Although Master Wu Chen’s voice sounded cold and unworldly, the faint ups and downs still indicated his concern and compassion as he spoke slowly,

“Amitabha, it’s been a while. How are you, Miss?”

As she heard the voice of Master Wu Chen, Shui Yinzhu raised her head towards him for the pearl she received. Her eyes were still blank, no longer attentive or shining as she gazed at him.

But a seed of hope was planted in that long-dead heart. She didn’t have the courage to touch it, for it might only disappoint her again.

“Mr. Xuan was murdered that day, stabbed many times. I happened to be passing by. Those men in black left after they confirmed that he was no longer breathing.” Wu Chen couldn’t help but sigh for Shui Yinzhu. He never expected that the cruel and scheming Ruxin would be caught in such a hopeless situation. “After they left, I sent him back to his men. He held his breath on purpose. Even though he was badly hurt, it wasn’t enough to kill him. He has been in a coma until yesterday.”

“Is he... really alive...?” a hoarse voice came from the pale lips. Even though she still choked, there was hope in that voice as she threw that tentative question. If it weren’t for Shui Yinzhu being so weak, she would be trembling.

“Yes, he’s still alive. He heard about you after he woke up and sent me to the imperial palace immediately.” Wu Chen failed to notice that he was no longer keeping that image of a monk. His palms were no longer together, and he even forgot to address Shui Yinzhu as Miss. It wouldn’t be difficult to tell his anxiety.

“Really...? He is really...still...alive...right?”

“Yes, he is alive. Xuan Zhi is still alive. He sent me to bring you this...”

As he spoke, the weak girl lifted her finger and pressed it onto his lips as she whispered with difficulty, “Master, lower your voice. They can hear you.”

“All right.” Wu Chen nodded and got close to whispered in her ear, “Xuan Zhi sent me to bring you this pearl so that you would believe he is still alive.”

Shui Yinzhu held tighter onto that pearl. Only Kong Yue and Xuan Zhi had a pearl like this, the only gift she sent them. It was a secret known to only the three of them. Kong Yue’s pearl was now on Shui Yinzhu’s hairpin. This one did belong to Xuan Zhi. It wouldn’t be possible to find another one identical to it.

Wu Chen found it difficult to get rid of his emotions. He hated this girl who brought an end to his family, but he did fall in love with her. Wu Chen held her into his arms with no ill intention, just to comfort her. Shui Yinzhu did not struggle. She didn’t even feel weird at all. Unlike the warm and relieving hug of Xuan Zhi, the hug of Master Wu Chen was a divine embrace with the hope of life.

Xuan Zhi was really not dead. The man she loved would come for her. There was a chance for them to meet again. Shui Yinzhu gripped the pearl so tightly in Wu Chen’s arms. She was no longer the tough woman but rather a fragile newborn baby as if she would collapse at any touch.

Now that she had the meaning of her life back again, her body started to recover. Her eyes were focused, and she started to breathe gently. All the sadness and pain she suffered these days turned to an urge of crying.

Shui Yinzhu felt like crying. She could use a wild much of it, but she was too weak for a drop of tear. She started to sob quietly and tearlessly in the arms of Wu Chen. It was so quiet as if no worldly affairs would be there to bother.

As Yun Su waited anxiously in his study, the confidential guard responsible for Shui Yinzhu reported to him the conversation inside the bedchamber. He swept the jumble of his table down to the ground angrily. But still, he had to accept the fact. Xuan Zhi was the only hope for his Sister Xi to survive. He believed that Xuan Zhi would eventually show up as long as Shui Yinzhu was with him here.

But the emperor couldn’t send any assassins to Xuan Zhi anymore. He wouldn’t do so. He would let him live so that Shui Yinzhu would stay alive. Sooner or later, the emperor would have his girl back. He was never going to allow the two of them to meet. As for that monk, Sister Xi still needed him for now. A murderous look fleeted through the emperor’s eyes.

Now that his beloved girl was no longer in danger, the scruffy emperor shut his eyes, held down the urge of killing the monk, and went to clean himself up.

The young gentleman Yun Su was back. A gentle smile crept back to his face. He looked so harmless, as if he was a little white rabbit.

Autumn came to an end. It was about to be winter as the temperature dropped. But maybe it was because of hope. Shui Yinzhu didn’t feel cold at all. She was getting energetic like a little baby, as if it was about to be spring.

“Miss, shall we get something to eat?”

“Okay.”

