Nan Xuzong carried her to the bed, and the gauze curtains fell.
He gently held her in his arms, kissed her forehead, and said, "Sleep now, I'll watch over you." His eyes were filled with an unyielding tenderness.
Ji Wushang let out a soft "Mmm," nestled in his arms, and fell into a deep sleep.
Nan Xuzong gently brushed her bangs aside, looking at the woman in front of him. His hand slowly slid down her face, but a memory flashed through his mind of his past life: Ji Meiyuan had slashed her face open with a gold hairpin, leaving deep bloodstains... Nan Xuzong abruptly withdrew his hand.
She was hurt so deeply! Nan Xuzong reached out again and placed his hand on her face, gently stroking it. "Wu Shang, is your heart aching?"
Ji Wushang did not give him any answer.
He took her hand, and Ji Wushang frowned slightly, her eyes closed, "Cong, don't..."
Nan Xuzong smiled slightly, "Good girl." He gently coaxed her, placing her hand on his chest. Ji Wushang slowly opened her eyes, her beautiful, hazy eyes looking at him, "What's wrong?"
"No." Nan Xuzong gently hugged her. "You should go to sleep. It will be dawn in two hours."
"Where did you go?" Ji Wushang woke up at this moment, feeling less sleepy. Her hand was in his palm, so warm. He held her hand and placed it on his chest. She could feel his heart beating strongly. She thought of pulling her hand away, but Nan Xuzong held it tightly. "I met with the Third Prince."
"Hmm." Ji Wushang's eyes flickered. "And then?"
“I went to… Consort Zhen’s Palace.” Nan Xuzong hesitated for a moment before saying.
"Consort Zhen's Palace?" Ji Wushang tried hard to recall the word, then remembered an ancient book he had seen in Ji Dingbei's study, which recorded: Consort Zhen, a concubine of the current emperor, gave birth to the fourth prince, Huangfu Zong. However, she died in a fire on the same night, at the age of sixteen.
She was his mother.
"Are you going to pay respects to Consort Zhen?" Ji Wushang looked at his handsome face. "You are very sad." She reached out her other hand and touched his face. "I am very sad too."
"It's alright." Nan Xuzong's eyes curved into a smile as he held back the tears welling up in his eyes. He pulled her into his arms and held her tightly. "Of the two women in this world who love me, you're the only one left... Wushang, you'll always be with me, right?"
"Of course, if you do not abandon me, I will not leave you. If you die, I will follow you." Ji Wushang pressed her head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat. "In this life, Ji Wushang only loves Nan Xuzong."
Nan Xuzong's lips curled up into a happy smile. He lowered his head and gently lifted her chin with his hand. "Do you remember what I once said?"
Ji Wushang waited for his answer. She knew he didn't want her to answer his question, but rather she was waiting for his reply. She looked at him, quietly gazing into his deep, affectionate eyes.
"In this world, there is only one person who can kill Nan Xuzong, and that is you, Ji Wushang." Nan Xuzong smiled, gently stroking her chin.
“Alright, I grant you life, immortality.” Ji Wushang also laughed, “I’ll live forever, how about that? If you don’t die, I won’t age… If I ever want to kill you, I’ll kill myself first.”
"Silly woman! My silly Wushang." Nan Xuzong smiled as he kissed her lips, lingering there for a long time before releasing her as she gasped for breath. He said, "Do you know the meaning of your name? Wushang, Wushang, without pain... Shang means early death. You, Wushang, will always be happy, my Wushang!"
"Then do you know what Xu Cong means? Xu means the rising sun, and Cong means beautiful jade. You are the only god in my life!" Ji Wushang looked at him, his eyes filled with love.
Nan Xuzong smiled and pressed his body against hers, "I want you."
Ji Wushang was taken aback, not expecting this... but, it had been a long time since he had taken her...
"Are you... alright?" Ji Wushang uttered, but immediately realized the ambiguity in his question and added, "I meant your legs..."
“I already proved it last time… but this time, I want to prove it again!” He smiled wickedly and gently undid her clothes. “I miss you so much, I want you so much…” Even though the long mural didn’t mention her and his child, he would always love her! Those were just some of the paintings! Maybe that old man Xuanjizi didn’t have time to paint before he passed away… or maybe the murals in the back were of him and his child?
Hearing what he had just said, Ji Wushang immediately pushed him, "Cong, in the future, can we not do it like last time... I'm in so much pain."
“No.” Nan Xuzong looked up at her. “If you stay asleep like last time and don’t wake up, I’ll be even rougher! I… I can’t lose you…”
“Nan Xuzong.” Ji Wushang frowned, “I was fine at the time…”
"Don't say anything." Nan Xuzong kissed her lips, lingering for a moment before kissing the back of her ear, gently. In her dazed state, Nan Xuzong whispered in her ear, "You have no idea how anxious I was back then... I swore then that if you didn't wake up, we would keep doing this... until you die, and I die!"
