After the punishment was over, Li Zhenchun quickly took the clothes from the servant and draped them over Wei Nancheng’s shoulders. Then she helped him stand up.
Wei Nancheng turned to look at her.
This was the first time she had willingly come close to him.
Every other time, she had either avoided him or been forced by someone else to find him.
“Dulang, go back and rest. Erlang has others looking after him.”
The Old Madam spoke to him.
“Yes.”
Li Zhenchun supported Wei Nancheng as they walked away. Chen Runiang followed behind them.
As soon as they entered the courtyard, Chen Runiang ordered Hongxiu to fetch the medicine and Qiu Chi to bring hot water.
Li Zhenchun helped Wei Nancheng sit on the couch.
When he took off his clothes, Chen Runiang looked at the red marks covering his back. Tears immediately filled her eyes.
Before they could fall, Wei Nancheng said helplessly,
“Mother, these injuries aren’t serious. The servant held back.”
Li Zhenchun also thought the crisscrossing marks on his back looked painful, but she knew he was telling the truth.
He had only received ten strikes.
If the servant had used full force, his flesh would have been torn open into a bloody mess.
Now, his skin was only red, and the worst injuries hadn’t even bled. It was obvious the servant had been very gentle.
“Your lips have already turned pale from the pain, and you’re still saying it’s not serious! Do you have to end up like your father—with an arrow through your chest—before you admit you’re hurting?”
Chen Runiang cried as she spoke.
It was the first time she had ever scolded him so harshly.
“Dulang, you’re my own flesh and blood. How could I not worry about you? Watching you kneel there and take the punishment hurt me even more than it hurt you!”
“This has also made me realize something. I will never agree to you joining the army.”
“When your father used to go to war, I worried every single day. Every time he finally came home, he was either missing a piece of flesh or carrying another scar. Every time I saw those wounds, it felt as though someone had cut into my own heart.”
Wei Nancheng looked at her.
His lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but he didn’t know how to comfort her.
Li Zhenchun stood quietly beside the couch, looking between mother and son. She kept her head down and remained silent.
Chen Runiang continued,
“I know you’re someone who never changes your mind once you’ve made a decision. But if you insist on joining the army, I’ll hang myself from the beam so I won’t have to spend the rest of my life worrying every day.”
“Mother!”
Wei Nancheng frowned deeply.
“Please don’t ever say that again.”
“If you don’t want to hear it, then give up the idea of joining the army! Dulang, I’ve made my position clear. Think about it carefully.”
After speaking, Chen Runiang turned toward Li Zhenchun.
“Zhenchun, come here.”
“Yes, Mother.”
Chen Runiang placed the jar of medicine into Li Zhenchun’s hands.
“You apply the medicine for Dulang. His back is injured, and he may develop a fever tonight. Watch over him carefully.”
“I’ll go check on Erlang now. He received thirty strikes.”
“Alright.”
…
After Chen Runiang left, Li Zhenchun turned toward Wei Nancheng while holding the medicine.
The moment she saw his bare upper body, she quickly looked away.
Oh dear…
She was supposed to apply the medicine?
How embarrassing.
She cleared her throat, about to speak.
Wei Nancheng said calmly,
“Just leave the medicine there. Qiu Chi can do it later.”
The words she wanted to say stayed stuck in her throat.
“…Oh.”
She placed the medicine down.
With both hands behind her back, she lowered her head and stared at the tips of her shoes.
She looked completely discouraged.
Wei Nancheng glanced at her.
“Why are you like this?”
“Are you unhappy?”
Li Zhenchun held it in for a long time before finally asking,
“Can’t I really be the one to apply the medicine?”
Wei Nancheng looked surprised.
“Why would you want to?”
Li Zhenchun scratched her cheek and looked away.
“I’ll… go call Qiu Chi.”
She turned and ran.
When she reached the doorway, she looked back.
Wei Nancheng had raised his eyes and was quietly watching her.
His eyes sparkled like stars but were also as cold and clear as moonlight.
Her heart skipped a beat.
She quickly turned around and pressed herself against the wall.
How stupid are you, Li Zhenchun?
Why did you suddenly move closer to him?
…
Qiu Chi arrived and began applying the medicine.
