Ye Wanmian forced a calm smile. "I don't know why Uncle Li has such a misunderstanding about me, but..."
Li Zhao interrupted her. "The man who appeared in the medical clinic just now was dressed in expensive fabric, exuded an air of nobility, and his eyes carried the scrutiny of a person in a high position. He must be a member of the royal family. Little Doctor Jiang was not afraid when getting along with him. Instead, they were quite intimate. You two have a good private relationship and must have been in close contact before."
"When you were talking to him just now, you unconsciously had the accent of the people in the capital. So I deduce that your story about your widowed family is just a cover for your identity. You grew up in the capital but had to leave for some other reasons."
Li Zhao's voice was hoarse and he always wanted to cough. To ensure the coherence of his speech, he didn't speak very fast, and his voice was not very loud either. It was just loud enough for Ye Wanmian in front of him to hear clearly. However, the words from his mouth made Ye Wanmian's hair stand on end.
Just based on a few clues, he could deduce so much and had guessed most of her experiences!
Where on earth did this man come from?
After saying so many words in a row, Li Zhao couldn't help coughing again. He said in a hoarse voice, "That young man was right just now. What could a dirty and smelly beggar like me be worth for Little Doctor Jiang to go to such lengths to save me?"
"Is it really out of kindness and soft - heartedness, unable to bear seeing me die on the street?"
"Or..." He said slowly, "you want to use me to cover up some secrets?"
Ye Wanmian clenched her fists tightly. She tightened her lips and said, "I really don't understand what Uncle Li is talking about. I'm a doctor. It's only natural for me to treat the sick and save the dying. I have no other purpose."
"Really?" Li Zhao smiled. "Maybe the little doctor doesn't know that she has shown many flaws. How about we be more honest with each other? Then I can help you cover up better."
"Little Doctor Jiang doesn't need to answer me immediately. Go back and think it over. Before that, I won't leave the medical clinic casually, nor will I see anyone except you."
Li Zhao said with a smile, then lay down and closed his eyes.
"Now, I really need to have a good sleep. Little Doctor Jiang, please feel free."
Ye Wanmian tightened her lips, picked up the empty medicine bowl and turned to leave.
After leaving the room, she subconsciously looked around, trying to recall every move she had made in the past few days.
She thought she had been careful enough. Qi Wen didn't recognize her until she deliberately didn't disguise herself. Li Zhao had only been with her for a few days. How on earth did he see through her?
However, it had to be said that his observation was really meticulous, and he saw things more carefully than Qi Wen.
Li Zhao's straightforwardness made Ye Wanmian quite upset. At the same time, she also realized that she had been a bit complacent recently because everything had gone too smoothly.
She had successfully rescued Xiao Jingcheng from the tomb and outwitted Xiao Yixuan, setting up layers of fog for them. She thought she was the smartest person in the world, but in fact, even a person she had accidentally rescued could see something wrong with her.
But if she admitted it, wouldn't there be one more person in the world who knew her secret?
Could this person be trusted? Could she cooperate with him?
When the medical clinic was about to close, she brought another bowl of medicinal soup into Li Zhao's room.
Li Zhao was still sleeping. She put down the food and medicine and left without staying any longer.
At night, after closing the shop and having dinner, Qi Wen also noticed something wrong with her.
"What's wrong with you, Mrs. Jiang? You seem a bit listless."
Ye Wanmian came back to her senses. She didn't tell him about Li Zhao, but only said, "The Prince of Xuan visited the medical clinic today, but I sent him away. I told him that you were sick and recuperating in the backyard. You must remember not to let the cat out of the bag."
Qi Wen was greatly surprised and quickly nodded. "Don't worry, Mrs. Jiang. I know what to do."
Fortunately, nothing unexpected happened today. The three life - lamps were burning steadily, and Xiao Jingcheng's breathing was very steady. Ye Wanmian adjusted the wick to make the light brighter.
Because of what happened during the day, Ye Wanmian was a bit worried. She squatted down and stroked Dahuang, who had been lying beside the bed staring at Xiao Jingcheng since last night, and discussed with it.
"Dahuang, could you please keep watch outside the house tonight? If anyone sneaks into the yard, remember to make a sound to alert us."
Dahuang licked the palm of her hand and whined twice as if in reply.
Whether it was because she was worried that Xiao Yixuan would send someone to sneak into the yard to check or because of what Li Zhao had said to her, Ye Wanmian tossed and turned and couldn't fall asleep that night. She only had a short sleep until it was almost dawn.
Fortunately, it was quiet at night. Dahuang didn't bark, which meant that the small courtyard was safe.
The next day, Ye Wanmian woke up on time. She rubbed her throbbing head, gritted her teeth, and made a decision in her heart.
She had never been a hesitant person. Otherwise, she wouldn't have run away from the wedding without hesitation when she learned that she was going to marry that Commander Chen in Xuanzhou.
Yesterday, when Li Zhao suddenly pointed out that there was something wrong with her identity, she panicked and thus fell into a passive position. However, upon careful consideration, Li Zhao was the most suspicious one.
He observed carefully and was very knowledgeable. He could tell at a glance that Xiao Yixuan was a nobleman. With such insight, he was definitely not an ordinary person. At least, he could never come from a commoner's family.
The knots on his body and his accent both indicated that he came from Luozhou, and his surname was Li...
Luozhou...
Was there any prominent Li family in Luozhou?
With this question in mind, Ye Wanmian washed up, got dressed, lit the fire to cook, cleaned the medical clinic, and prepared to receive patients when the door opened. When the feather duster swept over the cabinet specially for medical records, she suddenly stopped.
She found the key and quickly opened the cabinet. She took out the medical record again and flipped to the case of catalepsy she had read a few days ago.
"In the 16th year of Wenchu, in the month of Jimao on the day of Wuyin..."
With a "snap", Ye Wanmian closed the medical record in her hand, and her eyes were as bright as stars.
She remembered. There was indeed a prominent Li family in Luozhou, but it was not from this dynasty. It was a noble family during the time when the State of Chu still existed twenty years ago.
The State of Chu had ruled the Central Plains for more than two hundred years, and the Li family in Luozhou had been prosperous for nearly a hundred years. Just like the Shen family from Hexi, from which the current queen came, the Li family enjoyed extremely high prestige in the State of Chu. The clan's descendants were all over the court. There had been five prime ministers and seven ministers, not to mention countless other minor officials. The family was extremely prominent.
However, just like the State of Chu at the end of its decline, the Li family in Luozhou was gradually showing signs of decline. In the 17th year of Wenchu, the Li family was ordered to be exterminated by King Guo Sheng of Chu, who was known as the "Mad King". Since then, there has been no more Li family in Luozhou in the world.
After the Li family was exterminated, the world was in chaos. With the support of the Shen family from Hexi, the Xiao family joined forces with several generals at the border, rebelled and declared themselves kings. They broke through the palace gates, captured King Guo Sheng of Chu alive, beheaded him on the dragon throne, and established a new dynasty, which was the current Great Sheng Dynasty.
She was born in the first year of the establishment of the Sheng Dynasty. Going back further was that chaotic era. Therefore, when she was still in the Ye family, she had read relevant documents in the library of the official school.
However, the documents were too boring. She only read the first part and then put them down. Soon she forgot the content in the book, so she didn't immediately remember when she heard Li Zhao's surname.
If he was really a descendant of the Li family, then his identity and origin were much more valuable than hers.
She smiled cunningly.