The room was filled with clear daylight and the charcoal stove was emitting a crackling sound.

Sultan Kumar has not woken up yet.

Next to the bed was the Yasha mask he usually wore.

Yao Ying gently turned over the quilt, knelt in front of Sultan Gu, and moved closer to look at his face.

The scars were crisscrossed and crisscrossed, like marks left by fire.

Yao Ying held her breath nervously and leaned forward.

As long as she raised her hand, she could feel the scars on Sultan's face and confirm whether this hideous and terrifying face was real.

She held out her hand cautiously.

Instead of touching the Sultan's face, he picked up a thin Persian rug that was haphazardly piled at the foot of the bed.

She had been making a lot of noise last night, and kept kicking off the quilt while he was dispensing the medicine. Sudangu repeatedly pressed the thin blanket against her legs, which was neither too heavy to make her uncomfortable nor too cold.

Yao Ying smiled, shook out the thin blanket and covered Sultan Gu with it, moving gently for fear of waking him up.

He was on guard almost day and night along the way, and it was unknown how many hours he could sleep every day.

Yao Ying stared at Sultan Gu for a while, then retracted her gaze and quietly got out of bed.

She didn't care whether his face was real or fake.

In the room, Yaoying's changed clothes had been packed away. On the long table were two bowls of cold vegetarian soup cakes. The soup had solidified and the broken soup cakes had been soaked all night, swollen and white.

Yaoying held her socks in her arms, stepped barefoot on the carpet, tiptoed outside, gathered her long hair, put on her socks and shoes, and tied a leather belt. In the past, she was very timid and had three or four maids to comb her hair. Now, she could already do a bun expertly by herself, and she could do both women's and men's hairstyles.

There was a rustling sound of footsteps outside the house and someone knocked on the door.

Yao Ying opened the door.

The guard stood outside the door with a respectful look. His eyes fell on the threshold and he saw a pair of exquisite deerskin boots that clearly did not look like men's boots. He was stunned for a moment and raised his head.

Yao Ying stood in front of the door in a pretty manner, with her hair tied up on top of her head. She was wearing a short-sleeved, lapel brocade gown with a linked bead pattern that he had found last night. She had a belt around her waist with a dagger pinned to her. Her skin was as white as snow, her eyebrows and eyes were beautiful. She smiled at him with a pale face.

The guard came back to his senses and whispered, "Is the princess feeling better?"

Yao Ying nodded and said, "General Su hasn't woken up yet, but do you have something important to report to him? If it's not urgent, wait another half an hour."

The guard scratched his head and said, "It's not a big deal. Last night, the Regent ordered Alanruo to get some medicine. The city is under strict security, so he can't go out. This morning, he went out with the prescription, but was driven back by the patrolling guards. The city is still under strict security."

Yaoying's heart moved, she stepped over the threshold, closed the door, and asked her personal soldier to show her the prescription.

The personal soldier brought the prescription and she took it and looked at it carefully. The prescription was written in two copies, one in Nonsense and the other in Sanskrit. She could understand some Nonsense and the medicinal ingredients written on it were exactly what was needed to relieve the effects of the medicine.

This prescription is written for her.

Yaoying was distracted for a while, then lowered her head to look at the prescription again.

Sultan's handwriting is neat and rigorous, with a strong pen stroke that can be seen through the paper. Just like him, his momentum is majestic and powerful.

She had seen Tanmarajava's handwriting in the Buddhist temple. It was clear, majestic, graceful, ethereal, elegant, and graceful like a startled bird and a swimming dragon. Whether it was Sanskrit, foreign language, or Chinese characters, it was all very beautiful, just like the person himself, like a banished immortal who wanted to ride the wind home.

Yao Ying shook her head and laughed, driving out of her mind the doubts that had flashed through her mind in her daze last night.

She had many guesses in her mind, and this one was the most bizarre.

"This prescription is for me." Yao Ying returned the prescription to the guard and said, "We don't know what happened in the palace now. Don't let Alanruo go out and take risks. I'm much better now and don't need to take medicine."

