Chapter 74 Qing Ping Yue (Part 4) Sea of ​​Fire.

Inside the dilapidated temple, the wind howled and seeped in through the cracks, swirling the scattered, withered grass on the ground.

The campfire flickered, casting shadows on the mottled wall, which swayed in the wind.

Ye Mu knelt beside Xie Yicheng, holding his hand. His hand was long and slender with distinct knuckles, and had gently stroked her hair countless times before. But now it was cold, like a piece of jade submerged in water. She repeatedly breathed on it, as if that would transfer her body heat to him.

"Is it too cold?" Ye Mu murmured to himself, his voice very soft.

Xie Yicheng is always warm; his embrace is warm, his palms are warm, and he is always burning hot.

On the riverbank in the carriage, outside the carriage was still chilly in spring, but inside, he covered her, and the two of them were drenched in sweat, their heat rising as if it could boil the entire cold night.

How could someone so hot and scorching become so cold?

It must be because of the bumpy journey and the harsh winds that he's so cold. He'll wake up once he warms up.

“It’s okay, Yi Cheng,” Ye Mu whispered in his ear, “You warm me when you’re hot, and I warm you when I’m hot. We’re even, okay?”

The campfire crackled and popped, sending up tiny sparks that illuminated her stubborn eyes.

She then realized there was a fire nearby.

"Please help me, please help me carry Yi Cheng to the fire! Let him get closer to the fire, warm him up, and he'll wake up. He must be too tired from the journey and has fallen into a deep sleep..."

Yu Shaobai stood there silently, looking down at her. This was the first time he had seen Ye Mu like this. She was not the stoic and reserved clerk Ye Mu from the Wujiang County government office, nor was she the clever opponent who had been verbally sparring with him and testing him back and forth.

The light in her eyes shattered, and she lost all her resilience. Her vibrant life force seemed to have cooled down along with Xie Yicheng.

Yu Shaobai was struck hard by her vulnerability, and a subtle, dull pain arose in his heart.

He stepped forward, bent down, and reached out to help her up. "Ye Mu, calm down, Xie Yicheng is dead..."

No sooner had he finished speaking than he received a resounding slap across the face.

Ye Mu's eyes were red and swollen, and tears streamed down her face like a burst dam.

She trembled all over, "It's all because of you! It's all because of you! They mistook Yi Cheng for you! Those assassins, those pursuers... they were clearly after you! It was Yi Cheng who took the blame for you! That's why he... that's why he..."

She couldn't continue; sobs choked her up, preventing her from saying anything.

Yu Shaobai's face stung from the slap.

The wind outside the temple grew stronger, howling past the broken walls like the weeping of departed souls.

Yu Shaobai did not defend himself, accepting all her accusations filled with hatred, "You're right, Ye Mu, Xie Yicheng died in my place."

The flickering firelight revealed that his face was expressionless, but deep within his eyes surged a dark and unfathomable sorrow.

Ye Mu sobbed uncontrollably, lost her balance, and fell back to the ground. She moved closer to Xie Yicheng, lay down beside him, and murmured softly, just like every time they used to lie in each other's arms.

She regretted not hugging him a little longer or kissing him a little longer on the morning she left for Suzhou.

She even desperately wondered if, if she died now, she would be reborn and meet Yi Cheng again?

But Ye Mu couldn't bear to leave Yi Cheng, who was in this life, all alone here.

a long time.

“Ye Mu, our most urgent task now is to set off immediately and return to the capital as soon as possible.” Yu Shaobai had gradually calmed down. “The account books are still with us. Every moment we stay increases the danger. We must get the account books to the Crown Prince as quickly as possible, and…”

He paused, then continued, "...Xie Yicheng should also be laid to rest as soon as possible."

"If you can't speak, you can shut up." Ye Mu pressed her cheek against Xie Yicheng's hand. "Yicheng will wake up, he will definitely wake up."

On that morning in Wujiang, she turned back, and Yi Cheng's last words to her with a smile were, "Fourth Sister, see you in the capital."

What does "to be buried in peace" mean?

“Yi Cheng never goes back on his word.”

