Chapter 32

King Yan was indeed troubled by the question Li Mu raised for several days. Even Grand Princess Zhaoming noticed that something was on his mind and specifically chose a time to ask him about it.

Lin Que thought that his mother, having lived longer, walked more roads, and eaten more salt than him, might have an answer, so he shared the question with her.

Grand Princess Zhaoming was first informed that her usually quiet and reserved youngest son had been in contact with Li Mu’s second sister, who was in quiet cultivation at the nunnery. Then she was thrown a genuinely difficult problem, leaving her momentarily confused. Fortunately, this didn’t happen a few years ago when Grand Princess Zhaoming was a devout Buddhist; otherwise, her youngest son’s behavior would have earned him a beating.

Now…

Grand Princess Zhaoming closed her eyes and spat out one word: “Leave.”

Handling state affairs and listening to ministers’ chatter every day was already enough of a headache. She didn’t need to be bothered with this, especially since Gu Chi was clumsy with words. Discussing this issue now was giving him too much credit. They should wait until he could make the girl willing to marry him.

Lin Que received the one-word advice and quickly left, just in time to avoid an afternoon rain.

That night, after he and Li Mu each took their medicine and rinsed their mouths, he suddenly thought of something and asked Li Mu, “Have you ever actually called Gu Chi by his name?”

Li Mu was silent.

Yes, because of her social anxiety, she hadn’t met Gu Chi many times. Even when they did meet, it was Gu Chi calling her Sister-in-law, and she never addressed him as Little Brother or Uncle.

The problem was solved because it didn’t exist in the first place.

Li Mu couldn’t help but ask, “Did I not call him even on the day of the tea ceremony?”

Li Mu was very nervous at the time and didn’t remember.

Lin Que remembered clearly, “No, at that time, everyone outside thought you couldn’t speak. Mother and Gu Chi didn’t know the situation, so when you offered tea, Mother drank it, and when you gave the meeting gift, Gu Chi accepted it. When Yan’an called you Mother, you patted his head, which counted as a response.”

So that’s how it was.

Li Mu almost forgot that her previous persona was that of a nearly mute fool.

The changes were significant, but Li Mu wasn’t surprised because she had experienced similar situations before her time travel. During high school, when she switched classes, when she first moved into her university dormitory, and when she started her job, she would go through a period of silence. The longest period of silence was in high school, almost an entire semester. In university, it lasted two months. The shortest was when she started her job, as the work environment forced her to speak up, and she adapted within two weeks. However, the desire to quit persisted for a year until she finally adjusted to the work environment and colleagues. Yet, in the six months before her time travel, she didn’t know what had happened, but she was increasingly dealing with higher-ups. Every time her phone or computer notified her of messages and emails, she felt nauseous. But the thought of finding a new job, going through interviews, and adapting to a new environment after quitting made her push herself to endure. Li Mu thought that if it weren’t for the car accident and time travel, she might have already quit. Life had become unbearable, and her boss wanted to promote her, a programmer who only knew how to coordinate work with team members, to management. It was simply crazy.

Putting aside the issue of titles, Lin Que brought up the Emperor.

The Emperor was frightened for a while after breaking his leg. Later, whether it was because the imperial physician assured him that his leg would heal or the constant reassurances from those around him that his fall from the horse was an accident unrelated to King Yan, he believed it. Or perhaps he had a genuinely poor memory. In any case, he couldn’t stay idle and organized a hunting competition for the officials.

There would definitely be a banquet with the game in the evening, so Lin Que couldn’t return to have dinner with Li Mu the next night.

Li Mu nodded and reminded him, “No drinking.”

Lin Que agreed.

The next morning, Nanny Liu told Li Mu that Lin Yan’an had accompanied several princes to the hunting grounds the previous day. They encountered rain and took shelter in a cave for a while, but he wasn’t feeling well when they returned. Sure enough, he was sick that morning.

Li Mu thought for a moment and decided to go see him. As she was leaving, she ran into a young eunuch who said the noble consort sent him to invite King Yan’s consort to watch the hunting competition.

