Chapter 24: The Unsolvable Problem

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to, I'll try, I'll try to be gentle." Qin Youtian was doing his utmost to suppress his wildly beating heart, making every effort to keep his movements tender.

As the clothes slipped away, Hua Qinci was left with only a plain undergarment, now lying helplessly face-down on the bed.

On her back, a wound the size of a fingertip was swollen and angry, deep red with fresh blood welling from within, staining a large patch of her skin, the dried blood clinging tightly to her luminous back like plum blossoms blooming defiantly in the heart of winter.

Qin Youtian gazed at the wound, uncertain of its depth, his brows and heart alike drawn tight with worry. This must have been the result of her stubbornly insisting on moving just now, forcing herself despite the pain, so that even the hemostatic powder had lost its effect.

He had tried persuading her several times, but she had been unmoved. She said she was saving him; that if he were thrown in jail, there would be little hope of survival, and it was better to take a risk, that at least she could recover properly at home.

At the time, he hadn't wanted anything to happen to her. Whether or not she had been sent by that person, until things were clear, it was his responsibility to protect her.

"I'm sorry, it's all my fault for not protecting you," Qin Youtian couldn't help blaming himself.

Hua Qinci's brows were tightly furrowed with pain, yet a faint smile lingered on her lips. "Enough, hurry and put the medicine on for me."

"Alright, bear with it." Qin Youtian had wanted to rinse the wound with warm water first, but was afraid his clumsy hands would break the tender skin, so he decided to wait until the bleeding stopped and she was out of pain before tending to it further.

Hua Qinci asked for a bowl of warm water, took her medicine, and then gave several instructions about how to handle the matter of distributing the silver, before drifting off into a dazed sleep.

Seeing her asleep, Qin Youtian took up a fan woven from bamboo leaves and gently fanned her, keeping the mosquitoes at bay. The soft breeze caressed every inch of her wounded back, and gradually her tightly knit brows relaxed, a trace of comfort appearing on her sleeping face.

In her sleep, she tried to turn over several times, each time held in place by Qin Youtian, who would gently pat her back until she settled down again.

Later that evening, Qin Youtian brought warm water and a towel, and carefully cleaned the blood from her back, inch by inch. Every time he touched the area around the wound, Hua Qinci would frown and purse her lips, letting out soft whimpers.

After several such attempts, the bloodstains were mostly gone. While she was still asleep, Qin Youtian applied medicine to her wound again, leaving it exposed to the air as he sat by her side, the gentle breeze from his fan never ceasing.

He changed her dressing several times during the night, and even fed her some chicken broth specially prepared by Qin Mingyue while she was half-conscious. He had wanted to wake her, but even after calling her a few times, Hua Qinci remained in a muddled sleep.

That night, Doctor Li arrived unbidden, checking her pulse and prescribing more medicine.

Qin Youtian stayed up all night, tending to her himself, afraid she might turn over in her sleep and aggravate her wound.

Every time he grew weary and closed his eyes, the slightest movement from her would wake him, and he would comfort her back to sleep.

Thus, Hua Qinci slept for three days and three nights, and Qin Youtian watched over her for just as long.

During that time, people came to divide the silver, but Qin Youtian dismissed them as Hua Qinci had instructed. Now, however, with the three days nearly past, Hua Qinci still showed no signs of waking.

"My son, how is Qinci now?" Qin Mingyue finally came to her senses. Hua Qinci had not truly resolved the problem before; she had merely turned a small issue into a far greater one, and now the amount of silver owed had doubled beyond what their family could repay. The ginseng root they had counted on was now so withered it was barely recognizable.