For the ice from the south, a reward and bonus of one to two million starting coins (1)
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Miss Jun smiled, looking at the thrown-aside paper.
The paper was splattered with bloodstains; she stopped smiling, sighed softly, and unwrapped the silk from her body to cover Zhu Zan's wound.
"Who wants your stuff, take it away," Zhu Zan said grumpily.
Miss Jun smiled.
"Do you want a drink?" she asked.
Zhu Zan immediately turned his head, his eyes lighting up.
"Yes," he said, looking at Miss Jun with some confusion.
Seemingly doubtful that she brought alcohol.
Miss Jun smiled, turned around, and took a small bottle of liquor from the medicine box, shaking it at him.
Zhu Zan propped himself up on the bed, trying to get up.
"This is what one should bring to a prison visit, those rascals only know how to dawdle like women, never bringing what should be brought," he said. "At least you're somewhat useful."
Miss Jun had already crouched down in front of him, bringing the liquor bottle to his lips.
Zhu Zan took two sips from her hands, let out a comfortable breath, and then motioned for another drink.
Miss Jun passed the bottle over.
"Is it because of me that you are doing this?" she suddenly asked.
Zhu Zan spit out a mouthful of liquor.
"Ptui," he coughed repeatedly, glaring as he spoke, "you really think too highly of yourself."
Otherwise, it would be too coincidental.
She thought carefully but couldn't find a reasonable explanation for Zhu Zan's actions.
Because no matter how she thought about it, what Zhu Zan did was too inappropriate; he shouldn't be such an imprudent person.
The only exception was that she was present at the time.
And she wanted Lord Huang dead.
Though not necessarily to kill him on the spot, but delaying a few days would also lead to his death.
Such actions would certainly end badly, starting with saving Lord Huang, although it's what an Imperial Physician should do, but given Lord Huang's infamous reputation and the sorrow evoked by the valiant girls of the Wan Family, her reputation would suffer. Besides, if Lord Huang died, Yunqi and the Huang Family would certainly not let her off.
This really put her in an impossible position.
However, she still wanted to do this.
As a result, the horse got spooked and trampled Lord Huang to death.
Of course, she didn't believe this was a mere coincidence.
Miss Jun looked at him without saying a word.
Zhu Zan reached out, grabbed the liquor bottle, and took another sip.
"I had to make sure he died," he said, "because if he didn't die, my father would have."
Duke of Chengguo?
Miss Jun looked at him somewhat surprised.
"For the past two years, many people have accused my father," Zhu Zan said, "saying how arrogant and domineering we father and son are."
He spat out the words.
"Such nonsense, we are such honest people."
Miss Jun couldn't help but laugh.
Honest people? At your young age, daring to assault a prince, that's hardly 'honest' but indeed rather arrogant.
"I really didn't see that," she said.
"That's because you're blind," Zhu Zan said with a sneer.
Miss Jun pursed her lips, smiling silently.
"Anyway, they just don't like what my father is doing in the northern lands," Zhu Zan continued, giving a cold laugh, "and they are all cowards."
Duke of Chengguo, such a good man, guarding the northern lands, blocking the Jurchen's invasion, both highly capable and esteemed, yet there are many who dislike him?
Why?
"Some people want to give up the six counties north of Zhending," Zhu Zan said.
The six counties north of Zhending?
Miss Jun stood up in surprise.
"How is that possible," she said. "It was hard-won."
Zhu Zan smiled wryly, his haggard face expressing mockery.
"For them, it's easy," he said. "They are not the ones fighting and bleeding on the battlefield. What could be hard?"
Miss Jun was silent.
"In their eyes, they only see the continual harassment by the Jurchen people because of these six districts," Zhu Zan continued. "To them, these six districts are not a glory but a trouble. Since it's a trouble, they might as well relinquish them to get some peace of mind."
Have these people gone mad? To think of negotiating with the Jurchen people? Negotiating was one thing, but to give up six districts?
"Have they forgotten how the emperor died, how the capital fell?" Miss Jun said.
It took great effort to swallow back the words about how her royal great-grandfather had died, almost biting her tongue.
Zhu Zan took a sip of his drink.
"A businesswoman ignorant of the nation's destruction, seeing only the mist-covered cold waters and sand, delighting in mooring near the wine houses of Qinhuai, listening from across the river to the ballad of the imperial garden." He recited.
A poem uttered in such a way, should Miss Jun feel sad or smile, she sighed lightly, reached into the medicine box for another bottle of wine, and after a moment's thought, she drank from it too.
"Most of the impeachment petitions were collected and implied by the surname Huang," Zhu Zan said. "The Zhou Family from Zhending was also framed by him."
The Zhou Family?
Miss Jun looked even more surprised.
"Dynasty often lacks military provisions from the northern lands, it's the gentry families like the Zhou Family that make up for it. To suppress my father and intimidate these gentry families, Huang did not hesitate to lead the Jurchen into Zhending," Zhu Zan went on.
Before he could finish, Miss Jun stood up in shock.
"What?" she exclaimed.
She was always calm, would laugh, but had seldom been so shocked.
It shows how startling this matter was to her.
Anybody would be shocked to hear this.
Zhu Zan looked at the wine bottle in his hand, pulled at the corner of his mouth.
"What a ridiculous and shocking thing," he said. "Out of selfishness, they did not hesitate to lead wolves into the house, causing countless people to be slaughtered. Those are the people, the people who regard them as their parents."
He said while taking a gulp of wine, swallowing the rest of his words with the drink.
"Shouldn't such people be killed?" he asked.
Miss Jun watched him, his expression blurred in the dim dungeon, his injuries and torture adding to his haggard look, masking his handsomeness. The usual mocking unrestraint on his face was drowned out, instead showing some vicissitudes.
He had been accustomed to the military from a young age, honing remarkable skills that could not have originated from a life of luxury.
Fighting enemies at the front, traveling thousands of miles alone to evade capture, who knows what daily hardening created such?
People say Duke Chengguo with his wife and children in the northern lands wielded power, but if one truly lived in comfort, it would be with their family in the capital.
He was only in his early twenties, yet not as carefree as others of that age, carrying too much.
Nation, people, duties, and care for Prince Huai.
Just for Prince Huai, he had done a lot for her.
Although he claimed that killing Lord Huang was his own doing, if she hadn't been there, to prevent her from getting involved, he would have chosen a more secure and appropriate way to handle it.
Miss Jun sat cross-legged on the ground, lifting the wine and took a big gulp, coughing several times.
She hadn't drunk like this in a long time and was unaccustomed.
Zhu Zan looked at her with disdain.
"If you can't drink, then don't," he said.
Miss Jun didn't speak, just slowly drank her wine, Zhu Zan no longer spoke either, finishing the wine in his bottle, lingeringly licked his lips.
"Why so little," he said. "Is there more?"
Seeing the wine bottle in Miss Jun's hand, he couldn't help but reach out.
"Don't drink anymore," Miss Jun said with a laugh, dodging to the side and drank the remaining wine in one go, casually brushing his reaching hand as she stood up.
Zhu Zan cried out again.
"Don't touch me," he shouted.
Miss Jun laughed heartily, tossing the wine bottle onto the ground.
"The medicine I gave you is enough to last you a while," she said, looking at Zhu Zan, "I'm leaving, maybe we'll meet again if there's a chance."
Zhu Zan rolled his eyes at her.
"Who would want to meet you, a doctor?" he said.
Miss Jun laughed heartily, waved her hand at him and without another word, picked up her medicine box and turned to leave.