"Bingbi? Lord Bingbi, please spare my life. I will never dare to do it again." Zhuo was so frightened that his face was pale as paper. He had never expected that he would get into trouble when he tried to help his friend.

He was skinny and had no Kungfu or internal strength to protect himself. He wouldn’t survive the punishment of being beat 12 times by a stick, let alone 20 times!

Zhuo was afraid and wronged. He was howling, struggling, and begging for mercy, "Your Highness, Your Highness, please save me. Lord Xi, please help me!"

Jingle was anxious and angry. She rushed to the door and stretched out her arms to block their way, "Wait. I forced him to take off the official suit of the Imperial Ceremony Office. Do me a favor and let him go. I will reward you!"

Leshuang's deep and cold eyes changed slightly, and he tilted his head to look at the girl with interest.

Although this girl was mischievous, she was still righteous at the critical moment, which showed that she was not bad.

"Your Highness, not everything in this world can be solved with silver." A cold light flashed in his eyes, and Leshuang smiled disdainfully.

Jingle was startled, but also sneered, "Oh? It turns out that you’re not short of money. Is it possible that you want some girl in return? Okay, as long as you let Zhuo go, I will reward you with a maid as your lover!"

Leshuang remained silent, touched his lips with his finger that was dyed by nail polish, and curled his lips meaningfully, "Your Highness, you’re so generous. If you want to give me a lover, may I choose her myself?"

Jingle folded her arms and raised her face proudly, "Of course, just tell me which girl you like, and she will be sent to your room immediately."

Leshuang’s smile was deep and complicated, "What if I’m interested in Your Highness?"

"..."

For an instant, Jingle was shocked. Her eyes widened in anger and her face flushed.

Was she being hit on by a eunuch?

" How dare you! " She shook her head violently, and spat on the ground, "Who do you think you are? How dare you think of it? I’m engaged and will be the Ninth Princess in the future. Even if I’m not, I won't be a eunuch’s lover! Even if I will be a eunuch’s lover, I won't choose you, a eunuch with makeup!"

She cursed in anger and was about to hit him desperately, but she was hugged tightly by Xi.

Leshuang laughed hysterically, "Your Highness, since you can't do it, don't try to be a good person here. Remember, if you don't want to learn the rules, someone has to teach you the rules."

Then he waved to his subordinates, "Take Zhuo away and beat him 20 times!"

Jingle was indignant and helpless. She raised her hand in a daze and pointed directly at Leshuang angrily, "Leshuang, good for you! Xi, let's go. Revenge is a dish best served cold!"

She angrily ran out of the Imperial Ceremony Office, and Xi tried to comfort her, "Forget it. This time we were so unlucky to be bumped into by Leshuang."

Jingle broke off the wicker, tore down all the leaves, and pouted in annoyance, "He's just a minor official. How dare he be so arrogant?"

"A minor official...? Tsk…"

Xi glanced at her, "As far as I know, Leshuang is only about twenty years old, and it stands to reason that with his qualifications, he can't be the second most important officer in the Imperial Ceremony Office. But he is smart and good at sucking up to others. He won the favor of Lord Yue from the Eastern Depot and called him godfather affectionately. Lord Yue liked him so much that he found fault with the last Bingbi and fired him to promote his godson. Your Highness, isn’t he capable?"

Jingle sneered, "D*mn, he’s just a despicable flatterer! Not capable!"

Xi shook his head, "But I think he is capable. Leshuang got the position in one and a half years while others would spend 5 years or even 10 years to make it. Don't blame him for being arrogant just now. You don't want to, but there are plenty of maids in the Palace who want to know him!"

She was not interested in what he said. She only looked him up and down, suddenly stretched out her hands, and desperately pulled at his collar.

Xi was taken aback and said in protest, "What are you doing? What are you doing?"

"I want your clothes. Take it off and give it to me."

"Ah? Well, I can’t... If you wear my clothes, what would I wear in broad daylight...?"

She ignored his protest and didn’t stop, "Stop talking nonsense. Just take it off quickly!"

…

In the meditation room of Yonglu Temple, Huanan He slowly opened his beautiful eyes. He was greeted by swirling smoke and pleasant sandalwood fragrance.

Opposite him, Master Huichan was sitting cross-legged and counting the beads at his fingertips.

"Your Highness, you’re uneasy today, and it is really difficult to meditate." He was an eminent monk. He didn't need to open his eyes to see what the state Huanan He was in.

Huanan He was speechless. Facing the old monk, he smiled in embarrassment.

Master Huichan opened his eyes faintly and looked straight at the silver-haired man with clear eyes, "Your Highness, have you been bothered by the nightmare recently?"

