Chapter 25

Several doctors resided in the King’s mansion year-round. After examining Lin Que, they discussed and prescribed medicine, which Nanny Liu personally prepared in the corridor, never leaving it unattended.

Lin Yan’an brought Lin Qiwu. Usually, Lin Qiwu disliked Lin Yan’an, thinking he was scheming and didn’t want to be too close to him. But now that Lin Que was ill, she preferred to stay by Lin Yan’an’s side, seemingly finding more security there.

Gu Chi, who was recovering in the mansion, was also present. He was cold and taciturn, unlike Li Mu, who was afraid to speak. He simply said to Li Mu, “Sister-in-law, don’t worry. Brother will be fine.”

Lin Qiwu echoed, “Big Brother used to be unwell often, but he’s been much better these past two years. It’s just a headache, so he’ll be fine this time too. He might even be better by tomorrow.”

Li Mu nodded, “Yes.”

Lin Que was currently just feverish and unconscious. The doctors said his condition wasn’t severe, so the urgent task was to prevent news of his illness from spreading. Fortunately, Lin Que had brought Gu Chi and Lin Qiwu to the mansion a month earlier, so their continued stay wouldn’t arouse suspicion.

Inside the mansion, Steward Wu and Nanny Liu managed things tightly, ensuring no problems arose. The main issue was the administrative duties handed back to Lin Que due to Grand Princess Zhaoming’s departure from the capital. Being the end of the year, the local officials’ audience had to be completed by the twenty-fifth of the twelfth lunar month, making it a busy and somewhat troublesome time.

To keep Lin Que’s condition a secret, Gu Chi temporarily handled the affairs. Lin Yan’an, who could imitate Lin Que’s handwriting and knew his writing habits and style, also helped.

Lin Que remained unconscious for several days, but his condition improved, and the fever subsided. The doctors believed he would wake up soon.

Li Mu thought that if Grand Princess Zhaoming was still as devoted to Buddhism as in the book, praying for divine protection for Lin Que, she would still be in the capital. However, her understanding of state affairs wouldn’t be as good as it was now. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been exploited due to her concern for Lin Que, leading to a situation where she lacked the ability to handle the natural disasters that occurred after Lin Que’s death, resulting in the division of power among three factions.

Li Mu wasn’t sure if the current situation was better than in the book or if Grand Princess Zhaoming could make it back in time.

Gu Chi and Lin Yan’an temporarily borrowed her study. Occasionally, she would help organize memorials and messages from the pigeon house. Initially, she was very cautious, fearing she might make a mistake, but gradually, she became more adept at identifying and prioritizing key information. She also gained a better understanding of Lin Que’s abilities.

How did he manage to find time to review her homework, think of new thumb ring designs for her, and still have frequent headaches? Is this man a genius?

On the fifth day of Lin Que’s coma, Li Mu fed him medicine. After putting down the bowl, she sat by the bed for a while and poked the mole at the corner of his eye several times.

Then, she woke him up.

Li Mu almost thought she was dreaming. She had poked Lin Que’s tear mole, not an activation switch. How could it be so coincidental?

It wasn’t until Lin Que turned his head and his nose brushed against her finger that she snapped back to reality and called for the doctor.

The newly awakened Lin Que was listless and irritable. Seeing Gu Chi and Lin Yan’an worried about him, even Lin Qiwu, who came to see him after school, hid behind Li Mu, peeking out and not daring to speak loudly. Annoyed, he said, “I’m not dead.”

He then asked about the handling of state affairs over the past few days. Despite being unconscious for five days, he acted as if he had only slept for one night. Gu Chi and Lin Yan’an were also caught up in his thoughts. Afterward, they were sent off to work, far away to Qinxin Residence. Lin Qiwu’s homework was also increased, adding to her already bad mood, and she held back tears as she went to do her homework.

Only Li Mu and Lin Que were left in the room. Lin Que leaned against a soft pillow and closed his eyes in exhaustion, and when he opened them, he didn’t look at Li Mu sitting far away at the table. Instead, his gaze fell on the Nine-Nine Dispel Cold Chart hanging in the room. He counted and asked, “If I don’t remind you, you really won’t fill in a single stroke?”

Li Mu, drinking hot water from her cup, responded confidently, “Hmm.” Lin Que almost laughed in exasperation, “I drew it myself, and you’re just going to ruin it.”

