You Ye happened to be handling some official business in the courtyard when he heard the sound. His expression changed, and he quickly walked to the door of the study.
Seeing Xin Jiuwei breaking down in tears and Xin Kui holding her tightly inside, he instantly understood what was happening. He didn't dare delay and immediately turned around, rushing towards the Prince's residence.
The Prince's Study.
Xiao Xun was reviewing official documents, his brows bearing his usual cold and stern expression. You Ye, without even having time to announce his arrival, practically rushed in, breathless: "Your Highness! At Jingyuan…Miss Xin…"
Xiao Xun paused in his vermilion brush, raised his head, and his deep gaze fell on You Ye's anxious face.
“Miss Xin received a military report from the Northern Frontier… General Xin Yunzhou was ambushed at Black Stone Ridge, seriously wounded, and his life is in danger! Miss Xin… she broke down and cried…” You Ye spoke very quickly, his voice filled with unbearable sorrow.
Xiao Xun's gaze froze instantly. His fingers, gripping the vermilion brush, turned slightly white from the force. Xin Yunzhou was on the verge of death? The brother Xin Jiuwei had risked everything to protect?
He suddenly saw Xin Jiuwei's profile as she calmly read the military report by the window in Jingyuan, her calm and sharp counterattack at the palace banquet, and the humiliation and stubbornness in her eyes when he forcibly ordered her back on the high slope... However, the Xin Jiuwei that You Ye was talking about at this moment, who was "breaking down and crying", was a completely shattered version of herself that he had never imagined.
A completely unfamiliar emotion, like a tiny electric current, unexpectedly surged through Xiao Xun's hardened heart. It wasn't calculation, nor an assessment of value, but rather a suffocating sense of oppression? He abruptly stood up, his movement so swift that he knocked over the chair behind him with a jarring sound. He didn't even glance at You Ye, striding out, his dark robes billowing in the cold wind behind him.
"Get the car ready! We're heading to Jingyuan!"
When Xiao Xun stepped into the Jingyuan study, radiating a chilling aura, Xin Jiuwei's sobs had weakened, leaving only intermittent sobs. She was curled up in Xin Kui's arms, her face ashen, her eyes red and swollen, tears still silently streaming down her face. She seemed to have been drained of all life, leaving only endless sorrow and despair.
When Xin Kui saw Xiao Xun, she quickly tried to get up to greet him, but was stopped by a sharp look from Xiao Xun. He waved his hand, and Xin Kui understood. She glanced worriedly at the young lady in her arms, gently released her, lowered her head, and silently retreated, closing the door behind her.
Only the two of them remained in the study.
A heavy sense of sorrow and despair permeated the air, making it hard to breathe.
Xiao Xun stood at the doorway, looking at the figure curled up on the ground, so fragile it seemed it could shatter at the slightest touch. This was the first time he had seen Xin Jiuwei's breakdown so closely and without any concealment. She was no longer the calm, sharp, and calculating pawn, but simply a helpless woman utterly devastated by the devastating news of her loved one's critical injury and death.
He approached silently, his footsteps light. His tall figure cast a long shadow beside her. He crouched down, his gaze level with her red and swollen eyes from crying.
Xin Jiuwei seemed to sense someone approaching and blankly raised her tearful eyes. Through her blurred vision, she saw Xiao Xun's angular face, which now appeared somewhat indistinct. She seemed not to recognize him; her eyes were empty, and only tears kept flowing.
Xiao Xun's Adam's apple bobbed very slightly. He wanted to say something, question her about her loss of composure, order her to pull herself together immediately, or give her the cold promise, "I will handle it," as he would with any of his other subordinates. But when he saw the unfathomable despair in her eyes, he couldn't utter a single word.
He reached out, not to help her up, nor to offer her a handkerchief, but to take something from his robes—the very porcelain bottle containing the secret imperial medicine he had given her earlier. The bottle was icy cold.
"Medicine." He uttered only one word, his voice low and hoarse, with a strange dryness that seemed out of character. He gently placed the medicine bottle on the cold ground beside her.
Xin Jiuwei's gaze fell blankly on the familiar porcelain vase, as if she didn't understand what it was. Her tears continued to flow silently, her whole being immersed in immense sorrow, unresponsive to anything around her.
Xiao Xun frowned deeply as he looked at her distraught state. An unprecedented sense of unease and... a touch of helplessness welled up within him. He was used to being in control, used to seeing others fear or obey his will. But the sheer, overwhelming grief of losing a loved one in this situation filled him with an unprecedented, uncontrollable sense of powerlessness.
He squatted there silently, neither leaving nor speaking again. He simply watched her silently weep, watched her shoulders tremble slightly from her sobs. Time seemed to freeze in her sorrow.
After an unknown amount of time, Xin Jiuwei's sobs gradually subsided, leaving only occasional choked sobs. She seemed to have exhausted all her strength; her eyes remained vacant, but she no longer shed tears.
Looking at her pale face, Xiao Xun finally spoke again. His voice was still low, but it had lost some of its coldness and gained an undeniable strength: "Xin Yunzhou will not die."
Xin Jiuwei's empty eyes twitched slightly, finally regaining some focus, and she looked at him blankly.
“The Northern Camp has the best military doctors,” Xiao Xun continued, his sharp gaze fixed on her. “I have ordered an urgent dispatch to the Northern Army to spare no effort in treating Xin Yunzhou. I will personally provide all the necessary medicines and manpower.” His words were resolute, carrying a powerful confidence that allowed him to control life and death.
In Xin Jiuwei's eyes, deep within the deathly despair, a faint spark seemed to have been thrown in. She looked at him, her lips moving slightly, but no sound came out.
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