Chapter 35: Journey to Yongqing Temple

He quietly watched her, his eyes filled with emotions that could not be dispelled…

“Congratulations, Your Highness the Eldest Princess! Felicitations to Your Highness!”

A group of maids smiled and saluted Li Yunli.

In the early years of Yuanhe, in the second month after she brought Yun Chu from the imperial prison to the princess’s residence, the emperor issued an edict:

Princess Nian’an was promoted to Eldest Princess Nian’an and was granted residence in the former Prince Jin’s manor.

From then on, she held the dignity of an independent household and could refer to herself as “Gu” (a term of self-address for nobility).

“This title was expected—what is there to celebrate?”

Li Yunli toyed with the clothes sent by the inner palace, her face showing no joy.

With the young emperor’s ascension, she was meant to become an Eldest Princess. As for the residence, she had grown up in Prince Jin’s manor and had only moved to the princess’s residence at her coming-of-age ceremony. Now, she was merely moving back.

The empire was at peace; the bow was no longer needed once the birds had flown. She could no longer return to the battlefield in the northern frontier.

She turned her gaze. “How is Yun Shijun?”

The joy on Zhi Lan’s face instantly faded, and she lowered her head. “Shijun, he…”

Li Yunli sneered. “He’s already in the capital of Chu, yet he’s still thinking about seeking death?”

Zhi Lan dared not answer.

“Come, accompany me to see him.”

The Cold Plum Residence was not far from the front hall.

Because of Yun Chu’s awkward status, the inner court had not arranged any formal ceremony to welcome him as a consort. Except for a few old ministers who were aware of the situation, most people did not know that the Eldest Princess had taken in the third prince of Wei as her consort.

Li Yunli pushed open the door. The hinges creaked.

Inside, Yun Chu turned his face away to avoid the light.

Many objects on the table had been knocked over onto the floor. His feet were shackled, his hands tightly bound with silk, and his mouth was gagged with a cloth tied behind his head.

In these past days, he had exhausted every possible means to end his life, wearing out Li Yunli’s maids.

Li Yunli stepped in. “Untie him.”

“Your Highness?”

The maids were startled and hesitant, looking at Li Yunli but not daring to move.

“I’m here—what are you afraid of? First, remove the gag. I have words to say to him.”

Yun Chu stared at her with wide eyes.

Zhi Lan stepped forward hesitantly, moving behind him to untie the cloth from his mouth.

Yun Chu coughed once, his eyes filled with hatred as he glared at Li Yunli.

She took two steps forward, frowning slightly when she saw the deep marks of blood around his ankles. “Just how much strength do you have left? After all these days, are you still not finished struggling?”

“If you don’t want me to struggle, then grant me death, Your Highness!”

Yun Chu gritted his teeth, his lips cracked and bleeding from the cloth’s friction.

Li Yunli reached out and gripped his chin, her expression darkening when she saw the wounds inside his mouth.

“On the day your country fell, death was called martyrdom. But now, it’s nothing more than a failed attempt at survival.”

Veins bulged in Yun Chu’s neck, but he couldn’t break free from his restraints.

Li Yunli gazed at him indifferently, waiting for him to calm down.

“Your Highness! Your Highness!”

A voice called from outside. Li Yunli turned her head to see the steward Wang approaching with a tray, his face full of flattery.

“Congratulations, Your Highness! The item you were looking for, this old servant has found it for you!”

Li Yunli glanced at the black liquid in the tray and only needed a sniff to feel the bitterness seeping into her temples.

“What is this?”

“Your Highness wanted something to prevent Shijun from taking his own life! This medicine is called ‘Po Jun.’ It’s a secret interrogation drug used in the palace. A single dose will strip a person of their martial abilities, rendering their limbs weak and their muscles slack. If Shijun drinks this, he won’t even have the strength to lift a knife!”

“Is it poisonous?”

“Rest assured, Your Highness! This old servant has inquired thoroughly—there are no harmful side effects! In fact, if taken over time, it will make one’s physique slender and more appealing!”

Yun Chu’s face turned red with rage. “Li Yunli!”

He was still alive, yet this wretched servant dared to humiliate him so openly!

Li Yunli’s expression remained calm.

She glanced at the medicine named Po Jun but did not take it.

Turning back to Yun Chu, she said, “If you stop trying to die, I won’t make you drink this medicine.”

“If I must live in this cage, I would rather die!”

He kicked his legs, the chains clanking loudly.

“Yun Chu, for the sake of our past acquaintance, on the day the city fell, I didn’t let you enter Wei’s capital because I didn’t want you to die.”

“Your Highness should have let me into the city then. Whether I died in battle or in sacrifice, it would have been an honorable death!”

“You’re really stubborn.”

“Then what do you expect me to do?!”

Yun Chu’s eyes were bloodshot as he shouted, “Should I step over my father and brothers’ corpses, carrying the souls of Wei’s fallen soldiers, and submit myself to you?!”

“Then avenge them!”

Li Yunli’s anger flared, and she finally lost her patience.

“If you have the guts, come and take back what I took from you!”

“From you?” Yun Chu let out a cold laugh, his fury turning into mockery. “From a princess who has already surrendered her military power and settled in the capital? How are you any different from a caged bird now?”

That remark successfully enraged Li Yunli.

Her voice dropped to an icy tone as she looked down at him. “Do you think you’re not in a cage yourself?”

With that, she turned to leave. Yun Chu struggled against his restraints. “Li Yunli, come back!!”

But she didn’t stop and stepped out the door.

“Steward Wang, watch over Shijun. If he tries to die again, feed him the medicine.”

With that, she stepped out and did not return.

---

Li Yunli woke from the long, hazy dream to the sound of a rooster’s crow.

She had burned with fever the previous night, making her dreams restless and exhausting.

Rubbing her forehead, she sat up. The dizziness had subsided significantly, but her thoughts remained a mess.

As she sat there in silence, Zhi Hui entered and gasped before quickly preparing a washbasin.

This girl had stayed up all night, changing Li Yunli’s bedding twice as she sweated through her fever, yet the princess had never woken.

“You’re already awake, Your Highness?”

Li Yunli slowly inhaled, clenched her fist, and nodded.

Last night’s dream had filled in many missing pieces of what she had once read in the original story. She now understood far more than before.

So it was her military achievements and command seal that had bought Yun Chu’s release from prison.

And her confinement in the capital was inextricably tied to this.

And that “Po Jun” medicine—it truly drained a person’s vitality?

Her thoughts jolted.

Yesterday morning, Yun Chu had just been forced to drink a full bowl of it.

What state was he in now?

Shaking her head, she dismissed the thought.

Forget it. She didn’t know how to face him right now.