Li Zhenchun stood beside them like an idiot, watching the red marks on Wei Nancheng’s back grow even redder as the ointment was rubbed in.
She sighed softly.
It was so unfair.
Burning the ancestral hall had nothing to do with him.
If he hadn’t been brought up joining the army, he wouldn’t have been beaten at all.
Wei Xinian was unlucky too.
If Wei Nancheng hadn’t mentioned joining the army, Wei Xinian would probably have received ten fewer strikes.
Everything had simply happened at the same time, so both brothers ended up receiving heavier punishments.
Her sigh was so loud that Wei Nancheng looked up at her.
“Why are you sighing?”
“It’s unfair.”
Li Zhenchun answered gloomily.
Before he could respond, she added,
“Just thinking about copying the Buddhist scriptures makes my head hurt.”
Wei Nancheng: “…”
She sighed again.
“I have to copy them three times. It’ll take forever.”
“What do you want, then?”
Her eyes lit up immediately.
“Can I stop practicing the guqin for now? I’ll start learning again after I finish copying the scriptures.”
Under Wei Nancheng’s gaze, her voice became quieter and quieter.
“You were the one who said you wanted to learn.”
“But… that was when I was little. Back then I also wanted…”
She stopped herself.
The rest of the sentence stayed in her throat.
Wei Nancheng didn’t even remember her anymore.
So naturally, the things she had said as a child no longer mattered.
Wei Nancheng withdrew his gaze.
“Very well.”
“If you don’t want to learn anymore, then you don’t have to practice in the future.”
…
The young man sat on the bed.
His fair back was covered with red marks.
Even after receiving the beating, Li Zhenchun hadn’t heard any sadness in his voice.
But now…
She heard it.
The warm lamplight shone over half of his face.
Li Zhenchun tilted her head.
Is he… upset?
Because I don’t want to learn the guqin anymore?
…
“Young Master, I’ve finished applying the medicine.”
Qiu Chi stood respectfully.
“I’ll go bring you some hot water.”
Li Zhenchun watched him leave, then looked back at Wei Nancheng.
“I never had a teacher before.”
Wei Nancheng looked up at her.
She met his eyes.
“But I’ve heard scholars say that whenever a student suddenly stops studying, the teacher feels sad too.”
Wei Nancheng replied,
“A teacher treasures talented students.”
Li Zhenchun nodded eagerly.
“Exactly! So… Do you also think I’m talented?”
Since when was I naturally gifted at playing the guqin?
Wei Nancheng: “…”
…
Wei Nancheng picked up a white inner robe and put it on.
Li Zhenchun stood nearby watching.
His long, slender fingers tied the robe’s sash in one smooth, graceful motion, forming a perfect knot.
Only after getting dressed did he look back at her.
Li Zhenchun met his eyes for a second before guiltily looking away again.
She stared hard at the candle stand by the door, as if she wanted to burn two holes through it with her eyes.
“You…”
Wei Nancheng had wanted to say something else.
But after watching all her strange reactions, what came out instead was,
“Are you afraid of me?”
His new wife rarely looked directly at him.
“N-No.”
Li Zhenchun quickly denied it.
“Why would I be afraid of you?”
She stubbornly kept her head turned away.
If this isn’t fear, even pigs would hang themselves.
“Then why are you afraid?”
“I’m not! You’re overthinking.”
She shuffled sideways toward the door like a crab.
“You’re injured today, so you take the bed. I’ll sleep while I study.”
“Go to sleep early… Wait, why hasn’t Qiu Chi brought the hot water yet? I’ll go hurry him. Honestly, that Qiu Chi… no one works properly unless someone is watching.”
Just as she reached the doorway, she tripped over the threshold.
Her face instantly grew hot.
Holding onto the doorframe, she looked back at Wei Nancheng, slowly straightened herself, and forced out a polite smile.
“Go to bed early. Sleeping early helps you grow taller.”
Realizing how strange that sounded, she quickly added,
“I don’t mean you’re short.”
That only made it worse.
I might as well smash my head into the wall.
Li Zhenchun turned around and fled.
She never saw the slight curve of Wei Nancheng’s lips.
A faint smile quietly appeared in his dark eyes.