Relapse
Cheng Yayin couldn't wait to tell Pei Songsheng what she had found out, but after returning home and waiting for a long time, he still didn't come back.
There had been so much backlogged work in the past few days that he had been kept busy day and night. Cheng Yayin waited until all the lights in the mansion were lit, but he still hadn't shown up. She sat in her room, reading a book as she waited, feeling uneasy.
She didn't know what time it was, but when she was drowsy, she nodded her head suddenly and woke up. She opened the window and saw that the light was on in Pei Songsheng's study.
She quickly put down the book, crossed the yard and knocked on the study door.
The sound of a few knocks on the door sounded particularly clear in the night. Cheng Yayin waited for a long time before she heard footsteps inside.
The door was opened, and Cheng Yayin was shocked when she saw Pei Songsheng.
Although he had his back to the light in the room, the tired look on his face was still clearly visible to Cheng Yayin - there were dark circles under his eyes that would not heal, and his originally clear eyes were now bloodshot, making him look extremely exhausted.
"Why do you look so haggard?" Cheng Yayin asked in surprise.
Pei Songsheng stepped aside and motioned Cheng Yayin to come in. He rubbed his brow and said, "It's nothing, just a little tired. Why haven't you rested yet so late?"
"You still ask me, you are the one who should rest." Cheng Yayin looked at Pei Songsheng's face and was very worried.
"It's okay. You came to see me so late, it must be something important. Tell me."
What she wanted to say was indeed very important, but seeing Pei Songsheng's lack of energy, Cheng Yayin couldn't continue after starting to speak, and turned around and pushed him out the door. "No, no, you should go and rest. I'll talk to you about this tomorrow."
Pei Songsheng said helplessly: "I will be busy at the yamen all day tomorrow, so I'm afraid I won't have time to listen to you."
Cheng Yayin thought for a moment, clapped her hands and said, "Then I'll write it down and you can read it tomorrow."
She turned and walked towards the desk, "Let me lend you my pen and ink."
Pei Songsheng's desk was still neatly arranged, with a stack of official documents in the middle, all covered with fresh ink marks. His usual wolf-hair pen was placed on the pen stand beside him, but there was no new paper available.
She searched the shelf behind the desk, not daring to rummage through his things. She could only scan the shelves with her eyes. Still unable to find it, she turned around and asked, "Where do you usually keep the paper you use?"
Although she didn't hear the answer, Cheng Yayin had already seen a piece of Bai Xuan hidden in the corner by several books.
She pulled out the stack of papers and was about to turn around when she suddenly felt a warmth behind her and a slight weight on her shoulder. A breath hit her ear, and a low, mellow voice rang out, "Madam."
Cheng Yayin's whole body froze, and before she could react, a hand slowly slid across her ribs, caressing the soft curve between her waist and abdomen inch by inch, and finally landing on her waist. With a pull of fingers, it untied her clothes.
Cheng Yayin screamed in surprise, and the white scroll in her hand fell to the ground. She suddenly jumped out of Pei Songsheng's arms, covering the loose clothes around her waist with her hands and stammering, "What are you going to do?"
Her reaction seemed to make Pei Songsheng a little confused. He smiled and asked, "Madam, don't you want to stay in the study tonight?"
Cheng Yayin trembled: "What are you doing in the study?"
Pei Songsheng asked with an expression as if he knew the answer but still wanted to, and walked towards her with his arms open.
Cheng Yayin ducked down and slipped out from under his folded arms. While frantically tying her clothes, she said to Pei Songsheng, who was chasing her relentlessly, "What's wrong with you?"
Pei Songsheng no longer looked exhausted as before. The tiredness on his face was completely gone, and he looked very good, so good that he didn't even look like himself. His usually gentle eyes were now filled with a bright smile. When he saw her, he was like a wolf seeing a rabbit, and he followed her closely, wanting to hug her.
