053 Intimacy
Li Yang was somewhat embarrassed.
Before today, before she realized that the Sixth Princess had special feelings for her, she could have lifted her trouser leg without any hesitation and let her check her injuries.
But now, no matter what, she is a doctor, and in her eyes there is no distinction between genders, which makes Li Yang feel a little awkward.
She couldn't help but see the Sixth Princess as Song Xi, as a man who had just shown her some flirtatious advances.
Seeing Li Yang keep backing down, the Sixth Princess felt a bitter taste rise in her heart, gradually rising to her throat, both sour and bitter. She said, "Cui Yu is outside. She has been with me for many years and can also see some simple injuries. Let her take a look, and I can ask her later."
Li Yang nodded and called Cui Yu in. The two stayed behind the screen for a while. After carefully examining the injury on her knee, Cui Yu came out with a frown.
When Li Yang finished tidying up and came out, Cui Yu had already left. The Sixth Princess said, "Sit down and rest for a while. I've written a prescription for Cui Yu to go to the Imperial Hospital to get some medicine."
Being alone with her, Li Yang felt inexplicably awkward. She limped over and sat down on the couch beside her: "Sixth Princess, where is Little Peach?"
The sixth princess said, "She was tired from playing, so I had someone carry her to the side hall to sleep."
After saying that, she didn't speak again. Li Yang and she sat some distance apart; one was on the couch by the inner window, and the other sat in the center of the outer hall. Sunlight streamed in through the windows behind them, falling on them brightly and warmly, creating two bright spots.
But a shadow always lingered among them.
This dark shadow, like a bottomless chasm, stood between them, as if there was no possibility of any further interaction between them.
“Yangyang,” the Sixth Princess finally couldn’t bear it any longer. She turned her wheelchair so that she was facing Li Yang, and said to her in a conciliatory manner, “Can you treat me like before? I don’t want to become so unfamiliar and awkward with you.”
Li Yang smiled at him and said, "Okay."
The Sixth Princess noticed the forced smile on her face and pushed her wheelchair out of the hall: "When Cui Yu returns, have her teach you how to apply the medicine. I'm a little tired, I'm going to rest now."
Upon hearing this, Li Yang thought of getting up to see her out. Seeing her movement, the Sixth Princess quickly stopped her: "Don't move, just stay there, don't move, don't come any closer."
Let's leave him with one last glimmer of hope.
The world is vast and boundless. He was already traveling alone, and to have her company for even a moment was a stroke of luck.
He shouldn't have asked for that.
Li Yang insisted on standing up and quietly watched as the Sixth Princess pushed her wheelchair out of the palace gate.
When Cui Yu returned with the ointment, she saw Li Yang standing there blankly, her eyes glazed over, seemingly lost in thought. She walked up to Li Yang and waved, "Madam Yuan? What are you looking at?"
Li Yang snapped out of her daze: "It's nothing."
She didn't want to talk about it, and Cui Yu didn't ask anymore. She took out the ointment in her hand: "This is medicine that the Sixth Princess personally prescribed based on my description of the wound. I went to the Imperial Hospital to select and grind it myself. It's all top-quality medicinal materials, so Madam can use it with peace of mind."
Cui Yu carefully explained the usage of the ointment and powder to Li Yang before leaving to find the Sixth Princess.
Only Li Yang and Xiao Taozi, who was fast asleep in the inner room, remained in the hall.
The Sixth Princess never came to see them again. Only Cui Yu came every morning to tell Li Yang about the situation outside, check on Li Yang's knee injury, or apply new ointment.
Li Yang had asked at first, but seeing that Cui Yu seemed displeased, she knew that the Sixth Princess was intentionally avoiding her, so she stopped asking.
That morning, after Cui Yu finished all her chores as usual, she said as if she had just remembered something, "I heard that Lord Yuan has arrived. He's waiting at the place where you met last time. Madam, why don't you go and see him?"
Such a significant matter was too much for Li Yang to believe; she had only just remembered. From the moment she entered the room until now, no one else had come in between them. Her demeanor clearly indicated that she already knew about Yuan Chongjing's visit to the palace before entering and was deliberately stalling.
The Sixth Princess hasn't come here to talk to her lately. It seems Cui Yu has figured something out and thinks she upset the Sixth Princess, so she's here to vent her anger on the Sixth Princess's behalf.
Li Yang didn't say anything, only saying, "Okay, I'll go over now."
After settling Xiao Taozi in, she hurriedly went to the place where she had met Yuan Chongjing last time.
Yuan Chongjing seemed to have been waiting for a long time; he had even trampled the grass beneath his feet flat. Li Yang quickly walked over: "Brother Jing."
Seeing that Li Yang's gait was normal and that the injury to his knee did not affect his walking at all, Yuan Chongjing secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but his face was relaxed: "You've come."
"Yes. Sorry to keep you waiting."
Yuan Chongjing shook his head: "It's nothing, I just arrived too."
He looked down at her legs: "I heard that Granny Fang made things difficult for you?"
Li Yang smiled nonchalantly: "It's nothing, I only knelt for a while. Cui Yu has already gotten medicine for me from the Imperial Hospital, and it's very effective. I'm almost fully recovered."
"Hmm," Yuan Chongjing responded. He had people in the Imperial Hospital who watched over Cui Yu as she picked up the medicine, ensuring its safety. Yuan Chongjing looked at Li Yang and said, "Li Yang, I'm going on a long trip."
In the past, whether in Chenzhou or Kyoto, whenever the two of them were together, Yuan Chongjing would always make a point of telling her before leaving the house.
Li Yang asked, "Going on a long trip? Your injury has only just healed, where are you going?"
