Kiyomi Tsuki et son renard

Chapitre 89

Minglu's expression remained unchanged.

Li Yu said, "I will write a prescription. You should take the medicine according to this prescription first, and reduce the dosage as needed every ten days."

He went to the desk, picked up a piece of white paper, wrote down the prescription, handed it to Minglu, and said, "Remember, take it three times a day, use Ganoderma lucidum powder as a medicinal guide, and simmer it over low heat for more than two hours before use."

Minglu reached out and took the prescription, folded it without even looking at it, and put it in his pocket.

Seeing that Minglu didn't even glance at the prescription, Li Yu assumed that Minglu didn't trust her at all. She snorted coldly and mocked, "Would you really dare to take the medicine I prescribed?"

"I dare," Minglu replied without hesitation.

Li Yu was skeptical: "I never expected that Prince Ming would trust someone of unknown origin so much."

Upon hearing this, Minglu's gaze shifted gently to the still stiff and upright back, and he said softly, "I don't trust you, I trust her."

The stiff figure visibly jolted.

“If you can cure my illness and lessen her guilt and self-blame towards me, I am willing to do my best to cure her,” Minglu said.

Li Yu's gaze towards Ming Lu changed.

The door closed slowly, and no one disturbed the three people inside.

Minglu gazed at Xiri's retreating figure, as if an eternity had passed, yet it also seemed like only a fleeting moment...

Li Yu suddenly broke the silence and asked Ming Lu, "Don't you have seven wives?"

Minglu, not understanding, nodded slightly.

Li Yu laughed and said, "How about giving them all to me?"

"Huh?!" Minglu looked at Li Yu angrily.

Li Yu laughed heartily, "You're such a hypocrite! You married seven wives and still dare to shamelessly confess your true feelings to the eighth. Now that you've married an eighth, you'll naturally tell the ninth that you're absolutely devoted. Haha—"

Upon hearing this, Minglu was filled with shock and anger. Amidst Li Yu's echoing laughter, Minglu suddenly chuckled softly, a bitter, sorrowful, and wistful laugh, tinged with arrogance. As he laughed, he said, "You're right. Women were once just pets for me to procreate, warm my bed, and entertain myself with. Whoever I like, I will naturally have; whoever I don't like, I can simply ignore. And if I set my sights on a woman, I will try to get her, even if it means using any means necessary!"

His words silenced Li Yu's laughter, and her gaze suddenly turned cold. Xi Ri's body stiffened, her neck rigid.

Then I heard: "But ever since I met this fake Li Yu who is neither male nor female, I have completely lost my composure. I am moved by her, conflicted by her, worried about her, concerned about her, and even... willing to risk my life for her! What does it matter if I dissect my true feelings! I love her, I admit I love her. I don't love Tian Xiri, whom I used to be infatuated with, nor do I love any Yu Di. I only love her, regardless of whether she is male or female, regardless of who she is, regardless of what she has done, I love her!"

"Stop talking!" Xi Ri suddenly shouted and stormed out the door.

Why had she never dared to speak out about all this? Now she realized it was this very moment she feared most. Everything else was just an excuse; this was her deepest, most dreaded moment. She had long sensed her third brother's feelings for her, and she knew she was the one who had orchestrated this moment. That's why she hesitated, why she was afraid, why she searched for excuses to call off the engagement but never actually did it, why she hated herself so much, why she knew she was destined to lose everything… because… her heart already belonged to someone… and there was no room for another.

She took Tian Shuang out of the Ming Prince's Mansion that very night. Because it was so late, the gates of the mansion were already closed, and only the prince's warrant could be used to enter and exit. Unfortunately, the two of them did not have a warrant, but they still insisted on going out. When the guards saw that it was her, they did not dare to offend her and could only ask the steward for help.

In the dead of night, the steward of the Ming Prince's mansion rushed over and tried to dissuade him, but could not keep Xiri there. He had no choice but to send someone to inquire about the Ming Prince.

Tian Shuang didn't understand why her young mistress suddenly insisted on leaving, but she would definitely support her mistress in whatever she wanted to do. Looking at the guards of the royal palace surrounding them, she thought to herself that even if it cost her life tonight, she would make sure her young mistress left.