As Ye Mu spoke, he broke down in tears, as if he were crying out his internal organs. His thin body trembled like a dying ember in the wind, and his cries were so mournful that they almost lifted the roof off the dilapidated temple.

Seeing that she was delirious with grief, Yu Shaobai knew that this couldn't go on. He gestured to An Ying, intending to knock her unconscious. But before An Ying could get close, a cough suddenly came from behind the dilapidated statue in the ruined temple.

I was startled.

The shadow weapon was drawn half an inch from its sheath, the body slightly bent, locking onto the statue.

Looking over, Yu Shaobai saw a person slowly emerge from behind the cobweb-covered statue. Dressed in simple clothes and with a slightly hunched posture, he was none other than the itinerant doctor who had taken his purse earlier that day.

He walked over, twirling his prayer beads, still looking half-asleep, and muttered a complaint, "This young lady looks so frail, but I never imagined she could cry so loudly... Could you please cry a little quieter?"

When he walked over, he only saw Ye Mu crying with his head tilted back. He tripped and then noticed Xie Yicheng. Seeing his ashen face, he said, "Oh, someone's dead. You should cry about it."

Ye Mu's vision was blurred with tears, and she couldn't see who the person was. She only heard the word "dead person," and she cried even more heartbreakingly.

The itinerant doctor slowly squatted down, took the pulse, and lifted his droopy eyelids slightly. "Oh, he's not quite dead yet."

The sound startled Ye Mu awake, and her crying stopped abruptly. She raised her head sharply, wiped away her tears, and finally saw the person in front of her clearly.

It's that miracle doctor!

Ye Mu crawled over on all fours and knelt beside the itinerant doctor. "You said he's not dead, right? You said he's not dead, I heard you! You can't lie to me! You can't lie."

"He's not dead." The itinerant doctor examined his tightly closed eyelids and the blood-stained wounds on his body, which were faintly bluish-black. He clicked his tongue and said, "You kids, I don't know whether to call your luck good or bad."

"What do you mean?" Yu Shaobai stepped forward and asked in a deep voice.

The itinerant doctor looked up at Ye Mu and said, "Young lady, do you still remember what I mentioned last night about the poison 'Yuan Ting' from the depths of the South China Sea?"

Ye Mu nodded frantically.

"It's good that you remember." The itinerant doctor pointed to the wound on Xie Yicheng's shoulder. "The one on this sword is most likely that thing."

A thunderclap!

Abyss Ting! It's actually Abyss Ting? That legendary substance that combines the cold, icy poison of the deep sea, causing collapse upon contact with it? Yet the itinerant doctor clearly said that this substance is the only possible cure for the poison in the Xie family's bloodline.

“So, Yi Cheng is like this now…” Ye Mu wiped away the tears that wouldn’t stop from flowing from her face, “As long as she’s not dead, there’s still hope, isn’t there?”

The itinerant doctor pondered for a moment, then gently pressed his fingers around Xie Yicheng's wound. "The poison of Yuan Ting is now counteracting the poison in his body. First, his blood vessels stagnate, and his whole body becomes ice-cold, as if he is in a state of suspended animation. His breath and pulse are weak and hard to detect. An ordinary doctor would surely conclude that he is dead. This is the sign of being bitten by cold."

Like being in a fake death? That is, not actually dead.

It means they are still alive.

Ye Mu's heart was pounding; Yi Cheng was still alive.

The itinerant doctor continued, "If you can withstand these three days of chilling cold, and your heart meridian is not severed, the poison will take effect, triggering the remaining yang energy and blood in your body to instinctively resist, turning into a heart-burning calamity. At that time, you will feel a high fever all over your body, as if you are in a furnace, with burning pain in your internal organs and your blood vessels throbbing. This alternation of cold and heat is a gateway to death."

How many more days will it take for my heart to burn?

"It will take three days."

The itinerant doctor said slowly, "If you can withstand the chilling cold and endure the burning pain, then, as I said that day, it will turn against its root and completely eliminate the lingering family poison. But if you can't withstand it..."

He shook his head. "Those in the Cold Devouring stage die from their heart meridians freezing directly, while those in the Burning Heart stage die from their blood boiling and their bodies exploding."

