“Wu Chen, will you come with me for a walk to the Xiyan Palace?”

“Sure. Amitabha.”

The two of them paved to Xiyan Palace in this early winter. The phoenix tree was still the first to come into their sight. Shui Yinzhu wandered to the tree. She reached out her arms to encircle the trunk way thicker than her body, as if she was a little kid.

This was the first time Shui Yinzhu got out of the palace she stayed after returning from death’s gate. This phoenix tree had been with her mother and her, like a family member. But this silent guardian was not able to protect their life.

All of a sudden, an acute pain hit Shui Yinzhu’s abdomen. Beads of cold sweat dripped from her forehead. The girl crouched down to the ground. Wu Chen immediately held her in his arms.

“Yinzhu, are you all right? What’s going on? I’ll take you to the imperial physician.” Wu Chen was so anxious that he forgot all the formalities, seeing Shui Yinzhu like this. But that didn’t help her ease the pain.

“Not the imperial physicians. Wu Chen, take me to the bedroom of the Xiyan Palace.” In excruciating pain, Shui Yinzhu was still trying everything to tolerate it just in case the confidential guards might tell the emperor that she was not feeling well.

“All right.” Wu Chen picked Shui Yinzhu up in his arms and took her to her old bedroom.

After Shui Yinzhu lay on the bed and the door was shut, she no longer held herself back. Her clothes were soaked in sweat. Wu Chen held her tightly and only got more confused.

“Yinzhu, what’s going on?”

“Wu Chen, lower your voice. Don’t let the confidential guards hear you.”

“All right, I’ll talk gently. But what is going on?”

The two of them whispered to each other.

“I’m fine. It’s the sequela of the Heat Poison.”

“Heat Poison? Then why bother keeping it a secret to the imperial physicians?”

“The imperial physicians...won’t find the reason. This is the secret recipe of...Uncle Zhi,” even though Shui Yinzhu was suffering great pain, she was still answering Wu Chen’s questions just so she could get a little distracted.

“Then I’ll go ask for His Majesty’s permission to get out to meet Uncle Zhi.”

“No, that’ll expose Xuan Zhi. Besides, this after-effect isn’t of any harm in normal days.”

“But it doesn’t seem so...”

“Just once every month...”

“But...”

“Wu Chen, the result is that...I can’t get pregnant. You know my situation... Even though my body is clean for now...there is still a chance that... I don’t want his child... That’s going to drive me mad...”

“Okay, I see.” Wu Chen only found her situation tragic. He didn’t know how to comfort the girl except hold this girl in pain tightly in his arms.

“Wu Chen...”

“Yes?”

“Wu Chen...”

“I’m here. Is it getting worse?”

“I’m fine. It won’t last long. Wu Chen, just hold me tight.”

“Yeah.”

“Wu Chen, can you chant sutras for me...”

“Okay. Namo Amitabha...”

Wu Chen couldn’t share a slice of the pain as the girl suffered in his arms. Wu Chen held Shui Yinzhu in his arms. No matter how worried he was, the only thing he could do was repeat the sutra, hoping that Buddha would show mercy and ease this girl’s pain.

Shui Yinzhu closed her eyes. Sweat kept dripping down from her head. The pain in her abdomen came and went but still wouldn’t fade away. Maybe because of the sutras, she found the pain grew to be tolerable.

Shortly afterward, while she was still in the middle of pain and peace, Yun Su came to the door. He rushed in and found the girl in a white dress lying in Wu Chen’s arms. It was such an offense of his eyes, but he was more worried about the condition of his Sister Xi. As soon as the guards reported, he came immediately.

Shui Yinzhu didn’t want Yun Su to see her condition, so she buried her head into Wu Chen’s chest. Wu Chen had to say something. He tried to cover the girl up. He used to be a businessman; not acting sophisticated didn’t mean he was stupid.

“Amitabha. Don’t worry, Your Majesty. Her Majesty is fine. But she hasn’t recovered long enough and can always use some rest.”

“I’ll call the imperial physician.”

“Yun Su, I’m fine. You can get lost now. Wu Chen, I need some sleep.” Shui Yinzhu held the pain. She didn’t want Yun Su to tell anything wrong. She would rather tear her own body apart than reveal her illness. The last thing she would want was to give birth to Yun Su’s child.

“Your Majesty, Her Majesty is not feeling well and needs some sleep. Please leave first. I will take good care of Her Majesty. Amitabha.”

At this very moment, Yun Su was furious. He would rather get this monk killed. He clenched his hands but managed to hold his anger down. He could tell that Shui Yinzhu was not feeling well from her pale face. Since she had always been stubborn, the emperor had to obey. At least he needed her to be healthy again.

“Sister Xi, take some rest. I’ll be off for some time. I will come to see you when you feel better.”

This incident felt nothing more than a brief interlude. But things were never what they appeared to be. Something had been left in the heart of all three of them. Yun Su, the possessive pervert, would no doubt keep this in his mind. Shui Yinzhu and Wu Chen were neither stupid. They both knew what it would bring them in the future.

