FID – Chapter 1084

Chapter 1084 – That Sentence Still Made Her Heart Ache

Shan Lai bit her lip, a chill running through her heart.

In the way he pushed her away, she felt the hint of disdain.

Gritting her teeth, she pressed herself against him again, wrapping her hands tightly around his neck. “Saintess Shan Lai has devoted herself entirely to His Majesty and Your Highness, doing everything I possibly can. In Your Highness’s eyes, is it all worthless?”

“Saintess, do not speak recklessly. I am loyal to His Majesty, and all that you have done is also for His Majesty.” 

His tone was calm, without particular emotion, yet he did not push her away again.

Everything was shrouded in darkness; no one could see the other’s expression.

After a moment of silence, the woman pressed her lips against his neck, lingering almost greedily. “His Majesty is suspicious. If this matter succeeds, it’s fine. But if it fails, you know who my loyalty is to, Your Highness—you.”

In the confined space, their breaths grew heavier and faster.

“I know my status is unworthy and do not dare tarnish Your Highness’s reputation. I ask for little—only a trace of your favor. I would never demand a title, Your Highness…”

Prince Shunyang leaned back against the carriage, neither responding to nor restraining her movements.

His fingers lightly traced her skin, delicate and smooth as cream. “Does the Life Link Gu really have no solution?”

He did not respond to her passion or confession; instead, he asked about the Gu.

The woman’s movements on his body paused slightly. “No solution.”

“Then if you had planted such a Gu on me, would I be bound to another for the rest of my life?” His hand, lightly brushing over her skin, finally rested on her slender neck.

With just a gentle grip, he could end her life instantly.

Shan Lai, as if unaware of the danger, instead leaned closer to him. “How could I ever place a Gu on Your Highness? I know better than anyone how much you despise Gu, so I have never allowed any of them to appear before you.”

In the darkness, she breathed heavily, her eyes dazed, trying to see his expression, only to find a haze of black and gray.

Only his eyes shone like stars in the night, flickering with intermittent light.

The hand on her neck slowly released.

“I trust you,” he said.

The distance from the imperial palace to the Yun Palace was not short, yet when the carriage stopped, Shan Lai felt it was still not far enough.

Noticing her dissatisfaction, the prince let out a soft chuckle, lifted her chin, and whispered in her ear, “Next time.”

He pulled her gently from him, fixing the disheveled folds of her clothing with his own hands. “Go back now.”

Shan Lai’s heart warmed slightly. She leaned forward, intending to kiss him, but he turned his face, and her red lips brushed against his cheek.

Watching her enter the palace, Prince Shunyang lowered the carriage curtain. “Return to the residence.”

He took out a handkerchief and vigorously wiped the spot where her lips had touched, then tossed the cloth out of the carriage.

In the confined space, shrouded in darkness, the man’s eyes were icy cold.

Previously, the capital of Xiliang had been on edge due to the spy incident—soldiers were everywhere, stopping and questioning people at every turn. But in the past couple of days, the troops had suddenly begun to withdraw, and even the city gates under martial vigilance were now less guarded.

The commoners could freely enter and exit the city. The tension that had gripped the city seemed to vanish abruptly.

Shan Lai went to the Rare Treasures Pavilion almost every day in person, waiting inside for the person she needed to appear.

One day, two days… ten days—the time passed in the blink of an eye, yet not a single unusual movement occurred.

During this period, the old emperor’s temper grew increasingly erratic—sunny one moment, stormy the next, unpredictable in mood.

Even the Saintesses of the Saintess Tribe, who were usually treated leniently, were subjected to corporal punishment due to a single misstep.

The palace was stifling. From top to bottom, everyone lived in fear, not even daring to show their faces before the emperor.

Shan Lai knew that the emperor’s patience was nearing its limit.

If Liu Yusheng still failed to appear, she would be the next unlucky one.

The emperor was naturally suspicious. Ever since returning from the sacrificial ceremony, he had lingered in a state of lingering illness. His body showed no signs of recovery. Even that minor cough clung stubbornly like a plaster that wouldn’t come off, leaving the court physicians completely at a loss.

Such an abnormal situation would inevitably make the emperor suspicious.

If it were said that Liu Yusheng had administered some kind of poison, the imperial physicians had already examined the matter. Back in the temporary palace, what Liu Yusheng had used was merely a sedative.

The guards who had been affected alongside the emperor had long since recovered, yet he remained unwell. How could the emperor not be suspicious?

And after Liu Yusheng’s escape, the only people recently near the emperor were Shan Lai herself and Prince Shunyang.

Even though Shan Lai remained outwardly calm, a sense of unease began to rise in her heart.

She understood Liu Yusheng’s personality. She was certain he would save Xue Qinglian, certain he would come to the capital and walk straight into the trap.

But until now, Liu Yusheng had not appeared.

With Liu Yusheng absent, she had no recourse.

By the time Shan Lai began to lose her composure, Liu Yusheng and Feng Qingbai had long since left Labao Town, taking a detour toward the northwestern border.

Qian Yi had already said that Shan Lai could not remove the Life Link Gu, so any poison-dispelling prescription was naturally fake. There was no need to go to the capital and fall into someone else’s trap.

Yet their own situation was far from easy.

Xue Qinglian was growing weaker by the day.

Coughing up blood wasn’t yet frequent, but the periods of unconsciousness were growing longer.

That day, after a meal, the group had gathered together to discuss their next route when, without warning, Xue Qinglian collapsed from his chair, unconscious.

When Liu Yusheng examined him, her brow furrowed tightly. “His vital energy is very weak. My medicines are no longer effective. If we can’t find a way to dispel the Gu, I’m afraid…”

She didn’t finish her sentence, but Feng Qingbai and Qian Yi understood her meaning.

If the Gu remained, Xue Qinglian’s life would be in danger.

Feng Qingbai lifted Liu Yusheng and held her close, gently patting her back. “We’ve already done everything we can. What cannot be done cannot be forced; all we can do is our part and leave the rest to fate. Xue Qinglian, be mentally prepared.”

Liu Yusheng’s eyes reddened.

A heavy, oppressive weight seemed to seep through the room.

“Sister Liu, is it really that serious?” Qian Yi’s gaze fell on the pale-faced man on the bed.

She asked without looking at Liu Yusheng.

She still remembered when she first met Xue Qinglian, both of them dangling from a cliff. Even then, facing certain death, his brow and eyes still radiated unstoppable brilliance. There was no fear of dying in his gaze.

His every movement, every expression exuded a free, unrestrained spirit. He was dazzling and impossible to ignore.

But now, he lay there, barely clinging to life, his face pale and bluish, dark shadows under his eyes. The Gu’s poison had hollowed out his cheeks; his features were almost unrecognizable.

He had grown so thin.

Yet whenever he opened his eyes and looked at them, he still displayed that same world-weary, carefree attitude.

It was as if the passage of life, or even the poison slowly eating him away, had brought him no burden at all.

That was only for others to see.

She always remembered Liu Yusheng’s words: he was a lonely man.

That sentence still made her heart ache, more and more with each passing moment.

“I’ll go make some more medicine,” Liu Yusheng said, her voice slightly nasal as she left the room, half-embraced by Feng Qingbai.

Her footsteps faded down the corridor. Qian Yi’s lashes quivered, and she turned around.

After a long moment, she went over and closed the door, the click of the lock echoing softly.