Chapter 95095 Trapped in a Nightmare
Chapter 95
There was a crisp "pa" sound. The slap was not strong enough but very fierce. Mu Yun and others who were standing at the door were all stunned. They stood there for a while, at a loss.
Qi Jingyan turned his head slightly after being hit by the slap, but his dazed eyes gradually focused, as if his soul had finally returned to its place.
He stared at the person in front of him for a long moment before he seemed to recognize her. When he spoke, his voice was hoarse and broken, "A Ning, you're here."
He seemed to have said this before, but now he muttered it again, as if to confirm, or as if he was talking in his sleep.
Meng Yuning's heart clenched, a bitter pain in her heart. She nodded gently and said softly, "I'm here, Your Highness."
As he spoke, he leaned over to help him up, putting his hands under his armpits, trying to lift him up, but after two attempts, he failed. "Your Highness, you should also use some strength."
"Okay." Qi Jingyan responded softly, putting his hands on her thin shoulders, and trying to get up with her support.
However, he had been kneeling on his knees for so long that his blood circulation had been blocked and he felt numb as if his knees did not belong to him. As soon as he exerted force, he felt dizzy and fell to one side uncontrollably.
Meng Yuning screamed and tried her best to steady herself, but he was so tall and heavy, how could she support herself?
The two of them fell down together. In a flash, Qi Jingyan turned over and fell on his back, cushioning himself underneath.
With a dull thud, he fell heavily to the ground, and she fell into his arms.
Seeing this, Mu Jiang's face suddenly changed, and he was about to rush into the room. However, Mu Yun quickly grabbed his arm and dragged him a few steps away.
"Don't go in," Mu Yun lowered his voice and glanced at the room with complicated eyes, "Let His Highness take a break."
Mu Jiang pointed to the door and said, "But His Highness fell."
Mu Yun: "Miss Meng is here. She will call us if anything happens."
Meng Yuning was protected by Qi Jingyan, so she didn't get hurt. But when she heard the muffled sound just now, her heart tightened. She hurriedly propped herself up and looked at him anxiously: "How is it? Are you hurt?"
Qi Jingyan frowned slightly, but shook his head: "No."
Meng Yuning was worried and reached out to touch his calves. "How about your legs? You just knelt for so long and then fell. Are they hurt?"
Qi Jingyan supported himself on the ground with his hands, slowly sat up, and shook his head again: "It's just numb, it's nothing serious."
He looked up at her worried eyes and softened his tone, "Don't worry, An Ning. Just wait a moment."
Meng Yuning carefully stroked his calves to confirm that the bones were fine. Seeing that he looked normal and showed no sign of pain, she breathed a sigh of relief and then pinched his knees and calves with moderate strength.
Qi Jingyan remained silent, just lowered his eyes and stared at the girl beside him who was massaging his legs.
She lowered her eyelashes with a focused expression, and a few strands of black hair fell from her forehead, swaying gently with her movements.
He watched quietly, lost in thought for a long time.
Meng Yuning kneaded it for a long time until her wrist became sore. Then she looked up and asked him, "Is it better now? Try to move it."
Qi Jingyan suddenly came back to his senses, and slowly bent and stretched his legs as he was told. He nodded and said in a low voice, "Much better. Thank you, An Ning."
"Okay, let's go back." Meng Yuning hugged his arm and pulled it up hard. This time Qi Jingyan stood up and tried to take two steps forward.
With a "bang", something was kicked out from under his feet.
Meng Yuning looked down and saw that it was a dagger.
Qi Jingyan's face froze and he bent down to pick it up.
Meng Yuning was faster than him. She grabbed the dagger in her hand first, then held it in front of him, staring at him with a bad look without saying a word.
Qi Jingyan's Adam's apple moved slightly, and he calmly retracted his left wrist into his sleeve.
Seeing his guilty look, Meng Yuning glared at him coldly without saying anything. She took out a handkerchief, wrapped the dagger, held it tightly in her hand, and then turned and left.
