Chapter 1248: Grudge

Jiang Xing looked down at her, his eyes filled with longing and reluctance.

But when he spoke, his voice was unusually calm, only slightly heavy: "Doctor Su, don't be afraid, I just want to thank you. During the days my father was imprisoned, thank you for sending him medicine and clothes."

Su Qinglan wanted to say something, but before she could speak, Jiang Xing said, "I asked the jailers, and they said it was you."

"..."

Su Qinglan shut her mouth, thought for a moment, and said softly, "It was Princess Qin who instructed me to go before she left."

Jiang Yan's gaze softened further: "The Princess Consort instructed Miss She'er."

"..."

Su Qinglan lowered her face even further, revealing her bright red ear tips. She looked like a timid little rabbit, evoking a feeling of pity. Jiang Xing wasn't particularly eloquent, nor did he possess Pei Xingyuan's silver tongue and ability to charm people with his words. At this moment, he could only instinctively step forward, staring intently at Su Qinglan's long eyelashes, and softly said, "You know, actually I—"

But before he could finish speaking, Su Qinglan suddenly said, "I accept your thanks."

"..."

"It's getting late, I should go back."

After saying that, without waiting for Jiang Yan to say anything more, he turned and walked past him, leaving the Qin Prince's mansion without looking back.

Jiang Yan's words were stuck in his throat. When he tried to catch up with her again, his legs felt as heavy as lead. He could only stand there silently and watch her thin, slender figure disappear into the distance.

On the other side, Shen Tu Tai stood guard by Xiao Yuangan's bedside. He first informed Shang Ruyi of some of the deployments within the Imperial Guards, and then, upon hearing Shang Ruyi's request, he smiled at Yuangan, whose cheeks were flushed red, and said, "Your Highness, just ask. Tonight, I will stay by the young prince's side, along with Jiang Yan. With the two of us here, not only will we be able to calm his spirits, but any evil spirits will not dare to come near!"

Shang Ruyi said, "However, I'll have to trouble you for the night."

Shen Tu Tai laughed and said, "Your Highness, you are looking down on me, Shen Tu Tai, with those words."

Shang Ruyi knew he was a straightforward person, and that saying more would only seem pretentious, so she smiled and nodded: "Then I'll have someone move a bed to the outer room for you—"

"No need, just two cushions will do, no need to go to trouble."

As the two were talking, heavy footsteps sounded outside. Turning around, they saw Jiang Yan walking in, looking preoccupied. Seeing his dejected appearance, Shen Tu Tai immediately stood up and went over, smiling, "What's wrong, Fourth Brother? Didn't you catch up?"

Jiang Yan looked up at him, then glanced at Shang Ruyi, who had a half-smile on her face, and forced a smile, saying, "Imperial Physician Su has already returned, Your Highness can rest assured."

Shen Tu Tai patted him on the shoulder with a smile: "You reassured the princess, but are you reassured?"

Jiang Yan inwardly groaned, "Seventh Brother..."

Seeing his appearance, Shang Ruyi knew that the matter between him and Su Qinglan was not so simple, but there were many people around at the time, so she couldn't say much. She just told them to stay and keep watch for Xiao Yuangan. Jiang Yan naturally did not refuse, and Shang Ruyi was relieved. She had someone tidy up the outer room and ordered someone to cook more food for two more people in the kitchen.

Soon after dinner, it got dark.

It was supposed to be a night watch to ward off evil spirits, but in reality, only two people needed to be by Yuan Gan's side. Shen Tu Tai was a rough man and didn't care about where he lived. He was given a cushion to sit on and soon fell asleep, snoring with his head tilted to the side. Only Jiang Yan was left sitting there awake, staring blankly at the flickering candlelight on the table.

Just then, with a creak, the half-closed door was pushed open, and a familiar figure stood outside.

"Jiang Canjun".

Jiang Yan looked up and saw that it was Shang Ruyi. He hurriedly got up and bowed, but Shang Ruyi smiled and waved her hand, telling him not to be so polite. She glanced at Shen Tu Tai, who was snoring loudly, and then peeked at Xiao Yuangan on the bed in the inner room. Although he was snoring so loudly, he was strangely sleeping soundly, and his cheeks didn't seem as red as before. It was just a pity that the wet nurse and Chang Wan, who were guarding the bedside, were disturbed by the snoring and couldn't sleep.

Shang Ruyi smiled and shook her head, but she was relieved. Then she waved to Jiang Yan and turned to walk out.

Jiang Xing followed her out of Yuan Gan's room. The two stood under the eaves, a crescent moon hanging overhead, its pale light barely outlining their figures. Shang Ruyi turned to look at him, smiling, and said, "I came to ask Military Advisor Jiang, what's really going on between you and Physician Su?"

Hearing this, Jiang Yan gave a wry smile.

He said, "How to decide is not really up to me."

Shang Ruyi smiled so broadly that her eyes resembled crescent moons above her head: "So, it seems that Physician Su has made the decision regarding your relationship?"

These words were spoken with a hint of mockery, but Jiang Yan did not refute them. Instead, she nodded and said, "I know I am in the wrong. I was the one who lied to her first, so it is only natural that she would not talk to me. However, Your Highness, lying is not a crime punishable by beheading. Why has she not forgiven me even now?"

"..."

“If she really disliked me, I wouldn’t have bothered her so much; but during the time I was away, she often visited my father in prison, which clearly shows that she cares about me, doesn’t it?”

"..."

"If you have me in your heart, why can't you forgive me?"

Seeing his troubled expression, Shang Ruyi smiled and said, "Jiang Canjun, it's true that she has you in her heart, but there's someone else in her heart besides you."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yan's expression changed drastically: "Does she have someone else in her heart?"

Shang Ruyi immediately smiled and waved her hand, saying, "I wasn't talking about a person."

"It's not human, it's—"

"It's a grudge."

"Resentment?"

Upon hearing those two words, Jiang Yan's expression tightened slightly, as if she understood something, yet remained somewhat puzzled. She stared at Shang Ruyi and asked, "Could Your Highness please elaborate?"

Shang Ruyi looked at him and said, "She was there when you and Liang Youying broke her out of prison. Both the King of Qin and I saw you try to take her away, but she refused to go with you."

Jiang Yan's expression darkened at the mention of this.

"yes."

"She didn't choose you, are you holding a grudge?"

"..."

Jiang Yan was silent for a moment before finally saying, "To say there's absolutely nothing is a lie."

"..."

“Especially when I saw that Brother Pei was willing to go with Youying, but she was not, I felt very sad.”

"oh."

"But after thinking about it carefully, I can understand—she is a high-ranking imperial physician, and it is much more difficult for a woman to enter officialdom than for an ordinary man. If I were to become a general today, I might not be willing to give it up for someone else."

"..."

"So, I can understand why she won't come with me."