My Wife Is The Female Lead In A Scum Alpha Novel - Chapter 71

71

Gu Qingci had injuries on her back and couldn’t lie down, nor could her arms support her, so she could only lie on top of Ruan Zhi.

Ruan Zhi helped her remove her clothes.

After cuddling for a while, due to emotional fluctuations, the wounds began to hurt.

The internal injuries caused pain in her chest, and the wounds on her back showed signs of reopening.

Gu Qingci had previously comforted herself, thinking that being injured came with good treatment—Ruan Zhi took care of her, actively kissed and hugged her, and even feeding her medicine felt delightful.

But now, she felt like a useless little waste.

Even cuddling was a struggle.

“Wuwu, sister…” Gu Qingci’s eyes were tinged with red at the corners, her pupils glistening wetly, looking utterly pitiful.

Ruan Zhi found it somewhat amusing but also deeply heartbroken.

She had been too impatient.

It was still a bit too soon now.

No words could comfort her, so she cupped Gu Qingci’s face and kissed her a few times.

The touch of soft lips, the sweet and gentle comfort from her wife, made Gu Qingci feel a little better.

Fine, she’d just have to wait until her injuries healed.

Ruan Zhi’s allure was too great for her—touching her without getting excited would be impossible.

Before this, Gu Qingci had never dared to imagine that Ruan Zhi would be so proactive, so tenderly intimate with her.

It seemed as though Ruan Zhi had no resistance to her requests, yielding and agreeing to everything.

As if the person who once made others tremble with just a glance was someone else entirely.

Gu Qingci felt that something was a bit off.

But she couldn’t quite put her finger on what it was.

Was it because she was injured that Ruan Zhi was so indulgent and doting toward her?

The obvious pain in her eyes, the carefulness as if she were handling fragile glass—was that it?

This made Gu Qingci feel as if she could do whatever she wanted to her—that she would give and take as she pleased.

“Sister, I’ve drawn some diagrams over the past few days. Could you ask the craftsmen to make some parts for me? The crossbow I gave you last time wasn’t powerful enough; its lethality is insufficient and needs improvement. Otherwise, if next time…” Gu Qingci paused and didn’t continue, changing the subject to weapons with Ruan Zhi.

“Don’t talk about next time.” Ruan Zhi covered Gu Qingci’s mouth.

“Alright, alright, there won’t be a next time. But even if there isn’t, we should still improve the weapons. Better safe than sorry. I’ve prepared the blueprints—let’s make two small sets, two medium sets, and one large set first. I’ll test their power. I’m not entirely sure about some of the materials, so we’ll have to see how the craftsmen handle it. Try to use strings with high toughness, and…” Gu Qingci explained.

Ruan Zhi agreed.

Listening to Gu Qingci’s words, Ruan Zhi took her plans very seriously.

Just like the small crossbow used against Dou Qiang.

Even someone like Ruan Zhi, who had never practiced archery, could hit the target with minimal effort—just a light press of the trigger.

For ordinary people, these crossbows were incredibly convenient weapons.

Once further modified and upgraded, their power would only increase.

“By the way, sister, I just saw a very beautiful child. I’m not sure whose child she is. Ye Youli seemed very protective of her and later took her away.” Gu Qingci mentioned after discussing the weapons.

“About three or four years old?” Ruan Zhi asked.

“Probably. She didn’t seem to speak—she didn’t answer any of my questions. But she could nod and shake her head, so she understood everything. Have you met her before?” Gu Qingci asked.

Ruan Zhi was surprised by Gu Qingci’s description.

She had seen that child in her past life, but not this early.

She knew the child ignored everyone except Ye Youli and never spoke a word.

Ye Youli had consulted countless physicians, but none could help.

As Ruan Zhi was thinking about how to explain this to Gu Qingci, Lianrui reported from outside that Ye Youli had arrived.

The two straightened their clothes and went out to meet her.

“The evidence that the assassins from the other day were from the Wolf Tu Army has been confirmed. In the coming days, information about the Tiger Guard will be gradually released. As for Dou Qiang being a traitor, the Third Prince has been vehemently asserting that it has nothing to do with them and that he truly was a traitor. The Emperor is furious with the Third Prince for his poor judgment and has temporarily relieved him of his duties, ordering him to reflect at home.” Ye Youli briefly summarized the events in the court over the past few days.

