Married to a Villainous Minister - Chapter 191

Yu Jiao obediently tilted her small face upward to look at him. Her apricot-shaped eyes were calm and innocent as she said with composure, “Our village lies by the mountains and rivers, rich in natural beauty. It’s only natural that the people there may carry a trace of spiritual clarity.”

“You’ve certainly got a clever little mouth on you,” Gu Yun scoffed, but as he met her deep, jet-black eyes, a strange sense of familiarity stirred in his heart. Pushing the odd feeling aside, he asked, “Are you a physician?”

Yu Jiao’s chin was still held in his grasp. She parted her lips and calmly replied, “Yes.”

Gu Yun withdrew his hand and stood up. His gaze swept over Yu Jiao with cool arrogance. “It’s not impossible to spare your lives. Since you’re a female physician, I’ll give you a chance. If you can heal General Xiao’s hand, I’ll let you and your sister go.”

Liu Ziqi shook his head helplessly. Even the Imperial Physicians had failed to cure General Xiao’s hand, how could this young girl possibly manage it?

Yu Jiao’s eyes flickered slightly. She had already heard that General Xiao Ning’s hand was beyond saving, but it was still worth trying. This was the only way for her and Yu Fuling to survive.

She took a deep breath and slowly stood up. “Young Marquis, I hope you’ll keep your word.”

Gu Yun sneered, “I always do. If you really have the skill, I guarantee your sister and you will leave unharmed.”

Yang Yuancheng voiced his concern, “Young Marquis, is it really appropriate to let the two of them meet General Xiao just like that?”

“It’s fine,” Gu Yun said dismissively. “She’s already overheard everything. If she can’t heal his hand, we’ll just kill them both and be done with it.”

Yu Jiao said, “I’ll go in alone.”

She wasn’t entirely confident she could cure General Xiao Ning’s hand. Although Yu Fuling had already been dragged into the situation, there was no need to expose her to further danger if it could be avoided.

Gu Yun didn’t respond, simply turning to lead the way toward the pavilion deep within the bamboo grove.

Yu Fuling grasped Yu Jiao’s hand worriedly, but Yu Jiao reassured her, “Don’t worry, sister. We’ll be fine.”

With that, she gently let go of Yu Fuling’s hand and followed Liu Ziqi and Yang Yuancheng into the bamboo grove.

Xiao Ning remained seated in the pavilion. As a seasoned martial artist, he had already heard all the commotion outside. Seeing Gu Yun actually bring a young girl to treat his hand, he let out a rough chuckle. “You little devil. Even away from the capital, you’re just as unruly!”

Gu Yun grinned. “If she really can cure your hand, what’s the harm in me showing a bit of mercy?”

Xiao Ning had injured his hand while defending the border from invaders on the battlefield. At the time, his military exploits were unmatched, and he enjoyed great favor from the emperor. Out of gratitude for his service, Emperor Mingzheng had ordered the entire Imperial Medical Bureau to treat his injury. But the damage to his bones was severe, and even the most skilled physicians were at a loss. Many were punished for their failure.

Xiao Ning had once wielded the family’s legendary Xiao-style spear technique with his right hand, a skill passed down through generations. On the battlefield, he could take an enemy general’s head amidst thousands. But now, his right hand was useless, incapable of holding a weapon, and plagued by excruciating, bone-deep pain.

Yu Jiao stepped forward and bowed. “Please allow me to examine your hand.”

The Imperial Bureau had tried and failed; no one believed this young girl could succeed, especially after so long. Xiao Ning assumed this was just a game Gu Yun was playing and extended his right hand.

Yu Jiao placed both hands on Xiao Ning’s wrist, feeling carefully along the bones. She closed her eyes, focusing intently on the subtle changes hidden beneath skin and flesh, meticulously tracing each finger bone.

Watching her small, delicate hands boldly exploring Xiao Ning’s large, dark palm, Gu Yun sneered, “Stop using cheap tricks to seduce people. Know your place! Even the capital’s top courtesan couldn’t tempt General Xiao Ning, what chance does a naive little girl like you have?”

Yu Jiao shot him a cold glance, unaffected by the insult. She placed her fingers on Xiao Ning’s pulse, then pulled away after a moment.

“General Xiao, was your hand severely fractured before?” she asked.

Xiao Ning nodded.

“Who set the bones back then?”

“One of the military’s traveling physicians,” Xiao Ning replied, puzzled by the question.

Gu Yun grew impatient. “Stop wasting time. Can you treat it or not?”

Ignoring him, Yu Jiao said something that stunned everyone, “If it were an Imperial Physician, they wouldn’t have made such a mistake. General Xiao, your hand wasn’t ruined by the injury, it was ruined because someone intentionally set your bones incorrectly. Someone wanted your hand crippled.”

“What did you say?” Xiao Ning shot to his feet, eyes sharp as blades. A lifetime of battle lent his presence a commanding, deadly aura. His voice was low and grim. “Are you playing games with me?”

Yu Jiao remained composed. “I’ve carefully felt every part of your wrist. There are no remaining fractures, no shattered bone fragments. It’s true your wrist was once shattered, but now it has fully healed. There’s no reason for the hand to be useless, except that the bones were set incorrectly.”

She explained that the misalignment was subtle, just a single joint out of place, but it triggered a chain reaction. The tendons and ligaments shifted as well, making it impossible to exert strength and causing constant, agonizing pain.

The one who set the bones must have been exceptionally skilled, deliberately disguising the sabotage. A common warrior would never detect it, otherwise, Xiao Ning would’ve realized it long ago.

Without her family’s inherited bone-setting techniques, even Yu Jiao might not have noticed.

Xiao Ning’s face was frozen in a cold scowl. Suddenly, he slammed his left palm down on the stone table, his voice trembling with fury. “So that’s it… So that’s it! The military physician at Xuanfu must’ve been the emperor’s man! He plotted this five years ago, pretending to call all the Imperial Physicians together, when he’d already ensured my hand would never heal!”

Gu Yun, Liu Ziqi, and Yang Yuancheng were stunned. None of them had imagined such a dark twist.

“But five years ago, His Majesty personally appointed you as Commander of Xuanda, giving you authority over three military districts,” Gu Yun said, bewildered. “You were at the height of your career. Why would he try to harm you then?”

Xiao Ning let out a bitter laugh. “You answered your own question. I was too successful. When a subject’s achievements outshine the ruler, suspicion follows. Who would’ve thought? I gave everything for the country, but five years ago, when I was still bleeding for the border, the emperor already saw me as a threat.”

Silence fell over the pavilion.

The current emperor, he had seized the throne by crushing his own kin. His rule was illegitimate, and now it seemed he was paranoid, cruel, and morally bankrupt.

“Is there any way to treat General Xiao’s hand?” Liu Ziqi asked Yu Jiao.

“No need to trouble her,” Xiao Ning said quietly. Having learned the truth behind his crippled hand, he suddenly seemed much older, the fire in his eyes dimmed. He turned to Yu Jiao and said, “You’ve given me the truth today, that’s enough. I, Xiao Ning, will let you and your sister leave unharmed.”