The Return of the Seventh Young Lady-Chapter 23 - 22

Chapter 22

In addition, the Second Furen held significant power within the manor. Neither she nor her mother, who was a mere concubine, could possibly contend with her. One was the powerless eldest sister and the other was the well-supported younger sister.

It didn’t take much thought for Mu An Yue to decide which side to align with!

When Mu An Yue returned to join the others, she glanced briefly at her stepsister before lowering her head and maintaining her usual composure, keeping this secret as deeply as possible.

Meanwhile, after Xiao Chun went to retrieve the items and returned, she found no sign of her mistress in the vicinity. She searched around but did not find her, which led to an ominous premonition in her heart.

Usually, the young miss never went anywhere without her, so where could she be now?

" Miss! I am back, where are you?" Xiao Chun searched while calling out, but still, there was no sign.

Her foreboding grew stronger. She didn’t know what was happening, but she felt an increasing sense of dread that something terrible was about to unfold!

Xiao Chun circled back to the original spot, hoping the young miss might have returned. When she found only emptiness, she was perplexed. She paused to wonder where her mistress could have gone.

Would she have joined others at the end of the convoy?

Unlikely, as the young miss disliked crowded places.

Then where could she be?

Xiao Chun sighed heavily while searching for her mistress, then her eyes suddenly caught sight of something floating on the water near the riverbank.

That...

She scrutinized it for a moment before confirming that what she saw was indeed her mistress’s handkerchief. Panic struck her immediately. How did her mistress’s handkerchief end up in the river?

Could it be that the young miss had fallen into the river?

This was disastrous!

Dropping the food parcel on the ground, Xiao Chun rushed off to seek help. Although she wasn’t certain that the young miss had indeed fallen into the river, seeking assistance immediately seemed far better than letting precious time slip away.

She gritted her teeth and rushed towards the back of the convoy, feeling uneasy and fearing excessively that her mistress might be in danger. But if the young miss had really fallen into the water, then why couldn’t she see any sign of her? Unless...she had sunk beneath the water!

Xiao Chun, who had made some predictions in his heart, suddenly turned pale. She could only pray that nothing would happen to the young miss.

Thud!

As she was running, she suddenly tripped over a tree root and fell to the ground. The pain shot through the ankle area, fearing that her ankle might have twisted.

But she couldn’t give up. If she delayed it any longer, what would happen to the young miss!?

Xiao Chun gritted her teeth to endure the pain, trying to stand up but had to slump back down to the ground. Tears of sorrow, panic, and worry flowed relentlessly from within her heart.

What to do?

What should she do?

Her mistress must be waiting for her help. But she couldn’t give up!

“Xiao Chun? What are you doing sitting here? And what about Xuan’er?”

A soft, resonant voice asked not far from her. Xiao Chun, who clearly remembered this voice, immediately raised her head to look at the young man in front of her. Her wet eyes shone with hope.

“Eldest Young Master! Sob...something has happened!"

Xiao Chun said while sobbing. Mu Gongzhen heard this, and his heart dropped. If Xiao Chun said that something had happened, then there was only one meaning: something had happened to Mu Qingxuan!

“What happened to Xuan’er? Where is she?!”

He stepped forward and asked with a solemn face, even more so when he heard her answer. His heart immediately sank. “Eldest Young Miss fell into the water near the front of the convoy!”

As soon as Xiao Chun’s voice trailed off, Mu Gongzhen quickly rushed towards the direction Xiao Chun had come from. As for Mu Gongzhen’s personal servant, Ding Yang, he helped Xiao Chun up and then had another servant help carry her to inform the others before Ding Yang followed his young master.

Once Mu Gongzhen arrived at the beginning of the carriage convoy, he swept his gaze around looking for his younger sister immediately before seeing a handkerchief floating above the water’s surface near the shore. He hurriedly rushed in to search the area.

“Xuan’er! Where are you? I’ve come to help you. Xuan’er!”

He shouted for his younger sister, but there was still no sign. Only the serene calmness of the water was visible. Fear crept into his heart. He was afraid of losing his beloved one again...

Ding Yang, who ran after, said, “Master, the current in this river is quite rapid. I’m afraid that Eldest Young Miss might have been swept away to another location. It’s better if we search from the shore along the current ahead!”

"Alright, go get some people to help search. We must find her no matter what!" Mu Gongzhen responded and immediately began searching along the riverbank, silently praying to his deceased mother.

Mother, please protect his younger sister...

While the Mu family’s people were out searching for the young miss, about two li[1] away from where the convoy had stopped, three men in black were resting under a large tree. A young man in his early twenties was tending to the wounds of a nineteen-year-old man who was leaning against the tree, his face pale from significant blood loss, an arrow lodged in his abdomen with blood seeping out continuously.

The other nineteen-year-old man who was assisting in staunching the blood suddenly revealed a tense expression. They had been traveling day and night, changing horses several times to rush the injured back to the capital, but the young man’s condition was deteriorating. They would need to hasten their journey even more.

