Ask the Nine Ministers

Chapter 283 Whispers by the Bed
"Your Highness, please forgive me..."

Xue Yuechen's eyes were red and her voice trembled.

"I am first and foremost a daughter of the Xue family, and only then, Aning's mother..."

Li Huan laughed in anger, his face turning ashen as he looked at her.

"The Duke of Zheng's family has brought this upon themselves. Guo Mingyuan's corruption and abuse of power have angered the Emperor, and Guo Zhaohuai's crimes are irrefutable; even a god couldn't save him. They brought this upon themselves. The Crown Prince's actions today have received the Emperor's approval and are in line with the will of the people..."

"Then... then are we just going to sit here and wait to die?"

Xue Yuechen trembled at his roar, tears streaming down her face. She hissed in resentment, "Your Highness! You are also His Majesty's son… The Crown Prince… he's so arrogant, is there no one who can restrain him? What about the Xiao family? Is Prime Minister Xiao just going to stand by and watch…"

"Shut up," Li Huan interrupted her sharply, his eyes filled with warning.

"How dare you, a mere woman, presume to interfere in matters of the court? If your father is truly innocent, what is there to fear? If he is not innocent..."

His tone suddenly turned cold, carrying a sense of indifference as if it were none of his business.

"That's their own fault, they have no one to blame but themselves!"

"He brought it on himself?" Xue Yuechen was struck dumb, staring incredulously at the man before her—her husband. The undisguised indifference in his eyes made her breathless.

"Your Highness... if the Xue family falls, how will my daughter and I survive in this manor..."

"I am not dead yet." Li Huan abruptly interrupted her, his voice as cold as ice.

"The Prince Duan's residence has no place for you and your mother, nor is it a place to be bullied. As long as I live, I will protect you and your mother. As for the Xue family..."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over Xue Yuechen with a complex expression before finally settling into a cold, decisive statement.

"Abandon what should be abandoned!"

Xue Yuechen was completely stunned.

Overwhelmed by grief and despair, she even forgot to cry.

Li Huan rose coldly, his resolute posture as if he were severing the last ties.

"Tomorrow, I will go to the Ministry of Justice."

He looked at Xue Yuechen, his voice devoid of warmth and without the slightest hesitation.

"If your father were willing to resign and apologize, perhaps... he could still save face."

As the words fell, the beaded curtain swayed, making a crisp clinking sound...

He walked away without looking back.

Xue Yue sat stiffly on the cold, soft couch, her empty eyes reflecting the wet tear stains, like a puppet whose soul had been taken away.

A scene of utter desolation.
-
The secluded bamboo grove is located in the inner chamber, where the medicinal vapors condense into white mist.

Xue Sui tossed and turned in his coma, having countless fragmented dreams.

In my dream, I was engulfed in flames, as if chains were piercing my limbs, and molten iron was burning my veins...

Someone wiped her sweat, gently rubbing her fingertips, adding a strange tenderness to the hazy pain...

I finally opened my eyes in the morning light and found that my inner clothes were already soaked with cold sweat.

The wound on my left arm was tightly wrapped with layers of cloth, and the slightest movement would cause a piercing, itchy sensation.

Before them stood not the simple bamboo and wood of Shuiyue Nunnery, but a rosewood couch carved with intertwined lotus branches.

Half dream, half awake.

She tried to raise her arm, only to find that her injured arm was tied to a couch post covered with a fox fur with a brocade ribbon.

“If you move again…” a hoarse voice came from the floor, “I will tie up your other arm as well.”

Xue Sui was startled and turned his head to look.

Li Zhao lay on a low couch less than three steps away from her, fully clothed. The collar of his moon-white undergarment was slightly open, revealing strange red marks winding along his collarbone. His black hair was scattered messily on the pillow, and he looked as handsome as a god, though his eyes were tinged with dark circles.

Look at the ground again—

The blood-stained outer robe was crumpled and wrinkled, as if it had been repeatedly kneaded.

"What does Your Highness mean by this?" she asked, her throat burning as she spoke.

