You Yuji had been restless for quite some time. One moment, she felt that given Chen Anzhi’s usual submissiveness in front of Si Que, he wouldn’t resort to any forceful actions. The next, she worried that Chen Anzhi, once drunk, was terrifyingly unpredictable, almost as if he had completely lost his senses.
She stood by the window, pushing one of the panes slightly open, and frowned as she looked towards the direction of the east wing.
Was it because she was uneasy? Why did it seem like Chen Anzhi had been inside for a long time without coming out?
Zhenxu, standing beside her, quietly observed You Yuji’s expression, trying to guess whether the lady was worried about Princess Que being bullied or if she was jealous of Princess Que being with the young master.
When the lady was troubled, she was troubled too. After pondering for a while, she tentatively suggested, “Madam, there are still some soft plum cakes made in the kitchen today. Shall I take some to the east wing? Hmm… Princess Que just moved back today and probably doesn’t have any snacks to entertain the young master, right?”
There was one more thing Zhenxu didn’t mention. She thought she could use the pretext of delivering the snacks to help the lady find out what was going on. But after she finished speaking, she waited for a response from You Yuji, which never came.
Zhenxu was puzzled, unable to understand what was wrong with her suggestion…
After a moment, You Yuji said, “There’s no need for you to go, I’ll go personally.”
“Great!” Zhenxu’s eyes instantly lit up. She quickly walked to the door and opened it for You Yuji, taking a lantern from the tall table by the door and following behind her.
When You Yuji arrived at Si Que’s door, she saw the light inside suddenly go out.
Her heart skipped a beat.
“Ah Que!” She immediately pushed open the door and rushed in.
The room was pitch dark.
You Yuji quickly took the lantern from Zhenxu’s hands and walked briskly into the room. The dim light from the lantern illuminated the dark room with a faint red glow.
Zhenxu hesitated for a moment. Though curious, she didn’t dare follow inside and stayed at the door.
You Yuji walked around the pear wood standing screen, using the lantern’s light to look towards the bed. She immediately noticed two pairs of shoes on the floor under the canopy bed. One pair of white cloth shoes, belonging to Si Que, and a pair of men’s boots, one standing and one lying down, which must be Chen Anzhi’s.
The green bed curtains of the canopy bed were drawn, concealing what was inside.
In the unnaturally quiet room, You Yuji could hear her heart pounding. Without hesitation, she walked to the bed and lifted the curtain.
The dim red light from the lantern shone into the bed.
Chen Anzhi lay on the bed, half open-mouthed, completely unaware.
He was alone.
Where was Ah Que?
“Sister…”
A weak, plaintive whisper came from behind her.
You Yuji immediately turned around.
Under the pear wood screen, there was a wooden couch.
Si Que sat on the couch, hugging his knees. In the dim light, his expression was unclear. Yet, perhaps due to his snowy white attire or the way he softly called her “sister,” the sight tugged at You Yuji’s heart. At this moment, he appeared so fragile and pitiful in her eyes.
You Yuji exhaled softly, forcing a smile, and walked towards Si Que. As she got closer, the lantern light fell on Si Que’s face, revealing his slightly reddened eyes.
Si Que’s long eyelashes were damp, and his bright eyes stared deeply at You Yuji without blinking, his voice filled with grievance, “Sister, why did you come so late?”
A sudden wave of sadness surged in You Yuji’s heart.
She placed the lantern on the small table beside the wooden couch and sat down next to Si Que. Just as she sat down and before she could speak, Si Que suddenly hugged her tightly.
He held her arms so firmly that there was no space left between them, but You Yuji felt him trembling.
“Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid…” You Yuji gently comforted him, over and over again.
A sense of panic arose in her heart.
She also felt guilty for waiting so long before coming to find him. Even if Chen Anzhi wouldn’t harm Si Que, he would be afraid, he would feel humiliated.
Putting herself in his shoes, she imagined how mortifying and painful it would be to have to serve as a concubine to another man, especially if she were a man herself.
She should have come earlier, at least to let him know that his sister was there to protect him, to comfort him. She wouldn’t have left him alone in such a dark corner.
After a long time, as You Yuji continued to comfort him, she felt Si Que’s trembling gradually subside.
Si Que slowly released You Yuji and looked up at her, his eyes carrying a trace of embarrassment after the grievance.
“Did I make you laugh at me, sister…”
“No,” You Yuji shook her head. She looked at Si Que’s slightly red eyes, wanting to brush away the dampness from his long lashes. But she didn’t do so, thinking he might not want her to see his reddened eyes.
However, You Yuji still noticed the growing sadness in Si Que’s clear eyes.
“I’m so useless, sister won’t dislike me, will you…”
You Yuji glanced back at the direction of the bed before softly saying, “How could I? Sister likes Ah Que just the way you are, soft and pure.”
Si Que savored the words “soft” and “pure” on his tongue.
You Yuji looked back at the bed again, wanting to ask how Chen Anzhi ended up sleeping alone, but fearing that Si Que might not want to talk about it, she refrained.
“The young master drank a lot, came in drunk and babbled,” Si Que held You Yuji’s hand, “He rushed over, wanting to, wanting to…”
You Yuji squeezed Si Que’s hand in return.
“I had Liufeng add something to help him sleep in the sobering tea,” Si Que sighed in relief, “Fortunately, he fell into a deep sleep quickly and should sleep until morning.”
You Yuji roughly understood what had happened and sighed softly. She said, “If he comes to find you again, just come directly to me.”
You Yuji raised her hand, brushing a strand of Si Que’s black hair from his shoulder.
As she withdrew her hand, Si Que grabbed her wrist.
“Sister, will you comfort me some more?” Si Que asked.