No one dared to touch Xi Ri and her servant, and the stalemate continued until a guard rushed over and said, "His Highness has ordered that Young Master Li and his companion be released." This man was one of Ming Lu's close guards and one of the people who had protected Xi Ri in Qiong County that day.

Only after hearing this did everyone leave.

The guard stepped forward, bowed deeply, and said with utmost respect, "Young Master Li, His Highness has ordered me to escort you back. Please—"

He remained silent, then turned and left indifferently. The gate opened, and everyone in the Prince's mansion was puzzled as to why this usually approachable and handsome young master was so cold tonight.

Three people are sleepless tonight. The first is naturally Minglu, the second is naturally Xiri, but the third is neither Tian Shuang nor Tian Yong, but Li Yu.

After returning to the old house, she dismissed Tian Shuang and Tian Yong, who had been startled awake in the middle of the night, blew out the candle, and leaned alone against the bedside. Her mind was a mess, filled with memories of her third brother, scenes of laughter and tears. Before she knew it, the days had passed so quickly.

The late autumn night was so quiet, so eerily quiet, that it was unsettling. She got up and went to the window, opened it, and was startled to see someone leaning against it, seemingly having been there for a very long time…

The window was pushed open, and he turned to look at her with a smile, his eyes filled with the tenderness and affection of a family member...

At this moment, Xi Ri could no longer hold back her tears.

She was close to her third cousin since childhood.

When she was eight years old, she returned to Suzhou with her mother to visit relatives. The elders in Suzhou who met her all said that she looked five or six parts like her third cousin. It was then that she first met a boy who resembled her, her third cousin.

At that time, my third cousin was ten years old. Because he looked effeminate, it was still difficult to tell whether he was male or female.

She was still young at the time, but she already knew that she had to pretend in front of others at all times, always remembering her mother's teachings to act like a lady from a respectable family, and to behave properly and politely in front of others.

She stayed in Suzhou for a month and often secretly watched her third cousin lead a group of children of similar age to play. She secretly envied her third cousin for being loved by his family and being able to be free. She also wanted to play with them, but she never dared to.

Strangely enough, perhaps because they were close in age and looked alike, this third cousin, after discovering her one day and dragging her out of the bushes, took her everywhere he went. She was like a little follower. Although she didn't have any real status, it was the happiest memory of her childhood.

Later, my third cousin left home at the age of twelve to travel with his master, the Medicine King. I saw him a few times after that.

But one night five years ago, he suddenly came to say goodbye. He said he had lost a bet and had to leave the Central Plains for a few years. She asked what the bet was, but her cousin wouldn't say. She asked how long he would be gone, and her cousin jokingly said: "A lifetime." She laughed, thinking her cousin was lying to her.

She remembered that night after he left, Tian Shuang chased after him, but he didn't return all night. She chased him all night but couldn't catch up. She was depressed for days afterward. It was only then that she suddenly began to think that her cousin might not be joking...

Later, he indeed went to the borderlands alone. Although she received gifts from him through intermediaries every year, there was no further news for five years. She thought he might never return, but unexpectedly, she saw him at the Prince Xi's residence a few days ago.

Although they had both grown up and changed so much that they no longer resembled each other, she still recognized him at a glance, simply because of the silver crescent moon embedded in his left ear...

I remember it was a dark, windy night, without stars or moon. He had been beaten out by the Medicine King for stealing his master's precious medicine, and a heavy rain had forced him to seek refuge at her place for the night. That night, he proudly showed her a pair of ornaments in his palm: a silver moon and a silver star, both exquisitely crafted, shining brightly even in the darkness.

I was amazed by it and asked curiously what it was used for.

He said with unwavering romanticism: the moon would be embedded in his left ear, and the stars would be given to the woman he loved most in his life, to be personally embedded in her right ear.

When she was only ten years old at the time, she was very confused by this statement. She didn't understand why her cousin didn't give the stars and the moon to the woman he loved. She asked her cousin, and he replied, "You wouldn't understand even if I told you." Since she didn't understand anyway, then so be it.