No wonder Cheng Ying had her doubts. The treatment method Song Qingshu described was truly shocking…he actually needed to crush the leg bone first…
Given the level of medicine in this world, the two women’s astonishment was probably equivalent to when Cao Cao heard that Hua Tuo wanted to open his skull to treat his migraines. [G: Reference to a famous historical anecdote.]
What’s more, though Lu Wushuang currently had a slight limp, her left foot could still support her for walking. If the bone was crushed and couldn’t be reattached, she would become completely crippled, and it would be uncertain whether she could ever stand again. Was it really worth taking such a risk?
“Miss Cheng, do I strike you as a madman?” Song Qingshu looked at her.
“Of course not,” Cheng Ying quickly replied, then added mentally, *He may not be a madman, but he’s certainly a frivolous rogue.*
“Since I’m not a madman, why would I do something I’m not confident about?” Song Qingshu smiled, then turned to Lu Wushuang. “Think it over, Miss Lu. Let me know when you’ve decided. But I’d advise you to decide quickly…I probably won’t be staying at the Lu residence for long.” He rose to leave.
“Wait!” Before he could take a single step, Lu Wushuang called out. “No need to think it over. Do it now. I’m willing.”
“Cousin.” Cheng Ying took her hand, her face full of concern.
Lu Wushuang smiled bitterly. “Cousin, rather than being lame for life, I’d rather take the risk. Even if it fails, it won’t be much worse than now.”
Song Qingshu looked at her with surprise. *She’s surprisingly open-minded. I didn’t expect that.*
Cheng Ying also knew that her cousin’s lameness had become a deep-seated issue. Seeing her determined, she stopped trying to dissuade her. Instead, she turned to Song Qingshu and bowed. “We’ll trouble you then, Young Master.”
Song Qingshu nodded. He wrung out a towel from the basin and handed it to Lu Wushuang. “Bite on this. It’s going to hurt.”
This time, Lu Wushuang did not oppose him. Instead, she obediently put the towel in her mouth. But after all, she was still a young girl. The thought that her leg was about to be broken made her face turn pale. She turned and clung tightly to Cheng Ying. Only her cousin could give her a sense of security at this moment.
Cheng Ying quickly embraced her. Feeling her trembling body, her heart ached.
Song Qingshu took hold of Lu Wushuang’s smooth, shapely calf, feeling the delicate skin beneath his fingers. He found the site of her childhood injury, channeled his energy, and squeezed. With a crunch, her leg bone broke again.
“Ah…” Lu Wushuang cried out in alarm and sat up straight. She pushed forward with such force that Cheng Ying, caught off guard, fell backward onto the bed.
Lu Wushuang’s face contorted with pain. Because her mouth was open, the towel fell out unnoticed.
Song Qingshu frowned. He needed to completely break the misshapen bone so it could heal properly. He had only completed the first step, and several more painful ones remained. With the towel out of her mouth, if she bit her tongue, the consequences would be dire.
But once started, he had to continue without pause. Stopping midway would not only fail to heal the injury but could make it worse.
A second wave of excruciating pain shot up from her injured leg. Half-conscious, Lu Wushuang didn’t realize the towel had fallen out. She only knew she needed to bite down on something to endure the agony. She bit down hard.
In the flash of an instant, with no time to think of another solution, Song Qingshu thrust his left arm into her mouth. Her fierce bite made even him wince, but he said nothing. His right hand continued its work…pounding, tapping, pressing…moving so rapidly that only afterimages remained, as if dozens of hands were working at once.
Gradually regaining awareness, Lu Wushuang realized she was biting Song Qingshu’s hand. She was both embarrassed and angry…what unmarried girl wouldn’t be, with a strange man’s hand in her mouth?
She was about to accuse him of taking advantage when the faint taste of blood made her pause. Recalling what had just happened, she understood that he had acted out of kindness. Her anger turned to immense guilt. She looked at the man before her with a complicated expression.
Song Qingshu had no time for her now. His full attention was on her leg. Breaking apart the misplaced bone fragments and reassembling them correctly required a thorough understanding of the body’s acupoints, meridians, and structure, as well as absolute focus. A single mistake would ruin everything.
Though waves of pain continued to wash over her, Lu Wushuang could no longer bring herself to bite down. Fortunately, Cheng Ying had by then retrieved the towel and, taking advantage of a moment, swapped it for Song Qingshu’s hand in Lu Wushuang’s mouth.
Seeing the deep teeth marks and the traces of blood, Cheng Ying shot her cousin a reproachful look. Lu Wushuang was overwhelmed with shame and guilt.
“Young Master, let me bandage that for you.” Cheng Ying took a handkerchief from her robe. Hesitating, she asked, “May I?”
“Mm.” Song Qingshu replied absently, his attention still on Lu Wushuang’s leg.
