THIP Chapter 55

[Mission Target: Mu Qingzhi]

[Main Quest 1: Heal Mu Qingzhi’s legs]
[Main Quest 2: Prevent the fall of the Great Chu Dynasty]
[Host Identity: Divine Doctor — Shi Wuyin]
[Note: Click here to view this world’s storyline]

Mu Qingzhi is the Ninth Princess of the Great Chu Dynasty. At sixteen, the late emperor bestowed upon her the title of Princess Qi. The current empress of Great Chu, Mu Yinglan, is her full elder sister.

When the emperor died two years later, Mu Yinglan ascended the throne. However, her reign began during a time of great unrest — foreign invasions and internal strife threatened to tear the dynasty apart.

To ease her sister’s burdens and stabilize the border regions, Mu Qingzhi volunteered to lead a military campaign.

The war lasted three years. When she finally returned victorious, the entire nation knew Princess Qi as the war hero who had saved Great Chu.

To avoid arousing her sister’s jealousy, Mu Qingzhi voluntarily relinquished her military authority and became a quiet, idle noble. But two years later, the Yue Dynasty instigated another war. Mu Yinglan, once again, handed the command back to her and asked her to lead the troops.

Mu Qingzhi agreed.

After winning the war, she was ambushed on her way back to the capital. Although her life was spared, her already-injured legs were stabbed with a dagger coated in a rare poison. Because of the delay in treatment, the imperial physicians later declared the damage irreversible.

Using this as an excuse to ensure she would “recover in peace,” Empress Mu Yinglan stripped her of all military power.

Countless doctors, both from the palace and the common folk, were summoned to treat Princess Qi, but none could help. A year later, a man known as the “Greatest Physician of the Martial World” — Shi Wuyin — was brought in. In this world, Shi Wuyin is the vessel for Mu Liuyin’s consciousness.

Shi Wuyin was originally the seventh prince of the Yue Dynasty, a rival state to Great Chu. His mother came from the famed Medical Valley of the martial world, and from a young age, he displayed an incredible talent for medicine. His fame as a divine doctor spread far and wide.

Mu Qingzhi had handed the Yue Dynasty two consecutive defeats and forced them to sign numerous unfavorable treaties. So when word reached Shi Wuyin that the princess had been crippled by an assassination attempt, he grew curious and came to Great Chu under the guise of a physician. Once his name began circulating in the capital, he was invited to the Qi Princess’s manor to treat her.

After examining her, he confirmed that she had indeed been poisoned. He had no intention of curing her at first, but the poison used on Mu Qingzhi was unlike anything he’d ever encountered. Intrigued, he spent several months researching it and ultimately discovered it was a toxin unique to the royal family of Great Chu.

This meant that Empress Mu Yinglan had tried to kill her sister.

Although Mu Qingzhi was now crippled and confined to a wheelchair, her beauty, character, and unyielding spirit captivated Shi Wuyin. He didn’t want her to die. Yet he also feared that if he healed her and she later reclaimed the throne, it could ruin the Yue Dynasty’s plans for conquest — after all, she was the only one who had ever defeated them.

So Shi Wuyin secretly sent word back to the Yue Dynasty that Princess Qi was truly disabled and no longer a threat. Then he arranged for someone to abduct her and bring her to the Yue Dynasty.

Mu Qingzhi was imprisoned in Shi Wuyin’s private residence. Over the course of two years, he successfully developed an antidote and cured her legs, but not before destroying her internal cultivation.

Without Mu Qingzhi’s leadership, Great Chu fell into rapid decline. The empire lacked capable generals, and with an empty treasury and no allies, it suffered defeat after defeat under the relentless assault of the Yue Dynasty, which no longer honored the fifty-year peace treaty.

When Great Chu finally fell, Empress Mu Yinglan took her own life in the palace, filled with remorse for poisoning her sister.

Meanwhile, Mu Qingzhi — still confined within Shi Wuyin’s secluded estate — succumbed to grief within half a year after learning of her country’s destruction.

Upon finishing the mission briefing, Mu Liuyin had two immediate reactions. First: the mission target’s name was Qingzhi! Second: her host body this time was a yandere!

Her gaze lingered on the name Mu Qingzhi. Memories from the real world stirred within her, but the person from that world was long gone.

Qingzhi… Qingzhi…

Mu Liuyin moved her lips, as if wanting to ask Xiao Jiu something, but in the end, said nothing.

She already knew the answer would be the same as always: “I don’t know.”

She got out of bed, dressed, and had just retrieved her medicine kit when someone from Princess Qi’s manor arrived.

Mu Liuyin stepped out of her room and gave a polite nod to the visitor.

By the time she arrived at the manor, Mu Qingzhi was already seated in the courtyard in a custom-made wheelchair.

It was midsummer, and the princess’s residence was lush and full of life, with blooming flowers and vibrant greenery.

The moment Mu Liuyin saw her, she couldn’t hide her shock.

Princess Qi wore a soft blue robe. Her brows were gently arched, her lashes long and dark, her pale eyes like polished crystal. With skin as fair as jade, she sat calmly, her expression composed and serene. When their gazes met, there was even a hint of polite warmth in Mu Qingzhi’s eyes.

