Su Fei lay in bed, dazed and feverish.
His entire body was weak, and he could not move at all.
While he drifted in and out of consciousness,
he fell into a dream.
The scene in the dream shifted.
The trees on the mountain were lush and verdant, and blood had soaked through his robes.
This time, he had been sent by the Emperor to Jiangnan to secretly investigate the salt case, and he was now returning.
As he neared Jingcheng, he had not expected that those behind the salt case would still discover his trail.
The Hidden Guards beside Su Fei held back the assassins, urging their master to flee at once.
Su Fei rushed down the mountain, his steps already unsteady.
He could no longer support his body and fell to one knee.
He held a sword in his hand to prop himself up.
Su Fei gasped for breath, and the wound ached all the more with each breath he took.
He heard the sound of hoofbeats, growing closer from afar.
Su Fei thought the assassins had caught up with him, and he gathered his strength, remaining on guard.
He raised his eyes and looked ahead.
Because he had lost too much blood, his vision was already somewhat blurred.
The person on the horse wore a red robe and a mask over their face.
A black steed galloped toward him.
He gripped the sword in his hand tightly. Was he to die here today?
Su Fei pressed his thin lips together firmly, forcing himself to hold on.
The horse passed him by, dust rising in the air, the red robe fluttering in the wind.
Not an assassin.
Su Fei let out a breath of relief in an instant.
He staggered to his feet.
Suddenly, the horse neighed, turned its head, and came back.
The tall black horse stopped beside Su Fei.
The woman in red dismounted and strode over to stand before him.
She said, “Can you mount the horse yourself?”
The woman in red wore a mask, and Su Fei did not know who she was.
The assassins had already caught up.
The woman in red suddenly swung herself onto the horse and reached out her hand.
Su Fei grasped her hand, and with her strength, he mounted the horse.
He sat in front of her, but because his injuries were too severe, his body tilted and he nearly fell off the horse.
“Steady yourself!”
The woman in red wrapped one arm around him and pulled him into her embrace.
She shook the reins, and the black horse galloped forward.
Arrows tore through the air, and the woman in red bent forward, holding him down.
His consciousness was already fading, and he was no longer fully aware.
All he could hear was the sound of arrows and her breathing.
Before Su Fei sank completely into unconsciousness, he had thought she would abandon him halfway.
It was not until he woke again that he found himself already in the mansion.
He had survived—the woman in red had saved him.
Su Fei asked his subordinates who had saved him, but unfortunately, his savior had left no information behind.
He did not know who the woman in red was.
Until one day, on the street, he saw a woman wearing the same mask at her waist.
She too wore red robes and rode a black horse, passing by his side.
Later, he sent people to inquire and learned that the woman was the second daughter of Vice Minister Li—Li Ya.
She was also his wife’s younger sister.
Later still, the Emperor personally sent him to escort grain supplies to the border and to boost morale there.
His opportunities to interact with Li Ya increased.
Feelings grew, imperceptibly, without his knowing when they began.
…
Su Fei, burning with fever, drifted in and out of dreams.
Meanwhile, Li Mengxi, who lived in the West Courtyard, slept dreamlessly through the night until dawn.
By the time she woke, it was already mid-morning.
She had risen a little late today.
“Someone come.”
Qingcui and Hongye entered the inner chamber, one attending to Li Mengxi’s dressing while the other tidied the bed.
Nanny Wang walked in from outside the inner chamber and waited for her mistress to finish dressing. “Young Madam, this morning, the Marchioness sent Xiuhe to summon you to the East Courtyard. This old servant told her you were unwell.”
Xiuhe was the head maidservant beside the Marchioness.
And the Marchioness was Li Mengxi’s mother-in-law.
Nanny Wang instructed the maidservants to bring in water.
After Li Mengxi washed up, she sat before the dressing table.
Hongye combed her hair.
Nanny Wang continued her report. “The Heir has still not woken. His fever is unstable—it breaks, then rises again, over and over.”
Li Mengxi lifted her eyelids, her gentle eyes gazing into the bronze mirror.
After a full night’s sleep, her complexion was rosy and radiant.
She said calmly, “Hongye, today’s makeup should make me look unwell.”
Hongye understood the meaning upon hearing this.
With the Heir ill, if the Young Madam appeared with a glowing complexion,
the Marchioness would likely scold her mistress again if she saw her.
Hongye replied, “Yes.”
The Marchioness was difficult to get along with, and the Heir paid no attention to her mistress.
Her mistress had to be cautious in everything she did within the Yongning Hou Mansion.
