SF 11

Yuan Xi was visibly surprised by the servant’s report, while Ling Xun shot upright from the bed like a dog catching the scent of a meaty bone.

“Bring the person in for questioning first,” Yuan Xi said. But just as the words left his mouth, a thought struck him, and he asked, “Is it a servant from the Mu residence? Did the master come in person?”

The servant replied, “Only a young boy was seen. Most likely he’s a household member from the Mu residence.”

Yuan Xi nodded. “Then let him in. Bring him directly here.”

The Chief Imperial Physician had originally intended to take his leave, but upon hearing that someone had brought a remedy for a leg injury, his curiosity got the better of him. He stole a glance at Yuan Xi, and seeing that he had not been dismissed, shamelessly decided to stay and watch the show.

Before long, the steward himself led in the person from the Mu residence.

Ling Xun did not know why, but anything bearing the name “Mu” stirred a strange sense of fixation in him. So even though the visitor was just a delicate-looking, neat-browed, and well-mannered young page from the Mu household, in Ling Xun’s picky peach-blossom eyes, the boy now seemed to carry an ethereal air, untouched by the dust of the mortal world.

“You’re from the Mu residence?” he asked before the host of the Yuan family could even speak.

The boy looked to be no more than fourteen. He was even younger than those two monkey-like brats Fang Ke and Fang Jue. Yet every movement he made was composed and measured, far beyond what those two could ever imitate. Even in the presence of a powerful family like the Yuans, he showed no fear, responding clearly and calmly, without the slightest hint of shyness.

“Replying to the young master, this humble one was sent by the master of the Mu residence to deliver a remedy for treating leg injuries.”

“Oh? And how did your master know someone here had an injured leg?”

A flicker of suspicion rose in Yuan Xi’s heart. Qin Chao’s effort to recruit formation masters was something that could not be publicly revealed. Very few people were even aware of it. Yuan Xi himself had only learned of it thanks to the Yuan family’s wide network of connections. He had come to the capital in a hurry, barely pausing before dragging the so-called Feng back from prison. Barely any time had passed, and yet they already knew, and knew precisely that Feng Wuge had a leg injury.

The more he thought about it, the more unsettling it seemed. He looked again at the young page, his gaze now probing.

Yet the boy did not falter under questioning. He simply bowed respectfully to Yuan Xi and said, “The master only instructed me to deliver this remedy. As for the rest, I truly do not know.”

His attitude was neither arrogant nor servile. Yuan Xi understood at once that there was nothing more to be gained from pressing him. He waved a hand to let the boy rise and hand over the prescription.

The boy complied and took from his robe a neatly folded piece of yellow hemp paper, which he presented to Yuan Xi. Yuan Xi did not take it. He glanced at Ling Xun, then signaled for the Chief Imperial Physician to examine it first.

Ling Xun sat comfortably to one side, watching it all unfold. He knew full well that Yuan Xi had been raised in the nest of the powerful and had developed a habit of distrusting everything unfamiliar. But that was fine by him. At the end of the day, the man was just being cautious on his behalf.

The Chief Imperial Physician was a medical obsessive. He had no fear that the small piece of paper might contain poison or hidden mechanisms. He could not wait to lay eyes on the so-called miracle remedy. Yet when he unfolded the sheet completely, he froze.

It was not a prescription. Not a single herb was listed on it.

“This…”

“Is something wrong with it?” Yuan Xi had been watching him closely and immediately asked upon seeing his reaction.

The physician stared at it for a long while, then folded the paper again and handed it back to Yuan Xi. “Young Master Yuan, forgive my lack of skill, but judging from the labeling of the characters and diagrams, this is not a prescription. It appears to be a diagram of human acupuncture points, specifically focusing on several major meridians in the leg. But if this is meant to be an acupoint diagram, then it is a rather peculiar one.”

Yuan Xi’s curiosity was piqued by the Chief Imperial Physician’s words. He unfolded the sheet and saw densely written names of acupuncture points, but unlike a typical diagram, these were not marked on a human figure. Instead, they were arranged in a formation, ordered above, below, left, right, and center, like the layout of troops on a battlefield.

“Hey, isn’t it about time you showed it to me?” Ling Xun called from the bed, nearly burning holes in the air with his stare.

