The carriage’s silhouette soon vanished into the direction of the setting sun.

Yet at this very moment, someone else was racking his brains, trying to figure out how to cross this very border, hoping to make it in time for the sand-worship ceremony!

This wasn’t wartime—the western border had always remained open for passage, its gates open from dawn until dusk. It was only Prince Baxian’s arrival that had caused it to be closed.

With Prince Baxian still present, and no telling how much longer this delay might drag on, who could say when normal order might finally resume?

Baili Weisheng mingled among the crowd of travelers stranded nearby, rubbing his chin thoughtfully as he observed the scene for a while, before turning and heading off toward a secluded little pharmacy not far away.

Dressed in flowing white robes, wearing a tall, upright scholar’s cap, carrying a woven bamboo book case on his back, he cut an elegant, scholarly figure—his features refined though not particularly striking, yet carrying an indescribable air of transcendent grace, the kind that brought to mind the fleeting moment a lotus blossom first unfurls.

His face always carried a smile, like some pedantic yet kind-hearted, slightly foolish scholar.

Three knocks—”thud, thud, thud”—and an attendant opened the door. “Master, there’s a sealed letter for you.”

The moment Baili Weisheng saw the completely black envelope, bearing not a single mark of handwriting, his eyes flickered slightly. He took it without opening it and stepped inside.

The guard hesitated a moment, as though about to say something, but ultimately said nothing at all, quickly withdrawing into the shadows without a sound.

The pharmacy stood entirely empty save for one figure—a tall, slender man lying inside, his back turned toward the door, his face hidden from view.

Yet those purple robes and silver hair were unmistakable to anyone who knew him—this could only be Xuanyuan Lige!

Baili Weisheng carefully carried a bowl of steaming hot medicine, setting it down beside the bed, offering heartfelt counsel. “My good sir, please drink this medicine. If you don’t, your wounds will never heal, and if your wounds never heal, you’ll be stuck with me forever. Once we’re past that gate, it’s straight into the desert—and Xijing is such a godforsaken place, this humble scholar really has no desire to go there at all!”

Xuanyuan Lige remained perfectly still, offering no response—yet even lying on his side, one could clearly see his chest heaving violently, his breathing dangerously unsteady.

Baili Weisheng waited patiently for a long while, then, despite his youthful appearance, let out a long, weary sigh like some seasoned elder, continuing earnestly, “My good sir, I’m practically begging you now—please, drink this medicine. As the ancients say, one’s body and hair are gifts from one’s parents. However great the misfortune you’ve faced, surely you shouldn’t give up on yourself entirely, hmm?”

He took a sip of tea, then continued, “Sir, why don’t you tell me exactly what’s happened to leave you so despondent, so willing to throw your very life away?”

At last, hearing this, Xuanyuan Lige finally spoke, each word practically ground out through gritted teeth with pure hatred. “Baili Weisheng, this is my final warning—release me, or you will regret this.”

Yet faced with such a grave warning, Baili Weisheng remained entirely unruffled, sighing again. “Master Xuanyuan, you really must understand my difficult position here. If I release your acupoints now, and you decide once more that life isn’t worth living, that you’d rather leap back into the sea—wouldn’t all my efforts to save you have been entirely for nothing? As the saying goes, if you’re going to help someone, help them all the way. I fully intend to see this through to the end!”

Xuanyuan Lige had never in his life been quite this furious. Had his entire body not been sealed at dozens upon dozens of acupoints, large and small, he would surely have already turned over and kicked Baili Weisheng clear into the next world by now!

“Listen carefully—I never spoke lightly of ending my life, nor did I leap into the sea by choice. I need to reach Xijing at once! Release me!” Xuanyuan Lige roared furiously, the strain pulling painfully at his wounds. Had his acupoints not been sealed, he likely would have reopened all his old injuries by now.

Yet Baili Weisheng merely dug thoughtfully at his own ear, saying with great patience, “Oh dear, didn’t I just tell you? Be a good patient, drink this bowl of medicine, get your body back in good health, and I’ll release you without fail. As for Xijing, well, I have absolutely no desire to go there myself!”

