wanzhuang's face was expressionless: "What business is it of yours? Are you going to break your promise?"

Zhao Changhe said, "A man of honor…"

Tang Wanzhuang thought he would say 'a word is a nail', but he abruptly changed tack: "How can I be bound and tangled by mere words?"

Tang Wanzhuang: "?"

Zhao Changhe said with righteous indignation: "If we're talking about words, I had another line back then."

Tang Wanzhuang asked instinctively, "What?"

"I'm not just a bandit; next time I might set my sights on Tang Wanzhuang! Tell her to wash up and wait!"

"Ow~!" A scream of agony echoed through the secret chamber, the special soundproofing barely containing it, faintly reaching the duck shop.

Dazhou looked at his ducks, thinking that perhaps the reason Chief Tang had come in the dead of night was to find this very thing.