The guard quickly glanced at her face. She was still a little weak and spoke weakly, but her demeanor was calm and her eyes were clear. She didn't look sick at all. Thinking of how she couldn't even walk last night, the guard secretly admired her in his heart, but didn't respond.

Yaoying asked about the post house.

The personal soldier told her in detail what happened last night, and finally said: "There is no news from Yuanjue and the people who left the city last night. But please rest assured, Xie Qing and the others left the city safely. Alanruo has inquired about it. The city's martial law today was an order issued by the palace, and it has nothing to do with the post house. The people in the city office didn't know that the little prince of Beirong had arrived in Gaochang, and they thought that those who died in the post house last night had an internal conflict in order to rob the goods of the caravan."

Yao Ying felt relieved when she knew that Xie Qing and his companions had safely evacuated the inn.

Alanruo knew she was awake and brought her a big bowl of stewed meat soup.

The meat soup had a strong fishy smell. Yaoying had no appetite, but she had been busy for so long last night that her hands and feet were weak and she needed to replenish her energy. She forced herself to eat a few mouthfuls. After the meat soup went down her throat, she felt nauseous.

She picked up the spoon and continued eating. She heard footsteps at the door and a figure stood against the light. The shadow under the cage covered her and the meat soup in front of her.

Yaoying held the silver key in her hand, raised her head and looked at the person in front of the door.

Sultan Gu stood in front of the steps, looking down at her, with the Yaksha mask on his face again. He was tall and straight, with a leather belt tied tightly around his waist. His narrow sleeves outlined his slender features, like a fully drawn bow, and every move he made was full of strength.

"General Su was troubled by me last night..." Yao Ying said, pointing to a large pot of meat soup on the table, "General, would you like to have breakfast with me?"

Sultan Kumar said nothing.

Yao Ying stood up, poured him a bowl of soup, took out a few Hu cakes and placed them on the empty food table.

There was the sound of boots hitting the ground outside the door, and a guard ran over from the other end of the corridor, walked to the side of the Sultan and whispered a few words.

Sultan turned and walked away.

Yaoying looked at his receding back, put her hands aside, and continued eating her own food.

After a cup of tea, Sultan Gu finished talking with his personal soldiers and returned to the living room. Yao Ying had already finished breakfast and returned to her room. There were soup bowls and food plates on the long table, with a plate upside down on top of the bowls.

The soldier opened the plate. The soup was still hot, emitting wisps of steam. The doughnuts were being roasted over the charcoal stove, crispy and soft.

"The princess is so thoughtful." The soldier said with a smile.

The Sultan said nothing.

Yaoying returned to the room. The bed was clean and tidy. Alanruo must have come in to clean it. She was still a little dizzy, so she lay down to rest for a while and took a nap. Then she heard a few soft knocks on the door.

She rubbed her eyes, stood up and opened the door, and a cold gaze fell on her.

"General Su? Is there any news about Ah Qing and the others?"

Sultan Gu did not answer and went into the house. Yao Ying followed him. He glanced at the couch and Yao Ying understood and sat down obediently, waiting for him to speak. He also sat down and stretched out his hand, without the pair of leather gloves he usually wore.

Yaoying looked a little confused.

The Sultan's eyes fell on her wrist.

Yao Ying was stunned, she looked down at her wrist, then looked up at him, and they stared at each other in silence for a long time. She suddenly reacted, rolled up her sleeves, revealing a piece of frosty white wrist, and stretched it in front of Sultan Gu.

Sultan Gu lowered his eyes and took her pulse: "Is this the first time the princess has delayed taking the medicine?"

Yao Ying said hurriedly, "I used to take the medicine once a month. Including this time, I have delayed it for a few days three or four times."

That was when she was in the Beirong camp. She was afraid that Haidu Aling would find out her weakness and torture her on purpose, so she didn't dare to let him see the clues. She only dared to take the medicine when he was not in the camp. One time, Haidu Aling came back just after she took the medicine. She was very nervous at the time, and she tried hard not to show anything unusual, and her clothes were soaked.

