"You... mmph..." Zhong Li's words were cut off as a sharp pain shot through her shoulder. No matter how hard she tried to open her mouth, not a sound escaped. She knew her pressure points had been sealed by this man.
Immediately, she felt the world spin. The next thing she knew, her rear end stung, and she was unceremoniously tossed onto the bed in the inner chamber.
Lu Wuxie stood by the bed, a roguish smile plastered on his face, gazing at her. "What am I doing? I carried you to the bed, what do you think I'm doing?"
Zhong Li narrowed her eyes, her gaze a naked warning.
Lu Wuxie chose to ignore it and reached for her.
Unable to speak or move, Zhong Li refused to be violated. She quickly closed her eyes, adopting a look of resigned defiance.
However, after a long time, she realized her clothes hadn't been touched. As she wondered, a man's light laughter echoed from across the room. The next moment, a quilt with a faint scent of sandalwood was draped over her.
Simultaneously, a brand new quilt beside her was picked up.
Immobile, Zhong Li could only open her eyes and look towards the quilt. She saw that Lu Wuxie had, at some point, spread the new quilt on the spot she had just cleaned and was now lying down.
"Your pressure points will be unsealed in an hour. You need to rest well," Lu Wuxie's voice sounded at that moment.
Zhong Li looked at his back, a faint warmth passing through her heart.
The night at Lingshan Temple was quiet. Occasionally, a night owl would flit past the window, emitting a low hoot, but it couldn't wake the man sleeping on the floor.
Lu Wuxie knelt by the bed, gazing at the pale-faced, rapidly breathing woman on the couch. A judge's brush was inserted into her chest, faint traces of blood clinging to it. Her face, once stunningly beautiful with a gentle demeanor, was now contorted in pain.
"Mother..." he whispered, his voice choked.
As if hearing his cry, the woman on the couch stirred. Her tightly closed lashes trembled slightly, as if she wanted to force them open, but ultimately failed.
"Mother!" Lu Wuxie's voice grew louder, attempting to awaken the will of the person on the couch.
This time, the response came from behind him: "Xie'er, quickly make way. Your father has invited the best imperial physician from the palace to tend to your mother's wound. Rest assured, Xia'er will be fine."
Lu Wuxie turned his head, and Lu Fengyang's handsome face met his gaze.
He remained silent, rising and standing obediently to the side.
At the same time, the imperial physician, carrying a medicine chest, approached the couch. He took a silk handkerchief from the box, placed it on Xie Yunxia's wrist, and began to take her pulse.
Time passed swiftly, yet in Lu Wuxie's heart, it felt as long as a lifetime.
When the imperial physician stood up, Lu Wuxie, disregarding his status at the moment, stepped forward, seized the physician's arm, and asked, "How is it?"
The imperial physician cupped his hands towards Lu Wuxie and said, "The Princess Consort's injuries are severe, especially the blade wound which has affected her heart's pulse. Immediate treatment is necessary."
"Good, then hurry!" the two men in the room, who looked remarkably similar but differed in age, said one after another.
The imperial physician bowed to them again. "Then I must trouble the Prince, the Heir Apparent, and everyone else in the room to withdraw. I require quiet to administer acupuncture and stop the bleeding to save her."
Lu Fengyang and Lu Wuxie exchanged glances. Though they didn't understand the physician's reasoning, as long as it could wake the person on the couch, they were willing to comply.
Lu Fengyang waved his hand, and everyone in the room, obeying the command, followed him out of the chamber.
Lu Wuxie had never been so anxious in his life. He paced incessantly by the door, occasionally feeling worried and pressing his ear to the door to listen. Yet... he heard nothing.
As the day waned and the sunset painted half of the Prince Xian's estate in hues of red, the door separating him from his mother finally opened.
"How is it?" Lu Wuxie rushed to the imperial physician, who was just wiping sweat from his brow.