Li Mu put down her cup, the bottom making a light sound on the table, “I told you, I have a bad memory.”

“It even became my fault,” Lin Que muttered, then added, “Well, today I reminded you, so don’t forget.”

Li Mu nodded, “Okay.”

Lin Que reached out to her, “Why are you sitting so far away?”

Li Mu hesitated before getting up, walking to the bedside, and holding his hand as she sat down.

Unlike usual, Lin Que had no strength, so Li Mu used her strength to hold his much larger hand in her palm.

Lin Que squeezed her fingers, not as gently as usual nor as sternly as he treated his younger siblings and son. It was more like the way he acted the night Li Mu got drunk and told him not to trouble himself: “Is poking me fun?”

Li Mu: “You often poke my face.”

“And…” Li Mu raised her other hand, twirling a strand of Lin Que’s hair around her finger, “Touch my hair…”

Then she poked his earlobe, “Pinch my ears.”

Lin Que noticed that Li Mu’s mood was slightly off and unconsciously softened his tone, making his voice sound weaker: “Weixi, I feel terrible.”

Li Mu responded mercilessly, “Bear with it.”

Lin Que was surprised: “Didn’t you promise to repay me?”

Li Mu shook her head: “I don’t want to repay you this year. Maybe next year.”

Lin Que couldn’t help but laugh, feeling much better and less tired. He then asked Li Mu, “Honestly, did you secretly drink behind my back?”

The last time Li Mu was this bold and talkative was after she had a drink before he returned. Given her current demeanor, she must have had at least half a pot.

Li Mu explained why she had deliberately sat far away: “When I’m in a bad mood, I say unpleasant things.”

Before her time travel, she always avoided her parents’ respective new families. When they met, she was introverted and timid, almost invisible. But one day, her half-brother and his friends made a dirty joke about her at the dinner table, and she flipped the table, saying things she would never normally dare to say. Afterward, her father called her, telling her to see a psychologist. She cursed him out, saying the most hurtful things she could think of, telling him to check himself for STDs before telling her to see a psychologist. This made him so angry that he smashed his phone, and she was so furious that she hyperventilated and slid off the sofa onto the floor. Fortunately, she recovered quickly. Every time she cried from hyperventilation, her mood would improve rapidly.

The advice she gave Li Zhi was based on her own experiences.

But Lin Que was different from her father. Thinking this, Li Mu got up to return to the table: “I should stay away from you.”

In the past few days, she didn’t dare get too close to Lin Qiwu and Lin Yan’an, and with Lin Que still ill, there was no reason for him to listen to her complaints.

Lin Que pulled her back, comforting her, “Don’t worry about me. There were times much worse than this in the past. When I was first rescued, I could only lie in bed, drinking medicine like water every day. Even a child could have smothered me to death. Compared to back then, I’m much better now.”

“This summer, I didn’t even go to the summer palace and didn’t feel too uncomfortable, so I’ll be fine.”

Li Mu took a deep breath and exhaled but couldn’t suppress a slight tremor in her voice, “Please, don’t jinx it.”

Lin Que didn’t understand, “Jinx what?”

Li Mu turned her face away, pretending not to hear.

Lin Que turned her face back, “Let’s take this opportunity to talk.”

Li Mu waited for Lin Que to speak.

Lin Que licked his dry lips, “If I really don’t make it, you should remarry and take Yan’an with you.”

Li Mu: Are you talking nonsense?

Li Mu frowned and noticed Lin Que’s actions, pouring him a cup of water from the teapot by the bed.

Lin Que: “He’s ruthless and can protect you from being bullied.”

Li Mu: Why do I feel like you’re more ruthless than him?

Li Mu put down the teapot, checked the water temperature through the cup, and handed him the water.

Lin Que took the cup, drank, and put it back, “You don’t have to think about me too much. Just write me a letter every year on my death anniversary and Qingming Festival, and that will be enough.”

Li Mu: Isn’t that still thinking about you?

Li Mu couldn’t listen anymore and interrupted him, “If I had a choice, I wouldn’t even want to marry you, let alone remarry. Wake up.”

Lin Que repeated, “You wouldn’t even want to marry me?”

Li Mu: “…That’s what I thought at the time.”