But from time to time, human beings tend to play the fool. They would choose to lie to themselves even though it’s dangerous. They would try every means to avoid facing the most terrible fear in their heart.

Life went on. Though the deepest part of their heart was like icy winter days, the surface of life was still warm as the stove in their room. Wu Chen spent all his time with Shui Yinzhu during the day. He had meals with her and watched her take medicine.

In the afternoon, the favorite thing for the two of them would be sitting down under the phoenix tree in the Xiyan Palace. Shui Yinzhu would lean on his shoulder and look into the sky as he chanted sutras. Sometimes, they would take a nap together in her old bedroom.

After the Heat Poison attack, Shui Yinzhu grew the habit of sleeping in Wu Chen’s arms at night. It was not a good habit when she needed to sleep in someone’s arms. But Shui Yinzhu formed it when Kong Yue was around. Having nothing to do with lust, it was simply because she needed a shoulder to lean on and some warmth.

When night came to the empress's bedchamber, Wu Chen stared at Shui Yinzhu as she slept as relaxed as a little baby. He couldn’t help touching her face. Shui Yinzhu had lost much weight. Even though she gained some back, she was still not fully recovered. Wu Chen couldn’t help sighing when thinking about her experience.

The good part was when Yun Su came to visit Shui Yinzhu every day, he didn’t force her to do anything. He didn’t intend to bring Wu Chen away either, giving permission to him to stay with Shui Yinzhu.

With Wu Chen by her side, the no longer agonized girl felt time running faster. It was new year’s eve. Shui Yinzhu was finally getting vigorous.

As Xuan Zhi was finally back on his feet, he couldn’t help but feel sad. The girl he loved was still suffering inside the imperial palace, but he was barely standing on his feet. He was distressed when thinking about the days passed.

As the door opened, Zuo Xin came in. She held a tray in her hand with a bowl of steaming medicine on it. She saw Xuan Zhi standing on his feet in clean clothes and gave an excited smile.

“Azhi, you can get off from the bed. That’s great.” Meanwhile, she passed the bowl to Xuan Zhi, trying to get close to him.

“Miss Zuo, just put it on the table, and I will drink it.” Xuan Zhi tried to avoid physical contact with her. He didn’t like this girl. “Miss Zuo, please knock on the door if you want to come to my room. And you don’t have to come in unless it’s for an emergency.”

No, apart from Shui Yinzhu, the one at the bottom of his heart, he didn’t like any other women. Zuo Xin was an innocent girl. Everyone liked this charming and lovely girl, including Li Yi and Uncle Zhi.

Zuo Xin was the one taking care of Xuan Zhi when he was carried back covered in blood. Even when Uncle Zhi was treating Xuan Zhi, this poor little girl was watching with her eyes full of tears, disregarding the boundary between men and women.

Others would feel that she had been wronged. Everyone knew that she was a kind and loving girl who truly cared about Xuan Zhi. She had been taking care of the man in a coma for days and nights.

After Xuan Zhi got out of danger and woke up, Zuo Xin only served him much more eagerly. Xuan Zhi intended to leave the work to servant girls, but she insisted on it as if she didn’t understand his words. Once Xuan Zhi got serious, Zuo Xin’s eyes would turn red as if she would burst out crying any minute.

Everyone felt sorry for her. If it weren’t for Xuan Zhi being their master, they would have urged him. Their master and this lovely, kind, and sincere girl Zuo Xin were such a perfect match. She was way better than that princess Shui Yinzhu full of resentment. But they were not their master and could do nothing to change his mind. They simply felt sorry for Zuo Xin and tried everything they could to help her.

Since Xuan Zhi could do nothing to change her mind, he had to let it be. The only reason he cooperated with Zuo Xin would be to recover faster. Shortly after he woke up, his condition improved at an astonishing speed. It was not just because of Uncle Zhi’s treatment, but the patient himself’s anxious cooperation, too.

No matter how lovely Zuo Xin was or how much she loved Xuan Zhi, the man didn’t like her. No one would be able to replace Shui Yinzhi. They had been through life and death and so many other things. That love was deep inside their bones and souls.

When Shui Yinzhu turned 9 years old, Xuan Zhi pitied the girl. When they met again in her 14th year of life, Xuan Zhi already fell in love with the poor jade doll. Later, she learned the meaning of love and lost Kong Yue. The girl had to drift around with Xuan Zhi for their revenge. The days and nights they spent together gained Xuan Zhi her true love. It was so rare that a simple, innocent girl would never replace her.

Xuan Zhi was still weak after he woke up, but the only thing that drew his interest was the news about Shui Yinzhu. Zuo Xin kept it a secret. But when Wu Chen tried to reach out to him, Zuo Xin took the liberty of sending him away. She wasn’t supposed to mind Xuan Zhi’s business.

If it weren’t for Wu Chen shouting out Xuan Zhi’s name and he heard it, he wouldn’t know that his girl was at the brink of death. Luckily, Shui Yinzhu survived. Or Xuan Zhi would have gone crazy and killed Zuo Xin right away. That would be a horrible consequence when he thought of it now.