Similar invitations had come countless times, but none had ever reached Li Mu’s ears. This time, Li Mu heard it and felt pressured. Nanny Liu intercepted the young eunuch, mentioning Lin Yan’an’s illness, allowing Li Mu to excuse herself.

Li Mu arrived at Lin Yan’an’s place. The doctor said it was just a common cold with mild symptoms, and he would recover after a day of rest and medicine.

Li Mu thought about the eunuch she encountered on her way and decided to stay with Lin Yan’an to avoid running into him again without an excuse to refuse.

Lin Yan’an drank his medicine and fell into a deep sleep. Feixing and Xianyun, worried Li Mu might be bored, brought her calligraphy materials and books. Li Mu continued practicing calligraphy and reading in the adjacent room. When she didn’t feel like studying, she took out some thread and a hairpin-like crochet hook from her pouch and casually crocheted a few bracelets, which she gave to Lin Qiwu and Li Yunxi, who had come from the hunting grounds to visit the patient. The two of them were dressed differently than usual. They were wearing men’s clothing and hairnets, which also covered the birthmark on Lin Qiwu’s forehead.

It was said that before they came, they had shot a rabbit, which the Fourth Prince also had his eye on. Because they were dressed as men, he didn’t recognize them and almost injured Li Yunxi with an arrow. That arrow was intercepted by Lin Qiwu and the Seventh Prince, Gu Yuwen. Lin Qiwu then shot another arrow, which grazed the Fourth Prince’s neck, leaving a bloodstain and scaring him off his horse.

Lin Qiwu proudly reported her achievement to Li Mu, who patted her head and said, “Impressive.”

The bracelet Li Mu crocheted had three small camellias on it. Lin Qiwu chose the red one, and Li Yunxi chose the green one. The two children were so engrossed in putting on the bracelets that they forgot they had come to visit Lin Yan’an.

Li Mu, worried that the children might catch a cold, didn’t remind them. She only went to check on Lin Yan’an after they left.

Lin Yan’an was still asleep. Li Mu saw it was late and hesitated whether to wake him up to eat something. While she was pondering, Lin Yan’an opened his eyes.

…

After the hunting competition, the banquet was held outdoors, under the open sky, with bonfires, early-arranged music, dance, fine wine, and delicacies.

The champion of today’s hunt was none other than Grand Princess Zhaoming, who had been troubled by state affairs for many days and finally had a chance to relax. The python she hunted was made into snake soup, and many of the other beasts were released. The remaining two were roasted outside after being prepared by the imperial chef.

Lin Que found it greasy and stopped eating after a bit, planning to find an excuse to leave early, take a detour to Lin Yan’an’s place, and bring Li Mu back. He was distracted, recalling overhearing someone gossiping that King Yan’s consort had come to the summer palace but was not seen, and even dared not accept invitations to the hunting grounds because Yan King found her foolish and didn’t allow her to show her face to avoid embarrassment.

Lin Que suddenly changed his mind, picked up the untouched wine cup, and poured out the wine. A nearby attendant tried to refill it, but Lin Que covered the cup with his hand, causing the wine to spill on his hand. The frightened attendant quickly lifted the jug and knelt to apologize.

The music and dance were interrupted, and everyone at the banquet looked at Lin Que. He calmly took out a handkerchief to wipe the wine off his hand and said, “Take it away. No need to pour wine for me.”

The Emperor, unaware that Lin Que hadn’t drunk wine for a long time, panicked, thinking his handling of the Fourth Prince had displeased him. He nervously asked, “Why don’t you drink? Is the wine not to your liking?”

Lin Que smiled kindly and said, “Your Majesty worries too much. It’s just that the consort specifically instructed me not to drink.”

The Emperor could hardly believe his ears. “Your consort?”

That woman who was said to be a fool?

Lin Que continued, “Yes, the consort has a temper, and I dare not disobey her.”

The Emperor suspected that Lin Que might already be drunk and turned to look at Grand Princess Zhaoming, hesitantly asking, “Zhaoming, is your daughter-in-law really that temperamental?”

This was King Yan! How could a fool dare to act like that?!

