Chapter 38: Hiding the truth, I have no choice but to hide it, it’s hard to tell—Hide it! Hide it! …
Qi Xin glared at him calmly, then stood up and sat down at the entrance of the cave.
After three o'clock in the night, the music and dance performance of "Song of Everlasting Sorrow" in Lihua Garden was nearing its end. The sky lanterns of the entire Lihua Mountain opposite were all lit up, like a star rain falling from the sky, like a dream.
Looking down at the garden, the dancer playing Yang Guifei walks on tiptoe, spins around, grabs a red maple-colored silk, and uses the force to leap into the air. Her fingers are tightly clasped with the actor playing Emperor Minghuang of Tang on the bridge, but then they keep separating until only their fingertips are touching.
The woman's red and white gauze dress fluttered in the night wind, carrying her light body closer and closer to the skylight. When her figure merged with the dark night, it was as if her soul had truly returned to Penglai.
Faced with such a soul-stirring song, Qi Xin had no idea whether there was anyone crying with their faces covered. She only felt that the changing brightness of the distant green peaks and dark eyebrows made her eyelids twitch, and her head could not help but slide down under her palms.
At this moment, a large hand covered with thick calluses firmly supported her cheek. Qi Xin felt the residual warmth of the palm in a half-awake state. She rubbed it contentedly in a daze and fell into a deep sleep again.
Chen Yu was reluctant to let go, so he slowly lowered his body in this awkward position, then sat down on the long stone beneath her, and gently placed her head on his legs.
Qi Xin breathed steadily, unconsciously opening his lips slightly.
Chen Yu turned his head and pulled up the outer robe that had fallen from her arms, tucked it under her chin, and then ran his fingertips along the curve of her chin to the front of her neck, pressing on her lower lip which was slightly cracked due to lack of water.
The night is long and dark, the sky lanterns are bright, and all that can be vaguely seen are souls struggling in the cycle of birth, existence, decay and death[1] and trying to cross over.
A beam of bright white light from the sky shone directly into the cave entrance without any obstruction. Qi Xin felt a little uncomfortable because of the sting. His eyelids moved and he raised the back of his hand to cover his eyes. Then he suddenly realized something and sat up suddenly with a whoosh, and the outer robe covering his body slipped to the ground.
She was not fully awake yet. Her upper body was stiff and it took a long time for her to relax. Her pupils gradually became focused. The pain from lying on the long stone became apparent. She frowned and rubbed her shoulders and neck with her backhand.
"You—" A deep, slow voice sounded from behind him, as if a stone was stuck in his throat, making it startlingly hoarse. The owner of the voice had noticed it first and cleared his throat eagerly, but it didn't help.
"You, cough, you cough, are you feeling unwell?"
"It's okay, it's just that the stone is too hard. I just need to move around a bit." Qi Xin stood up from the long stone and turned around to see Chen Yu lying listlessly on the wall of the cave with his face up.
"There's something wrong with your voice. You haven't been sitting like this all night, have you?" Qi Xin looked at him with his eyes half closed, his lips pale, and his complexion looking extremely bad.
She walked over, put one hand on his neck, and touched his forehead with the other. She felt that the heat was already high, but it was still rising. She thought to herself:
You also told me not to catch a cold, but you ended up falling ill first. I really don't know how you managed to train yourself in the military camp. Your physique is even weaker than that of ordinary generals.
"It's okay, let's go back first. The cave is too humid and there's no point staying there for a long time." Shen Yu said as he put the silenced bone whistle to his lips. After a while, the familiar bald eagle landed at the entrance of the cave.
Shen Yu stood up from the long stone, but after taking only two steps, he stumbled.
Qi Xin quickly supported him, but unfortunately he was more than seven feet tall, and the weight of his upper body alone was more than she could bear.
She spoke with difficulty:
"Are you really okay on your own? You're already so sick. And, your legs, are you..."
It's no wonder she thought about it that way. Although the master's leg disease had been cured in the farmer's yard, according to Xiao Ba and the others, the master really couldn't stand up in the past. It's not impossible that the old disease has relapsed now.