“Thank you for your mediation, Your Highness. They likely won’t act again for now, so we’ll return to our residence later and won’t impose on you further.” Gu Qingci said.

“You’re naturally free to return. After that, you’ll still need to train the Flying Dragon Army. The Emperor has only given you one month to recover from your injuries.” Ye Youli said, her expression slightly hesitant.

“However, there’s one matter I’d like to ask for General Gu’s help with.” Ye Youli added after a moment’s pause.

“What is it?” Gu Qingci asked.

“I’d like to trouble General Gu, during your recovery period, to act as a teacher for the child you just met for a few days. Just one hour a day would suffice. You can teach whatever you wish. Consider it repayment for the favor this time.” Ye Youli said, looking at Gu Qingci.

This was the first time Gu Qingci had seen a trace of unease in Ye Youli’s eyes.

Ye Youli had personally gone to fetch Ruan Zhi and Gu Qingci—was the favor really just to exchange for a few days of teaching that child?

Gu Qingci glanced at Ruan Zhi, who nodded slightly.

“Of course. May I know the child’s name, age, and any particular sensitivities?” Gu Qingci asked.

“Her name is Ye Muran. She’s almost four years old. I don’t know what’s wrong with her—she’s never made a sound since birth. It’s very difficult to get any reaction from her. You’re the only person besides me whom she’s taken the initiative to approach. So, I wanted to try having her spend more time with you, to see if she might gradually open up to others or even start speaking.” Ye Youli explained.

“I don’t have any experience as a teacher—I’ll just play with her.” Gu Qingci said.

“Do whatever you like with her, as long as she’s willing to stay by your side.” Ye Youli replied.

“Alright then.” Gu Qingci agreed to the matter.

This way, she could avoid Ruan Zhi negotiating with Ye Youli later over the matter of Ye Youli saving them.

Having agreed to become Ye Muran’s teacher, Gu Qingci and the others temporarily postponed their move back and continued staying at Ye Youli’s place.

Ye Youli didn’t elaborate on the child’s specific background, and Gu Qingci wasn’t the type to pry for details.

The next morning, after Ruan Zhi left, Gu Qingci went to see Chihuo and noticed Ye Muran secretly following her.

Gu Qingci took a carrot, fed one to Chihuo, and then grabbed another, extending it toward where Ye Muran was hiding.

Ye Muran slowly reached out to take the carrot and timidly approached the stable to feed Chihuo.

Gu Qingci found it somewhat amusing—this child still had a childish nature.

She seemed to exhibit traits similar to what in her world might be called autism. She could communicate with people, and her eyes were lively, so it didn’t appear severe.

The only issue was her refusal to speak, which was a bit troublesome.

After Gu Qingci finished feeding the horse with Ye Muran, she took her back to the study.

Since Gu Qingci couldn’t train physically for the time being, she planned to research a few more types of weapons, so she spent more time in the study.

It worked out well to bring Ye Muran along.

Gu Qingci first taught Ye Muran how to write Arabic numerals, then gave her some simple arithmetic problems to practice while she continued drawing diagrams.

Before long, Ye Muran had solved all the problems correctly.

Gu Qingci increased the difficulty, and Ye Muran still quickly arrived at the right answers.

“So you’re a little genius, huh? That’s amazing. Then I’ll keep teaching you.” Gu Qingci said with a smile.

Basic addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division—Ye Muran mastered them all within an hour.

Gu Qingci continued to increase the difficulty.

Aside from arithmetic lessons, Gu Qingci also gave Ye Muran physical training, encouraging her to exercise.

She borrowed a very lightweight bow from Ye Youli’s servants and taught her archery.

In the afternoon, Ruan Zhi returned with good news.

The batch of goods Ruan Zhi had stockpiled had all been bought by the Third Prince’s faction.

Both sides played their parts convincingly.

The purchasing party was in urgent need of the goods and even signed a written agreement with the Third Prince’s people, promising to buy all the goods they could procure and paying a thousand taels of silver as a deposit.

