Chapter 33: Saving the Exiled Crown Princess Consort (5)

The next morning, when Luo Xu woke up, breakfast was already laid out on the table. Fragrant sweet potato porridge, golden steamed egg custard, and a few side dishes of pickled vegetables—light, refreshing, and delicious.

Seeing her rise, Tang Qi put down the scimitar she had been cleaning. She carried the warm water she’d kept on the stovetop over to Luo Xu. When Luo Xu didn’t move, Tang Qi didn’t rush her.

A moment later, Luo Xu realized the water was for her to wash her face. Tentatively, she reached out, and saw Tang Qi standing there calmly, holding the basin as if she were a maidservant attending her.

Luo Xu felt a little lost. Tang Qi looked puzzled. “Are you feeling unwell? Should I help you wipe your face?”

“No, no need!” Luo Xu quickly washed her face.

Seeing her finish, Tang Qi set the basin down and, with complete naturalness, reached out and scooped her up. Luo Xu let out a startled cry, her arms instinctively looping around Tang Qi’s neck. Her body stiffened from the sudden tension.

Tang Qi also realized her action had been presumptuous. She gave an awkward laugh. “Your leg is hurt. You shouldn’t walk on it for now.”

Tang Qi’s sudden enthusiasm left Luo Xu at a loss. She could only sit down passively, and that was when she noticed the previously hard, cold stool was now wrapped in soft animal hide.

Perhaps to care for her, the room’s temperature was also a bit warmer than usual. This warmth soothed her constantly aching leg considerably.

With practiced ease, Tang Qi handed her the egg custard. Her bright eyes beneath her heroic sword-like brows held a faint smile. “Eat up. After you’re done, I’ll take a look at your leg.”

The sweet egg custard melted in her mouth. Paired with the refreshing pickled vegetables, Luo Xu ate with relaxed brows. She decided not to dwell on what had gotten into Tang Qi. She no longer had anything worth exploiting. It was better to just take things as they came.

Tang Qi ate a few casual bites herself, then efficiently tidied everything up. She fetched a few more animal hides and propped them behind Luo Xu. “This might hurt a little. Bear with it.”

System: Why does that line sound so strange?

As Tang Qi pulled up Luo Xu’s trouser leg, the System couldn’t help but curse.

The bone of Luo Xu’s left calf was misaligned. The once-straight bone now formed an arc, making the left leg a full section shorter than the right. The flesh and skin on the leg were pitted and uneven, like earth pelted by rain.

Some areas of skin were still red and swollen.

Tang Qi’s hand, originally intending to feel the bone, froze in mid-air before slowly clenching into a fist and withdrawing to her side.

She had told herself not to get agitated, yet a surge of fury rushed into her chest. She held back a sting in her nose, telling herself over and over: It’s okay, it can be healed!

Luo Xu hurriedly pulled back her leg, grabbing the nearby animal hide to cover the injury. “Is it… very frightening?”

“…No. It was broken and was never set, causing the bone to shift.” Tang Qi suppressed her emotions and stood up. “It can be treated.”

“Is it troublesome?” Luo Xu worried.

“Not troublesome. All these years in the mountains, I’ve found quite a few herbs. Just so happens I have the right kind for this.” Tang Qi made up an excuse.

As soon as the words left her mouth, rustling sounds came from outside. Luo Xu pushed open the window. The Village Bully and a few others were hunched over, sneaking behind the house, their arms full of the stolen axe and firewood.

Tang Qi suddenly spoke. “Stop right there.”

The Village Bully jolted, then put on a fawning, ingratiating smile. “Sister Tang Qi, I was just returning your axe. Do you have any other orders?”

“I need to go into town. You will stand guard outside. If anyone is so blind as to disturb Luo Xu…” Tang Qi waved her hand. A stone whooshed into her grasp. In the blink of an eye, it was crushed to powder, slowly trickling down between her fingers.

The Village Bully’s heart filled with bitterness, but he could only nod repeatedly. “Don’t worry, Sister. We definitely won’t let anyone startle the young lady.”

Tang Qi closed the window. She carried Luo Xu back onto the heated brick bed, covered her with a blanket, and gently reassured her. “I’m going to town to buy some things. With them guarding outside, you don’t need to be afraid.”

Luo Xu knew Tang Qi was doing this to prevent her from feeling panicked, to set her mind at ease. She obediently nodded. “Alright.”

