Her cheeks burned, her breath was hot, and she couldn’t quite make sense of it all.
Min Ning extended a hand to help her up, and as his hand made contact, the female Prince’s entire body trembled. Her breath was feverish, as if heat radiated from every pore.
"This place isn’t safe. There’s a small building up ahead. Let’s head there," Min Ning said, supporting her.
Qin Qingluo nodded faintly, responding weakly, "Alright."
Soon after, the two arrived at the secluded building in the forest. Inside, the decor was simple yet elegant. A screen painted with lotus flowers stood in place, an ancient zither rested in a corner, silk drapes cascaded to the ground, and a refined wooden table bore a set of tea. In the bedroom upstairs, the bed was draped with crimson silk; it seed to be the private quarters of so lady, though whose was unclear.
Min Ning helped Qin Qingluo onto the bed. After the female Prince lay down, she had to curl her legs up, as the bed was barely over seven feet long. Her chest heaved uncontrollably, and her gasping breaths ca one after another.
From within the boudoir, the faint sound of a rushing stream could be heard nearby. The view outside the window was tranquil and refined. Turning back, Min Ning’s gaze landed on a weapon rack, where a Yanling Saber lay horizontally. It seed to belong to so martial arts-trained lady residing here.
There was a dressing mirror crafted from sandalwood in the bedroom, and a letter on the desk caught Min Ning’s eye. A glance revealed the words "Received by Dong Gong Ruoshu." While he couldn’t be sure who it referred to, he assud it was the na of the boudoir’s owner.
He didn’t dwell on it and quickly turned his attention back to Qin Qingluo, who had curled her body up tightly, her thighs rubbing against each other uneasily.
"Let apply so dicine for you," Min Ning said hurriedly.
Qin Qingluo murmured in agreent, doing her best to stay calm as she slowly loosened the collar of her garnt.
Min Ning retrieved a dicine bottle from his pocket. Without a second thought, he poured out the ointnt and spread it gently, aiming to ensure the application was even and thorough.
Yet, Qin Qingluo didn’t seem to improve. Her breathing grew sharper, her serpent-like pupils fogged and dazed:
"My qi and blood... My qi and blood are surging wildly. I tried to suppress it, but it’s no use... Could it be the dicine properties are conflicting?"
Min Ning’s expression turned to bewildernt upon hearing this. The golden sore dicine passed down in her family had always been nearly infallible, gentle in nature and harmonious with other dicinal substances. Why was it causing a clash this ti?
She held the jade dicine bottle and tried to discern the reason, but suddenly her breath caught.
Min Ning hurriedly patted around her own garnts. Ultimately, from the inner lining of her pocket, she pulled out another jade dicine bottle that looked nearly identical.
She opened the stopper to sniff carefully, and her face changed drastically.
It was the golden sore dicine...
This was bad...
If this was the golden sore dicine, then what had she applied to her?
Min Ning froze in place, while Qin Qingluo looked a little dazed, her voice hoarse as she asked:
"What... What happened..."
Min Ning’s complexion paled further with the question. She clenched her fists and struck her own thigh, unable to evade the bla, her guilt evident:
"I... It’s my fault, Your Highness. I’ve wronged you..."
She had been so startled earlier by the figure who resembled her elder sister that she mistakenly grabbed the wrong dicine...
Min Ning took a deep breath and gazed at Qin Qingluo, her face full of unease...
This Jade Spring Ointnt’s effects were unimaginably potent...
The Prince’s martial arts were at Fourth Rank—whether she could endure this was uncertain.
Qin Qingluo’s serpent-like pupils widened slightly, just as she was about to say sothing. Yet, before any words could escape, her throat seed to clog.
Her voice stuck in her throat...
Soon after, she pounded her chest fiercely, trying to cough sothing up.
However, perhaps due to the toxin in her system, she experienced a sensation of sothing sliding down her throat.
Seeing this, Min Ning stepped forward and lightly patted her back. Qin Qingluo’s condition seed dire, and Min Ning called out urgently:
"I-I’ll go find Chen Yi!"
"...N-No... No!"
The dazed female Prince suddenly seed to claw her way out of an abyss, her teeth gritting as she hissed:
"...Over my dead body will you call him!"
Hatred stacked high in her serpent-like pupils.
..................
After Chen Yi’s mont of fury, Zhu E temporarily felt satisfied.
She took two panting breaths, sprang up, and exclaid tensely: "My lord, the Prince—the Prince!"
Even without Zhu E clarifying, Chen Yi discerned the abnormality from her expression. "She’s affected by spring dicine?"
