To Travel by the Edge of a Creek

Chapter 21: Treating Injuries

Content warning: wound treatment, not too graphic

“Looks like she is suffering no small amount.” The witch doctor’s heart went out to Jiang Ling’s plight. What had she run into to render her into this half-dead state?

The witch doctor had Na Xin bring a pair of scissors and cut away the gauze around Jiang Ling’s shoulders. Na Xin half lifted Jiang Ling’s body lightly so the bandaging could be removed by the witch doctor. 

However, the bloodied bandaging and her back were stuck tightly together. The witch doctor tried to pull the gauze away a few times to no avail. Jiang Ling moaned in pain. 

“Remove it directly.” He Xi said, standing off to one side, “Do not mind me.”

He Xi raised her irises to glance at Jiang Ling, then sighed. She pushed aside the door curtain and exited, sitting calmly on a stone bench in the courtyard. Inside, all she could do was caution the witch doctor and feel even more uneasy. 

Jiang Ling’s groans of agony came from within the room. He Xi’s fists subconsciously tightened. 

“Quickly, quickly, hold her down.” The witch doctor’s harried voice cried, then a crash sounded. 

He Xi truly could not rest easy and thought it best to go back inside. 

Jiang Ling had been awoken by the pain, her brows scrunched together and her eyes awash in a misty daze. Her body glistened with a thin layer of sweat, her back obscured by blood as it gushed out of the wound. She helplessly struggled to rise, her hands forcefully pushing Na Xin away. Na Xin had never studied martial arts and was thrown back by Jiang Ling’s push onto the bedside table. Her waist collided with the corner of the table, making her face contort in agony. 

Jiang Ling was propped up painfully on the bed. Her mind was in chaos, her movements completely out of instinct. 

When He Xi saw this, she wrapped both her arms around Jiang Ling to hold her in place. Jiang Ling struggled twice, but did not succeed in breaking away. 

Immediately, the pain on Jiang Ling’s back lightened a little bit. Her brow relaxed and she threw herself into He Xi’s embrace. 

He Xi suddenly had a scaldingly hot body in her arms. She unconsciously supported Jiang Ling’s waist, the fine, smooth texture beneath her fingers startling her into wanting to immediately throw Jiang Ling aside. She resisted the strange sensation with great difficulty and adjusted her posture, sitting on the bed so Jiang Ling’s head could rest in her lap while the rest of her body stretched out onto the bed. 

The witch doctor saw that Jiang Ling had calmed down and rushed forward to clean her wound. After doing so, she discovered that she actually had a large cut on her palm. Because she had not dealt with it in time, the wound had already begun to fester. 

“How is it like this.” The witch doctor wanted to reprimand the girl and ask her how she could treat her own body this poorly, but when she saw the state she was currently in, she swallowed those harsh words. 

“What do you mean?” When He Xi saw the wound she thought to herself that it was surely fake. She could only think of how Jiang Ling had most likely come to the desert because of her, and her heart was filled with remorse. 

“At best, she’ll be left with a scar. At worst, she’ll lose her life.” The witch doctor spoke frankly, “Based on her appearance, she was out in the desert for a few days and is already weak. Combined with her wound, if another half a day had passed, there would be nothing to be done.”

The witch doctor pointed at Jiang Ling’s injury, “Look here. This wound has already started to fester. The flesh is dead, keeping it will only endanger her life. Her high fever now is due to the festering wound. I must cut away the flesh. If she is too weak, this will kill her.”

“How could…”

“Keep the wound open for two days until she wakes up, then call for me. Just make sure not to harm the flesh again.” The witch doctor shook her head and sprinkled her medicine on the wound. After giving a few more instructions about caring for the wound, Na Xin saw the witch doctor out, leaving behind only He Xi and Jiang Ling. 

He Xi tilted her head down to look at Jiang Ling’s side profile. Damp hair clung to her face. He Xi tidied her hair with a finger. 

“Mother.” Jiang Ling called out softly. 

“Mm?” He Xi did not hear her clearly. She leaned down to hear. 

“Mother, it hurts.” Jiang Ling’s tears leaked out of the corners of her eyes, dampening the cloth on He Xi’s lap. 

He Xi only felt a heat scorching her legs, warming her heart. Jiang Ling must be too hot. 

She gently laid Jiang Ling back down on the bed, placing the pillow under her head. 

She left the room and brought back a jar of wine, dipping her scarf in to cool Jiang Ling down for her. 

… 

When Jiang Ling woke up, it was already the afternoon of the second day. Her head was spinning. When she lifted her eyelids slightly, she saw a Xiyu woman walking in with a bowl of porridge. 

Her eyes were not amber-colored. Everything from before had been a dream. 

The woman saw that she was awake and came forward happily, her mouth moving as she spoke words that Jiang Ling could not understand. 

Jiang Ling understood the general idea. In the last portion that she spoke, she must have told her to drink the porridge, then held the ladle up for her, as her lips were still cracked from dehydration. 

“I can do it myself.” Jiang Ling wanted to sit up and grab the ladle, but just as she rose a little bit, before her wound even had time to hurt, the coolness on her chest let her know that she was not wearing any clothes. Startled, she stuck to the bed. 

The woman saw this and chuckled. She said a few more words then brought the ladle back over to her. Jiang Ling could only take sip after sip from the ladle. 

After she ate, because her fever had not yet receded, Jiang Ling was listless and soon fell back to sleep. 

Na Xin told He Xi that Jiang Ling had woken up. He Xi was delighted and wanted to go see her immediately, but then she remembered the enmity between her and Jiang Ling. The best way to express her concern would be to act contrary to her own wishes. When she asked Na Xin if Jiang Ling had had any sort of extreme reaction, Na Xin replied, “No.”