The dilapidated statue of a god had broken arms and drooping head; it was hard to tell whether its eyes held compassion or pity.

Outside the hole in the temple roof, the sky was just before dawn, shrouded in a somber, crab-shell-green hue.

"So I say, I don't know whether your luck is good or bad."

The itinerant doctor stood up, dusted off his hands, and said, "He's currently in the stage of being bitten by the cold, so he feels like ice to the touch. I can't detect any breath. Whether he can get through it on his own depends on his fate. If he can endure until the Heart-Burning attack occurs, and then survive the three days of being burned by the flames, he will be able to breathe again. But when he will wake up and whether he will still be a whole person depends on his destiny."

This is a good thing for Ye Mu.

Even without going through this ordeal, one day she would definitely try her best to find Yuan Ting and fight for his chance to cure the poison in his bloodline.

That was a path she had long been determined to take; this was a gateway to hell that they would have to cross sooner or later.

It's just that it was brought forward.

After the divine doctor finished speaking, he was about to walk out of the temple, but how could Ye Mu let him leave?

She stood up, spreading her arms to block the quack doctor's path. "Please, please stay with us these next few days, so that Cheng... he can be watched over by someone knowledgeable. I'm afraid we might not know what's important and end up harming him instead."

Seeing the itinerant doctor frown and shake his head, she said urgently, "I promise I won't cry anymore and I won't disturb your peace. As long as you stay, I will do my best to fulfill any request you make."

"I'm an old man who travels far and wide, and I hate being constrained." The itinerant doctor waved his hand, looking impatient. "You all have your own destiny, and I have my own place to go. This dilapidated temple is cold and damp; I need to find another warm place to get some peace and quiet."

Seeing that the itinerant doctor was determined to leave, Ye Mu made a snap decision, turned to look at Donggong Anying, and said sternly, "Stop him!"

The left and right shadows obeyed orders without question. In a flash, they tacitly blocked the itinerant doctor's path from both the front and back.

The traveling doctor stopped in his tracks. "This young lady is too domineering."

"Just six days, I'll treat you to good food and drink, is that alright?"

The itinerant doctor shrank back upon seeing the ghastly white blade. "Enough, enough. Meeting you is just my bad luck. Life and death are predestined, wealth and honor are determined by fate. Don't expect too much from me."

A huge weight lifted from Ye Mu's heart, and he bowed deeply, "Thank you so much, divine doctor! I will never forget your great kindness!"

The light was cool and clear.

Ye Mu's tears were still wet, but she had calmed down. She made a quick decision and took Xie Yicheng to the nearest county town to find an inconspicuous inn to settle down and deal with the next few days.

Yu Shaobai, accompanied by Youying, carried the hot-buttoned account books and traveled day and night, needing to head straight for the Eastern Palace in the capital as soon as possible.

At the crossroads, the earthen road splits into two gray paths in the dim morning light, one heading north and the other turning east towards the city.

The horses snorted and exhaled puffs of white steam.

Yu Shaobai reined in the horse and looked at Ye Mu behind the carriage window.

Overnight, everything changed drastically; she seemed to have lost a lot of weight. His lips moved slightly, "Ye Mu."

She not only didn't respond, but also pulled the curtain down to block the view.

She hated him to the core. Yu Shaobai smiled bitterly. As long as Xie Yicheng remained unconscious, she would never speak to him again.

A moment later, a knocking sound came from inside the carriage. The driver, Zuo Ying, said, "Let's go."

Cut through the morning mist.

Yu Shaobai watched as her carriage turned east, its tracks rolling over the damp earth, heading in the opposite direction from the northward journey he was about to embark on.

He gripped the reins tightly, said nothing in the end, spurred his horse, and his figure quickly disappeared at the end of the gradually brightening official road in the north.

-

In the following days, the itinerant doctor complained incessantly.

Ye Mu treated him with great courtesy and attentiveness, providing him with a variety of meals every day, including chicken, duck, fish, meat, seasonal vegetables, and warm wine.

But this courtesy felt like a shackle.