"Try to see if your legs become numb after someone rests their head on your head for a night?" Chen Yu interrupted her speculation in time, stretched out his arms and supported himself on the cave wall behind her, used the force to stand up straight, turned around and walked towards the bald eagle, but his steps seemed to be limping.
"Then why do you care about me? Why don't you just leave me aside?" Qi Xin chased after him and wanted to help him.
Chen Yu avoided her support without leaving a trace, and carried her onto the eagle's back with both hands, saying, "I'm used to sleeping in the wilderness, and I'm worried you won't be used to it."
"That's nothing." Qi Xin curled his lips and said, "If you, who grew up in a honeypot, can bear it, why can't I bear it?"
The old duke had a different temperament from his father, and his master was his only son, so he doted on him while he was still alive. Even when the old duke was away fighting and couldn't be with him all the time, he still went to ask for help from his mother, to break the safety lock, and even left the entire National Protection Army to him.
In comparison, my father, the emperor, took concubines to form alliances and married off his daughters to stop wars. I don't know who he truly cared about except me.
Although Chen Yu was silently protecting her abdomen all the way, Qi Xin saw that he was very anxious, so much so that he forgot to stop when passing by the Princess's Mansion, but drove straight into the Duke of Jingguo's Mansion, and then rushed into the inner room and locked it hastily.
Qi Xin, who was in the outer courtyard, didn't understand what was going on. He followed and knocked on the door anxiously, "What's wrong with you, Master? Are you still feeling unwell? Open the door first and let me see."
Before Chen Yu had time to change into comfortable clothes, he hurriedly dragged his aching knees to the low cabinet to look for medicine bottles.
Veins bulged on his forehead, his legs and feet cramped uncontrollably, and cold sweat flowed down his jaw and collarbone, dripping into his front.
The high fever all night and the recurrence of his old illness caused him unbearable pain and even nausea.
Chen Yu didn't care about anything else and had to pour all the pills that Shuangjiang left for him into his mouth. In a panic, he knocked all the bottles and jars in the cabinet into pieces.
The sound of the silver bottle breaking made Qi Xin's head buzz. She took two steps back and was about to kick the door open, but her skirt was pulled.
She turned around and saw that the corner of her skirt was being held in the mouth of a white-tailed sea eagle, swaying from side to side.
It was indeed difficult for one person to fight against a single eagle. She pulled twice but failed to pull it out. She could only say hesitantly, "Rongrong, your master is in dire straits alone. Why are you trying to get involved?"
The bald eagle seemed to really understand what people were saying. It spread its huge wings, flapped them twice, and continued to shake its head.
Qi Xin asked tentatively: "You mean, don't let me go in?"
As soon as she finished speaking, the bald eagle actually grabbed the hem of her skirt and nodded.
Qi Xin was somewhat bewildered, mumbling to himself in a state of detached trance: "Why is this...?"
At the same time, a woman in tight black clothes fell from the eaves. When she landed on the ground, the bald eagle roared excitedly twice.
"who?"
Qi Xin didn't understand the bald eagle's intention and turned around warily, but unexpectedly, he saw a familiar face.
Shuangjiang had already removed the black scarf from her face and whispered softly, "Don't be afraid, Xiaojiu, it's me."
Qi Xin's tense nerves relaxed, and he slid down softly against the door, sat on the ground, and said with a blank look in his eyes, "Master asked you to come?"
"Yes." Shuangjiang came over and sat down on the steps at her feet. "When we were in Lihua Garden, the Seventh Master and I split up and said we would meet here after we finished our business."
"But he became like this as soon as he came back. He even locked himself in the house and Rongrong wouldn't let me in." Qi Xin said somewhat helplessly.
Frost and White-tailed Sea Eagle exchanged a glance, rubbed her shoulders and arms, and comforted her, "Don't worry, Master Qi will be like this after a while. There are always medicines in the house. Just bear with it and it will pass."
