After dismissing the maid, Chen Ping's expression immediately relaxed: "Thank you for saving my life. I have no way to repay you. Please feel free to ask if you need my help in the future."
Chen Ping's voice was clear and solemn.
As soon as he spoke, Song Tangxue knew she hadn't mistaken him for someone else. She had encountered the half-dead Chen Ping while wandering around the mountain village.
Covered in knife and sword wounds, she was on the verge of death when Song Tangxue was rescued. Unable to stay long afterward, she entrusted the villagers to look after her.
Unexpectedly, this person turned out to be an imperial physician.
"It's nothing. Practicing medicine and saving lives is a doctor's duty." There are many things that imperial physicians can do. What Song Tangxue needs to do is to calm him down, not to ask for a favor.
Chen Ping remarked with emotion, "You must be a good doctor."
"Yes, I am a disciple of Physician Xie, and I will follow my master's teachings." Song Tangxue borrowed Physician Xie's reputation.
The admiration in Chen Ping's eyes had clearly deepened.
Chen Ping left, and Li Zhaoxian didn't come over to make a fool of himself. Song Tangxue was happy to have some peace and quiet, so she had a maid bring her some storybooks to pass the time.
The first book I got was about a rich young master and a girl who sold herself to bury her father. After a series of entanglements, the girl ended up dying while the man had many children and grandchildren. In the end, they couldn't escape the whirlpool of worldly affairs.
Song Tangxue felt a lump in her throat. She closed the storybook, but some of the words inside lingered in her mind for a long time.
“I am worlds apart from you, sir. How could someone as insignificant as mud dare to dream of the clouds in the sky?”
Compared to Xie Qianzhong, is she really as insignificant as a cloud or mud? The filth could be wiped away with a gentle shake of her sleeve.
Seeing Song Tangxue's somewhat downcast expression, the palace maid glanced at the cover and said, "Oh dear, the ending of this book isn't very good. Miss Song, have you taken it to heart?"
"You and the Crown Prince are a perfect match, a match made in heaven. With His Majesty's blessing, it certainly won't be like in those fairy tales," the young palace maid comforted her. "You'll definitely have a long and happy marriage!"
She was waiting for Miss Song to enter the mansion so she could go and serve her.
Song Tangxue smiled and placed the storybook on the table beside her: "Put it anywhere, there's still a bit of an ending left, I'll finish reading it before bed."
After dinner, Li Zhaoxian came to see her, but Song Tangxue turned him away indifferently. Why don't these people have any self-awareness?
As night fell, by the time the storybook was put down, the moon was already high in the sky. The maidservant extinguished the candle and left, and there was no one else in the room.
Song Tangxue cleared her mind, closed her eyes, and briefly put those worries behind her.
"Are you asleep?" The sound of clothes rustling, accompanied by light footsteps, made Song Tangxue open her eyes.
The moonlight shone on the newcomer, draping him in a veil of moonlight, making his face appear flawlessly handsome, as if blessed by the heavens.
Yet it was even colder than the moonlight.
"Almost there." Song Tangxue propped herself up, and Xie Qianzhong took the cloak next to her and draped it over her, pulling it tight to keep out the chill of the night.
"Were you frightened today? It was my oversight. It's all taken care of now, and she won't come looking for you again." Xie Qianzhong's hand didn't leave hers; he picked up a strand of her hair and placed it in his palm.
Song Tangxue felt bitter. Even if it wasn't Dong Zhao, it would have been someone else.
The emperor is never short of women, so what is my identity? Am I just one of these many women?
“I am not that kind of delicate woman.” Song Tangxue did not look at Xie Qianzhong, but looked down at the gold embroidery on the bedding.
"Yes, you are very smart and bold." Xie Qianzhong gently tugged at the strand of hair wrapped around his hand.
"Thank you, Qianzhong."
The storybook placed beside her pillow reflected in her pupils, and Song Tangxue suddenly felt an impulse, which reached its peak when she met Xie Qianzhong's indifferent eyes.
"Does the young master truly love Yue Niang? Would someone of his status marry Yue Niang?"
"I will only marry Yue Niang."
In the storybook, a young girl asks a question to the young master who is about to inherit the position of heir.
Xie Qianzhong looked at her, his eyes reflecting a vast expanse of moonlight, both detached and deeply affectionate, two completely different emotions residing within them.
"Will you get married in the future?" Song Tangxue's voice was a little dry. She wanted to ask if you would marry her, but she didn't say it.
Xie Qianzhong understood what Song Tangxue meant. The strands of hair between his fingers were smooth and slipped away without anyone touching them. Xie Qianzhong unconsciously rubbed his empty palms together.
I only hold the moonlight in one hand.
Marry? How could he dare to consider such a thing before accomplishing this great undertaking?
He is not safe by his side; if he were to marry, he would be harming the woman he loves.
Xie Qianzhong had always understood this principle and had never had any romantic feelings for women. Song Tangxue was the first and only one.
"I can't." It's not that I don't want to, it's that I don't know how, it's that I'm afraid to.
Song Tangxue's smile was forced, as if she had suddenly lost her strength and collapsed onto the bed. She often laughed at others for being troubled by love, but when it came to herself, wasn't she just an ordinary person? In the turbulent world, she was still rolling in the mud.
"I understand, thank you, sir."
Xie Qianzhong didn't respond. He moved his lips a few times, but still couldn't utter a single word. The moonlight flowed silently.
He carried too many responsibilities on his shoulders, and the future was uncertain. If he failed, those around him would all die.
Marrying a wife will only bring trouble to that woman.
Song Tangxue stepped back, distancing herself from Xie Qianzhong. Their breaths no longer overlapped, and she seemed to be the same as before, before the entanglement.
She is the Crown Princess, she is the Ninth Prince.
They were supposed to have no connection at all, that's how it should be.
"Lord Xie has already seen it. I have nothing serious to say, so I won't keep you any longer." Song Tangxue dismissed him, closing her eyes as if she really intended to go to sleep.
"Then you should get some rest." Xie Qianzhong left the room with heavy steps.
Sensing that the other person in the room had completely left, Song Tangxue opened her eyes, which had been feigning sleep, and stared blankly, clutching her heart.
It didn't seem so bad. With so many preparations, she knew this day would come sooner or later.
"Clatter."
An Shiliu knocked on the window frame. He wasn't the master, so he casually rummaged through Miss Song's room.
"Come in," Song Tangxue said softly. An Shiliu, with a tense face, opened the window and came in, placing a medicine jar on the table.
"This is a scar-removing medicine. Lord Xie said that Miss Song should apply it to the wound, and it will not leave any scars after the wound heals." An Shiliu repeated Xie Qianzhong's words word by word.
Looking at the snow-white jade bottle, Song Tangxue's calm heart was still stirred by a pebble thrown in, causing ripples.
"Why didn't your master bring it himself?" Song Tangxue asked, puzzled. If he had just forgotten, it wouldn't have taken long to turn around.
An Shiliu frowned: "Master still has matters to attend to."
In fact, I squeezed out time from my busy schedule to come here today because Dong Zhao is causing a huge commotion over there.
More importantly, it was because of Song Tangxue; the master wanted to protect Song Tangxue.
"Is he held back by Dong Zhao's matter?" Song Tangxue guessed. Dong Zhao had the confidence to say those things, so it must not have been unfounded.
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