GTB Chapter 246

Chapter 248: High Fever

The night gradually enveloped everything, and the occasional coughs from outside the house disturbed Jiang Jiuchu, making it impossible for her to concentrate on the book in her hand.

She abruptly pulled open the carved wooden door and angrily shouted at Shí Yan, who was sitting on the veranda, “If you’re sick, go back to the palace and take medicine. What’s the point of staying here every night? Don’t you need to sleep?”

Shí Yan quickly picked up the little fox and stood up, unable to suppress a couple of muffled coughs. “Did I disturb you? Um… I’ll sit further away.”

As he spoke, he walked towards the stone table in the courtyard.

Jiang Jiuchu looked at his blurry figure in the moonlight and thought, “Does this person not understand human language?”

“Whatever, let him do what he wants. It’s not my business.”

However, just as she was about to take off her shoes and get into bed, she heard the little fox’s urgent whines and scratching at the door.

She walked over with a puzzled expression and opened the door, only to see the little fox quickly darting to her feet, biting her skirt and pulling her outwards.

Jiang Jiuchu stepped out of the doorway in surprise, and as soon as she reached the veranda, she saw the black figure slumped over the stone table in the courtyard.

Connecting it with the little fox’s actions, her expression changed in alarm, and she immediately walked over.

Jiang Jiuchu walked closer and took a look. In the dim moonlight, she couldn’t make out Shí Yan’s expression, only his tightly closed eyes.

“Your Majesty.”

Jiang Jiuchu tried calling out, but when Shí Yan didn’t respond, her expression changed, and she quickly reached out and pushed him. “Shí Yan, wake up.”

Perhaps because of her pushing, Shí Yan let out a faint, pained groan, but then remained unresponsive.

Jiang Jiuchu became anxious and quickly reached out to touch Shí Yan’s forehead, only to find it was burning hot.

She quickly and urgently shouted towards the room on the west side, “Lǜ Luó, Lǜ Yì, come out quickly!”

Mù Qīng, who was sitting on the wall in the courtyard, heard this and her eyes flickered. Immediately, with a flying leap, she landed in front of Jiang Jiuchu. “Miss, what’s wrong?”

When Jiang Jiuchu saw it was Mù Qīng, she quickly ordered, “Quickly go and get the physician.”

Upon hearing this, the puzzled look on Mù Qīng’s face seemed to instantly clear when she glanced at Shí Yan, who was lying unconscious on the stone table. She immediately flashed out of the courtyard.

Just as Mù Qīng left, the door on the west side also opened, and Lǜ Luó and Lǜ Yì ran over anxiously.

“Miss…” The two had just called out when they saw Shí Yan lying on the table with his eyes tightly closed.

“He’s sick, help him…”

Jiang Jiuchu paused, thinking that there were no guest rooms in her courtyard, so she had to say, “Help him into my room.”

Upon hearing this, Lǜ Yì was about to go and help him, but she was quietly pulled back by Lǜ Luó.

She said to Jiang Jiuchu with some difficulty, “Miss, you know that His Majesty has always disliked being touched by us servants. We don’t dare to help him. It’s better if you help him yourself, and we’ll just lend you a hand.”

Jiang Jiuchu heard this and didn’t bother to say anything. She lifted Shí Yan’s arm and draped it over her shoulder, saying, “You two hold him on this side, I can’t move him alone.”

Lǜ Luó and Lǜ Yì saw this and didn’t say anything else, immediately coming over to help Jiang Jiuchu support Shí Yan.

However, the three young women still underestimated the weight of the man and didn’t expect that Shí Yan, who looked thin, was so heavy.

Especially Jiang Jiuchu, the entire weight of Shí Yan and his head were resting on her, so much so that she hadn’t even taken a few steps before her small frame faltered and she fell straight down.

A thud was heard as Shí Yan’s forehead directly hit the bluestone slab, causing him to furrow his brow in pain.

“Ah, Miss, are you alright?” Lǜ Yì, who was bending down to help Jiang Jiuchu who had fallen onto Shí Yan’s chest, heard Lǜ Luó’s words, and the corner of her mouth couldn’t help but twitch. Her Miss was definitely fine, but the Emperor was another story.

After all, she heard that thud just now and it sounded painful.

Jiang Jiuchu naturally also heard the sound of Shí Yan’s forehead hitting the ground, and she quickly got up and tentatively called out in all directions:

“Mù Fēng…”

However, Mù Fēng in the shadows seemed not to hear her and ignored Jiang Jiuchu’s call.

After all, this was a rare and hard-won opportunity for his master to play the “sick man” card. If he appeared, maybe Miss Jiang would ask him to take him back to the palace to find the imperial physician.

Then he probably wouldn’t see the sun tomorrow.

Seeing that no one answered, Jiang Jiuchu called out again, then deflated and said to Lǜ Luó and Lǜ Yì, “You two hold that side, hold on tight. He’s already like this, who cares about getting close or not.”

“Oh, oh.” The two felt somewhat guilty and quickly went to support Shí Yan, no longer daring to leave all the weight on their Miss.

But the three of them were still struggling to support Shí Yan, and it was only with great difficulty that they managed to get him into the house.

Jiang Jiuchu looked at the swollen red lump on Shí Yan’s forehead, and a guilty look in her eyes revealed a hint of distress.

“Go and fetch some cold water.”

“Yes.” Just as Lǜ Luó responded and went out, Mù Qīng arrived with the physician in a hurry.

As soon as Mù Qīng came in, she saw the large lump on Shí Yan’s forehead. She couldn’t help but look at Lǜ Yì and Jiang Jiuchu.

She thought, “If I remember correctly, there shouldn’t be this lump on master’s forehead, right?”

“No, this looks like he just fell.” Thinking of this, she couldn’t help but cast an admiring glance at Shí Yan on the bed, thinking, “Although it’s quite tragic, at least he got onto his Miss’s bed, didn’t he?”

“How is it? Doctor? Does he just have a cold? Is it serious?”

The physician opened his medicine chest, took out a white porcelain bottle of swelling and pain relieving powder, and said, “His Majesty has indeed caught a severe cold. I’ll go and prescribe medicine now.”

As he spoke, he handed the porcelain bottle to Jiang Jiuchu, “This is for reducing swelling and removing blood stasis. Miss, apply it to His Majesty, otherwise blood will definitely accumulate tomorrow.”

“And… a high fever.”

The physician, who had already been instructed, although he found the pulse indicating the high fever somewhat strange, still said, “The cold isn’t a big problem, but the high fever caused by the cold is a bit tricky and needs special attention. You have to keep applying cold compresses to his forehead, and if it still doesn’t go down, it’s best to wipe his whole body with warm water.”

As he spoke, the physician had already shouldered his medicine chest and said to Jiang Jiuchu, “This old man will go down to prescribe and decoct the medicine.”

“Okay.” Jiang Jiuchu nodded and then instructed Lǜ Yì, “You go with Doctor Zhang, and bring the medicine here when it’s ready.”