The Empress Dowager did not stay in He'an Palace for long; she left after lunch.
Yu Jingchen also carried Nan Zhiyun back in his arms, carefully avoiding the injury on her foot when he put her down.
"Did you change your dressing today?" Yu Jingchen asked her.
"Not yet, the imperial physician said it can be done later," Nan Zhiyun replied, then gently withdrew her foot.
"Go and fetch the medicine your mistress needs to change," Yu Jingchen said to the palace servant.
Qianxia curtsied and then personally went to fetch all the medicine. After washing his hands, Yu Jingchen gently unwrapped the bandages from Nan Zhiyun's foot.
Although it doesn't hurt as much as yesterday, it still hurts a lot when touched. Nan Zhiyun involuntarily flinched.
"Does it still hurt?" Yu Jingchen noticed Nan Zhiyun's evasiveness.
"It still hurts a little, but it doesn't hurt when I don't touch it." Nan Zhiyun was much more composed now than when the Empress Dowager was here.
"There's nothing I can do about it. The dressing needs to be changed. I'll try to be as gentle as possible. Just bear with it for a bit. It's okay if you really can't bear it, just don't hurt yourself. And don't bite your lip again later, understand?" Yu Jingchen gave him a heads-up beforehand.
"Okay," Nan Zhiyun agreed.
Yu Jingchen smiled faintly, then loosened all the bandages. His ankle was badly swollen, a result of the sprain he had sustained earlier. Besides his ankle, his entire foot was swollen beyond recognition, covered in bruises. Seeing this, Yu Jingchen felt a pang of heartache. Of course, besides heartache, there was also resentment towards the culprit.
"If you really can't hold it in, don't hold it in for a while," Yu Jingchen said to Nan Zhiyun again.
After Nan Zhiyun nodded, Yu Jingchen turned around to get the medicine and then began to change and bandage Nan Zhiyun's bandages.
"Hiss..." It really hurt, Nan Zhiyun gasped in pain. Yu Jingchen looked at her, but there was nothing he could do about it.
Yu Jingchen had tried his best to move as gently as possible, but it didn't have much effect. Nan Zhiyun was in so much pain that tears streamed down her face, but she kept quiet and didn't make a sound.
After Yu Jingchen finished bandaging her up, Nan Zhiyun's face was covered in tear stains. He felt a pang of heartache and pulled her into his arms.
"Yun'er has suffered," Yu Jingchen said with pity. Nan Zhiyun did not reply.
After a long while, she finally spoke, asking, "Isn't Your Majesty busy today?"
"Your side is the most important," Yu Jingchen replied. Nan Zhiyun blushed slightly upon hearing this answer, feeling a little embarrassed.
"Thank you for coming," Yu Jingchen called out.
"Your Majesty," he replied with a bow.
"Go and move all the memorials that haven't been processed today to He'an Hall," Yu Jingchen ordered.
Fortunately, he responded with a simple "yes," as he was used to it; after all, this wasn't the first time. Nan Zhiyun didn't say anything more about it. Firstly, she felt there was no need for her to say it, because subconsciously... she wouldn't refuse, so she felt there was no need to pretend to persuade her.
Secondly, she felt that speaking up would be pointless and wouldn't change Yu Jingchen's decision, so considering both points, Nan Zhiyun didn't bother to speak.
"What does Yun'er want to do today?" Yu Jingchen asked her.
Nan Zhiyun had an injury on her foot and couldn't exert any force, so what could she do? She could only sit here obediently, but wasn't this a bit too boring?
"I haven't finished reading those storybooks His Majesty sent me yet." Nan Zhiyun thought for a moment and actually remembered them.
"You really enjoy reading storybooks that much? Don't make yourself cry this time." Yu Jingchen couldn't help but recall the two times Nan Zhiyun had read those books before, and how she had cried each time.
"Some parts were so touching that I couldn't control myself. But it's really good, I really like it." Nan Zhiyun was afraid that Yu Jingchen wouldn't allow her to watch that kind of thing, so she added that she really liked it.
"Since you like it, then watch it." What could Yu Jingchen do? He had no choice.
Immediately, Yu Jingchen arranged for someone to bring over all the storybooks. He then sat down beside them and began reviewing memorials.
They weren't far apart; Yu Jingchen could see Nan Zhiyun with just a glance. Nan Zhiyun sat on the bed, holding a sketchbook, looking incredibly content. Yu Jingchen smiled after seeing her, his face full of doting affection.
"Go and bring me the grapes and kumquats from my place; Consort Shu likes them," Yu Jingchen said to Xing, who was beside him.
Fortunately, he immediately arranged for someone to pick them up, as Nan Zhiyun really liked both of these items. However, he was currently reading a storybook and couldn't free up his hands.
Qiu Yun and Dong Wan were right next to him, peeling the fruit for her. Tsk, she's living a good life. But Yu Jingchen thought that Nan Zhiyun should be like this all along.
The room fell silent, save for the occasional rustling of Nan Zhiyun's books and Yu Jingchen's annotations. Qiu Yun and Dong Wan were peeling the tea leaves meticulously, having already filled a large plate.
Nan Zhiyun would eat a piece every now and then, looking incredibly focused, and towards the end she completely forgot about eating. Seeing this, Yu Jingchen knew she was once again captivated by the story.
This time, however, it didn't seem to be a sad story, otherwise Nan Zhiyun wouldn't have this expression. Therefore, Yu Jingchen wasn't worried that she would cry, so he started dealing with his own affairs.
Nan Zhiyun was indeed drawn to the story in the book. This time, the story was quite different from the ones she had read before. Therefore, she was much more interested in it. Most of the books she had read before were rather tragic, but this one made her feel warm.
Nan Zhiyun slowly flipped through the pages, sometimes even laughing out loud at the plot, just like this time...
Nan Zhiyun was so calm that she burst out laughing. Her smile was so bright that Yu Jingchen's gaze was immediately drawn to her.
"It seems Yun'er enjoyed today's story very much," Yu Jingchen said.
Nan Zhiyun's face flushed slightly, perhaps out of embarrassment. She said, "It's a little different from before..."
Yu Jingchen raised an eyebrow slightly. Something seemed off about her... However, he didn't say anything, but secretly observed Nan Zhiyun. He then noticed that... Nan Zhiyun's face was getting redder and redder, and she was smiling unusually happily at the book. However... no matter how he looked at it, he felt that there was a hint of shyness in that smile.
Yu Jingchen stood up from his seat. Nan Zhiyun was probably too engrossed in her book to notice Yu Jingchen's approach, as she kept staring at the book in her hands.
As a result... she didn't know what she saw, but Nan Zhiyun's expression changed. She was about to look up when she saw Yu Jingchen next to her, which startled her.
Nan Zhiyun seemed to have thought of something and immediately hid the book in her hand to the side, perhaps feeling a little guilty.
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