With her deceased husband as her dowry, would Your Highness dare to marry her?

After Amo left, the back room fell into a deathly silence.

Standing beside Lin Ci, Judge Xu glanced at Pei Jinxuan from time to time, wondering if he should say a few words of advice to him.

Pei Jinxuan remained silent for a long time before taking a deep breath and suppressing his surging guilt inch by inch.

He turned to look at Lin Ci, hesitated for a moment, then walked to her side and gently took her hand. Her hand was as cold as water, lying quietly in his palm.

"I will find a way to cure your eyes," he said in a low voice. "If I can't cure them, I'll give you my own eyes in return."

"Oh, Your Highness, there's no need for that." The Imperial Physician Xu, anxious, stepped forward and said, "My grandfather passed down a few prescriptions for clearing toxins and improving eyesight; perhaps we could try them. Even if they don't cure it immediately, they can at least make Physician Lin's eyes feel better."

"Thank you for your trouble." Pei Jinxuan cupped his hands in greeting, his tone somewhat cold. He wasn't blaming Judge Xu, but rather himself.

Judge Xu personally went to the pharmacy to get the medicine, grind it, and decoct it. He spent half a day making several ointments for Lin Ci's eyes, carefully applied them to Lin Ci's eyes, and then wrapped them with layers of white gauze.

A cool breeze seeped into her eyes, and Lin Ci's tense body relaxed slightly. But the string in her heart remained taut; she couldn't adapt to the darkness, and her hand unconsciously gripped Pei Jinxuan's sleeve.

Right now, she only has him left, and he owes her a pair of eyes.

Pei Jinxuan thanked Imperial Physician Xu, took the medicine, and led Lin Ci back to the Jing'an Prince's Mansion.

As dusk settles, the city lights begin to twinkle.

The snakes that had filled the courtyard had been completely cleared away. The corridors and steps remained as usual, the lanterns were brightly lit, and the plum blossoms in the courtyard were still in full bloom, as if nothing had happened.

Pei Jinxuan did not make a fuss and quietly sent Lin Ci back to Liufang Garden.

Lin Ci sat on the couch, her face veiled in white gauze, pure and flawless, like a beautiful jade sculpture, captivating Pei Jinxuan and breaking his heart. He personally brought over the food, placed it in a small bowl, sat by the couch, scooped up a spoonful, and gently brought it to her lips.

"I've heard that goji berries are good for eyesight, so I added some to this soup. Try it, how does it taste?"

The soup was just brought to his lips when she pushed it away. The soup spilled onto half of Pei Jinxuan's body, leaving a dark, wet stain. He didn't say anything, silently wiping it clean with a handkerchief.

"If you don't like soup, have some snacks. You haven't eaten for a day and a night, you'll be starving." He picked up a piece of crystal cake and brought it to her lips, "It's filled with red date paste, you like that."

Lin Ci turned her head slightly, as if she were looking at him.

Pei Jinxuan's hand froze in mid-air. The remorse he had suppressed for so long surged up again, stuck in his throat, unable to be swallowed or spit out.

He felt that Lin Ci must be resentful of him. If he had arrived earlier and eliminated Xuan Jing sooner, she would not have suffered this calamity.

"I have already killed Xuanjing," he said. "If I had known earlier that he had used a curse on you, I would have spared his life."

"He is my master's son."

Lin Ci finally spoke, her voice sounding extremely calm, but her hand gripped a piece of fabric on her knee.

Pei Jinxuan was surprised and couldn't help but ask, "How did you know? Did he tell you himself?"

Lin Ci nodded. "He also mentioned that he had seen me when I was a child. But I don't remember him." She paused, her grip on the fabric tightening. "So he hates me."

"This is utterly absurd!" Pei Jinxuan suddenly slammed his hand on the table, making the bowls rattle. "That fake monk, I don't know what kind of vegetarian food he eats or what kind of Buddhist scriptures he chants, he's full of poison and evil. He must have fabricated this story to disturb your mind."

"At first, I didn't believe it either." Lin Ci lowered her head, trying hard to recall Xuan Jing's expression at the time as she spoke. "But... he spoke so logically and was so excited that I was a little confused too."

