Hibiscus as a Painting

Chapter 199

Zi Jin tried to sit up, but was pulled into Jun Lin's arms. She leaned weakly against him, listening to the rumbling of the carriage shafts and the sound of horses' hooves: "Um... what time is it?" Her voice was hoarse and weak.

Jun Lin helped Zi Jin sit comfortably in his arms, gently smoothing her messy hair: "How could you be so oblivious? Yesterday... how could you possibly take a bath after that? Hmm... it's all my fault for sleeping so soundly that I neglected you."

Zi Jin pressed her temples hard, trying to clear her head. She touched her now-clean clothes and glanced at Jun Lin. He must have noticed she was clean while changing. Luckily, she had pinched herself to leave marks, otherwise she wouldn't have been able to hide it.

Jun Lin stroked Zi Jin's forehead, his brows furrowing even deeper: "You slept very soundly this morning... I was afraid of hurting you, so I had the nanny change the water for you. How could you wash yourself in such cold water? Why do you still have a fever? Do you want to eat something? Is there anything else that's bothering you?"

Zi Jin looked at the scenery rushing past the car window: "Where are we going?"

Jun Lin tucked the blankets around Zi Jin: "Are you tired? Would you like something to eat? Qi Yongyue!"

“Master, there are still three days until the grand banquet. Even if we travel without stopping, we will barely make it there. We can’t rest any longer.” Qi Yongyue’s troubled voice came from outside the carriage that had not stopped.

"How dare you! You..."

"Don't stop, it'll feel even worse if you stop," Zi Jin interrupted Jun Lin, frowning as she spoke.

Jun Lin said, "Why don't we wait until we reach the town ahead and have a doctor examine us again?"

"It's nothing, just a bit of a headache," Zi Jin said weakly, waving her hand.

Jun Lin placed his hands on Zi Jin's temples and gently pressed them: "She must have caught a cold yesterday."

"Jun Lin".

"Um?"

"Your coronation ceremony was two days ago, but you've been in Rouge Valley the whole time..."

Jun Lin smiled and reassured him, "Hehe, Mr. Ruoliu's disguise skills are unparalleled. Now that he is working for me, he has nothing to fear."

Zi Jin asked, "Then why are you in such a hurry to go back?"

Jun Lin glanced at Zi Jin for a moment, then slowly said, "I have only been in power for a short time, and my foundation is not yet solid. Everyone will surely be present at the grand banquet for the officials; I just don't want to cause any unnecessary trouble."

Zi Jin chuckled and said, "How could that be? Since he left, Jun Ying has held all the power in the Yue Kingdom. Now that he has abdicated the throne to you, he will naturally take care of those unnecessary troubles. There is no need to worry too much."

A glint of light flashed in Jun Lin's eyes as he gently kissed Zi Jin's hair: "Don't worry too much. I'll take care of things in court. You should focus on recovering. We still have two days and two nights to go. I'm worried you might not be able to handle it. Would you like some water?"

Zi Jin glanced at the incense burner with its faint glow on the long table, lowered her eyes slightly, and waved her hand wearily. She found a comfortable spot in Jun Lin's arms and closed her eyes again.

Jun Lin gazed silently at Zi Jin's slightly tired sleeping face, a hint of guilt flashing in his eyes. The hand pressing on Zi Jin's temples became even gentler. He lowered his eyes and leaned close to Zi Jin's ear, his face gently rubbing against her soft, smooth long hair, unwilling to leave for a long, long time.

After a long and arduous journey, on the night of the third day, the group finally entered the Moon Kingdom's capital under the cover of darkness and returned to the Moon Kingdom's palace through a secret passage.

Inside Chaofeng Palace, Jun Lin looked at Zi Jin, who was still fast asleep, with a doting smile on his lips. He touched her face, which seemed a little thin, and glanced at Qi Yongyue standing in the outer room: "Have they made any moves these days?"

Qi Yongyue looked up at Jun Lin, seemingly a little embarrassed.

"Speak," Jun Lin said, stroking Zi Jin's face without turning his head, "before entering the secret passage, I pressed Jin'er's pressure point to put her to sleep."

Qi Yongyue said, "The Emperor Emeritus once tried to contact General Jin, but was rejected by General Jin because he could not produce the Tiger Tally."

Jun Lin smiled faintly: "Have you reached the end of your rope? Now you're willing to lower yourself and beg for help. What a pity... Zi Yingfeng wanted to rebel against him back then, otherwise he wouldn't have led those people to only recognize the Tiger Seal and not people."

