“I may not know the Master of the Poison Pavilion, but I think anyone who has made achievements in any field is remarkable.”
You Yuji’s gentle words drifted into Si Que’s ears from outside the door. His eyelashes lowered slightly, and his movement of eating the chrysanthemum pastry paused for a moment before continuing.
Jiang Chun leaned on You Yuji’s shoulder with a laugh and said, “Alright, alright, I won’t say it like that anymore. It’s my narrow-mindedness, my prejudice, my mistake of judging people unfairly.”
She laughed out loud as she spoke, shaking You Yuji’s hand playfully, “But I am really scared, I can’t… Ah—”
Jiang Chun exclaimed, holding up You Yuji’s hand and looking anxiously at the bandage wrapped around it. She asked worriedly, “Yuan Yuan, what happened to your hand?”
“It got chafed by the horse reins, it’s nothing,” You Yuji explained.
Jiang Chun suddenly understood and started laughing again, “I heard from Zhao Sheng that many people in the capital are still talking about how you tamed the horse and saved people that day. Someone even painted your portrait!”
You Yuji shook her head and said, “Riding in the grasslands is very different, it doesn’t count as taming a horse.”
She still thought of the grasslands.
“By the way, I heard from Zhao Sheng about some official position changes. Your cousin might come to the capital,” said Jiang Chun, who couldn’t stay still for long. She shifted her position, putting one leg on the couch and sitting on her own calf.
“Really?” You Yuji was surprised.
Jiang Chun shook her head, “Zhao Sheng only heard it, it’s probably not confirmed yet. If your cousin comes to the capital, he might bring Xuanying for you!”
You Yuji thought for a while and sighed, “The grasslands are more suitable for him.”
After chatting a bit more, Jiang Chun dragged You Yuji to walk around the Prince’s residence. The two soon went out.
Inside the room, Si Que finished the last bit of chrysanthemum pastry and then recited, “Yuan Yuan?”
He chuckled softly and slowly repeated, “Yuan Yuan.”
As evening approached, Zhao Sheng personally came to pick up Jiang Chun. Only then did she reluctantly bid farewell to You Yuji. You Yuji turned back to the room, but Si Que was no longer in her sleeping quarters. She glanced in the direction of the east wing.
That night, Si Que didn’t come over either.
You Yuji waited for a while until it was dark. She ordered Zhenxu to send a portion of nourishing soup to Si Que. When Zhenxu returned, she reported that she hadn’t seen Si Que and had given the soup to Liufeng, who said Si Que wasn’t feeling well and had gone to bed early.
You Yuji frowned and stared for a long time before getting up and walking to the bed. She opened the drawer of the small table by the bed and took out a booklet from inside.
The booklet lay open on her lap, revealing a page with her handwritten calendar. The dates circled in red ink marked her fertile periods.
She closed the booklet, held it to her chest, and slowly lay down on the bed, deep in thought.
Originally, she had been waiting for the Empress Dowager to return to the capital so she could publicly announce her divorce from Chen Anzhi, leaving with a clean slate.
But now she couldn’t help but wonder, what if the Empress Dowager returned and she still hadn’t conceived? Even if she were pregnant by then, what would happen to Si Que if she left with the child?
What would happen to Cuiyu, Lin Yingying, and Chunxing?
Si Que’s image appeared before You Yuji, his eyes lightly lifted as he gazed at her with a faint smile. Her mood sank.
If she left, he would be sad, wouldn’t he?
She could almost see Si Que’s downcast eyes as he called her sister, a scene that played out vividly in her mind.
She couldn’t help but think about how poor Si Que’s health was, how he had stopped taking his medication to help her conceive. What if Chen Anzhi, losing his last bit of dignity, decided to bully Si Que? If his cross-dressing were exposed, it would be a capital offense.
You Yuji sighed lightly, turning over in bed, her mind restless and unable to sleep.
Baisui jumped onto the bed, retracting its sharp claws before patting You Yuji’s hand with its little paw.
You Yuji opened her eyes and looked at it, “Baisui, I’m not in the mood to play with you.”