Suddenly recalling how, when Li Zhao's love potion flared up and he was burning with unbearable heat, she had boldly bound the Crown Prince, tightly restraining him. Her heart trembled slightly, and she let out a bitter laugh...

"...To get revenge on me?"

"You still remember?" Li Zhao chuckled softly, his eyes deep and thoughtful.

Xue Sui gently tugged at the corner of her mouth: "Of course I remember."

Li Zhao stood up and walked barefoot across the cold brick floor.

He slowly wrung out a handkerchief from the copper basin and pressed it onto her face.

"What does being bound mean? That wicked woman who plotted to assassinate the crown prince hasn't been ground to dust; it's only because I'm kind-hearted..."

Li Zhao stared at her pale lips, each word filled with harsh words, making no mention of the trivialities of taking care of her all night, or the helplessness of having to tie his hands to prevent the poison from invading his heart...

But when the coarse cloth wiped her head, the pressure was light, yet as it brushed across her uneven head, the fingertips suddenly tightened...

The new stubble on her head was still a sickly white, a far cry from her former smooth, black hair.

"Xue Ping'an, Zhang Huaicheng said the poison has already invaded your lungs; coughing up blood is still a mild case..."

A sudden glint of malice flashed in his eyes. He flung the handkerchief back into the basin, splashing water onto the blue bricks.

"If you dare to be so reckless again, next time it won't be scraping your bones, it will be ripping out your heart."

"Oh." Xue Sui's calmness was infuriating.

Li Zhao's back was tense, and he didn't utter a sound.

When the handkerchief was removed, Xue Sui saw the new knife wound on the web of his right hand, the scabs still fresh.

"This is... an injury from when you were scraping away the poison for me?"

"You bit me when you were unconscious," he sneered. "You're like a dog, Xue Ping'an."

He muttered resentfully, but turned around and took the medicine bowl off the small stove.

The thick, dark medicinal liquid was poured into the celadon bowl, its bitterness instantly overpowering any hint of beauty...

Xue Sui tried to sit up, but her waist was encircled by a strong arm.

Li Zhao practically half-embraced her, bringing the medicine bowl to her lips: "Drink."

“This humble nun will do it herself…” Xue Sui tried to struggle, but her body went limp.

"Save your energy." Li Zhao interrupted her, steadily supporting her weak body.

“You slept with your arm on my back all night. I’ve seen everything, both what I should and shouldn’t have seen.” He suddenly leaned down, his breath brushing against her ear, carrying a strange, unsettling intimacy.

"Isn't it too late to be reserved now?" Xue Sui's breath hitched.

Li Zhao's gaze swept over her, his expression suggestive.

"I changed Xiaoyi myself. I didn't ask anyone else to do it."

A familiar, subtle fragrance mingled with the scent of medicine wafted over, and Xue Sui's nose twitched. She leaned against his firm, warm chest, then suddenly seemed to realize something, raising her eyelashes to examine the man before her—

If the Crown Prince Zhao before the expedition still retained some of the youthful spirit and sharp edges, then the person before us has a deep, cold demeanor and an all-encompassing aura between his brows.

He is a man who has been tempered by blood and fire, and is capable of stirring up storms.

Some things are no longer up to her...

She turned her head away.

Li Zhao turned her around again.

A focused yet assertive demeanor, coupled with gentle patience.

But after all, he was a member of the imperial family who had never served anyone before...

The medicine was poured in too quickly, and the bitter taste instantly filled my mouth.

Caught off guard, Xue Sui nearly choked and cried.

"Cough cough...cough..." She nestled in Li Zhao's arms, coughing so hard it was excruciating, aggravating her wounds and causing her to break out in a cold sweat from the pain.

Li Zhao frowned, his large hand clumsily but forcefully patting her back, massaging her shoulder blades through her inner clothes, as if comforting a weak young animal.

"Slow down, no one's going to take it from you."

Xue Sui felt a tightness in her throat and rolled her eyes at him.