"What's so confusing? Even if Xuanjing is truly Xiaoyaozi's flesh and blood, does he have even a fraction of Xiaoyaozi's demeanor? Xiaoyaozi practiced medicine and helped the people, how could Xuanjing compare to him?"

"You didn't find out that my master has any children either, did you?" Lin Ci tilted her head, her eyes covered by a white veil, yet it seemed as if she was looking directly at him.

Pei Jinxuan replied without hesitation, "I only found out about you."

Lin Ci didn't reply, remaining silent for a moment before speaking, "Then can you do me a favor? I want to know the truth: did Master have an affair with a courtesan back then? If that's true..."

"If that's the case, you don't owe Xuanjing anything," Pei Jinxuan said decisively. "This is between him and Xiaoyaozi, why should you be held responsible?!"

As he spoke, he grasped Lin Ci's hand, his Adam's apple bobbing as he tried to compose himself, as if afraid that his anger would burn her.

"Don't think nonsense. I will definitely find a way to remove the poison and cure your eyes."

Lin Ci lowered her head, raised her hand to touch the white veil covering her eyes. Her eyes could feel the changes in light and dark, but that was all.

A sigh escaped, almost imperceptible.

She was originally a physician, more knowledgeable in medicine than ordinary people, but her master had repeatedly warned her not to touch poisonous things, so she had no clue about the insidious Gu worm in her body.

"Perhaps this was destined to be a tribulation," she said softly.

That was said too casually, as if it were something that had nothing to do with me.

Pei Jinxuan looked at her, feeling a deep sadness. He would rather she resent him, scold him, or hit him than see her like this. The calmer she was, the more incompetent he seemed.

"Let's not talk about that now. Come on, let's eat something."

He held the crystal cake to her lips again.

Lin Ci turned her head away.

Pei Jinxuan reluctantly put the crystal cake back on the plate. As he rubbed his robes, he suddenly felt a tightness in his sleeve. It turned out that Lin Ci's hand had grabbed his sleeve, like a drowning person grabbing the last piece of driftwood.

She still needs him.

Pei Jinxuan's taut nerves relaxed slightly.

"The kingfisher..." she said, "Is that potted kingfisher still alive?"

I didn't expect her to ask for a pot of flowers.

Pei Jinxuan nodded: "Naturally, I will live."

Lin Ci frowned slightly, clearly disbelieving.

Pei Jinxuan said again, "I'll go get it for you to see." With that, he went out the door. A little while later, he carefully placed the celadon flowerpot beside her, took her wrist, and guided her fingertips to gently touch the petals.

"How could that be..." Lin Ci's fingertips gently caressed the petals and stem, so lightly and slowly, as if afraid of hurting the delicate flower. "The kingfisher dies as soon as it leaves the soil. That day, King Liang clearly threw it to the ground."

Do you still remember Zhang Niang?

Lin Ci thought of the kind old woman and nodded, "I remember."

"She was originally a servant of the Empress Dowager, in charge of flowers and plants. Every plant she touched was full of vitality. I brought her here on the first day of the month, but I didn't let anyone else know."

Lin Ci's fingers remained on the petals, without moving away.

It turns out he had foreseen all of this.

He had prepared everything: snakes, flowers, and the Liang King's attack. The only thing he hadn't anticipated was that Xuanjing's blindness was a lie, nor that the frail-looking monk possessed extraordinary skills.

He only guarded against snakes, but not against a fake monk.

Pei Jinxuan gazed at Lin Ci's face, which was covered by a white veil. His throat bobbed slightly, but he ultimately didn't utter a word. The guilt was too heavy, too heavy for words to bear.

Lin Ci stroked the golden kingfisher, a slight smile playing on her lips. She tilted her head, as if smiling towards the flowers with her unseen eyes.

"As long as it's there, that's enough. As long as it's there, it has the power to bring the dead back to life."

Pei Jinxuan opened his mouth, but hesitated to speak.

He had brought her back in the first place for the sake of a life-saving technique, but just now he had put that important matter aside and was only thinking about curing her eyes.

Pei Jinxuan finally realized that his heart was in turmoil, and he didn't know when it started, but he had fallen deeply in love.