Zhu E nodded repeatedly.
Chen Yi listened, questions swirling in his mind, before turning to ask Zhou Yitang. However, the one-ard woman had vanished without a trace, as if avoiding the matter, or simply unwilling to confront it.
Chen Yi chuckled bitterly and asked, "Where is she?"
Zhu E closed her eyes as if sensing sothing. Monts later, she pointed out a direction to Chen Yi.
Chen Yi nodded imdiately, then crouched down before Zhu E.
Seeing this, Princess An Nan’s eyes widened in surprise. Chen Yi glanced back at her and smiled, saying, "What are you waiting for? Get on."
Zhu E snapped out of it and responded softly, placing herself onto his back. Chen Yi adjusted her position before carrying her.
Afterward, he took a deep breath and began to channel Qinggong.
Chen Yi’s figure flickered through the forest, his steps swift.
He didn’t even understand why he was hurrying so much; his heart was suspended in anxiety, yearning to reach the destination quickly.
Even though Zhou Yitang had told him it wasn’t a matter of great urgency...
He simply couldn’t calm his heart.
Perhaps it was because she was the first woman in the world carrying his child.
Even if they were still enemies.
Zhu E clung to his back as his figure bobbed atop the treetops. She could see the concern in Chen Yi’s eyes, her heart caught between lancholy and warmth.
lancholy because of how much he cared for Qin Qingluo, and warmth for the sa reason.
She couldn’t help but recall the hairpins he had given the two won and felt an inexplicable pang of guilt toward her niece.
Could there be any way where everyone could find peace?
Zhu E didn’t know. For a fleeting mont, she wished all three of them could live well.
Already a Fourth Rank Martial Artist, he had long grasped the essence of the "Speed" character tied to his killing blade. Zhu E rembered how, at the peak of his entry into Fourth Rank, even the renowned Tongbei Divine Ape of the Jianghu couldn’t keep up with his saber technique. Now, Chen Yi had fully integrated blade technique and movent. Within Zhu E’s montary thoughts, he leapt far away; his figure flickered through the forest, sotis vanishing and sotis reappearing.
When Chen Yi finally arrived, he set Zhu E down and caught sight of the small building. Without hesitation, he strode inside.
Even from the first floor, he could hear the sound of rapid breathing.
Likewise, the female figure in the upstairs bedroom seed to have heard sothing.
A panicked voice rang out:
"Don’t—don’t let him co up!"
Along with the voice appeared Min Ning, dressed in her Flying Fish uniform. Her face was full of guilt.
When she saw Chen Yi, Min Ning hesitated briefly but said:
"She... She..."
Chen Yi strode up the stairs, waving his hand dismissively as he said:
"Don’t worry, I’m here."
Min Ning recalled the female Prince’s order. The Prince had treated her with generosity, so she couldn’t help but block him, saying:
"She doesn’t want you to co up."
Chen Yi demanded directly, "And do you want to?"
Min Ning froze montarily, knowing full well what kind of dicine Qin Qingluo had ingested. Judging from the state she was in, the dicine’s potency was shockingly intense. The Jade Spring Ointnt, delivered from the Scene Benevolence Palace to Min Ming, wasn’t ordinary at all. But letting things drag on wasn’t any solution either.
Yet, the thought of Chen Yi stepping in to intervene unsettled Min Ning deeply.
After all, this female Prince was equally valiant and commanding.
Min Ning furrowed her delicate yet resolute brows, silent and unmoving. She blocked the staircase.
But Chen Yi, naturally understanding how to deal with such young heroes, said:
"The effects of this dicine are too potent. If the Prince’s ridians rupture, all martial arts will vanish, and she’ll beco a cripple. What will you do then?"
Exploiting Min Ning’s guilt, Chen Yi’s voice carried a faint persistence.
Min Ning hesitated, instinctively shifting to make way halfway.
"H-he’s... lying. I can endure this... I... can..."
Qin Qingluo possessed an inch of glazed light protecting her body. Even if her ridians shattered, she could recover. Moreover, despite the Jade Spring Ointnt’s potency, it was rely for external use and wouldn’t damage her muscles or bones.
But Min Ning didn’t know.
When she heard those words, Chen Yi had already stepped past her.
He pushed open the door,
and saw a heroic face flushed red. The female Prince was forcing herself to rise, her presence overwhelming, like a giant serpent coiled atop a mountain—ferocious and brimming with murderous intent!
Chen Yi quietly shut the door,
and a sinister grin crept across his face.
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