Chapter 27: With Great Fortune, Surely Nothing Will Go Wrong

Shi was expressionless as he drove his sword into the other man’s abdomen once more. "It is too late for you to realize this now."

Wang Feng’s hands slowly went limp, his eyes wide open as if protesting his lingering resentment.

"Now, no one can save Dongfang Jibai."

The sound of hoofbeats faded into the distance, leaving only Wang Feng lying in a pool of blood, his breathing shallow and faint.

Not long after Shi departed, the sound of horses approached from afar. A petite figure rode past; upon seeing the blood-soaked man on the road, she was so frightened that she tumbled directly from her horse. Her small frame landed right before Wang Feng.

"Ah!"

She cried out in terror, her face turning pale—the newcomer was none other than Zhao Qiaofeng.

"Save..." Wang Feng’s hand twitched, reaching out toward her.

"Ah!" Zhao Qiaofeng scrambled backward, her face ashen as she climbed up and grabbed her horse, ready to flee. She had never seen anyone so grievously wounded; he was covered in blood, with flies swarming around him. He looked as though he were on the verge of death.

"Save..." Wang Feng struggled to lift his hand, his blood-stained fingertips presenting a token.

Zhao Qiaofeng stumbled repeatedly, her legs trembling uncontrollably. With shaking hands, she took the token. Seeing the character "Bai" carved upon it, her pupils constricted.

"My cousin’s man?" Her hand trembled, and the token rolled into the dirt.

"Save... save me."

Wang Feng pulled out the cloth pouch he carried with him, filled with bottles and jars of high-quality medicine he had prepared. Gritting her teeth and suppressing her fear, Zhao Qiaofeng dragged Wang Feng into the nearby woods.

"I... I don’t know medicine. I will go to the city and find a doctor for you." After settling Wang Feng and covering him with dead branches, she turned to leave.

Wang Feng used his final strength to grab the hem of her trousers, his voice barely a whisper: "Take... me... with you..."

Zhao Qiaofeng bit her lip, staring at the dying man on the ground. In the end, she could not bring herself to abandon him. She unfastened her cloak and covered him, then hurriedly chopped a few branches to lash together a makeshift sled, carefully shifting Wang Feng onto it.

"I will take you to find a doctor," she said, her voice trembling yet resolute.

Wang Feng’s complexion was deathly pale, his breath coming in ragged gasps. With a shivering finger, he pointed to the cloth pouch: "Take... the medicine..."

Zhao Qiaofeng took the pouch and presented the bottles one by one until Wang Feng nodded. Only then did she pour out the pills and feed them to him. After swallowing the medicine, Wang Feng slumped back heavily.

"Thank you."

Zhao Qiaofeng did not reply. Her hands were shaking from the exertion, yet she gripped the vines firmly, dragging him step by step toward the nearest village. Her tender shoulders were rubbed raw by the coarse vines, and her palms were cut in several places. Wang Feng, drifting in and out of consciousness, had no idea how much this girl was suffering for his sake.

By dusk, Zhao Qiaofeng finally dragged him into the town. She stumbled into a medical clinic, pulling the doctor by his sleeve. Several apprentices scrambled to carry Wang Feng into the inner chamber. When the doctor cut away the blood-soaked clothes, he gasped—the two sword wounds, while missing vital organs, were deep enough to expose bone. If left to heal on their own, it would take a very long time.

Wang Feng woke up and reached out to grab the doctor’s robe: "Use needles and thread to stitch it."

The doctor was astonished, leaning in close: "Are you also a physician, young friend?"

Wang Feng nodded. He took his cloth pouch, which contained sterilized needles and thread. "Help me stitch it."

Without anesthesia, the pain of the needle piercing his flesh was unimaginable. The veins on Wang Feng’s forehead bulged, and cold sweat soaked his hair, yet he did not utter a single sound. Zhao Qiaofeng’s own wounds had been treated by a nurse; she watched from the side, wincing as if she were the one in pain.

During the half-month of his recovery, the doctor was full of praise for Wang Feng’s medical skills and eventually waived the consultation fee, hoping only for some guidance. Zhao Qiaofeng had spent nearly all her money along the way, and they were penniless, truly unable to pay. They accepted the doctor's proposal readily.

Wang Feng was now able to walk slowly. He knew that the attempt on his life meant something had gone wrong with Dongfang Jibai. As soon as he could move, he refused to stay any longer.

"Miss Zhao, I must go to Yanmen Pass to help Jibai. Will you come with me?"

On the day the stitches were removed, Wang Feng packed his belongings and gathered his jars. This time, he did not wear his colorful robes, changing instead into grey, practical attire.

Zhao Qiaofeng nodded: "I will go with you."

Wang Feng agreed. Zhao Qiaofeng sold her horse for fifty taels of silver. Now they had enough money to rent a carriage to Yanmen Pass. Along the way, they asked many people, but no one was willing to travel there. They heard that while the Great General had won his first battle, he had been severely wounded and had yet to wake up.

Hearing this, Zhao Qiaofeng nearly fainted. "Cousin." She bit her lip, tears streaming down her face.

Wang Feng patted her shoulder gently: "Let us go to Yanmen Pass and see. Jibai is blessed; he will surely be fine." Wang Feng mistakenly assumed Zhao Qiaofeng was Dongfang Jibai’s sweetheart—after all, a cousin and a cousin sounded like a perfect match.

Unable to hire a carriage, Zhao Qiaofeng bought a donkey cart for ten taels of silver, and the two slowly set off toward Yanmen Pass.

Outside Yanmen Pass, in Pingcheng County, the "severely wounded" Dongfang Jibai had already secured eighty percent of the Dongfang family’s assets, all of which had been stored away by Ji Ci in her spatial domain.

Dongfang Jibai had assumed the persona of a Jiangnan merchant named Xin He. He purchased significant farmland in Pingcheng and, following Ji Ci’s advice, began farming there to develop agriculture. Ji Ci, still in her fox form, rested in Dongfang Jibai’s arms.

[New Mission: Help the protagonist establish an intelligence network. Reward: 300 points. Transformation progress: 505/1000.]

Ji Ci’s ears twitched. Ever since Dongfang Jibai had learned her identity, she stopped pretending, though communicating in fox form was somewhat laborious. She had to use gestures and body language, which was quite difficult for a fox.

When Dongfang Jibai heard the new mission, a smile tugged at the corner of his lips. Helping him establish an intelligence network—what kind of existence was this system that it could peer into his very thoughts?

Ji Ci jumped out of Dongfang Jibai’s arms and began chattering and gesturing.

"We need manpower for the fields. Why don’t you hire tenant farmers? Provide room and board for anyone willing to work, and give them twenty percent of the harvest." Ji Ci made a plowing motion in the air with her paws.

"Very well." Dongfang Jibai accurately deciphered the fox’s body language.

Ji Ci froze. This protagonist was far too clever! She had barely started gesturing, and he already understood?

Chuer entered the room, travel-worn and dressed in black, and pushed open the door. "Master, the tenant farmers have been settled, though the grain seeds from Jiangnan are still on the way." He paused, lowering his voice: "Bai Yi sent word that 'you' in the army have been running a high fever; I fear you won't last many more days..."

Chuer had taken over Bai Yi’s duties, while Bai Yi remained in the army guarding the decoy Dongfang Jibai, terrified that the fake would die there. Yet, even with Bai Yi guarding him day and night, there were still those desperate to take his life.