Chapter 7: Chapter 7 Exile

Two bloodstained figures lay side by side on the ground, their hair a disheveled mess, like wild grass covering their faces, rendering their features indistinguishable.

At a cursory glance, they bore no difference from the corpses in a chaotic burial ground.

Only from the style of their clothes could one distinguish that one was Zhao Yongzhe and the other was Zhao Xiyan.

Qi Yue’s heart tightened, and she hurriedly bent down to check on them.

Upon feeling their pulse, she sighed in relief.

Fortunately, Zhao Yongzhe had not died completely, and Zhao Xiyan was also still alive, though both were severely injured.

Zhao Yongzhe’s legs were broken, and his back was covered entirely with dense lash marks, three of which were deep enough to expose bone.

Zhao Xiyan’s pulse, however, was even more complicated.

His body had already been poisoned with an unidentified drug, causing numbness in his legs.

The person who beat him seemed to know this well, and thus did not target his legs but almost smashed his back to pieces.

Even as a doctor, Qi Yue, accustomed to seeing severe patients, was shocked by the extent of the injuries.

The thick blood almost covered both of their backs, and not a single piece of good skin was visible, as if their skin had been flayed.

The fact that this father and son were still alive was indeed miraculous.

She examined their wounds, rapidly formulating a treatment plan in her mind.

With the medicinal supplies she had on hand, she was confident she could save Zhao Yongzhe’s life.

With a thought, several oral hemostatic and anti-inflammatory pills appeared in her hand.

While pretending to tidy Zhao Yongzhe’s clothes, noticing that the government officials outside were not paying attention, Qi Yue quickly brushed the hair from Zhao Yongzhe’s face and poured the medicine into his mouth.

To her surprise, this act was clearly seen by Zhao Yonglian, who was standing nearby.

He glanced outside and whispered softly, “Niece-in-law, is your father…”

Qi Yue silently nodded her head.

“Dad’s not dead. I learned medicine from the wet nurse beside my grandma in the past, and now I need to treat him.”

Upon hearing this, a gleam flashed in Zhao Yonglian’s eyes.

“Niece-in-law, what should we do next?”

Qi Yue whispered a few words, and Zhao Yonglian immediately got up and knocked on the door.

“Officer, although my elder brother has suffered, he was once a duke. To carry him out in such a bloody state might provoke criticism; please allow us to clean him up a little.”

Zhao Yongzhe was, after all, a duke, and being beaten to death before exile without being cleaned up would surely sound terrible if word got out.

The officials outside whispered among themselves for a while before bringing over half a basin of water and a set of old clothes.

Qi Yue let Zhao Yonglian watch the officials outside while she started cleaning Zhao Yongzhe’s back wounds herself.

Given the limited conditions, she couldn’t take out many items from her space.

Fortunately, with Zhao Yonglian watching outside, and others keeping their distance, hardly daring to look, she found room to operate.

She pretended to use the water the officials brought to rinse the wounds, but she had already switched it for hydrogen peroxide.

Next was suturing.

The needle and thread were small; many women had the habit of hiding needles and threads in their sleeves, which Qi Yue did not need to explain.

What really surprised people was her suturing technique.

Seeing Qi Yue’s hands moving so fast they almost seemed to blur, Zhao Yonglian’s mouth opened and closed repeatedly, but ultimately, he said nothing.

After treating Zhao Yongzhe, Qi Yue then proceeded to treat Zhao Xiyan.

With the final step of applying the medicine completed, she was covered in sweat.

In such conditions, she couldn’t use a drip, so she directly injected each of them with a needle.

After checking Zhao Yongzhe’s condition again, she noticed his breathing gradually return to normal, and Zhao Xiyan had also improved significantly.

“His life was temporarily saved.”

She breathed a sigh of relief, just about to wipe the dirtied blood off their faces, when the door was abruptly pushed open.

“Move, move, move! It’s time to depart!”

Zhao Yonglian hurriedly went up, “Government Official, my elder brother is not dead yet. Could you please find a cart for us? I will pull them on the road.”

The Government Official stepped forward, placed his finger under Zhao Yongzhe’s nose, then furrowed his brows, “He’s not dead?”

He glanced at Qi Yue, then looked at Zhao Yonglian.

“What have you done?”

Qi Yue shook her head.

“My father just passed out for a moment, he’s fine!”

“This is really absurd,” the Government Official cursed and walked out.

At that moment, the Registrar’s Office’s commander, Guan Yidao, and the government officials had arrived, taking over from the guards, checking the numbers.

Soon, the paperwork for the Zhao Family’s exile was delivered by the Imperial Capital Prefecture, Guan Yidao signed to record it, and the handover was completely finished.

The detained Zhao Family members were driven out of the house, Zhao Yongzhe and Zhao Xiyan were also carried out and placed on the cart, ready to set off.

Seeing her father and brother on the cart frame, Shen Yu, with swollen eyes, rushed over and burst into inconsolable crying.

Chen Suyun heard that they intended her son to pull the cart for a dead man, and she immediately became unhappy.

She knelt in front of Guan Yidao, pleading for him to authorize the separation of the second and main household.

“Government Official, our second household has been implicated by the main household.”

“The two of them, father and son, have done countless wrongs. It’s only right that they face their retribution; it makes no sense for my son to also suffer!”

Guan Yidao had been a commander for more than ten years, having escorted many prisoners of every sort.

But it was the first time he had seen someone calling for a separation before even hitting the road.

He immediately wrote a letter of severance and took out the exile paperwork to note the situation. Everyone pressed their fingerprints, and the ties were severed.

With the ties severed, the two younger members of the second household were no longer obliged to pull the cart.

Zhao Yongzhe left only one son, Zhao Xiyan, both of whom were now lying on the cart. Ultimately, it was the Zhao Family’s third son, Zhao Yonglian who ended up pulling the cart.

The family, under the harsh sun, departed the capital amidst the pointing and murmuring of the townspeople.

The Zhao Family had a decent reputation; fortunately, no one chased after them, throwing rotten vegetables or stinky eggs.

Half a shichen later, the family reached the guest pavilion ten li away from the capital.

This time, more than twenty families were confiscated along with the Ducal Mansion.

The reason for the stop here was to wait for everyone to gather before moving forward.

Occasionally, some people brought food and supplies to the exiles, letting out a couple of sorrowful cries.

Although the Ducal Mansion had the highest status among the exiled, no one came to look after them.

A prestigious Marquis Residence fell in one day; everyone steered clear, fearing they would bring trouble upon themselves.

The family members huddled together, enjoying a moment of tranquility under a large tree.

They feared that after this moment, finding even a moment’s peace would be impossible.

Qi Yue looked around, pondering the challenges they would face on the road, when she suddenly spotted Qi Fengzhang, Bai Jiahui, and their two children among the crowd of exiles.

“This journey will keep us busy.”

She slightly curled her lips, then closed her eyes to rest.

It was a long road ahead, better gather energy first!

When the time came, she would join them for some fun!