When they reached the courtyard, Mu Ying quickly followed.
Meng Yuning didn't stop walking as she whispered, "Go back first and ask Mu Feng and the others to prepare hot water. His Highness wants to bathe. Fill a few more hot water bottles with water. Just keep it warm, not too hot."
She paused, then added, "Send the wound medicine and muslin to the east room."
Mu Ying didn't hesitate and accepted the order with a fist salute: "Yes!" Then she turned around and left quickly.
Qi Jingyan dragged his still numb legs and limped silently behind Meng Yuning.
Seeing this, Mu Yun and Mu Jiang immediately stepped forward and wanted to help.
Qi Jingyan just waved his hand, signaling them to leave.
The two looked at each other, not daring to disobey, and could only follow silently a few steps.
The four of them returned to Yanfu Residence in silence. Meng Yuning went straight back to the inner room, tiptoed to the bed, leaned over to check on Yi'er who was sleeping soundly. Seeing that Yi'er was sleeping soundly and no longer had a fever, she felt relieved.
Qi Jingyan followed her quietly until he saw her carefully examining Yier's forehead and whispered a few questions to Mu Li and Qiu Lian who were standing by. Only then did he realize that Yier had a fever and had already seen a doctor.
Guilt appeared on his face. He took a half step forward and said in a low, hoarse voice, "A Ning, I'm sorry. I didn't know Yi'er was sick."
Meng Yuning carefully tucked the thin blanket around Yi'er's belly. Hearing this, she stood up and said in a low voice, "The doctor and Qiulian both said that Yi'er was too sad, and that caused illness to enter her body. She's taken medicine, and her fever is gone now."
She paused, then continued, "I didn't ask the doctor to go back either. I asked him to rest in the guest house in the mansion. If he gets sick again during the night, you can call him anytime."
"Okay." Qi Jingyan responded softly, his eyes sweeping across the tired look between Aning's brows, and then fell on Yi'er's slightly red face. His heart seemed to be tightened by something, and his guilt was even worse.
He was silent for a moment, then whispered, "I want to see Yi'er."
Meng Yuning stood up and gave up her seat beside the bed.
Qi Jingyan sat down slowly, and gently touched Yi'er's forehead with his broad palm, feeling the normal warmth and coolness. He carefully held Yi'er's little hand, and just stood quietly in front of the couch, silent.
Meng Yuning stood aside, her eyes inadvertently falling on his drooping left sleeve, and saw that the white sleeve wrist was faintly oozing a glaring red.
She was worried about his injury and lowered her voice and said, "Your Highness, come with me."
Qi Jingyan stood up as he was told and followed her into the east room in silence.
Meng Yuning pointed to the chair by the window and said, "Sit down."
Qi Jingyan sat down obediently. Meng Yuning took his left hand. Qi Jingyan subconsciously wanted to put his hand back into his sleeve, but Meng Yuning glared at him fiercely, and he dared not move again.
Meng Yuning lifted up his sleeves and carefully examined his wounds. Although the wounds were not too deep, they still made her heart tremble.
She turned and walked out: "I'll ask someone to call the doctor."
Qi Jingyan hurriedly grabbed her sleeve with his right hand: "There's no need to mobilize a large force. The wound isn't deep and hasn't damaged any of the tendons or veins. Ning, don't worry."
Meng Yuning stared at him, and seeing that he was determined, she had to give up.
Meng Yuning glared at him, took out the medicine that Mu Ying had prepared long ago, and sprinkled the powder on his wound. Then she picked up a clean cotton cloth and bandaged it gently but neatly, and finally tied a neat knot on his wrist.
Meng Yuning put away the gold wound medicine and the remaining fine cotton cloth, stepped back, and said in a calm but unquestionable tone: "Go take a shower and change clothes first. Be careful with your wound and don't let it get wet."
Qi Jingyan was extremely obedient at this moment. He whispered "OK" and stood up as he was told, still limping slowly towards the bathroom.
