Male Lead, Please Don’t Covet the Mob Character Cannon Fodder (Quick Transmigration) - Chapter 16

A hand rested on the back of Qingshi’s hand. “I am fine, Master.”

Hearing Gu Jiuli’s voice pretending as if nothing had happened, Qingshi’s tears began to flow instantly. He had almost thought that the male lead was dead.

“Cough, cough, Master,” Gu Jiuli whispered.

“Do not speak yet.” Qingshi moved off Gu Jiuli and began checking the source of the bloody scent on his body: broken ribs, a fractured right leg, two crossing blade wounds on his shoulders and back, and a sword wound on his thigh.

There were also internal injuries from the fall from a high place. The man was like a broken rag doll.

Qingshi felt his own body; his clothes had been changed, and he had nothing on him. He needed to find some hemostatic herbs, but he did not know if there were any nearby.

Qingshi rose and groped his way toward the exit. Gu Jiuli, lying on the ground, watched his receding back as his gaze gradually dimmed.

It makes sense, he thought. I forced Master; I deserve this.

Gu Jiuli closed his eyes, quietly waiting for his own death. To think that he, the Mighty General of Great Qi, invincible in battle, would fall because of the word “love.”

At the height of his despair, Gu Jiuli heard a rustling sound nearby. He turned his head, guessing it was a wolf or another wild beast, but he did not expect to see Qingshi. In that moment, he did not realize his eyes were shining with a terrifying intensity.

Qingshi had picked some Sanqi herbs and gathered a few straight wooden sticks before returning. This appeared to be deep in the mountains, making medicinal herbs easier to find than he had imagined.

Qingshi tore his own clothes to bind Gu Jiuli’s fractured limbs with the sticks and applied the crushed Sanqi to his wounds. After finishing everything, he sat on the ground, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and spoke. “Jiuli, look around and see if there is a place where we can hide. The scent of blood here is too heavy; wild beasts will come sooner or later.”

“Master, there is a cave over there.”

“Alright. I will support you; you lead the way.” Qingshi forced himself to stand, draped Gu Jiuli’s arm over his shoulder, and painstakingly moved him bit by bit into the cave.

Fortunately, the cave was unoccupied. At the moment, they had nothing, and Qingshi could do no more. He could only wait to see if Gu Jiuli was strong enough to survive until someone came to rescue them.

“Gu Jiuli, from now on, you must not fall asleep.” Qingshi sat on the ground, panting. If he fell asleep, he might never wake up again.

“Mhm.” Gu Jiuli gazed at Qingshi. Although his body was in pain, the corners of his mouth were turned up.

“What happened earlier? Did someone try to kill you?” Qingshi asked.

“There have always been people who want to kill me. My existence is an eyesore to some.”

A Great General holding heavy military power would indeed be a target of suspicion and fear for others.

“Master, do you hate me?” Gu Jiuli suddenly asked.

Qingshi opened his mouth but found he did not know what to say and swallowed his words.

Gu Jiuli let out a soft laugh at the silent Qingshi. “Master, when I die, you”

“Stop talking about dying! You will not die!” You are the male lead! Qingshi hurriedly interrupted him.

Gu Jiuli was silent for a while before he asked softly, “Master, why do you not like me?”

Qingshi pinched his own palm. “We, we are not from the same world. You are a Great General, and I am only a small physician.”

“Liar. Master, whether you face a General or a Prince, you only have respect, never fear.” Gu Jiuli exposed his lie directly. “I do not believe status would be an obstacle between us.”

Qingshi turned his back to Gu Jiuli. “Even if status does not matter, have you not lost your memory? When you regain your memory and remember that I treated you, a Great General, like a lowly servant, will you not be angry? We have only been together for a few months; how could that compare to your past twenty years?”

“So, is that what Master has been worried about?” Gu Jiuli asked.

“Yes.”

Gu Jiuli laughed. “Master, actually, my memory returned a long time ago.”

Qingshi turned around abruptly. “What did you say?”

“During those few days I disappeared after entering Yan City, my memory had already returned.” Gu Jiuli lightheartedly dropped this bombshell.

“How could that be?” Qingshi fell to the ground. “So, you have been lying to me. Since you remembered everything, why, why do you not hate me?” Qingshi was bewildered.

Gu Jiuli gazed at Qingshi with devotion. “How could I ever hate you?”

“You should hate me. Are you not angry that I treated you like a servant?”

“Qingshi, I, Gu Jiuli, have lived my life amidst the glint and flash of daggers and swords. The battlefield and the court are both filled with blood. The days in Sajia Village were the most peaceful of my life. If I could, I would be Da Hei for a lifetime and be your servant forever. Master, may I?”

Tears soaked the blindfold. Qingshi clenched his jaw to stop himself. “You are Gu Jiuli, the Mighty General of Great Qi.”

Hearing Qingshi’s refusal, the light in Gu Jiuli’s eyes dimmed.

Eight Eight, will there be a penalty if the mission fails?

System 886: “Of course. If you fail, you will be fired by the company, and you will become a wandering ghost. Why do you ask so suddenly?”

The male lead’s memory returned a long time ago.

System 886: “What?! Then why are you not offline yet?! Could it be a bug? Qingshi, wait a moment; I am going to report this! Wait for me!”

Qingshi suddenly felt a sense of dazedness, like the feeling of having climbed to the mountain peak only to find the scenery was not what he wanted to see.

