Tang Dynasty Puppet Doctor

Chapter 143 The General Who Returned with His Soul

The Western Regions, atop the snow-capped mountains.

A magnificent palace stands majestically, appearing as unreal as a mirage from afar.

Inside the palace, in a dense grove of pine trees, there was a small table and two chairs, with tea bubbling on the table, its fragrance filling the air.

A young man in a black robe sat brewing tea. Snowflakes fell softly from the pine trees, covering his robe. Suddenly, a gust of wind blew his hood off, revealing a face so exquisitely beautiful that it was flawless. Against the backdrop of the snow, he appeared even more divine and otherworldly.

Just as he was intently watching the game on the chessboard, another man in purple robes and a mask walked over and sighed, "The key to chess lies in surprise. If you want to play this game of the world, how can you succeed if you're not ruthless and decisive?"

The young man raised his head and looked at the masked man: "You've come?"

"A lonely traveler adrift in time and space, no one can understand you, and you can't get close to anyone in this world. You must be very lonely, right? Why don't we discuss the Tao again?"

"On what?"

"Let's discuss the principles of morality and ethics in this world, goodness and cause and effect. Is morality ultimately humanity's pursuit of truth, goodness and beauty, or a hypocritical shackle that binds us and prevents us from being free?"

The man in black said, "Morality is not a false framework, but a true and clear insight."

"Is that so? Then what is true, clear insight?"

"For an individual, by eliminating the thieves in one's heart, such as greed, evil, and jealousy, one can break free from shackles, become well-rounded and complete, and attain the highest good and sincerity, and the mind can also find peace and happiness."

The man in purple robes chuckled, lifted his robes, and sat down opposite him, teasingly asking, "So, can you rid yourself of the thief in your heart?"

The man in black fell silent, picked up a black chess piece from the board, and placed it in the center.

"What is your relationship with that boy? Did you create him, or did he make you who you are?"

The man in black remained silent, only saying coldly, "Don't harm them, otherwise..."

The man in purple robes laughed and said, "Don't worry about that! I've already given them orders to spare their lives and bring them here to see me!"

He paused again, then chuckled softly.
"However, judging from your stubborn temper, the young couple you trained must be no pushovers either, so I didn't expect them to succeed."

The man in black placed another piece on the chessboard: "Since you know it won't succeed, why waste your energy?"

"Assassins, after all! Since they've taken the money, they have to put on a show. Some want him dead, and some want him alive. And as soon as Prince Li Xian of Luling returns to Luoyang, the city will be plunged into another bloodbath. The Wu family, the Li family, and those other aristocratic families, as well as the villains lurking in the shadows, all waiting for their chance to strike—who will have the last laugh?"

After speaking, the man in purple robes moved even closer to the man in black robes' face and said in a deep voice with a smile, "This is the result you've been waiting for, isn't it?"

The man in black paused for a moment, then remained silent. The man in purple robes laughed loudly and strode into the palace, disappearing from sight.

A seven-colored divine bird flew over the high mountains, flapped its wings, and landed in front of the man in black, spitting a rolled-up piece of paper into his hand.

The man in black opened the note and read: "Master, I have successfully reached their side. Please rest assured, I will not let you down. Please take care!"

……

"How is it? Can the poison in Xiao Zhongcheng's body be cured?" At this moment, everyone in the post station was anxiously waiting. From moonset to sunrise, the summer heat permeated the air again, making people even more anxious and irritable.

"It's all my fault. Lord Xiao clearly prepared a pill, but I..."

Ah Shu searched almost every inch of the place where the pill had fallen, but strangely, she couldn't find the missing pill.

Murong Xian'er could only comfort her, "Everything will be alright, it's not your fault."

“That matchmaker said she had the antidote on her. We just stopped her. If something had happened to Master Xiao, I don’t know how heartbroken A-Huan would have been. A-Huan has risked her life to save Master Xiao time and time again. Because of him, A-Huan’s health is not as good as before.”

"What's wrong with things not being as good as before?" Lu Shiyilang couldn't help but ask.

"Ever since Ah Huan fell ill, her constitution has become very special. She can absorb the toxins from other people. Once, I was bitten by a poisonous snake, and Ah Huan helped me suck out all the venom. At that time, I was worried that Ah Huan would be poisoned, but she was fine. Later, that Taoist priest told me that Ah Huan can transfer and absorb the toxins from other people. Ordinary poisons will not harm her body, but it is not certain if it is one of the rare poisons in the world."

