Chapter 51: Visit

Soaking her feet in hot water infused with cold-expelling herbs, the warmth quickly climbed up Zhao Yan’s feet, making her curl her toes involuntarily.

Leaning against the bed, Zhao Yan quietly observed Wen Renlin’s expression.

Although it was her own stomach ache, Wen Renlin’s complexion was even colder than hers. She keenly sensed that something was amiss but couldn’t pinpoint the source of this discomfort.

Focusing her attention, Wen Renlin wiped his hands with the neatly stacked cotton cloth beside him, then stood up abruptly, ruthlessly untying the jade belt around Zhao Yan’s waist.

With a slight cracking sound, the clothes suddenly loosened, and just as Zhao Yan’s heart relaxed, it tightened again.

“I’ll change the water…” she hesitated, speaking softly.

Wen Renlin glanced at her, adjusting his robe as he sat beside her, saying, “This prince is not interested in Your Highness’s current disheveled appearance.”

Embarrassed, Zhao Yan focused on the amber-colored water rippling in the wooden tub. Suddenly, she felt Wen Renlin’s palm on her slender shoulders, gently pulling. Startled, Zhao Yan’s upper body leaned uncontrollably to the side, resting against Wen Renlin’s chest.

Before she could comprehend what was happening, a warm hand, soaked in water, reached into her loose clothing, pressing lightly on her abdomen and massaging in circles.

At first, Zhao Yan felt discomfort, as if a stiff wound in her abdomen was being directly pressed. She instinctively tried to sit up but was easily restrained by Wen Renlin.

“So resistant?” Wen Renlin continued massaging, focusing on acupoints to promote blood circulation and dispel stasis. “If Your Highness regrets it, it’s too late.”

“It hurts,” Zhao Yan defended herself, not as he thought.

Wen Renlin lightly hummed, reducing the pressure of his palm noticeably.

“At first, it might feel uncomfortable. Endure it. There are no women by this prince’s side, but massaging these acupoints when feeling cold is particularly effective. It’s logical to assume that women also suffer from blood stasis due to coldness.”

Their positions were extremely close, his deep voice echoing near her ear. Zhao Yan could even feel the slight vibration of his chest when he spoke.

Relaxing, Zhao Yan no longer stiffened, gradually leaning softly into his embrace.

While Wen Renlin appeared relaxed, Zhao Yan keenly sensed a subtle discordance. “How does the Prince know about the treatment for those who feel cold?”

Wen Renlin didn’t answer.

He seemed carefree on the surface, but in reality, he was as deep as the sea. His emotions were not easily discernible, and things he didn’t want to reveal remained impenetrable. Zhao Yan had spent enough time with him to catch glimpses of emotions in his inscrutable eyes.

After a short while, the pain in her abdomen eased, replaced by a warmth spreading from the acupoints, dispelling the coldness. Finally feeling relief from the icy discomfort, Zhao Yan was enveloped in the gentle warmth of the summer night. Sweat began to form on her back.

She moved her slender feet in the warm water, the ripples comforting her and easing her doubts.

Unable to contain herself, she ventured, “Why does the Prince sometimes… treat me so well?”

Was this considered being treated well?

Wen Renlin couldn’t help but chuckle, recalling the scene when he entered the room earlier.

He didn’t know how the Empress raised her daughter. Other girls could cuddle in their parents’ arms and complain about pain, but she had to endure it alone…

Of course, the main reason wasn’t just that.

He had already chosen his ending, and the current situation was merely a butterfly inadvertently caught in the web he had woven, amusing to watch her struggle before being captured.

He admired her beauty and resilience, a prey that belonged solely to him.

Wen Renlin lowered his eyes, retracting his massaging hand and placing it gently on her slender waist. “What else could it be? Your Highness willingly walking into the trap is quite beautiful and amusing. This prince finds it somewhat rare.”

As Zhao Yan turned her head from his embrace, looking up into his eyes as if trying to discern the truth in his words, he smiled faintly.

“Is it rare enough for you to accompany me to my grave?”

She remembered his tender yet heavy whisper from last night’s verbal duel at the Prince’s Mansion.

Wen Renlin paused for a moment, then chuckled softly, his chest vibrating with laughter.