Cheng Ying was filled with admiration. She marveled at his martial arts…with one hand, he achieved more than ten ordinary hands could. Peach Blossom Island’s Orchid-Grasping Acupoint Technique and Falling Flower Divine Sword Palm were already extremely exquisite hand techniques, but compared to this, they were worlds apart. Even more, she admired his magnanimous heart. His interactions with Lu Wushuang had not been pleasant, yet he not only set that aside to treat her but even sacrificed his own hand to protect her.
*I misjudged him earlier. A man renowned throughout the world could not truly be such a frivolous rogue.* Cheng Ying tied a small bow on the bandage, thinking this to herself.
As if he had eyes in the back of his head, the moment the bandage was tied, Song Qingshu withdrew his left hand. He took a porcelain bottle from his robe and poured out a thick, ink-black, viscous liquid.
A rich medicinal fragrance filled the air. Cheng Ying was both surprised and delighted. *Could this be the legendary Western Regions miracle medicine…Black Jade Ointment?*
As the ointment was evenly spread over Lu Wushuang’s calf, a cooling sensation spread through her leg. Her tightly furrowed brows relaxed slightly.
Song Qingshu’s hands flew, wrapping the leg in layers and securing it with wooden splints.
Seeing him finally stop, Cheng Ying asked joyfully, “Young Master, is it done?”
Song Qingshu smiled wryly. “Not so easy. The bone is now set, but this leg has been lame for over a decade. Some meridians have atrophied and become blocked. A master must use their internal energy to open them. However, a single misstep could completely destroy the meridians. Looking at the current world, only the gentle, balanced force of the One Yang Finger would be just right.”
Cheng Ying exclaimed, “But Emperor Duan of the Southern Song is a thousand li away. What can we do…”
Seeing her distress, Song Qingshu laughed. “There’s more than one person in the world who knows the One Yang Finger.” Without further explanation, he extended his finger and began pressing various acupoints on Lu Wushuang’s leg.
As Huang Yaoshi’s last disciple, Cheng Ying was knowledgeable. She saw that his finger movements were fluid and unhurried, his withdrawals graceful and unrestrained. He pressed over a dozen major acupoints on Lu Wushuang’s leg, using over a dozen different techniques. Each technique was distinct, each with its own character…she had never seen or heard of anything like them. She had seen Wu Santong use the One Yang Finger, and there were faint similarities, but the sophistication and artistry were incomparable.
She was watching in a daze when Song Qingshu said, “Wipe my sweat.”
“Ah?” Cheng Ying’s expression was strange. *Isn’t wiping a man’s sweat a bit too intimate?*
“Is there a problem?” Sensing her hesitation, Song Qingshu looked confused. Coming from a later era, he was used to seeing nurses wipe a surgeon’s brow during an operation. He had no idea the distress this caused Cheng Ying.
“I… I’ll do it.” Lu Wushuang saw the steam rising from his head…clearly, he was expending immense energy. The beads of sweat on his forehead were about to fall into his eyes. Her heart stirred. She was both moved and sympathetic.
“Let me.” Lu Wushuang had just endured tremendous pain. Her clothes were soaked as if she had been pulled from water. She was exhausted. How could Cheng Ying let her do it?
But when she reached into her robe for her handkerchief, she was stunned. She had already used her handkerchief to bandage Song Qingshu’s wound.
Seeing her embarrassment, Lu Wushuang said weakly, “Use… use mine.” She held out her own handkerchief.
Seeing the mandarin ducks embroidered on it, Cheng Ying blushed. *Using this handkerchief to wipe a man’s sweat…*
Her handkerchief and Lu Wushuang’s were a pair. They were originally the token of love Li Mochou had given Lu Zhanyuan. Later, when Li Mochou came seeking revenge, Lu Liding had torn the handkerchief in half, giving one half to Cheng Ying and the other to Lu Wushuang, hoping Li Mochou would spare them for the sake of the handkerchief.
These half-handkerchiefs held great meaning for both young women. They always carried them, subconsciously intending to give them to their future lovers.
Now, half was bandaging Song Qingshu’s wound, and the other half was about to wipe his sweat…
But seeing the sweat on Song Qingshu’s forehead increasing, about to drip into his eyes, Cheng Ying could no longer hesitate. She began to wipe.
Watching from the side, Lu Wushuang felt a pang of envy. *My cousin is more beautiful than me, better at martial arts, and even her wiping motions are so elegant and gentle. I’m afraid I’ll never learn…*
She felt warm, gentle true qi spreading from her leg throughout her body. The pain diminished greatly. As her tension eased, she could no longer hold on. Her vision went dark, and she fainted.
Worried about disturbing Song Qingshu, Cheng Ying was carefully wiping his forehead. She didn’t notice Lu Wushuang slumping toward her. Suddenly burdened with the extra weight, Cheng Ying lost her balance, and both women fell into Song Qingshu’s arms.
Realizing what had happened, Cheng Ying’s face flushed scarlet. Her face had landed directly between Song Qingshu’s legs. Lu Wushuang lay on top of her back, trapping her so she couldn’t get up.