“Which way?”

“This way!” Chen Guang pointed at the bloodstained handkerchief, worriedly saying: “What if there’s a baby on the way?”

Shao Mingyuan raised his hand and pointed toward the door: “Get out!”

“General, you must believe me! This subordinate has heard from married brothers that doing this really can result in babies.”

Having a baby wouldn’t be bad either. Preferably a boy, so he could teach him martial arts.

“Shut up!” Shao Mingyuan couldn’t bear it anymore and scolded: “This is my blood!”

“Men can bleed too?” Chen Guang was shocked.

No one had told him about this!

“Immediately, right now, get out!”

After Shao Mingyuan finished speaking, he felt the metallic sweetness he had barely suppressed surging up again. Finally unable to hold it back, he opened his mouth and spat out a mouthful of blood, falling straight down.

Chen Guang caught Shao Mingyuan just in time and shouted: “Ye Luo, Ye Luo, come quickly!”

Ye Luo rushed in, and seeing the scene inside, his face changed dramatically: “What happened?”

“Don’t ask so many questions now, quickly go get Miss Li!”

Ye Luo’s figure flickered and disappeared from the doorway like an arrow released from a bow.

Qiao Zhao had returned to her room, changed clothes, and was sitting in a chair in a daze.

Had her words made him sad?

But if she didn’t do this, what else could she do to make him let go?

“Miss Li, something happened to the General!” Ye Luo’s urgent voice came from outside the door.

Qiao Zhao suddenly stood up. Because she rose too quickly, she knocked over the chair. Fortunately, A’Zhu was quick to catch it, preventing a loud commotion.

She pushed open the door and hurried to Shao Mingyuan’s room. Seeing the man lying on the bed, pale as paper, her heart tightened.

“How did the General faint?” Qiao Zhao quickly walked to the bedside and sat down, extending her hand to feel Shao Mingyuan’s pulse.

“This subordinate doesn’t know either. The General said a few words to me and then vomited blood and fainted.” Chen Guang studied Qiao Zhao’s expression and tentatively asked: “Third Miss, is it because of you that the General is like this?”

Besides Miss Li, no one else could affect the General’s emotions this way.

When the General was in the Northern Territories, there was once a time when he waited for the most suitable moment to attack, enduring two days of vulgar curses from the barbarians without even frowning. How could he be like now, vomiting blood at will?

Qiao Zhao was left speechless by Chen Guang’s question.

Shao Mingyuan’s cold poison had lessened considerably and would no longer cause vomiting blood. His current condition was caused by his head injury, triggered by the words she had just said.

Qiao Zhao silently gazed at the man with slightly closed eyes.

Did he care about her this much?

“Third Miss, the General will be alright, won’t he?”

“I’ll perform acupuncture on him. We’ll see how things are after he wakes up.”

Head injuries were the most complex. Even if Grandfather Li were still here, he couldn’t precisely predict a patient’s condition after a head injury.

Grandfather Li had once told her about several cases. One patient fell from a horse and suffered a head injury, and after awakening, his memory had regressed to childhood. Another patient was knocked down by a horse cart but showed no abnormalities at the time. He got up, dusted himself off, and went home on his own, but died from convulsions three days later.

Cases like the young son of Earl Changchun, who became an idiot after Li Jiǎo smashed his head, were even more common.

Qiao Zhao held silver needles in her hand and carefully inserted them into acupoints on Shao Mingyuan’s head, feeling very guilty.

This man always appeared omnipotent in front of her, making her subconsciously think he would be fine.

But no matter how strong he was, he could still be injured.

“What happened to Tingquan?” The commotion here finally drew Chi Can and Yang Houcheng over.

“It might be aftereffects from the injury to the back of his head.”

“He seemed fine at the time. How did it suddenly become serious?” Yang Houcheng was completely puzzled.

Chi Can’s gaze lowered, falling on the handkerchief Shao Mingyuan was gripping tightly.

The plain white handkerchief was stained with blood, and in the corner were embroidered two green-eyed ducks.

His eyes narrowed.

This was Li San’s handkerchief.

He had quietly noticed that Li San’s purse was embroidered with such little ducks – green eyes that looked peculiar yet interesting.

What had happened between them?

After performing acupuncture, Qiao Zhao stood up: “I’ll go brew medicine. You take care of him first.”

Seeing Chi Can and Yang Houcheng nod, Qiao Zhao lowered her eyes and quickly left.

Chi Can glanced at the unconscious Shao Mingyuan before asking Chen Guang, “What happened?”

Chen Guang scratched his head: “I don’t know. The General said he was dizzy earlier.”

“I mean, what happened between your General and Miss Li?”

Chen Guang looked at Ye Luo.

Ye Luo said concisely: “They fought.”

Chi Can frowned deeply and sighed.

No wonder Tingquan had become like this. He had experienced it himself – when that girl became venomous with her tongue, she was like stabbing knives straight into people’s hearts.

He had been stabbed many times already, and now it was finally his friend’s turn.

They probably all owed that heartless girl something in their previous lives, which was why they were falling into her hands one by one in this lifetime.

Chi Can glanced at his friend, pale as paper, and strode outside.

Qiao Zhao heard footsteps but didn’t turn around, continuing her work as she asked: “Brother Chi, why did you come over?”

“How did you know it was me?”

“You, Brother Yang, and Brother Shao all have different walking sounds.”

After spending time together, she had learned to distinguish them.

Chi Can looked at the rippling blue sea and sighed: “Li San, you are the smartest girl I’ve ever met.”

Qiao Zhao’s movements paused, but she didn’t speak.

Since that time she delivered medicine, Chi Can had shown no special feelings toward her. What was his intention in saying these things now?

“Li San, you’re so smart – can’t you see Tingquan’s sincere heart toward you?”

Qiao Zhao looked up at Chi Can.

She truly hadn’t expected him to say such words.

“He and I are different.” Chi Can leaned against the railing and sighed softly. “As for me, I once possessed too much, and later lost much as well. Gaining and losing, over time, I’ve grown accustomed to it. No matter what I lose, it doesn’t prevent me from enjoying life, does it?”

The incomparably handsome young master curved his lips in a smile: “But Tingquan is different. He’s just an unlucky fellow who has never possessed anything since childhood. In the vast Marquis Jing’an residence, besides the old Marquis treating him fairly well, the only other thing that was good to him was probably that big black dog he raised in his youth.”

At this point, Chi Can looked deeply at the young lady and asked: “Do you know what happened to that big black dog later?”

Without waiting for Qiao Zhao to answer, he continued on his own: “The Marquis Jing’an’s wife at the time, Tingquan’s mother, was somehow frightened and ordered people to beat that big black dog to death. When Tingquan came home from school, the dog had just breathed its last breath. From then on, Tingquan never again showed fondness for anything.”

Qiao Zhao listened in a daze, her heart aching.

Chi Can wanted to reach out and smooth her hair that had been tousled by the sea breeze, but ultimately restrained himself and sighed: “That unlucky fellow has finally dared to show his feelings of affection again. Li San, please be kind to him.”