His eyes were filled with flickering flames as he gazed at Zhao Yan’s exquisite face, pinching her waist gently. “Unfortunately, Your Highness is not willing to be trapped. You always struggle. If someday you grow tired, Your Highness, don’t expect this prince to show any mercy.”

Seemingly having some private matters to attend to, Wen Renlin didn’t stay long.

Once Zhao Yan’s limbs were warmed, he neatly arranged her clothes, got up, and left. Left alone, Zhao Yan curled up on the bed, pondering the profound meaning behind his last words.

The next morning, as usual, she had to attend classes at the Chongwen Hall.

Zhou Ji remained the same, his eyes fixed on the sea of books with no other distractions. However, as he bid her farewell after class, he suddenly said lightly, “During the half month Your Highness spent recuperating at the Yuquan Palace, I paid a visit to Huayang.”

Zhao Yan’s heart skipped a beat, and she smiled as if nothing had happened, saying, “Knowing that master Zhou Ji is going to Huayang, I should have written a letter, asking to deliver it to my younger sister.”

She understood the cause and effect, and with Zhao Ji’s concern for herself, she couldn’t help but feel melancholy.

Fortunately, Zhou Ji seemed unaware of the fingers lightly grasping in her sleeve, and only said, “Princess Changfeng is well, Your Highness, do not worry.”

However, with just one glance, he could tell that the “Princess Changfeng” in Huayang was fake.

His mentor, Li Kexing, once warned him, “Wanlan, I know your character is noble and cannot tolerate dirt. But worldly affairs are not about seeing through everything to be considered clever. Knowing what to say and what not to say may not be a kind of great wisdom.”

Zhou Ji remembered this in his heart, so even though he doubted the whereabouts of Princess Changfeng, he only hinted at it.

He remained calm and composed, bidding farewell and leaving. Under the sunlight, his green robe flowed like bamboo, without a trace of gloom.

Zhao Yan knew that Zhou Ji was also investigating the cause of his younger brother Shen Jingming’s death, but she hesitated to tell him the truth. After all, the Zhou family and the Li family had the backing of the aristocratic families of Luoyang for centuries. If it were known that Shen Jingming was involved in assisting the Crown Prince’s new policies, they would likely be the first targets of resentment from the opposition parties…

But Zhao Yan soon had no mood to consider this. In the next martial arts class, Wen Renlin did not come.

Not only today, but for four or five days in a row, the martial arts class was replaced by Master Jin, a man who spoke of military tactics as if reciting scriptures.

Zhao Yan felt dizzy and overwhelmed, inadvertently recalling Wen Renlin’s elegant demeanor as he sat in the Grand Tutor’s chair, explaining the intricate and difficult-to-understand strategies of joint warfare… she couldn’t help but feel a bit nostalgic.

According to Pei Sa, Prince Su had been claiming illness these days, even declining to attend the meetings in the Taiji Hall, which was quite arrogant.

Zhao Yan was skeptical upon hearing this.

Could someone as strong as Wen Renlin also fall ill? Or was it just an excuse?

Was he no longer intending to continue as the Grand Tutor of the Eastern Palace?

With doubts swirling in her mind, Zhao Yan returned to the Eastern Palace, still pondering over this matter.

It wasn’t until now that she suddenly realized that Wen Renlin almost knew all her secrets, yet she had never been able to see through his thoughts, not knowing what he was thinking or doing.

Just as she was thinking, Liu Ying came to report, “Your Highness, physician Zhang has come to check your pulse.”

Zhao Yan glanced at the sky, it was not yet time for pulse-taking.

She knew that Zhang Xu must have made progress in investigating the poison she assigned him to look into, so she composed herself and said, “Let him in.”

Zhang Xu bowed, and Zhao Yan dismissed all attendants except for Liu Ying, then asked, “What’s the result?”

Zhang Xu said, “The prescriptions Your Highness provided have the effect of tonifying yang and aiding conception. I followed the prescriptions and refined two pills, except I didn’t add the medicine made from the blood of young human as the catalyst, all other ingredients were complete. Later, I found that the pills contained a faint fragrance, similar to the poison fragrance mixed in the scroll.”

“Poisonous?” Zhao Yan pondered.

