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If one’s reputation is ruined for a time, it will be difficult to recover in the future…
Li Yunli couldn’t help but laugh at the taciturn way of speaking, yet she knew the person in front of her had a keen mind and was not truly reticent. The way he spoke now was clearly meant to tease her.
So, she responded with a soft “Mhm”:
“Since you’re back, why don’t we talk about serious matters?”
Yun Chu’s hand had been supporting Li Yunli’s waist, afraid she might lose balance upon just waking up. He nodded in response, but just then, Zhi Lan knocked on the door from outside.
The imperial consort had instructed that the remaining medicine should be decocted within fifteen minutes, and Zhi Lan dared not delay. As soon as it was ready, she brought it over.
Li Yunli looked at the freshly prepared bowl of medicine, still steaming with a clear hue. She sniffed it and asked:
“Why is there more?”
To be honest, she was already feeling much better. The unbearable cold in her abdomen had dissipated, and her strength had mostly returned. Half in doubt, she asked:
“Do I really have to drink this?”
“If Your Highness feels much better, you don’t have to.”
Yun Chu touched his nose.
Li Yunli found this suspicious and turned him towards herself:
“Be honest, when did you develop this antidote? Have you taken it yourself before?”
“…No.”
“Hm?” Li Yunli tilted her head. “You haven’t taken it yourself?”
Initially, when she saw the pill, she assumed Yun Chu had long prepared an antidote from his previous sufferings under the Po Jun drug. But looking at this newly prepared medicine, she was no longer so sure. Clearly, the prescription was still being adjusted based on symptoms.
Sure enough, Yun Chu lowered his head and explained:
“I hadn’t perfected the antidote before. The effects varied greatly depending on the addition of two particular ingredients. So, I only made a safer version in pill form, while the rest had to be adjusted case by case. If Your Highness is feeling fine, there’s no need to drink this.”
“So, last time, did you take the antidote?”
Li Yunli looked at him.
“It doesn’t matter now, Your Highness. You wouldn’t give me Po Jun again, would you?”
Li Yunli was momentarily stunned.
His reaction was quite telling—when he mistakenly drank a whole bowl of Po Jun last time, he clearly had no antidote.
She turned her head slightly and softened her tone:
“You’re right. I won’t let you take that thing again.”
After all, she had experienced it firsthand—just a small dose made her feel as if she had been poisoned.
It was hard to imagine that he had endured it frequently in the past.
The past…
Li Yunli was no longer sure if her so-called “past life” was merely what she had read in the original book or something else entirely.
“You…” She looked up slightly, searching for the right words. “Do you still remember…”
Yun Chu’s hands remained steady as he supported her against his shoulder. He gently asked:
“What does Your Highness wish to ask?”
Li Yunli pursed her lips.
“You know my memories of the past are incomplete. After consuming Po Jun this time, I saw some things in a half-dream, half-awake state. I thought, given the dosage, it shouldn’t have been strong enough to make me hallucinate. So, does that mean something actually happened in the past? Do you remember—did I get poisoned in my past life as well?”
The moment she asked, Li Yunli clearly felt the muscles in Yun Chu’s shoulder tense.
Yun Chu lowered his head, holding her lightly against him, his fingers slightly curling on his lap.
“Your Highness… did you remember something?”
“No.”
Li Yunli shook her head as if nothing had changed.
That was precisely why she was asking. Before, she had assumed Yun Chu’s attachment to her came from experiencing the events of the book and being reborn.
But recently, the dreams she saw told a different story.
Keeping her expression calm, she casually asked:
“You once mentioned a black dog sacrificed for the banner. Later, I dreamed of a snowy night and a pack of wolves. I don’t know if it’s because my memory is incomplete, but my subconscious remembers it vividly—it felt so real in my dream. Though it doesn’t affect the present, it lingers in my mind, so I’m just asking. Don’t worry about it.”
Yun Chu’s breath became lighter.
How could he possibly not worry about such a thing?
His throat was dry, full of hesitation:
“If Your Highness dreams of unpleasant things, would you consider them as real memories?”
No matter how he calculated, he never expected this twist of fate.
At first, Li Yunli had never told him from what point in time she had returned. Based on her attitude toward him, Yun Chu assumed she was unaware of the later betrayals and conflicts.
Then, Qing Nian revealed that her memories were incomplete. Yun Chu thought he was lucky—that she had forgotten the most painful memories out of self-preservation.
But now, she was saying she was gradually remembering?
Yun Chu dared not think further. His breathing trembled slightly.
“For example, the snowy night Your Highness dreamed of—what happened afterward? Did it make you sad? If so… would you hate me?”
“Why would I?”
Li Yunli smiled faintly.
She didn’t know what Yun Chu had experienced on that snowy night. In her memory, she had attempted to escape but failed, surrounded by wolves, and was saved by Yun Chu.
Now that she had brought it up, it had turned into a test.
Her smile deepened.
“I was indeed afraid when I saw the wolves, but you saved me. You even bandaged my wounds afterward. You must have been injured too, right?”
She recalled the details from her dream.
“Although I never wished to end up in such a desperate situation, and I never wanted to be someone who needed rescuing, I believe that, at that moment, I had already done my best. I don’t regret it. You saved my life in that moment—how could I possibly hate you?”
“I see.”
Her dream had stopped there.
Yun Chu’s lips pressed into a thin line, his clenched fingers turning pale.
“Your Highness was indeed poisoned before—seriously poisoned.”
Li Yunli’s eyes widened as she looked at him.
Yun Chu said softly:
“But that is all in the past. It has been a long time. Your Highness once said this was a new game of chess. Now, may I choose not to speak of the past?”
From Yun Chu’s words and reactions, Li Yunli could almost confirm her suspicions—the past she dreamed of was real.
So it was true…
She let out a small breath, smiling with ease.
“Of course, the past doesn’t matter. I don’t remember it anyway.”
Yun Chu looked at her, his gaze carrying a quiet warmth.
“Let’s talk about what’s happening now. The present is what matters.”
Li Yunli adjusted her posture, sitting up straighter.
Yun Chu nodded.
She cleared her throat:
“A lot has happened while you were away. His Majesty is likely trapped in the capital but still safe. He secretly sent the Northern Army’s command token to me. I already ordered Ji Wenxun to split the army into two. Now, I have one division heading northwest to assist Yongzhou under the guise of rescue. Since Yongcheng Marquis won’t be able to escape, your troops won’t either. Do you understand?”
“I do.”
Yun Chu then mentioned something else:
“To gain Zheng Siyang’s trust, I used the White Tiger Token. Some of the troops I brought today were trained by him even before his kingdom fell. These men must be handled carefully, especially if Zheng Siyang ever allies with A Si—it could be troublesome.”
Li Yunli pondered for a moment and then asked:
“Then, do you need to go back?”
“No need.”
Yun Chu reached for her hand and smiled.
“If Your Highness wishes for me to stay, then I shall stay. But I can no longer be ‘Yun Shijun’ in name.”
He watched as she smirked mischievously and pulled out a fearsome mask from under the bed.
“Since you’ve been captured, you must be properly detained, right?”
She leaned in, whispering:
“But if my personal prisoner is locked away in my chambers, that wouldn’t sound good. Instead, how about my army gains a masked general?”
Yun Chu chuckled helplessly.
“What title will this general hold?”
“None. Just my personal guard. Will you mind?”
“Not at all.”
And so, a new identity was forged.