Hot flashes

He walked along the official road for another half an hour, and a small village appeared ahead. Smoke curled from chimneys, and the sounds of roosters crowing and dogs barking brought a sense of life to the village.

Zhou Heng did not rush into the village. He observed for a while in the woods outside the village and saw villagers carrying water and feeding chickens. Although they looked tired, they were still relatively calm. This village should not have been affected too deeply by the war.

He tidied himself up, tucked the tank top into his cotton-padded coat, and walked into the village as naturally as possible.

An old man was chopping wood at the village entrance. When he saw him, he stopped and looked him over warily.

Zhou Heng stepped forward and, mimicking the manner of the refugees he had seen before, bowed respectfully: "Sir, I apologize for disturbing you. I am a refugee from the north, and I was injured on the way. I would like to ask for a bowl of hot water and for directions."

Seeing that he was young, pale, and indeed injured, the old man's expression softened: "Come in."

The old man's house was simple, but clean. He poured Zhou Heng a bowl of hot water and gave him a coarse grain steamed bun.

Zhou Heng gratefully accepted the hot water, taking small sips as the warmth flowed down his throat and throughout his body, making him feel so comfortable that he almost sighed.

"Your injury..." the old man said, looking at his pale face, "You need to see a doctor."

"Are there any doctors around here?" Zhou Heng asked.

"Li the doctor at the east end of the village can treat minor injuries and illnesses, but he lacks medicinal herbs and can't afford expensive ones."

Zhou Heng thought for a moment, then took out the last silver clasp from his pocket—he had been careful, having only given one to A-Cao before, and keeping one for himself.

"Sir, could you please take me to Doctor Li's?"

The old man hesitated for a moment, then took it: "Okay. You wait here, I'll go call him over. With your health, you shouldn't wander around."

Before long, the old man returned with a middle-aged man carrying a medicine box. Doctor Li examined Zhou Heng's left shoulder and shook his head: "The dislocation has been reduced, but it wasn't properly secured. He also walked a long way, injuring his tendons and bones. It needs to be realigned, secured, and he needs rest. Also, the injury on his head is a bit festering; it needs cleaning."

Zhou Heng gritted his teeth: "You decide how to treat him."

The process of bone setting was excruciatingly painful. Although Dr. Li was experienced and skillful, Zhou Heng still broke out in a cold sweat from the pain and bit his lower lip until it bled. He was almost completely exhausted when the wound was cleaned and treated.

The doctor re-stabilized his left arm, prescribed some anti-inflammatory herbs, and gave him some antipyretic powder.

"Take these medicines first. But you need to rest. If you continue traveling, this arm might be ruined."

Zhou Heng gave a wry smile. He longed to rest, but…

"Doctor, how far is it from here to Nandu?"

Doctor Li and the old man exchanged a glance, both showing surprise: "Nandu? That's a long way! At least seven or eight hundred li away! And the road is far from peaceful, with defeated soldiers and bandits everywhere. Young man, take my advice, recover from your injuries in the village first."

Seven or eight hundred li. Zhou Heng's heart sank. In his current state, he might collapse before he even reached halfway.

"Has a large group of people passed through recently?" he asked tentatively.

"Yes!" the old man replied. "A few days ago, a troop of cavalry passed by. They were dressed in black and rode black horses. They were very fierce. They stopped in the village for a while and asked if anyone had seen a lone young man. They said they were looking for deserters. Yesterday, another troop passed by, also heading south."

Zhou Heng understood. The pursuers were indeed ahead.

He thanked the old man and the doctor, and used the remaining silver coins to exchange for some dry food, a small bag of salt and firewood. He also inquired about the route ahead and possible dangerous areas.

It was already afternoon when he left the village. The medicine that Doctor Li gave him contained sedative ingredients, and he felt drowsy after taking it, but he dared not linger and forced himself to continue on his way.

This time he changed his strategy—instead of taking the main road, he followed a mountain path pointed out by his father-in-law. The path was difficult to traverse, but it was hidden and could bypass several checkpoints.

The mountain path was rugged, which was even more torturous for him as he was injured. After walking for less than two hours, the pain in his left shoulder intensified, his fever returned, and he experienced bouts of dizziness.

He found a cave and decided to rest for a while. The cave wasn't deep, but it was dry and provided shelter from the wind.

He gathered some dry branches, built a small fire with a tinderbox, warmed his cold body, and ate some medicine and dry rations with water.

The warmth and food restored some of his strength. He leaned against the cave wall, watching the flickering flames, his thoughts drifting away.

What is Xiao Jue doing now? Does he know he's missing? Could he... think he's dead?

A hundred miles away, in the Jingbei Army camp, Xiao Jue hadn't slept all night. On the map on his desk, the search area circled in vermilion ink was getting larger and larger, like a net that was gradually tightening.

Zhou Heng did not sleep well that night in the mountains. His fever kept recurring, his wounds ached, and his vigilance against the pursuers caused him to wake up every one or two hours.

As dawn broke, he struggled to his feet. The fire had long since died down, leaving only ashes.

He touched his forehead; it was burning hot, but he was still relatively conscious. The pain in his left shoulder seemed to have subsided somewhat; he didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

He chewed some dry rations, swallowed the medicine powder with the cool water seeping from the cave walls, then gathered his few belongings, covered the fire traces with mud, and walked out of the cave.

The morning mist was thick, and the mountain path was slippery and difficult to traverse. Zhou Heng leaned on a thick tree branch he had picked up and made his way down the mountain step by step.

The herbal medicine given by Physician Li had some effect, and the fever subsided a bit, but the body was still weak. After walking for less than half an hour, the patient was out of breath and had to stop to rest.

As he approached the foot of the mountain, he suddenly heard voices and the sounds of carriages and horses ahead.

Zhou Heng immediately hid behind a tree by the roadside and observed with bated breath. He saw several dilapidated oxcarts and donkey carts parked at the fork in the road at the foot of the mountain, with about twenty or thirty people gathered there, including men, women, and children, who looked like refugees.

They were surrounding two men on horseback, seemingly arguing about something.

The two men were wearing worn leather armor and had long knives at their waists; they appeared to be local militia or private soldiers of powerful clansmen.

One of the burly men with a thick beard was shouting gruffly, "...Going south is possible, but each person must pay ten copper coins as a toll! No money? If you don't have money, then go back!"

The people pleaded and wept, saying that all their money had been looted, leaving them only some food and broken belongings. The bearded man impatiently cracked his whip: "Enough nonsense! Either pay up, or turn back!"

Zhou Heng's heart sank. This road was indeed not safe. He touched his pocket; the silver clasp was all used up, leaving only the black iron token that he absolutely could not show himself.

Forcing his way through is definitely not an option, but if he takes a detour, the vast forest poses a greater risk of him getting lost or encountering wild animals in his current state.

While I was pondering this, a woman holding a child in the crowd suddenly fainted and the child cried loudly.

A stir ran through the crowd, but the bearded man just watched coldly, even muttering "bad luck."