Looking at his back, Meng Yuning was still worried. She turned and walked out of the room, whispering to Mu Yun who was waiting outside, "His Highness has gone to take a bath. He has an injury on his hand and his legs are not working well. You go in and take care of him."
"Yes, I understand." Mu Yun clasped his fists and accepted the order, then quickly walked towards the bathroom.
Meng Yuning returned to the bedroom and saw Mu Ying, Mu Li, Meng Jin, and Qiu Lian still standing by the bed, guarding Yi'er. She lowered her voice and said, "It's getting late. I'm here. You all should go back and rest. I'll call you if anything else happens."
Mu Ying suggested, "Miss, why don't you let us stay in the south room of the west wing? It's close, so if you have any instructions, you can just call us."
Meng Yuning looked at Yi'er, who was sleeping soundly on the bed. She was indeed worried that he would have another attack during the night, so she nodded and agreed: "Okay. Then you can all go to the west wing. There's no need to crowd into the south room. There's enough space for people to sleep on the couch in the north room."
Mu Ying immediately said, "Then I will sleep on the couch in the north room. If there is any movement here, I will be able to hear it in time."
After everything was arranged, several people withdrew as instructed and went to the west wing to rest.
The room returned to silence, with only the occasional crackling of candlelight.
Meng Yuning took off her shoes, got on the bed, and lay down next to Yi'er. As soon as her body touched the bed, she realized how tired she was.
She held Yi'er in her arms, sighed softly, closed her eyes and rested.
Not long after, the sound of very light footsteps came into my ears.
When she opened her eyes, she saw that Qi Jingyan had finished bathing, changed into a plain white nightgown, his black hair slightly wet, and walked out of the bathroom.
Seeing her looking at him, he subconsciously raised his bandaged left hand and whispered, "It's all dry, not wet."
Meng Yuning propped herself up and waved at him: "Come and lie down."
Qi Jingyan followed his instructions and slowly walked to the bed, took off his shoes, got on the bed, and carefully lay down beside Yi'er.
Meng Yuning leaned over and took the three warm hot water bottles from the end of the bed, carefully placing them next to him, one against the outside of his left knee, one next to his right knee, and the last one under his feet for him to step on gently.
"I knelt on those cold tiles for so long today," she murmured as she tidied. "I need to keep myself warm, or I'll let the cold get to my bones and give me rheumatism later."
Then he took out Yi'er's thin blanket and covered his legs: "It's only been a short time since your leg was injured. You can't be careless."
Qi Jingyan watched her busy figure for him quietly, his eyes following her every move, until she was finally settled and lay down again, he spoke very softly in a low voice: "A Ning, thank you."
Meng Yuning did not respond, but just closed her eyes, as if she was extremely tired.
Qi Jingyan's deep voice rang out again in the silence, "A Ning, I'm sorry."
Meng Yuning naturally knew what he was talking about, and replied with a cold face, "Your Highness has never wronged me. Your Highness, you are hurting yourself like this, and you are wronging yourself, the Empress's spirit in heaven, the Empress Dowager who worries about you day and night in the palace, and Yi'er who cannot live without your brother."
"Next time, Your Highness, before you act, please think about how sad and heartbroken they would be if they knew."
Qi Jingyan was silent for a long time under that clear yet reproachful gaze, and then he spoke with difficulty: "Before, I just..."
My soul was wandering in the sky, dreams and reality were entangled together, and I didn't know where I was.
For a moment, I felt that a person as sinful as him did not deserve to live in this world and should be put to death.
But then he thought again, the blood feud has not been avenged, Yi'er is still young and has not grown up yet, he cannot die yet.
And there is An Ning, he can't bear to leave An Ning.
It seemed like there were two of him at the time, fighting madly.
Unable to bear the pain, he took out the dagger he carried with him and cut his wrist a few times, hoping to use the pain to wake himself up.