Ji Wushang's heart skipped a beat. She abruptly opened her eyes and stared at the man before her. He was like a demon! Was he a psychopath? How could he say and do something so insane? His dark eyes were also fixed on her. "Don't push me to my limits... I mean what I say!" With that, he tore off all her clothes and threw away his own. "Promise me, don't leave me!" Don't go to Yiyun City, don't be with him! Don't stand against me, and don't draw your sword against her! No!
She is his wife, his one and only! His story with her is not over! If everything between them has no ending, then so be it; let this process continue forever!
(The middle chapters are pending revision; this is how it will be for now.)
With a sigh, Nan Xuzong quickly dealt with the situation before holding her and putting her to sleep.
I've gone crazy again... But I really can't control myself at that moment... If I don't feel anything for her, I always feel like she'll leave me... Two more months, two more months! It hurts so much, why am I torturing myself like this?
Nan Xuzong silently held her tightly in his arms, letting her tears fall onto the bedside.
——
In the dimly lit, secluded room, Bei Gong Minhao opened his eyes, trying to get up, but his whole body ached. He opened his eyes and saw a maidservant enter from outside, carrying a small bowl. Bei Gong Minhao tried to sit up, but the maidservant immediately said, "Your Highness, don't move!" She put the bowl down and quickly helped him lie back down on the bed. "This servant will immediately go and call Doctor Cui. Please ask Your Highness not to move."
Beigong Minhao looked at the unfamiliar maid and waved her away, saying, "Go!" He didn't like other women touching him, but he would never neglect to maintain proper decorum.
The maidservant immediately withdrew.
Bei Gongminhao? Looking up, the words he'd overheard in his sleep—Nan Xuzong's—still echoed in his ears. Something must have happened…otherwise, why would he say such a thing? What exactly happened between him and Ji Wushang? He had to find out!
What on earth happened? And why am I here? I'm still alive! Haha! Does being alive mean I have to keep going? Haha! Who saved me? And who wants me to navigate this mortal world? Could it be Doctor Cui? This maid said to go and fetch Doctor Cui…
Just then, Doctor Cui and the Ghost Doctor arrived together, but the little maid did not follow.
"Your Highness," Doctor Cui said immediately as the two men approached.
"You saved me?" Beigong Minhao struggled to his feet and then looked at them.
The Ghost Doctor immediately stepped forward to support him, saying, "Don't move around, your injury is very serious!"
"Your martial arts were crippled, several of your ribs were broken, you vomited countless amounts of blood, and you still drank alcohol! All your internal organs were damaged! You're still alive, you really have a lucky life!" Doctor Cui said with a hint of anger.
"Hehe, thank you both for saving me! I am deeply grateful!" Beigong Minhao looked at them and smiled. "It's rare to get drunk in life, so it's good for me, Beigong Minhao, to get drunk once."
"Drunk? You're reckless! You're not drunk!" Doctor Cui scoffed.
“Senior’s words of advice are well-deserved. However, Minho has something to ask. Did Xu Cong come by?” Bei Gong Minho stopped smiling and asked seriously.
"Hmm? How did you know? Weren't you unconscious? How did you know Cong'er was here?" The Ghost Doctor looked at him, then checked his pulse. "Hmm, the pulse is steady, and your complexion is not bad. Could it be that you weren't unconscious back then?"
"No, I vaguely heard him say some things to me, but I didn't hear them clearly, so I'm asking to see if I can get him to say them to me again." Beigong Minhao had no choice but to say this.
The two nodded and exchanged a glance. Sure enough, Nan Xuzong and he had a secret! And that stone chamber! Unfortunately, the old man Pan Yao wouldn't allow them to go inside that stone chamber to see what was there that made Nan Xuzong laugh wildly and then suddenly fall silent. When he came out, he went to find Beigong Minhao again!
Beigong Minhao looked at them. "What's wrong?"
"To be honest, it wasn't us who saved you, it was our master who saved you," the Ghost Doctor said with a smile.
Beigong Minhao was startled. "Who is it?" They were all so old, looking at least sixty or seventy years old, and there was also a master. How old must that be?
"He...is here." Doctor Cui glanced at the Ghost Doctor, then gestured for the two to leave.
Bei Gongminhao looked over and saw an old man with a sage-like appearance approaching. His eyebrows and hair were all white, his spirit was sharp, and his steps were brisk. Bei Gongminhao was about to get up immediately, but the old man who was making medicine immediately pressed his acupoints from a distance. "Just lie still and don't move around!"
"Yes, thank you for saving my life, senior!" Beigong Minhao said.
"No need for thanks. I have something I want to ask you." The old man looked at him, then stroked his long white beard. "You brat, you're so badly injured, why are you still drinking? Do you want to die?"
“I did want to die, at that moment… but what I wanted even more was for that strong liquor to enter my heart and lungs, to burn them open with such intense heat, and for me to experience that pain!” Bei Gongminhao looked at him. “I want to know whether the pain in my heart is greater, or whether the internal injuries are more painful!”
"You young people are all too stubborn!" The old man Pan Yao looked at him. "Are you heartbroken over a woman named Ji Wushang?"