Tang Qi was still uneasy. “They won’t dare lay a hand on you again. If you’re bored, just sleep for a while.”

Luo Xu shook her head. Ever since she had cut off their fingers yesterday, she was no longer afraid of them. Watching Tang Qi set water and the sweet potatoes steamed that morning beside her, a feeling of being cared for—something she hadn’t experienced in a long time—made Luo Xu’s eyes redden.

“I cut off their fingers yesterday. Won’t you think I’m too venomous? That I went too far?” She desperately wanted to know Tang Qi’s answer. But after asking, she felt it was too abrupt and hurriedly explained, “I wasn’t like this before, I was…”

For some reason, she realized she cared very much about Tang Qi’s opinion.

Maybe it was because she had dreamed last night of her childhood. A servant had accidentally dropped and killed her cat. She had given the servant ten strikes of the board, and her parents, who had rushed over, pointed at her nose and scolded her.

She clearly remembered her mother, head aching with anger, saying: “How could I have given birth to such a vicious daughter?” But she also clearly remembered that when her little sister lost a pearl flower and had several servants punished, her mother only held her sister and praised her.

“Of course not,” Tang Qi spoke.

Luo Xu blinked, waking from the memory. As Tang Qi hung the scimitar at her waist, she said, “To repay hatred with virtue, how then does one repay virtue? Besides, you only cut off their pinky fingers. You sought justice for yourself, and it hasn’t truly affected their daily lives.”

Tang Qi offered sincere praise. “Luoluo really is a smart and kind girl.”

Barren Mountain Town was situated in a valley basin within the Barren Mountain range. It had originally been a small village. Later, the Great Qi dynasty stationed troops nearby. Soldiers often came for food and drink, and merchants traveling to and from the Western Regions to trade passed through, causing the place to gradually grow bustling.

Tang Qi had the System keep an eye on Luo Xu while she used Qinggong to travel. The mountain path that normally took two hours was reduced to half an hour. She also spent 1 Point to exchange with the System for a small pouch of loose silver.

The System was puzzled. “Host, why didn’t you just exchange for items directly? It would have saved you the trip.”

“Items from the System are too potent. It’s not necessarily beneficial for Luoluo.” Tang Qi quickly spent all the silver and started back with her purchases. The System curled its lip. When your wife isn’t around, you have a deadpan face. Now suddenly you answer every question? Trashy Host!

After sending the Village Bully and his gang away, Tang Qi quickly entered the house. Luo Xu had fallen asleep leaning against the cabinet. Her face, covered in pustules and sores, was still adorable in Tang Qi’s eyes. The sound of her soft breathing reached Tang Qi’s ears, inexplicably calming her heart.

She put down her bamboo basket and took out the items one by one.

Two sets of ready-made clothes, ten catties of pork bones, several packets of medicinal herbs, a few books, and some pastries and snacks. She also diluted the medicine she’d exchanged from the System. After hesitating a moment, she slowly walked to Luo Xu’s side.

She reached out, feeling along Luo Xu’s left leg several times until she found the right spot. Seeing signs that Luo Xu was about to wake, she steeled her heart and applied a slight force.

Crack.

Before Luo Xu was fully awake, she let out a scream. She felt a terrible, intense pain in her leg, as if an axe had chopped down hard, or as if it was being crushed by a heavy object. The pain made her entire body convulse uncontrollably.

Tang Qi quickly stuffed a ginseng slice into Luo Xu’s mouth and said in a low voice, “Breathe deeply. Be careful not to bite your tongue.”

Trusting Tang Qi wouldn’t harm her from pure instinct, Luo Xu obediently took deep breaths, her hands unconsciously clutching Tang Qi’s arm.

Tang Qi manipulated the bone back into its correct position in a few movements. She took out the prepared medicinal ointment and carefully smeared it on, then found a few wooden boards to splint and secure Luo Xu’s leg.

Though it lasted only moments, the pain made Luo Xu break out in cold sweat, veins bulging. But she gritted her teeth and didn’t move. She waited until the medicine began to take effect and the pain gradually subsided before spitting out the ginseng slice and gasping for air.

“No more pain, no more pain!” Tang Qi, ignoring her own cold sweat, reached out and pulled Luo Xu into her arms, comforting her continuously. “Once the medicine is on, it won’t hurt anymore.”

