Chapter 52 Blowing air into the wound
The areas on his body that hadn't been cleaned felt sticky and uncomfortable. She bit her lip, afraid to move, lest she reopen his wounds or soil his precious robes.
It was already dirty.
He carried her for a long time, her cheek pressed against his firm chest, and she could feel the man's clear and powerful heartbeat.
Just like the feeling of being protected behind him amidst the clash of swords by the Magpie Bridge—warm, reassuring, and powerful—her tense body slowly relaxed.
"Your Highness, it's been so long since you've seen me. Why have you summoned me today?"
The girl's soft, delicate voice came from her chest, and the prince felt that this soft voice, like her hand, easily made him feel breathless and his chest and abdomen restless.
"What, you don't want to see me?"
Yun Kui pursed her lips: "I'm afraid Your Highness will think I'm arrogant because of your favor. I only dare to obediently wait for Your Highness to summon me in the side hall. If Your Highness is unwilling to summon me, I will have to reflect on whether I did something wrong."
After saying that, she looked up at him again and cautiously probed, "You took me out of the palace to see the lanterns, bought me storybooks, and now you want to take my storybooks away. Do you want me to serve in Chengguang Palace forever?"
The Crown Prince spoke sternly and righteously: "I'm afraid you'll read too many stories and go astray. With me here, how much will you restrain yourself?"
Yun Kui lowered her eyelashes: "I see."
"If reading storybooks is going astray, then that astray is my hometown."
As the Crown Prince walked, he said, "The Eastern Palace is strictly disciplined. If these forbidden books are found in your room, I will not be able to protect you."
Yun Kui: "..."
"Yes, yes, you're absolutely right. I could survive the assassin's sword, but I couldn't protect myself from the few storybooks they found."
"They say I'm arrogant because I'm favored, yet they brought me back in front of everyone. Tomorrow, the whole Crown Prince's palace will be buzzing with the news."
"I also want to keep a low profile, but how can I do that?"
The crown prince listened silently to her thoughts without replying.
From the moment she was placed by his side, none of the guards or stewards in the Eastern Palace who had any sense of observation dared to bully her anymore.
As for the Crown Princess she imagined, that was nothing at all.
The matter of rank was beyond her comprehension. Even if he wanted to give it to her, she wouldn't dare accept it. It wouldn't be too late to discuss it again when things settled down in the court.
Back in Chengguang Palace, he placed her on the couch and looked down to see the stains on her lotus-colored shirt, even staining her neck.
No wonder you seemed so aggrieved just now.
He used a handkerchief to wipe her neck, his fingertips brushing across her snow-white, delicate neck and soft, translucent earlobes. His gaze darkened slightly. "Shall I have someone clean you up?"
Yun Kui hurriedly shook her head: "Don't let anyone come..."
As soon as she finished speaking, she belatedly realized that his wound on his waist and abdomen was indeed soaked with blood, and a fine layer of cold sweat had appeared on his forehead.
A pang of panic shot through her: "Your Highness, I'll go fetch a military doctor for you..."
She was about to get up when the man pressed her down again.
The prince's Adam's apple bobbed slightly: "It's just a minor injury. Don't you know how to bandage and stop the bleeding?"
Yun Kui quickly nodded, "I'll bandage Your Highness."
Ignoring the filth on her body, she first washed her hands with a handkerchief, then took out some wound medicine and slowly helped the prince remove his outer robe.
Seeing the bandage stained bright red with blood, she felt a pang of sorrow, as if something was choking her throat, and her fingers trembled slightly as she untied the bandage.
"Your Highness knew you were injured, so why did you insist on..."
"hiss."
He was speaking when he suddenly cried out in pain and gasped for breath.
She quickly softened her movements, "Am I clumsy? Did I hurt Your Highness?"
The prince sat on the couch, his black robe open from the chest, revealing his strong chest and narrow waist. With each breath, the well-defined muscles in his abdomen slowly tightened.
"This is... far too tempting."
"How can someone look so beautiful even when injured!"
She was genuinely anxious and worried, but she simply couldn't resist being attracted to his firm and beautiful abs.
The wound was bleeding, which looked particularly shocking on her well-defined waist and abdomen. She suppressed her trembling hands, gently wiped away the blood with a cotton towel, and then applied some wound medicine.
After applying the medicine, she swallowed and kindly blew on the wound that had already stopped bleeding.
However, the gentle breeze blowing across her lower abdomen brought about an unexpected reaction.
She stared in disbelief at the young prince slowly rising, remembering the exhaustion she had endured in the carriage. Terrified, she didn't dare look up at him and ran off, saying, "I...I'll go change my clothes!"
The man stared intently at her, his dark eyes brimming with emotion.
He took a deep breath and it took him a long time to calm down.
Yun Kui scrubbed her soiled clothes and wiped herself clean. When she returned, De Shun had already washed the prince's body.
She hesitated, "Does Your Highness wish me to stay tonight?"
The crown prince glanced at her and said, "What do you think?"
"But His Highness's health cannot be further aggravated..."
"And I haven't even seen my store's prized possession yet!"
The prince gave her a cool look, and Yun Kui shrank back and quickly lay down obediently on the sandalwood bed.
That night was truly thrilling. We visited the lantern festival, witnessed the lighthouse collapse, were then assassinated, and ended up spending a full half hour exhausted in the carriage!
Fortunately, the crown prince didn't intend to torment her.
"I guess they're willing but unable to do so."
Crown Prince: "..."
If he hadn't seen how tired she was after a long night, he really wouldn't have minded letting her know whether he was capable or not.
Exhausted, Yun Kui closed her eyes and quickly drifted off to sleep.
