However, Shen Minghui dotes on Shen Yingxue the most and treats Shen Lixue very badly. If the sisters were to compete, it would be uncertain who would win. He could not abandon Shen Yingxue for the time being. Shen Yingxue's face was stunningly beautiful and unparalleled. So, his insincere attitude towards her was not particularly disgusting.
Back in the bamboo garden, Shen Lixue drank ginger soup and took a hot bath to ward off the cold. However, she stayed in the cold water for too long and stood in the wind for a long time in wet clothes. In the middle of the night, she developed a high fever. She was covered with a thick quilt and huddled up in the cold, but her throat was painfully dry.
In a hazy state, Shen Lixue saw a figure moving around in front of the bed, a hand gently touching her forehead to check her temperature. Shen Lixue thought it was Qiuhe, coughed a few times, and weakly ordered, "Qiuhe, pour me a glass of water!" Sure enough, she still had a fever. That wretched Shen Minghui, it's all his fault!
The figure in front of the bed paused, then left and returned. A strong arm put its arm around Shen Lixue's shoulder and helped her up.
The delicate porcelain cup was brought to her lips. The water inside was at a comfortable temperature. Her pale cherry lips turned slightly red after touching the water. Shen Lixue closed her eyes and quickly drank the water. Her throat felt much better. She wondered to herself: When did Qiuhe become so strong?
"Want some more?" A detached voice rang out, startling Shen Lixue. It was a man's voice!
Suddenly opening her eyes, she looked into the unfathomable pupils of Prince An. Her reflection was clearly seen in his dark pupils. Shen Lixue blinked, making sure she wasn't dreaming. She quickly brushed away Prince An's arm from her shoulder and said coldly, "How did you get here?"
In the dead of night, Dongfang Heng didn't rest in his room but actually came to the bamboo garden and barged into his room without permission, as if this were his own home.
"You're sick. Your head is burning hot. You need immediate medical attention!" Dongfang Heng stood quietly, handsome and indifferent, his obsidian-like eyes unfathomable. Coupled with his white robes, he exuded an indescribable air of refined elegance and nobility.
Before Dongfang Heng could have said anything, Shen Lixue felt a chill run through her body and her limbs felt weak—typical symptoms of a cold: "I caught a cold, I'll be fine in a few days!" It was just a cold, and Shen Lixue didn't care. Back in modern times, she rarely took medicine for colds, and they would heal on their own in a few days.
"Your forehead is burning hot, your illness will get worse, we can't delay any longer!" Dongfang Heng explained patiently, walked to the wardrobe, took out a lake-blue Xiang dress, and handed it to Shen Lixue.
"What are you doing?" Shen Lixue asked, puzzled, looking at the dress embroidered with beautiful crabapple blossoms.
"Get dressed, I'll take you to see a doctor!" Dongfang Heng stared at Shen Lixue, a dark glint flashing deep in his obsidian-like eyes.
"It's the middle of the night, the doctors must be resting." Shen Lixue's voice was hoarse and weak as she casually replied, "The Prime Minister's residence has a physician; I'll have him take a look!"
"Are you sure the royal physician will treat you properly? And won't do anything to you?" Prince An's voice was indifferent, and his words were thought-provoking.
Shen Lixue lowered her eyelids. The physician was hired by Shen Minghui and Lei Shi at their expense. They hated her to death, and it wasn't impossible that they would order the physician to tamper with her while she was sick. However, she hadn't planned to let him treat her, so even if he wanted to, he couldn't...
Jade-like fingers unbuttoned one of the buttons on Shen Lixue's silk nightgown. Shen Lixue suddenly woke up, reached out and slapped away Prince An's hand, her beautiful eyes burning with anger: "What are you doing?"
He took advantage of her not paying attention and unbuttoned her clothes. He must have had bad intentions!
"I'll help you change your clothes and then we'll go see a doctor!" Prince An's voice was indifferent, his eyes clear, without the slightest hint of ulterior motives. It was as if helping Shen Lixue change her clothes was a matter of course, and her suspicions were a desecration of him.
"I'll do it myself!" Shen Lixue hurriedly grabbed Dongfang Heng's outstretched hand, her beautiful eyes blazing with anger. Dongfang Heng was a grown man, yet he was changing her clothes without any regard for the difference between men and women. Did he even know that men and women should be different?
“You’re sick and need to rest. I can help you change your clothes!” Dongfang Heng freed his hand from Shen Lixue’s grasp, and with a flick of his fingers, skillfully unbuttoned the second button of her robe…
033 She didn't want to take the medicine.
Staring fiercely at Dongfang Heng, Shen Lixue's beautiful eyes blazed with even more anger: "Your Highness, do you know the difference between men and women?" He is a man, she is a woman. How can changing clothes by herself be the same as him helping her change clothes?
Dongfang Heng was highly skilled in martial arts and moved extremely fast. Two or three tightly fastened buttons crumbled in his hands in an instant. Shen Lixue's skills were not as good as his to begin with, and coupled with her illness, her mind was foggy and her speed was somewhat slow, making it even more difficult for her to stop him.
