Wild ice stretched vast and white, frost coating beards and whiskers.

Sunan gradually reached its coldest time.

The broken temple at the execution ground could no longer shield against the increasingly fierce harsh winds. Chang Jin took the initiative to ask Li Wenhu and Cai Fang for help in moving the epidemic shelter from the broken temple to an abandoned dyehouse within the city.

The dyehouse estate was spacious, sufficient to accommodate many people. Moreover, during these past days, the rashes on those infected with the epidemic had gradually stopped spreading and deepening.

The golden mushrooms Lu Tong had brought from Falling Plum Peak had miraculous effects.

These flowers could dispel heat toxins. Though their medicinal properties were weaker than red wood vine, while waiting for the red wood vine, the physicians attempted to use golden mushrooms to create new prescriptions, replacing two medicinal ingredients. Having learned from Ding Yong’s previous mistake, they were much more cautious this time. However, after seven or eight consecutive days passed, no relapses occurred. At the same time, the red wood vine transported from Pingzhou also arrived in Sunan. The physicians alternated between two prescriptions, giving them to the patients in turns. Within a few days, not a single person fell ill midway through treatment.

Though they didn’t know what the future held, at least for now, the epidemic had been temporarily controlled.

Cuicui ran out from the dyehouse entrance, tugged at Lin Danqing’s sleeve, and looked at her saying, “Physician Lin, hasn’t Physician Lu gotten better yet?”

Lin Danqing paused. After a moment, she forced out a smile and said, “Soon. She’ll get better very soon.”

Lu Tong’s condition was becoming increasingly serious.

Initially, she could occasionally regain consciousness. Gradually, her periods of unconsciousness grew longer and longer. Even when she occasionally woke up, she was confused and dazed, seemingly unable to distinguish between dreams and reality.

What was even more troublesome was that all medicines were useless on her.

That half-filled journal clearly recorded the poisons Lu Tong had tested in the past. For precisely this reason, the prescriptions the physicians prepared for her, carefully brewed into decoctions and fed to her, disappeared without a trace like stones sinking into the sea, showing not the slightest medicinal effect.

Useless.

Seeing Lu Tong grow weaker day by day, the physicians were anxious yet helpless. Chang Jin was so worried that half his hair had turned white.

Lin Danqing walked to Chang Jin’s room and pushed the door open.

Inside the room, several physicians sat around a table, heads lowered in heated discussion.

Ji Xun sat to one side, head down organizing newly written prescriptions. During these days of Lu Tong’s serious illness, Ji Xun hadn’t stopped working for a moment. Originally an elegant young gentleman, he now had a face full of weariness, his eyes red from exhaustion, completely different from his former composed demeanor.

Lin Danqing entered the room. Chang Jin waved at her, gesturing for her to sit down. These physicians were all involved in treating Lu Tong. Now that Lu Tong’s breathing was weak, aside from the epidemic, she had become the most important matter for all the physicians.

“Chief Physician, regarding Physician Lu’s illness, I have something to say.” After a pause, Lin Danqing spoke up.

Everyone in the room looked toward her.

She had always been lazy and playful during her time at the Hanlin Imperial Medical Academy in the capital, often scolded by Chang Jin for lacking stability. Now, having come to Sunan for just a few short months, she seemed to have matured considerably. Her eyes showed less frivolity and more composure.

“Physician Lu’s illness can’t wait any longer,” she said. “All medicines are useless on her. If we can’t find a solution, her life will be in danger within three to five days.”

No one spoke. This was a fact everyone tacitly understood but dared not voice.

Ji Xun looked at her: “Physician Lin, speak freely if you have something to say.”

Lin Danqing took a deep breath: “I have a method, but it’s very bold, and I’m not sure we dare use it.”

Chang Jin: “Speak.”

“In my Lin family’s ancestry, there was once an ancestor known as the ‘White-Robed Sacred Hand.’ Legend says this person had brilliant medical skills and could bring the dead back to life.”