Cheng Yayin dodged left and right like a frightened little animal. Pei Songsheng smiled helplessly from behind and said, "Madam, what are you doing? We are husband and wife."
"But we're not a couple that can do this kind of thing!"
Pei Songsheng seemed to be somewhat displeased by these words. He stepped forward and grabbed the dodging Cheng Yayin, trapping her against the wall with his arms like a cage. He narrowed his eyes and said dangerously, "Madam, are you going to say those rude words again? It seems that you didn't learn enough from last time."
He was so close that Cheng Yayin felt his presence everywhere, and her thoughts were about to be turned into a mess.
She stretched out a finger, pressed it against his chest, pushed him away, then pointed at him and said tremblingly, "Lu Xingyuan?"
Pei Songsheng put away his unhappy expression and became a little confused. He nodded and said, "What's wrong with Madam today?"
Cheng Yayin pointed at herself again: "Xuanli?"
Pei Songsheng nodded.
Cheng Yayin felt as if she was struck by lightning, her eyes went dark, her legs could no longer support her body, and she collapsed limply.
There was only one thought left in her mind - she was wrong.
She once thought that Pei Songsheng was a good person who never made mistakes and had no edges or corners. Living with him was like tasting a bowl of plain and tasteless water. It could quench her thirst, but it had no flavor at all.
But she only realized today how wrong she was. Life is not a bowl of bland, tasteless water, but a basin of vigorous, splashing drama!
*
Lu Xingyuan and Xuanli are the names of the male and female protagonists in Cheng Yayin's second book "Yin Chonglou".
Xuan Li is one of the assassins under the mysterious assassin sect "Yin Men" in the underworld. She received a mission to lurk beside the current official Lu Xingyuan, waiting for an opportunity to take his life.
However, Lu Xingyuan fell in love with her at first sight and saw through her identity early on. Not only did he use a trick to trick her into marrying him, he also made a bet with her that if she still couldn't kill him within a year, she would put aside their grudges and live with him forever.
In short, this is the story of a seemingly upright court official who falls in love with a female assassin, and the assassin gradually becomes attracted to him through repeated confrontations. After the two get married, they engage in a fierce battle of wits and courage.
Well, "hot" in every sense of the word.
But Cheng Yayin never expected that this fire would one day burn on her own head.
Cheng Yayin, whose head was covered in dog blood, was dizzy and dazed when Pei Songsheng carried her to the desk. He held her face in his hands, gently and tenderly stroking her pale lips, and asked worriedly, "What's wrong, Madam? Do you want to call a doctor?"
"No need." Cheng Yayin said weakly, "I just feel a little dizzy. I'll be fine after a good sleep."
She was about to jump off the desk and go back to her room, but Pei Songsheng picked her up and carried her back to her room.
When Pei Songsheng held her, took off her shoes and socks, and gently put her on the bed, Cheng Yayin thought with a blushing face that it was a good thing that she didn't let Lanyue and the others wait with her, and sent them to rest early.
She lay in bed. Pei Songsheng touched her face and then her forehead, and said with worry and self-blame, "It's my fault for not noticing that Madam was unwell earlier. Let's find a doctor to check it out."
"No need, I'll be fine after a good sleep." Cheng Yayin pointed to the lacquer box on her dressing table, "It's just that I'm feeling very dizzy right now, I'm afraid I can't sleep. There's some calming incense over there, please help me light it."
Pei Songsheng walked over and opened the lacquer box as he was told. Cheng Yayin then said, "There's also a small medicine bottle over there. Please help me get it, my husband."
Pei Songsheng handed her the medicine bottle. She poured out a small pill and swallowed it. She explained to Pei Songsheng, who looked skeptical, "This is also a medicine for calming the nerves. The doctor said that it would be more effective if it was taken with calming incense."
"When did Madam prepare these things in the room?" Although Pei Songsheng was puzzled, he still followed Cheng Yayin's arrangement, lit the incense seal and put it into the incense burner.