But for some reason, not only did I fail to wake up, but I fell completely into a deep dream, as if I was trapped by ice and snow. I felt freezing cold all over and trembling all over.
Just then, he saw An Ning holding a solitary lamp and appearing in the snow and wind.
She was surrounded by a layer of warm light, so warm that he couldn't help but hug her, thinking that even if he died, it would be a blessing to have her by his side.
It was not until Ah Ning's slap landed that he finally broke free from the chaos and coldness.
He then realized that it was another nightmare.
He knew that the only place that was real was where An Ning was.
But he couldn't tell An Ning about these almost supernatural things in detail, for he was afraid of scaring her.
Qi Jingyan finally whispered, "A Ning, I know I was wrong. I will never do this again."
Meng Yuning waited for a while, only to hear this sentence. She immediately remembered what he said, "It's too cold in the snow." Her heart tightened and she didn't dare to ask any further questions.
She reached out and gently patted Yi'er's arm through his sleeping body, speaking in a slower tone: "Your Highness, get some rest. The lights won't be turned off tonight, I have to keep an eye on Yi'er."
Qi Jingyan's voice was gentle: "Okay, An Ning, you sleep peacefully, I'll take care of Yi'er."
Meng Yuning shook her head, feeling tired and yawning. "It's okay, let's all go to sleep. The doctor said this medicine will last for three or four hours, so Yi'er should be able to sleep soundly until dawn."
Qi Jingyan said no more and just replied softly, "Okay."
They both closed their eyes and rested.
Meng Yuning was exhausted, and soon she fell asleep. She woke up several times during the night, and she always subconsciously touched Yi'er's forehead, but it was warm and cool to the touch, and the fever had not returned.
She thought Yi'er would have a nightmare at night, but perhaps the sedative ingredient in the medicine took effect, and Yi'er slept exceptionally soundly the whole night.
After confirming this several times, the stone in her heart finally fell to the ground. When she closed her eyes for the last time, she finally fell asleep peacefully.
I don’t know how many nights I slept, but suddenly I heard a subtle but clear "clucking" sound in my ears.
Meng Yuning suddenly woke up, her heart tightened, and she sat up hurriedly. She first went to look at Yi'er. Seeing that Yi'er's breathing was steady and she was sleeping soundly, she breathed a sigh of relief, and then she looked at Qi Jingyan on the other side following the sound.
I saw that he was trembling slightly in his sleep, his teeth clenched, and the shivering look was exactly the same as before in the Qingke Hall.
She was anxious and quickly and quietly moved Yi'er to the inside of the bed. She knelt down beside Qi Jingyan, gently pushed his shoulders, and whispered, "Qi Jingyan, wake up, wake up quickly."
After being pushed and called, he suddenly opened his eyes. His eyes were confused and frightened at first, but after a while, he focused his gaze on her face.
The next moment, he suddenly reached out and held her tightly in his arms, with such force that she almost suffocated.
"A Ning..." His voice was hoarse and broken, with lingering fear, "Don't go..."
Meng Yuning's chin hit his shoulder unexpectedly, and she groaned in pain, but she knew he was deeply trapped in a nightmare and didn't care.
He just hugged her tightly regardless of anything, whispering in her ear over and over again, his voice revealing a fragility she had never heard before: "Don't go, An Ning, don't leave, I'm so cold, don't go..."
Meng Yuning struggled to free up one hand, gently touched his head, and coaxed him softly as if he were coaxing Yi'er: "Don't worry, I won't leave, I will stay here with you."
It was unknown how long he held her, until Meng Yuning felt that her waist was almost numb from being strangled by him. His tense body gradually relaxed, his breathing became even and long, and he fell into a deep sleep again. The arms around her finally loosened a little.
She carefully moved his heavy arm away and breathed a long sigh of relief. She was so tired that she was too lazy to move. She just lay down in the gap between him and Yi'er, closed her eyes again, and fell into a deep sleep in an instant.
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