Sultan Ku then asked: "Is the medicine dispensed the same as last night?"

His voice was cold, with a kind of pressure that made it impossible to escape. Yaoying had been afraid of doctors since she was a child, so she answered honestly, "Almost the same, but not as bad as last night."

Sultan Gu said nothing. He placed two fingers on Yao Ying's wrist and lowered his head to think.

Yao Ying couldn't help asking, "General Su, I haven't had any attacks in the past few years as long as I take my medicine on time. Why did I have an attack early this time?"

Sudangu withdrew his fingers and said, "The princess is born weak and timid. She has been running around for many days and is exhausted. In addition, she is worried and has insufficient Qi and blood. That's why she got sick early."

Yao Ying nodded. She was worried that something might happen to Li Zhongqian in an impulse, so she was anxious to return to Central Plains to reunite with him. However, she did not want to be a burden to his personal soldiers. Sometimes she did not take her physical discomfort seriously and continued to grit her teeth and persevere. This time, she had an attack early, probably because she was too tired these days.

The Sultan said: "If the princess feels unwell in the future, she must take medicine immediately without delay."

If you procrastinate too much, it may turn into a serious symptom.

Yao Ying came back to her senses, nodded, and said apologetically: "I'll remember that. I'm sorry for causing trouble to the general this time."

Sultan looked down at her.

She knelt on the couch, her head slightly lowered, her hair was thick and black, her cheeks were white, her eyelashes trembled slightly, and she looked a little uneasy.

A princess who was pampered and grew up in luxury should not be exiled to a foreign land.

Sultan Kumar stood up.

Yaoying stood up and saw him out.

Sultan Gu turned around and said, "Princess, if you feel unwell, just tell me the truth. There is no need to hide it, nor to force yourself, and you must not delay taking the medicine."

Yao Ying felt a little warm in her heart and responded, "Thank you for the reminder, General. I'll remember it."

An hour later, a personal soldier appeared in front of Yao Ying's door carrying a bowl of steaming medicine.

"Alanruo took advantage of the lax supervision and went out to get all the medicine. The princess drank the medicine while it was hot. The regent said that the princess's body was not well yet and she had to drink the medicine."

Yao Ying was stunned. She took the medicine and said, "Please tell the Regent that I won't get in the way. It's better not to let Alanruo take risks."

They were not out of danger yet, and she didn't want to cause trouble for Sultan Kumar because of her own circumstances.

The guard smiled and said, "Princess is a patient, don't worry about these things, just take good care of yourself. Alanruo has been in Gaochang for so many years, she just went out to get medicine, nothing will happen!"

He paused, thought for a moment, and looked at Yao Ying.

"Princess, during the few days we were away from the royal court, General Ashina conveyed the king's instructions to us. The king said that during this trip to Gaochang, we must obey the orders of the regent king. In addition, our mission is to protect the princess's safety, and we don't need to worry about other things."

Yao Ying was stunned.

The guard laughed and said with embarrassment: "The princess is ill. We failed to take good care of her. The princess must take good care of her."

Otherwise, how would they explain to the king when they returned?

Yaoying held the boiling bowl of medicine, was distracted for a while, smiled, thanked the personal guard, and went back to the house to drink the medicine.

That afternoon, the security in the city was slightly relaxed. Alanruo went out to get information, and the personal soldiers went to another meeting place in the city according to Sultan's instructions.

Yao Ying asked her personal soldiers to go to the city. She and Xie Qing and others had agreed that if they were separated, they would send a message to the city.

At night, the personal guards and Alanruo returned to the courtyard one after another.

The personal soldier did not return alone; he met Yuan Jue at another meeting place, and the two returned together.

Yaoying went to see Yuanjue immediately.

Yuanjue was injured and pale, with one arm limply resting on his waist. He entered the house, saluted Sultan Gu first, and whispered: "Regent, King Wei Chi did not break his promise. The ambushers that night were not coming for us."

"Those people are Princess Ina's personal soldiers."