Chapter 37 A Secret Rendezvous. Why does she have to take him everywhere she goes? ...

Upon hearing the noise, Lu Qingyue quickly ran a few steps towards the bedside.

Then, remembering the difference between men and women, she stopped in her tracks and hurriedly asked the maid beside her, "What's wrong, sister?"

Before the maid could reply, Lu Zhouxue's hoarse voice came from behind the bed curtains, "I'm fine."

The bed curtains swayed a few times, indicating that Lu Zhouxue wanted to pull them open. Upon seeing this, the maidservants quickly stepped forward and pulled the curtains up to the left and right, hanging them on the gold hooks.

Behind the curtain, Lu Zhouxue lay face down on the bed, her face as white as paper. The whipping had struck her back, and the blood flowing from the wounds seeped into her white clothes, covering her from the back of her neck to her waist, almost completely covered in bright red.

The stench of blood that had been blocked earlier rushed to the group in an instant.

"General."

When Lu Zhouxue saw Lu Songyuan arrive, she thought of getting up.

"Don't move."

Lu Songyuan turned his head and instructed the maid, "Go and summon the doctor."

"yes."

The maid bowed and ran out.

Lu Qingyue strode to the bedside. Looking at Lu Zhouxue's injuries, his eyes reddened, and he called out "Sister" again, saying, "Weren't most of your wounds healed yesterday? How come they've reopened today..."

Lu Qingyue suddenly stopped and asked, "You just accompanied the princess to the palace?"

Lu Zhouxue pursed her lips, nodded, and said, "Mm."

Lu Qingyue was furious, "Sister!"

Lu Zhouxue pursed her lips and glanced at Lu Songyuan.

It was because she told Jing Hui about the jade pendant that Lu Songyuan had been drunk for so many days, and she was now too ashamed to look at him.

Furthermore, following Jing Hui was Lu Songyuan's order, and since he hadn't spoken, Lu Zhouxue naturally dared not disobey.

Lu Qingyue looked at Lu Songyuan, who looked at her for a moment and asked, "What else did she ask you?"

"Only the jade pendant matter."

Lu Zhouxue looked at him with deep remorse. “It was my fault. I almost caused a terrible mistake. Please punish me, General.”

"It was indeed a close call."

Lu Songyuan leaned back in his wheelchair, twirled his fingers, and said, "You should take good care of your injuries."

Lu Zhouxue was startled.

When she was young, she was nearly killed by wolves but was saved by Lu Songyuan. She followed Lu Songyuan through thick and thin, and her biggest fear was not being valued by him.

"General."

Lu Zhouxue quickly said, "Please punish me, General!"

As they were talking, they even tried to get out of bed to bow.

"Sister!"

Lu Qingyue quickly stopped him.

Just then, the doctor from the corridor arrived. Lu Songyuan frowned and said, "You can stay with her after you recover from your injuries. If it happens again, you should return to the Northern Border."

Lu Zhouxue froze, looked at Lu Songyuan for a moment, then bowed and said, "Yes, I will remember this and will not do it again. Thank you, General."

After the two finished speaking, Lu Qingyue quickly got up and invited the doctor in.

Because of the struggle, a lot of blood had seeped out from Lu Zhouxue's back. After a consultation, the doctor changed Lu Zhouxue's dressing and wrote two prescriptions. After giving instructions, he bowed to everyone and then withdrew.

With only three people left in the room, Lu Qingyue finally breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that Lu Zhouxue was feeling better.

He poured Lu Songyuan a cup of tea. "General, please have some tea."

Lu Songyuan stood up, stretched his legs, picked up the cup of tea, and sat down on the couch by the window.

After a moment's thought, he took off the jade pendant from his waist and handed it to Lu Qingyue.

"Send someone to draw a design for this jade pendant and send it to Tang Man as fast as possible, so that an exact replica can be made."

"ah?"

Lu Qingyue couldn't understand Lu Songyuan's intentions for a moment.

Lu Songyuan was too lazy to say anything more to him, and simply said, "Just do it."

"yes."

