Chapter 32: He Shu Falls Ill

He Shu slowly opened her eyes. Her vision was somewhat blurry.

Three days had passed since the banquet. 

Yet He Shu still felt dazed. 

A persistent sense of unreality lingered in her heart.

She sat up and rubbed her eyes. 

She tried to wake herself up. 

But her mind remained sluggish.

She raised a hand to touch her forehead. 

It felt hot.

Am I… running a fever?

A gust of wind blew in from the window. 

The chill made her body curl up involuntarily.

He Shu pulled the quilt tighter around herself. 

As a former cultivator, it had been decades since she last experienced this sensation.

She had probably caught a cold from sleeping poorly.

A cultivator’s body possessed extremely strong resistance. 

It could be said to be immune to a hundred poisons. 

But with her cultivation destroyed, He Shu was now as fragile as any mortal. 

She could fall ill just like one.

“Hiss……”

When she turned over, she accidentally brushed against the bruise on her thigh. 

The pain made her body tremble.

She really doesn’t know how to cherish delicate beauty…

Not only was she sick. 

The bruises Hua Yanyun had pinched into her body still had not faded.

In the days since the banquet ended, He Shu had learned from Mu Xinlian that the Southwind Immortal Kingdom had already dispatched a diplomatic mission.

He Shu had been overjoyed when she first heard the news. 

After being bullied for a whole month, she finally felt she could see the end of her suffering.

But after the initial excitement faded, another problem came to mind.

Hua Yanyun already knew her body held significant research value. 

Would she really let her leave?

Or rather, could the Southwind Immortal Kingdom offer a price that would make Hua Yanyun willingly release her?

It should be possible.

Both the Southwind Immortal Kingdom and the Jade Water Immortal Kingdom were super immortal nations with histories spanning tens of thousands of years. 

They surely possessed considerable research on the Heavenly Dao. 

They simply kept it all to themselves and never shared it.

She had worked undercover for so many years. 

Even without major achievements, she had suffered greatly and provided plenty of intelligence critical to national fate.

All of that information had been obtained at the risk of her life.

Mother would not simply abandon her, right? 

Even setting aside her contributions, she was still her biological daughter.

Moreover, she held one extremely valuable piece of intelligence she had investigated for over ten years. 

It concerned the inheritance left behind by an ancient powerhouse who had once dominated the entire Southern Border for an era.

Even just a clue to a human Great Vehicle cultivator’s inheritance would be enough to make anyone’s heart race with excitement.

Originally, He Shu had planned to deliver this information to He Xiu. 

But she was captured by Hua Yanyun before she could act.

***

The door was pushed open.

Mu Xinlian, wearing a green dress, had just entered when she saw He Shu wrapped up in her quilt like a chicken roll.

“Young Miss… what are you doing…”

Mu Xinlian felt the urge to press a hand to her forehead. 

Ever since her young miss was thrown back into the cage after returning from the banquet that day, she had spent most of her time hiding inside it and refusing to come out.

She opened the cage door and walked inside. 

Then she bent down and gently shook the “He Shu roll.”

“Young Miss, wake up. It’s time to eat.”

Seeing that He Shu showed no reaction, Mu Xinlian scratched her head.

Is she still sleeping?

Indeed, He Shu had been exceptionally sleepy these past two days. 

She slept very deeply.

Her heart itched with mischief. 

If her young miss was still asleep, she probably would not notice if she did something naughty, right?

Bold in both thought and action, Mu Xinlian really did slip her restless little hand under the quilt. 

She reached toward He Shu’s chest.

Mu Xinlian’s small face flushed red. She had always liked her godmother very much. 

The taboo thrill made her heart race with excitement.

But the moment her hand touched He Shu’s body, Mu Xinlian cried out in alarm. 

Her desire to take advantage of her vanished instantly.

“Why is she so hot! Did Young Miss catch a fever?”

That’s right. Without spiritual energy nourishing her, He Shu’s current body was even more fragile than that of an ordinary young girl. 

Naturally she could get sick.

Panicking, Mu Xinlian rummaged through her medicinal storage bag for various pills. 

Sweat broke out on her forehead.

As a medical cultivator and pill refiner, she naturally carried many pills. 

But she had almost none for treating ordinary illnesses in mortals.

Many mortals could not afford pills. 

Naturally, few people bothered researching treatments for common diseases.

“Origin Strengthening Pill… Power Converting Pill… Blood Coagulation Pill… Pregnancy Protection Pill… Foundation Establishment Pill…?”

“Aiya! Why are there poison pills in here too!”

As expected, Mu Xinlian failed to find any fever-reducing or cough-relieving medicine.

Should I… try a Qi and Blood Pill instead?

She considered the idea but quickly shook her head and dismissed it.

Qi and Blood Pills were for body cultivators. They dramatically increased physical strength in a short time. But the side effects were severe. 

They would leave the user in a prolonged weakened state afterward.

A flash of inspiration suddenly struck her. Mu Xinlian patted her own head.

How could I forget I’m a medical cultivator? 

Even if I don’t have the right pill, I can make one right here.

She hurried to the table. 

She took out a stone mortar, medicinal paper, and several herbs from her storage bag. 

Then she began preparing Clear Heat Powder on the spot.

Three quarters of an hour later, she mixed the finished powder with warm water. 

Mu Xinlian brought the medicine into the golden birdcage.

The quilt wrapped around He Shu had been removed. 

Mu Xinlian held her in one arm. She supported her as she leaned against the side of the cage.

A breeze blew through. 

He Shu opened her tightly closed eyes.

There was someone in front of her. It felt like she was being held by that person. 

Once she saw clearly who it was, she spoke on instinct.

“Xiao Mu? Why are you here, cough cough……”

Her consciousness was still hazy. 

She was speaking purely on instinct. 

She felt like her illness had gotten even worse.

“Young Miss, don’t speak for now. Drink this first.” 

Mu Xinlian brought the bowl of medicine to He Shu’s lips.

He Shu had not clearly heard what Mu Xinlian said. 

But she knew her goddaughter would never harm her.

Having just woken up and feeling thirsty, she gulped down the entire bowl.

The Clear Heat Powder was not bitter. It had a refreshing herbal sweetness. 

It was the most common remedy for colds and fevers. 

Because it tasted so good, some people even made finished versions to sell.

Mu Xinlian had deliberately added sleep-inducing ingredients to the powder she fed He Shu. 

Soon after drinking it, He Shu fell into a deep sleep.

Looking at He Shu’s peaceful sleeping face, Mu Xinlian was momentarily dazed.

She swallowed hard. 

Then she gently laid the black-haired girl back onto the pillow. 

She tucked the quilt around her. 

She stood up and left the cage. She closed the door behind her.

The young girl lay inside the cage. Her breathing was even. She had already fallen fast asleep.

Her delicate, refined little face was slightly flushed from the fever. 

The faint bruises on her slender neck served as clear evidence of the abuse she had endured.

Seeing her look so fragile and pitiful made one want to pull her into their arms and cherish her. 

It was truly hard to understand how Hua Yanyun could bring herself to treat her this way.

Mu Xinlian sat quietly on a nearby chair and watched her for a while. 

Only then did she reluctantly pack up the items on the table and leave He Shu’s room.