Chu Linzhang wished he could hide his face forever.
Even though he had never cared much about his appearance before, after seeing his mangled reflection, he had to admit it—it was hideous.
The kind of face that would give even adults nightmares.
Seeing the devastation on his face, Hua Zhiyun tried to comfort him in the worst possible way.
“It’s nothing. I’ve seen uglier.”
Zombie faces were the true challenge to human aesthetics—grotesque, horrifying, and deadly. One bite, and you’d become one of them. The first time she’d seen a zombie, she’d been genuinely terrified.
Later, after chopping off countless zombie heads, she’d become numb to it all.
Compared to those, Chu Linzhang’s face could still be considered… “presentable.”
Chu Linzhang: “…”
So in the end, it still came down to one word.
Ugly.
If you don’t know how to comfort someone, maybe don’t speak.
Treating the wounds on his face was much more difficult than treating the injuries on his limbs.
His arms and legs could scar however they liked.
But his face…
She could tell the man still cared about it.
The man who had just been frightened by his own appearance now looked utterly dispirited, all the light gone from his eyes.
Hua Zhiyun covered his eyes with a cloth and focused entirely on cleaning the wounds.
The tearing pain made Chu Linzhang grit his teeth. Every muscle in his body tensed as he fought against the agony.
About twenty minutes later, the debridement was complete.
Now came the medication.
She secretly poured some Spirit Spring Water from her space into a leather water pouch instead of using bottled water, so no one would become suspicious.
The Spirit Spring Water had been given to her by Sister Nan.
Chu Linzhang was incredibly lucky to be able to use something so precious.
It was even better than antiseptic for cleaning wounds.
It accelerated healing and tissue regeneration.
As a healing-type ability user, she had naturally stockpiled as much of it as possible.
Drinkable.
Usable.
The all-purpose Spirit Spring Water.
Absolutely unmatched.
Too bad she hadn’t awakened a Spirit Spring Space herself.
Still, having an Infinite Space was enough.
To secure enough Spirit Spring Water, she’d traded a mountain of supplies to Sister Nan for ten tons of it.
She had only about one ton left.
If she used it sparingly, it should last her the rest of her life.
The only reason she was willing to use something this precious on Chu Linzhang was because he had excellent bone structure beneath all those injuries.
Besides…
He’d been framed.
The original Hua Zhiyun had been one of the accomplices.
And when he’d finally had a chance to escape…
She had been the one who reported him.
Using a little precious Spirit Spring Water could at least be considered compensation.
She explained all this to herself for one simple reason—
She hated wasting it.
It hurt!
If she never returned to the apocalypse…
Every drop she used was one less she’d ever have.
Who wouldn’t treasure it?
She carefully cleaned the wounds on his face with the Spirit Spring Water before applying medicine and wrapping fresh bandages around his head.
Soon, he resembled a mummy again, with only his deep eyes exposed.
As Chu Linzhang looked at Hua Zhiyun, who was concentrating on wrapping the bandages, their eyes met.
His gaze couldn’t help lingering on her face.
A face no bigger than his palm.
Peach blossom eyes.
A delicate nose.
Cherry-colored lips.
On their wedding night, he hadn’t even had the chance to see her clearly before the dog emperor had dragged him away.
The last two days had been worse than death.
Had she not saved him in prison…
He knew he would already be dead.
After eating what she’d given him, he had clearly felt the broken ribs piercing his lungs return to their proper places.
The unbearable pain with every breath had almost completely disappeared.
What she’d given him had to be some miraculous elixir.
Otherwise, there was no way he could have survived…
Or awakened the ability to control plants.
Watching the blazing sun shine onto her fair face, adding a faint rosy glow from the heat…
Chu Linzhang glanced at the trees nearby.
A thought crossed his mind.
Without making a sound, the trees grew.
Branches quietly spread over the prison cart, casting a cool patch of shade above them.
Hua Zhiyun immediately noticed.
She looked up to find dense branches covering the sky, blocking out the scorching sun.
One glance told her whose handiwork it was.
“Not bad.”
She smiled.
“Looks like you’ve learned to use your ability pretty well.”
“Why do you call it an ‘ability’?”
The term sounded completely foreign to Chu Linzhang.
He’d only ever heard it from her.
Hua Zhiyun answered naturally,
“You can think of it as immortal power, magic, or whatever you like. I’m just used to calling it an ability.”
As long as she mixed truth with lies…
No one would know which parts were real.
Chu Linzhang thought for a moment.
“Then I’ll call it an ability as well.”
“Suit yourself.”
She didn’t care.
After finishing the bandaging, she took out several packets of anti-inflammatory medicine wrapped in oiled paper.
She gestured for him to open his mouth.
Chu Linzhang hesitated.
When she raised an eyebrow, he obediently complied.
