FRGNM -Chapter 31 Dongling Prince

“One month?” The person inside the carriage lowered the curtain, and her worried eyes fixed on the snowy landscape ahead. She froze, unable to look away.

Amid the heavy snowfall, a white figure approached, her long black hair draped over her shoulders, unadorned yet exuding an otherworldly grace. The white earrings at her ears shone with purity. She seemed like a fairy emerging from the snowstorm itself, mesmerizing all who saw her.

A pale blue gem on her forehead shimmered, complementing her snow-white skin, causing hearts to skip a beat—her beauty was utterly captivating.

Yet this beauty walked barefoot in the snow. A white veil concealed her face, revealing only her enchanting eyes. Those upturned eyes were like foxes from the deep mountains, hauntingly alluring.

Beside her, two small children—one boy and one girl—were making snowballs, playfully tossing them at each other, running through the snow.

“Hahaha! You can’t catch me! Come on, Brother Yizhui!” The little girl, dressed in pink, ran across the snow like a mischievous monkey in the mountains.

The boy pouted, tugging at the woman’s clothing. “Mom, Yimeng is bullying me again!”

“Be good. Once we cross this mountain, we’ll be in Bei Ning Kingdom. Then you can eat whatever you want, play as much as you like,” the woman said gently, caressing Yizhui’s little head with a soft smile.

The carriage ahead finally came to a stop. The approaching soldiers eyed the white-clad woman respectfully. “May I ask, miss, is this the road to Bei Ning Kingdom?”

“Mom, why does he call you ‘miss’?” Yimeng blinked her big eyes, holding the guard’s hand. “Uncle, do you know my dad?”

“Well…”

“Yeah! Mom says dad is the strongest person in the world—can go to heaven and earth, move mountains, fill seas! Who is the strongest person here?” Yizhui asked eagerly.

The guard, giving directions, was momentarily embarrassed. Even the strongest person in the world couldn’t literally go to heaven or earth. These two children were truly adorable.

“Apologies. These two children have been impolite. Beyond the mountains ahead lies Bei Ning Kingdom. Yizhui, Yimeng, apologize.” The woman in white frowned slightly and patted the little heads of the two children.

Hanging their heads, Yizhui and Yimeng lowered their voices. “Sorry, uncle, we asked too much, but we really want to see our dad…”

Cough, cough, cough… A wheezing voice came from the carriage. The guards grew anxious and immediately stayed close. A bloodstained silk handkerchief was extended, and a pure white hand pressed against the carriage window.

“Are you looking for your father?” The weak voice trembled, almost fragile.

Yimeng nodded. “Yes, uncle. We want to find our dad. Do you know where he is?”

“Uncle… doesn’t know,” the man in red inside the carriage murmured, leaning against the side. His face was deathly pale, completely devoid of color.

His appearance left the two children stunned. Frail… perhaps no one in the world could rival this man’s fragility. Softer than the gentle spring breeze, like a newly sprouted willow branch, ready to snap at any moment. Though breathtakingly beautiful, it was a sickly kind of beauty—like the white snow itself, weak but still clinging to life.

“Who are you?” Ling Ruoxi asked with interest, resting her chin on her hand. If her guess was right… the man before her was…

“Prince Huangfu Xuan of Dongling,” he said coldly, nodding slightly, his sword-like brows tightly knit. The air was freezing, yet he broke out in cold sweat.

Huangfu Xuan, a Dongling prince, came from a vassal state under Duanyun Kingdom, similar in status to Bei Ning Kingdom. Both nations were friendly. Yet Dongling’s royal family was weak; most princes died young, and even the king rarely lived past fifty.

In this short-lived nation, all the princes were sickly, earning the royal family the nickname “sickly seedlings.” They were despised and marginalized by other countries. Huangfu Xuan was one of them. Among these sickly princes, none were like him: fragile yet exuding a bewitching charm.

“Ah, so this is the prince,” Ling Ruoxi said lightly, nodding in acknowledgment. She held the children’s hands. “Little Yizhui, Yimeng, we should continue. Let’s go…”

“Mom, could this sick uncle be our dad?” Yimeng tilted her head, peering at the man in the carriage. “Uncle, can you go to heaven and earth? Do you have peerless martial skills?”

“No… Uncle, can you move mountains or fill seas? I heard dad is amazing! We’re looking for dad—to find mom a husband!” Yizhui patted his chest.