Even if he didn't leave the inn, but instead stepped half a step out of this room, the silent guard named Zuo Ying would appear like a shadow, draw his blade, and politely invite him back to his room.

Only when he needed to use the toilet could he be accompanied by Zuo Ying downstairs to get some fresh air in the cramped backyard, which was no different from being in prison.

I slept with them through a door at night.

After three or four days of this, even the best food became tiresome. The itinerant doctor pushed away yet another plate of stewed pork hock without any appetite.

That's not even the most torturous part.

Even if I try to sleep, I definitely won't sleep well.

Every half incense stick's time, Ye Mu would knock on the door, "Divine Doctor, please take Yi Cheng's pulse again."

The itinerant doctor, with dark circles under his eyes and his beard bristling with anger, said, "Young lady, the intervals between your pulse-taking are more frequent than the time when the poison is attacking his heart. The two poisons in his body haven't even clashed yet, and you've already started taking his pulse again."

But Ye Mu didn't care about him. As soon as she saw that Yi Cheng's expression was slightly off, she would call the divine doctor. If she felt that there was something wrong with her own amateur pulse diagnosis, she would also call the divine doctor.

The divine physician refused, so she had Zuo Ying carry him off the bed, check his pulse to confirm there was nothing wrong, and then carry him back.

With all this trouble, even a miracle doctor would feel like he'd been poisoned.

However, after several investigations, he was secretly surprised to find that this young man from the Xie family had a much more solid foundation than the uncles and elders he had met in the Xie family mansion in the capital.

Most of the men in the Xie family knew they didn't have long to live, so they indulged in sensual pleasures even more, draining their already weak bodies in a vicious cycle. Even without the bone-penetrating poison, they might not have lived long.

This kid is different in both mindset and physique.

Ye Mu's anxiety subsided slightly after Xie Yicheng had passed five days peacefully, and he gradually regained his vitality, his breathing becoming steady.

Even the itinerant doctor said that things went much more smoothly than he had imagined.

On the last day of the burning, dusk had just passed and twilight was falling.

Ye Mu was wiping Xie Yicheng's arm with warm water. His skin was burning hot to the touch. He had been like this for the past two days, so she didn't suspect anything at the moment.

She wiped his back again, but the more she wiped, the hotter it got. The water evaporated as soon as the wet cloth touched it.

Ye Mu was startled and hurriedly summoned the traveling doctor.

"Young lady, now even going to the toilet takes up your time?"

The itinerant doctor reached out to take Xie Yicheng's pulse. He had just been about to go downstairs when he was called back. Thinking that taking Xie Yicheng's pulse would be quick and only take a few breaths, he decided to hurry up and take Ye Mu's pulse first.

But this time was different; the itinerant doctor's brows furrowed even more deeply.

The pulse under my fingers was no longer weak, but became rapid and violent, like a wild horse running rampant in my blood, each beat as if it would burst my blood vessels.

"Is something wrong?" Ye Mu noticed that his expression was off, and her fingertips went cold.

The itinerant doctor withdrew his hand, twirling his prayer beads, his expression grave. "The tribulation of burning the heart has reached a critical point. His original yang energy was already strong, but now it has been completely activated by the poison of Yuan Ting, like a flood breaking its banks, completely out of control. If this chaotic rush is not channeled, his internal organs will soon be burned, and his blood vessels will be in danger of bursting."

Ye Mu was alarmed and asked urgently, "Then how should we guide it? What medicinal herbs are needed? I'll go buy them right away."

The itinerant doctor shook his head. "This fire needs to be extinguished with yin energy and softened. Medicine might not be enough, and it might not even be the right treatment."

"Then how can this be solved?"

The itinerant doctor coughed lightly, slightly embarrassed, but had no choice but to speak frankly, "The balance of Yin and Yang is the ultimate principle of heaven and earth. At this moment, his Yang fire is excessive and he urgently needs... well, he needs to be balanced by the pure Yin energy of a woman, and you can help him."

Ye Mu was taken aback at first, then her cheeks burned bright red. She never expected it to be this method.

Mentioning this matter at such a critical moment for Yi Cheng filled Ye Mu with shame and worry. "He's unconscious right now, how could he possibly..."

