The mistress who remarried has returned.

Su Yunxi didn't want to recall that day because it was too painful. On that rainy night, all the light in her world disappeared, leaving her like a walking corpse, surrounded by darkness. She said, "Don't you all know the reason? It's about climbing the social ladder."

Kang Yin didn't press the matter further. Perhaps he was overthinking things; after all, there weren't that many hidden sorrows in the world. Maybe Liangdi simply loved the Crown Prince and not the General—it was that simple. Love, indeed, is utterly irrational.

Kang Yin left five days' worth of medicine, both oral and topical. After stitching up the Crown Prince's leg wound, he was drenched in sweat. He took a towel from Liangdi and wiped his face, then instructed her, "Give the Crown Prince the oral and topical medicine I left for you once every evening. After he takes today's medicine, even if he doesn't wake up tomorrow, you should be able to get him to open his mouth and take the medicine. I will consult the General in five days to see if I can come for a follow-up visit and replenish the medicine."

She paused, then added, "The medicine contains nutritional supplements, so not eating for a few days won't be a problem. There's no need to force it."

Su Yunxi nodded, "Okay, thank you, Dr. Kang."

Kang Yin also left some medicine for treating his leg ailment and gave it to Su Yunxi, saying, "Liangdi, you can take these medicines for your leg ailment as well."

"This..." Su Yunxi did not accept it immediately. "If the general investigates, won't it cause you trouble? As you know, Qin Huai doesn't like me. If I'm not doing well, it pleases him. I need to remind you of the implications."

"It's not that bad. The fact that Consort Liang's leg is lame constantly reminds the General that her leg is injured because of him. Even if the General finds out that I gave you medicine, it won't do anything to me." Kang Yin analyzed that he wasn't sure what the General thought of Consort Liang, but giving her some medicine was better than leaving her with a lifelong disability. After all, the General, who never took sides, had come to the Eastern Palace in person. If he broke his usual neutral stance just to humiliate a woman, it wouldn't hold water. "He doesn't want to constantly think about how you saved his life; he must have some ulterior motive. I'm just trying to keep him from seeing you and getting annoyed."

Su Yunxi accepted the medicine. Yes, seeing her clumsy legs always reminded her of how she risked her life to save him. But why should she limp and get in his way if she wanted to use him to climb up to the Crown Prince?

"Then I'll take the medicine." Su Yunxi accepted the medicine. "I will remember your great kindness and will repay you when I have the chance."

As she spoke, Su Yunxi took out one tael of silver from her clothes and said honestly, "To be honest, I only have two taels right now. I'm giving you one tael to show my appreciation, and I'll keep the remaining one tael for my own living expenses. Please don't find it too much. I will continue to repay you when I am able to do so in the future."

"I absolutely cannot accept this money. I am here to treat you on the general's orders. The money for this consultation will be allocated to me from the barracks account. Since you are not well-off, you can keep these two taels for yourself. In any case, I am using the barracks' money, and the general is paying for it. I am not paying out of my own pocket, so you don't need to worry about it. This is all what you earned by exchanging six arrows."

After examining the Crown Prince, Kang Yin left the Eastern Palace along with the soldiers who were interrogating Qin Huai, the guard of the Eastern Palace.

With the troops gone, the guards at the Eastern Palace breathed a sigh of relief, only hoping that the General's Mansion would not come to inquire again, as they were truly dreadful and frightening.

Seeing that the Crown Prince's complexion had gradually improved after taking the medicine, and that he had regained some rosy health, Su Yunxi finally felt relieved. She only regretted that it was inconvenient to send a message to Empress Xiao in the Cold Palace to comfort her. She hoped that Empress Xiao would not miss her son too much in the Cold Palace and fall seriously ill.

Su Yunxi was ultimately too insignificant; the things she could do were extremely limited. Just finding a doctor had already exhausted all her resources.

Su Yunxi hid the stove and small pot used for brewing medicine outside, as well as the medicinal herbs, in a secret compartment in the inner room to prevent the guards from discovering and confiscating them.

She then took the handkerchief she had used to wipe the blood off the prince and went to wash it.

She had just arrived at the kitchen when she found hot water in the earthen stove. She added some hot water to the washbasin, carried the basin to the yard, and pressed a few handkerchiefs into the water. Just then, she heard Li Changchuan, the gatekeeper of the East Palace, rushing over with a piece of clothing in his hands.

"Consort Su, Consort Su, when General Qin left the East Palace, a piece of clothing fell out of his carriage. I picked it up, but I don't know what to do with it. I asked others, but no one dared to take the clothing, fearing they might mistakenly go to the Qin residence and be punished by the general. I also feel that this clothing is a hot potato, and I don't know what to do with it. I came to ask Consort Su for her opinion."

Li Changchuan was originally a servant in the Crown Prince's household. After the Crown Prince's residence was raided, his father, a loyal servant, refused to betray the Crown Prince and help with the raid. He killed himself by banging his head against the wall of the Crown Prince's palace. His mother, heartbroken, also hanged herself. After collecting his parents' bodies, he surrendered to the Emperor and became a guard of the Crown Prince's palace.

Su Yunxi understood that he was not a bad person by nature and had no intention of betraying the Crown Prince. In his heart, he still hoped to stay in the Eastern Palace. There were many guards around him, but he was polite to her. His patience alone showed his composure and his future was promising.

"The clothes that fell out of the general's carriage." Su Yunxi said, taking her hands out of the washbasin and wiping them with a dry towel. "Let me see them."

Li Changchuan handed the clothes forward.

Su Yunxi took the clothes, and the icy coldness under her hands gave her a bad feeling. She walked to the eaves of the bedroom and, by the light of the kerosene lamp, immediately recognized that it was the indigo cloak that Qin Huai had draped over her.

My ears and neck suddenly felt hot.

Because she had already worn it, Qin Huai simply threw it away and didn't want it anymore.

Seeing that Consort Su's eyes were somewhat moist, Li Changchuan asked, "Consort, should I send it to the General tonight? This dress looks very valuable."

Su Yunxi glanced at Li Changchuan, thought for a moment, and said, "Leave it to me. I'll handle it. Even if anyone asks about the whereabouts of this garment in the future, just say that it's with me. Most likely, no one will inquire further."

Li Changchuan breathed a sigh of relief, finally putting one worry to rest. He glanced into the bedroom, wanting to ask but ultimately refraining from inquiring about the patriarch's situation. Instead, he turned and walked towards the East Palace Gate. To the patriarch and Liangdi, he was a traitor who had surrendered.

Su Yunxi said softly, "Li Changchuan."

Li Changchuan paused.

Su Yunxi said, "Tell your supervisor that the Crown Prince has recovered and there's no need to report the death for now."

Li Changchuan's eyes immediately lit up, and his heart felt warm as if it were being baked by the sun. "Yes, yes!"

He turned and headed towards the palace gate. When he met the head guard, he spoke vaguely, "The Crown Prince may still be able to hold on for a few more days. He has just recovered. There is no rush to report the death, so as not to make a false report and be punished by the higher-ups."

The foreman said, "Indeed, if we were still alive and went to report the death, the Emperor would be furious and punish us for negligence. We can't afford that."

Su Yunxi held the cloak that Qin Huai had thrown away, her hands trembling with anger.

Why does he think she's dirty?

Was what he did to her really clean?

He stroked her neck and said to her, covered in blood and with nowhere else to go, "Follow me from now on." Was that really all it took to clean her up?