Qi Yongyue continued, "In comparison, the Third Prince is much more well-behaved and has never tried to step out of the abandoned courtyard... However, the Grand Council has suppressed several secret reports, which still need to be read by His Majesty."

Jun Lin raised his eyes and asked, "The grand banquet tomorrow night must be prepared properly. We must not let him find an opportunity."

Qi Yongyue smiled slightly: "Your Majesty, rest assured, now that the young lady is in your hands, the Emperor Emeritus will naturally take care of her and will not act rashly."

Jun Lin looked up at the white jade zither placed to the side: "Place all of Jin'er's things in this hall, and have the servants be careful not to break them."

Qi Yongyue said with a troubled expression, "Your Majesty, this is probably not appropriate. The young lady has no official title at the moment. If we rashly place her in the main palace, it will surely cause criticism and unnecessary trouble."

Jun Lin rearranged the bedding on Zi Jin's body, slowly stood up, and walked to the outer room. He glanced at Qi Yongyue as he walked and said, "This palace was prepared for her. What use is this palace to me if she's not here?! Who dares to object?"

Qi Yongyue followed closely behind Jun Lin, responded softly, and then quietly closed the door of the main hall.

As the footsteps faded into the distance, Zi Jin slowly opened his clear eyes. It turned out that the throne truly wasn't abdicated by Jun Ying, but rather seized by him. Yet Jun Ying had always done so for him since childhood; he knew this, so why did he still force his father to abdicate? Couldn't he even wait a few more years? The Yue Kingdom had few heirs; Jun An had suddenly died, leaving no bloodline. Now, only he and Jun Chi remained in the Yue Kingdom, yet he wouldn't even grant him a title of Prince, instead imprisoning him in a deserted courtyard. How could he have become like this?!

Your Majesty? Heh... What a fine Your Majesty... Since Yaochen's death, the emperors of the three kingdoms, though they divided the land, have never truly become emperors. They only knew that the land was not unified, so calling themselves emperors was futile. Now that he has just ascended the throne, he has already changed his title. His ambition is truly obvious.

Love and hate leave no trace, deep affection is hard to wait for; the descendants of the gods, three generations of marital entanglements, when will they again sing the lament of old age? (Part 5)

When shall we play the Ballad of White Hair (Part 5) It was nearly noon when Zi Jin finally got up lazily. She stretched her limbs and gently plucked the white jade zither that was neatly placed on the table. She had been given muscle-relaxing powder for three days and had been traveling day and night in a carriage for three days. Although the medicine did not harm her body, how could it compare to the feeling of having strong limbs and solid ground under her feet?

Gently pushing open the window, Zi Jin took a deep breath. July was the season of blooming flowers. Since Jun Ying's reign, many rare and precious plants had been planted in Chaofeng Palace. Back then, she often bypassed the heavy guards to steal flowers here, so she knew the palace's flowers and plants very well. But how could she have imagined back then that she would be able to openly live in this palace that had been empty for so many years?

"The young lady is awake?"

Zi Jin turned around and saw the old nanny from that day, then smiled and nodded.

The old nanny picked up the bright red robe from the maid's tray, walked up to Zi Jin, and whispered, "Miss, please change your clothes first."

Zi Jin took two steps back awkwardly and looked at the old nanny with some embarrassment: "Let me do it myself."

The old nanny didn't insist and respectfully handed the clothes to Zi Jin. Zi Jin opened the robe and looked at it, then breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, it was an altered robe; otherwise, if she had really worn the formal robes of a palace concubine, she probably wouldn't have been able to walk at all.

Seeing Zi Jin's relieved expression, the old nanny chuckled and said, "All of the young lady's clothes were altered overnight. The sleeves are styled like men's robes, the skirts are short, and the robes don't even have a waistline. His Majesty is truly very attentive to the young lady, explaining such small details several times."

After putting on her robes, Zi Jin stood in front of a bronze mirror as tall as herself and looked at herself again and again. They were indeed both comfortable and beautiful. In all these years she had been wearing men's clothing, she had never worn such beautiful women's clothing before, not to mention that it was as convenient as men's robes.

After washing up, Zi Jin sat in front of the bronze mirror and tied her hair up in her usual bun, but the old nanny took the hair away with a smile: "Miss is dressed as a woman, how can you tie your hair up like a man? Let this servant tie it up for you."

Zi Jin withdrew her hand and looked at the person behind her in the bronze mirror: "How should I address you, Granny?"