Ning Wuyu had never been this warm and affectionate toward anyone before.
Although she managed to keep a straight face, goosebumps had already risen beneath the sleeves of her elegant robes.
Yet she still had to maintain the appearance of a concerned good sister.
“Lady Zhaorong is simply too kind-hearted. That’s why you’ve allowed this guilty woman to bully you time and time again. Why don’t I accompany you to see His Majesty right now…”
“No need. Thank you for your kindness, Lady Ning.”
Lu Ningrou withdrew her hand.
“Today, I merely suffered a fright. For my sake, Sister, please forgive Wen this once.”
“Is that so?”
Ning Wuyu deliberately put on an indignant expression and glared fiercely at Wen Zhiyi.
“Then I’ll take Lady Zhaorong’s advice. Consider yourself lucky today.”
“Since that’s settled, I’ll take my leave first. Lady Ning, please do as you wish.”
“Lady Zhaorong, wait. About Physician Zhang…”
She’s still bringing up Physician Zhang?
Was Ning Wuyu really determined to force Physician Zhang onto her?
Lu Ningrou almost lost her temper right then and there.
But reason told her that Physician Zhang must have discovered the abnormality in her pulse indicating that she should not have been able to conceive.
And Physician Zhang happened to have ties with Ning Wuyu’s maternal family.
Even if Lu Ningrou wanted to find an opportunity to deal with him afterward, it would be difficult to make a move without drawing suspicion.
Physician Lu had already been recovering for several months, and finding another trusted physician within the Imperial Medical Academy at such short notice would probably be too late.
It might be better to simply accept Physician Zhang and keep him by her side.
After all, the fewer people who knew the truth about her pulse, the better.
She could deal with the consequences later.
As for whether Physician Zhang would reveal her true condition to Ning Wuyu…
Then again, if the Ning family could win people over, why couldn’t the Lu family do the same?
With that thought, Lu Ningrou took a deep breath and forced herself to calm her chaotic thoughts.
She turned to Ning Wuyu and smiled.
“Since Sister has taken such trouble for me, I’ll gladly accept your kindness.”
“We’re sisters in the imperial harem. Looking after one another is only natural.”
Ning Wuyu smiled pleasantly.
“Zipei, see Lady Zhaorong out.”
Zipei obeyed and escorted Lu Ningrou out of the Cold Palace.
When she returned, Zipei stopped in front of the two guards who had been watching the spectacle at the doorway.
She smiled kindly.
“You two have worked hard today. It’s just that, regarding what happened…”
The two guards immediately nodded like bobbleheads.
“Miss Zipei, don’t worry. We didn’t see a thing today.”
“You two have misunderstood.”
Zipei calmly shook her head.
“My mistress feels that the guilty consort Wen went too far today. Letting her off so easily would be far too lenient, so she intends to punish her. Unfortunately, it wouldn’t be convenient to invite the two of you inside to watch.”
As she spoke, she calmly pulled two silver ingots from her sleeve and handed one to each guard.
“If anyone asks about this later, all you need to say is that Wen was beaten to death in the Cold Palace for offending Lady Zhaorong.”
“It has nothing to do with my mistress.”
“And naturally, it has nothing to do with either of you.”
The two guards exchanged a glance before accepting the silver.
“Miss Zipei is right. We understand.”
The doors to the Cold Palace closed once again.
With no outsiders remaining, Ning Wuyu immediately dropped her act.
She pointed furiously at Wen Zhiyi.
“Wen Zhiyi! First you sent Sister A-Wen out of the palace, and now you went and attacked Lu Ningrou! And you still had the nerve to make me come clean up your mess?”
“What kind of ridiculous plan was that?”
Wen Zhiyi guiltily avoided her gaze.
“If I hadn’t sent my sister out of the palace, she would have fallen ill sooner or later staying in this cold, damp place. We can’t keep relying on the little medicine you’ve been sending to keep her alive.”
“What about what happened today?”
Ning Wuyu’s anger flared again.
“If I’d arrived even a moment later, you’d already be on your way to reincarnation with the baby in Lu Ningrou’s belly!”
“Yes, yes, you’re right.”