“He once wrote a journal, which I memorized. In it, he mentioned that in his youth, he accompanied friends to the battlefield to treat plague, but in the end, his friend unfortunately was struck by an enemy’s poisoned arrow and died from the poison. He regretted this for the rest of his life, and afterward extensively collected antidote prescriptions to avoid repeating such a tragedy.”

At this point, Lin Danqing paused.

“Medicine is boundless, as are poison texts. Sister Lu has been poisoned with too many substances, and her body has gradually adapted, which is why all medicines have no effect on her. I only thought of this when I saw the golden mushrooms – my ancestor once wrote down a medical prescription, saying that if someone was poisoned and their life was in critical danger, the method of ‘blood exchange’ could be used.”

Ji Xun raised an eyebrow: “Blood exchange?”

“Not actual blood exchange, but using poison to fight poison, using illness to replace illness. This medical prescription requires first having Sister Lu take a great poison, then using acupuncture to perform the antidote method, drawing out the source and eliminating it.”

She hesitated before continuing: “But my ancestor also wrote that this method, first, is only suitable for those whose lives are in critical danger, and second, during the process of taking poison and detoxifying, the pain exceeds that of being pierced by countless arrows or cut by a thousand knives – few people can endure it. And moreover…” She looked at everyone: “There will be risks.”

“It’s not foolproof. Sister Lu might lose her life.”

The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop, with no one speaking.

Lin Danqing bit her teeth.

“If we hadn’t reached this point, I would never use such a bold method. But now Sister Lu grows weaker day by day, and those antidote medicines have no effect on her whatsoever. Are we supposed to just watch helplessly as she dies?”

By this point, her tone had become somewhat agitated.

She had studied at the Imperial Medical Bureau for many years, then went to the Imperial Medical Academy. Because of her cheerful and bright nature, everyone got along well with her. Lu Tong wasn’t the most enthusiastic among them.

But Lin Danqing liked Lu Tong the most.

Lu Tong appeared cold, distant, and reserved on the surface, yet she would leave a light on for her late at night in their dormitory. When she casually complained about medical texts and pharmaceutical principles she couldn’t understand, before long, the borrowed medical books would have annotated notes written in them. Lu Tong knew about her Lin family’s secrets and hidden matters, and had once provided guidance about her aunt’s “arrow-eye” poison antidote. The colleagues at the Imperial Medical Academy inevitably had open and hidden conflicts, eager to keep their known medical prescriptions secret, but only Lu Tong was open and honest, freely sharing medical prescriptions without any selfishness.

A person whose temperament was completely different from hers, yet who always inspired respect and admiration, making one feel ashamed even for harboring the slightest jealousy.

Her ancestor hadn’t been able to save his best friend, and thus regretted it for life. Lin Danqing didn’t want to be like him.

She wanted to save her friend.

In the silence, someone suddenly spoke: “I think we can give it a try.”

Lin Danqing looked over in surprise.

The speaker was Ji Xun. Ji Xun looked at her: “Physicians exist to save people. To give up possibilities because of potential risks is not the right course of action.”

“Nonsense!” A physician disagreed and spoke up: “Physicians treat illness and save people. We cannot act rashly on impulse. When it comes down to it, it’s all about the word ‘treat.’ This action does more harm than good – it’s not treating people, but likely harming them!”

Hearing this, Ji Xun was momentarily stunned, as if thinking of something, his expression becoming distant.

After a while, he shook his head and spoke softly.

“That’s not correct. As they say, ‘Aconitum and bitter orange are among medicine’s most toxic substances, yet good physicians use them to save lives.’ Illnesses change in myriad ways, and so must medicines. Since medicine can’t cure her, perhaps poison can.”

“You and I have stayed too long at the Hanlin Imperial Medical Academy, each harboring fears, blindly seeking stability, inevitably losing sight of our original purpose. Better to examine our hearts – is our reluctance to act truly for the patient’s sake, or for our own?”

Upon hearing these words, all the physicians were stunned, and the person who had spoken earlier blushed, remaining silent for a long while.

Being an official versus being a physician are fundamentally different. As physicians, the first thing should be to empathize with patients.

But they had been officials for too long.

