Early in the morning, the sky had lost its usual blue. Thin dark clouds had crept in unnoticed, branches swayed, rustling in the wind. When Su Niyue got up, Ruan Mingyu had already prepared porridge. Su Niyue hadn’t had ready-made meals in a long time; seeing the table set with bowls and chopsticks instantly warmed her heart.
After breakfast, she thought of Nangong Yunteng, who hadn’t eaten yet. Just giving him porridge wouldn’t provide enough nutrition. Using the excuse of returning to her room to gather things, she pulled some imperial supplements from her space and, once in her room, helped Yunteng sit up and handed him a soup bowl.
Yunteng couldn’t have imagined that on a journey of exile, he could still get such fine supplements. He felt reluctant to eat. “Have you eaten already?”
“Yes, I have. Mother made porridge.”
“This… is just for me?”
“Quick, eat! We’re about to set off!” Su Niyue added: “Hmph, it’s straight from the palace kitchen—something even I didn’t dare drink!”
Yunteng paused mid-sip. “From the palace…?” He continued drinking, pretending ignorance.
“Hey, don’t you need to use the bathroom?”
“Cough, cough!” Yunteng choked, spraying the soup out.
“Hehe, forget I said it!” Su Niyue felt a little embarrassed too—wasn’t this a strange question at breakfast?
While tidying up, someone called out from the courtyard: “Sister Su, Sister Su, are you there?”
“Yes? It’s Sanhu. What is it?” Su Niyue made a shushing gesture to Yunteng.
Yunteng held the soup bowl, tilting his ear toward the noise outside.
“Sister Su, my father told me to call you. There’s a female prisoner—she may not make it. Come see her!”
“Alright, you go first, I’ll be there soon!” Su Niyue gestured for Yunteng to quickly finish his soup.
“Okay! Hurry up!”
“Coming!” She watched him finish the soup, took the bowl, and thought, This mustn’t be seen by others! She tossed it into her space and went out.
Yunteng assumed it was just palace food she had “taken”—nothing more. Watching Su Niyue leave in a hurry, he felt warm inside. Only his mother had ever cared for him like this, and now there was someone else.
Su Niyue ran to catch up with Sanhu. “What happened?”
“There’s a female prisoner… I don’t know what happened. Her whole body is rotting and stinks—ugh…” Sanhu shuddered.
Even though Sanhu didn’t describe it in detail, Su Niyue knew the effect of the medicine. She couldn’t help a reflexive gag: “Ugh…!”
They walked silently, wiping tears from gagging.
The direction they were heading was upwind. From afar, a stench hit them. Both gagged again, and Sanhu slowed down noticeably.
Su Niyue pulled him back. “You don’t need to go. I can handle it alone.”
As she approached, the woman was covered in tattered rags from head to toe. She’s probably gone already. Su Niyue pinched her nose, lifted a corner of the rag, and felt her liver tremble. The medicine… was truly too much!
The corpse’s decay was severe. Even Su Niyue, who had seen countless dead bodies, felt her stomach churn. She dropped the rag, leaned against a tree, and vomited breakfast cleanly.
Afterwards, she noticed Liu Quan hiding behind a dirt wall corner. Crossing her arms, she signaled him—dead already. Liu Quan nodded.
Su Niyue didn’t want to take a detour. She called out: “Burn it! Ugh…”
Liu Quan, no longer able to hide, held his nose and came over, signaling for Su Niyue to move forward with him.
“Burn it quickly. If it spreads disease, it’ll be troublesome.” Su Niyue didn’t explain the cause of death, not wanting Liu Quan to ask. In reality, there was no risk of disease.
“These days, she kept wrapping herself tighter. At first, we thought she was avoiding the sun… turns out it’s decay!” Liu Quan shook his head, jotted notes in his little book, and sent the other guards to handle the body.
“Make sure they cover her mouth and nose!”
“Okay, okay, Lady Nangong, you should head back. Eat something if there’s food. Today we might be delayed…”
Before Liu Quan could finish, Su Niyue gagged.
“Don’t say more, just go rest!”
When Yunteng saw Su Niyue again, tears were streaming down her face. Nangong Yunqi was also there—apparently they had spoken.
“How is it?” Yunteng, hearing Sanhu’s words, already guessed.
Su Niyue only nodded, then plopped onto a chair. Yunteng nodded too.
Yunqi stared, thinking: When did they become so in sync?
Yunteng noticed his brother’s confused expression. The room was quiet. He realized he could no longer hear Yunqi’s thoughts—or Su Niyue’s. A sudden sense of loss filled him.
Yunqi, seeing Su Niyue’s discomfort, poured her a cup of water: “Sister-in-law, drink!”
She drank it in a few gulps, feeling slightly better.
“Ugh… need to catch my breath. I misjudged the medicine—it was too strong! Cough, cough…” Su Niyue still felt like vomiting.
“You… uh… husband, lie down. Grandmother and mother might come; you’d scare them in this state!”
Su Niyue tried to distract herself with other tasks.
Hearing “husband” made Yunteng’s ears flush crimson. Yunqi prepared to help his elder brother lie down, seeing his brother’s reddened ears, his mouth twitched.
“Brother, sister-in-law, I’ll check on grandmother and mother!” Without waiting for a response, he dashed out.
Su Niyue gathered her things. Liu Quan said they would leave later, but didn’t specify exactly when. She guessed it was about time.
“Husband, you rest. I’ll go see.”
Just as she reached the front gate, Sanhu came running toward her.
“Sister Su, my father said it’s all handled. We’re ready to leave.”
“Good, I’ll call grandmother and mother.”
“See you at the village entrance.”
“Okay!” Su Niyue returned to the courtyard.
“Yunqi, get ready! I’ll harness the ox cart. You bring your brother to the cart.”
“Got it!”
“Sister-in-law, you’re amazing! Just yesterday you said it would rain, and today it’s already so gloomy!” Yunran carried their iron pot filled with bowls and chopsticks.
“Hmm, bring out the new clothes we bought yesterday. It’ll be cold when it rains.”
“Mother already took them out, plus shoes for second brother. She said to wait until after the rain to change shoes.”
“No need to worry. Don’t be frugal. Second brother is growing; if he wears them out, we can buy new ones. Sister-in-law is rich!”
“Even if rich, don’t waste. Yue’er, make sure you wear yours nicely!” Ruan Mingyu came out holding a bundle, followed by the matriarch.
Nangong Yunteng lay on Yunqi’s back, feeling the harmony of the family, genuinely not wanting to pretend to be unconscious anymore.