You Yuji curved her lips into a smile, her soft voice tinged with a touch of indulgence. She asked, “How should sister comfort you?”
Si Que blinked slowly, his gaze cautiously moving downward from You Yuji’s eyes.
You Yuji realized he was looking at her lips.
In a brief moment of confusion, You Yuji suddenly understood.
Instinctively, she glanced back at the direction of the bed, then turned her head back and slowly leaned closer to Si Que, gently pressing her soft lips against the corner of his mouth.
Si Que was about to say that it wasn’t enough.
You Yuji’s hand moved slowly from his forearm, her palm lightly cradling the back of his neck, and she placed an enchanting kiss on his lips.
It was both gentle and lingering.
On the small table in the corner of the wooden couch, a lone lantern sat. The candle inside was nearly burned out, casting an increasingly dim red light through the lampshade. This soft, reddish glow bathed the two entwined in a tender kiss, their shadows etched onto the pear wood screen.
The room was shrouded in darkness, except for the two entwined figures, embracing the only light.
The next day, when Chen Anzhi woke up, his head was splitting with pain.
His mind was almost awake, but his body wasn’t, his eyelids wouldn’t open, and his limbs couldn’t move. He lay on the bed in a state of lazy fatigue. He always felt terrible after drinking, but this time was worse.
There was a faint smell of medicine in the air.
Chen Anzhi slowly recalled the dream he had last night.
He had a beautiful dream. In the dream, he was a sword-wielding immortal who could fly. He found an isolated fairy island where he lived with Princess Que forever.
Later, even You Yuji, whom he always looked down on, found the fairy island. In the dream, You Yuji no longer ignored him but was full of affection for him. In a plum blossom forest that resembled a fairyland, You Yuji tearfully confessed her feelings, saying she couldn’t live without him, and didn’t care about any status, only wanting to stay by his side and serve him.
The plum blossoms in the immortal path were beautiful, and You Yuji was also beautiful that day.
He felt a great struggle in his heart. He couldn’t bear to abandon You Yuji, who was deeply in love with him, but he was also afraid of displeasing Princess Que.
In the dream, he walked back with a heavy heart to find Princess Que, to tell her about the situation.
He thought that maybe the princess would agree to let You Yuji stay on the fairy island, after all, the two sisters had always been close, hadn’t they?
Before he could return to ask Si Que’s opinion, the intense headache woke him up from his dream.
The dream hadn’t concluded, and waking up like this left him feeling empty.
He reminisced about the dream one more time and finally fully woke up.
He opened his eyes, and the unfamiliar bed confused him for a moment. Was he still on the fairy island in his dream?
After a while, he finally realized that this was Princess Que’s room!
Last night…!
Chen Anzhi sat up suddenly, his eyes wide open, breathing heavily.
He quickly looked to his side but did not see Si Que. He only remembered that he came to give flowers to Princess Que after getting drunk last night, and surprisingly, Princess Que, instead of treating him coldly, invited him to drink tea.
After that… he couldn’t remember.
Chen Anzhi touched his face.
That morning, Gu Momo from the princess’s side delivered a contraceptive soup to Tanxiang Yingyue.
This matter spread quickly throughout the residence.
Currently, Chen Anzhi had no heirs and had a strained relationship with You Yuji. Wherever he went, many eyes were watching.
“What?” Fang Qingyi stood up abruptly, “Are you sure Gu Momo delivered the contraceptive soup to that fallen princess and watched her drink it?”
Lushu shook her head. “That person has always been in poor health. When Gu Mama went over, she was asleep in the madam’s room. The madam stopped her and said she would give her the contraceptive soup once she woke up.”
“Who handles things like this? Why not make sure she drinks it right away?” Fang Qingyi was both anxious and angry.
Lushu kept her head down, not daring to respond casually.
Fang Qingyi stood by the window for a long time, until her frustration and urgency dissipated. Her eyes gradually regained their calm.
At that moment, Si Que was sleeping with Baisui in his arms.
He had moved out of You Yuji’s room for less than two hours before moving back in that night. Last night, You Yuji had led him back by the hand, and he had happily fallen asleep holding her.
This morning, after You Yuji woke up, she had things to do. Si Que buried his face in her chest, holding her and refusing to get up. After coaxing him for a while, she placed Baisui in his arms so she could leave.
Baisui didn’t want to sleep, patting its little paws.
Si Que tossed it out of the bed.
He lifted his left leg, resting his ankle on his propped-up right knee, and opened his eyes. Under the purple bed curtains, his lazy posture and expression were something You Yuji had never seen before.
Today was the day the master of the Poison Pavilion had agreed to deliver the false death potion to You Yuji.
Even though the bed was warm and fragrant, he still had to get up and change his identity to meet Yuan Yuan.
Before You Yuji could leave the residence, she was stopped by Cuiyu.
“Yingying’s mother is in poor health, and it’s better to keep Yingying’s accident a secret for now. With the New Year approaching, I sold some of my jewelry and exchanged them for silver notes. I want to send them to Yingying’s family. But if I go, her family will definitely wonder why Yingying didn’t come herself. So, I wanted to ask Madam to send a reliable person to deliver it to her family…” Cuiyu handed a purse to You Yuji.
You Yuji took the purse, remained silent for a while, then smiled gently and said, “There’s no need to be so pessimistic. Whether she is alive or dead, we must see her body. Not seeing her body means she is still alive.”
Cuiyu nodded heavily.
She was always very pessimistic. But Lin Yingying was different; she was always so optimistic and cheerful. Perhaps she should learn from Yingying’s optimism.
Looking at the purse she handed to You Yuji, she felt a bit reluctant. It contained all her money, not a single copper coin left.