Perhaps the assassination attempt at the lantern festival left too much of a shadow on her, for even in her dreams she saw the assassin leader raising his sword to strike her.
However, in the dream, the prince failed to block the killing blow for her, and the sword pierced straight into the prince's vital chest!
When she looked up again, the assassin had removed the black mask from her face, revealing a face that looked as if it had been burned by fire, ugly and rugged.
The crown prince died by his sword, and what awaited him was an imperial edict delivered to his door—
General Feng Yu, known for his wisdom and courage, is devoted to his lord, risking his life in battle and repeatedly achieving extraordinary feats. He is hereby granted the title of Marquis of Loyalty and Valor, with a fief of three thousand households, and bestowed with a certificate of merit. This is the imperial decree.
Feng Yu knelt down to express his gratitude, tears welling in his eyes.
Yun Kui then noticed that his burns had healed, and his skin had returned to its original smoothness. He could now be described as having a dignified appearance and the demeanor of a valiant general.
But she remembered those cold, dark eyes.
This is the leader of the men in black who attempted to assassinate His Highness the Crown Prince!
Yun Kui slowly woke up and saw the Crown Prince's handsome face with his sword-like eyebrows, high nose, and aloof and noble demeanor.
She subconsciously reached out her finger, her fingertip gliding over his sharply defined features, feeling his warm skin and still-beating heart, and only then did she feel a little relieved.
"Your Highness, you've died hundreds of times in my dreams..."
Fortunately, none of them succeeded.
She let out a soft breath, and when she looked up, she met the Crown Prince's dark phoenix eyes. She was secretly startled: "Your Highness is awake?"
"How come he always wakes up precisely after having a dream?"
The prince asked, "Whom did you dream of this time?"
Yun Kui didn't recognize the assassin, so she could only try to tell the truth about what she saw in her dream, "I dreamt of the leader of the assassins today. He killed His Highness, made a great contribution, was named the Marquis of Loyalty and Valor, and even regained his original appearance..."
The crown prince repeated in a deep voice: "Original appearance?"
Yun Kui still felt a lingering fear when she recalled that hideous face. She raised her hand to show him, "His right cheek was injured, and it seems that the whole area was burned by the fire... By the way, the imperial edict said his name was Feng Yu!"
The crown prince's gaze turned cold and stern almost instantly.
It was him.
The truth, which had been hidden under layers of fog, seemed to emerge from the clouds as if the sun had been pierced through the fog.
The assassin of tonight.
Lu Qi, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, was disfigured by a fire and wears a bronze mask year-round.
Furthermore, the General Zhaoyong who colluded with the enemy from within and without during the Battle of Langshan, causing the army to be trapped in a tight encirclement, is very likely the same person!
Twenty years is too long ago. The traces of the Battle of Langshan have long been lost, and those that should have been destroyed have long been destroyed.
He spent three years venturing deep into the northern frontier, meticulously unraveling long-forgotten clues, and only then did he discover that the Battle of Langshan was a secret affair between General Zhaoyong under the late emperor and the Northern Wei, and that Feng Yu had not only not died on the battlefield, but had disappeared.
The Crown Prince had been searching for this man for a year, and even after returning to the capital, he deliberately mentioned Feng Yu's name to Emperor Chunming. If Emperor Chunming had something to hide, he would surely take action, and the Crown Prince could then find out the man's whereabouts based on the unusual activity. But to this day, his secret guards have not found anything.
It turns out that the darkest place is under the lamp; the most dangerous place is the safest place. Lu Qi served the emperor as a member of the Embroidered Uniform Guard for more than ten years. His name as the commander was well-known and everyone knew him. However, due to his disfigured appearance and the changes in his physique over the past twenty years, even his colleagues in the court had never recognized him.
Seeing his expression, Yun Kui vaguely knew that this man was not simple. Could it be that she had helped him solve some mystery again?
Just like in the dream before that the heir of the Marquis of Ningde had an affair with Consort Yu, she has done good again this time.
The prince's eyes held a chilling, piercing coldness, but Yun Kui knew that this icy gaze was not directed at her.
She spoke softly, "Your Highness?"
The Crown Prince understood some of the issues, his gaze softened, and he subconsciously patted her head, saying, "You are truly my lucky star."
Yun Kui felt a surge of joy: "Did I help His Highness again?"
Crown Prince: "Hmm."
Yun Kui: "Then wouldn't that mean we can get another reward?"
The crown prince smiled slightly: "What do you want?"
Yun Kui thought about it carefully this time, "I have an idea that can help Your Highness while protecting myself."
The crown prince did not hear her thoughts, but he vaguely sensed that something was wrong.
Sure enough, I heard her say, "If Your Highness really wants to reward me, how about appointing me as a lady-in-waiting? Of the six bureaus and one department in the palace, I can go to the Department of Clothing, the Department of Food, and the Department of Bedchamber. I'll go to the Department of Bedchamber! From now on, I will be in charge of Your Highness's private bedchamber and imperial favors. If Your Highness misses me, or wants me to appear in someone's dream, just send someone to summon me, and I will certainly respond without hesitation."
"After becoming a female official, my salary is far greater than before, and I have a rank. Even the Crown Princess cannot easily punish me."
"Not only will they thrive in the palace, but they will also be prominent figures among official families after leaving the palace!"
But as she spoke, she noticed the Crown Prince's expression growing increasingly grim, which made her uneasy. She could only offer a compromise: "I...I don't want to become a Shanggong right away. Starting as a seventh-rank official is fine too. I'm still young..."
"How stingy!"
"You always say you want a reward, but then you get all sullen. Your Highness, you're really hard to please!"
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