As the girl in his arms calmed down, Wu Chen gently put her back on the bed. He raised the pillow a bit so that she could look at the surroundings better. Then he opened the door and asked for some porridge and some light dishes.

Clearly, the imperial kitchen had already got that prepared. Servants brought the food in immediately. Everyone except Yun Su in this palace would be thinking of Wu Chen as their savior. Light shone in their eyes. Since the monk had an otherworldly look, it wouldn’t be strange to recognize him as a powerful immortal.

Wu Chen took the tray and said “Amitabha” before going back to the bedchamber and shutting the door. He didn’t even notice the look of others. The pure and kind man gave up his businessman instinct after becoming religious. His mind was getting simple.

He fed Shui Yinzhu some food. As she gained back some strength, Wu Chen asked the palace maids to help their empress get changed. Then they moved to a room right next to the bedchamber. As the weak girl felt more grip in her hands, she grabbed that pearl tightly and held Wu Chen with the other hand, neither of which she was willing to give up.

Even if Yun Su came to visit, her eyes were still fixed on the detached monk. She wouldn’t even look at the emperor. In Shui Yinzhu’s heart, Wu Chen was the only comfort in this chilling golden cage.

As Shui Yinzhu started to recover, the monk began to look like an eyesore for the emperor. But Yun Su didn’t feel angry. As long as his girl got better, he wouldn’t mind having that monk besides her.

Huaiyang City, the capital of the Empire of Yun, was in the south. The weather was not cold in winter, but the damp air could be bone-chilling. It didn’t always snow here.

But the coldness wouldn’t stop the innocent Princess Xi from coming back. No, the real Princess Xi wasn’t coming back. It was just that Shui Yinzhu was getting so tired after all this suffering. The only thing she yearned for was to take a break after waking up again.

Still in her white dress, Shui Yinzhu sat in a pavilion. No longer coquettish or hateful, she did look like the innocent girl as she used to be. But the pretty little face of hers was bony. The good news was that she was now cooperating with the new imperial physicians to nurse her soon-to-die body.

With the meticulous caretaking of Master Wu Chen, the girl no longer felt hateful after coming back from death. She still didn’t talk too much, but her eyes were more gentle. She was recovering as her face got ruddy and her body vigorous again.

Now that she had recovered a little, Shui Yinzhu looked more like her old self, Princess Xi. The only thing different was that the hairpin once with one pearl now had two pearls on it.

She slowly took off her hairpin and touched the two pearls on it. She asked a crafter to inlay the pearl of Xuan Zhi onto her hairpin. As she wore it, she felt as if Kong Yue and Xuan Zhi were still by her side so that she would have more energy to live on. As her hand caressed the hairpin over and over again, there was warmth in her eyes.

If Shui Yinzhu didn’t stop Wu Chen when he mentioned the pearl, that possessive emperor would never allow her to keep this hairpin of special meaning. For now, the only thing Yun Su knew was that she liked this special hairpin. But he didn’t know what it represented. That should be enough.

Wu Chen came with a white cloak. He strolled to Shi Yinzhu and put it on her back. The man frowned as if Shui Yinzhu shouldn’t be coming out wearing so little after a minor recovery.

Shui Yinzhu turned back as she sensed her visitor. She pulled him over to ask for his company.

“What brings you here, Master Wu Chen?”

“Miss, would you indulge yourself in catching a cold if I didn’t come?”

“Master, I won’t do that again.”

“Amitabha.” Wu Chen brought his palms together out of habit.

“Master, shall I call you Wu Chen?”

“Yes.”

“Would you please call me Yinzhu instead of Miss?”

“Amitabha. Yes, Miss.”

“Wu Chen, I don’t hear any difference.”

“Yinzhu.” Wu Chen blushed for a moment. But he immediately lowered his head and called, “Amitabha.”

Maybe this was the happiest time in Wu Chen’s life. A monk was not supposed to hold such emotion, but the man named Feng Qianwu still couldn’t forget her.

This pure and innocent Shui Yinzhu was completely off-guard. She trusted him. The man that once fell in love with her would only find it too hard to resist such intimacy.

He had to convince himself that he was guiding her to give up on her violence and hatred and turned back to the kind Princess Xi.

Shui Yinzhu didn’t want to spend much time judging people and their hearts. Moreover, she enjoyed the peace when she was with Wu Chen. The monk chanted sutras by her side every day. Instead of feeling bothered, her mind was appeased or even purified. She gradually loved listening to these sutras, to be specific, the sutras chanted by Master Wu Chen.