After a long silence, Chang Jin spoke: “We’ll do as Physician Lin suggests.”

“Chief Physician!”

“Illness is not a matter of a single day or night – its origins develop gradually.” The usually compliant old man looked at everyone. “Physician Lu has been a drug tester for years. Her will is strong and resilient, a hundred times more than ordinary people. Rather than being helpless and allowing her to gradually weaken, better to prepare for a desperate fight.”

“Everyone,” Chang Jin spoke seriously: “Human life is precious and must not be lightly abandoned.”

The person who had spoken earlier remained silent. Chang Jin looked at Lin Danqing: “Physician Lin, quickly write down the medical prescription recorded in the journal. We must review the prescription to ensure it’s safe before arranging treatment for Physician Lu.”

“Yes.”

…

The new treatment prescription was quickly determined.

Upon learning of Lin Danqing’s treatment method, the physicians had divided opinions.

Some believed this action was extremely risky, with eight or nine chances of failure, and would cause Lu Tong to experience tremendous pain before her death, with harm outweighing benefit. Others believed that human life comes only once, and having hope was better than having none.

Lu Tong woke up once.

At that time, Pei Yunying was guarding beside her bed. When Lin Danqing brought this news, she kept her head lowered, not daring to look into Lu Tong’s eyes.

Lu Tong leaned against Pei Yunying’s embrace. She was already very weak, even speaking was difficult. After struggling to listen to Lin Danqing’s words, she actually laughed.

“Good,” she said, “you just try it.”

Lin Danqing couldn’t help but look up: “It will be very painful.”

“I’m not afraid of pain.”

“And it might not succeed… bah bah bah, I’m not cursing you.”

“It’s alright,” Lu Tong said. “I’m very lucky. I’ve tried many medicines and been fine. This time I’ll definitely pass through safely too.”

Pei Yunying’s hand supporting her arm stiffened slightly, but Lu Tong didn’t notice.

She looked at Lin Danqing. In her usually calm and indifferent eyes, there was a faint glimmer – a look Lin Danqing wasn’t unfamiliar with. It was a patient’s hope to live, a longing for life. Lin Danqing had seen it many times at the epidemic shelter.

Lin Danqing suddenly choked up.

She grasped Lu Tong’s hand: “Good, we’ll definitely pass through safely.”

After confirming the treatment plan, Lu Tong fell back into deep sleep. Lin Danqing looked at Pei Yunying beside her: “Commander Pei, please step aside.”

Pei Yunying didn’t move, keeping his eyes lowered as he looked at the person on the bed.

These past days, he had been guarding Lu Tong without leaving.

Physicians treating patients were accustomed to seeing partings of life and death. For those with feelings, union was difficult, separation brought regret, and death brought sorrow. She had read so many story books, with good endings and bad endings, all just a few simple sentences. Yet now, here, watching this silent, desolate figure in the darkness, she too felt sadness.

She didn’t know what this young Commander was thinking at this moment, but his lowered brows and eyes, his gaze fixed on the person in bed, were so deep and quiet, like watching a beloved object gradually leaving him – bewildered and powerless, vulnerable in a way different from usual.

Behind came the sound of the door, as physicians entered one by one. Treating Lu Tong couldn’t be accomplished by one person alone – Ji Xun, Chang Jin, and several other physicians all needed to be present.

Chang Jin walked to Pei Yunying’s side and sighed: “Sir, please step aside.”

Hearing this, Pei Yunying came back to his senses, looked once more at the person on the bed, silently stood up, turned and left the room.

The door closed behind him as he walked out of the courtyard.

On the winter solstice, heavy snow fell from the sky, covering the fields in silver-white, mixed with light rain that chilled to the bone.

He walked silently, and unknowingly found himself at the broken temple at the execution ground.

All the epidemic shelter patients had been moved to the warmer dyehouse. The former broken temple had returned to its previous cold and desolate appearance, standing forlornly in the rain and snow.

He pushed the door and entered.

The temple that had been crowded and lively just days ago was suddenly empty, with only a few exhausted braziers for burning atractylodes thrown in the corners. An oil lamp lay fallen before the altar table, with only a shallow bit of oil remaining. He lit it with a fire starter, and the dim yellow light immediately enveloped the entire broken temple.

