Days passed by and soon the fifteenth of the month came. The young eunuch standing outside the study room of Xinhe Hall stood straight when he saw a group coming towards his direction. When the blurriness disappeared and the group of people could finally be seen, he could not help but let out a sigh.

A beautiful woman walked gracefully to the young eunuch. One step behind, two maids were carrying something in their hands as they walked carefully. The young eunuch lowered his head and didn’t look in her eyes. He bowed his head and greeted

“This servant greets concubine Lin.”

Concubine Lin sounded her acknowledgement to his greeting and raised her chin to the maid asking them to step forward as she said

“Eunuch Zhang, this concubine prepared Chicken Herbal soup and Ginseng Chicken soup for His Highness.”

Eunuch Zhang immediately called for two servants to take the dishes from the maid’s hands. Seeing that Concubine Lin still did not leave, the young eunuch could already guess what she was going to say next, and sure enough..

“That… Eunuch Zhang, can this concubine meet His Highness once?”

Eunuch Zhang repeated the lines he had been repeating he does not know for how many times.

“This servant is very dejected to disappoint Concubine Lin but His Highness ordered this servant to not disturb him.”

Still, maintaining a small smile on her face, Concubine Lin finally left with her two maids following her.

—————–

One hour later, the young eunuch entered the study room after he was permitted. Inside the study room, Zhao Zhang Wei was engrossed in reading the book in his hands. His chin rested on his knuckles as he leaned sideways comfortably and his phoenix eyes never moved away from the book even when the eunuch entered inside.

The eunuch bowed his head and told him.

“Your Highness, Concubine Lin sent Chicken Herbal soup and Ginseng chicken soup. Concubine Shen sent…..”

The young eunuch finished and  Zhao Zhang Wei raised his head and looked at the eunuch.

“And?”

“That’s all, Your Highness.”

A few seconds after, Zhao Zhang Wei hummed. The Young Eunuch was about to withdraw when Zhao Zhang Wei suddenly asked

“Today is the fifteenth day of this month, right?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“I shall spend tonight in Lantai Courtyard.”

Eunuch Zhang was surprised inside his heart but his face didn’t show any emotion. Every time, he had to mention this to His Highness. This was the first time that the Second Prince actually remembered that today was the day, he had to visit wangfei.

  “Yes, Your Highness.”

Eunuch Zhang took his leave while Zhao Zhang Wei immersed himself in his book again. However, his mind was elsewhere.

‘Strange. That woman didn’t send anything for him in these past few days.’

———————–

In the plum courtyard, Li Rui was making the medicinal paste. Yi Ju stood by her side. After it was prepared, Li Rui gave it in Yi Ju hands with some herbal plants.

Yi Ju left the plum courtyard after bowing her head to Li Rui with those things.

Just outside the Ninghe Courtyard, where Lord Xi resided, there was a small courtyard. Yi Ju flew inside the courtyard and saw the old physician snoring on the bed. On the table, there was a bowl of medicinal paste that was of the same color as the medicinal paste her mistress gave her. Yi Ju replaced it with the one Li Rui gave her and then she hid herbal plants in the flowerpot that was nearby the bedside the old physician was sleeping on. After that, she disappeared from the courtyard.

While the old physician woke up after an hour and after washing his hands and mouth. A maid came and he gave the bowl containing the medicinal paste to her.

Yi Ju reached the plum courtyard and stood beside Li Rui who was reading the book. She raised her head to look at Yi Ju once and when Yi Ju nodded her head, she lowered her head again and continued reading.

Xi Ying who was sitting nearby looked at Li Rui as she busied herself. In these days, he had spent so much time with her. His heart was filled with a strange comfort. He was trying to know each and every like and dislike of her.

These days, she was taking good care of her health. Xi Ying found out that she was not picky with food. Her pale face was getting its red color back. A part of his heart would feel unhappy when he would see Yi Junjie’s shadow guards bringing the meal for Li Rui. But a rational part of his heart knew that it was for the best. Even if those servants send a good meal for his wangfei, who can guarantee that it does not contain any poison. When Xi Ling could be fed poison, then they could try the same on Li Rui. Therefore, he tried not to think much about it.

Li Mei’s death affected her a lot, he thought.

Sometimes at night, she would wake up suddenly with eyes full of fear. She had nightmares perhaps of that day.

Seeing her at that time, he would feel suffocated.

The servants around the Xi Manor talked a lot about him and Princess Wenling. They would say that Princess Wenling loved him; that he wanted to marry her, etc. Xi Ying noticed that they would do all this whenever Li Rui stepped outside of her courtyard. They would pretend as if they were hiding and gossiping but they deliberately hid at a place from where Li Rui could hear their each and every whisper.

They were also arranged by that Princess, he deduced.

But what bothered him was the nonchalant expression on his wangfei. She would pass by them as if they were talking about a stranger.

A feeling of discomfort would arise in his heart at that time. 

Perhaps, he was actually a stranger inside her heart.

A loud drum sound echoed through the whole manor and Xi Ying was brought out of his reverie. He saw that Li Rui swiftly stood up from the chair and the book fell from her hands. She ran out of the courtyard. Xi Ying was also pulled outside with her. The loud drum’s voice fell in his ears. His heart sank. He knew why Li Rui ran outside suddenly so frantically.

It was the sound of death. Someone died in the manor.

A picture of Xi Ling’s pale and sick face flashed in his brain and his heart sank more.