Were it not for the Old Dowager standing behind her mistress, such days would be utterly unbearable.
Nanny Wang and the others all felt for their mistress, but unfortunately, they were only servants.
Once everything was prepared, Li Mengxi took her time eating breakfast, then had Doctor Hu come to take her pulse.
“Doctor Hu, I have not been sleeping well these past few days, and I tire easily upon waking.”
After Doctor Hu finished taking her pulse, he withdrew his hand and said, “Young Madam, you are overthinking things. I will prescribe a calming prescription to soothe your heart and settle your mind.”
Li Mengxi nodded.
After Doctor Hu left, Li Mengxi drank half a cup of tea before slowly making her way with Nanny Wang to the East Courtyard to see Su Fei.
When she arrived at the East Courtyard, she saw the Marchioness’s maidservants standing guard outside the room.
Li Mengxi had just stepped into the room when she heard the Marchioness’s voice.
The Marchioness said, “Nanny, send someone to the West Courtyard again. Why hasn’t Mengxi risen yet? A-Fei is so gravely ill, and she can still sleep soundly until now—this is utterly improper.”
The Marchioness’s scolding had barely fallen.
The Old Dowager lifted her eyelids, turning prayer beads in her hand, and said in a calm voice, “Hasn’t Nanny Wang already said that Mengxi is unwell? Since she’s unwell, let Mengxi sleep a while longer.”
Hearing these words from the Old Dowager, the Marchioness could only keep a grim face and refrain from speaking further.
Although she had many grievances against Li Mengxi, her daughter-in-law.
With the Old Dowager present, she could no longer continue to speak ill of Li Mengxi.
Li Mengxi lowered her eyes, rounded the screen, and walked in.
Seeing her granddaughter-in-law, the Old Dowager’s face broke into a faint smile.
Li Mengxi performed a bow to the Old Dowager and paid her respects, “Grandmother.”
Her granddaughter-in-law carried herself with propriety, treated others with warmth and courtesy, and managed the household with skill.
The Old Dowager was very fond of and very satisfied with her granddaughter-in-law.
Unfortunately, her grandson treated his wife with cold indifference all day long.
It truly worried her greatly.
The Old Dowager noticed that Li Mengxi’s complexion appeared somewhat pale.
She asked with concern, “Mengxi, come sit by Grandmother’s side. Your complexion doesn’t look well—have you asked Doctor Hu to take a look at you?”
“Grandmother, I have.” After Li Mengxi also paid her respects to the Marchioness, she walked over and sat on the chair beside the Old Dowager.
She softly and gently recounted Doctor Hu’s pulse diagnosis to the Old Dowager.
The Marchioness kept a grim face throughout.
Listening to Li Mengxi’s words to the Old Dowager, she sneered inwardly.
What she cared about most right now was her son, not her daughter-in-law.
The Marchioness turned to look at Nanny Cheng, “Why hasn’t the imperial physician arrived yet? Nanny, go out and check.”
Nanny Cheng acknowledged the order.
After exchanging a few words with the Old Dowager, Li Mengxi stood up and said gently, “Grandmother, Mengxi will go inside to see the Heir.”
She no longer called him “husband” now.
The Old Dowager and the others did not think much of it at the time.
…….
The inner chamber.
Miao Ling knelt by the bedside with a worried expression, using a damp handkerchief to wipe her master’s face.
It was at this moment that Li Mengxi walked into the inner chamber.
Nanny Wang followed behind Li Mengxi.
When Nanny Wang saw Miao Ling wiping the Heir’s face, she furrowed her brows slightly.
Where was Lu Xi?
Why was only Miao Ling in the room?
Hearing footsteps, Miao Ling turned her head and saw it was the Consort of the Heir Apparent.
She stood up, bowed slightly, and paid her respects with composure, “Young Madam.”
She was not afraid that the Consort would blame her for what she had just seen.
The Consort had always been fair in rewarding and punishing.
She had only done what a servant ought to do.
Moreover, she was the only senior maidservant by the Heir’s side.
Without the Heir’s permission, the Consort would not dare to do anything to her arbitrarily.
That was Miao Ling’s confidence.
Besides, over the past few years, how the Heir treated the Consort—they, as the close attendants serving him, had seen it all clearly.
The Consort was not favored by the Heir.
Although Miao Ling held some contempt in her heart for the unfavored Consort, she did not show it on her face.
She lowered her eyes and stepped aside, making way for the Consort.
As Li Mengxi passed by Miao Ling, she pressed the embroidered handkerchief to her lips, suppressing a cold sneer.