A world of difference
Su Manyan returned to the West Wing. She didn't know if it was a psychological effect, but she felt the cloak protected her perfectly. The snow and wind were incessant along the way, but the cloak kept all the snow out. She could only see the faint light coming through the snowflakes. Finally, she arrived safely.
She carefully hung her cloak over the back of a chair, meticulously smoothing out the wrinkles. Her fingertips traced every gilded line on the dark robe, and those lines flowed like a river, flowing slowly beneath her fingers. Understated yet majestic, just like its owner...
The intertwined aura between them seemed to still linger, leaving her head feeling dizzy. He had meticulously put her cloak on, carefully adjusting it, his brow furrowed in worry, making her feel truly protected in the same way.
This feeling was too warm, especially when she looked up and saw that breathtakingly handsome face. She blushed and felt so hot that even the feeling of mutual appreciation was about to change.
Suddenly, there was a muffled sound outside the window, and then the heavy rain filled the sky and the earth. The violent and noisy sound suddenly broke Su Manyan's fantasy.
She suddenly came to her senses and realized that she had been acting like a pervert. She quickly turned around, facing away from the cloak, and pretended to be busy with her own business.
The more difficult her situation, the softer her heart became. She had once said that Xiao Lin was soft-hearted, but wasn't she the same? Two people who supported each other in troubled times, but because of the other's simple help, they were both forced to fall into the other's simple help in the troubled times.
She didn't like this. She shouldn't glorify the other person so easily, and she couldn't fall for him so easily, otherwise everything would be messed up.
Su Manyan shook his head, trying to shake Xiao Lin out of his thoughts.
Don't think about it, and can't think about it.
She pulled the sheet from the bed and covered it over her cloak, deceiving herself that she would not be able to see it.
She filled the hot water bottle with hot water, put it in front of her stomach, snuggled into the quilt, and let her wandering mind "shut down automatically".
The little mushroom fell asleep like this.
Early the next morning, Lord Yan Zhao, a disciple of the legendary Holy Medical Valley, came to Xiao Lin's room.
He had read Su Manyan's prescription. Even though he had learned many fine medical techniques from his master in his early years, he was still astonished by her superb skills. Many of the combinations of herbs were new to him, but it wasn't a bad idea to try them. Besides, His Highness's health had indeed improved significantly recently.
The poison that had troubled me for months was actually cured!
It seems that this man is really capable, but how could a eunuch in the cold palace have such ability? Yan Zhao's admiration and suspicion for Su Manyan were entangled for a while.
Xiao Lin had changed into a blue shirt and was sitting at the table playing chess alone. He noticed Yan Zhao was absent-minded, his eyes darting around, unsure what he was thinking about, but he didn't take it seriously. After placing a black piece, he said slowly, "Ayan has been feeling unwell these past few days. I think he has an upset stomach. Do you have any medicine for him?"
"She has a stomachache?" Yan Zhao widened his eyes and immediately responded.
Xiao Lin was puzzled as to why he reacted so strongly, so he nodded and asked, "What's wrong with your stomachache?"
Stomach discomfort? This further confirmed Yan Zhao's guess.
When he found her secretly hiding her clothes that day, she lied and said they were stained with food, but the location of the stain was hidden and shouldn't be like that. Besides, he had been a doctor for many years and could tell the difference between male and female skeletons at a glance. Although eunuchs were often short and feminine due to their physical defects, Ah Yan's physique was clearly that of a woman.
I don’t dare eat cold cakes, and my stomach hurts. No matter how I think about it, I feel like a woman who is having her period.
But judging from the expression of His Highness, he is completely unaware of this.
Although Ah Yan saved His Highness, hiding among the eunuchs as a girl was a capital crime that deceived His Highness. Yan Zhao couldn't help but worry that the other party might be plotting something monstrous to murder His Highness.
But there was no definite evidence at the moment, and seeing the prince protecting his child, he naturally didn't dare to say it out loud.
"She? Isn't she a skilled doctor? Why doesn't she treat herself?"
Yan Zhao muttered, thinking to himself: This A Yan has really drugged His Highness.
Xiao Lin picked up a white piece and dropped it onto the board with a loud "pop". He raised his eyelids and asked, "Why, you don't want to?"
"How dare I, Your Highness?" Yan Zhao smiled brighter than a flower, and said nonsense with a smile, "I just thought that Ah Yan's medical skills are so great, wouldn't it be like showing off my skills in front of an expert if I treated her?"
A real man can bend and stretch, and Lord Yan Zhao recognizes this.
Xiao Lin chuckled: "Okay, be serious, that's not what I meant. I heard that you seem to have some opinions about Ah Yan? Since we are all in the same group from now on, you can talk about your dissatisfaction. Just say it if you have something to say."
Yan Zhao sat up straight and dropped his joking expression: "Your Highness, I dare to ask a question."
"explain."
"Is that Ah Yan really a eunuch?"
Xiao Lin raised his eyelids and looked directly at Yan Zhao. None of his subordinates were stupid; there would always be someone who shared his thoughts.
But he still chose to play dumb: "What are you talking about? If not a eunuch, what else could it be? After entering the palace, of course I have been castrated."
"That's not what I meant. I suspected... suspected that Ah Yan was... a woman."
When Xiao Lin truly heard Yan Zhao's speculation, he clenched the chess piece in his hand, unable to put it down for a long time. He tried to feign composure, keeping his voice indifferent. "Oh? Why do you say that? Yan Zhao, do you know what this means?"
"I dare not speak nonsense. I must have a basis for my guess." Yan Zhao stood up excitedly, his voice unconsciously raised, and told him everything he had discovered and guessed in the past few days. "Your Highness, I have followed the master of the Holy Medical Valley since I was a child, so I do have some ability to judge bones. Judging from Ah Yan's figure, he is no different from a woman."
