Chapter 119 Sleeping Side by Side
Not a ray of light could penetrate; the dark compartment was pitch black, and the noisy chirping of insects outside could not be heard, only the sound of two rapid breaths.
Xie Mianmian turned to look at the Seventh Prince. She wanted to speak, so she whispered in his ear, "Are we playing hide-and-seek?"
The sweet, warm sensation of milk seeped into his ears. The Seventh Prince raised one hand to cover his ear and the other to cover Xie Mianmian's mouth, "Shh."
The two held their breath, and the secret compartment quickly became quiet. After a while, faint rustling sounds could be heard outside.
They strained to listen, and it sounded as if someone grabbed the raised blanket, then tossed it aside, and began groping around on the bed.
Someone's here? Who could it be? Everyone in the palace was sound asleep. What does that person want to do? Is it an assassination attempt on the Seventh Prince?
Xie Mianmian nervously hugged the Seventh Prince, pressing her face against his chest, listening alertly to the sounds outside, and shielding him from view.
The Seventh Prince instinctively wrapped his arm tightly around Xie Mianmian's shoulder, intently watching the situation outside.
After a while, the man searched the entire bed but couldn't find anyone. He even crawled under the bed to look, but found nothing. He was really puzzled.
When I came looking for them before, there was no one in the entire hall, including on the bed. I just heard a noise, but why is there still no one here after I came in?
The man's heart skipped a beat. Could it be that... the red-clad female ghost rumored in the palace really exists?
Lost in thought, he shivered in the summer night, but he still had to complete the task assigned by his master. Shivering, he continued searching for people.
Hearing the footsteps of the departing person, the two relaxed simultaneously. Xie Mianmian whispered, "Seventh Prince, what should we do now?"
The Seventh Prince released Xie Mianmian and gently moved her aside, saying, "That person is probably still outside. Let's not go out for now."
"Okay." Xie Mianmian lay straight to one side, and after a few breaths she came over to speak again, "So the girl in red hiding under the bed was Mianmian, haha."
The seventh prince closed his eyes to rest, and gently hummed in response.
Xie Mianmian shifted, finally resting her face against the Seventh Prince's shoulder, her little foot gently kicking his thigh. "Seventh Prince, is this what the Grand Tutor meant by 'sleeping side by side'?"
"If you speak again, you'll attract that person's attention," the Seventh Prince said coldly, remaining motionless.
Xie Mianmian stopped talking, but her feet were very busy, constantly reaching down, trying to touch his feet.
Holding Xie Mianmian's ankle with one hand and straightening her up, the Seventh Prince said helplessly through gritted teeth, "Don't move like this, you'll be sleeping with your feet touching. Go to sleep."
Okay, Xie Mianmian happily swung her two little feet from side to side.
The Grand Tutor once said that only close friends would sleep like this. How wonderful! Today is another day to celebrate her friendship with the Seventh Prince!
Xie Mianmian finally stopped talking. She folded her hands over her navel and unconsciously closed her eyes.
After a long day of fussing, the child, feeling sleepy again, fell into a deep sleep.
The temperature dropped at night, and the wind was cool. Although the dark compartment was enclosed, a slight chill rose from the floor and seeped into it.
Xie Mianmian changed from lying on her back to lying on her side, arching her back like a shrimp, and headed towards the heat source, the pupa, beside her.
The Seventh Prince frowned, without even opening his eyes, and groped around until he pulled Xie Mianmian into his arms. He gently patted the child's back with his right hand, silently coaxing her to sleep.
After a restless night, the two children finally fell asleep peacefully.
The next morning, what woke them first was not the loud crowing of a rooster, but the wailing of Eunuch Li.
"Oh no, oh no! His Highness is gone, and the Princess is gone too! Why did I sleep so soundly!" Eunuch Li cried out, slapping himself as he did so. "I told you to sleep, I told you to sleep! My masters, please, nothing can happen to you!"
The seventh prince was woken from his sleep. He rubbed against the pillow in his arms, touched the mechanism with one hand, and with a few slight sounds, the hidden compartment opened.
While Li Gonggong was wailing, he suddenly saw the bed open, and in the middle of it lay the two children who had mysteriously disappeared, fast asleep.
"Oh, thank goodness, Your Highness, I'm so glad you're all alright." He rolled up his sleeves to wipe the tears from his face. "It's all my fault for neglecting my duty, Your Highness! Please punish me!"
The seventh prince, with a cold face, impatiently climbed out of the hidden compartment.
Eunuch Li quickly reached out to help him up, his heart trembling. His Highness always looked unwell when he woke up in the morning, but today he seemed even more terrifying.
"It has nothing to do with you. Everyone in the palace was drugged last night."
Eunuch Li said angrily, "So that's how it is! This old servant will definitely investigate thoroughly to find out who is so bold as to run wild in the Seventh Prince's palace! This is outrageous!"
The Seventh Prince glanced at him dismissively. "That person is no ordinary person. If you can find out the truth, you should be rewarded."
With this arduous task weighing on his mind, Eunuch Li nodded heavily. "Your Highness, rest assured, this old servant will do my utmost in this matter, even unto death."
The seventh prince left to wash up, and their conversation woke Xie Mianmian. The palace maids filed in and gently and carefully helped the child wash up and dress.
After breakfast, Xie Mianmian was ordered to rest in bed. The Seventh Prince also took leave from school and sat next to her reading a book, while keeping an eye on Xie Mianmian.
“Aren’t we best friends? Let Mianmian go for a walk in the garden, Your Highness.”
"If you're bored, I'll read to you. Heaven and earth were dark and yellow, the universe was vast and boundless..." The Seventh Prince kindly read the Thousand Character Classic to the child.
His tone was flat and monotone, leaving Xie Mianmian feeling uneasy and frustrated.
It would be so nice to talk like we did last night. As long as you don't chant sutras for Mianmian, we'll still be best friends.
But she dared not say these words aloud. She could only try her best to figure out where the Thousand Character Classic was being read, not daring to disappoint the Seventh Prince's good intentions.
Finally, the Xie family and the abbot arrived.
Xie Mianmian happily went to greet them and said to her family who were surrounding her, "Mianmian missed you all so much."
Seeing that the child was in good condition, the Xie family was relieved.
Wen Shuwan said, "Greetings, Your Excellency. You've worked hard. Do you have any clues about the strange poison in Mianmian?"
The Imperial Physician said, "Last night I spent the whole night reading through ancient books and finally figured out the antidote. Most of the ingredients are available in the palace, but one ingredient is still missing: Dragon Stop Grass. And the most important ingredient is the Mermaid's Heart-Protecting Scale."
He pondered, "Dragon-Stopping Grass is precious, but it can still be found. However, Merfolk are a legendary species, no one has ever seen them, and it's hard to say whether they even exist. So how can we obtain their Heart-Protecting Scales? It's difficult!"
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