books44 Chapter 318: The Wounded Shen Bin
Chapter 318: The Wounded Shen Bin
Chapter 318: The Wounded Shen Bin
Lu Yu found a bed in the back hall and had Shen Bin lie down on it. Since he didn't know much about medicine, he had to ask Yin Lie to check Shen Bin's injuries. Yin Lie stepped forward to take Shen Bin's pulse, his face calm. After a while, he withdrew his hand and said, "Young Master Shen is fine. Fortunately, it's not an internal injury, just a superficial wound."
As he spoke, Yin Lie took out a medicine bottle from his sleeve and said, "This is a top-quality wound medicine. Young Master Shen will be fully healed in two days." He then handed it to Ji Meiqing. Yin Lie was also busy, as the guests had not yet left and he could not attend to Shen Bin's matter, so he had to leave first.
"You can go out now, I'll apply the medicine for him," Lu Yu said to Ji Meiqing behind him, looking at Shen Bin's pale face. Ji Meiqing quietly left the back hall.
The restaurant was bustling and noisy, which should have made Ji Meiqing happy, but instead, she felt unusually irritable. These past few days had been filled with one problem after another, leaving her feeling suffocated and oppressed. She decided to go upstairs to check things out.
Moving up to the second floor, the room was full of people, but one table was empty. Ji Meiqing looked at the table and realized it was the spot where Shen Bin usually sat.
On stage, Zhao Ning'er was like a fairy descending to earth, dancing and singing. She smiled slightly at Ji Meiqing, but a hint of disappointment flickered in her eyes. She quickly concealed it, but Ji Meiqing still caught it. Inwardly, Ji Meiqing felt a slight sneer that Zhao Ning'er truly harbored different feelings for Shen Bin.
Ji Meiqing found a chair and sat down at the empty table, watching Zhao Ning'er on the stage. After a while, she didn't know what to do, so she rested her chin on her hand and stared blankly into space. She didn't know how much time had passed, and even when Lu Yu sat down in front of her, she didn't react.
"What are you thinking about?" Lu Yu waved his hand in front of Ji Meiqing's eyes, and Ji Meiqing slowly came back to her senses. Seeing Lu Yu sitting in front of her without her noticing, she said somewhat awkwardly, "N-nothing. By the way, how is Shen Bin?"
"He's alright now. I've applied some medicine, so the wound shouldn't get infected," Lu Yu said calmly, though he was extremely frustrated. He had originally thought that the business at Zuixianlou would be going well, allowing him to return to Rongcheng with Ji Meiqing and live a peaceful life, at least with the person in his arms and beside him every day. But who would have thought that things would turn out so badly? He didn't know when he would be able to take Ji Meiqing home under these circumstances.
Ji Meiqing was also lost in thought, her head throbbing with worry. Wu Chang had repeatedly caused trouble, and now the cause of Shen Bin's injury was unknown, causing widespread anxiety. Could the Drunken Immortal Pavilion still continue operating? The two sat at a table, each lost in their own thoughts, until all the other customers had left. Then, Zhao Ning'er from the stage ran over to Ji Meiqing's side.
"Huh? Brother Lu, Sister Ji, what are you both thinking about so intently?" Zhao Ning'er waved her hand and said, noticing the two of them lost in thought. The two looked at Zhao Ning'er awkwardly and quickly snapped out of their reverie. To avoid further embarrassment, Ji Meiqing asked, "Ning'er, how was the harvest today?"
"Hmph, Sister Ji, you've been watching my performance for so long, and you don't even know how much the guests tipped me!" Zhao Ning'er said, feigning anger as she looked at Ji Meiqing. Ji Meiqing awkwardly stuck out her tongue, unsure of what to say.
"Let's go check on Shen Bin in the back hall," Lu Yu interjected, seeing the two talking so enthusiastically. Ji Meiqing suddenly remembered that Shen Bin was still lying in the back hall, and she didn't know if he was awake. Thinking this, she pulled Lu Yu downstairs.
Zhao Ning'er overheard Ji Meiqing and Lu Yu's conversation. Although she didn't know the specifics of their conversation, her intuition told her that something had happened to Shen Bin. Anxious, she quickly caught up with Ji Meiqing.
When Ji Meiqing saw Zhao Ning'er following behind, she became even more certain of her previous suspicions. Upon reaching the back hall, Shen Bin was already awake, but his face was ashen as he stared at the ceiling. His face remained pale and lifeless. Seeing this, Zhao Ning'er felt a pang of heartache for some reason.
"Shen Bin, what happened? How did you get these whip marks?" Lu Yu asked Shen Bin slowly, sitting on the edge of the bed. Hearing Lu Yu's voice, Shen Bin's gaze slowly moved to Lu Yu, then swept over Ji Meiqing and Zhao Ning'er, finally settling on Zhao Ning'er. He then closed his eyes, as if he had something to say, or perhaps nothing at all, which was why he closed his eyes.
Lu Yu didn't press the matter, and just sat down quietly to wait for Shen Bin's answer. Ji Meiqing and Zhao Ning'er stood to the side, anxiously waiting for Shen Bin's reply.
"I'm sorry to have worried you. The injuries are from family discipline." It was unclear how much time had passed before Shen Bin finally uttered these words. Ji Meiqing was incredulous upon hearing this. Even tigers don't eat their cubs; how could Shen Bin's family be so heartless? Not only Ji Meiqing thought this, but Zhao Ning'er felt the same way.
Seeing the three men's surprised looks, Shen Bin worried they might misunderstand his father because they didn't know the whole story. So he told them what had happened. After listening, the three men understood what had occurred, but they still couldn't understand why their father had been so cruel to Shen Bin.
“My mother died during childbirth. I am the only son in the family. My father loved me, but he was also strict with me and did not allow me to make mistakes. So when Wu Chang’s father said something in court, my father believed it because he heard others making things up. That’s why he punished me a little.” Shen Bin said a lot of things in a row, ignoring the pain in his back.
"Then...Young Master Shen...is it true that you want to become an official in the court? Does that mean I'll never see you again..." Zhao Ning'er began to speak at some point, her voice growing softer as she finished, her face involuntarily turning red. Ji Meiqing didn't look at Zhao Ning'er, but instead stared at Shen Bin's changing expression.
"Hmm? It's true that he's an official in the court, and he comes back to the restaurant whenever he has time," Shen Bin replied, looking at Zhao Ning'er with some confusion. Ji Meiqing, standing to the side, looked at Shen Bin helplessly, thinking to herself, "Ning'er is being so obvious, is he a blockhead? Doesn't he know anything?"
"When I have time..." Zhao Ning'er said softly, biting her lip, her eyes filled with disappointment. She clutched her handkerchief tightly and ran out of the back hall. Shen Bin, lying on the bed, had no idea what had happened and looked at Ji Meiqing and Lu Yu.
"Shen Bin, are you a blockhead? Ning'er's feelings are so obvious, how come you still don't understand? Or are you pretending?" Ji Meiqing rested her chin on her hand, looking at Shen Bin with a hint of reproach. Then she looked at Lu Yu and thought, "Brother Lu doesn't seem that dense. How come this guy doesn't understand when Ning'er's feelings are so obvious?"
When Shen Bin heard Ji Meiqing say that, he thought for a long time before he reacted. He opened his mouth but didn't know what to say, so he simply shut his mouth and lay on the bed alone, lost in thought.