Whether it was Tang Qi’s coaxing that worked, or the medicine taking effect, Luo Xu truly felt the pain ease significantly.

The System berated Tang Qi: “The System has anesthetic and painkillers! Why didn’t you give them to Luoluo?!”

Tang Qi remained silent, just gently patting Luo Xu’s back, exactly as she had countless times in their past life. Slightly heartbroken, she asked, “Are you alright?”

“Excellent.” Luo Xu’s voice was still breathless. “This is pain they gave me. I will definitely remember it.”

Tang Qi fell silent. She had considered healing Luo Xu silently and painlessly. It would have just cost a few hundred thousand Points.

But she knew Luo Xu would definitely want to etch this moment into her memory herself.

It was a long while before Luo Xu finally came back to her senses. She found herself entirely nestled in Tang Qi’s arms, her hands still gripping Tang Qi’s arm. Her heart pounded like thunder. She quickly let go and withdrew from Tang Qi’s embrace.

She stammered, wanting to say something, but her tongue was so clumsy she couldn’t even get a “thank you” out.

Tang Qi didn’t notice her discomfort. “I’ll go make dinner.”

Dinner was pork bone soup and chicken stewed until it was tender and falling off the bone. After the meal, Tang Qi handed a bowl of medicinal decoction to Luo Xu. “This is to clear the toxins from your body.”

Luo Xu drank it down in one gulp without hesitation.

She suddenly remembered her childhood, when Zhao Chengfeng was still just a neglected prince. Every time she was sick, Zhao Chengfeng would coax her to take her medicine.

No matter how bitter the medicine, she found it exceptionally sweet.

Thinking back now, that had just been poison wrapped in honey!

Luo Xu hadn’t yet pulled herself from the painful memory when Tang Qi popped a piece of candied fruit into her mouth. The sweet taste made her eyes widen in surprise.

“I know you like sweet things. I bought quite a bit to give you as snacks. And storybooks…” Tang Qi took out a few books. “To pass the time.”

Luo Xu looked at the packets of candied fruit and books in her hands. She didn’t understand mundane affairs well, but she knew these things weren’t cheap.

“This is too valuable…” In truth, she still felt like she was walking on clouds, as if she had suddenly returned to the normal human world from being a beast anyone could bully.

“Our Luoluo is bound for great wealth and honor in the future. You can repay me then.” Tang Qi still couldn’t resist rubbing her fluffy head. Raising an eyebrow with a smile, she added, “Or could it be… what you said before about repaying me was all a lie?”

“No, I’m just afraid…” Afraid I won’t be capable of repaying you.

“Afraid of what? I’ve calculated it with my fingers. Your future will definitely be peaceful and prosperous. I also bought you some ready-made clothes. Try them on.” Tang Qi stood to get the clothes, but Luo Xu grabbed her sleeve.

Tang Qi looked at her, puzzled. But Luo Xu didn’t want to just passively accept everything. Hesitating for a long time, she finally asked, “Why are you so good to me?”

Tang Qi shook her head with a rueful smile. Luo Xue used to love asking her that question too.

“Is there something wrong with my birthmark?” Luo Xu wasn’t a fool. Tang Qi’s change in behavior had become noticeably obvious after she saw the birthmark.

Tang Qi rubbed her nose. “If I said I saw you in a dream, would you believe me?”

Luo Xu shook her head, then nodded. Tang Qi continued her bluff. “In the dream, it said we knew each other in a past life. This birthmark is the token that guided me to find you.”

“Then what relationship did we have in that past life?” Luo Xu didn’t believe it.

A strange smile tugged at Tang Qi’s lips. She coughed, left behind the words, “That… you guess?” and then fled in panic.

Seeing Tang Qi’s discomfort, Luo Xu blinked, her mind slightly muddled. She picked up a candied fruit and put it in her mouth. The sweetness made her narrow her eyes.

Forget it. If Tang Qi said it was a past life, then a past life it was!

That evening, Tang Qi heated hot water for Luo Xu to sponge herself down. Seeing there was quite a lot of water, Luo Xu casually said, “Let’s just share it. This…” Heating water isn’t easy, after all.

Before she could finish, Tang Qi abruptly shot to her feet, her dark face flushing slightly red. “I just remembered I still have something to do. You go ahead, don’t mind me!”

With that, she opened the door and bolted out.

Luo Xu: …