“His heart is burning intensely, his yang energy is at its peak, and he may have an instinctive reaction.” The itinerant doctor was also anxious and walked towards the door. “Young lady, this is a matter of life and death. Please try it. Perhaps this is the only way to help him stabilize his heart. I am here and it will be inconvenient for me.”

As he spoke, he walked to the door and then came back, this time with a confident air, "I'm going out for a walk in a bit, and I'll be back in an hour. You'd better hurry up."

Ye Mu's face turned as red as blood, but he knew this was not the time to hesitate. He said to Zuo Ying outside the door, "Follow the divine doctor and protect him. Return in two hours."

Yi Cheng is very persistent, and she is afraid that there will not be enough time. Moreover, it is her first time, and she is not sure if it will work out.

It's always good to allow extra time.

Zuo Ying was taken aback for a moment, then obeyed the order and gently closed the door.

The room immediately fell silent.

Ye Mu walked to the bedside and gently touched Xie Yicheng's forehead and neck again. They were burning hot, like a furnace.

In the candlelight, he shed his usual aloofness, his rosy face still handsome. Ye Mu's shyness gradually faded, and her fingertips gently untied the ties of Xie Yicheng's inner garment, moving downwards.

His brows were furrowed, and even in his unconscious state, he seemed to be enduring great pain. Fine beads of sweat seeped from his forehead, which were instantly evaporated by the high temperature.

Ye Mu straddled the seat.

Her skin was slightly cool, and after a short while of being pressed against him, she was already covered in sweat.

It's not about romance, it's about overcoming calamity.

Ye Mu recalled that one night at the Wanping Inn, he had asked her to try this.

It was then that she realized that being in a position of power was not easy; in addition to outstanding abilities, one also needed abundant physical strength.

She cried and wanted to get down, but he refused, even praising her for her beautiful crying voice. She was so angry that she bent down and bit him. Of all the times they had gone through this ordeal, he was the quickest to respond.

This time, the same method was used.

Ye Mu slowly lowered his waist.

Within the chaotic sea of ​​fire, Xie Yicheng was still dressed as a monk, in a plain white robe.

He clasped his hands together and sat cross-legged in the center of a boundless, churning sea of ​​fire, with the phantom of a lotus platform flickering beneath him.

The flames, a deep golden-red, licked Xie Yicheng's monk's robe, scorching his skin, bones, and internal organs, attempting to burn him to ashes.

Xie Yicheng's expression was calm, his lips moved as he silently recited scriptures, the chanting of Sanskrit lingering in the air. But with each word he uttered, the surrounding flames leaped several feet higher.

The crimson flames turned into golden-white flames, which manifested into countless ferocious forms that coiled around him and roared as they tried to devour him.

"All conditioned phenomena are like dreams, illusions, bubbles, and shadows..."

The chanting gradually weakened, while the flames roared and retaliated even more fiercely.

Xie Yicheng's monk's robe began to curl and turn black, and he felt a real burning pain on his skin. His insides felt like they were burning, and his soul cried out in anguish.

Just when he thought he was about to be completely engulfed by the scorching flames of karma and his consciousness was fading, a cool sensation, traversing thousands of miles, landed on his burning mind without warning.

No, not a drop.

It was a warm and cool rain cloud, slowly rolling in, softly enveloping and enveloping, and the flames around it gradually receded a little.

However, the flames of karma were boundless and were not completely extinguished.

Rain and fire are constantly tug-of-war, merging, and accommodating each other.

After an unknown amount of time, the sky collapsed, and a torrential downpour completely extinguished the raging inferno.

Xie Yicheng found herself no longer in purgatory, but sitting cross-legged in the middle of a tranquil and deep lake, the water cool and soothing the lingering burning pain.

The lake water was clear, yet it was filled with a light fragrance that brought him complete peace of mind.

It was something he was familiar with; he had tasted it before.

All things return to stillness.

By the time the traveling doctor was escorted back by Zuo Ying, the crescent moon outside the window had risen high in the sky, its clear light shining brightly.

The itinerant doctor was accompanied on a three-hour walk through the desolate streets of the county town and the quiet countryside, until his legs ached and his old bones felt like they were about to fall apart, before the dark figure finally brought him back.

