Chapter 74: High Coldness and Heavy Punches

Unable to get an answer from Jiuming, Lou Yanhui turned her gaze back to the woman in her arms.

The skin beneath Luo Yunjin’s tightly closed eyelids was bruised a dark, sickly shade of blue-black, a clear sign that she hadn’t rested properly in a long time. Her pale, small face and bloodless lips told a silent story: the woman she loved had not lived a pleasant life over these past two years.

Lou Yanhui lowered her head, her tears falling in tandem with a soft kiss. “Little Jin, I’m sorry. Can you ever forgive me?”

As Lou Yanhui whispered her plea, a pained groan escaped Luo Yunjin’s lips. Lou Yanhui’s hand gently brushed over her beloved’s furrowed, agonized brow, and she called out urgently, “Jiuming!”

The door creaked open. Jiuming reappeared carrying a tray laden with three large bowls of freshly brewed decoction. Even from a distance, the pungent, acrid scent of the medicine was overwhelming.

Lou Yanhui’s brow knitted together. If she forced her to drink this much medicine, her stomach would be bloated to the bursting point. How could she possibly eat anything else? “Is she ill?” she asked.

Silence was her only answer.

Without her master’s explicit recognition of Lou Yanhui’s status, Jiuming had no intention of answering any questions. If she hadn’t seen that flicker of joy in her master’s eyes when she first spotted this woman, Jiuming would have driven the Princess of the Western Regions out of the manor long ago.

She thought her master had suffered enough; if the appearance of this Princess could bring her even a shred of happiness, Jiuming would endure her presence. However, after two years apart, this Princess seemed far more talkative than she remembered.

Wasn’t the Princess of the Western Regions supposed to be aloof and cold?

The thought flickered briefly through Jiuming’s mind as she set the tray aside. She reached out to take her master back from the Princess, but Lou Yanhui blocked her.

“I’ll do it.”

Lou Yanhui turned slightly, holding Luo Yunjin firmly as she sat on a nearby chair. She secured the girl with one arm and took up the medicine spoon with her free hand.

The feeding did not go well. Before long, Lou Yanhui’s violet robes were stained with dark splotches of medicine. Looking at the collection of bowls, she finally understood why Jiuming had brought so much.

Luo Yunjin was spitting up more than she was swallowing. In fact, she had barely taken in a few drops.

This won’t do.

Lou Yanhui set the spoon back in the bowl. She took a large mouthful of the bitter medicine herself, then leaned down, pressing her lips against those bloodless ones, slowly transferring the liquid bit by bit.

Feeling the woman in her arms instinctively gagging, Lou Yanhui’s frown deepened. She wiped the stains from the corner of Luo Yunjin’s mouth and sighed, finally relenting. “Bring some food first. We’ll try the medicine again later.”

Jiuming turned away without a word. When she returned, the medicinal tray had been replaced by a single bowl of thin gruel.

Looking at the watery, lackluster porridge, Lou Yanhui couldn’t help but snap, “Has the Princess Manor fallen into such ruin that its mistress is reduced to eating thin gruel for sustenance?”

Jiuming merely glanced at her, remaining silent. Her master’s health was deteriorating; she couldn’t even keep down a bowl of porridge like this. But there was no need to explain this to the Princess of the Western Regions.

Who knew why this woman had come to the manor today, or how long she planned to stay in the capital? Based on what she knew of her master, certain truths shouldn’t come from a servant’s mouth.

Seeing Jiuming maintain her wall of silence, Lou Yanhui’s fingers trembled with suppressed rage, yet she was powerless. Until she knew for certain how Little Jin felt about her, she had no right to act with authority.

The proud Princess of the Western Regions suppressed her anger and began to feed the woman in her arms. Luo Yunjin continued to vomit as she ate, though it was slightly better than before.

But just as the bowl was finished, before Lou Yanhui could even set it down, the woman in her arms heaved again. The porridge she had just swallowed, the medicine from earlier, and the wine she’d drunk before that all came rushing back in a wave of sour scents.

Most importantly, it all landed directly on Lou Yanhui.

If anyone else had dared to be so audacious, Lou Yanhui would have made them wish for death. But now…

Looking at the girl who was still dry-heaving, Lou Yanhui could only look at Jiuming and say helplessly, “Prepare some hot water for me. Thank you.”

If she had been the only one covered in vomit, Jiuming wouldn’t have lifted a finger. In her eyes, this cold-hearted woman deserved to be spat on. However, seeing that her master’s clothes were also soiled, Jiuming silently went to prepare the water.

A short while later, the hot water was ready. Considering how much wine Luo Yunjin had consumed, Lou Yanhui didn’t dare put her in the bathtub. Instead, she wrung out a silk towel to give her a simple sponge bath.

Her slender fingers moved to the buttons at Luo Yunjin’s neck. Noticing Jiuming still standing there, Lou Yanhui frowned. “You may leave. I will clean her.”

Jiuming hesitated for a moment before turning to exit. She didn’t go far, standing guard just outside the door.

Only when the door was shut did Lou Yanhui quickly strip them both of their soiled, foul-smelling clothes. She carefully wiped Luo Yunjin’s body and helped her rinse her mouth with warm tea.

After all the commotion, the effects of the alcohol began to fade. Sensing someone busying themselves around her, Luo Yunjin opened her eyes. The moment she saw the face before her, she froze.

“Sister Yanhui…” she murmured, her eyes filled with disbelief.

Was she still drunk, or had Sister Yanhui truly come to find her?

“It’s me, Little Jin. It’s me!” Seeing her finally wake up, Lou Yanhui ignored her own disheveled state and spoke quickly.

“Is it really Sister Yanhui?” Luo Yunjin’s brow twitched.

Lou Yanhui nodded eagerly, her heart racing, only to be met with…

Thwack! Thwack!

Two merciless punches.

One landed on her left eye, the other on her right.

After striking, Luo Yunjin grumbled to herself, “It’s definitely a fake. Sister Yanhui would never be this smelly!”

With that, she closed her beautiful eyes and drifted back into a deep sleep.

[Luo Yunjin: Speak softly and carry a big punch. Oh yeah!]

Looking at the woman on the bed—who now seemed to be sleeping more peacefully than before—Lou Yanhui rubbed her freshly minted black eyes. With a dark expression, she stepped into the bathtub.

She wasn’t smelly!

Her resentment lasted only a fleeting moment before her worry returned. Little Jin’s health was clearly failing, and she had traveled in such haste that she hadn’t brought any Royal Physicians from the Western Regions. It seemed that after the state banquet, she would have to “borrow” a few Imperial Physicians from the Empress Regnant.

Perhaps more than just borrowing physicians…

After a quick wash, Lou Yanhui rummaged through the wardrobe for some of Luo Yunjin’s clothes and climbed into the bed.

Gazing at the familiar face and feeling the scent of the woman she loved surrounding her, Lou Yanhui couldn’t resist pulling her into her arms again, holding her tight.

Whether Little Jin would forgive her or not, at this moment, she could lie to herself and pretend that Little Jin was still hers.

Hers alone.