This medicine is as bitter as coptis chinensis.

She frowned and opened her mouth to speak when a honey-soaked plum was stuffed into her mouth.

On her tongue, it was sour at first, then sweet, a taste she used to love.

Li Zhao seemed oblivious to the surprise in her eyes, turned around, placed the bowl on the table, and after a moment said:
“Zhang Huaicheng had someone skilled in poison formulation test it. The poison on the hidden weapon is of the same origin as the plague in the Western Frontier. To delay the onset and intensify the pain, it was also mixed with bone-rotting grass and some filth… This poison carries a plague-like aura and can be transmitted through wounds, making it extremely easy to die…”

After saying that, he glanced at her indifferently.

"I've thrown all your maids into the side courtyard..."

Xue Sui was startled, and her eyelashes trembled slightly.

"Is Your Highness not afraid of infection?"

Li Zhao looked down at her.

"I've been through mountains of corpses and seas of blood, and fought my way to the gates of hell. What am I afraid of?" He fixed his gaze on Xue Sui with a deep look and gave a cold snort. "But you, Xue Ping'an, with your frail body, if you suffer a few more times, you probably won't even live past twenty."

"His Highness can curse people."

Xue Sui slowly swallowed the sweet and sour plum in her mouth. Just as she was about to raise her eyes to confront him, Li Zhao suddenly flicked her forehead with his finger.

"Your Highness—"

He chuckled softly and placed a very light kiss on her forehead.

The soft lips touched my skin, carrying a slightly cool temperature.

"Do you think I'm afraid or not?"

Xue Sui froze...

"Taking advantage of someone's misfortune?"

"Each each other."

"Indeed, Your Highness seems to be in such good health that you could live for another five hundred years..."

"You're also good at cursing people."

Their eyes met. The candlelight flickered.

A hint of gentleness crept into Li Zhao's mocking eyes.

His fingertips lingered on her slightly cool cheek for a moment before he slowly straightened up, tucked the blanket around her, and returned to his normal tone.

"The assassination attempt on the Imperial Street was suspicious; it seems you've offended quite a few people... That little nun is indeed vicious..."

Xue Sui leaned against the pillow and looked at him, "This humble nun's meager skills have made Your Highness laugh at me."

Li Zhao did not answer immediately.

In his deep eyes, there were flickering lights and shadows.

"This technique... is definitely not an ordinary martial arts method."

Xue Sui said, "When the assassins rushed out, they shouted that they wanted to avenge Princess Ping Le. Among them was a woman whose face I recognized. She used to be a maidservant to Princess Ping Le, and we had met a few times before... After the incident involving Princess Ping Le, she was supposed to be exiled with her master, but I don't know why she appeared in the capital..."

Li Zhao clenched his fists, making a clear sound: "Made by Xiao Song?"

"I don't know." Xue Sui shook her head. "Prime Minister Xiao holds a high position of power and influence. Even if he has a past grudge against me, he shouldn't have made such a fuss over a woman like me..."

She paused, looking at the cloud pattern embroidered on Li Zhao's cuffs.

"Of course, it's also possible that Xiang Zhuang's sword dance was a ploy to target Liu Bang. The other side is after Your Highness, using this humble nun as a guise, borrowing Ping Le's hand to deceive others..."

She paused, then emphasized her words.

"After all, His Highness's triumphant return to the capital has blocked the way for too many people."

Li Zhao's eyes darkened, and he pushed open half of the window.

"No matter who it is, they all have to die."

These words were spoken very softly, yet they carried an undeniable killing intent.

Xue Sui looked at his tall, straight back and suddenly felt a tightness in her heart.

"Your Highness, please be careful in everything you do."

"Just rest and recover." Li Zhao didn't turn his head; his voice carried through the night wind, carrying an undeniable force.

"I'll handle the affairs outside. I snatched your life back from the jaws of death. No one can take it away without my permission."

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　　Reader: We came to see Ping An.

　　Li Zhao: What a coincidence, me too...

　　(End of this chapter)