Gemini didn't speak, but nodded after a long while. "Next time, you should discuss things with him before making a decision. Do you know how much trouble your departure has caused?"
I've already seen it with my own eyes, without you even having to tell me. "I was tricked by Xiao Lianjue."
"Nangong Ling had anticipated that Li Mu wouldn't be in the camp at the time, and he couldn't completely trust Tianchen's men, so he sent a protector with Tianqi and his men to Tianchi City. One reason was to guard against Xiao Zongjiu, and the other was to intercept Li Mu on the spot if he returned. But no one expected Xiao Lianjue to suddenly appear. After the emperor withdrew the Left Army a while ago, he had been silent for quite some time. This time, his appearance with his elite troops was so coincidental. Who do you think was too talkative?"
You ask me, how would I know?
“Ayu from the Changsheng Sect disappeared a few days ago. He had connections with the Hundred Days Sect before he came here.”
The Hundred-Day Cult? I suddenly thought of the woman beside Xiao Lianjue. Could it be such a coincidence?
"You suspect it's Arabic? How could a gatekeeper know so much?"
Shuang Zi'an rarely sighed, "I'm afraid of those who are determined. Although the master of the imperial city is Nangong Ling, he is still a newcomer. For example, he doesn't know about the secret passage in Qingyu Residence."
"If that's the case, why focus all our attention on Li Mu and let Xiao Lianjue die?"
He glared at me. "Don't you even know where you are? Nobody can guarantee what Xiao Lianjue might do. Do you really think Nangong Ling would gamble with your life?"
I pursed my lips, unable to refute it; I had indeed been too careless this time.
"Alright, don't overthink it. Let's redeploy everything once Nangong Ling is feeling better."
"Okay, is there anything else? You didn't come all this way just to chat about this, did you?"
"Half and half." He said, pulling a sack from behind him. "That brat is trying to rebel, making me watch the shop for him... Humph, here's a sack of the extra rice he stole."
I frowned, wondering what bad luck I had to have to meet Gemini An.
Get rid of him quickly; he's such a mood killer.
I rubbed my temples and turned around to see the man leaning against the doorway, looking at me with a half-smile. Judging from his expression, I hadn't known how long he'd been standing there.
"Why are you up?"
He didn't speak, but just slightly raised his hand. I stared at him for a while, but he remained in that position.
"Don't do this, let's talk about it when you're feeling better?"
He remained motionless, his expression unchanged. Helpless, I sighed and walked over.
"Okay, after you take your medicine, I'll stay with you and sleep a little longer."
I don't know why, but he becomes very clingy to me whenever he gets injured, probably because he knows that I'm the only one who keeps his word during those times.
Moreover, he absolutely had to agree, otherwise he would want to go to the Azure Palace to discuss matters. He was truly someone you could never trust.
He took my hand and led me back to the room. I obediently drank my medicine and lay back on the bed. Soon, I could hear his steady breathing beside me. I turned my head slightly and saw his pale face. My heart tightened. I reached out and wrapped my arms around his waist, found a comfortable position, and closed my eyes. He could sleep so soundly in such a short time. He must be exhausted.
Chapter 120
I knew he had overheard what Gemini and I were saying. I guess he didn't bother looking for a secret door; he just put a big lock on the outside of Qingyu Residence, so no one could get in.
"What are you looking at?" He leaned in and pulled me into his arms.
"They just locked the door like that? Didn't they even bother to investigate why there was a secret passage, who built it, and what their purpose was?"
"Not surprising, maybe it was used to escape."
"Oh...how are you feeling today?"
"You can go out for a walk."
"Don't leave, hurry up and clear away the remaining poison."
"I'll just force it out with my internal energy; I don't want to see any blood."
"Can your body handle it?" Before he could answer, she realized it wasn't right and added, "I don't want to hear ambiguous answers."
"It's alright, it's windy outside, don't stand here."
He had barely finished speaking when he let go of me, turned his back, and started coughing. I patted his back and helped him into the house. These days, he has become increasingly frail.
"Where have all these people gone? When we need them, we can't find a single one. Where are the Shao brothers?"
"Shaoyou and Shaoming went to take care of Shaoyan."
"Huh? What happened to Shaoyan?"
“Just like me…” He sat back on the couch, put his arm around my waist, and pressed his face against my lower abdomen. “You’re injured.”
"How could this be..." I stopped halfway through my laugh. "Is it Xiao Lianjue? How serious is it?"
Asking is pointless; if it weren't serious, Shaoyou and Shaoming wouldn't have both gotten through it.