He Xi felt somewhat relieved. Jiang Ling must not remember that she saved her, or she would definitely not lay there properly and recover, given how she had tried to kill her in her half-dead state before. 

“The Lady Saintess is not going to go see her?” Na Xin saw He Xi’s posture, which showed no indication that she would go see Jiang Ling. 

“No, it’s fine if you help me take care of her.” He Xi waved a hand for Na Xin to retreat. 

“The Lady Saintess truly cares for her.”

“Mm?”

Na Xin felt that she had spoken out of turn, so she rushed to close her mouth. He Xi responded without anger, “What do you want to say?”

“The Lady Saintess is concerned about her, yet does not go see her.” He Xi was not a frightening master. If she had Na Xin continue, then Na Xin would continue speaking. 

“It’s not concern. It’s guilt.” He Xi gave Na Xin the same explanation she gave herself. She would not treat others kindly without reason. 

“Alright, I will go take care of her.”

However, Na Xin remained in place, looking at He Xi uneasily. 

“What’s wrong?”

“I cannot speak the language of the central plains. She does not understand me.”

He Xi laughed, “It’s no matter. As long as you take good care of her.” It was better if they had no way to communicate. This way, matters would not develop in a direction she could not calculate. 

Because of Ge Lan’s proclivities, the majority of the Manichaen church spoke some of the central plains’ language. Some could converse fluently and some could only understand. Moreover, because of the trade between Xiyu and the central plains, some common people of Xiyu who travel to the central plains for business can speak some. Na Xin was someone that He Xi had rescued from a small hamlet and thus had never studied the Han language[1]. Naturally, she could not communicate with Jiang Ling. 

The witch doctor heard that Jiang Ling had awoken and hurried over. 

“Grandmother A Xi, do not tell her that I was the one who rescued her.” He Xi reminded her. A Xi understood Han, so she had to tell her as soon as she greeted her. 

“Aren’t you two friends?” The witch doctor did not understand. 

“An accident occured. If she asks, tell her that Na Xin brought her back.”

Although the witch doctor did not understand, she still gave her assent. 

…

Jiang Ling was woken up by the sound of the witch doctor entering. She moved around a little, as she felt a bit numb from lying down. 

Once the witch doctor walked into her line of sight, she could see her appearance. 

“Little lady, how do you feel?” The witch doctor used Han to speak to Jiang Ling. 

Jiang Ling’s eyes flashed when she heard the familiar words, “Much better, just a little tired. I’m always sleeping.”

When the witch doctor heard this, she reached out a hand and checked her forehead. It was still a bit warm, as the wound had not been dealt with yet. 

“Excuse me, were you[2] the one who saved me?” Jiang Ling asked. 

“I’m just a doctor. It was that girl who saved you. You’ve met her before.” The witch doctor pointed to Na Xin, who was standing beside her. 

“Thank you.” Jiang Ling gave her thanks to Na Xin. Na Xin suddenly realized that Jiang Ling was speaking to her and felt a little helpless. The witch doctor explained to her, and then she understood. 

“Your injuries are very severe. Some places have already festered. Now that I’ve seen that your awareness is much better, I’ll come back tomorrow to help you.” The witch doctor did not talk in circles. She straightforwardly told Jiang Ling of her current situation and what she should do about it. 

Jiang Ling nodded and said: “If I can live, I can endure some pain.”

The witch doctor applied some medicine and after instructing her to get some proper rest that night, the witch doctor departed. 

When Na Xin went to the courtyard to prepare her medicine, Jiang Ling finally had the opportunity to closely examine her surroundings. The room was quite plain, its foundation made of stone. It was entirely different from the central plains. Her sword had been hung on the wall, and she wore Xiyu clothing similar to He Xi and her caravan. She guessed that Na Xin was a Xiyu resident of the oasis she had glimpsed before falling unconscious. Once she finished healing, she must repay her. 

A while passed, and Na Xin entered the room once she finished decocting her medicine. Jiang Ling was not unreasonable; she shifted forward so her shoulder hung off the side of the bed, took the bowl of medicine and drank it in one gulp. Once she finished the medicine, she shifted back so her head lay on the pillow as she digested the astringent flavor. Not once did she act willfully or finicky. 

When He Xi heard Na Xin’s description, her heart moved, giving rise to the idea of going to see such a scene for herself. As soon as she thought of the enmity between them, a debt of a person’s life, this idea immediately left her mind. Now was not the time to meet with her. 

The witch doctor arrived as scheduled the next day. She brought her tools, the sight of which made goosebumps break out on Na Xin’s skin. When the witch doctor asked her to step out for a while, Na Xin felt like she had been granted an Imperial Pardon. She released a breath, then ran out the door. 

Unlike that day when she had gotten out of control, the now-cognizant Jiang Ling’s fortitude was strong. She bit down on the wooden stick given to her by the witch doctor on her back molars; she did not make a sound. 

Once she had finished clearing the wound, the witch doctor applied medicine to stop the bleeding, only to discover that Jiang Ling had already passed out from the pain. 

He Xi stood outside, surprised about the quietness within the room. Outside of the room, time seemed to stand still until the witch doctor’s hand poked out the door. Only then did He Xi find that the wound had already been completely cleared. 

“She did well, not making so much as a sound. She’s unconscious now. After two days, the fever should recede. If it hasn’t, send some people to find me. I’ll be going, then.” The witch doctor always arrived and left swiftly. 

That night, Jiang Ling was muddled by fever, sweating over her entire body. A pair of cool hands pressed to her forehead, relieving much of the heat. 

He Xi stroked her forehead. She was even more scalding than two days prior. He Xi instructed Na Xin to get some alcohol to help cool Jiang Ling’s body down. 

The second morning, Jiang Ling’s fever receded and the flush in her cheeks likewise dimmed. Her complexion looked much better.