Yuan Chongjing looked around and said with a smile, "You may not know this from Shou'an Palace recently, but His Majesty has imprisoned the Third Prince and will soon pardon the Prince of Yu. I heard that the Prince of Yu's health has been poor due to an old injury from five years ago, and he has been allowed to return to the capital to recuperate."
Li Yang was indeed unaware of this matter. Her residence was some distance from the main hall of the Empress Dowager's Shou'an Palace. She had only overheard a palace servant mention that the Consort had been frequently visiting the Empress Dowager to pay her respects these past few days. She guessed that the Consort was there to plead for the Third Prince's sake.
Perhaps because of this incident, the Empress Dowager was unable to spare any more attention to cause trouble for her and Xiao Taozi, allowing them to enjoy a few days of peace.
"What does this have to do with your long trip?" Li Yang asked, then immediately realized, "Brother Jing, you're not going to Yuzhou to bring His Highness Prince Yu back, are you?"
It's obvious to anyone with eyes that His Highness Prince Yu's journey back to the capital will be fraught with difficulties and dangers.
This is the best and last chance to make Prince Yu disappear. Once he returns to the capital, not only will his guards increase, but the mere fact that something happened to him in the capital will be investigated and dealt with seriously by the emperor.
Therefore, neither the Third Prince nor the Fifth Prince would let this opportunity slip by.
Yuan Chongjing nodded: "Yes, I have to go to Yuzhou."
"Are you crazy? You'd risk your life for fame and fortune?" Li Yang scolded in a low voice.
“I was the one who saw His Highness off five years ago. Now that he’s back, I have to go and meet him,” Yuan Chongjing explained. Seeing the worry on her face, he added firmly, “It’s alright. You wait for me here. I will definitely come back.”
Knowing she couldn't persuade him, Li Yang said earnestly, "Then take more people with you, and make sure you come back alive."
Seeing her solemn expression, as if she were going to some place of certain death, Yuan Chongjing chuckled and casually patted her head: "Don't worry. Think about it, over the years, what promises have I made to you that I haven't kept?"
Li Yang didn't notice his unusually intimate gesture. She just looked up at him with reluctance and said, "Yes, I know you keep your word. But those people... My parents and I are waiting for you to come home. Brother Jing, the future of the Yuan family is important, but your life is more important. Don't rush things. Life is long, and you'll have many more opportunities."
“I know.” Yuan Chongjing, unusually compliant, replied, “Go back, I’ll watch you leave.”
Li Yang waved to him and turned to leave.
"Yangyang~" Watching Li Yang's figure gradually disappear into the distance, Yuan Chongjing unconsciously called out to her.
Li Yang quickly turned around: "Huh? What's wrong, Brother Jing?"
Yuan Chongjing opened his mouth, but couldn't find the words to say. He said, "It's okay, let's talk about it when I get back."
Li Yang bit her lip, a hint of a smile playing at the corners of her eyes. She skipped over to him, hands behind her back, and said with a smile, "This is the first time you've called me Yangyang so formally."
This is the second time. Yuan Chongjing thought to himself.
He looked down at the smile on her face, and his voice couldn't help but carry a hint of ease and joy as he teased, "What, not used to it?"
Li Yang shook her head, and taking advantage of his lowered head and inattention, tiptoed and lightly pecked him on the lips. Then she smiled and said, "It's a habit, very a habit. Can you call me that from now on?"
He did not flinch at her sudden movement.
A hint of triumph flashed in Li Yang's eyes.
Seeing her arrogant attitude, Yuan Chongjing laughed and said, "You wish, I won't call you that."
Li Yang pouted and gave a cute "humph," then immediately became serious and earnestly instructed again, "You must be safe."
"I know, go back quickly." Seeing the wind blowing the stray hairs at her temples, Yuan Chongjing wanted to reach out and brush them away for her. Just as his hand reached her cheek, he changed direction and pinched her cheek like a small peach: "When I come back, I will tell you something very important."
Li Yang tilted her head, trying to free her cheek from his grasp, but failed. She grinned and asked, "What is it?"
"I already told you to wait for me to come back."
"Oh dear, don't pique my curiosity and then not tell me, or I won't be able to sleep."
Yuan Chongjing pressed her head down, turned her around so her back was to him, and then pushed her forward: "If you can't sleep, just keep thinking about this. When I come back and tell you, we'll see if you guessed right."
Thinking about what he said, I naturally can't stop thinking about him.
Li Yang responded to him and lingered before returning to her bedchamber.
After he left, there was no news for several days. The Empress Dowager seemed to have forgotten about her and Xiao Taozi, and never summoned her again. Even the Sixth Princess did not appear again. Within the area of Shou'an Palace where they could move around, it seemed that only she, her daughter, and Cui Yu remained.
That afternoon, Song Hezhou suddenly entered Shou'an Palace, paid his respects to the Empress Dowager, and then, after several twists and turns to avoid the crowd, arrived at the side hall where Li Yang resided. Seeing her playing with beads with Xiao Taozi, he leaned against the door frame and said sarcastically, "Oh, Li Yang, you still have the leisure to play here."
Li Yang's expression stiffened for a moment. Seeing the half-smile on his face, tinged with a hint of pleasure, her heart skipped a beat. She then feigned ignorance and asked, "What's wrong? Has something happened to the Sixth Princess and the Empress Dowager?"
He had just paid his respects to the Empress Dowager, so it couldn't be her fault. The Sixth Princess rarely left her residence and had little interaction with Song Hezhou, so it probably wasn't her either. The only person who could make Song Hezhou come specifically to tell her this and want to see her make a fool of herself is one person.
Yuan Chongjing is in trouble.
She knew Song Hezhou well; if she asked him directly, he definitely wouldn't tell her. So, she tried to find out indirectly.
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