"Let's not talk about that. Just give me a bowl of lotus seed soup."
"What are you doing? Are you afraid I'll blame myself?"
He chuckled softly, lifted his face, and rubbed his chin against my waist and abdomen. "You've always had a sharp tongue but a soft heart."
She pursed her lips, slapped his hand away, and turned to walk outside.
"Where are you going?" He stood up abruptly and grabbed my arm.
"Didn't you want to drink lotus seed soup?"
"Oh." Only then did he let go.
When I brought the lotus seed soup back to my room, I opened the door and saw him sitting cross-legged on the couch. A cool, refreshing fragrance rushed in, so strong it was almost pungent.
Sweat slid down his sharp chin, soaking his clothes, which gradually turned from pale green to dark green. Black blood clung to his slender, jade-like fingers, the blood dripping down his pale fingertips, drawing faint, scattered knife marks.
His delicate eyebrows furrowed, and he coughed up a mouthful of black blood. His body slumped limply onto the couch, fragile enough to shatter at the slightest blow.
His phoenix eyes narrowed slightly, and a drop of sweat trickled down his face, outlining his pale complexion. He looked so weak that it seemed as if one could kill him with a mere flick of the wrist. But once you thought that and looked closely, a chilling, eerie feeling arose from his very bones, as if a pair of skeletal hands, engraved with a crimson hell lotus, were tightly gripping your neck.
I took a deep breath to calm myself down. "I told you not to push yourself, but you wouldn't listen?"
Seeing my furrowed brow and fierce look, he bit his lip and turned his face away, still upset about being slapped by me.
She took a handkerchief and wiped the remaining blood from his mouth and hands. "Did you force it all out this time?"
He nodded and obediently brought his face closer. "Thankfully... you're alright."
His eyelids were lowered, so I couldn't see his eyes, but a weary chill slowly spread with the cold fragrance. I unconsciously pulled my hand back, but he grabbed it.
“Although I didn’t suffer any superficial injuries, Yunzhi, next time you make a decision, please ask me first, okay? This…” I pointed to my left chest, “You scared me quite a bit.”
He pursed his thin lips slightly, carried me to the bed, and simply held me without saying a word.
"...It won't happen again." He murmured in my ear after a long while.
"Hmm." I tugged at his sweaty shirt. "Go wash up. It's cold now, and you're already injured and weak. Do you want to get sick?"
"You stay with me."
I glared at him and pushed him away, only to find that his expression was completely serious.
"Do you still want me to scrub your back?" No problem, I'm thick-skinned anyway.
He frowned. "No. You're clumsy; you'll definitely touch my wound."
"You, me... who cares! You're not a child who needs someone to accompany you, go wash yourself!"
She picked up the handkerchief beside her and threw it at him. What a load of rubs! I'm doing you a favor by wiping your back!
Just as he was about to turn over and get off the bed, his waist suddenly tightened, and he was pulled back down.
"Be careful." He carefully removed the thin blanket that had somehow gotten wrapped around my feet. "You're about to become a mother, and you're still stumbling around like this. What if you fall?"
"So what? At worst, we'll both die..."
He didn't dare utter the last two words. He glanced at me sideways, his gaze as cold and sharp as a knife held to my neck.
"It's fine if you don't speak, but once you do, people will want to grind you to dust."
I looked up and chuckled twice. He was stunned and didn't react for a long time.
"It doesn't matter who else is involved, but you can't bear to part with them anyway." She pushed him away and got off the soft couch.
"Where are you going again?"
"Have someone bring you hot water to wash yourself."
I rolled my eyes at Chaotian. It's better for this guy to be busy. When he's free, he likes to meddle in everything. He gets upset as soon as I leave his sight.
When I got down to the lobby, I was surprised to see Shao You, whose face had been thinned out. I had just started talking about him when he appeared.
"How is Shaoyan?"
"Mr. He said things are stable for now, and Shaoming will take care of him for the time being."
"You should go and rest for a few days too. I'll take care of things here in Yunzhi."
"But Madam's health..."
"He Xiuqi will be fine, even if he's slacking off, there's still his son."
I waved my hand to interrupt him before he could finish speaking, "This time, Shao Yan's trouble was my fault. Last time, Shao Ming was also poisoned by an arrow because of me. I will go see Yun Zhi after he recovers."
Shaoyou nodded, his eyes even a little red.
"What's wrong?"
"...If it weren't for your mercy, Madam, the three of us brothers wouldn't exist today."
Wait a minute, where did this come from?