“At first, I suspected so too, but after several tests, I confirmed that the scent came from the gland of the candle snake, a specialty of the southern border. This substance is extremely hot and can cure diseases, but it can also harm people. The key lies in how it is used by the person who prepares the medicine.”

Zhang Xu placed the prescription for the pills Zhao Yan found in the alchemy room of the Jinyun Villa on the desk and pointed out the strange medicine circled with a red pen, “But this substance has a unique fragrance that cannot be suppressed by other medicinal materials. Therefore, regardless of whether it is formulated into a tonic for tonifying yang or a poison, the scent will remain. Moreover, this substance is extremely rare. I had to use all my connections to buy enough to refine two pills from an old trafficker in the black market.”

This thing was priceless, yet Zhao Yuanyu could refine dozens of them with ease. Did he have such connections?

Zhao Yan scrutinized the small black pill handed to her by Zhang Xu, and asked cautiously, “Is this pill poisonous?”

Zhang Xu said, “I personally tested the medicine, and it’s not poisonous.”

“…”

Zhao Yan admired Zhang Xu’s courage and instructed Liu Ying to fetch a bag of gold leaves to reward Zhang Xu for his bravery in testing the poison. Then she carefully took the remaining pill, sealed it in a small medicine bottle, and stood up, saying, “Prepare the carriage, I’m going to Prince Su’s Mansion.”

Prince Su’s Mansion, deep in the night.

Zhang Cang breathed a sigh of relief, shook off the blood on his hands, and said, “After taking the antidote, I finally managed to suppress it… almost killed me, scared me to death.”

Cai Tian remained silent, looking towards the brightly lit clean room.

At this moment, there was a knock on the main door of the mansion. Cai Tian was vigilant, subconsciously pressing the hilt of his sword against the door, gesturing for Zhang Cang to open it.

Zhang Cang cautiously opened the door a crack, then hid his blood-stained hand behind him in surprise, saying, “Crown Prince?!”

Zhao Yan was waiting in the library of Prince Su’s Mansion. A thin mattress was laid under the jade mat, making it less uncomfortable. Before long, the sound of water next door ceased. After a series of opening and closing doors, Wen Renlin, draped in a damp robe, came in.

Seeing Zhao Yan standing subconsciously straight, he seemed unsurprised, lighting all the lamps in the pavilion with a candle and sitting opposite her, saying, “What does Your Highness seek this time?”

Zhao Yan seemed to smell that extremely faint scent of frost again as she scrutinized Wen Renlin’s usual expression, asking back, “Can’t I come to you if there’s nothing wrong?”

Wen Renlin raised an eyebrow slightly and, after a while, said without changing his expression, “Then it must be that Your Highness is having trouble sleeping and wants to use me.”

Zhao Yan choked, feeling a flush rise to her cheeks.

“But I heard that the Grand Tutor is feigning illness and not attending court or the Imperial Academy, so I came to see.”

Zhao Yan pursed her lips and said, “It seems I’ve brought shame upon myself.”

Wen Renlin’s adept demeanor didn’t look like someone who was sick at all.

Seeing Zhao Yan turn her delicate face away, the teardrop mole at the corner of her eye tinged with a faint blush, Wen Renlin teased for a while before chuckling softly.

He raised his arm slightly, gesturing vaguely, “I’ve been feeling a little uncomfortable these days. Perhaps if Your Highness were to embrace me, I’d feel better.”

In the end, he slowly lowered his arm and rested it on the armrest of the chair, tapping it lightly. “Almost forgot, if Your Highness embraces me, she’ll need to drink a couple more bowls of medicinal soup to call it a day.”

Why bring that up again?

“I’ll drink that bowl of soup to be safe. Otherwise, if something happens in the future, no one will take care of me…”

Zhao Yan was annoyed, “I don’t understand these things. I thought my body could handle it.”

The resilient little princess wasn’t very good at showing weakness, and her voice became softer and lower.

But Wen Renlin still heard her clearly and softly replied, “My fault.”

He seemed pensive, “Next time, I’ll bring two books to the Eastern Palace and personally teach Your Highness. Then it won’t be in vain for Your Highness to call me ‘Grand Tutor’.”

… What books?

Zhao Yan stared at Wen Renlin’s serious face, feeling a vague sense of unease in her heart.

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