??681: Chapter 680: Demoted to Official Servant
681: Chapter 680: Demoted to Official Servant
Wang Yongan awoke again to find himself lying on the kang, the place where he had been hit with a plank was evidently treated with dicine, feeling cool and soothing, no longer the painful burning sensation that pierced to the bone.
Turning his head to look around, he saw Lady Qian, asleep on the edge of the kang desk with her hair ssily tied up, her face showing exhaustion and streaked with dried tears.
Lady Qian always took great care in her appearance, sporting shiny, well-combed hair and clean, neat clothes, and her makeup was always properly applied whenever she appeared before Wang Yongan.
Suddenly seeing Lady Qian like this, Wang Yongan felt sowhat unaccustod to it for a mont.
He opened his mouth to speak, only to find his throat hurting and dry, and it was unbearably painful to even think about speaking.
Reluctantly giving up, Wang Yongan reached out to awaken Lady Qian, but as soon as he moved, a sharp pain shot through his wound, causing him to see stars and his undershirt was soaked with cold sweat in an instant.
He couldn’t help but let out a muffled groan.
Fortunately, this slight movent was enough to quickly awaken the vigilant Lady Qian, who casually smoothed her hair and looked at Wang Yongan.
Wang Yongan mouthed the gesture for drinking water, and Lady Qian, having attended to him for many years, understood him well.
With just a glance, she knew what he needed and poured him a cup of warm water, helping him sit up halfway to drink it.
After drinking a cup of water, Wang Yongan finally felt so relief in his throat and could manage to speak with so difficulty.
“How did I get back here?”
Lady Qian’s nose tingled, and tears started falling, “Official, you’ve finally awakened!
What on earth happened?
How could you be flogged?
What about the County Magistrate?
Is it true he was arrested?
How is Jinchai doing now?”
In these past few days, Lady Qian and her parents had a really hard ti, firstly worrying about Wang Yongan, and secondly fretting whether Jinchai would be implicated.
They were so worried that they could neither eat nor sleep.
Thinking of making inquiries, upon stepping out the courtyard door and not yet leaving the alley, one could see soldiers, ard with knives, patrolling back and forth, so who would dare to proceed further?
They had to stealthily return ho without any noise.
With great difficulty, after waiting for three days, so gutsy individual ventured out to check and found the soldiers had disappeared, prompting people to tentatively leave their hos.
The Qian Family, feeling guilty, waited until everyone else had left before sneakily sneaking out, thinking of going to the County Yan to ascertain the situation.
Now, among the Qian Family’s three people, there was only one man, Shopkeeper Qian, who had to pluck up the courage to go.
Arriving at a street across from the yan, he saw the gate was still guarded by soldiers; he dared not approach.
Lingering and dawdling until noon, only then did he see Wang Yongan being tossed out from the yan, his clothes torn and his back a bloody ss.
Collapsed motionless at the gate of the yan.
With no other choice, Shopkeeper Qian clenched his teeth and mustered his courage, approaching the soldiers to ask if they could take Wang Yongan away.
The soldiers had long found Wang Yongan’s presence at the gate botherso and simply waved their hands to signal Shopkeeper Qian to drag him away; they did not mind.
Shopkeeper Qian expended a great deal of effort, dragging and pulling Wang Yongan to finally get him ho.
Attempting to summon a doctor, they found all the doctors were already occupied, allegedly called to the yan to treat the wounded soldiers and prisoners.
This ti the Governnt Office’s crackdown t with fierce resistance from the local strongn who knew it was a matter of life and death; hence, the soldiers led by Zhu Haoran also suffered nurous injuries.
Military doctors were in short supply, and that was why they had to conscript civilian Doctors.
Shopkeeper Qian dared not complain, he simply bought two bottles of dicine for treating carbuncles from his shop and went back for Lady Qian to apply them to Wang Yongan, then whether he lived or died would be up to fate.
Wang Yongan was tough by nature, and by evening he began to run a fever, burning so deliriously that Lady Qian’s eyes were nearly blinded by tears.
Now, with Jinchai’s situation still unknown, if sothing happened to this pillar of the ho, they truly wouldn’t be able to go on living.
In the middle of the night, without any other options, Lady Qian vaguely rembered a ti when Jinchai had co back to Qilidun with a fever one evening.
With Old Doctor Liu out on a call and neither heaven nor earth responsive to their pleas, Old Granny Zhang had once used a folk redy, using so leftover alcohol at ho to wipe Jinchai’s body and reduce the fever.
After a tumultuous night, Jinchai’s temperature finally subsided.
At this mont, Lady Qian took all the wine left in the house and repeatedly wiped down Wang Yongan’s body.
By the ti it was nearly dawn, the fever on Wang Yongan had finally receded.
Lady Qian, exhausted from the long night, dozed off leaning on the kang table.
Only when she saw Wang Yongan wake up did she completely relax.
Wang Yongan, his mind full of concerns and his body in pain, saw that not only did Lady Qian not answer his questions, but she also asked so trivial ones, and his face imdiately darkened, “How did I get back here?”
Lady Qian was startled, stamring, “It was…
it was your father, he saw you being thrown out of the County Yan, so he boldly carried you back…
”
The light in Wang Yongan’s eyes darkened, and he buried his head in the pillow, his thoughts unknown.
But Lady Qian couldn’t wait, “Official, where is Jinchai?
Where is Jinchai now?”
Sothing grave must have happened; her husband had been beaten, and she heard that Prefect Gao had already been thrown into prison.
Poor daughter, what was she to do now?
Wang Yongan replied impatiently, “A married daughter is like spilled water; why do you care about her?”
Lady Qian froze, tears still lingering on her cheeks, “Official, she’s our flesh and blood, with the County Magistrate overthrown and only n residing in the yan, nothing will happen to Jinchai, right?”
Wang Yongan snorted coldly, “If she really has the ability, it would be great if she could hook up with so influential soldier or official!”
Lady Qian’s face turned white, and she stared at Wang Yongan, dumbfounded, “Official, you…
”
“Enough, seeing that I’ve woken up, what are you transfixed there for?
Can’t you go and make
a bowl of noodles?
Have you called for a doctor?” Wang Yongan scolded, his face stern, his mind in disarray.
Lady Qian dared not speak anymore and went out to prepare food for Wang Yongan.
As she stepped out the door and just entered the kitchen, Shopkeeper Qian stealthily returned from outside.
Seeing his daughter bustling in the kitchen alone, he followed her in, looked around to make sure no one was there, and then whispered, “I went to inquire today, and I heard that several traffickers had gone into the governnt office and ca out leading a bunch of won.
They were said to be the concubines previously taken by the County Magistrate.
Now with the County Magistrate’s downfall and his ho confiscated, the won he had taken into service were reduced to official servants and sold to the traffickers to be trafficked!”
Lady Qian’s hand shook, and the kindling she was holding clattered to the ground, “What?
Jinchai is to beco an official servant and to be sold?”
Suddenly, she stopped cooking and boiling water and rushed straight to Wang Yongan’s room.
Slamming open the door, Lady Qian with quivering lips, asked cautiously, “Official, tell
the truth, was Jinchai sold to the traffickers?”
Wang Yongan waved his hand in irritation, “How would I know?”
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