As a doctor, Chu Dingjiang naturally disliked physical contact with patients, but it wasn’t unbearable. He hadn’t even minded much when he witnessed An Jiu and Hua Rongjian’s closeness before. However, now, merely seeing Wei Yuzhi holding her hand stirred up uncontrollable anxiety within him. It felt as if someone was trying to carve out a piece of his heart, making him question his decision.

Perhaps he shouldn’t have allowed Wei Yuzhi to approach An Jiu.

Though this thought crossed his mind, Chu Dingjiang’s body remained motionless, his expression unchanged.

Love is both selfish and selfless. Emotionally, Chu Dingjiang would rather have An Jiu lie there forever than have her care for another man. Yet, he was willing to pay any price to save her, even if it meant losing her.

Mo Sigui understood Chu Dingjiang’s protective love for An Jiu and his inner conflict. Seeing that Chu didn’t intervene, Mo Sigui silently admired his strength of character.

Wei Yuzhi carefully examined An Jiu with his spiritual energy for a long time. When he finally withdrew his hand, fine beads of sweat had formed on his temples.

Concerned, Mo Sigui furrowed his brow and stepped forward to check Wei Yuzhi’s pulse, instantly infusing several streams of spiritual energy and true qi into his meridians.

After a while, Mo Sigui let out a deep sigh. His expression grave, he remained silent for a moment before saying, “Mr. Wei, we need to talk.”

“There’s no need. I know what you want to say,” Wei Yuzhi replied, his gaze fixed on An Jiu’s pale, emaciated face. “My body can’t withstand another stab to the heart, but since I’m here, I won’t back down.”

Wei Yuzhi knew exactly what kind of person Mo Sigui was. As a physician, Mo Sigui had always upheld strong medical ethics, informing patients of serious conditions. However, he was also obsessed with the medical arts. Faced with this rare opportunity for exploration, he would inform Wei Yuzhi but wouldn’t let the chance slip by, regardless of Wei Yuzhi’s final decision.

“It’s a pleasure to speak with someone so perceptive. Excellent,” Mo Sigui said cheerfully. “I’ll go prepare then! We’ll be drawing blood soon. Don’t worry, you won’t die!”

Mo Sigui rushed out of the room, seemingly energized.

The room suddenly fell into silence.

“Mr. Wei, you’re willing to sacrifice your lifespan to save An Jiu. I thank you on her behalf,” Chu Dingjiang said.

Wei Yuzhi turned his head, his face handsome and gentle, his eyes calm and unperturbed. “There’s no need. I have a condition of my own.”

Chu Dingjiang raised an eyebrow slightly.

“Exchange it for Gu Jinghong’s blood,” Wei Yuzhi stated.

Chu Dingjiang was slightly surprised; this request was unexpected. He had thought Wei Yuzhi, being a proud strategist, wouldn’t agree to exchange his blood for medicine to save the Liao Emperor. He hadn’t anticipated Wei Yuzhi proposing this condition himself.

“I had the same thought,” Chu Dingjiang paused before asking, “Even without this method, couldn’t Mr. Wei obtain the medicine by other means?”

Wei Yuzhi shook his head. “Even if the medicine were in your possession, I’m confident I could retrieve it, but it would waste too much time. My lord can’t afford to wait, and neither can I. As for Mei Shisi…”

He sighed softly. “If I had a longer life, I would certainly compete with you for her. But what use would it be now? I don’t have time to grow old with her. Moreover, a few drops of blood can’t win a person’s heart.”

Since he had already dedicated the first half of his life to scheming, he might as well use this short life to accomplish one last thing. He would have no regrets. As for matters of the heart…

“By giving up on leaving a mark in her heart, I’m showing her my complete love and protection,” Wei Yuzhi said. He stood up, supporting himself on the bed, and cast a deep look at An Jiu before turning to leave.

“I wish you success in your grand endeavor, Mr. Wei,” Chu Dingjiang said sincerely. He held great respect for strategists like Wei Yuzhi.

It was only at this moment that Chu Dingjiang realized he hadn’t lost to Zhang Yi, Xishou, and others in terms of intelligence. In terms of strategy, Xishou might not even compare to him. He simply always had something more important than his dreams in his heart.

Shang Yang lived and died for his dreams—something Chu Dingjiang could never do. In his previous life, it was for his family; in this life, it was for a woman.

What a person values most determines their breadth of mind and vision.

Chu Dingjiang shed his last bit of pride and reluctance, acknowledging that in this life, he could at most be a free spirit roaming the jianghu with his wife.

Outside, snow was falling sparsely.

Wei Yuzhi stood in the corridor, sensing Chu Dingjiang coming out. Without turning around, he said, “Mr. Chu, you’ve wasted your talents.”

Chu Dingjiang replied calmly, “In life, don’t we all waste something? Better to waste talent than to let down one’s wife. At least talent won’t be heartbroken, and neither will I.”

Wei Yuzhi turned back, studying Chu Dingjiang. Seeing his open and carefree demeanor, he couldn’t help but ask, “You have no regrets at all?”

Chu Dingjiang smiled without answering.

There had been more than just regret in the past. He had even felt that heaven was unfair, that his lack of achievements was due to a lack of opportunities. Thinking about his naive and arrogant thoughts back then, Chu Dingjiang’s smile deepened.

People shouldn’t fear having been foolish in the past; they should fear remaining foolish without realizing it.

“Mr. Wei, let’s begin!” Mo Sigui’s head popped out from a window.

Since Chu Dingjiang had said Wei Yuzhi would come, Mo Sigui had prepared all the medicinal materials and instruments. Now, he only needed to set them out for immediate use, which wouldn’t take much time.