"Originally, the Taoist priest told me not to tell A-Huan about this, and I never did. But later, for some reason, A-Huan found out about it herself. She then transferred all the Ice Silkworm Poison from Master Xiao to herself. However, because the poison was so strong, A-Huan's health deteriorated significantly. The A-Huan of the past could kill a bull with a single punch, but now... Now, A-Huan needs to be nourished with many, many medicinal herbs to dispel the poison in her body. Moreover, because of this poison, it is extremely difficult for her to have a child..."

I imagine Ah Huan must be very sad!

As A-Shu said this, she lowered her head with some frustration and worry. However, Li Guo'er, who was listening nearby, had an unusual glint in her eyes and thought to herself: So she is a sickly person who cannot have children!

Hearing this, Lu Shiyilang suddenly realized, "So that's why this young lady's health deteriorated after she got together with Xiao Muchen five years ago! Now... if she really can transfer toxins from others, then the poison in Xiao Muchen's body..."

A-Shu didn't reply. What she was worried about was exactly the same thing: if the poison in Xiao Langzhu's body were to be transferred again, she didn't know if A-Huan's body could withstand it.

A look of pity and envy immediately appeared on Lu Shiyilang's face. Perhaps others only saw how good Xiao Zhongcheng was to this young lady, but they did not know what price this young lady had paid.

……

At this moment, Xiao Muchen woke up from his dream again. The face of his "master" appeared in his mind again and again, making him feel both confused and afraid. It was as if his future self had foreseen their fate, reminding him again and again of the arrival of "that thing".

When he fully opened his eyes, he saw Murong Huan lying beside him, asleep with his eyes closed. His skin was as white as snow, but there was a faint chill emanating from his body.

"Ah Huan—" Xiao Muchen was filled with fear. He hurriedly called Ah Shu to bring in the package and the medicine box he was carrying. He then fetched hot water again and carried Murong Huan into the bathtub that had been soaked in medicine.

Amidst the rising steam, Murong Huan gradually awoke. Seeing that the "black aura" on Xiao Muchen's body had faded away and his complexion had returned to normal, he exclaimed with delight, "It seems the poison has been completely removed, he's alright now!"

Ah Shu silently wept, remaining silent for a long while. Xiao Muchen, however, asked with a mixture of reproach and heartache, "Did you transfer the poison from my body into yours again?"

Murong Huan shook his head: "No, I forced it out for you, Xiao Muchen. I'm fine, you don't need to worry." Facing Murong Huan's nonchalant smile, Xiao Muchen felt even more distressed. Because of his master's prophecy, he lived in constant vigilance and fear. Even if she was hurt in the slightest, he was afraid that she would leave him.

"Xiao Muchen, last night I heard you talking in your sleep. Did you dream about your master?"

Seeing him deep in thought, Murong Huan suddenly asked.

Xiao Muchen paused for a moment, then nodded at her: "Yes, I dreamed about him."

"Did you see your master's face?"

When Murong Huan asked again, Xiao Muchen immediately realized that with A-Huan's ability to see into dreams and minds, could it be that she also saw the appearance of his master in his dream?

"I……"

Just as Xiao Muchen was about to answer, Murong Huan interrupted him with a smile: "It's alright if you don't tell me. I just want to say that Zhuang Gong's dream of the butterfly was nothing but a fleeting illusion. A dream is a dream, and reality is reality. Don't get too caught up in the dream, and don't mistake the illusion for reality."

Xiao Muchen nodded, but thought to himself: Sometimes I can't even tell myself whether everything I'm experiencing now is a dream, or whether the "self" in the future is the dream.

He was even afraid that one day he would suddenly wake up from a dream and everything he owned would disappear as if it were a dream.

"Ah Huan——"

He couldn't help but hold her tighter until he felt the warmth of her body, and only then did he believe that what he was seeing was real.

"Let's keep going, lest the legendary assassins come after us again!"

"it is good!"

……

When Murong Huan and Xiao Muchen came out of the room, Lu Shiyilang, Xie Zi'e, Li Yi, and Murong Xian'er all surrounded them, asking, "How are you? Has the poison been neutralized? Are you all alright?"

Murong Huan smiled and said, "It's nothing." Then he looked curiously at Xie Zi'e and Li Yi.