She hugged Baisui to her chest, rubbing her cheek against its furry head.
Si Que hadn’t gone to bed early; he had left the Jinnan Prince’s Mansion. When he returned, it was already past midnight, and most of the lights in the mansion were out.
He removed the blood-red mask from his face and expressionlessly washed the blood from his hands.
Tingyun handed him a clean cloth, saying, “Your Highness, if you wish to kill someone, just give Tingyun the order.”
She had stayed quietly in the mansion as a regular maid for too long, not having killed anyone for a while.
Si Que slowly wiped his hands, saying, “Someone is investigating the Poison Pavilion.”
Tingyun immediately responded, “Rest assured, Your Highness, they won’t find anything.”
“No.” Si Que folded the cloth he had finished using and placed it by the basin. He looked at the gently rippling water, with traces of blood still in it, and slowly curled one side of his lips, saying, “It’s almost the New Year. Let’s open our doors for business and welcome any buyers who aren’t afraid of death.”
Tingyun hesitated for a moment before agreeing.
The Poison Pavilion wasn’t a single location but had branches in various countries, with their exact locations unknown. Or perhaps there was no fixed place; wherever the person in charge was, that was where the Poison Pavilion was.
The next morning, You Yuji woke up early. After a simple wash, she hurried to the east wing, still concerned about Si Que’s health.
Zhenxu was about to head to the kitchen when Baohe pulled her into a corner.
“What’s going on?” Zhenxu asked. “I have things to do in the kitchen.”
“Don’t you think the Madam seems distracted this morning?” Baohe lowered her voice.
Zhenxu thought for a moment and nodded.
Baohe continued nervously, “And don’t you think Madam and Princess Que are very close? Even real sisters don’t share a bed so often, right? And yesterday, I saw with my own eyes that Madam and Princess Que were sleeping together, hugging each other!”
Baohe made a hugging gesture.
“Last night, Princess Que didn’t come over, and this morning, our Madam was so distracted that she skipped breakfast and rushed to see Princess Que!”
Zhenxu frowned and asked, “What are you trying to say?”
Baohe hesitated, embarrassed to speak out, then stomped her foot and struggled for a moment before saying, “Do you think our Madam doesn’t care about the young master because she doesn’t like men at all?”
Zhenxu’s eyes widened.
“Zhenxu, have you ever heard of the ‘grinding mirror’ relationship?”
Zhenxu gasped softly, nearly losing her balance in shock.
“What are you two gossiping about so early in the morning?” Lady Jing suddenly appeared behind them, her face stern as she scolded them.
Baohe was startled and quickly shut her mouth.
“And you,” Lady Jing admonished Zhenxu, “gossiping with this imprudent girl!”
“Your servant wouldn’t dare!” Zhenxu bowed her head.
“Get back to your duties!”
Zhenxu and Baohe hurried away with their heads down.
Lady Jing watched their retreating figures with displeasure. Only after they disappeared did she turn back, frowning as she gazed towards the east wing, worry evident in her eyes.
At this moment, You Yuji was sitting by Si Que’s bedside, frowning as she gazed at him.
Si Que was still asleep, not yet awake.
Earlier, You Yuji had heard from Liufeng that Tingyun, who knew medicine, had been taking care of Si Que’s health. She had first sought out Tingyun when she arrived, but Tingyun was not there.
After sitting by the bed for a while, Tingyun returned. You Yuji quietly stepped outside to ask Tingyun about Si Que’s condition.
“The Madam should already know that His Highness has been weak since childhood, always relying on medication to sustain his life. Now that he has stopped taking the medicine, he will naturally become weaker.”
You Yuji asked anxiously, “How long can he go without the medicine?”
Tingyun looked troubled and said, “To speak frankly, he shouldn’t stop the medicine for even a day. Every day without it shortens his life.”
You Yuji was stunned.
A faint cough came from the inner room. You Yuji quickly turned and walked briskly to the bedside. She suppressed her emotions and slowly displayed a gentle smile towards Si Que, softly asking, “Awake? It’s still early, do you want to sleep a little longer?”
