Chapter 28: At Your Mercy

After the Tian family had finished their meal, they used the big stove to boil a large pot of water. They prepared bath tubs, towels, and soap pods, and the whole family took turns bathing in the backyard. Everyone changed into new clothes from head to toe.

Now, looking at this family again, they seemed entirely renewed.

It truly was as the saying goes: “A person matches their clothes as a horse matches its saddle, West Lake’s scenery is best in sunny weather, and a dog runs merrily with a bell around its neck!”

When Xiao Ding mentioned that tonight he planned to arrange for Tang Yunzhi to sleep in the donkey cart, the Tian family didn’t object. There really was no space in the house, so she would have to make do for one night. Er Niu brought over a set of bedding and a pillow, laying them out in the cart, and somehow procured some mugwort to stick around the cart.

Xiao Ding, curious, asked, “Why are you sticking this mugwort here?”

“To keep away mosquitoes. Otherwise, Miss Tang will be bitten by insects tonight,” Er Niu replied.

At last, Xiao Ding understood why there had been no mosquitoes in the shelter the previous night, and why the Tian family’s grass mats didn’t attract bugs. Even the courtyard had very few insects. Looking around at the mugwort planted along the edges, he realized it was all thanks to this plant.

“What’s this mugwort called?” Xiao Ding asked Er Niu.

“The villagers call it mosquito-repelling mugwort. It doesn’t just drive away mosquitoes—lots of bugs dislike its smell,” Er Niu answered.

Xiao Ding took a stalk of mugwort from her, sniffed it, and found the scent rather unpleasant. What if he added some fragrance—could it both repel bugs and smell pleasant? The thought struck him suddenly.

After everyone had gone to bed, Xiao Ding and Er Niu went to Tang Yunzhi. She was already lying by the bonfire, drowsy and exhausted.

Xiao Ding gently tapped her arm and said, “Are you getting your leg treated or not? If not, I’m going to sleep.”

Tang Yunzhi snapped awake, quickly sat up, and pleaded, “Yes, yes, please, Brother Ding, you must help me heal my leg. Otherwise... otherwise I don’t want to live anymore…” Tears threatened to spill again.

Xiao Ding hurried to comfort her, “Alright, I’ll do my best to heal your injury!”

He handed her a towel to bite down on, explaining that resetting her shattered bone would hurt—a pain more intense than she might bear.

Xiao Ding found a rope, intending to tie Tang Yunzhi up, lest she struggle uncontrollably during the painful process and interfere with the treatment.

In truth, Xiao Ding was more concerned that if she were driven mad by pain, she might suddenly produce some hidden weapon and retaliate—something he would not be able to handle.

This girl was no ordinary person. Who knew where she hid her weapons, devices, or poisons? On the surface, she appeared to be a lovely, charming maiden, but her body was full of deadly tricks.

Tang Yunzhi stared at Xiao Ding in bewilderment. Xiao Ding felt something wasn’t right—tying up a young lady and stuffing her mouth with a towel hardly looked proper!

“Er Niu will stay with you the whole time, so don’t worry. I’m only treating your leg—nothing else…” Xiao Ding scratched his head, feeling as if his explanation was only making things worse.

“You’re just worried I’ll struggle and make things harder for you,” Tang Yunzhi said.

“That’s right, I do need your cooperation,” replied Xiao Ding.

“What if I pass out? Would that be alright?” Tang Yunzhi asked.

“Of course, as long as you don’t wake up halfway…” Xiao Ding answered.

“Then I’ll just pass out. That way, I won’t have to endure the pain…” Tang Yunzhi spoke as if she could simply choose to faint at will.

Xiao Ding widened his eyes—was she feverish and delirious?

“You can just pass out and guarantee you won’t wake up?” he asked.

“I can. How long will the treatment take?” Tang Yunzhi inquired.

“At least one or two hours, maybe three to five if it takes longer,” Xiao Ding said uncertainly, since he’d never treated anyone before, not even before his memory loss.

“Then I’ll be unconscious all night. Tonight, I’ll entrust myself to you. You must take good care of me!” Tang Yunzhi said solemnly.

But to Xiao Ding’s ears, her words sounded strangely ambiguous.

“Rest assured, I will do my utmost,” he said, then silently added, “I’ll do my utmost to practice on you…”

Tang Yunzhi sat gazing at Xiao Ding, pondering for a moment. Finally, she made up her mind, took a small porcelain bottle from her bosom, poured out three pills, swallowed them, put the bottle away, and lay on her side.

“In just a moment, I’ll be unconscious until morning. During that time, I’ll be at your mercy, so treat me well…” Her voice faded as she spoke.

They waited a moment longer, making sure Tang Yunzhi was truly unconscious.

Only then did Xiao Ding and Er Niu straighten Tang Yunzhi’s body. Xiao Ding first sat in meditation, circulating his energy twice, then stopped. He asked Er Niu to keep watch—if anyone came from the thatched hut, she was to stop them from disturbing him. If Miss Tang woke up, Er Niu was to restrain her and alert him at once.

Er Niu nodded, anxiously standing guard.

Xiao Ding sat cross-legged beside Tang Yunzhi, placed her pale calf on his lap, and gently held the injured spot. He began channeling his internal spiritual energy to repair the shattered bone.

For Xiao Ding, this was a daunting task. His cultivation was only at the beginner level; his spiritual energy foundation was shallow, and he couldn’t yet absorb energy from the world around him.

His internal energy sufficed for himself, making him stronger, quicker, and more perceptive than ordinary people.

But for healing others, it was barely adequate. Once his energy was transferred, only a fraction actually reached the patient—if he sent ten parts, just one would arrive.

He couldn’t yet maneuver his spiritual energy within someone else’s body to restore broken bones. He was still learning.

An hour passed. Through repeated attempts and practice, Xiao Ding finally mastered how to move energy within Tang Yunzhi’s body. By then, his energy was depleted, so he stopped to recover.

Once his energy was restored to eighty percent, he resumed the treatment.

Fortunately, Tang Yunzhi was unconscious and showed no sign of waking. Otherwise, under Xiao Ding’s hands, who knew how much suffering she would have endured!

Another hour passed, and most of the shattered bone was mended. But Xiao Ding’s energy recovery was slowing. Previously, three or five cycles of meditation restored most of his energy; now, after a dozen cycles, he regained only a small portion.

Xiao Ding opened his eyes and saw Er Niu watching him intently, visibly nervous. He whispered, “Er Niu, are you sleepy? If you are, you can go rest. I’ll soon be done.”

“No need, I want to stay with you,” Er Niu stubbornly replied.

Looking at Er Niu, Xiao Ding felt a warm current in his heart. He said nothing more, closed his eyes, and continued to restore his energy.