Even after arriving at the inn, we couldn't rest; we had to keep working!

The itinerant doctor, filled with resentment, shuffled to the edge of the bed and reached out to place his hand on Xie Yicheng's wrist with great dissatisfaction.

The pulse was still faster than normal, but it was no longer as chaotic as before, and gradually became more stable.

The high fever has subsided.

The itinerant doctor stroked his beard, but his brow remained furrowed. "The burning fire in your heart has been temporarily suppressed, and your pulse has stabilized considerably."

"Then why does the miracle doctor still look so worried? Is there still a hidden danger?"

The itinerant doctor glanced at Ye Mu with a strange look in his eyes, and said carefully, "The fire has been suppressed, but it was released too quickly. The way of Yin and Yang is to maintain balance and harmony. Although he needs to be guided this time, I'm afraid it might be too much. I'm worried that even if he wakes up, his vital energy will be depleted, and he might suffer from other problems... such as weakness."

Upon hearing this, Ye Mu was struck dumb.

She originally thought that the more thoroughly the burning fire in his heart was expelled, the better, so she did her best, wishing she could draw out all the heat and toxins from his body.

But this is much less than they usually do.

"That was because I..." Ye Mu's voice was dry, but in front of a doctor, in a life-saving situation, he couldn't care less about anything else, and he forced himself to ask, "...damaged it?"

The itinerant doctor withdrew his hand and shrugged. "That's hard to say. The antidote for Yuan Ting poison is inherently dangerous and unpredictable. It also involves the antagonism of the existing poison in his body. With your guidance, many variables have been added. This is the first time I've encountered this before. Without a reference, it's really hard to say whether it will leave any hidden dangers."

He looked at Ye Mu's self-reproachful expression, sighed, and softened his tone, "However, he has finally stumbled through the most critical moment of death. His pulse is stabilizing and his high fever is gradually subsiding, which are signs of improvement. As long as a person is alive, there is always hope for him to recover slowly. Some things are nothing compared to life."

Yes, as long as he's alive.

Ye Mu thanked the traveling doctor repeatedly. Seeing that Xie Yicheng's condition was stable, the doctor had no intention of staying in this cage any longer. That night, he insisted on leaving, claiming that he was used to the free air of the mountains and fields and that he was afraid he would get sick if he stayed any longer.

Seeing that he was indeed exhausted, Ye Mu wanted to let him rest for the night before leaving, but the traveling doctor shook his head like a rattle drum and said repeatedly, "Forget it, our fate has run its course, let's go our separate ways."

Knowing he couldn't persuade him to stay, Ye Mu didn't try to stop him. Before he left, she carefully wrapped most of the remaining silver in a cloth and secretly stuffed it into his old cloth bag.

The itinerant doctor slowly disappeared into the night outside the inn.

However, the dark Buddhist prayer beads on his wrist had somehow ended up beside Xie Yicheng's pillow. Ye Mu found them while tidying the bed and thought that he might have forgotten about them in his haste. She decided to keep them safe for now and return them to him if they were to meet again in the future.

——

The next day, Ye Mu hired a carriage, laid out thick soft bedding, and, together with Xie Yicheng and Zuo Ying, quietly headed north.

Half a month later, we drove into the capital region, to Yuqian Lane.

The courtyard was quiet. His mother, Liu, and Zijing were still at their maternal grandparents' home in Jimo and had not yet returned, which made things much easier for Ye Mu.

She settled Xie Yicheng in her room. He was fond of cleanliness, so she washed his body twice a day, morning and evening, brushed his teeth and groomed him. Every two hours, she massaged his limbs and joints to improve blood circulation.

At night, she would lie beside him, holding his arm as she slept. Although he was still unconscious, his body had returned to its previous warmth.

If her mother were home, seeing her disregarding all propriety and staying by a man's side day and night, she would probably be worried and nagging for a long time.

But Ye Mu didn't care; all she wanted was to stay by his side.

Ye Mu read a book on the small table beside his bed. After reading a few pages, she would look up at his face. When she ate, she would also tell him softly what the dishes were for the day, but Yi Cheng could only drink rice soup and rice porridge.