"Of course I know!" Dongfang Heng replied calmly, his jade-like fingers unbuttoning another button. Born and raised in Qingyan, he naturally understood these principles.
Shen Lixue: "..."
Knowing this, he even helped her change her clothes!
"Men and women are different, and it's not proper for them to be intimate. We're not children anymore, you can't help me change my clothes." Shen Lixue explained coldly, prying open Dongfang Heng's fingers and quickly fastening the unbuttoned buttons with her small hands. She really didn't know if Dongfang Heng was really stupid or pretending to be stupid, that he needed her to teach him such a simple principle.
"You're very ill, saving your life is the priority, there's no time for these formalities!" Shen Lixue insisted that Dongfang Heng not unbutton her clothes, but he didn't force her. He picked up the Xiang skirt with the begonia flower pattern and draped it over Shen Lixue's shoulders: "It's a bit cold outside, you can wear your bathrobe and then put on the skirt!"
Dongfang Heng's slightly rough hand gently grasped Shen Lixue's wrist. Shen Lixue was startled and quickly pulled away, looking at him warily: "What are you doing?"
"I'll help you get dressed, then we'll go see the doctor!" Dongfang Heng replied calmly, his deep gaze surprisingly clear and pure like spring water, making one reluctant to defile it.
Shen Lixue gritted her teeth: "Have you ever seen anyone wearing a bathrobe and a dress?" How could Dongfang Heng's thinking be so strange?
"It's your own fault for refusing to take off your bathrobe." Dongfang Heng said each word slowly and deliberately, a hint of helplessness flashing in his obsidian-like eyes, as if it were all Shen Lixue's fault that things had turned out this way.
Shen Lixue: "..."
An eighteen-year-old man stood by the bed and started to undress her; of course, she couldn't agree to it.
Shen Lixue glared at Dongfang Heng, then suddenly grabbed the dress from his hand and said indifferently, "I'll change my clothes myself. Please, Prince An, move to the outside!" Dongfang Heng was determined to take her out to see a doctor, so she couldn't refuse. She would just treat it as a stroll outside the manor, nothing serious.
“You have caught a severe cold and must see a doctor as soon as possible. We can’t delay any longer…” Dongfang Heng’s slender fingers gently flicked, and all the buttons on Shen Lixue’s robe were instantly undone.
Shen Lixue's beautiful eyes burned with anger. He actually diverted her attention and then took the opportunity to attack her. How despicable!
Her slender, jade-like hand, filled with intense anger, lashed out at Dongfang Heng. Before the force of her palm even arrived, her wrist was already firmly gripped by him: "Stop fooling around, getting medical attention is the priority!"
Reaching out, he removed Shen Lixue's silk nightgown, revealing her alabaster skin and crimson bodice. Her graceful figure was alluring. Shen Lixue gritted her teeth in anger, her eyes almost spitting fire, but Dongfang Heng's gaze was clear and unwavering, revealing no improper intentions. He took the blue Xiang skirt with the begonia flower design and carefully and quickly helped her put it on.
After tying the last ribbon and checking that everything was in order, Dongfang Heng released Shen Lixue's wrist and said calmly, "Let's go see a doctor!"
"Dongfang Heng!" Shen Lixue, now free, gritted her teeth and waved her hand to reprimand Dongfang Heng. "I told you to help me change my clothes!" She was wearing a bodice and fur trousers, and apart from her arms, Dongfang Heng couldn't see much of her skin. But she had been forced to change her clothes by him, and she was both angry and annoyed.
Dongfang Heng gently turned aside, dodging Shen Lixue's attack, and grabbed her arm. A look of seriousness flashed in his dark eyes as he pulled Shen Lixue quickly outside, saying, "Your temperature is getting higher and higher, let's go to the clinic quickly!"
"Dongfang Heng, it's a little past four in the morning, not quite five (3 a.m.). The doctors are all resting. I can go see a doctor after dawn!" Shen Lixue protested, trying to pry Dongfang Heng's fingers off. She needed to see a doctor, but she didn't want to go with Dongfang Heng.
“There are doctors who get up early!” Dongfang Heng answered softly, quickly opening the door.
Bathed in the soft moonlight, Dongfang Heng suddenly released his grip on Shen Lixue's wrist. Before Shen Lixue could even wonder what was happening, a strong arm embraced her waist tightly. With a light touch, Shen Lixue was half-carried by Dongfang Heng and lifted into the air, instantly leaving the Prime Minister's residence.
A faint scent of pine resin lingered in her nostrils, the wind whistled past her ears, and the scenery before her eyes rapidly changed. In her dizziness, Shen Lixue's feet touched the ground.
Shen Lixue blinked hard. This was ancient light-body skill. It was indeed amazing. She would have to learn it herself someday.
"Dongfang Heng, where is this place?" After returning to the capital, Shen Lixue had been staying at the Prime Minister's residence and was not familiar with the city. Looking at the houses with their doors tightly closed, she naturally had no idea where she was.
"A medical clinic!" As soon as Dongfang Heng finished speaking, the door of a room opened, and an elderly man with a white beard and wearing a gray robe walked out of the room: "You two are here for medical treatment? Please come in!"