"Your Highness, please press down here. I will go fetch some water from the river to clean these bloodstains," the twenty-something young man tending to the wound asked his master with a grave face.

"Stay here, I’ll go myself."

The young man responded calmly and walked toward the riverbank. Bending down, he opened a bamboo container and scooped up water.

His reflection in the water revealed a handsome, sharply featured face. Despite being marred by dried blood, his appearance remained striking. But his icy, hawk-like eyes made him resemble a block of ice, exuding a chilling aura.

As he was scooping water into the bamboo container, he caught sight of a vague silhouette floating on the water’s surface, not far from him. It appeared to be a woman’s attire.

He furrowed his brows slightly, scanning the surroundings cautiously before closing his eyes, extending his sensory perception to cover a three-li radius. Soon, he discovered that not far from them, about two li, a group was frantically searching for someone likely to have fallen into the water.

Surely, it must be this young girl in front of him...

He sighed and gently kicked the ground, using his internal energy to propel himself toward the center of the river. His strong hands grabbed the slim arm of the floating figure, pulling it back to the shore swiftly.

The young man laid the girl’s body within his arms onto the ground. On closer inspection, he realized she was just a nine-year-old child.

Well, having saved her already, so just finished this quickly and they would be on their way.

With this in mind, he propped the girl’s body against himself and placed his hand on her frail back, channeling his energy through his palm into her body to expel the water from her lungs and body.

Gasp!

Shortly, the girl coughed up a large amount of water. Assured she had expelled all the water, he gently laid her body back on the ground, then quickly turned to grab the bamboo container and returned to his people without delay.

The girl’s family would find her soon enough. Just left her here...

After providing water for another to clean the bloodstains off the severely injured person, the three men mounted their horses and resumed their journey. Once the men in black had left, Mu Gongzhen and Ding Yang continued to search along the riverbank for a long distance, up to two li, until they found the unconscious body of Mu Qingxuan.

"Xuan’er!"

Mu Gongzhen rushed to check on his younger sister immediately. Seeing that she was still breathing, he breathed a sigh of relief, his eyes scanning the surroundings but finding no trace of anyone.

It seemed that the benevolent person who had saved his younger sister had already left.

Mu Gongzhen was certain that someone had saved Mu Qingxuan’s life. His younger sister, who had fallen into the water and lost consciousness, couldn’t have possibly made it to the shore without help.

Whoever that person was, if there was ever a chance, he vowed to repay them!

After finding Mu Qingxuan, Mu Gongzhen lifted her into his arms and returned to their carriage convoy. When Mu Luofei heard that Mu Qingxuan was not dead, she felt an inexplicable irritation rise within her.

Why didn’t she just die!

Mu Luofei glared at the unconscious figure with loathing. After the doctor accompanying the procession had examined Mu Qingxuan, he reported to Mu Cui Ming.

“Master, Eldest Young Miss fell into the water this time, she ingested a significant amount of water, and there’s concern that the coldness may spread throughout her body, resulting in fever and chills. But besides this, there is nothing serious.”

Mu Cui Ming nodded as he glanced at the unconscious figure of his daughter with a troubled expression. "Why did the eldest young miss fall into the water? Can someone explain it to me?"

"I was initially with the young miss, but I went back to the carriage to fetch something. When I returned, she was gone. After a long search, we found that she had fallen into the water, master," Xiao Chun reported truthfully.

Mu Cui Ming frowned deeply. How could someone just fall into the water like that?

Fearful that her guilt would be uncovered, Mu Luofei quickly fabricated an innocent-seeming explanation, "The eldest sister has always been frail. She should have rested in the carriage as usual. Why did she insist on going out? It couldn’t be that she suddenly became weak and fell into the river on her own, could it?"

Hearing the girl’s words, Mu Cui Ming, the father, furrowed his brows. The theory seemed plausible as his eldest daughter was indeed more delicate than anybody else, frequently ill as if chronically so.

"It’s entirely her fault! Always causing troubles!"

He criticized with displeasure, already judging that it was due to Mu Qingxuan’s frailty and lack of restraint that she had wandered out and accidentally fallen into the water, causing all this chaos.

"Since she fell in by herself, take her back to the carriage. We still have a journey ahead, let’s not waste more time," Mu Cui Ming instructed the servants before briskly heading to his own carriage.

"Father, at least we should let her rest for the night before we continue the journey. She is still unconscious, and if we travel now, her condition might worsen," Mu Gongzhen, unable to accept his father’s decision, interjected pleadingly.

Mu Cui Ming exhaled irritably, "So what? The doctor said it’s not serious. Why make it complicated? If you don’t want to go, stay!"

After saying this, Mu Cui Ming boarded his carriage without looking back at the siblings. Mu Luofei, secretly pleased inside, thought it was good that she escaped the incident unscathed.

Hopefully, this elder stepsister’s condition would worsen and die on the way!

Mu Gongzhen watched his father’s departing figure with disappointment. He could tolerate his father’s coldness towards him alone, but the indifference towards his younger sister’s well-being was unbearable...