Thanks to Murong Huan's treatment three years ago, Li Yi's eyesight has gradually recovered, and he can now see normally. When he saw Xiao Muchen and Murong Huan, a look of amazement flashed in Li Yi's eyes. He quickly bowed to them and said, "Senior brother, senior sister, it's been a long time. I learned from the princess that you came to Fangling to welcome the Prince of Luling. Knowing that your return to Luoyang might not be smooth, I came with Lu Shiyilang and others to help you."

"How did the princess learn of this news?" Xiao Muchen asked, somewhat surprised.

Li Yi smiled wryly and said, "Now I'm afraid it's not just the princess who knows. That day, when Prime Minister Di and the Emperor were discussing matters in the Imperial Garden, Zhang Changzong and Zhang Yizhi were by the Emperor's side. Although the Emperor dismissed the two of them, it was inevitable that there would be spies eavesdropping. The princess learned about the news from Lord Shangguan."

At this point, she changed the subject again, "However, although Shangguan Wan'er is on good terms with the princess, she also maintains a close but ambiguous relationship with Wu Sansi. Even the princess cannot fully understand her stance. Therefore, the princess thinks that this person should be guarded against."

"So-called stance is nothing more than seeing who is in power and then keeping a backup plan for themselves. Shangguan Wan'er is a person with a keen political sense. She will choose the side that is more advantageous to herself when power struggles occur."

After Xiao Muchen finished speaking, Li Yi nodded: "Yes, Senior Brother has a certain understanding of Shangguan Daizhao, and his analysis is very reasonable."

“Then let’s set off immediately!” Murong Huan said.

Li Yi then paid his respects to Li Xian, Lady Wei, and the other princes and princesses. The convoy quickly headed towards the official road and sped towards Luoyang.

"Young Master Lu, has anything interesting happened in Luoyang lately?" Murong Huan couldn't help but ask along the way.

Lu Shiyilang then said, "Speaking of interesting things, there are always new things happening in Luoyang every day, especially five years ago when you and Xiao Zhongcheng were in Luoyang. My lady, you were the most popular and influential person in Luoyang! Even now, the storytellers in the teahouses are still talking about the few spectacular things you did before."

"You flatter me, Eleventh Brother," Murong Huan replied with a smile.

"Speaking of this case, there has indeed been a strange thing happening in Luoyang recently."

"What's weird?"

Do you still remember Zhu Qiniangzi from Sigongfang?

"of course I remember."

"Six months ago, this Zhu Qiniang fell in love with a general surnamed Wang. General Wang also regarded her as his confidante. The two were deeply in love and even made vows of eternal love. Six months ago, General Wang was ordered to be appointed as the commander-in-chief of the Qingbian Road Army to fight against the Khitan leader Sun Wanrong. He promised Zhu Qiniang that after his triumphant return, he would take her as a concubine and bring her into his mansion. However, Zhu Qiniang waited for him for half a year without any news. But just recently, one night, General Wang suddenly returned, found Zhu Qiniang's place, and took her back to the general's mansion."

At this point, Lu Shiyilang asked, quite intriguedly, "Young lady, guess what happened next?"

"This general...is dead?" Murong Huan blurted out.

Lu Shiyilang's eyes widened: "How do you know? That's the strange thing. In fact, General Wang died half a year ago when he was defeated and fell into a valley during the battle with the Khitan. But Zhu Qiniang didn't know this. She even said that she saw General Wang with her own eyes, so she followed him into the general's mansion."

"On the second day, General Wang's wife found her lying on the general's bed. When she asked why, Zhu Qiniang learned that General Wang had died."

"So, what do you call this? Did General Wang's spirit return and deliberately lead Zhu Qiniang to his residence?"

Strange things happen every year, but I've never seen anything like this before!

At this point, Lu Shiyilang grinned and said, "Our Dali Temple has a lot of cases backlogged right now, we're just waiting for you to return to Luoyang so we can investigate them all together!"

As Lu Shiyilang spoke of this matter with great enthusiasm, Murong Huan and Xiao Muchen fell into deep thought once again.

Murong Huan had also heard his master tell the story of Zhu Qiniang and General Wang.

What exactly is going on here?
Just as Murong Huan was pondering, Lu Shiyilang suddenly remembered something and said seriously, "However, there is something I still have to tell you. Su Rong, the third daughter of the Su family, still married into the Cui family and became a concubine of Cui Jiulang. I heard that Cui Jiulang took the initiative to ask for her..."