Lu Qingyue put the red jade pendant into his bosom. Lu Songyuan walked over and sat down in the wheelchair. He glanced at the time clock and realized that it had only been half an hour since Li Jing returned to the mansion.

"Push me to the study."

Lu Qingyue replied, "Yes."

Before leaving, he said to Lu Zhouxue, "Sister, you should take good care of your injuries and not move around too much."

Lu Zhouxue nodded, "Respectfully seeing off the General."

-

After leaving the general's mansion, Jing Hui headed straight for the prime minister's mansion.

Just as Jing Hui was leaving the palace, he ran into Lian Zhu. The two agreed to go to the palace together after lunch to deliver the third medicine to Jing Ning.

After taking this pill, Jingning will recover completely.

Jing Hui was extremely excited. Before she even rushed to the Prime Minister's residence, she saw Lian Zhu sitting on a horse, arms crossed, looking at her with a scrutinizing expression on her face on the street next door.

Before Jing Hui even got close, Lian Zhu complained, "I've been waiting for you for almost an hour, A Zhu, you're too slow!"

Jing Hui reined in his horse and slowly approached.

Recalling her earlier entanglement with Lu Songyuan, she blushed slightly and said loudly, "I'm hungry. Can't I have my meal at the manor?"

"Okay, okay."

Seeing Jing Hui's flushed face, Lian Zhu didn't bother to say anything to her. He waved his hand and said, "Hurry up and go to the palace."

"good!"

Jingtui turned his horse around, and the two rode into the palace.

When they arrived at the Lotus Jade Palace, Jing Ning was awake. Zhang Lin happened to be there, talking with the imperial physician who was writing a prescription at the table.

"Sister."

Jing Hui stepped across the threshold and strode towards Jing Ning's side.

After taking those two pills, and especially after hearing about not having to marry into the Rong clan, Jing Ning's complexion had improved considerably in the past two days. Leaning against her pillow, she waved to Jing Hui.

"Ah Zhu is here, come here."

"good!"

Jing Hui took off his cloak, plopped down next to Jing Ning, and stretched out his hand to Lian Zhu, "Give me the medicine."

Lian Zhu was already used to her commanding tone. She glanced at Jing Hui and went to give it to Zhang Lin.

"Be sure to dissolve it in cold water, and do not send it over with any heat."

Zhang Lin accepted it and repeatedly said "thank you," then took it to the imperial physician who was assisting him, asking him to dissolve it and bring it over.

In no time, the last pill turned into half a bowl of dark, pungent soup.

The medicine bowl passed in front of Jing Hui and was handed to Jing Ning. Jing Hui wrinkled her nose and called out, "Sister—"

"fine."

Jingning chuckled and touched Jinghui's hand, saying, "Sister isn't afraid of hardship."

While Jing Ning was tilting her head back to drink the medicine, Jing Hui quickly poured her a bowl of water. After Jing Ning finished drinking it, he immediately put the bowl of water to her lips.

Jingning drank the bowl of water again. After finishing it, she was instantly overcome with drowsiness and blinked while leaning against the pillow.

"Sister, are you alright?"

Jing Hui looked worried.

Jing Ning nodded, feeling as if a fire was burning in her chest.

At this moment, Lian Zhu slowly stepped forward and said, "It's normal to be sleepy. The Fifth Princess will probably vomit blood again in a while. Once the black blood turns into bright red blood, the medicine will have truly entered her body. It will take about two hours. I'll trouble the academy director to take care of her."

Jing Hui frowned and looked at Zhang Lin.

Zhang Lin stepped forward to take her pulse and said to Jing Hui, "The Fifth Princess's pulse is smooth, so the princess need not worry. I will stay by her side today."

"I would be grateful for your help, Your Excellency."

Jing Hui felt a little relieved and wanted to tell Jing Ning to rest assured and recover, assuring her that she would stay by her side.

Turning my head, I saw that Jingning had already fallen asleep.

Jing Hui got up, pulled the blanket up for Jing Ning, touched her forehead, and then stood up and went to sit down on the couch by the window.