“Master, are you cold?” Gu Jiuli asked, seeing Qingshi shivering in the cold wind.

Qingshi stubbornly replied, “I am not cold.”

“But I am so cold. Can Master come and warm me up? Otherwise, I fear I will not see the sun tomorrow morning.”

Qingshi frowned and moved closer to touch Gu Jiuli’s body. Finding it indeed ice cold as he said, he opened his arms and embraced him.

Gu Jiuli used his right hand, which could barely move, to circle Qingshi’s waist. “Master, I am so happy.”

“You are in this state; what are you happy about?”

“To be able to die in the arms of the person I love is a worthy death.”

“…” Qingshi’s hands trembled slightly as he held him. “Do not keep talking about dying. Can you not say something good?”

Gu Jiuli smiled. “Alright. I once read a saying that one should give their heart and soul to their savior. Master, since you saved my life, how about I give myself to you?”

“Talk about this once you survive.”

“Then I will take that as your agreement.”

Gu Jiuli’s gaze gradually became empty, and his hand slipped powerlessly from Qingshi’s waist.

Sensing something was wrong, Qingshi shook him. “Gu Jiuli! Gu Jiuli! Do not sleep! Wake up! Gu Jiuli!”

In his panic, Qingshi suddenly heard shouts outside the cave. He quickly scrambled up and stumbled to the entrance to call for help loudly.

“Here! Someone is here!”

“It is Physician Song!”

“Physician Song, where is the General?”

Qingshi grabbed Li Ming and choked out, “Gu Jiuli is inside! Save him, quickly!”

When he heard them carrying Gu Jiuli out, Qingshi felt his heart relax and fainted.

“It is so cold.”

“Hold me for a moment, Master.”

“To be able to die in the arms of the person I love is a worthy death.”

“Gu Jiuli!” Qingshi sat up startled from his dream, then felt dull pain radiating from all over his body.

“Young Master Song, you are awake?” Li Ming’s voice came from beside the bed.

Ignoring the pain, Qingshi asked hurriedly, “Li Ming, Gu Jiuli… Jiuli, is he alright?”

Li Ming let out a sigh. “The General was seriously injured. Fortunately, his condition has stabilized. He woke up once and ordered me to watch over you.”

Qingshi grabbed the bedpost to support himself. “Can you take me to see him?”

“Alright. The General is right next door. Please follow me.”

After feeling Gu Jiuli’s slow but steady pulse, Qingshi’s tense nerves finally relaxed slightly. He held Gu Jiuli’s hand and muttered to himself in relief, “It is good that he is fine; it is good that he is fine.”

Although 886 had said that the male lead would be fine even if something happened to him, hearing it and experiencing it were truly two different things. No wonder they say the onlooker sees clearly while the person involved is confused; right now, he was exactly that confused person.

“Master, am I dreaming?”

Qingshi was suddenly pulled back from his thoughts. “Jiuli, you are awake?”

“It is not a dream.” He felt a return of pressure on his hand. “Master, are you alright?”

Qingshi did not know whether to laugh or cry. “I am fine. You should worry about yourself first.”

“That is good,” Gu Jiuli sighed.

Gu Jiuli lay in bed for an entire month before he could barely walk. His right leg fracture did not heal well, leaving him with a limp.

“Master, I am a cripple. You will not despise me, will you?” Gu Jiuli held his weak right leg and asked pitifully.

Qingshi was performing acupuncture on his injured leg at the time. “Do not worry; you will not be a cripple.”

Gu Jiuli stared dazed at Qingshi’s serious profile. “Master, regarding the matter of me giving myself to you that you agreed to last time, does it still count?”

Qingshi froze for a moment. “Why do you suddenly mention that?”

“It does not matter if it does not count. After all, in my current state, I am no longer worthy of Master,” Gu Jiuli said in a low tone.

Qingshi turned the needle and remained silent for a while before saying softly, “It counts.”

Anyway, it seemed his mission could not be completed. If he became a wandering ghost, so be it; at least for now, he was just Song Qingshi.

“Truly?!” Gu Jiuli’s eyes were full of disbelief. He could hardly believe his ears and gripped Qingshi’s hand tightly. “Qingshi, you are willing to marry me?”

Qingshi’s lips curved into a faint smile. “Did you not say you were giving yourself to me? It should be me marrying you.”

Gu Jiuli laughed loudly. “Fine, fine, fine! You shall marry me!”

Since Qingshi had relented, Gu Jiuli was in high spirits every day. His favorite thing to do was to pull him along to look at the things needed for the wedding.

He ran up and down on his limping leg, wanting nothing more than to announce the news to the whole world. He no longer had any of his previous steady demeanor.

The servants in the estate did not dare to stop their master. In the end, it was Qingshi who stepped in and ordered him to heal his injuries first before he finally quieted down.

During the period while Gu Jiuli was recovering, two sensational events occurred in Yan City.

One was that the Fifth Princess, Qi Fei, accidentally fell into the water during a banquet and was saved by Zhang Quan, the younger son of the Marquis of Ding’an. Since they were a well-matched couple and had shared physical contact, the Emperor directly bestowed a marriage contract upon them.

The other was that a concubine in the Fourth Prince’s estate reported that the Fourth Prince, Qi Jian, was raising private soldiers with the intent to rebel. Enraged, the Emperor demoted him to guard the imperial tombs.

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