Wisps of smoke slowly rose from the incense burner. Pei Songsheng sat down in front of Cheng Yayin's couch and looked at her gently. "Madam, go to sleep. I'll stay here with you."
Cheng Yayin nodded and closed her eyes.
After an unknown amount of time, she suddenly opened her eyes, without a trace of sleepiness in them, while Pei Songsheng was sleeping soundly on the edge of the couch.
Cheng Yayin reached out and gently pushed him a few times. His breathing was even and there was no sign of waking up.
She breathed a sigh of relief, glad that she had left the calming incense and antidote originally used on Du Lanxin in her room.
She jumped up, walked quickly to the door, opened it, and shouted, "Jian Zhu, come here quickly, your master is not well again!"
There was some noise in the side room across the street, and Jian Zhu quickly emerged, her outer clothes sloppily on, her sleepy eyes barely open as she hurried over with anxious steps. Meanwhile, Lan Yue and Yi Xing were also startled awake by the noise, and hurriedly put on their clothes and left the room to ask what was going on.
Cheng Yayin said that Pei Songsheng was ill again.
When these words came out, everyone in front of him was shocked. Jian Zhu asked anxiously, "Isn't the master already well? He was fine these past few days. How come he got sick again?"
Cheng Yayin didn't know what was going on. According to what Doctor Fang had said before, the blood clots in his brain had dissipated and the disease was cured, but he didn't say that the disease would recur. Could it be that the previous injury had not healed completely?
Jian Zhu was so anxious that he wanted to go out in the dark to get a doctor. Cheng Yayin's thoughts raced, but she suddenly calmed down and called out to him, "Wait."
"Doctor Fang is also a famous doctor in Shengjing. He didn't diagnose anything before, and I'm afraid the result will be the same if we find another doctor." Cheng Yayin looked at Jian Zhu, "I heard Pei Songsheng say that he knows a doctor named Wang in the Imperial Medical Bureau. He is very skilled and maybe he can figure out what's going on. But Pei Songsheng is unconscious now. Jian Zhu, do you have a way to send a message to that doctor and ask him to come to the Pei Mansion?"
"There is a way, but..." Jian Zhu looked at Cheng Yayin with an embarrassed look on his face.
Cheng Yayin was a little anxious: "Your master is in such a state now. If we delay any longer, who knows what serious consequences will occur. Since you have a way to save him, why are you hesitating?"
Jian Zhu was scolded until his face flushed red. He gritted his teeth and said, "Okay, your health is more important. I will do it right away."
Jian Zhu worked quickly, or perhaps Doctor Wang was particularly concerned about the Pei family. As soon as it got dark the next day, a man in a cloak was led in from the corner gate, and Jian Zhu took him straight into the inner courtyard.
Pei Songsheng had been moved to the bed by Jian Zhu. Cheng Yayin had been waiting by the bed all day, feeling extremely anxious. When she saw Doctor Wang, it was like she had seen a savior.
To avoid his true appearance being seen by outsiders and the news leaking out, Doctor Wang covered his face with a cloak all the way and only lowered his hood after entering the inner room. Cheng Yayin glanced at his face and was stunned.
This imperial physician looked to be over forty years old, with a fair and beardless face, a calm and composed temperament, and a casual and unrestrained demeanor in his every move. He did not look like an imperial physician who often walked around the palace, but rather like a rootless wanderer who traveled around the world.
It was not until Doctor Wang bowed his head and called her "Mrs. Pei" that Cheng Yayin realized that she had been staring at someone for too long without realizing it, which was really rude. She quickly stepped aside and asked Doctor Wang to come forward to diagnose Pei Songsheng.
Doctor Wang first took Pei Songsheng's pulse, then opened his eyelids to check, his expression becoming more and more solemn.
Cheng Yayin's heart also became heavier along with Doctor Wang's expression, and finally fell into the diagnosis he made -
"It's poisoned."
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