Чистое сердце в нефритовом сосуде

Глава 39

The only person I can trust here is Zinuo. Anyway, he knows my true gender. But how can I tell such a thing to a little boy like him?

After much deliberation, I finally mustered the courage to open the door, and Zinuo's hand, which was about to knock, froze in place. Upon seeing me, Zinuo looked indignant.

I ignored his expression, took a deep breath, and whispered something in his ear. As expected, Zinuo's face turned bright red. Although I felt embarrassed, I secretly felt a surge of satisfaction seeing his reaction. Who told him to be so temperamental just now?

After I finished speaking, Zinuo gave me a stiff glance and hurried away. I went back to my room to pack my clothes.

A little while later, Zinuo came in carrying two large buckets of hot water. He helped me pour the water into the bathtub, then took the empty buckets out and closed the door behind him. He didn't look at me again from beginning to end.

After I bolted the door, I sat in the bathtub. The warmth slightly relieved the worsening abdominal pain, and I comfortably closed my eyes.

Aside from feeling embarrassed, Zi Nuo had no other problems, but what about Shen Haoyu? Would he overthink it? He already had two maids; had Yu Ying and Yin Yan told him anything? If he found out I was a girl because of this, how would he deal with me…?

A whole host of questions were bothering me. Frustrated, I shook my head, grabbed a towel to dry myself, and got dressed. Looking at my flat chest, I grinned hysterically. In my past life, I had tried everything to make it fuller, but in this life, I kept it tightly wrapped up, afraid that anyone would notice anything amiss. I didn't even dare to wear slightly tight clothes, only choosing loose ones. How ironic.

After she finished tidying up, there was another knock on the door, and Zinuo's soft voice came through: "Sister, are you done?"

I opened the door; Zinuo's face was still slightly flushed. We poured out the dirty water together, and I told Zinuo not to worry about me anymore. Suddenly, Zinuo's face turned bright red again, and she asked softly, "I heard it hurts?"

I chuckled and pushed him away, saying it was okay, it wouldn't hurt much.

Zinuo left, and I curled up on the bed, clutching my stomach. It turned out I had lied.

Why does it hurt so much? I bit my lip, enduring the excruciating pain that felt like my lower abdomen was about to rip out of my body. The clothes I had just changed into were soaked with cold sweat. At that moment, I suddenly felt vulnerable, and I longed for a home, for a gentle mother to be there to take care of me. When I first experienced something like this, it was my mother who cared for me and explained the precautions. Now, I felt so alone.

It was getting dark, time for dinner. Was Zinuo coming over soon? I lay curled up on the bed, staring blankly out the window, trying to distract myself by recalling things. There was a knock at the door. I told her the door was open, and then I saw Zinuo push the door open and come in carrying a tray.

Zi Nuo put the tray on the table and walked to the bedside to look at me: "Sister, what's wrong? You don't look well."

I forced a smile at him, but as soon as I did, cold sweat broke out again.

Zinuo reached out and touched my face, exclaiming in surprise, "Sister, you're sweating so much!"

I smiled wryly and said, "It's because of my stomachache."

"We need to call a doctor," Zinuo said.

I shook my head: "I'll be exposed when the doctor comes."

Zi Nuo insisted, "Your health is more important."

I still shook my head: "Just bear with it, it will pass."

I hope the pain won't last too long.

As fate would have it, good fortune once again chose to abandon me: Zinuo helped me up, wanting me to eat something, but before I could take two steps out of bed, I fell, or rather, fainted. As I fainted, I suddenly remembered what Jiang Ming had once said: "Never faint."

This time, it seems we can't hide it anymore.

Do not lean against the west railing to lock in the clear autumn. Chapter 28

Chapter word count: 3688 Update time: 09-07-29 13:07

When I regained my senses, I felt someone beside me, and my hand was being held down. Instinctively, I didn't open my eyes; I wanted to gather as much information as possible to decide how to proceed.

A strange male voice was outside, nagging and giving instructions on what to pay attention to and what to eat, which Zinuo kept agreeing with.

After a moment of silence, I heard the sound of a box closing, followed by footsteps and the sound of a door opening. The footsteps faded away, and silence returned. I opened my eyes.

It was completely dark outside, and candles were lit inside. I clutched my stomach; the pain wasn't as bad anymore, but it was strange that I'd fainted from the pain. I thought I could secretly get through a few days with Zinuozi, but now I had to call a doctor. It felt like the heavens were against me.

Zi Nuo came back and, seeing that I was already awake, quickly sat down on the edge of the bed: "Sister, you scared me to death."

"It's all alright now, isn't it?" I laughed. "It just made too much noise, didn't it?"

Zi Nuo shook his head and said, "Only the young prince and I know that he asked me to go outside to fetch a doctor, so the other people in the palace should not know."

"Young Prince?" I asked, somewhat puzzled. "How did he react?"

Zi Nuo said, "I didn't make a fuss. I just said I'd give him an explanation after you recovered."

That simple?

Never mind, let's talk about it again in a few days.

These past few days I've been hiding in my room, drinking the medicine that Zi Nuo brings me every day, which is supposedly for conditioning my body, as well as some medicinal meals suitable for menstrual nourishment. Zi Nuo said that Shen Haoyu arranged it, and I felt a bit grateful to Shen Haoyu again: although this child is a bit awkward, he has a good heart.

Lin Zhao's injuries had healed, but Shen Haoyu hadn't assigned him any other tasks, only telling him to guard Qiufeng Garden. Lin Zhao was depressed again, and then asked where I had gone. Shen Haoyu told him that I had been sent to monitor the Second Prince's residence, which made him even more unhappy: Even I had been sent out! Of course, all of this was told to me by Zi Nuo.

The skies above Qiufeng Garden have been bustling with activity lately, and the bond between humans and birds has grown considerably: every day, numerous carrier pigeons arrive from all over the country, carrying messages. Perhaps even Song Zhixuan's message is among them. Zinuo diligently organizes the messages brought by the carrier pigeons each day and hands them over to Shen Haoyu. Shen Haoyu then discusses them with Prince Qing and Mr. Qi, after which a large number of messages are given to Zinuo to send to various places. I think a certain age-old, unchanging struggle has officially begun. Every time Zinuo comes to see me, I sniff him. Zinuo asks me what I'm sniffing, and I say I'm smelling if he smells of bird droppings, given how much he deals with pigeons every day. Then Zinuo leaves with a very unpleasant expression.

My stomachache had long since subsided, but I remained in my room until I was completely clean before emerging refreshed. I walked lightly to Shen Haoyu's study, feigning nonchalance, of course; I had no idea how Shen Haoyu would deal with me.

The door was open. I knocked lightly twice to let Shen Haoyu know that someone had arrived.

When Shen Haoyu looked up and saw me, his handsome face, which I was used to seeing, actually turned red. Damn it, what was he thinking about?

Of course, I won't ask him.

I walked to the desk, stood there quietly, and waited for him to speak.

After waiting for a while, Shen Haoyu finally spoke: "What do you plan to do in the future?"

From now on? So direct. Doesn't he even need to ask me why I'm dressed as a man?

I gathered my thoughts and said, "Will the young prince not hold me accountable for dressing as a man?"