What a scary thing!
Chen Sheng nodded vigorously, afraid that Xu You would misunderstand her, "I think you are the best person in the world!"
Xu You chuckled softly, as if mocking herself, "Just now, they said I was already married, so they forced me to wear this earring. They originally said I should wear a pair, but my fifth brother stopped them, otherwise... you would have seen an even more pathetic state of me."
Xu You's eyes were bloodshot, and although she was smiling, tears were streaming down her face. "Chen Sheng, whether you hate me or love me, we are now inseparable. Even in death, our tombstones will bear each other's names."
"It's not true that I don't hate you, but it's not that I don't love you either."
Chen Sheng released Xu You, stood up, and patted her dress. "We all want to live, but things never go as planned. Just like you and me, I don't even know what happened after I died."
"Xu You," Chen Sheng said softly, "tell me, what exactly happened after I died, okay?"
Xu You subconsciously bit her lip and answered softly, "I..."
"If you don't want to talk about it, that's fine. I won't force you."
Chen Sheng patted Xu You's shoulder comfortingly, "I will try my best to live this life, and so will you. Let's just make do."
Chen Sheng understood that she couldn't push Xu You too far. Xu You's character was problematic, and she might go too far at any time, which could cost her her life.
“We both know that there is no such thing as love between us,” Chen Sheng said. “But I hope that this time you can love me, at least while I am alive.”
“Chen Sheng, you don’t have to say that,” Xu You said.
Chen Sheng was taken aback for a moment, then pretended not to understand and tilted his head innocently.
"I said something similar when I helped the Second Princess."
Xu You looked at her, blood trickling down her face from her ear. She noticed a dagger in her hand, the same one the Ye family had made. "The person who heard that was Ye Cangming."
"Huh?" Chen Sheng couldn't help but ask. The next second, she saw a sentence in Xu You's eyes.
—You're still pretending.
"Fourth... Fourth Prince..." Chen Sheng stammered, "Calm down, let's just reminisce. But don't forget your dream and vow to live a good life!"
Xu You walked step by step toward the Buddha statue, removing his earrings and casually tossing them on the ground.
Fifteen ever-burning lamps blaze brightly, and a gender-swapped version of Buddha's eyes are filled with compassion.
Chen Sheng couldn't understand Xu You, but she knew that the other party had no intention of killing her. She followed behind Xu You and quietly picked up the red earring.
Xu You may or may not know that she picked it up; in any case, he will find out eventually.
"Fourth Prince, are you alright?" Chen Sheng asked, taking a step back.
Xu You didn't answer her, but instead used a dagger to extinguish a lamp that had been burning continuously.
Chen Sheng immediately understood what this plot point, which wasn't in the original work, meant.
"I don't want to be bound by the past, and I don't want to have any invisible shackles in my heart. I'm willing to save my soul in the way I can..."
Chen Sheng remembers this passage from the original novel very clearly; it appeared on the day Xu You remarried, and it fits the current scene quite well, at least that's what she thinks.
Why would she think that way? Because she excelled at reading comprehension in Chinese. Back in the day, a score of 130 in Chinese made her incredibly proud. Not to mention classical Chinese; she could answer those questions with ease.
She watched as Xu You turned off the lights one by one, and couldn't help but smile to herself.
It is said that a beautiful woman with lights on is a rare sight, but a beautiful woman with lights off is just as stunning, possessing a unique charm.
After Xu You turned off the lights, he stood motionless in front of the Buddha statue. Chen Sheng leaned over to take a look and saw him crying sadly with his eyes closed, so he didn't dare to offer any comfort.
She locked the palace door and cautiously peeked into the small pavilion at the back.
Xu You took her medicine here last time, and the original novel mentions this place, saying it has all kinds of medicine.
In the original novel, when the three of them were together, Ye Cangming spilled candle wax on Xu You's waist. He wanted to draw a flower for her, but his skills were not good enough, so he had to ask Xu You to come here to apply medicine halfway through.
"There should be some anti-inflammatory medicine or something..." Chen Sheng rummaged through the room and found a lot of medicinal herbs, but they weren't the granules and ointments sold in pharmacies; they were all ready-made.
Actually, there are ointments available, but they don't come with instructions, so she doesn't dare to take them.
It's a pity she hasn't studied biology for two years, so I don't know if this thing is mentioned in biology textbooks.
What should anti-inflammatory drugs look like? History doesn't mention it. Should she read the *Compendium of Materia Medica* or the *Treatise on Febrile Diseases*, or perhaps learn the Five Animal Frolics?
In the end, she grabbed some ointment and rushed out.
Xu You had already turned off all the lights, and the doors and windows of the temple were still closed, leaving the area in front of the Buddha statue pitch black.
"Why didn't you leave a single lamp?" Chen Sheng asked as he approached in the dark.
Xu You remained calm, as if nothing had happened. "You want it?"
"I really want to. It's so dark here. It would be so uncomfortable if I bumped into something."
Chen Sheng hadn't realized that Xu You's tone was off, and kept going on about the disadvantages of being in the dark.
"Do you remember that night in the outskirts of Beijing?" Xu You asked.
Chen Sheng shut her mouth, a crazy idea flashing through her mind. Was Xu You hinting at something? What should she do?
Would it be impolite to just kiss her like that...?
Ughhhhhh!!! I'm so conflicted...
"Second Princess has already captured that group of people and handed them over to the authorities," Xu You said. "They will be executed at noon tomorrow."
Xu You turned to look at her and noticed that Chen Sheng's face was very red, and she looked shy. "What's wrong with you..."
As soon as he asked the question, Chen Sheng hugged him tightly around the waist.
A woman's soft and seductive voice came from beside him, "Let's do it, Fourth Prince."
Xu You tried to break free but couldn't, and instead shook out all the small medicine boxes that Chen Sheng had stuffed in his sleeve.
Seeing Chen Sheng's appearance, and knowing he had just come out of the room, he immediately guessed the reason. "Just now, did you touch a sandalwood box?"
"I don't know, I just grabbed a few." Chen Sheng's mind was hazy, and her speech was somewhat incoherent. She pointed to the small wooden boxes scattered on the ground, "They're all here. I only put a little on each one, I didn't touch many..."
Xu You sighed and rubbed her forehead in exasperation. "That's an aphrodisiac."
"What should I do? I don't want to be streaking here."
Chen Sheng smiled innocently, "Fourth Prince, save me!"
"Let go first, I'll go see if there's any antidote."
Xu You pushed Chen Sheng away, but was pulled back and held captive in his arms.
He heard Chen Sheng say, "Just keep going and look for it while you're pregnant, I'm dying of heat right now..."
Xu You reluctantly agreed.
"Don't touch me, I can't take it either." Xu You's face was a little hot.
His waist is very sensitive, and being held like this makes him feel a little itchy.
"Don't hug my waist, it's inconvenient."
"How about this?" Chen Sheng changed his position and put his arms around Xu You's neck.
Xu You: "Mm."
Having finally reached the small room, Xu You looked at the mess on the floor and tried hard to suppress her anger.
“The antidote won’t be found anytime soon.” Xu You lowered her eyes and paused for a long time before speaking, “Chen Sheng, turn around.”
As Chen Sheng turned to face Xu You, her lips suddenly softened, and a familiar fragrance wafted into her nostrils.
Xu You took the initiative this time.
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