The imperial physician looked deeply at Lu Wuxie, sighed, and shook his head. "I am sorry, Heir Apparent. This old physician did his best, but the wound affected the liver and spleen, coupled with the Princess Consort's excessive blood loss, there was no way to save her."
"What?" Lu Wuxie was stunned. He had waited outside all day, only to receive this outcome?
Impossible! The thought flashed through his mind. He bypassed the imperial physician still blocking the doorway and rushed into the room.
Carved beams and jade pillars, the scent of lilies, the familiar room, the familiar aroma. But on the couch, a large red peony bloomed across the person, a cold corpse.
Lu Wuxie felt the world spin. He stumbled towards her, taking her hand, wishing she would poke his forehead with that look of helplessness, admonishing him on the ways of life, but he knew it was all a futile fantasy.
"Heir Apparent, please accept my condolences." Just as his vision began to blur, a familiar, choked voice sounded in his ear.
He thought he had misheard. Startled, he turned, only to find Xie Yunxi standing steadily behind him, dressed in a rose-colored wedding gown. Her features were alluring, so much like the person on the couch, yet her demeanor was worlds apart.
"Get out!" He closed his eyes coldly and barked.
Xie Yunxi froze, but then, at the next moment, she let out a soft laugh. "Heir Apparent, why are you still in the dark? You..."
"Heir Apparent, Heir Apparent?"
"Lu Wuxie, Lu Wuxie."
Lu Wuxie lay on the ground, sweat beading on his forehead. Suddenly, someone was calling him.
He quickly opened his eyes and, in one motion, grabbed the hand that was about to touch his cheek.
The warmth of the woman's fingertips traveled through his slightly chilled hand, reaching his entire body.
In that instant, he was completely awake. He saw the person before him clearly. The woman's dark hair cascaded over her shoulders. Her presence was like an orchid in a secluded valley. As her thin lips parted and she gasped for breath, a faint, refreshing medicinal scent wafted into his nostrils. If it wasn't Zhong Li, who else could it be?
"Li'er..." he gasped, slowly sitting up. Cold sweat trickled down his neck and onto his chest.
"Having a nightmare?" Zhong Li's voice was light, yet her concern was evident.
Lu Wuxie remained silent, supporting his forehead with one hand, massaging his temples.
Suddenly, he felt a slight ache in his neck. The next moment, he realized Zhong Li had already moved behind him and was inserting a golden needle into his Fengchi acupoint.
"This..."
"Shh," Zhong Li hushed him. Then, she inserted needles into several major acupoints on Lu Wuxie's temples, temples, temples, and valleys.
"How long has your head been hurting?" she asked him, busy with her task.
Lu Wuxie looked down at his palm, which had just held Zhong Li's hand, and remained silent. It wasn't that he didn't want to answer, but... he didn't know how. This question might not be difficult for others, but for him, it was harder than climbing to heaven.
"It didn't hurt before," he thought for a long time, finding only this sentence as a somewhat reasonable answer.
"Is it related to the nightmares?" Zhong Li asked again. If she remembered correctly, she and Lu Wuxie had known each other for about a month, and out of the nights they spent together, he had nightmares three times. What did this indicate?
Lu Wuxie had been plagued by nightmares.
However, he was only twenty-two years old. What kind of experiences could cause him such nightly fear?
Lu Wuxie fell silent again. After an unknown period, he said, "Did you hear anything, Li'er?"
Zhong Li paused in her movements as she withdrew the needles upon hearing his question.
Only after she had completely removed all the golden needles inserted into him did she slowly begin to speak. "You were murmuring your father's name."
Upon hearing this, Lu Wuxie's strong hands gripped the quilt tightly.
Zhong Li glanced at his subtle movement, then got up, tidied the golden needles, and turned to enter the adjoining chamber a few steps away.
When she emerged again, she was dressed in black, with half a silk handkerchief covering her nose and mouth.
"Where are you going?" Lu Wuxie, now completely awake, had just put on his outer robe and was about to drink tea. Seeing Zhong Li dressed like this, he frowned and asked.
"The Great Hall of Buddhas."