When Wei Shuwan saw Li Qingchen squat down, her heart tightened! When Li Qingchen took off the beads from her silk shoes, she was so nervous that her toes curled up.

Now, as she watched Li Qingchen hold the bead on her shoe in his palm, her brows furrowed tightly, as if what he held in his hand was not just a bead.

Wei Shuwan quickly tugged at her skirt to cover the exposed foot.

The burning sensation that had just subsided suddenly returned, and this time it was even more intense than before.

Li Qingchen noticed her little expressions and gestures, but only chuckled softly. He then stopped teasing her, gave her a few casual words of advice, and left.

Wei Shuwan watched him walk away until his figure completely disappeared into the shadows of the cell before she placed her hand over her heart and gasped for breath.

When he was there, she didn't even dare to breathe.

Then Wei Shuwan took out the brocade pouch, carefully opened it, and saw that it was indeed a plaque inside. However, it was not the jade plaque that Wei Shuwan had thought of, nor the ivory plaque commonly used by nobles, but a gilded plaque.

Wei Shuwan couldn't tell what the sign was for when she only looked at one side, but she was somewhat surprised when she turned it over.

The sign was clearly engraved with the words "immunity from death." Wei Shuwan's first thought was that using a sign with such an ominous word as a token of love was incredibly unlucky. But after a moment, she belatedly realized what it meant!

This is... the legendary get-out-of-jail-free card?!

So this is how Li Qingchen saved the Wei family?

If she remembered correctly, this gold medal was a gift from Emperor Pingjia to the Qiao royal family, who is now the King of Qiaochuan, when he conquered the Qiao Kingdom. Later, when Li Qingchen was made crown prince and sent to the capital as a hostage, the King of Qiaochuan, worried that his son would encounter trouble, transferred this gold medal to him.

This could be considered Li Qingchen's lifeline in Shengjing, but Li Qingchen gave this lifeline to himself...

Wei Shuwan bit her lower lip lightly, her thoughts a jumble of emotions.

...

As Li Qingchen was released from Dali Temple prison, Yuan Que was waiting in front of the gate in his carriage. But as Li Qingchen stepped into the carriage, he subconsciously looked up at the sky above.

The sky, washed clean by the rain, appeared exceptionally clean and refreshing even at night. The bright moon shone, and the Milky Way stretched far and wide, adorning the night with a tender and romantic hue.

Li Qingchen suddenly recalled hearing Wei Shuwan counting "stars" one by one when he first entered the prison. Still feeling playful, he instructed Yuan Que in the carriage, "Let's not go back to the manor for now," and then got off the carriage.

In the stillness of the night, amidst the dappled shadows of the trees, a dark figure swift as a hawk leaped onto the eaves of the Dali Temple prison in a few swift movements.

Li Qingchen sat idly atop the women's prison, glancing at the green tiles below and then at the distant stars, thinking that it would be great if he could invite her up to take a look too, then they wouldn't have to count the fake stars.

Thinking this, he reached into his robes and took out the pearl he had chosen as a token of their love. He placed it steadily beside him and then continued to look up at the sky.

One, two, three...

The starry sky, scattered like stars, resembles a painting drawn by a celestial being with a golden brush. The woman in that painting has her beautiful eyes slightly closed, her red lips slightly parted, and her long eyelashes, like two small fans, cast charming arcs on her eyelids.

Calm, yet dazzlingly bright.

He didn't know how long he had been sitting there when Li Qingchen suddenly came to his senses, because he heard a rooster crowing from somewhere.

He got up, dusted off the hem of his robe, and leaped out of the courtyard like the wind, getting into the carriage.

That night, Wei Shuwan slept soundly, a rare occurrence. It was as if some unseen force was accompanying her, enveloping her in a sense of security even in the damp and dark prison.

...

Before they knew it, the day of the Censorate's interrogation arrived. On the prison cart being sent to the Censorate, Wei Shuwan finally met his mother, Sun Lurong, and his younger brother, Wei Chengxiu.

"Wanwan, how have you been these past few days? Has anyone been bullying you?" Sun Lurong asked, tears welling in her eyes as she held her daughter.

She had worked hard with her husband for decades and had long since developed a strong character. But she had never experienced anything like this before, with her whole family imprisoned and separated into several cells, unable to even comfort each other.

Especially after learning that the food had been poisoned, Sun Lurong was extremely worried and burst into tears. That night, she only saw those people carrying someone away, but she didn't know who they were carrying away. Fortunately, the next day, Sheng Yun came to visit her in prison and told her that the person who had been poisoned was Wei Shuyao. She breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, her Wanwan hadn't eaten that food.

However, it was inconvenient to say these words at the moment, because there were also three members of the eldest son's family and Lady Weiwen in the same carriage.

Wei Shuwan nodded vigorously in her mother's arms: "Don't worry, Mother, Wanwan is fine, everything is alright."

Hearing this, Sun Lurong felt slightly relieved, then, with tears in her eyes, whispered in his ear, "Wanwan, when you get to the court, even if they torture your father, remember not to confess anything. Because if you do, your father will face much harsher punishments than those tortures..."

"Don't worry, Mother, everything will be alright. Actually, I—"

Wei Shuwan was about to reveal the story of the pardon to reassure everyone when her aunt, who had suddenly become agitated, interrupted her:

"Sun Lurong! You only care whether your daughter is alive and well, but my Yao'er has just returned from the brink of death!"

Sun Lurong glanced at the indignant Meng Shi, then her gaze fell on Wei Shuyao, who was leaning against the old lady and looked quite weak.

"Yao'er, has all the poison in your body been cleared out? What did the doctor say?"

"Cough cough cough—" Wei Shuyao was about to answer when she was hit with a series of coughs, looking very uncomfortable.

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