He turned back, carefully lifted Mu Qingxuan into her carriage, and tenderly placed her on the soft bedding inside before instructing Xiao Chun, "Take good care of Xuan’er. Call me immediately if anything happens."

"Yes, Young Master,"

Xiao Chun replied, and the young man returned to his carriage. Soon, the carriage convoy resumed its journey to the capital.

Throughout the journey, as the doctor said, Mu Qingxuan suffered from chills and fever, remaining unconscious. Her body would heat up intermittently. Xiao Chun, attending her side, had to keep wiping her body until, after three days, the fever finally subsided.

On the morning of the fourth day, Xiao Chun woke to find that her young miss had regained consciousness, but strangely, the eyes that met hers were vacant, lonely, and lost, as if soulless.

"Mi...Miss?"

Xiao Chun called softly, and the still figure, lying staring at the carriage’s ceiling, slowly turned its gaze towards her voice, eventually locking eyes with Xiao Chun.

When their eyes met, Xiao Chun felt cold throughout her body. But soon, the emptiness in Mu Qingxuan’s eyes faded, returning to their usual gentle and clear appearance.

"Xiao Chun?"

Her voice was weak and hoarse, Mu Qingxuan, having just regained consciousness, attempted to sit up. However, weakened from her prolonged unconsciousness and high fever, her body was too frail to muster any strength. Xiao Chun, seeing the young miss struggle so hard, immediately stopped her.

"Please rest for now, Miss. I’ll inform the Eldest Young Master in a moment," Xiao Chun implored with a comforting smile, hastily instructing someone outside to inform Mu Gongzhen of the news.

Mu Qingxuan, lying weak, briefly scanned her surroundings before closing her eyes. She did not expect to return to her nine-year-old self.

She vividly remembered every incident, initially believing that death would leave no chance for revenge. Yet, upon waking, she discovered she had traveled back in time!

Indeed, the former Mu Qingxuan had perished, leaving only this new Mu Qingxuan who returned from a past life!

Could this be seen as a silver lining amidst misfortune?

Her nine-year-old self had been pushed into the water, damaging her health. However, this event facilitated her return to amend her fate!

Now given a chance to revert to the past, she resolved to change her destiny and seek retribution herself!

After she regained consciousness, Mu Qingxuan remained convalescent, becoming more reserved and less talkative. No one suspected her transformation; they believed she was still recuperating, hence the change in her demeanor.

Traveling back to the capital, Mu Qingxuan silently devised plans, armed with crucial future insights, ready to alter and rectify impending events.

She vowed no longer to be naive or foolish!

Her previous naivete had drawn her little sister into scapegoating for undeserved crimes!

Ultimately leading them toward an inevitable demise!

In her past life, Mu Qingxuan often studied herbs instead of passing time with books, amassing substantial herbal knowledge. If she focused on this knowledge to become a skilled physician, she could protect herself without succumbing to delusions caused by drugging, like in her past life!

Moreover, medical knowledge could be the tool to heal and the weapon to harm!

Right now, she was too weak, so she needed to develop herself to be stronger!

If she recalled correctly, in her past life, she had heard from the doctors in the capital rumored that Doctor Li, the divine physician, had opened an old clinic in the capital, treating only those whose conditions were so severe that survival seemed nearly impossible.

Who was this Divine Doctor Li?

He was known as the Master of Medicine, capable of curing any ailment, even mending broken bones or reattaching severed limbs. Doctor Li’s fame spread throughout the three regions, yet finding him was more challenging than one might expect because he often moved his clinic around to different areas.

Roaming unpredictably, leading people to say that if one was fated, they need not search for Doctor Li; he would find them!

Having decided to pursue medical studies, Mu Qingxuan set her goal to do everything possible to become a disciple of Doctor Li.

Upon her family’s arrival in the capital, Mu Qingxuan pretended to confine herself within her quarters due to her frail health. However, she secretly sneaked out through a secret door behind the manor to search for Doctor Li’s clinic.

It took her several weeks to find the clinic, hidden in a narrow alley in an ordinary neighborhood, secluded and deserted. She was not surprised that the nobles found it difficult to locate Doctor Li.

Not only did he prefer to roam, but his clinics were also situated in inconspicuous, almost neglected areas, virtually hidden from plain sight. Unless one stumbled upon this alley by chance, even a thorough search of the capital might not reveal its location.

During the first three months, Mu Qingxuan frequently assisted Doctor Li, almost every other day, earnestly requesting to become his disciple. Despite her efforts, Doctor Li initially refused to take her as a disciple. However, he was impressed by her perseverance and intelligence over those months.

Thus, he finally agreed to accept her as his pupil at last!

[1] Li (Chinese: 里), also known as the Chinese mile, is a traditional Chinese unit of distance. The li has varied considerably over time but was usually about one-third of an English mile and now has a standardized length of a half-kilometer (500 meters or 1,640 feet or 0.311 miles).

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