I Am Your Consort
When Zhao Qirong heard the familiar voice calling his full name, he instinctively turned around. However, due to his still-unhealed leg and the exhaustion from two days of trekking through the forest to track the escaped prisoner, a small lapse in concentration caused him to lose his balance.
Surprised, Chun Gong Gong, Yuan Shaochang, and Yuan Shaoqi immediately moved to help steady him, but Luxian was quicker than all of them. He leaped onto the wall, catching Zhao Qirong mid-fall and, without hesitation, scooped him up bridal-style.
This act left everyone present wide-eyed with shock, even Zhao Qirong himself.
Despite being slightly smaller in build than Zhao Qirong, Luxian was now angry and had strength beyond measure, leaving no room for concern over the weight.
Luxian carried Zhao Qirong down from the wall and faced Chun Gong Gong and the two Yuan brothers, who were stunned, their jaws dropped.
“Follow me,” he then said coldly, leaving no room for argument, before carrying Zhao Qirong directly to the consort’s residence.
Chun Gong Gong trailed behind with the Yuan brothers, their astonishment only growing as they realized the destination was indeed the consort’s quarters.
Luxian didn’t wait for anyone to open the door. He kicked it open with a loud bang.
Inside, Lu Lu and Qing Hai, who were reading by the light of a nearby lamp, jumped in fright. Looking up, they saw Luxian carrying Zhao Qirong into the residence, leaving them stunned and speechless.
“Young Master Rong...?” Qing Hai murmured hesitantly, confused about why her master was carrying Young Master. Weren’t they supposed to be at the Hall of Lu Yue? This was the consort’s manor, wasn’t it?
“Young Master Shaochang, Young Master Shaoqi...” Lu Lu was equally perplexed.
“Both of you, light every lamp and bring me the splinting supplies,” Luxian ordered, his voice icy. His calm tone paired with his sharp, angry gaze sent chills down everyone’s spine.
Dr. Chen was now truly furious. Why wouldn’t they listen to him? How could Zhao Qirong get himself injured again? How long would this delay his recovery? Did he want to become permanently disabled?
“Y-yes, sir...” The two maids quickly scrambled to follow his orders. Soon, the consort’s quarters were brightly lit as if it were midday.
Luxian carried Zhao Qirong into his bedroom without saying another word. Setting him down, he rolled up Zhao Qirong’s pant leg to inspect the injury.
“A twisted ankle...” Luxian muttered to himself, then looked up to see Zhao Qirong wearing an expression akin to a child being caught sneaking sweets. His eyes burned with a mix of anger and concern.
Sensing the tension, the two maids tried to break the silence.
“Young Master, why did you bring them here? Weren’t you headed to the Hall of Lu Yue?”
“And bringing outsiders into the manor like this... should I inform His Highness first? If others see this and start rumors...” Lu Lu hadn’t finished her sentence when Luxian’s cold laugh interrupted her.
“Hah! His Highness? The same Highness who’s too busy chasing after escaped criminals? A patient who refuses to stay home and recover but instead runs around everywhere? There’s a carriage available, but no, he insists on riding a horse! He doesn’t even listen to warnings, and now, after two days outside the manor, instead of returning and resting quietly to be taken to the Lu Yue Pavilion, he decides to climb the manor walls. Wonderful! Truly wonderful!”
Although Luxian’s response addressed Lu Lu’s question, it was clearly aimed at rebuking Zhao Qirong.
Chun Gong Gong began piecing things together from witnessing Luxian’s skills in examining Zhao Qirong’s leg. It suddenly dawned on him that this person was Divine Doctor Xian, the one he deeply respected.
But why was the divine doctor wearing the phoenix-patterned coronet of the consort? And why did he behave as if the consort’s residence were his own home? You are reading on g.com, the official source.
"Luxian... I... you..."
Zhao Qirong began, intending to explain the urgency and necessity of his actions. But when he saw Luxian’s expression, like that of a tiger ready to pounce on its prey, he suddenly didn’t know what to say.
"‘I... you...’ What are you mumbling about?! How many times have I told you, hammered it into your head, that you mustn’t use martial arts for three months? What’s the meaning of climbing walls now? Does this leg of yours mean so little to you that you don’t want it anymore? Fine! I won’t bother treating it, then!" Luxian scolded furiously, turning to glare at Yuan Shaochang and Yuan Shaoqi.
"And you two! Why didn’t you stop him?!"
"...We tried, but he wouldn’t listen," Yuan Shaochang answered weakly.
"Great! Just wonderful!" Luxian continued his tirade, not sparing anyone, while simultaneously setting Zhao Qirong’s leg into a splint with practiced precision.
Only when the task was complete did Luxian finally calm down. Zhao Qirong lay on the bed, and Luxian dragged a chair over, sitting down with a heavy sigh. He gestured for the others to sit wherever they pleased.
Lu Lu and Qing Hai had by now pieced together that Young Master Rongqi was, in fact, Qi Wang, the husband of their master. Qing Hai, seeing Luxian sighing heavily from scolding his husband and the two young masters, decided to pour him a cup of tea. Luxian took it, sipped, and then cleared his throat. He turned to cast a sharp glance at the three of them.