Huangfu Xuan shook his head, looking apologetic toward the woman alone with two children. “I… don’t know…”

“Oh.” Disappointed, Yizhui and Yimeng held hands, patting Ling Ruoxi’s hand. “Mom, don’t be sad. We’ll find our unfaithful dad. When we do, I’ll cut off dad’s little thing. Any man who hurt mom and planted harm in her—I won’t let him go!”

Pft! Even these playful children’s words almost made Huangfu Xuan spit out blood.

It felt as if something was blocking his chest. The man in the carriage pressed a hand to the window, his face whiter than paper. His chest heaved violently, and blood dripped from his nose, staining the snow red.

“Master! Quickly, bring the medicine!” The surrounding guards panicked, fumbling to open their medicine bottles.

But the bottles were empty—there was no medicine left for him.

“Physician! Call a doctor!” The guards shouted, trying to stabilize Huangfu Xuan, pressing his back and nose.

A doctor quickly arrived with a medical kit. Huangfu Xuan pressed gauze to his wound. After checking his pulse, the doctor’s face paled. “The prince’s condition has worsened! Quickly… is all the medicine gone? I’m missing one crucial herb! Without it…”

“Doctor! Tell us what herb! We’ll find it immediately!” The guard’s eyes bulged in panic as he grabbed the doctor by his clothes.

The doctor shook his head. “No… this herb cannot be found here. It must be obtained in Bei Ning Kingdom. Unless…”

“Unless what?”

“Unless a Grand Medic of saintly rank intervenes, the prince’s fate is grim…”

The words left everyone breathless. Grim fate for the prince! Impossible—the prince was the hope of Dongling. They couldn’t…

“Doctor! If anything happens to the prince, you won’t keep your head!” the guard roared.

Huangfu Xuan grew weaker, his body flickering as if leaving behind afterimages. He gazed at the white figure ahead, smiling faintly, removing the jade pendant from his waist. “I can’t help you… but take this to Dongling. Let the court ministers search; perhaps… you will find your father. And inform my father… I… cannot return.”

“Poor uncle…” Yimeng wiped her tears, tugging Ling Ruoxi’s trousers. “Mom, let’s save him. He’s in so much pain. Grandpa, our master, said saving a life surpasses building a seven-level pagoda. Mom, you can’t just stand by.”

“Yes! Mom, you’re like Hua Tuo reborn, a savior! Please save this uncle. I swear, I won’t cause trouble for a month,” Yizhui said, grimacing. If they delayed any longer, the uncle would die.

The two children… Ling Ruoxi smiled faintly, stroking Yizhui and Yimeng. “Very well. Your master’s teaching has not gone in vain. A physician must have a steadfast and righteous heart.”

“Thank you, mom! Uncle can be saved!” The children ran, tugging Ling Ruoxi toward the carriage without hesitation.

“Miss, can you really save him?” The guards clung to the last hope, their eyes pleading.

Ling Ruoxi nodded. Observing Huangfu Xuan’s pale, trembling form, she noted his condition—his cold-natured body was worsened by exposure to the chill. The Huangfu family was frail, and Huangfu Xuan’s water-type Dou Qi only compounded the effect.

Such long-accumulated internal cold could not be dispelled in one day. She recalled six years ago in Bei Ning Kingdom, a man poisoned with cold toxin was also a Purple Supreme Dou Qi master.

“Silver needles.” Yizhui obediently brought them out. Ordinary medicine would not stabilize Huangfu Xuan; only acupuncture could temporarily control his condition.

Ling Ruoxi furrowed her brow, lightly patting Yizhui’s head. Holding thirty-six silver needles, she inspected them carefully. “To prevent accidents, I need to seal your acupoints. Is that okay?”

“Yes.” Cold sweat streamed down Huangfu Xuan’s forehead. He strained every ounce of strength, gasping as he stared at the woman before him.

Her lightning-fast fingers pressed the major acupoints. Ling Ruoxi’s right hand glowed silver as she struck. Under the guards’ astonished eyes, her precision and speed were too fast for even the naked eye to follow.

Fast. Incredibly fast!

Each needle pierced three parts into the flesh without harming the patient. Thirty-two needles were inserted in sequence. The veins on Huangfu Xuan’s face bulged as he endured the searing pain, trying to swallow the blood in his mouth.

But the force of the manipulation overrode his acupoints. The thirty-two silver needles flew out simultaneously. At the same time, Huangfu Xuan coughed up a mouthful of blood mixed with black ichor, splattering across the snow—a horrifying sight.