Lin Que chuckled, “And now?”

Li Mu looked at him silently.

Lin Que suddenly felt uncertain and adjusted his sitting position, “I’m not that bad, am I?”

Li Mu adjusted the soft pillow behind him, “A short life is also a flaw, unless you can change that.”

Lin Que laughed again. He had intended to say something absurd to cheer up the trembling-voiced Li Mu, to make her happy, but it always ended up making him happy and laughing.

Actually—Lin Que only realized now—he didn’t know when it started, but no matter how unhappy he was, as long as Li Mu was there, he would quickly feel joy because of her.

How could there be such an interesting girl in the world, and she was his wife? Fortunately, he had learned to treat her well from the beginning; otherwise, he would have regretted it greatly now.

“Weixi,” Lin Que called her softly.

Li Mu decided that if Lin Que said anything strange again, she would go back to sit at the table.

Lin Que said, “I really like you.”

A tear immediately welled up in Li Mu’s eye and spilled over.

…

Li Mu had a good cry, releasing all the emotions building up inside her over the past few days. Then, she reverted to her usual timid and socially anxious self.

Li Mu apologized to Lin Que, “I’m sorry.” Her earlier words had been somewhat impolite.

Lin Que, however, found the sharp-tongued Li Mu somewhat stimulating. He wondered if, with more time, he could get her to speak so boldly even when she was in a good mood.

Lin Que’s plan was well thought out, but unfortunately, the next day, he coughed up several mouthfuls of blood and fell unconscious again.

Gu Chi had already sent someone to inform Grand Princess Zhaoming. From the capital to Guide Prefecture, it took about ten days by fast horse, and a round trip would take twenty days. But even by the twenty-fifth of the twelfth lunar month, when the local officials’ audience ended, Grand Princess Zhaoming had not returned.

On the twenty-seventh of the twelfth lunar month, five days after Lin Que first woke up, only six strokes had been added to the Nine-Nine Dispel Cold Chart on the wall. The news of Lin Que’s illness couldn’t be kept secret because Gu Chi’s actions were too conspicuous. He had summoned every available doctor, including the imperial physicians, the doctor who had saved Lin Que years ago from Princess Huai Shu’s mansion, and other renowned doctors in the capital. If he hadn’t feared for the safety of the King’s mansion, Gu Chi would have gone to nearby prefectures to find more doctors.

That day, while every household was out shopping for the New Year, the atmosphere in the King’s mansion was cold and quiet.

Li Mu picked a few branches of wintersweet nearby, intending to place them by the window to bring some life to the room. If Lin Que woke up, he could enjoy the flowers. But when she entered the room, she saw Lin Que sitting in bed, having someone bring the Dispel Cold Chart to him, and he added a stroke to it.

Lin Que’s energy was better than in previous awakenings, looking like a final burst of strength before death. Li Mu’s legs went weak. She forgot to hand the wintersweet to someone else and quickly walked towards Lin Que.

Lin Que instructed them to hang the Dispel Cold Chart back on the wall, reached out to let Li Mu sit by the bed, and then casually took a yellow wintersweet flower from her arms and placed it in her hair.

“It’s so cold outside. Aren’t you afraid of catching a cold?” he said.

Li Mu stared at him, her mind in turmoil, her face blank.

The book said that King Yan died in the sixth year of Yongchang, in the twelfth lunar month of winter.

Lin Que: “Don’t look like that. Where are A Chi and the others? Let them come to see me.”

Li Mu looked outside, and Nanny Liu quickly went to call them. But before everyone arrived, Lin Que’s energy gradually faded. He couldn’t even hold Li Mu’s hand, and it was only because she held onto him that his hand didn’t slip out of hers.

Lin Que wanted to hold Li Mu’s hand back but couldn’t muster the strength. A familiar sense of unwillingness surged in his heart, just like that rainy day nine years ago.

The wintersweet was carelessly placed on the incense table, and because it wasn’t handled gently, a flower fell from the branch and slowly hit the ground.

At the same time, the main gate of the King’s mansion was opened, and the belated Grand Princess Zhaoming rode her horse straight into her son’s mansion, galloping all the way to the main courtyard before stopping. She then pulled a person in a burlap sack off the horse. Before the maid at the door could react and open the door for her, she carried the sack and kicked the door open.