Chapter 667: Shen Siyi x Xie Suzhi (11)
Threads of rain wove a dense curtain, descending from the sky and shrouding the street in a misty shadow.
Xie Suzhi galloped his horse through the alley, carrying Shen Siyi as they splashed through puddles. From the window of every house they passed, a sliver of dim, yellow light flickered in the rain, casting mottled shadows on the ground.
He was in such a hurry that Shen Siyi had only managed to hastily throw on some clothes, even losing a shoe in the process. But when she saw the severe look on Xie Suzhi’s face and the gravity in his eyes, she didn’t ask him to stop.
‘It seemed Xie Suzhi had run into some serious trouble.’
He didn’t stop until he brought Shen Siyi to a small courtyard. As he pushed open the wooden gate, two guards in night clothes standing at the door immediately bowed their heads in greeting.
“My Lord.”
“Guard the entrance. Don’t let anyone in.”
With that, he led Shen Siyi into the house.
Inside, two men who looked like attendants were standing by. Shen Siyi was immediately hit by the thick, metallic scent of blood.
She frowned, her gaze following the scent to the bed, where a man completely covered in blood lay.
“Help me save him, and I will reward you handsomely.”
After Xie Suzhi spoke, Shen Siyi walked to the bedside and looked at the man.
Though his face was caked in dark, dried blood, she still recognized him. “Isn’t… isn’t this one of the officials who was with us at the banquet on the painted boat?”
‘He was in his twenties, a Chief Clerk from the Ministry of Revenue, if I remember correctly.’
“His name is Luo Tang. He’s my informant, planted by Marquis Tongping’s side,” Xie Suzhi explained, his tone heavy. “The Emperor has long known that Marquis Tongping was a traitor with close ties to Changling, but we had no evidence to convict him. So, he arranged for me to plant someone near him to gather proof.”
To get close to the Marquis, Luo Tang pandered to his tastes and participated in his wicked deeds. It took a great deal of effort for him to infiltrate the inner circle.
“Marquis Tongping has now confessed and faced justice, but his remaining followers sought revenge. They stabbed Luo Tang sixteen times. I need you to save him.”
The reason he couldn’t be taken into the palace for an Imperial Physician to treat was that no one could find out it was the Emperor’s idea to plant Luo Tang as a spy.
That’s why Xie Suzhi had to find someone else to save him.
Shen Siyi frowned and reached out, prying open Luo Tang’s eyelids.
After a brief glance, she pulled her hand back and turned to leave. “I can’t save him.”
Xie Suzhi grabbed her wrist. “Help me! I’ll agree to any demand you make.”
Shen Siyi looked back at him. “How am I supposed to help? The man is dead! His pupils are dilated. No matter how capable I am, I can’t bring someone back from the dead, can I?”
Xie Suzhi pressed his lips into a thin line. “I know. The doctor did everything he could before I came to find you.”
“Then why did you come for me? Do you think I’m some kind of immortal?”
“You used a type of medicine on me before. I saw it with my own eyes—the wound was gone by the next day. You must have a special way.”
Shen Siyi froze, remembering the night Xie Suzhi was injured. She had used the Spiritual Spring Water to heal him.
‘Of course it worked. It was the Life Spring Water, a culmination of all future inventions.’
Shen Siyi turned to look at him, her expression serious as she tried to make her voice patient.
“Xie Suzhi, I was able to help you because you were alive. No matter how powerful my medicine is, it only works on living tissue to be effective. But he’s already dead, do you understand? The medicine is useless on a corpse.”
Xie Suzhi slowly lowered his gaze.
He was always so cold and unfeeling, with an air of being completely detached from the world. This was the first time Shen Siyi had ever seen him look so desolate.
‘This man, Luo Tang… he must mean something special to him, right?’
“Luo Tang is a hero. He performed a great service and doesn’t deserve to die like this. Besides, his wife is seven months pregnant. He hasn’t even seen his child yet.”
“He was on his way home to see his wife today when he was ambushed and stabbed. I promised his wife I would bring him home safely.”