The altar table had been moved, revealing the earthen wall behind it. On the earthen wall, traces of an “IOU” from years past were deeply carved, clearly visible in the lamplight.

Pei Yunying bent down, his fingertips tracing over the carved characters on the wall.

Those characters from years ago, which he and Lu Tong had written here together.

Back then he was the patient and she was the doctor. She had stitched his wound – crude but effective. Now she had become the patient, but he could do nothing.

How ironic. Lu Tong had been a drug tester, had been a physician, but had never been a patient. The medicinal decoctions she had consumed were for testing poison. Now, when she first took medicine as a patient, ordinary medicines were no longer effective on her.

Fate was cruel.

Pei Yunying raised his eyes.

Above the altar table, the rain-blurred deity statue gazed down at him quietly, as it had years ago, as it would years hence. Before gods and Buddhas, humans were as small as ants, as fragile as grass.

He had never believed in gods or Buddhas. Since his mother’s death, he had wandered the world, and fate ground people down with hardship, granting them strength and coldness. He had long stopped believing that anything in this world besides himself could save him. Yet at this moment, looking at the blurred deity statue above, he slowly knelt down on the prayer cushion.

Hands pressed together, he bowed devoutly.

Legend said gods and Buddhas were greedy for bribes, never granting blessings without reason. Whatever they gave people, they would take an equivalent price. Sooner or later, a fair trade.

“Gods and Buddhas above, ghosts and spirits are hard to deceive.”

He bowed his head, his voice calm.

“I, Pei Yunying, am willing to trade one life for one life, to exchange Lu Tong’s peaceful remaining years.”

…

Sunan’s急snow crossed the broad river, and when the gentle breeze carried it to the capital, it became drifting willow catkins.

In the courtyard of Renxin Medical Hall on West Street, lanterns hung from the plum trees.

A’Cheng brought heated rice wine from the kitchen into the inner shop, and Yin Zheng ladled out bowls for everyone.

Tonight was the winter solstice. The capital had a custom of eating sweet dumplings and drinking rice wine. Yesterday, Du Changqing had organized Miao Liangfang and A’Cheng to prepare food. Tonight, after closing the clinic, they would have dinner at the medical hall.

“Come,” Du Changqing first raised his bowl and stood to speak, “today after the winter solstice passes, we’ll turn toward the New Year. Let’s celebrate making it through another year together, year after year, making it through year after year.”

This toast wasn’t particularly eloquent, but everyone still gave him face, clinking bowls with him and offering a few perfunctory words.

A’Cheng picked up a sweet dumpling. The dumpling had thin skin and large filling – made together by Yin Zheng and Miao Liangfang, stuffed with sesame and peanuts, fragrant and glutinous. A’Cheng took a bite: “So sweet!”

“I added osmanthus sugar left over from Mid-Autumn Festival,” Yin Zheng said with a smile. “It’s a method Sister Song taught me. If Miss were here, she’d definitely eat a big bowl…”

At this point, she suddenly stopped, and everyone at the table was momentarily stunned.

Lu Tong had been gone to Sunan for quite a long time now.

Sunan and the capital were separated by thousands of miles. News of the epidemic took many days to travel back and forth. Miao Liangfang had asked old acquaintances in the Imperial City to inquire, and they only said the epidemic in Sunan was severe, but under the efforts of many physicians, there had been improvement. As for how any specific physician was doing, nothing was known.

There was no news of Lu Tong.

“I wonder how Miss is doing now…” Yin Zheng was somewhat worried.

The journey to Sunan was so long, and Lu Tong’s constitution was delicate. After the long trek, she would have to treat the epidemic. Lu Tong wasn’t the type to complain of hardship or fatigue, which made people worry all the more.

Seeing the worry between Yin Zheng’s brows, Du Changqing waved his hand dismissively: “Hey, you’re worrying unnecessarily! I said from the beginning not to let her go show off, but she insisted. Lu Tong is stubborn as an ox, but she’s quite capable and never fights a battle without certainty. Since she insisted on going, she definitely wasn’t going in blind. Our medical hall came back to life under her hands – what’s a mere epidemic to her?”