The young page, still standing quietly to the side, added at just the right moment, “My master did say that the prescription must be read personally by Master Feng for it to take effect.”

With someone speaking on his behalf, Ling Xun instantly sided with the outsider, shooting Yuan Xi a look of righteous indignation.

Yuan Xi gave a cold snort. Nothing annoyed him more than Ling Xun putting on his bipolar act. He tossed the sheet of paper over with a scowl, as if he would have liked to throw his eyes along with it.

Ling Xun caught the small square of yellow hemp paper. He did not appear especially eager, holding it delicately between his thumb and forefinger as though it were a flower. He unfolded it with studied laziness, glanced at it under lowered lashes, gave a soft “ah,” and murmured, “Wonderful.” Then he tucked the sheet into his sleeve, yawned like a concubine in spring, and turned over to lie down again.

The Chief Imperial Physician stood there staring, speechless, his quivering beard the only thing moving. He had no idea what had just happened.

Yuan Xi, on the other hand, looked completely unbothered. He told the steward to take the Mu residence page to receive his reward and then saw the physician out. When he returned and saw the man on the bed playing dead, he raised his leg and gave him a light kick. “Hey. Quit faking. They’re all gone.”

Ling Xun grumbled and rolled over, eyes still shut, looking like he was deep in a passionate dream with the Duke of Sleep himself.

Yuan Xi kicked him again, this time twice, lightly on the backside. He leaned down and whispered, “Didn’t you say you were interested in that person from the Mu residence? I’m about to question the gatekeeper. Sure you don’t want to listen?”

Seeing that Ling Xun didn’t react, Yuan Xi gave up and left the inner chamber. He ordered someone to summon the man who had been on gate duty.

The moment Yuan Xi stepped out, Ling Xun snapped his eyes open. He pulled the folded paper from his sleeve again and sat up, unfolding it slowly for a closer look. The usual playfulness in his eyes vanished, replaced by a sharp glint. He narrowed them, studying the characters intently.

To the untrained eye, the diagram might seem like nonsense. But Ling Xun saw immediately that the contents were anything but ordinary.

This was a formation diagram, meant for a formation master.

Formation arts were not simply about arranging troops or standing in line. A true formation master could apply their craft to a vast range of disciplines, from the secretive arts of the Hidden Gates Formation and geomantic divination, to summoning rain and lightning, regulating the body’s meridians, even prolonging life. There were legends of great masters who could manipulate mountains and seas through formation.

At the core of it all lay the principles of the Five Elements.

These elements, namely metal, wood, water, fire, and earth, formed the foundation of all things. The heavenly stems and earthly branches, directions, seasonal nodes, internal organs, colors, shapes, all phenomena under the heavens could be aligned to them.

For instance, the east corresponds to wood, west to metal, south to fire, north to water, and the center to earth. For example, one formation school defines the water trine as the branches associated with the Rat, Dragon, and Monkey. The metal trine with the Snake, Rooster, and Ox, the fire trine with the Tiger, Horse, and Dog, and the wood trine with the Pig, Rabbit, and Goat. As for the five organs in the human body, the heart is fire, the lungs are metal, the liver is wood, the spleen is earth, and the kidneys are water.

To truly understand formations was to see them everywhere, to apply them to anything. Even the act of tailoring or embroidery could yield astonishing effects if infused with formation principles.

This knowledge was not something most formation masters could grasp. Even those who had heard the theory often remained stuck at the surface, incapable of putting it into practice. Ling Xun was able to apply a bit of it to the fabrics at Jinxiu Pavilion only because, as a child, he had once received instruction from a reclusive expert.

The diagram before him clearly merged formation technique with the human body’s acupuncture points, a secret method encoded in plain sight. Yet without guidance, it would be nearly impossible to use.

Still, if he could truly decipher it, would he be able to speed up the healing of his legs?

With that thought, Ling Xun carefully folded the sheet and tucked it back into his robes. He slid off the bed without a sound and cast a glance toward the main entrance. As expected, there were guards. So he opened a side window, pushed himself up with both arms, and slipped outside.

Though his legs were still weak, he had trained in martial arts for years. His qinggong technique was not bad. He soon reached the outer hall, where he could vaguely hear Yuan Xi questioning someone. He fattened himself like a mushroom against the wall and listened in shamelessly.