To avoid suspicion, Luo Tang had pretended to be a promiscuous womanizer who ignored his wife, all as a ploy to get close to Marquis Tongping and gather evidence.
Shen Siyi looked at Xie Suzhi, then back at Luo Tang on the bed.
“You’re unbelievable,” she sighed. “Couldn’t you have called me sooner? You wait until he’s dead to bring me here. All I can do is try my best.” As she spoke, she stepped forward again.
Shen Siyi felt Luo Tang’s body. He must have just stopped breathing; his body was still warm and soft, and the blood was still warm to the touch.
She had Xie Suzhi send his two attendants out of the room.
“I’m going to use my own methods to save him now. But I’m not doing this for free. You said you would help me.”
Xie Suzhi nodded. “I will not go back on my word.”
“Alright. Now, no matter what you see, don’t be alarmed. And I need to state this upfront: don’t be afraid. I’m not a demoness. This is my… just think of it as my Magic Artifact.”
After she spoke, Xie Suzhi watched her in silence.
He watched as Shen Siyi began to pull something from her sleeve. Suddenly, flashes of blue light burst forth from the fabric, seeming to appear out of thin air.
Xie Suzhi was utterly astonished. ‘Where is that light coming from?’
To his shock, Shen Siyi pulled an iron lump half the height of a person right out of her sleeve!
It was glowing with blue light and making a strange whirring and beeping sound.
Xie Suzhi’s eyes went wide. He simply couldn’t comprehend how she had stuffed such a large iron lump into such a small sleeve.
‘Shen Siyi said she wasn’t a demoness, so what was this? Was she an immortal?’
Xie Suzhi didn’t dare to speak, watching in silence as Shen Siyi operated the device with practiced ease.
First, she cut open Luo Tang’s robes to expose his chest. Then, she took two pads from the iron lump and placed them over his heart.
“I suggest you close your eyes,” Shen Siyi said calmly as she keyed something into the iron contraption.
“Why?”
“Because it’ll be blinding.” Before Xie Suzhi could even close his eyes, she pressed a button, and there was a violent flash of electrical sparks.
Luo Tang’s lifeless body convulsed, jumping on the bed.
Xie Suzhi was flabbergasted. “You can command lightning?!”
Shen Siyi laughed. “How ignorant… Oh, it’s not your fault. I doubt you’ve ever seen a defibrillator before.”
“Don’t just stand there gawking. Go get the bathtub from the corner of the room.”
Snapping back to his senses, Xie Suzhi immediately did as he was told. When he returned, he saw a fluctuating, curved line on the iron contraption.
“Is he saved?”
“His heart has started beating, but that’s far from enough. His injuries are severe, and he’s lost too much blood. We’ll have to wait and see.”
After she spoke, Shen Siyi waved her sleeve again. Xie Suzhi watched as a stream of crystal-clear water poured out, filling the tub in moments.
“Come on, lend a hand. Help me lift him in so he’s sitting in the water.”
After Xie Suzhi complied, he saw Shen Siyi take something else out. She called them ‘pills’ and promptly stuffed them into Luo Tang’s mouth.
Countless wires were pulled from the iron contraption and attached to various vital points on Luo Tang’s body.
The room filled with a steady BEEP… BEEP… BEEP…
Shen Siyi worked through the entire night. Just as the sky began to lighten at dawn, a weak Luo Tang pried open his eyes.
The first person he saw was Xie Suzhi.
“My Lord…”
“Luo Tang!” Xie Suzhi rushed forward and grabbed his hand. “You’re awake? You’re really awake?”
Luo Tang moved slightly and grimaced in pain.
Shen Siyi exclaimed from the side, “Don’t move! I just barely snatched you back from the brink of death, can’t you be a little more careful?”
Xie Suzhi looked at her. Her forehead was beaded with sweat, and her fair, rosy face showed faint signs of exhaustion, yet her eyes were incredibly bright.
He found himself staring, captivated.
‘Shen Siyi… she must be a Goddess.’