The Rise of a General's Daughter-in-Law Doctor

The two arrived at the well. Li Muxia looked around, finding it very strange. This location was neither in the center of the village nor in a densely populated area; it was relatively remote. Logically, the villagers shouldn't have agreed to dig a well in this spot; it was simply too inconvenient.

Just then, a middle-aged man passed by, and Li Muxia stopped him and asked, "Uncle, hello, I have something to ask you. Did the villagers dig this well?"

Upon hearing this, the man looked over, and when he saw Dongfang Jincheng behind Li Muxia, he quickly knelt down and bowed, saying, "This humble subject, Wang Wu, greets Your Highness, Prince Rui."

Dongfang Jincheng nodded slightly and said, "Get up and answer."

Wang Wu then stood up, but he didn't dare to meet Dongfang Jincheng's gaze. He glanced at the well that Li Muxia was pointing to and said, "Your Highness, this well belongs to Wang Fugui's family."

Li Muxia was puzzled when she heard this: "Why is Wang Fugui's well outside the yard?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Wu quickly replied, "This well wasn't here at first. However, five years ago, a Taoist priest came to the village. After Wang Fugui had the priest look at it, he insisted on moving the well from the yard to this place. At first, everyone was quite opposed, fearing that the children might fall in while playing. So Wang Fugui went to the village chief, who is Wang Fugui's brother. In the end, everyone agreed out of respect for the village chief."

After listening, Li Muxia asked again, "So this well has always been used by Wang Fugui's family. Have any other villagers used it?"

Wang Wu: "Every household in the village has a well in their yard, so no one comes here to fetch water."

Upon hearing this, both Li Muxia and Dongfang Jincheng had the same thought: the people in this village are quite wealthy.

Having obtained the information she wanted, Li Muxia thanked Wang Wu, saying, "Uncle, thank you so much."

Upon hearing this, Wang Wu quickly waved his hand and said, "I dare not accept such praise. If there is nothing else, I will take my leave."

Upon seeing Dongfang Jincheng nod, Wang Wu quickly left.

Watching Wang Wu's departing figure, Li Muxia had a feeling that Wang Wu seemed to be very afraid of Dongfang Jincheng just now, which was different from the attitude of the widow Wang when they first came in towards Dongfang Jincheng.

For some reason, Li Muxia felt something was off. Thinking about it carefully, it seemed that since they came in, most of the men in the village, when they saw Dongfang Jincheng, felt more like a guilty fear than awe of the royal family.

However, the women and children in the village did not have these fears towards Dongfang Jincheng; they probably had more of awe for imperial power.

Unable to figure it out, Li Muxia stopped thinking about it and instead bent down to check the situation in the well.

What Li Muxia observed, Dongfang Jincheng naturally noticed as well, and fell into deep thought as he watched Wang Wu's back.

When they came to their senses, they saw that Li Muxia was almost halfway down the well.

Fearing that Li Muxia might fall, Dongfang Jincheng also bent down beside her to protect her safety.

Li Muxia was intently looking into the well, completely unaware that there was another person beside her.

It was very dark down in the well. You could see the reflection of the well water, but you still couldn't see what was going on down there. However, as Li Muxia approached the well, she smelled something. To smell it better, she pulled her mask down a little, exposing her nose.

Just as Li Muxia was intently smelling the well, Dongfang Jincheng's voice suddenly came from beside her: "Is there something wrong with this well?"

Li Muxia was startled by Dongfang Jincheng's sudden voice, and her hand slipped, causing her to fall towards the well.

Seeing this, Dongfang Jincheng quickly reached out and supported Li Muxia's shoulder to steady her.

After regaining his balance, he was still a little scared when he thought about how he had almost fallen in. He slowly straightened up and turned to thank Dongfang Jincheng.

However, when she turned her head, she was met with Dongfang Jincheng's approaching face and met his deep eyes, which inexplicably made her heart skip a beat.

Their eyes met, and Li Muxia seemed to see something in Dongfang Jincheng's eyes, something that flashed by so quickly that she couldn't catch it.

Dongfang Jincheng hadn't expected Li Muxia to suddenly approach. The two were so close that he could feel her breath on his face, making him gasp for air.

He could clearly see Li Muxia's distinct eyelashes, like small fans, and her lively eyes, which seemed to be filled with countless stars. His throat bobbed involuntarily. If it weren't for the mask, Dongfang Jincheng would have been unable to control his urge to kiss her.

This intimacy lasted only a moment. Li Muxia quickly straightened up and took a step back to increase the distance between them.

Dongfang Jincheng felt a void in his heart, his eyes filled with disappointment and the sting of being deliberately distanced by Li Muxia.

Li Muxia pulled her mask up above her nose, cupped her hands, and said, "Thank you for saving me, Your Highness."

No one could see Li Muxia's flushed face beneath the mask.

Fortunately, they were wearing masks, so neither of them could see each other's expressions.

The atmosphere was quiet and somewhat awkward. Li Muxia broke the silence first: "Your Highness, I suspect there might be something down in the well. May I send someone down to take a look?"

Upon hearing this, Dongfang Jincheng asked, "What did you just see?"

Li Muxia: "It's too dark down in the well, I can't see clearly. However, when I approached the well opening just now, I smelled a putrid odor. I suspect there might be dead rats or other animal carcasses in the well."

Dongfang Jincheng looked at Li Muxia and said "okay," then waved to the two soldiers in the distance.

The two men stepped forward and bowed to Dongfang Jincheng, saying, "Your Highness."

Dongfang Jincheng didn't look at the two of them; his gaze remained fixed on Li Muxia.

"The Immortal Physician said there's something down there, you two go down and take a look."

The two men acknowledged the order and said "Yes," before proceeding down the well.

One soldier was lowered into the well with a rope tied around his waist, while another soldier held the rope at the wellhead, controlling the speed at which the soldier descended.

Li Muxia felt awkward because Dongfang Jincheng's gaze was fixed on her. She pretended to walk to the well and looked into it.

Dongfang Jincheng naturally noticed Li Muxia's avoidance of him, sighed inwardly, and looked into the well as well.

Not long after, the soldiers who had gone down into the well shouted, "Your Highness, there's something in the well!"

Upon hearing this, Dongfang Jincheng ordered, "Bring it up."

The soldiers above pulled the man up with all their might, and soon they saw the soldier who had gone down the well come up, carrying a package in his hand.

As they went down into the well, several villagers who were passing by gathered around.

As soon as the soldiers arrived, everyone smelled a stench of decay. Even with masks on, the smell still seeped into everyone's nostrils, and those around them covered their noses and backed away, whispering among themselves.

When the package was opened, the smell became even more pungent. After seeing what was inside, several women couldn't help but squat down and vomit.

The package indeed contained a bunch of dead rats.