Ten days ago, upon waking, he’d found himself in a small dwelling by the seaside, rescued by this very man!

This fellow claimed to have simply stumbled upon him on the beach—heaven only knew whether that was actually true.

For ten full days now, Baili Weisheng had delivered medicine every single day, offering the same counsel every single time: one’s body and hair are gifts from one’s parents, one mustn’t take one’s own life lightly, mustn’t give up so carelessly.

For ten full days, no matter how patient he was, no matter how good-natured, he had truly had enough of this!

Finally, Xuanyuan Lige fell silent. Baili Weisheng’s eyes rolled thoughtfully, and his gentle smile returned as he personally turned Xuanyuan Lige over, bringing the medicine to his lips. “You needn’t be so grateful to me, really. It’s simply my nature—I can’t bear to see anyone throw their life away so carelessly. As the saying goes, one’s body…”

There it was again!

“Enough.” Xuanyuan Lige cut him off coldly. “Baili Weisheng. You’re a Jiaoren too.”

At these words, Baili Weisheng’s hand, still holding the medicine, froze ever so slightly—though he quickly recovered his composure, exaggeratedly furrowing his brow. “What did you say?”

“A Jiaoren. You’re a Jiaoren as well—that’s why you survived in the Qinse Sea Valley, and that’s how you managed to rescue me from the depths of the ocean,” Xuanyuan Lige said coldly.

Baili Weisheng’s jaw dropped, feigning utter shock.

A shadow of malice flickered across Xuanyuan Lige’s eyes as he continued, “Not only are you a Jiaoren, you don’t even belong to Nanzhao’s Jiao tribe at all. You’re a guardian of the Lone Island’s relics as well—the one who guards… Yaoshun Island, isn’t it?”

The moment these words left his mouth, Baili Weisheng immediately clamped his own mouth shut, hastily setting down the medicine bowl. With one hand rubbing at his chin, he reached out with the other to take Xuanyuan Lige’s wrist, checking his pulse with great seriousness.

Just as Xuanyuan Lige moved to speak again, Baili Weisheng suddenly grew grave, gesturing sharply for silence. “Master Xuanyuan, you’re not merely gravely wounded—you’re seriously ill as well. Even taking your medicine daily, your lifespan likely won’t exceed thirty years. And what’s most troubling of all…”

Xuanyuan Lige startled slightly. Aside from his own master, who had once diagnosed this affliction long ago, no one else had ever been able to detect his pulse condition at all!

Even the medicine he took daily had been formulated according to a prescription his master had left behind!

Only Mother Empress, his sister, and a handful of elderly ministers knew of this matter—no one else was aware of it at all!

He hadn’t expected someone as young as Baili Weisheng to possess such remarkable medical skill!

Seeing Baili Weisheng hesitate, Xuanyuan Lige hastily asked, “What’s most troubling?”

Baili Weisheng glanced at him, checked his pulse once more, and finally said gravely, “Ah… the most troubling part is that you’ve spent far too long submerged in the sea—the malevolent cold has invaded your brain, leaving your mind rather muddled, I’m afraid.”

At these words, Xuanyuan Lige’s already pallid face immediately darkened with fury, while Baili Weisheng continued, brow still furrowed, “This humble scholar happens to be quite handsome and dignified, a proper gentleman well-versed in principle, propriety, and decorum—how could you possibly mistake me for some savage Jiaoren?”

With that, ignoring Xuanyuan Lige’s furious, blood-red glare entirely, he rose with the medicine bowl in hand, muttering to himself as he went, “No, no, this won’t do at all. I’ll need to prepare a different formula entirely.”

“Baili Weisheng, come back here!”

Xuanyuan Lige roared, only to immediately dissolve into a fit of coughing. Yet Baili Weisheng pretended not to hear at all, wearing a thoughtful expression as he stepped outside—but the moment the door closed behind him, he immediately tossed the medicine bowl aside, pulling out the black envelope he’d just received. Staring at it without opening it, he murmured to himself, “So she’s finally cultivated it, has she? Well, too bad, Grandpa here really doesn’t have time to go back right now.”