Wen Zhiyi immediately admitted defeat.
“Thank you, Lady Ning, for arriving just in time and saving my worthless life.”
“I sent people outside the palace to investigate.”
Ning Wuyu’s anger finally eased slightly, but her expression became serious again.
“As soon as Sister A-Wen was sent out, she disappeared without a trace.”
She stared sternly at Wen Zhiyi.
“Tell me honestly. Where exactly was Sister A-Wen taken?”
“Don’t worry.”
Wen Zhiyi smiled.
“She’s somewhere suitable for her to recover properly. At the very least, it won’t be worse than the Cold Palace.”
“Where?”
Ning Wuyu was becoming increasingly anxious.
But no matter how many times she asked, Wen Zhiyi only smiled and refused to answer.
Meanwhile, Wen Zhiyun really was recovering quite well.
At the very least, her persistent cough had improved considerably.
However, after first hearing that her younger sister had died, Wen Zhiyun naturally fell into deep grief.
She rarely smiled anymore, and every day she ate very little.
Tang Huaiyuan watched her condition with growing anxiety.
Yet he was afraid that bringing up the outside world would only aggravate her grief, so he could only instruct the maid Xiaoshuang to spend more time accompanying her in the courtyard, taking walks with her to help ease her mind.
Fortunately, although Wen Zhiyun was devastated, she never developed the desire to die.
Tang Huaiyuan and Xiaoshuang deliberately avoided telling her anything about what was happening outside.
Wen Zhiyun, in turn, was perceptive enough not to ask.
One afternoon, Wen Zhiyun was walking around the courtyard with Xiaoshuang after lunch.
Before she realized it, they had wandered to a room guarded by two household servants.
“All the other servants are stationed outside the residence. Why is this particular room being guarded separately?”
Wen Zhiyun looked at Xiaoshuang.
“What is this place?”
“To answer your question, Miss, this is our master’s study.”
“Brother Huaiyuan’s study?”
“Yes. Master occasionally rests in there as well.”
“If it’s a study, then take me inside. I’d like to find something to read and pass the time.”
“But…”
Before Xiaoshuang could finish, Wen Zhiyun had already stepped onto the stairs leading to the study.
One of the guards immediately stepped forward to stop her.
“No unauthorized persons are allowed inside.”
Wen Zhiyun frowned.
Xiaoshuang hurriedly tried to persuade her.
“Miss, why don’t we walk somewhere else first? If you’d like something to read, I can ask Master to find some books for you when he has time.”
“Didn’t your master say there wasn’t a single place in this residence that I wasn’t allowed to enter?”
Wen Zhiyun gave a bitter smile.
“Why are you suddenly telling me that unauthorized people aren’t allowed inside?”
She lowered her eyes.
“If I’m merely an unauthorized person, then why keep me confined in this residence at all? Wouldn’t it be better to simply send me away?”
“But, Miss, this place really…”
“Never mind.”
A calm, steady voice came from behind them.
“Let her in.”
The guards and Xiaoshuang immediately bowed.
“Greetings, Master.”
As Tang Huaiyuan passed Wen Zhiyun, he discreetly reached out beneath the cover of his wide sleeve and caught hold of the edge of her sleeve, as though it were nothing more than an unconscious gesture.
Wen Zhiyun instinctively tried to pull away.
But for some reason, she stopped.
Her body stiffened slightly.
Seeing that she hadn’t rejected him, the corners of Tang Huaiyuan’s lips curled upward.
His mood instantly brightened.
Wen Zhiyun allowed Tang Huaiyuan to hold her sleeve as he led her up the steps to the study.
The guard opened the door for them.
The first thing that caught Wen Zhiyun’s eye was a large single-panel screen painted with mountains, rivers, flowers, and birds.
Yet the painting looked strangely familiar.
In fact, it resembled one of her own clumsy paintings from when she had first begun learning to paint.
In front of the intricately carved lattice windows stood a neatly arranged writing desk.
A scroll was spread across it, held down by a paperweight.
The woman depicted in the painting had delicate features, graceful brows, and a charming smile. Her eyes were bright and captivating.
It was unmistakably Wen Zhiyun herself, as she had looked in her youth.