Song Qingchao opened her eyes to see Song Qingmu.
She reached out and touched his worried face. "I'm fine."
Struggling to sit up, she noticed the letter in her hand was gone. "Was it destroyed?"
Song Qingmu gave a "hmm" and patted her back, handing her a bowl of warm water. "Don't worry, I've handled everything. It's lunchtime, so it's not a big deal."
"Why are you talking so much now?" Song Qingchao, pale-faced, smiled softly.
"How can Eldest Sister tease me?" Song Qingmu glanced at her. "You've worked hard taking care of me these past few days."
"Silly boy."
Song Qingchao leaned against him, slowly drinking the water, and also noticed Ying Zhong not far away.
"Where is your master? Why don't I see him today?"
Her voice was soft, tinged with weariness.
Ying Zhong turned around, bowed respectfully, and then replied, "Master has gone to gather herbs, so he asked me to take good care of young lady and young master."
"Thank you."
Song Qingchao covered her mouth and coughed lightly, wanting to ask when Bai You'an would return.
But in the end, she didn't say it.
"Young lady, how long have you been sick?"
Ying Zhong's voice was clear and cool, a boyish tone that was rather pleasing.
"Five years."
Song Qingchao raised her eyebrows to look at him. The boy's face had regained its usual reserve.
"I won't hit you." Song Qingchao clutched her chest, enduring the discomfort as she spoke in a hushed whisper, "I still need to apologize for that slap. Mu Mu was in a critical situation at the time. This young lady panicked when she didn't see Mr. Bai, and worried that others might interfere, which is why I acted that way towards you."
She tried to straighten her back, placing her hands above her head as if to kneel.
Song Qingmu supported her from behind, his tone softening. "I apologize along with Eldest Sister, and at the same time, I thank young master Ying Zhong for his life-saving grace just now."
"No, no, no!"
Ying Zhong knelt faster than the siblings, his hands holding Song Qingchao's, his eyes tightly shut, as if wanting to burrow into the ground. "Young lady, you are going too far!"
He strained to hold her up, refusing to let Song Qingchao complete the bow.
Forgiveness was one thing, but Second Master would truly beat him if he let this happen!
"This is what we should do, you just accept it."
Song Qingchao's eyes flickered, her face turning even paler.
"I really cannot accept this." Cold sweat broke out on Ying Zhong's forehead. "You are weak, please sit up properly."
He knelt stubbornly, his face almost pressed to the ground.
Song Qingchao had no choice but to comply with Ying Zhong's words. "Then I won't kneel. Young master, please get up quickly."
Hearing this, Ying Zhong let out a huge sigh of relief and sat down on the ground, wiping the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve.
"We truly want to thank you."
Song Qingchao was very sincere.
Her apology was genuine; it was absolutely not for the convenience of asking Bai You'an for things in the future.
Ying Zhong shyly lowered his head. "If young lady truly wants to thank me, can you let me take your pulse every day?"
He ruffled his hair haphazardly, concealing his inner nervousness.
"I am truly a bit curious about your symptoms."
Seeing Song Qingchao silent, he secretly glanced at her before quickly withdrawing his gaze, hastily explaining, "Don't misunderstand! I've just never seen this kind of illness, and I want to try..."
Ying Zhong's voice grew softer and softer, until he swallowed and fell silent.
"Are you angry..." he tentatively asked again, "I really didn't mean anything else..."
Song Qingchao was first stunned, then smiled gently.
"Please." She extended her hand, revealing her fair wrist. "If someone can cure my illness, this young lady will be too grateful to blame anyone."
Ying Zhong's eyes instantly brightened. He quickly took Song Qingchao's wrist, closed his eyes, and felt the pulse.
After he finished taking the pulse,
Song Qingchao withdrew her wrist, covering her bracelet tightly.
She watched Ying Zhong ponder intently, her eyes revealing a gentle warmth.
"I have seen many famous doctors, and only one old immortal helped me greatly."
Song Qingchao gestured for Song Qingmu to take the small basket, then took out a book from it and handed it to Ying Zhong.
"But as for the apology for that slap."
Ying Zhong took the book, and after seeing the title, he stammered, "Old, old, old immortal!?"
He quickly leaned towards Song Qingchao. "Is his medical skill even better than my master's?"
Song Qingchao shook her head. "I don't know."
Ying Zhong knelt on the ground, excitedly pointing at the *Shanghan Zabing Lun* in his hand. "Can it really work? Really? Really!?"
"You're not lying to me?"
Song Qingchao couldn't help but laugh. "No, I'm really giving it to you."
Ying Zhong jumped up, hugging the book. "Sister Chaochao, you are so kind!"
After he cheered for a moment, he shyly lowered his head and untied a sachet.
"This is something master gave me a few days ago for repelling mosquitoes. Ying Zhong doesn't have anything good, so I'm offering this as a gift. Please don't blame me, young lady."
He sheepishly touched his lowered head.
"How could I?"
Song Qingchao accepted the sachet and was instantly enveloped by a fresh scent, which even relaxed her body.
She smiled sweetly. "Thank you, young master."
It seemed that things given by Bai You'an, even in the hands of others, still had an effect on her body.
A casual act bearing unexpected fruit.
Ying Zhong gave a few more instructions, then ran off to read his book.
Song Qingchao looked at his cheerful back, feeling a pang of envy.
Five years ago, she was like this too.
"Eldest Sister."
Song Qingmu nodded, and then watched as Song Qingmu brought over a steamed pigeon with red flowers and *Sanqi*.
"Be careful, it's hot. This pigeon was brought by Ying Zhong, who said Mr. Bai ordered it."
Song Qingchao continued to nod.
She ate silently.
She was nothing like how she was when she was coaxing Ying Zhong just now.
"Eldest Sister, are you worried about the bandits?" Song Qingmu frowned as he watched her, holding the bowl.
Song Qingchao "hmm"-ed. "These soldiers cannot resist them."
She then pointed to a few people gathered together. "With internal and external troubles, our chances of survival are slim."
Song Qingmu was silent for a moment. "Eldest Sister, let's escape."
His face was expressionless, his voice as cold as ice. "If the Wang family is truly behind this, then they must want us both dead."
He looked at Song Qingchao and reached out to wipe the oil from her lips. "If we manage to survive, and they don't find our bodies, they will definitely pursue us up the mountain. Since we returned to Chang'an, we haven't left the city. Whether it's speed or familiarity with the terrain, we are at a disadvantage."
Song Qingchao picked up, "And the two of us, one sick and one injured, so this is a dead end."
She placed the bowl back into Song Qingmu's hand and casually picked up a twig, sketching on the ground. "If we flee in advance and are lucky enough to escape the soldiers' pursuit, we will need permits to enter any village or town."
The twig pointed at the thin monkey. "And he will issue a wanted order. Unless we change our faces and identities, we cannot escape anywhere."
Song Qingmu's eyelashes trembled slightly. "It's not entirely a dead end."