Several pills dropped into his mouth.
He had assumed medicine always needed to be brewed first.
Apparently…
Her medicine didn’t.
Everything she produced could be taken immediately.
It was completely different from the methods used by doctors or imperial physicians.
More importantly…
The pills weren’t bitter.
A water pouch was brought to his lips.
After she’d already seen him at his absolute worst, there was nothing left to feel embarrassed about.
He bit the mouth of the pouch and gulped down several mouthfuls of water, swallowing the pills.
Hua Zhiyun placed the remaining medicine beside him.
Every dose had been individually wrapped in oiled paper.
She certainly hadn’t spent her time on the carriage twiddling her thumbs.
“One packet after each meal. Take it about fifteen minutes after eating with water. Three times a day.”
“When you finish these, I’ll check whether you need more.”
Anti-inflammatory medicine was precious.
Without it, his wounds would become infected very easily.
Chu Linzhang nodded.
“Thank you.”
Since he couldn’t move his hands, he called Bai Lian over.
As Bai Lian approached, he glanced up at the shade overhead.
Was it his imagination?
When he’d left, the trees hadn’t seemed this lush.
There definitely hadn’t been enough branches to cover the cart.
Now the canopy looked much thicker.
Ignoring Bai Lian’s confusion, Hua Zhiyun packed up her things and prepared to leave.
“Your Highness.”
Bai Lian suddenly stopped her.
“I have something I’d like to discuss with Your Highness.”
Hua Zhiyun looked at him, silently telling him to get on with it.
Bai Lian glanced at Chu Linzhang before gathering his courage.
“The Prince is seriously injured and needs proper rest.”
“The prison cart isn’t suitable.”
“If Your Highness doesn’t mind the inconvenience… could the Prince perhaps rest in your carriage?”
Chu Linzhang frowned.
“Bai Lian.”
“Go down and receive your punishment.”
Hua Zhiyun didn’t try to stop him.
Instead, she clapped.
“Well punished.”
“Make sure it’s severe.”
“You’ve got quite the nerve.”
“My carriage.”
“Who gave you the authority to decide who rides in it?”
“Who exactly do you think you are?”
Bai Lian immediately knelt.
“I know my mistake.”
“You know your mistake…”
She sneered.
“But you’ll do it again anyway?”
Turning toward Chu Linzhang, she asked,
“Do you want to ride in my carriage?”
Chu Linzhang shook his head.
“My apologies.”
“It’s because I failed to discipline my subordinate properly.”
“Then just beat him to death.”
As long as it wasn’t Chu Linzhang’s idea, that was enough for her.
“If you care so much about your master, why don’t you get him a carriage yourself?”
“Why covet mine?”
“What kind of man does that make you?”
Bai Lian lowered his head in shame.
“I assumed… you two are husband and wife.”
“Even married couples can divorce.”
Hua Zhiyun gave Chu Linzhang a meaningful look.
Handle your own people.
Then she picked up her bag and walked away.
If Chu Linzhang’s hands had worked, he would have rubbed his temples.
“Bai Zhong.”
The coachman immediately knelt.
“Beat him to death.”
Bai Lian’s face paled.
But he lowered his head without protest.
He accepted the sentence.
Bai Zhong’s eyes flickered.
Years of training had taught him one thing—
Never disobey the Prince’s orders.
In front of Chu Linzhang, he raised a club as thick as an arm.
Instead of striking Bai Lian’s back or buttocks…
He brought it down directly onto his head.
Again.
And again.
Every strike aimed at a vital spot.
Watching from inside her carriage, Hua Zhiyun frowned deeply.
One was a master ruthless enough to order the execution.
The other was a fool so blindly loyal he neither ran nor resisted.
By the third swing…
Based on her medical judgment…
One more hit would cause fatal intracranial bleeding.
Seeing the three men carry this out with such merciless determination, Hua Zhiyun spat out a sunflower seed shell.
“Stop.”
“Get lost.”
The dizzy Bai Lian secretly sighed in relief.
He had just gotten his life back.
Chu Linzhang’s expression remained calm.
His gaze toward the carriage grew even deeper.
She wasn’t a vicious woman.
She was still soft-hearted.
She still possessed kindness.
She definitely wasn’t some murderous demoness.
Then…
She had to be a fairy.
Who would have thought?
After all his misfortune…
Chu Linzhang had somehow earned the favor of a fairy.
Bai Zhong relaxed his grip on the club and caught the collapsing Bai Lian.
He immediately fed him a life-saving pill.
Another strike…
And Bai Lian would either be dead…
Or brain-damaged.
Although Bai Zhong still didn’t know what Bai Lian had done to deserve such a merciless punishment…
If the Prince had ordered his execution…
Then he must have committed an unforgivable mistake.
Bai Lian…
You fool.