Here they come again. Someone else, like him, doubted Ayan's masculinity and even presented the actual "evidence" to him in an orderly manner.
How could he not believe it? Even after the anatomy check, he still felt that Su Manyan was a woman—from her appearance, words and actions, to the aura on her body...
"How sure are you?"
"Ninety percent."
"Okay, I understand." Xiao Lin said, "Then make her some nourishing soup that suits her condition. Don't let A Yan know."
Yan Zhao was stunned:?
"Your Highness, aren't you worried that A Yan has ulterior motives? This is a huge deception!" Yan Zhao said anxiously, with a hint of disappointment.
"If this is true, I will find a way." Xiao Lin made another move, looking relaxed and in a good mood.
Yan Zhao breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that His Highness was not so crazy.
He thought that when Xiao Lin said "find a way", he meant to find a way to deal with Su Manyan. But on the contrary, the "find a way" Xiao Lin said meant that if Su Manyan was really a woman, he would do everything he could to protect her.
Perhaps, the news that Su Manyan was a woman was actually a good thing for Xiao Lin. He didn't worry at all that she would harm him - how could that be possible?
Before, he just intuitively believed that Su Manyan was a girl, but now Yan Zhao was 90% sure that she was a girl, he had to doubt it again.
Ah Yan, Ah Yan, what on earth are you...
After dinner, the servants were given a bowl of hot ginger sugar water, supposedly for keeping out the cold. Yun Que grimaced at the spiciness, but Su Manyan drank the entire bowl and felt completely refreshed.
The syrup, held in my mouth, had a light ginger fragrance, mingled with the sweetness of brown sugar. As it slid down my throat, there was a burst of heat and a tingling sensation, instantly refreshing me. Then, as it flowed into my stomach, I felt a warm sensation, like soaking in a hot spring. A current of warmth flowed from my abdomen to my limbs, quietly suppressing the discomfort in my lower abdomen.
Su Manyan drank it sip by sip, noticing the inquiring look of Yunque beside him.
Yunque's eyes widened: "Ayan, don't you think it tastes bad?"
"No, I feel comfortable. It's great to drink this when it's cold, especially for a girl like you. If you come..."
Before she could utter the word "menstruation," Su Manyan suddenly realized something was wrong and swallowed the words back. Was it a coincidence? Last night, she had mentioned a stomachache, and today, Xiao Lin had ordered the servants to drink ginger syrup. While ginger syrup can dispel cold, it's also more widely known for another purpose.
It was hard not to wonder if Xiao Lin had prepared this specifically for her. But she'd clearly said she felt "stomach discomfort," so why would he associate it with menstruation? Was he doubting her virginity again?
There has been nothing unusual happening in the past few days, so why are you suddenly suspicious again?
No! It must be Yan Zhao!
Did he tell Xiao Lin everything that he discovered that day?
No, no! Su Manyan, don't be so narcissistic. Who said that all the brown sugar water in the room was made for you? Don't overthink it.
Su Manyan swallowed and forced himself to calm down.
"Ayan, why don't you say anything? Are you okay?" Seeing that she suddenly stopped talking and her face darkened, Yunque couldn't help but ask with concern.
Su Manyan forced a smile and said, "It's okay, my throat was burned."
"I said drink it slowly."
Just as Su Manyan's heart had settled down a little, he turned his head and met the gaze of the person outside the door - it was Yan Zhao. He didn't know how long he had been staring there.
The man was leaning against the door frame in a lazily manner. He was not embarrassed when Su Manyan caught him red-handed. He walked in and sat down next to Yunque.
"His Highness specifically asked me to make a list of ingredients and told the kitchen lady to cook it early in the morning." He took the unfinished bowl from Yunque, tilted his head back and drank it all, saying nonchalantly.
"Your Highness is still so considerate of your servants." Yu Que smiled happily, unable to hide his joy.
Su Manyan couldn't laugh. Yan Zhao always appeared good-tempered towards Yun Que, but when their eyes occasionally met at the dinner table, she could always sense suspicion and wariness in his gaze.
When he spoke just now, his eyes were clearly directed towards her, as if he was speaking to her on purpose with a hidden meaning in mind.
Sure enough, when the man saw that she was silent, he deliberately led the conversation to her: "Ayan, what do you think?"
"Sister Yunque is right. Your Highness is a very good person."
"But I heard that someone told His Highness yesterday that he had a stomachache, so His Highness hurriedly ordered the servants to prepare soup. Do you know who it was?"
"Ayan has been concentrating on His Highness's recuperation these days and has no time to care about other things. I hope you will understand." The implication is: You are an idle person who only knows gossip all day long.
"Oh! Miraculous doctor..."
"Ouch! My stomach hurts so badly, Yan Zhao, I feel so uncomfortable!"
Yan Zhao wanted to test the waters a little more, but Yun Que suddenly exclaimed, interrupting him.
"What's wrong? Is it the soup?"
"I don't know. Yan Zhao, please accompany me out first."
Yunque was always good at acting coquettishly and pretending to be sick. Yan Zhao didn't bother to find out whether A Yan was a boy or a girl. He hurriedly picked up Yunque and disappeared in a hurry.
The room suddenly became quiet.
Su Manyan clenched his fists, only then realizing how sticky his palms were. In his haste, he'd accidentally spilled some soup, leaving a red burn mark on the back of his fair hand, where the brown liquid had run.
Yan Zhao must have done it on purpose. He must have realized his identity, which is why he was so aggressive.
She also realized that she was probably finished, a different kind of finish.
When I looked at my reflection in the bowl, a ridiculous question flashed through my mind:
Is this bowl of soup Xiao Lin's simple concern, or a prop to embarrass and frighten her?
There's a world of difference.
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