At first glance, she looked nothing like a warrior — more like a delicate scholar. Yet despite her beauty and disability, there was something dignified and untouchable about her. Her presence was so refined, so transcendent, that even the best artist in the world wouldn’t be able to capture a tenth of her grace.

What shocked Mu Liuyin the most wasn’t the woman’s beauty—it was her face. It was exactly the same as that person’s.

But no matter how similar she looked, she still wasn’t her.

—That constantly infuriating person with an always-punchable face.

As the shock faded from her eyes, Mu Liuyin felt her throat dry out a little.

“Your Highness, Princess Qi,” she greeted softly.

Mu Qingzhi noticed the fading astonishment in her eyes and curved her lips in a gentle smile. Her voice was as soft and smooth as water, clear and calming. “Doctor Shi.”

The sound of her voice felt like it resonated straight into one’s soul. Mu Liuyin thought to herself, no wonder her original host, Shi Wuyin, had fallen for this woman. Someone this dazzling—who wouldn’t?

If it weren’t for the fact that she looked exactly like that jerk from the real world, and even had the same name, Mu Liuyin might’ve worried she was going to fall for her.

It was said that before Mu Qingzhi was crippled, many young noblemen were hoping to marry her. She was even more sought-after than the Empress herself. And even after her injury, her striking looks, noble demeanor, and wartime achievements still made her one of the most admired bachelorettes in the empire. Plenty of men were still lining up to marry her.

Mu Liuyin paused.

Wait a second—men lining up to marry her?

Then she remembered that in this world, every imperial throne, no matter the kingdom, was ruled by a woman.

A bad feeling began to creep over her. She asked Xiao Jiu silently in her mind: This world… don’t tell me it’s a matriarchy?

The words “matriarchal society” felt painfully hard for her to say.

【Yup, it’s a matriarchy. 】 Xiao Jiu nodded enthusiastically, confirming her suspicions.

Mu Liuyin: …MMP! (She cursed internally.)

Give me back my female body, dammit!!!

Seeing Mu Liuyin’s blank expression, Mu Qingzhi raised an eyebrow. She couldn’t help but feel that this young doctor seemed… a little unhappy.

Mu Liuyin followed her into the main hall. After they sat down, she began to take Mu Qingzhi’s pulse.

Though this society was modeled on ancient dynasties, it was far more liberal than historical times. And since Mu Liuyin’s host body was a doctor, Mu Qingzhi didn’t hesitate to offer her wrist, even though he was a man.

As Mu Liuyin’s warm, slender fingers pressed lightly against her wrist, Mu Qingzhi found herself a little stunned. Aside from her father, this was the first time she had been this physically close to a man.

If Mu Liuyin didn’t know the full plot ahead of time and only had the host’s memories to go by, she probably wouldn’t have been able to tell what kind of poison it was either. But even knowing it, she had no intention of revealing it just yet.

She removed her hand from Mu Qingzhi’s wrist and furrowed her brow as if deep in thought. “Your Highness, the poison has been in your body too long—it’s already seeped into your bones. While the medicines you’ve been taking have slowed the damage, if it’s delayed another half year, it may become completely incurable.”

“You have a way to cure it?” Mu Qingzhi caught the key detail immediately. Her voice was calm, but there was a hint of quiet joy in it.

Mu Liuyin nodded. “Though I haven’t yet identified the exact nature of the poison, I’d like to examine your legs in your room, if Your Highness doesn’t mind.”

“All right.” Mu Qingzhi’s voice was low and pleasant.

Both of her legs bore vicious, grotesque scars that stood out starkly against her pale skin. They were painful just to look at—it was hard to imagine how much she must have suffered when they were inflicted.

Perhaps due to her martial arts background and the daily massages and medicines, her legs hadn’t atrophied despite a year of disuse. If not for the fact that she remained in a wheelchair, they looked almost indistinguishable from normal legs.

Mu Liuyin found herself touching them longer than she should have—the skin beneath her fingers was soft and smooth.

“Doctor Shi, are you finished?” Mu Qingzhi’s calm voice flowed gently from above, giving away no emotion.

Mu Liuyin pulled her hand back, slightly embarrassed, then stood and nodded.

“Give me two months. I’ll do my best to develop an antidote,” she said.

Mu Qingzhi’s voice was mild. “But Doctor Shi, you don’t seem to know what the poison is yet.”

“That’s why I’ll need the first month to consult the texts,” Mu Liuyin replied with a slight smile.

In her mind, she thought: I should be the one asking you that. Why don’t you know what poison your royal family is using?

Mu Qingzhi blinked in surprise. The way Mu Liuyin said it was so confident—this poison, which had stumped countless doctors, and she was talking like she just needed two months? But for some reason, Mu Qingzhi found herself believing her.

She smiled faintly. “Then I’ll leave it to you, Doctor Shi.”

“And so, Your Highness,” Mu Liuyin grinned, “shouldn’t you prepare a guest room for me to stay in?”

Mu Qingzhi paused, then chuckled softly. This doctor was indeed different from those bashful young men who blushed at just a glance from her.