Ruan Nian looked at the motionless ceiling, feeling awkward. "I thought someone was..."
Qu Fengyun remained silent.
Oh no, did the previous incident leave a lasting impression?
The ambiguous atmosphere between them dissipated suddenly. Ruan Nian hastily stood up, saying, "I... I have something to do, need to go out for a while, I'll leave first."
Qu Fengyun asked, "Where are you going?"
"Prime Minister Xu has been having headaches these days," Ruan Nian explained. "My master asked me to check on him today."
Qu Fengyun stood up and said, "I'll come with you."
Ruan Nian exclaimed, "Ah?"
Qu Fengyun questioned, "Is that not okay?"
"Not that..." Ruan Nian muttered, "But you don't know anything about medical matters, what would you do there?"
Qu Fengyun didn't respond, drank the chicken soup on the table in one go, and then pulled Ruan Nian along.
After Murong Yan and Gu Lang left the prison, the guard at the door changed again, with Wu Liu now on duty. Previously assigned by Murong Yan to guard the prison, Wu Liu was instructed to keep a close eye on Zheng Yufe. Hence, every time he was on duty, he would specifically check on Zheng Yufe to prevent any escapes or mishaps.
Today, Wu Liu opened the door as usual to check on Zheng Yufe and found him lying on the ground, bruised and groaning in pain.
Not knowing what had happened, Wu Liu hurriedly ran to the Eastern Palace to inform the Crown Prince.
The Crown Prince was in his study, the door closed. When informed that Wu Liu had something to report, the Crown Prince responded with a word and, after a while, opened the door.
Gu Lang opened the door and stood aside, not looking at Wu Liu.
Yet Wu Liu couldn't shake the feeling that his face... seemed a bit flushed.
The Crown Prince sat behind the desk and asked, "What's the matter?"
Wu Liu said, "Your Highness, Zheng Yufe has been beaten! He's badly bruised!"
The Crown Prince glanced at Gu Lang, who still avoided eye contact, and asked again, "Is he dead?"
Wu Liu replied, "...No, he's just severely swollen."
The Crown Prince said, "Then there's no need to bother with him, just make sure he doesn't die."
Wu Liu inquired, "Should we investigate who did this?"
"No need," the Crown Prince said, "Perhaps he committed too many wrongs, and even the gods couldn't stand it, so they came down to earth to beat him up."
Wu Liu thought for a moment and said, "..."
"You can go back now," the Crown Prince said, "Continue your guard duty."
"Understood!" Wu Liu left, but as he walked away, Murong Yan covered his face and said to Gu Lang, "Close the door."
Gu Lang didn't move. "No need to close it. You have paperwork to attend to..."
"Who said I have to handle paperwork?" Murong Yan interrupted. "I want to ask the gods whether we should also beat up Lu Pingshan."
Gu Lang replied, "..."
Murong Yan walked over and closed the door, then hugged Gu Lang. "If you're still angry, we can beat him a couple more times."
Gu Lang hesitated and said, "I won't. My hand hurts."
Murong Yan put his hand on Gu Lang's buttocks and said, "Then let me massage it for you."
Gu Lang protested, "I said my hand hurts."
Suddenly, a horse's neigh sounded outside, followed by the clattering of hooves. A guard exclaimed, "Why is a horse running here?!"
Murong Yan said, "..."
Gu Lang added, "I think I forgot to feed it today."
Xu Jing'er sat in the pavilion, wearing a troubled expression.
Wei Qingtong Sitting across from her, uncertain about what was bothering her.
Originally, they had planned to go boating on the lake today, but Xu Jing'er wasn't in the mood. Wei Qingtong decided to skip it and keep her company at home.
"What's really bothering you?" Wei Qingtong couldn't help asking.
Xu Jing'er sighed and said, "Sister Wei, tell me... is it better to have a new love or stick to an old one?"
Wei Qingtong: "..." This is getting complicated.
Thinking that Xu Jing'er was facing a major emotional dilemma, Wei Qingtong advised, "Choose whoever you like."
Xu Jing'er asked, "But what if I like both of them?"
Wei Qingtong: "..." Are you being a bit greedy?
"Miss," a maid suddenly ran in and said to Xu Jing'er, "Doctor Ruan is here."
Xu Jing'er's eyes brightened. "Is Commander Qu here too?!"
The maid nodded, "Yes, he's also here."
Suddenly cheerful, Xu Jing'er grabbed Wei Qingtong. "Sister Wei, let's go see them."
Watching Xu Jing'er's happy expression, Wei Qingtong wondered, Is Commander Qu a new love or an old one?
Meanwhile, the servant was leading Ruan Nian and Qu Fengyun towards Xu Zhiyan's bedroom. Someone shouted, "Doctor Ruan..."
They turned around and saw Xu Jing'er and Wei Qingtong approaching.
At the sight of Wei Qingtong, Ruan Nian's heart skipped a beat, quickly glancing at Qu Fengyun.
Qu Fengyun seemed indifferent.
Relieved, Ruan Nian let out a breath and greeted Xu Jing'er, "Miss Xu, I heard that Minister Xu hasn't been feeling well these days, so I came to check."
"Yes, my father has been having headaches again these days," Xu Jing'er expressed gratitude, "Thank you, Doctor Ruan."
They all went to Xu Zhiyan's room together. Ruan Nian examined Xu Zhiyan's pulse and decided to administer acupuncture, requesting everyone to wait outside for convenience.
Though worried about her father, Xu Jing'er followed Ruan Nian's advice and waited in the hall with Wei Qingtong and Qu Fengyun.
After finishing the treatment, Ruan Nian wrote a prescription for Xu Zhiyan and instructed the servant to prepare the medicine for the Prime Minister to take twice a day.
Afterwards, Ruan Nian packed up her medical supplies and went to find Qu Fengyun in the hall.
Outside, she encountered Wei Qingtong and felt the need to apologize, "Miss Wei, about the other day... I was careless and may have offended you. I..."
"Forget it, forget it," Wei Qingtong waved her hand, "I misunderstood that day. Since you're a friend of Jing'er, you can't be that kind of person. Let's forget about what happened that day; no one needs to bring it up again."
Ruan Nian nodded happily. Seeing Wei Qingtong standing outside the hall, she wondered, "Miss Wei, why aren't you going in?"
Wei Qingtong mysteriously said, "I don't want to disturb them..."
Ruan Nian looked puzzled, "What?"
Wei Qingtong gestured for her to look into the hall.
Ruan Nian peeked inside and saw Qu Fengyun and Xu Jing'er sitting by the coffee table, seemingly engaged in conversation. Xu Jing'er covered her mouth, giggling.
Feeling a pang in her heart, Ruan Nian heard Wei Qingtong ask in a low voice, "Aren't they a perfect match?"
Sun Fang entered the scene with osmanthus cake, just reaching the hall when she saw Xu Jing'er and Qu Fengyun laughing joyfully inside. She overheard a girl hiding nearby ask, "Aren't they a perfect match?"
Wei Qingtong's voice echoed, "Where's the match?!"
Sun Fang: "..."
Inside the hall, Xu Jing'er, hearing what Sun Fang said, asked Qu Fengyun about Ruan Nian making chicken soup for him. Her eyes lit up, and she thought, "Is the chicken soup delicious? How did you drink it? Did you feed each other mouth to mouth? Can I come watch you drink chicken soup?"