Eager to secure the money quickly, the Third Prince’s side didn’t have time to haggle with Ruan Zhi’s arranged sellers. They paid fifty thousand taels of silver upfront and hauled all the goods away.

Ruan Zhi netted a profit of over ten thousand taels.

Most crucially, she left the Third Prince’s faction with a massive financial hole.

The next step was to closely monitor how they would attempt to cover this deficit and then exploit their missteps.

That same afternoon, the Third Prince learned around the same time that he had been swindled.

The person who had previously offered to buy the goods at a high price had vanished without a trace.

Upon hearing the report from his subordinates, the Third Prince nearly fainted on the spot.

Xu Dace was pressing him urgently for the silver. Originally, he still had some funds left, but now everything was gone.

Not a single tael of silver remained.

After smashing a pile of objects in a rage, the Third Prince slunk into the palace to seek help from his mother.

As for what he would do to raise the money, Ye Youli would be watching closely.

While Ye Youli and Ruan Zhi were busy, Gu Qingci enjoyed a life of leisure.

Eating, drinking, and having fun—aside from not being able to stick together freely, everything else is pretty good.

Although Ye Youli had initially said that Gu Qingci should only teach Ye Muran for one hour a day, Ye Muran seemed to really enjoy spending time with Gu Qingci and ended up staying for half a day every day.

By the time Ruan Zhi had the craftsmen finish forging the parts of the crossbow and sent them over, Gu Qingci tried shooting at a target with it.

She also let Ye Muran give it a try.

When it came to shooting with the crossbow, Gu Qingci’s accuracy was still excellent.

These crossbows, improved by Gu Qingci, had a slightly longer range and significantly greater force.

However, for the current Gu Qingci, her strength was too weak—she could only fire one shot with the crossbow.

Even with a repeating crossbow, it required manual effort to reset the string, load the next arrow, and fire again.

Lacking strength meant she only had one chance.

At first, Gu Qingci didn’t pay much attention to it, thinking her weakness was due to a combination of internal and external injuries.

But as her physical wounds gradually healed, her weakness showed no signs of improvement.

That could only mean it was the effect of the poison.

As for the progress on the antidote formula being developed by the Wenren family, Gu Qingci had no idea.

When she asked Ruan Zhi about it, Ruan Zhi only told her to relax and wait.

Gu Qingci felt like she was hiding something from her.

After Ruan Zhi left, Gu Qingci sent someone to summon Wen Renyi.

“I already know everything.” Gu Qingci pretended to say dejectedly.

“You already know?!” Wen Renyi froze at Gu Qingci’s expression.

“Of course. It’s so obvious, how could I not see it? I just want to ask you about the specifics so I can have a clear understanding.” Gu Qingci sighed.

“Ah… That poison is hard to neutralize. Even the Hu people themselves don’t have an antidote. The poison’s composition is complex, and many of the speculated antidote ingredients are only found in Hu territory. Your wife has hired people at a high price to go to Hu lands to search for the herbs, but it will take some time. Also, the poison entered through a wound and is in the bloodstream, which complicates things further.” Wen Renyi spilled everything to Gu Qingci.

“…So there’s never been an antidote before, and it’s very possible that one may never be developed? If no antidote can be made, will I always have this weak constitution?” Gu Qingci asked.

“It’s possible. I know this is hard to accept right now. That’s why everyone wanted to keep it from you at first—to let you recover in better spirits. Think about your wife. She’s been so good to you. She even came to my home, kowtowed, and brought gifts, persuading my great-grandfather to come out of seclusion to examine your pulse. She’s also sent people everywhere to search for renowned doctors, visiting every well-known family of traditional Chinese medicine in the capital. Please don’t lose hope. Everyone is working hard, and we’ll definitely find an antidote.” said Wen Renyi.

“I understand. I’m not losing hope or anything.” Gu Qingci replied softly, her expression dazed.

No wonder, when she mentioned going to the northwest or leading troops, Ye Youli and Ruan Zhi had looked so uneasy.

No wonder Ruan Zhi had been so busy lately, treating her with such cautious care.

She had shouldered all the pressure herself.

Busy and working tirelessly, yet not daring to let her know.

Just so she could recover without worries.

How could she be so silly?

Gu Qingci thought, suddenly overwhelmed with the urge to hug Ruan Zhi.