"Could you all stop making those faces? If there’s something you want to ask, just ask."
"How did you end up here?" Yuan Shaoqi immediately asked.
"You’d have to ask Qi Wang why I’m staying in this residence," Luxian replied.
Zhao Qirong: "..."
The Yuan brothers turned their gaze toward Zhao Qirong.
"This residence is the most spacious of the secondary manors. Naturally, as per tradition, I’ve given it to my consort," Zhao Qirong said, as though it were a matter of course.
"I still don’t get it. Can you two explain it in a way the rest of us can understand?" Yuan Shaoqi pressed further.
Zhao Qirong ignored his cousins’ confusion and shifted on the bed, propping himself up to look directly at Luxian.
"My dear consort, I think it’s time we clarified everything. Don’t you agree?"
"...”
"The question you asked me seven days ago—you’ve likely already found your answer. I am Zhao Qirong, as you suspected. Now it’s your turn to answer my question..."
"I am your consort."
Before Zhao Qirong could even finish his sentence, Luxian gave him a straightforward answer.
The reactions to Luxian’s statement varied.
Zhao Qirong wasn’t surprised—he had already guessed as much. He just hadn’t expected Luxian to admit it so easily. After all, Luxian had never hidden anything from him. It was Zhao Qirong himself who refused to acknowledge his identity, which had dragged the matter out unnecessarily. Follow the newest chapters on novelping dot com.
Chun Gong Gong, on the other hand, was ecstatic. Not only had he finally met the divine doctor who had saved Qi Wang, but this same doctor had been living in the consort’s manor all along. With such a perfect match for His Highness, Chun Gong Gong felt his life’s purpose was now fulfilled.
As for the Yuan brothers, they began to piece together the conversations and events they’d shared with Luxian in the past. The more they thought about it, the more peculiar details emerged.
"Didn’t you once say your mother arranged for a beautiful woman to be married to you?"
"I was just talking nonsense. My mother passed away long ago."
"Didn’t you also say that woman had so many shadow guards that you couldn’t climb onto her roof, and she even sent people to spy on you?"
"Shaochang... I’m not the eldest young master from the Jiang family. I’m the Eldest Young Master Chen."
"..."
"I didn’t marry a princess or some minister’s daughter. I married the Fourth Prince, Zhao Qirong. Is that clear enough?
As for those shadow guards, you two probably know them better than I do. One of them is called San, isn’t he? The others must be Yi, Er, Si, Wu... or something along those lines. They’ve been stealing spots from the birds on my roof for several nights now."
"I’ll tell them to stop following you..." Zhao Qirong said softly. In truth, it was his decision to leave his consort alone in the bridal chamber that had dragged this matter out for so long.
"Wait a moment... what about the rumors about you? The ones you claimed were requests from an important client to investigate the Fourth Prince—were those all lies to deceive us?" Yuan Shaoqi wasn’t willing to let the matter drop and pressed for clarification.
"First of all, Shaoqi, I may have deceived you, but didn’t you deceive me as well?"
"...”
"Even Rong Rong here made up a story about his father arranging a match with the daughter of an officer of the Eastern Army. He said the ceremony was small, which was why I wasn’t invited. Let me ask: when did the old man at my house become an officer in the Eastern Army? Or did he do something wrong and get demoted without my knowledge? If that’s the case, I should head home and ridicule him properly," Luxian said with a mix of sarcasm and humor.
"Why did you run away that day?" Zhao Qirong took out a ring he had kept in his inner pocket for a week and asked the question that had been bothering him.
"Rong Rong, you only sprained your ankle, not your head. Why ask a question when you already know the answer?"
Zhao Qirong: "..."
"You were the one who toyed with me first, weren’t you? The four of you always claimed to be soldiers of the Eastern Army. Suddenly, I woke up in that condition in a soldier’s room, and you didn’t give me a single clear answer. If I hadn’t fled, should I have waited for someone to catch us and create a scandal that would spread across the capital? At that moment, I genuinely hoped you would tell me you were Zhao Qirong, but you didn’t.
When I thought it over, even if you had said it that day, it wouldn’t have mattered. After all, you’d faked being gravely ill for so long. You wouldn’t have let that plan fall apart just to clear my name, would you?
At first, I just wanted answers because I was suspicious. But now that I have the answers I sought, I’ve started to feel afraid."
"Afraid... of what?" Zhao Qirong asked, confused. What could someone like Luxian, the fearless divine doctor, possibly be afraid of?
"I’m afraid of losing the friendship we once had."
He feared that from now on, there would no longer be Rongqi, the friend he could eat meals and chat casually with. Instead, there would only be Qi Wang, the husband who had always been indifferent to everyone in the manor, whether they were men or women.
"This consort wouldn’t have the right to behave as your friend any longer. All this time, hasn’t Your Highness only seen me as the disgrace bestowed upon you by imperial decree from His Majesty?"