Wei Yuzhi’s gaze passed over Chu Dingjiang’s shoulder, glancing at the room behind him before walking towards Mo Sigui.

Mo Sigui’s room was still filled with smoke and a strong medicinal smell. The center of the room, originally piled with herbs, had been cleared to make space for a low couch. Next to it, a small table was laden with various knives, silver needles, and small bottles.

As Wei Yuzhi sat on the edge of the couch, Mo Sigui tossed a knife into a medicinal solution to sterilize it while saying, “Although you generally know the situation, Mr. Wei, I still need to explain some details.”

“Please, go ahead,” Wei Yuzhi replied.

Mo Sigui glanced at him sideways. “With your gentle appearance, you look like a bookworm. It’s hard to see any hint of your true nature. No wonder you’ve been wandering the jianghu without many recognizing you.”

Wei Yuzhi raised the corners of his mouth. “You flatter me, Divine Physician.”

Even this seemingly meaningless smile was full of scholarly charm, making him appear gentle and easy to bully. How could anyone guess he was a ruthless and cunning individual?

Mo Sigui pursed his lips and continued, “You should know what heart blood is, so a knife to the chest is unavoidable. However, I’ll try to minimize the incision.”

After hearing this, Wei Yuzhi only said, “I have a request.”

“Go ahead, I’ll try to accommodate,” Mo Sigui replied, wiping the silver needles one by one.

“I want to stay conscious,” Wei Yuzhi stated.

Mo Sigui’s hands paused. “I trust your self-control won’t interfere with the blood draw, but I must warn you, even if you pass out, you might still feel pain. If we only use local anesthesia, I’m afraid… As a doctor, I must advise against this idea.”

The incision for drawing heart blood was too deep. Even Mo Sigui couldn’t guarantee the effectiveness of local anesthesia. The pain was one thing, but personally experiencing one’s chest being opened was truly terrifying.

Seeing Wei Yuzhi’s determined gaze, Mo Sigui immediately said without any scruples, “Fine, if you insist, I’ll do as you wish. After all, I’ve given my warning.”

“Hmm,” Mo Sigui continued, “blood drawing carries risks. If something goes wrong…”

Wei Yuzhi interrupted him, “I trust in Divine Physician Mo’s skills.”

Mo Sigui rolled up his sleeves and placed his hands in a medicinal basin to cleanse them. Hearing these words, he suddenly smiled, “Oh my, you’re putting pressure on me. But I like it. Now, remove your clothes!”

Hearing this, Wei Yuzhi silently untied his robe, revealing his upper body.

Mo Sigui glanced at him, finding it not as shabby as he had imagined.

Wei Yuzhi naturally had a large frame. Even though long-term illness had left him with little flesh, he didn’t appear particularly weak. However, his body was covered in horrific scars, creating a stark contrast with his gentle, scholarly face.

“What happened with these wounds?” Mo Sigui frowned, staring at the numerous scars on his chest.

He wasn’t concerned about a man’s well-being, but normal skin has elasticity and is easy to suture when injured. Scarred skin loses this advantage and becomes difficult to treat.

Faced with the reality before him, Mo Sigui felt it necessary to know who had damaged his “test subject.”

“Most are from childhood,” Wei Yuzhi said, placing his hand over a fresh scar. “This one was left by Mei Shisi.”

Come to think of it, he did have something from her… this scar.

Mo Sigui nodded with an expression that seemed to say, “She is a troublemaker.” He then said, “Lie down.”

Although there was a brazier in the room, Wei Yuzhi’s weak constitution made him more susceptible to cold than others. Now, with his upper body exposed, the invading chill made him even more alert.

“In theory, if you had forced yourself to exercise, you shouldn’t have ended up in this state. I’m curious how you managed to wear yourself down to this point,” Mo Sigui inquired.

Lying on the couch, Wei Yuzhi didn’t answer. He just stared blankly at the ceiling beams.

His father had been a military general of the Great Song Dynasty but was sentenced to death on false charges. Apart from his father’s beheading, the entire family was sentenced to exile.

For women and children, the distant and desolate place of exile was already a matter of life and death. As members of a military family, both the women and children were physically stronger than those from ordinary families. If that incident hadn’t occurred, his mother and sister might not have necessarily died.

It happened on the way to exile. A group of soldiers coveted his mother and sister’s beauty and raped them. Unable to bear the shame, the two women took their own lives in the stable of a post house.

He would never forget the rat-infested prison, the lecherous gazes of those men as they looked at his mother and sister, and that morning when he woke up beside a haystack to find their disheveled corpses.

At that time, the immense shock caused his spiritual power to suddenly erupt, and he killed everyone at the post house.

For Wei Yuzhi, the corrupt Great Song Dynasty shouldn’t have been allowed to linger on. His hatred couldn’t be appeased merely by killing his enemies!

Originally, he had only been unsuited for martial arts training due to his meridians, but his body had been healthy. It was during those years of exile that he suffered greatly. Coupled with the severe damage from his suddenly powerful spiritual energy, his body never recovered.

Wei Yuzhi slightly pursed his lips. Only when he felt Mo Sigui applying a cool liquid to his chest did he speak again, “Divine Physician Mo, how long do I have left to live?”

“After this blood draw, you’ll lose two years of life. Originally, you only had four or five years left,” Mo Sigui said bluntly, not afraid of discouraging his patient. His next words, however, offered some comfort to Wei Yuzhi, “That was before meeting me. As long as you can afford my fee, I can help extend your life by a few years.”