Huanan He's eyes drooped slightly, and he became more profoundly confused, "Master, to be honest, I have already met that woman in the real world. Originally, I only regarded it as a dream, but since I met that woman, I can't tell exactly what that dream is..."

Master Huichan's eyes lit up, "It's a good thing. It shows that your confusion is about to be resolved."

Huanan He suddenly frowned, looked at the old monk eagerly, and shook his head, "No. Since I met her, my confusion has become more profound. Master, tell me, why does a stranger appear in my dream?"

Master Huichan was calm and folded his hands unhurriedly, "Amitabha, Your Highness, Don’t panic. You might have known each other in your previous life. It’s a destined encounter in this life. You and the woman have met both in reality and in dreams. You said that you did not know her, but you might be destined to meet her in this life because you were old acquaintances in the previous life."

Huanan He looked dazed and murmured after a long pause, "I wonder whether it is a blessing or a curse..."

The old monk smiled and narrowed his eyes, "Every cloud has a silver lining."

There was a moment of silence in the meditation room.

Then the old monk got up, "Your Highness, since you’re not concentrated on cultivation today, you can go to the back mountain to collect a bundle of firewood as a punishment. I hope the hard work will be beneficial to your enlightenment."

Huanan He didn't dare to neglect his suggestion. He agreed and left the meditation room.

From Yonglu Temple to the back mountain, he would pass three halls and two courtyards and then a free life pond before he could follow the stone road uphill.

Huanan He walked in a daze.

This time, he came to the temple not for cultivation, but for something else he couldn’t tell others.

In front of the half-open gate of a courtyard, Huanan He somehow stopped and looked into the courtyard.

The courtyard was not too big. There were two main rooms and three wing-rooms, which were divided in an orderly manner.

In the courtyard, the tung trees flourished with luxuriant foliage and the orchids were thriving under the wall with a unique Buddhist charm.

Huanan He firmly believed that his memory was correct. This courtyard should be the place where Da Yi's royal ladies cultivated Buddhism.

Was Lady Yun taking a break from smallpox?

Suddenly, he became energetic, and a trace of longing and uncontrollable impulse quietly came to his mind.

He opened the gate and walked into the courtyard.

At this moment, the door of the main room opened. Half of Zhiqi's body was revealed.

She poured the thick black soup in the bowl into the flower pot in the corner while holding the door with one hand.

"What are you pouring?" Huanan He stopped curiously and locked his black eyes on the maid.

Zhiqi stared at the silver-haired man five steps away and her mouth was half-opened. Her eyes were complicated. She was surprised and delighted.

Only two days after her master left the Palace, did the Ninth Prince come to visit her at Yonglu Temple?

On that day, he also gave her master wild roses and nigrum fruits.

Well, they liked each other...

"What are you doing? Answer me!"

At this moment Huanan He came to his sense suddenly. He looked at the empty bowl in Zhiqi's hand with sharp eyes and pressed her again in a more serious tone.

"I... I..."

"This is good medicine to save your master's life. Why did you throw it away?"

Huanan He walked two steps forward and his black eyes were filled with anger.

"Oh!" Zhiqi screamed in shock and retreated into the house.

"Your Highness, don't scare her. I ordered her to do it." A weak female voice made his heart tremble.

He immediately stepped into the house and saw the woman lying in the bed.

Gu Yunxi turned her head sharply, unwilling to let her beloved man see her sore face.

Huanan He understood her difficulties, turned sideways to avoid looking at her, and folded his hands, "Your Highness, please forgive my intrusion. I came to the temple today to participate in meditation and accidentally saw your maid pouring medicine when I passed by here. I wonder why you’re doing this."

Gu Yunxi glanced back, watching the man's solemn face quietly. She calmed herself down and frankly said, "Because that medicine can't cure my disease."

Huanan He became angry when he heard it. He no longer had any scruples and looked at the woman with angry eyes, "That's the prescription from the Imperial Hospital in the palace. The medicine is also the best. How can it not cure your disease? Why don’t you cherish it? Don’t you want to cure smallpox as soon as possible? Do you want to infect more people?"

Gu Yunxi looked aggrieved and frowned sadly, "Your highness, please calm down. My illness is not smallpox..."

"What are you saying?" His beautiful eyes were wide open in shock and there was a buzz in his ears, "You don't have smallpox, but your acne...?"

Tears gleamed in Gu Yunxi's eyes, "I brought it on myself because I took secret medicine."

"You are crazy!" Huanan He was shocked and angry. He scolded, "If this is the case, you are deceiving the emperor!"