"I am here. If you need anything, please just ask."

"Yes, Your Majesty, we obey your command."

Everyone was on high alert. The imperial physician stayed by the window without leaving for a moment, and Jing Hui had no time for anything else, keeping a close eye on Jing Ning.

Only Lianzhu, looking completely relaxed, sat on the other side of the tatami mat with her legs crossed, cracking open the fruit shells on the table.

The room was quiet. An hour later, Jingning indeed began to vomit blood. The blood gushed out like a pillar, splattering onto the brocade quilt. After a while, the blood she coughed up turned bright red.

Jing Hui watched as the imperial physicians and maids methodically took his pulse and cleaned him. In no time, the bed was restored to its previous clean state.

After taking Jingning's pulse, Zhang Lin fed her another bowl of tonic.

Another hour passed before Jingning finally woke up.

Her illness subsided slightly, her complexion became radiant, and her lips regained their color.

Zhang Lin took her pulse again, and the usually composed old imperial physician's face lit up with joy. "Fifth Princess, do you feel no pain in your chest and abdomen, are your breathing smooth, and are your mind clear?"

Jing Hui looked at Jing Ning nervously, only to see Jing Ning nod and speak with a stronger voice.

"Yes, it doesn't hurt, it goes smoothly, thank you, Doctor."

Zhang Lin breathed a sigh of relief and turned to look at Jing Hui.

"Sister!"

Jing Hui excitedly rushed over, propping herself up on the bed, and asked Jing Ning, who had just woken up, several questions in a row.

"Are you feeling better? Is there anything else that's bothering you? Does your chest still hurt?"

Jingning calmed down, then reached out and hugged Jinghui, saying, "Sister is much better."

Jing Hui's eyes immediately welled up with tears. She held back for a moment, then burst into tears, burying her face in Jing Ning's shoulder. "Sister, you're finally alright—"

Jingning also silently shed two tears. She hugged Jinghui and gently patted her back to comfort her, "Don't cry, sister is alright now, Azhu, thank you."

Jingning was fine, but Jinghui was very attached to her and stayed in the Lotus Jade Palace until she had dinner with Jingning.

At the dinner table, Jingning thanked Lianzhu several times.

As an official from outside the palace, Lian Zhu felt it inappropriate to remain in the inner palace at such an hour, especially since Jing Hui had matters to discuss with him. Therefore, he reluctantly stood up.

"Sister, I'll come see you again tomorrow."

"good."

Jing Hui was already thinking about bringing Jing Ning some delicious street food when she entered the palace the next day when Zhang Lin interrupted her.

Zhang Lin hesitated before saying, "Your Highness, the Fifth Princess has just recovered from a serious illness. It would be best for her to rest quietly for half a month to help her health improve in the future."

When she was here, Jingning was happy; when she left, Jingning naturally felt sorrow.

Even though Jing Ning didn't show it on her face, Jing Hui knew.

"I see."

Jing Hui lowered her eyes and said, "Then I will come again in half a month. Please take good care of my sister, Master."

Zhang Lin replied, "This old minister obeys the order."

Jing Hui went to the bedside again, said a few words to Jing Ning, and then walked out with Lian Zhu.

The two were almost at the palace gate when Jing Hui kept looking back.

Lianzhu strode into Jinghui's line of sight and teased her, "Jingning is doing well, shouldn't you be happy? You look so reluctant to part, it's not like you'll never see her again."

Jing Hui couldn't stand hearing such things. She glanced at Lian Zhu sideways and said, "Stop jinxing me!"

But he's right, Jingning is doing well, she should be happy, it's just been half a month since they last saw each other.

Half a month later, she will be able to see Jingning every day, and in the spring, she will be able to go on a spring outing with her to welcome the flowers.

Thinking this way, Jing Hui's earlier displeasure vanished completely.

Upon reaching the palace gates, the two mounted their horses.

Walking along Anping Street, which is bustling even at night, Jing Hui suddenly looked at Lian Zhu and said solemnly, "But thank you so much. Without you, my sister wouldn't have recovered so quickly."

