Qi Shan arrived a step before Shen Tang.
By the time Shen Tang hurried over, Kang Shi's tent was already full of people. Kang Nian sat in a corner, looking utterly lost, while Qi Shan sat beside Kang Shi's bed, gripping his hand tightly with a vacant expression, lost in thought. Shen Tang approached him, but he didn't even notice.
"How is Ji Shou?"
Shen Tang waved off the others' formalities, lifted her robe, and sat on the low stool beside the bed. The accompanying Xinglin Physician and Qi Miao were taking turns checking his pulse. Everyone wore grave expressions; clearly, things were not looking good. Qi Miao forced down her emotions, doing her best to keep her voice steady. "His Heart Meridian is weak and floating, his pulse chaotic... Just now, there were also signs of... signs of a rootless, flavorless, spiritless pulse... This pulse indicates that the true qi of the viscera is leaking out... It's the pulse of a dying man..."
Qi Miao struggled to utter the words "pulse of a dying man."
Shen Tang felt her heart sink. It was as though some invisible force had drained every ounce of strength from her. She was grateful she was sitting; if she'd been standing, she might not have been able to stay on her feet.
She took a quiet, deep breath.
She tried to clear her head.
Then she asked, "How is Wei Heng?"
For convenience, Yu Zi had been placed on a bed just behind a screen. Her great-uncle sat beside the screen, hunched over, his back exuding a profound air of desolation. His hair had turned completely white overnight.
Qi Miao lowered her voice. "The same."
Both of them had shown signs of a dying pulse at nearly the same time.
Anyone with even a