She took out a piece of soft, rain-washed sky-blue fine cotton cloth from the trunk, measured his shoulder width and arm length, and then compared it to her own height.

On a leisurely afternoon, she picked up her needle and thread and began cutting and sewing.

She cut a pleated skirt out of the fabric, and the rest was just enough to make a loose-fitting long gown for him.

It turns out that she did not dislike needlework; in fact, she found it quite enjoyable to make clothes for someone she liked.

As Ye Mu sewed the hem of the garment, an image floated into her mind of him wearing this dress, and her wearing a skirt of the same color, going hiking together in the countryside, watching the flowers in spring and admiring the leaves in autumn.

Every stitch and thread sews in these vibrant aspirations.

One day, Feng Yan knocked on the door of the small courtyard across the street. Ye Mu opened the door and asked what was wrong. He then learned that before leaving the capital, Yi Cheng had secretly asked him to buy a small and quiet house nearby. The money had already been paid in full, but the original owner had delayed moving out, and the house was only recently vacated.

So, in addition to taking care of Xie Yicheng, she had another worry on her mind. She would go to the new house from time to time to take a look, measure the dimensions, and think about where to open a window to let in more sunlight, and what flowers and plants to plant in the yard.

She never returned to Fuyou Pavilion. The Crown Prince sent her thanks and compensation through Lady Yun. In addition, the private property left by Xie Yicheng was more than enough for them to live comfortably without having to worry about making a living.

The Crown Prince had also visited Elm Lane several times. Xiao Zhen told her that the case in Jiangnan was closed, Zhou Chongli was dead, and everything had settled down. It would no longer involve her and Xie Yicheng.

Ye Mu listened quietly and nodded.

Her only concern right now is Cheng's safety; the life and death of others are too important for her to care about.

Jiang Si also came, and he uttered the words that the Crown Prince had not finished speaking. He told her that the two account books were of great importance, and that the Crown Prince had used them to grasp the key. In addition, the Emperor had been practicing alchemy and taking certain substances, which made his temperament increasingly paranoid and unpredictable. The Crown Prince was now in charge of most of the government affairs.

The crown prince was grateful to her.

But Jiang Si said too much and too little of it was useful to her; all she wanted to hear was how to wake Yi Cheng up.

When Jiang Si came again, Ye Mu would invite him to sit by the couch and watch Xie Yicheng.

She herself would take a short break to the new house, check on the craftsmen's progress, purchase some necessary furniture, and stand alone in the unfinished courtyard for a while.

It seems that the days he was unconscious passed quite quickly. Perhaps because they were too blurry, Ye Mu lived in a daze, often not remembering whether it was sunny or rainy yesterday, or what he ate for breakfast. He only felt that the light and shadow outside the window moved hastily, and when he looked up, it was already the beginning of autumn.

It gets dark quickly, so when I bathe him in the evening, I have to turn on the lamp.

Ye Mu was already completely familiar with his body. There was a small mole on the side of his thigh, but she didn't see it at first because it was dark today, so she moved his leg with her hand.

My hand accidentally touched it.

It's soft and fluffy.

She suddenly remembered the itinerant doctor's words, as if a belated awakening had come to her senses. What he meant was that she had damaged this foundation.

Suddenly, sadness welled up inside me, perhaps because of the start of autumn. Emotions that had been building up for half a year suddenly surged up.

Ye Mu didn't notice that his fingers were twitching at his side.

When Xie Yicheng opened his eyes, he saw her tear-streaked face, and he followed her gaze downwards.

She was crying in front of his…it, her shoulders trembling, sobbing softly.

Looking out the window, the pomegranate blossoms are just beginning to open, and the pomegranate tree is laden with fruit; it must be autumn.

A few breaths of silence.

The dampness was unbearable.

Xie Yicheng felt a pang of bitterness. "Ye Mu, all these days, is that all you've thought about?"

-----------------------

Author's Note: Thanks for reading and adding to your favorites [sunglasses] I'm going skiing tomorrow, so I won't be able to update until 9 PM [lucky lotus]