Lan Yan deliberately changed into coarse cloth clothing and wore a veiled hat, heading into the city alone. To avoid being tracked, she did not ride a horse, opting to walk instead.
Upon reaching the city gate, she saw two men dressed in black, their faces obscured by bamboo hats. She also noticed that every time a citizen entered the city, those two would look up, acting quite strangely.
"Why are you wearing a veiled hat in broad daylight?" a soldier at the checkpoint stopped her.
Lan Yan was calm and replied softly, "Good sir, this young lady is not yet married. I am entering the city to find my family, hence the veil."
Seeing Lan Yan speak softly and observing her build, the soldier, deeming her young, waved her on. "Go ahead."
"Thank you, sir." Lan Yan continued into the city at her previous pace.
Afterward, she quickly turned a corner and hid, observing that the two men in black did not follow. She breathed a sigh of relief.
Patting her chest, she murmured, "I don't know what those two are up to. It's best to be careful." With that, she hurried to find a pharmacy, as she had important business to attend to.
The pharmacies in the city were mostly scattered. She chose the closest one. "Boss, I need to pick up some medicine for treating external injuries."
The pharmacy owner eyed Lan Yan suspiciously and asked, "Why does the young lady need these medicines?"
Lan Yan had already prepared an excuse and replied, "Someone in my family fell down a slope while hunting in the mountains. That's why I've come to buy medicine. Boss, do you have any here? If not, I'll buy them elsewhere."
As she made a move to leave, the owner called out from behind her.
"Young lady, don't be in a hurry. I have what you need. I'll get it for you right away." The pharmacy owner quickly brought out a packet of medicine and handed it to Lan Yan.
Lan Yan paid and turned to leave, then went to the next pharmacy to buy several other ingredients. She bought them separately to avoid drawing attention, and if she were discovered, she would have already left.
After visiting all the pharmacies in the city, she placed the medicine packets at the bottom of her basket, covering them with some cloth. She then carried the basket and walked out of the city gate openly.
The two men in black at the city gate had been watching all day but had not found the person they were looking for, so they entered the city. They arrived at a pharmacy, which was already closed for business and had transformed into a flower pavilion, a branch of the Intelligence Pavilion.
A woman in red emerged from the establishment, looking at them coldly. "Two good-for-nothings, unable to find even one seriously injured person. If the list leaks, you and I will both die!"
The men in black immediately knelt. "Ru Niang, our eyes didn't even blink, yet we still couldn't find him. If you don't send others, we truly lack the ability."
"If it weren't for the trouble with Lan Yan, I wouldn't have needed to use you." Ru Niang sat silently on a chair. "After Lan Yan was taken away by Young Master Xiao, her whereabouts were lost. Have you investigated?"
Lan Yan was their best pawn in the Flower Pavilion, planted in the largest brothel in the Imperial City. Unfortunately, an accident occurred a month ago, and they lost contact with Lan Yan.
"There's no news of that either." The men in black lowered their heads further, not daring to say that they believed Lan Yan was dead.
Ru Niang became even more furious. She slammed her hand heavily on the table, her gaze falling on a medicinal prescription on the table. She looked at the pharmacy owner. "Are these the people who bought external injury medicine today?"
"Yes." The pharmacy owner stood in the corner, not daring to speak further.
Ru Niang flipped through the prescriptions and stopped at the last one, frowning. "This prescription is missing an ingredient, which halves its effect. Ordinary people wouldn't use such a prescription."
She thought of a possibility and called out, "Have the nearby pharmacies bring all their prescriptions."
Seeing this, the pharmacy owner quickly went to comply.
Ru Niang reviewed all the prescriptions, then crumpled them into a ball and fiercely threw them on the ground. "They escaped right under your noses. Investigate! There must be a helper!"
"If you can't find them in the city, search outside. You must kill Jun Yelan, who is ranked number one!"
At this time, Lan Yan had returned to the village and was sitting by the stove, diligently brewing medicine. She held a fan in her hand and watched the medicine pot, sighing, "I wonder when Jun Yelan will wake up?"
Xiao Hua and Xiao Yue crowded over, their expressions full of concern. "Sister Lan, with you here, Brother Jun wouldn't dare not wake up." They surrounded Lan Yan, one on each side, and hugged her.
The knot in Lan Yan's heart eased considerably, and a slight smile touched her lips. "Don't worry, you still have me. Sister Lan will make sure Brother Jun is healthy. You two go eat now."
She pinched the cheeks of the two children and sent them to rest.
Xiao Hua and Xiao Yue had no choice but to leave and take care of the other children, so as not to distract Lan Yan. They knew Lan Yan was working very hard, having to brew medicine and look after them.
Therefore, they wanted to help in any way they could.
Lan Yan continued to stay there, suppressing the disappointment in her eyes, and encouraged herself, "Lan Yan, don't be discouraged. It's still early days." She fanned the medicine pot faster, wanting to speed up the brewing process.
Two hours later, the medicine pot was ready, emitting steam.
Lan Yan reached out to grab the lid of the medicine pot and was suddenly burned. She quickly pinched her earlobe. Looking at her finger, it was already red, and a hint of sadness appeared in her eyes.
However, she quickly recovered, poured the medicine from the pot, and carried it to Jun Yelan's room.
Jun Yelan was still lying down as before, his eyelids unmoving.
Lan Yan placed the medicine bowl by the bedside, tucked in the blanket, and looked at Jun Yelan. For some reason, she hadn't felt wronged when she was burned just now, but now, the feeling of being wronged surged.
"Jun Yelan, if you don't wake up soon, there won't be any more delicious food. I'll make you eat bitter medicine every day, and make you brew it yourself." She grabbed Jun Yelan's arm, her nose feeling a sting, and her eyes welled up.
Jun Yelan's finger on the other side moved, and his wrist began to lift slowly.
But Lan Yan had already lifted her head and was feeding the medicine to Jun Yelan's mouth. Fortunately, Jun Yelan could swallow automatically, saving her a lot of trouble. After the medicine bowl was empty, she saw that the room was filled with the smell of medicine and opened the window to let in some fresh air.
Looking out the window, she was momentarily stunned.
Those children were gathered in the courtyard, holding a stone in their hands, looking up at the sky. They were murmuring, "Bless Brother Jun to wake up soon, and don't make Sister Lan sad anymore."
Lan Yan couldn't help but shed tears and prayed along. "Jun Yelan, if you still don't wake up, you'll truly be letting all of us down. So, wake up quickly!"
Just then, a shooting star streaked across the sky. The children cheered and jumped up. "So beautiful!"
Lan Yan also felt happy and immediately wanted to share it with Jun Yelan. She turned her head and said, "Jun Yelan, look quickly."
After speaking, she remembered that Jun Yelan wouldn't respond, and her eyes dimmed again.
However, in the next instant, Jun Yelan opened his eyes.