“In a few days when it stops snowing and clears up, we’ll go to Wan’en Temple and offer the monks some incense sticks. We’ll pray for our Dr. Lu to be immune to all diseases and return to the capital whole and unharmed!”

His words lightened everyone’s mood at the table.

A’Cheng laughed: “Good, good, good! We’ll offer the top incense and give Buddha a big bribe!”

Miao Liangfang picked up a sweet dumpling and popped it in his mouth. The sweet osmanthus and rich sesame mixed together, earning praise for a while, then he looked out the window.

In the courtyard, the red plum tree was in full bloom, petals like scattered jade and crystal.

“Today is winter solstice. With famine and epidemic in Sunan, they probably don’t have sweet dumplings to eat,” he sighed. “I wonder what little Lu is doing now?”

…

The night deepened.

On Falling Plum Peak, wild winds raged and red plum blossoms danced.

At the foot of the mountain, in the city’s physician quarters, lights blazed brightly.

Ji Xun and Lin Danqing attended beside the bed, administering acupuncture to Lu Tong.

Chang Jin constantly checked Lu Tong’s pulse, his expression extremely grave.

The “White-Robed Sacred Hand’s” great poison prescription had been fed to Lu Tong, but whether because her constitution was too special or because this great poison prescription itself had hidden dangers, in any case, after taking the medicine, Lu Tong showed no reaction, only continuing to sleep deeply as before.

In the Imperial Medical Academy, Ji Xun had the best acupuncture skills, while Lin Danqing was the person most familiar with this journal. The two cooperated in administering acupuncture to Lu Tong.

This needle technique was more difficult than before. Both Ji Xun and Lin Danqing gradually broke out in cold sweat on their foreheads. When the candles in the room grew short, Lu Tong suddenly changed.

As if the delayed pain finally struck at the last moment, she began to tremble. Her body shook violently, causing the golden needles to be jostled loose. Ji Xun shouted sternly: “Hold her down!”

Lin Danqing quickly pressed down on Lu Tong.

Held down, Lu Tong’s face gradually showed signs of pain, and she couldn’t help moaning, crying out: “It hurts…”

Ji Xun paused, and everyone in the room was stunned.

No one had ever heard Lu Tong cry out in pain.

She was always so calm, calmly facing everything. Having been a drug tester for years, the pain recorded in that journal – she had experienced it all at such a young age. Most of the so-called pain in this world should have been ordinary to her.

But now she was crying out in pain.

Chang Jin’s expression changed: “Her pulse is weakening.”

Ji Xun and Lin Danqing exchanged glances. Lin Danqing grasped Lu Tong’s hand: “Sister Lu, pull yourself together! Can you hear me speaking? Don’t sleep! Hold on!”

Ji Xun bent his head, his hands trembling slightly as he inserted a golden needle into her neck.

Lu Tong’s expression became even more pained. She began struggling desperately, and Lin Danqing held down her hands to prevent her from touching the needles randomly.

But in the next moment, with a “puff” sound, she suddenly spat out a mouthful of fresh blood.

That blood was actually black.

Chang Jin was alarmed: “Physician Lu!”

Her expression suddenly relaxed, as if her last bit of strength had dissipated. She seemed to want to struggle to open her eyes for one last look, but ultimately closed them.

Chang Jin hurriedly felt for her pulse.

He froze, speaking in a trembling voice.

“She’s stopped breathing…”

After a moment, Lin Danqing’s quiet sobbing sounded in the room, and Ji Xun’s face was deathly pale.

Pei Yunying, who had been waiting outside the door, suddenly looked up sharply.

The long night was so dark it couldn’t be dissolved, and the bitter cold wind pierced to the bone. He stood in place, and for an instant, it was as if he had fallen into an abyss.

At some point, the snow in Sunan had stopped.

Cranes are symbols of good fortune~ Share this auspicious crane for longevity and health, may you live as long as pine and crane!