Chapter 108

After her bath, the sky had already brightened, and the maidservants withdrew.

Xie Tingzhou sat back on the edge of the bed and touched her forehead. Her fever had indeed subsided slightly, but she was still burning.

She had just bathed and changed into clean clothes. Her hair had been carefully dried by the maidservants and spread out on the bed.

But after a while, sweat began to bead on her forehead again, and the fresh, clean clothes began to show signs of dampness from the sweat.

The doctor had said that the heart fire would burn itself out, and that fever and sweating were normal.

She seemed to be lying uncomfortably, her breaths becoming heavier and heavier, and her brows furrowed together.

Xie Tingzhou pulled her up from the covers and leaned her against him, using a handkerchief to wipe away the sweat on her forehead.

He had never taken care of anyone in his life. Even when he served the King of Beilin, he only ever served medicine and water, while other tasks were done by the maidservants.

But now, taking care of her, he felt like it was supposed to be like this, as if it was something he should be doing.

He didn’t know how long it had been, but Xie Tingzhou let her lie back on the bed. When he retracted his hand, his fingertips seemed to brush against her cheek unintentionally, and Shen Yu on the bed suddenly stirred.

Xie Tingzhou leaned over, getting closer and asking, “Are you awake?”

Shen Yu just turned her head restlessly, looking uncomfortable.

“It will be uncomfortable, but you have to endure it.” Xie Tingzhou comforted her in a low voice.

He was about to get up, but he found that his sleeve was being pulled by her, but her eyes were still closed.

“Father…”

Xie Tingzhou stared at his sleeve and sighed. He really didn’t know how she developed this habit of calling for her father when she was sick.

He had already been a father to her twice.

It had to be traced back to when Shen Yu was a child. Her mother had passed away early, and both children were still young. Shen Zhong’an couldn’t bear to leave them in the care of servants, so he acted as both father and mother.

Whenever they got sick or fell, he took care of them personally.

Shen Yu was not in good health when she was young. At first, he had her practice martial arts to strengthen her body, but he didn’t expect her to have such excellent understanding and aptitude.

Training was extremely hard, and Shen Zhong’an felt sorry for her, saying that if she didn’t want to train, she didn’t have to. But she was stubborn and strong-willed, and she insisted on training. So she continued to train.

Every time after training, Shen Yu would love to act cute and complain of pain to Shen Zhong’an.

Xie Tingzhou held her hand and gently put it back into the covers. He then heard her mumbling, “Brother.”

Brother, this sounded much more pleasing to the ear. He was a few years older than her, so this “brother” wasn’t out of line, although he knew she was calling Shen Zhao.

She had been burning with fever intermittently for a whole day, and by the evening of the second day, she finally stabilized.

When Shen Yu woke up, it was morning. She lay on her back on the bed, looking at the canopy above the bed, her mind a little dazed.

This wasn’t her bed. Her canopy was white, while this one was dark blue.

She remembered that she was talking to Xie Tingzhou in the carriage, and then what happened?

Shen Yu lifted the canopy and looked around. The room was large, with simple but elegant furnishings. It was clearly Xie Tingzhou’s room.

She couldn’t think of any reason why she would be lying on Xie Tingzhou’s bed.

Just as she was thinking, a hazy figure appeared on the screen partition in the middle of the room, slowly walking towards her.

Shen Yu quickly closed her eyes, maintaining her sleeping posture. She only heard the footsteps getting closer and closer, stopping in front of the bed.

She heard the curtain being lifted, and then a slightly cool hand rested on her forehead.

Shen Yu used a lot of effort to keep herself steady.

After the hand left, Xie Tingzhou didn’t make any movement for a long time.

Xie Tingzhou stared at her with a smile, seeing how long she could pretend.

“Stop pretending, get up and have something to eat once you’re awake.”

Shen Yu opened her eyes to look at him. This man really didn’t give her any face, directly exposing her.