Lianzhu waved her hand, bought two packets of pastries from a nearby pastry stall, and gave one packet to Jinghui.

"If you want to thank me, show some sincerity and call me brother."

Jing Hui rolled her eyes at him and reluctantly called out, "Brother, thank you."

Lianzhu laughed heartily until she saw the angry expression on Jing Hui's face, at which point she finally stopped.

He said, "Now that you've called me 'brother,' shouldn't you keep your promise regarding my marriage?"

When Lianzhu went south to help Jinghui find medicine, Jinghui said he would help him pursue Baizhi.

Now that Jingning is all better, Jinghui was so happy he almost forgot!

"How could I be such an ungrateful person!"

She asked, "Do you have any clues?"

This gave Lianzhu a headache.

Bai Zhi was promoted by Lian Zhong and his personality is just like Lian Zhong's, extremely rigid.

Even if he ran up to Bai Zhi right now and said he wanted to marry her, Bai Zhi would agree without batting an eye, and would only feel that it was an order.

But what's the fun in that? He wants mutual affection.

Lianzhu shook her head in frustration. "Chasing Bai Zhi is like chasing my father. If my mother were still alive, I might be able to ask her for advice."

"Stop talking nonsense!"

Jing Hui laughed nonstop as she rode her horse, pondering for a long time.

As they passed by Fugui Tower, Jinghui caught a glimpse of a spring gushing water from the rock formation in front of the tower and excitedly patted Lianzhu's arm.

"There's no winter hunt this year, so you can take Bai Zhi to the hot spring palace to soak in the hot springs!"

Baek Ji had suffered a serious back injury and would take leave to recuperate during the summer rainy season or the cold winter.

The hot spring palace is located in Koriyama, not far from Kamikyo, so there's no need for a lot of travel.

The temperature there is like spring all year round, and there are many rare and exotic plants. There is a natural spring that flows down from the top of the mountain, with water mist swirling around it, making it as beautiful as a fairyland.

Moreover, that place is a royal palace used exclusively by the royal family. Jing Hui and the princes and princesses go there every year, and Lian Zhu has also been there a few times. There will be no outsiders to disturb them, making it a perfect place for the two of them to meet in secret.

That's a good idea. Lian Zhu thought for a moment and said, "His Majesty is not well. As the son of the Prime Minister, it wouldn't be appropriate for me to go alone, would it?"

Jing Hui suddenly thought of Lu Songyuan.

His leg is broken, and it must be very difficult for him in the winter. Taking him to soak in the water should make him feel better.

Consider it repayment for secretly saving Jingning.

“I have petitioned the Empress Dowager to allow me to go with you.”

Jing Hui said, "Take Lu Songyuan with you."

When the Empress Dowager learned that Rong Xiren was to be married off to someone else, she was furious.

She must know that Jing Hui is behind this, and right now, the Empress Dowager probably doesn't want to see Jing Hui at all.

Meanwhile, Jing Hui, with Emperor Jingwen still unconscious, could not be disturbed. She also did not want to see the Empress Dowager, much less enter the palace.

Lian Zhu raised her eyebrows, a mischievous smile playing on her lips.

"Ah Zhu, when did you become so good to General Lu? You even take him with you when you go out."

"My elder sister's situation was all thanks to him."

Jing Hui glanced at Lian Zhu.

"Okay, it's settled then."

Lianzhu looked overjoyed. "I'll go back and tell my father right away."

Jing Hui raised his chin. "Hmm! Go ahead. Tomorrow I will ask the Empress Dowager for permission to send you a message."

"Okay, I'll wait for your good news!"

They galloped away in a flurry, disappearing from sight in no time.

Jing Hui chuckled to herself, secretly planning to tell Lu Songyuan about it when she got back, so he could properly thank her.

Just as he was about to ride back to the mansion, Ah Yu, who had been following behind him, suddenly spurred his horse forward.

She whispered, "Princess, there's a carriage following us since we left the palace. It looks like... General Lu's carriage."

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Author's note: Looking forward to the hot springs! [shy]