"Yes." Bei Gongminhao did not deny it, looking at him, "Senior, you must be Xu Cong's master, the Old Man of Panyao?"
“Exactly.” He nodded.
Beigong Minhao smiled and said, "Then I suppose you are aware of our affairs, senior."
“That’s right.” The old man who made the medicine nodded. “But there are things you don’t know, but I do. For example, the fact that Ji Wushang and Cong’er didn’t have a good ending, and so on.”
"What? Senior, what did you just say?" Beigong Minhao immediately looked at him. "They are very much in love and very happy!"
"They loved each other, but they could not escape the cruel tricks of fate; everything was preordained. Their love had already caused a sin, so they certainly could not stay together."
"Minho doesn't understand! Please explain, senior!" Beigong Minho said, but Nan Xuzong's words flashed through his mind: he died, and now he had to take care of Ji Wushang in his place? Is this what he meant?
"Well, you shouldn't really be here. Here's what we'll do: you should rest well, and then in two months, when you're all better, I'll tell you everything," the old man said after thinking for a moment.
"Senior! Senior!" Beigong Minhao watched him walk away and called out to him, but he did not turn around!
"Is Xu Cong going to die?!" Bei Gongminhao shouted loudly the moment the old man who had been making medicine walked out.
The old man stopped in his tracks. "That was his own choice! We had no say in it!" He turned to look at Bei Gongminhao. "You should focus on recovering. It doesn't matter if your martial arts are ruined; you can start over! For the next two months, you will stay here and not think about leaving! Ji Wushang already believes you are dead."
"Is she...sad?" After a long silence, Beigong Minhao asked.
But the old man who was making medicine had already left. Such questions should be asked of the person involved, not of these people who have already had enough of life!
Beigong Minhao tried to move his body, but his acupoints were sealed and he had no martial arts skills, so he couldn't break free of the seals.
I just stared blankly at the night sky.
She really wanted to know if she would be sad if she thought he was dead. But then Bei Gongminhao laughed. If she was sad, Nan Xuzong would take care of her. Heh, it was none of her business to think about it. Never mind!
——
In the darkness, several people were imprisoned in different cells. This was the darkest place in the entire Marquis's mansion; it was supposed to be a woodshed, but it was a completely different place!
Aunt Dou stared intently at the woman opposite her, that cruel and vicious woman, the woman who had killed her unborn child! That woman deserved the utmost punishment! Should she even pray? No, she should curse—curse everything here!
They destroyed themselves, and they destroyed their own children!
Aunt Dou stretched out her hands. Her hands had never been stained with anyone's blood, but tonight, she really wanted to try killing the woman opposite her with her own hands!
Aunt Liu knew that Aunt Dou had been watching her the whole time, and that look in her eyes terrified her! But if this woman was planning to kill her, she would definitely fight back! Who would die was still uncertain!
Just then, a masked man in black entered, glancing first at Aunt Dou, then at Aunt Liu, and finally at Nan Aoyu, who was fast asleep!
"Who are you?" Aunt Liu looked at her and immediately backed away.
The woman in black then walked towards Aunt Dou, but Aunt Dou looked at her coldly, without saying a word or making any attempt to avoid her; she was indifferent.
The man in black smiled and opened the cell door for the two women!
Aunt Liu and Aunt Dou were both taken aback. Had they come to rescue them?
However, after the man in black left, he closed the door, which meant that Aunt Liu and Aunt Dou were now in the same space.
Aunt Dou, regaining her senses, smiled and met Aunt Liu's gaze. The man in black was giving her a chance to kill her! Good, good! Aunt Dou looked at the ground, then groped for a stone. Aunt Liu, seeing this, immediately picked up a wooden branch… If it's a fight to the death, then be ruthless!
As the first rays of sunlight streamed into the room, Nan Xuzong woke up. He looked at the woman still sleeping soundly in his arms, his heart filled with love. Seeing the blue and purple hickeys on her body, he felt satisfied; these were the marks of his love for her.
Nan Xuzong kissed her lips. "I have to leave now, I'll be back later."
I can't just come back here for no reason and let them know. Otherwise, if word gets out that the Prince of Nan returned home late at night and, with his legs healed, made love with the Princess Consort of Nan, it would be as if the Prince of Nan and the Princess Consort of Nan were indulging in debauchery!
Ji Wushang was still asleep. Nan Xuzong took a deep breath and then helped her put on her bodice and underpants. Just then, Ji Wushang woke up as he was working on her. "Zong."
"Okay, you can rest a bit more if you're tired. I need to go out for a bit and will return to the manor later today," Nan Xuzong said, carefully cleaning the excess, hardened substance off her body. Her face flushed with embarrassment. "You, you don't need to do that, I can do it myself!"
"Be good, don't move." Nan Xuzong glanced at her. This fiery little vixen was hard for him to resist! But there wasn't enough time now, otherwise he definitely would have done it!
"Mm." Ji Wushang nodded.
After Nan Xuzong finished cleaning her up, he got out of bed and dressed himself. "Take good care of yourself. I'll be back soon."