Si Que didn’t speak; he looked at You Yuji and softly called, “Sister.”
“Hmm.” You Yuji bent down and smoothed the turned-up corner of Si Que’s quilt.
Being so close, Si Que scrutinized her and asked, “Why are your eyes red, Sister?”
You Yuji didn’t explain but instead said, “Sleep a bit more? Sister will lie down with you for a while.”
She got up and went outside, instructing Liufeng to tell Zhenxu in the kitchen to bring their breakfast to the flower hall in half an hour. She and Si Que would sleep a little longer.
Liufeng responded with a smile, then ran to find Tingyun, nudging her with an elbow, saying, “They’re really getting along!”
Tingyun ignored her, seriously observing the mating of poisonous spiders in a bowl.
You Yuji returned to the inner room and lay down beside Si Que. Si Que turned over naturally, pressing his face into her embrace. You Yuji did not push him away; instead, she gently held him.
You Yuji had made a decision.
—The process of preparing for pregnancy is long. Even if she conceived, it wouldn’t be immediately detectable. She couldn’t let Si Que continue to stop his medication for several months. She couldn’t be this selfish any longer. She had to end her relationship with Si Que.
When You Yuji and Si Que went to the flower hall, several concubines were already there.
Cuiyu looked at the two of them oddly, watching them sit together for breakfast. She couldn’t help but whisper to Lin Yingying, “Don’t you think Madam and the Princess are too close?”
“What are you two talking about?” You Yuji asked with a smile.
“Nothing!” Cuiyu quickly changed the subject. “By the way! Does Madam know that the other two dogs we encountered at Qingya Residence also lost their hands?”
You Yuji was stunned for a moment before she realized Cuiyu was referring to Yi Yuhuan, Liu Yaping, and Zhou Wenlian.
“It’s already spread this morning. Last night, Liu Yaping and Zhou Wenlian were also infected with that strange poison and had their hands cut off. I wonder if it was Yi Yuhuan who passed it to them.”
Lin Yingying joined in with a laugh, “Although we don’t know who they offended, it sure seems to have avenged our Madam!”
You Yuji frowned, contemplating this matter. She didn’t care about their fate and wasn’t particularly happy. Instead, she remembered what Jiang Chun had said about the fake death drug.
The fake death drug was something from the Poison Pavilion, and the poison those three were infected with also came from the Poison Pavilion. Perhaps she could really find the Poison Pavilion? She decided to have someone inquire about it later.
Si Que slowly ate his deer milk, his face expressionless.
Sometimes, he didn’t like taking credit.
You Yuji collected her thoughts and looked at Si Que, thinking she should find an opportunity today to clarify things with him.
Si Que looked up and smiled at her.
Cuiyu watched this scene, blinking curiously. To her, this looked a bit like flirting.
In the back courtyard of Tanxiang Yingyue, there was a two-story book building. The first floor was used as a storeroom, and only the second floor had some books.
In the afternoon, You Yuji was on the second floor, distractedly flipping through books.
“Does Sister have something on her mind?” Si Que asked.
Since waking up, Si Que had been following You Yuji all day. When she came to the book building, he followed her.
You Yuji let out a breath, put down the book, and looked at Si Que with a serious tone. “Si Que, I don’t need your help to get pregnant anymore.”
“Did Sister choose someone else?”
You Yuji wanted to deny it, but to make him give up, she chose silence. She couldn’t bear to look into Si Que’s eyes. She hurriedly stood up, took a few steps towards the door, putting some distance between them, and away from his presence.
With her back to Si Que, she said harshly, “Your health is poor; I’m afraid it will be passed on to the child. I won’t need you in the future!”
“Sister doesn’t want me anymore…”
Si Que’s pitifully dejected tone made You Yuji’s heart ache.
But he had a bright smile on his lips, and a flicker of madness ignited in his eyes.
The next moment, You Yuji heard the sound of a window being pushed open.
Stunned, You Yuji immediately turned around, but Si Que was already gone. Only the cold wind blew in through the open window, making the books spread out below it flutter wildly.
