Free Web NovelChapter 184: With the Emperor’s Blessing
Finally, it was the promised time for me to meet up with Shin. I followed the instructions in his note to the letter. I stood at the waiting place just like he had instructed with the bag that I had carefully packed. Did I get here a little too early because I don’t see Shin in sight.
Suddenly, I felt a soft tap on my shoulder. Quickly, I whirled around to see Shin standing right behind me. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that one of the empire’s leading generals could sneak up on me like this. Shin held a finger to his lips as he signaled for me to remain silent. I nodded my head in acknowledgement. Shin gestured with his hand for me to follow after him.
I never knew that such a narrow and secretive passage existed in the palace. Although, I haven’t been travelling around the palace much except for the route from my palace to the hospital and to Ren’s palace. Silently, I followed closely behind Shin as he led the way. The path clearly wasn’t a commonly used one because we didn’t run into anyone on our way there.
“We’re here,” Shin said softly when we reached our destination.
To my surprise, the narrowed path led us right to where large wagons were being loaded. There were many horses tied up to wagons while many things were being loaded onto them. I could make out food, tools, medicine, weapons amongst other things. It was clear that the men were in a hurry as they pushed to meet the deadline of the departure time. Among the wagons were wagons that would transport medical equipment and the medical team.
“Thank you for this, Shin,” I thanked him softly as I stood by his side.
“I’m not doing this for you. Since we still have a little time before you need to board that wagon, let me explain so that we’re clear,” Shin said sternly.
“Umm...ok...” I whispered, feeling slightly confused.
“To be honest, I’m only letting you go on this journey because I think that you will make it safer for Ren,” Shin said.
“What do you mean?” I asked, not following his line of thought at all.
“If you’re there, Ren will think more than twice before he does any reckless things. He will worry about you and your safety. Keeping you safe will become his first priority. If you being there can keep him from joining the frontlines in battle, then having you there will be more than worth it,” Shin explained.
“You want to use me to...tie Ren down?” I asked still in disbelief.
Will an idea as crazy and ridiculous as this even work?
“The emperor agrees with me as well. We’re willing to do whatever it takes to keep Ren from joining the frontlines in battle. When I told the emperor that you could be of use in this regard; he immediately agreed to my proposal,” Shin said, sounding quite proud of himself.
“I see...” I murmured softly.
It wasn’t the reason that I had expected, and it clearly wasn’t a noble reason; however, I was desperate enough that I didn’t care what other people thought. Other people may not value me or my medical skills but that’s fine. They may not see me as having any real value in this battle but that’s fine. I’m happy to go on this journey even if everyone views me as someone to keep Ren in check.
Not that I was certain that keeping him in check was even possible...
“Good. Do you best. The emperor and I have very high hopes for you,” Shin said before smiling at me.
I smiled back as I nodded. Of course, I didn’t dare tell him that I’ve tried to stop Ren countless times that we even got into many major arguments because of it. Not once, was I successful in convincing Ren to stay off the battlefield. But then again, not once was Ren able to convince me to give up my medical training and my dream of being a field doctor. We’re both just that stubborn.
“I’ll do my best,” I said with conviction. Although my best probably wasn’t fully aligned with what the emperor and Shin would consider ‘best’.
“You don’t need to help out with the packing and loading. Just get on that wagon with the medical logo over there. Do you see it?” Shin said as he pointed his finger towards a wagon.
“Yes...I see it,” I said.
“Good. I know that you’re close to Doctor Kai, so I’ve requested for him to lead the field doctors on this journey. He’ll take care of you too. I didn’t tell him that you’re coming along so he might be surprised at first though,” Shin said before he grinned at me.
I knew it! Despite all his scheming, Shin is actually a very kind and considerate person.
“Thank you. It makes me feel so much better knowing that he will be there with me,” I thanked him happily.
“Get on the wagon now. I won’t leave until I see that you do,” Shin said as he pointed a finger at the wagon.
“Ok. I’ll...be seeing you then...” I said.
Shin just smiled and waved his hand at me. I turned and walked straight to the wagon that Shin had pointed to. Once I had boarded the wagon, I was greeted with many pairs of very shocked and widen eyes. Clearly, no one in the medical team that was being dispatched was notified of the fact that I would be joining them. Among them was Doctor Kai, who also looked as surprised as the rest of the other Royal Doctors and helpers.
“Hi guys...” I said before smiling a little shyly at them.
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The wagon wasn’t small but with the many people and things packed inside, it was far from a comfortable ride. The wagon had long benches on both sides where we sat. The medical team were split into many wagons and overall, there were around thirty of us according to Doctor Kai. Thankfully he was able to recover from his shock and briefed me on the details of the mission.
Around thirty doctors have embarked on this journey. There were five Royal Doctors while the rest were doctors with battlefield qualifications such as me. In addition, there were around twenty other medical helpers. That made a total of fifty people in the medical team that would support Ren’s army. That was quite a high number compared to the number of medical personnel that we had in our town. freeωebnovēl.c૦m
--To be continued...