"Wait—" Qi Xin stood up, looked down at her and asked, "What do you mean—it will be like this after a while?"
Frost was speechless for a moment.
Before this, the Seventh Master had repeatedly warned Xiaojiu not to let anyone know that his leg illness had not healed, but the Seventh Master probably didn't treat Xiaojiu as an outsider.
But, after all, she has the royal blood of the Qi clan flowing in her veins, and was once the Crown Princess married to that damned He Lianzhu.
Frost was in a dilemma and said casually:
"Well, it's inevitable that someone who has been in the army for a long time will have some bumps and bruises. They are just minor ailments that have accumulated. They are nothing serious."
"Does this princess look like she has no brains?" Qi Xin's eyes were frosty as she glanced down coldly.
Shuangjiang had never seen her look like this before, so she quickly stood up, stepped back a few steps, and said, "Don't be angry, I didn't mean that..."
At this moment, the door of their room opened. Chen Yu had already changed out of his muddy indigo robe and put on a navy blue robe with a chiffon cloud pattern robe on top.
Chen Yu rarely wears dark-colored clothes, and prefers indigo. Combined with his aura, he always gives people a sense of dignity and elegance.
With this attire and a stature very similar to He Lianzhu's, Qi Xin almost mistook him for the man from Yue Country, and he involuntarily took two steps back.
If it weren't for the common chiffon outerwear and the fact that he was still ill, Qi Xin would never have recovered so quickly.
Chen Yu thought that she was still worried about her condition and was trying to get away with it, so he leaned on the pillar behind her and spread his peacock tail as usual:
"You don't have to be so obsessed with my beauty. Be careful not to lose yourself."
Except for the first time we met, he sat upright in his wheelchair, silent and still for a moment, looking like a gentleman.
Ever since I knew he was Chen Yu, he simply stopped pretending. He usually spoke to me without any regard for others, and it was even worse after leaving Lihua Garden.
Lihuayuan, Lihuayuan, isn’t it, isn’t it, after the kiss?
I can't be so impulsive again in the future.
But didn't this master have a lover in the army before? Why did he make such a fuss over a simple incident that he acted like he was ready to pledge himself to her?
Qi Xin stepped out from under his arm, crossed his arms, and asked, "What powerful medicine did you take? It seems to be more effective than those cold medicines in the palace."
Upon hearing this, Shuangjiang took the lead in staring at Chen Yu and asked, "What cold?"
"Your Seventh Master had a high fever last night, and Rongrong brought him a lot of cold this morning." Qi Xin covered his mouth, not giving him a chance to quibble, and then frowned, "By the way, Sister Shuang, didn't you just say you were fine?"
"That is - when the medicinal properties are not in conflict." Shuangjiang said this to Qi Xin, but also for Chen Yu to hear. After all, this person had a precedent of hiding his illness and avoiding medical treatment in order not to miss the opportunity during the march.
"So, what's your hidden illness?" Qi Xin buried his guess deep in his heart, looked back calmly, and waited for him to speak.
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The author has something to say: ps——
You may have figured it out. Our "Lihua Garden" is actually the Huaqing Hot Spring, and "Lihua Mountain" is actually Mount Li. It's worth mentioning that the costumes and props for the "Song of Everlasting Sorrow" performance at Huaqing Hot Spring are very similar to those in the novel, which perfectly illustrates this epic love story. Highly recommended!
Also, everyone should try to avoid the peak holiday season, hahaha, otherwise you will just have to enjoy the huge crowds of people.
Note:
[1] Formation, residence and bad emptiness——
This is the fundamental Buddhist perspective on the birth, death, and transformation of the world, also known as the Four Kalpas. The process of the world's creation, continuation, destruction, and transformation can be divided into four periods: creation, maintenance, destruction, and emptiness. The creation kalpa refers to the period of stable existence after the world's creation; the maintenance kalpa refers to the gradual decrease in the world's lifespan after its creation; the destruction kalpa refers to the beginning of the world's destruction; and the emptiness kalpa refers to the world's complete disappearance.
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