Grand Princess Zhaoming took a sip of wine and defended Li Mu, “Nonsense. That child is very well-behaved. She must have been provoked to anger by something.”

Lin Que sighed, “Your Majesty, you see, everyone favors her. How could I dare to say more?”

He then mentioned that it was getting late, and with Lin Yan’an still ill, he was worried about the consort taking care of him alone. He stood up and took his leave from the Emperor.

Lin Que left the scene feeling refreshed, leaving the ministers present with a new understanding of the Li family’s daughter’s situation in King Yan’s mansion. Though unbelievable, they planted a seed of belief that King Yan was indeed afraid of his wife. This also added a touch of humanity to the regent, who was otherwise seen as a fearsome figure.

…

Perhaps sleeping all day had muddled his mind, but when Lin Yan’an woke up, he seemed dazed. He turned to look at Li Mu as if he didn’t recognize her, and after a long while, hoarsely called out, “Mother.”

Li Mu sighed in relief, and Nanny Liu quickly brought warm water, helping Lin Yan’an sit up and drink.

Afterward, Lin Yan’an had a bowl of ginger porridge. Sitting by the bed, Li Mu fretted over what to say to a sick child. She had no experience as a parent or a child in such matters. Fortunately, Lin Que arrived, and Li Mu quickly pushed him to the bedside.

Seeing Lin Que, Lin Yan’an showed the same dazed expression as when he first woke up. Lin Que frowned and touched his forehead, “Didn’t they say it was a mild illness and you’d be fine after a nap?”

Although Lin Que hadn’t come during the day, he had sent someone to check on him.

Lin Yan’an looked at Lin Que and suddenly smiled, “Father, I am indeed better, just a bit tired. I might need another night’s rest.”

Lin Que said, “Rest well for the next couple of days. Missing a day or two of study won’t hurt.”

Lin Yan’an nodded, “I understand, Father.”

As Lin Que and Li Mu were about to leave, Lin Yan’an suddenly called out to Li Mu, “Mother.”

Li Mu turned back to see the weak Lin Yan’an smiling at her, “Thank you, Mother.”

Li Mu thought Lin Yan’an was thanking her for caring for him all day, but in reality, she had been next door, practicing calligraphy and reading, even making Lin Qiwu and Li Yunxi forget about him. She felt a bit guilty accepting his thanks.

Unable to say much, Li Mu simply advised, “Rest well.”

Lin Yan’an replied, “Yes, Mother.”

After Li Mu and Lin Que left, Lin Yan’an dismissed his attendants and leaned against his soft pillow, closing his eyes and lowering his head. He seemed deep in thought, clenching his teeth and furrowing his brow tightly. Suddenly, a warm touch pressed against his brow, a calloused fingertip trying to smooth out his frown.

Lin Yan’an’s eyes snapped open to see Lin Qiwu’s impatient face.

Lin Qiwu, about to go to bed, remembered she had been preoccupied with the bracelet Li Mu made and forgot to check on her nephew. So, she ran over in the middle of the night, leaning over the bed and pressing hard on his brow, “Stop frowning. It’s annoying to look at.”

Lin Yan’an stared at her blankly, unlike the smile he showed Lin Que. Instead, tears welled up in his eyes.

Lin Qiwu was startled and pulled her hand back, retreating quickly. “Crying? Really crying? Why are you crying? I didn’t do anything to you.”

Lin Yan’an looked up at her, not asking her to return, but said, “I had a nightmare all day.”

Lin Qiwu couldn’t understand. “Just because of a nightmare?”

Lin Yan’an looked at her, his eyes a bit dazed. “It was a terrifying nightmare. If you had that dream, you would cry too.”

Lin Qiwu slowly moved closer, pouting. “I wouldn’t cry!”

Lin Yan’an said, “I dreamed about the end of last year. In the dream, I was still in Yangzhou, and when I rushed back, Father was gone.”

Lin Qiwu slapped the bed. “That was just a dream. Big Brother is fine!”

“Yes,” Lin Yan’an said. “Father is fine.”

And you will be fine too.