Xie Tingzhou helped her sit up and put a pillow behind her back. She looked down at the clothes she was wearing, they were hers, probably taken from Lumingxuan.

This action caught Xie Tingzhou’s eye, and he teased, “Are you worried that I’m plotting against you?”

Shen Yu hugged the covers, “I’m worried that I’ll go crazy because of my illness and plot against you.”

Xie Tingzhou: “Maybe you’re worried about what I want instead.”

Shen Yu was stunned for a moment before she realized the meaning of his words. Xie Tingzhou had already turned to call someone, and she couldn’t tell whether his casual remark was a joke or had a hint of seriousness.

The maidservants entered in a line, carrying trays.

Shen Yu was about to get out of bed, but Xie Tingzhou had already turned from behind the screen and instructed, “Set it up on the couch.”

The maidservant responded, “Yes.”

He must have just washed his hands, as he was holding a handkerchief to wipe the water droplets from his hands. He watched as the maidservant placed a small table on the couch and then placed the food one by one on the table.

“Go down.” Xie Tingzhou instructed.

This was the first time Shen Yu had eaten on a couch, but judging from the maidservant’s proficiency, this wasn’t the first time. He probably sometimes lay in bed with a lingering illness, so weak that he couldn’t even get out of bed.

Thinking of this, Shen Yu suddenly felt a little stifled.

Xie Tingzhou sat sideways on the couch, glanced at the dishes, and then lifted his sleeve to personally ladle out the porridge.

Sick people usually have no appetite, but Shen Yu felt like she could eat an elephant now.

“How long have I been asleep?”

Xie Tingzhou placed the bowl of porridge in front of her and said, “Two days.”

“Two days!” Shen Yu was astonished.

She remembered the verdict. Ge Liangji was to be executed three days later, and two days had already passed.

Shen Yu took the chopsticks Xie Tingzhou handed her and asked, “Ge Liangji will be executed tomorrow at noon, right?”

Xie Tingzhou lightly “hmm”ed and asked her, “Do you want some small dishes?”

“Yes.” Shen Yu said, “But…”

Xie Tingzhou interrupted her, “Do you want pickled vegetables? To whet your appetite.”

“Yes.” Shen Yu casually replied, and then said to herself, “That night, I actually had some things I hadn’t…”

Xie Tingzhou: “Do you want a meat pie?”

“Yes!” Shen Yu was anxious, “I…”

Xie Tingzhou: “Forget it, you’re sick now, meat pies are not easy to digest.”

One was anxious and impatient, while the other was calm and composed.

Shen Yu’s mind was not on food at all now. She waved her hand and said, “Forget it, whatever, anything is fine. I’ve been thinking for a long time…”

“Anything…” Xie Tingzhou suddenly looked up, “Then do you want me?”

“Yes!” Shen Yu nodded, and then said, “I’ve been thinking, since Ge Liangji took all the blame, he must have reached an agreement with someone. This person…”

She spoke slower and slower, her voice getting lower and lower. From Xie Tingzhou’s meaningful gaze, she gradually recalled what he had asked and what she had answered.

Her heart began to beat faster, as if it was about to jump out of her chest uncontrollably. Shen Yu suddenly pressed her chest.

“Uncomfortable?” Xie Tingzhou asked.

Shen Yu shook her head.

Xie Tingzhou lowered his eyes and saw her fingertips turning white from gripping the chopsticks. He reached out and took the chopsticks, putting a spoon in her hand.

She was so nervous, Xie Tingzhou wasn’t going to say anything more.

He said calmly, “Forget about Ge Liangji for now, fill your stomach first. I’ll let you see someone later.”

Shen Yu nodded, looking unusually docile. She lowered her head and scooped up a large spoonful of porridge.

Just as she was about to put it in her mouth, Xie Tingzhou grabbed her hand, “It’s hot.”

Shen Yu couldn’t remember what she ate during this meal or how it tasted. She just stuffed it into her mouth.