Chapter 5
Chapter 5
Yan Ci was both surprised and delighted.
“When did you get back?”
“Why didn’t you tell me? I would have come to pick you up-”
“General Yan.”
Meng Changhuan interrupted him.
Her tone was polite but distant.
“I returned to the capital by imperial decree and was simply passing through. There is no need to trouble yourself.”
Yan Ci’s hands clenched and then relaxed.
His gaze fell upon me.
“Right, Changhuan.”
Yan Ci seemed to suddenly remember something.
“Let me introduce you. This is my fiancée, Xue Zhuxin.”
He spoke casually, but his eyes remained fixed on Meng Changhuan.
He expected her to be surprised, disappointed, or at least to care a little bit.
But Meng Changhuan merely uttered a soft “Oh.”
Then she looked at me, then back at Yan Ci.
“Fiancée?” she asked.
“Yes.”
Yan Ci wore his usual nonchalant smile.
“I saw her at a banquet, thought she was suitable, and settled it on a whim.”
Meng Changhuan clicked her tongue.
Yan Ci’s smile froze.
“What is it?”
Meng Changhuan didn’t answer him. She just looked at me, tilting her head in confusion.
“Xue Zhuxin,” she asked, “how could you possibly take a liking to him?”
Yan Ci’s expression shifted. I was stunned as well.
Meng Changhuan didn’t wait for an answer. She deftly tore a strip from her sleeve and used it to give my wound a simple bandage.
Yan Ci stood rooted to the spot, his face turning various shades of pale and flushed.
“Changhuan, what do you mean by that?”
“Your fiancée is injured. Instead of asking if she’s in pain, you’re here picking a fight with me?”
Meng Changhuan’s gaze was calm.
“Furthermore, we both have existing marriage contracts. General Yan, please conduct yourself with dignity.”
Having said that, she picked me up in a bridal carry. She carried a pleasant, crisp scent of soap that was so comforting it made me want to drift off to sleep.
I pinched my palm hard, forcing myself to stay alert.
“General Meng,” I whispered softly. “I can walk on my own.”
Meng Changhuan looked down at me but said nothing.
I bit my lip and repeated myself, but she still ignored me, carrying me forward with steady steps.
I had no choice but to reach out and push against her shoulder. But as soon as my hand touched her collar, she grabbed my wrist.
Her gaze fell on my palm, which was covered in crescent-shaped marks from my fingernails.
My face went pale, feeling the embarrassment of being seen through.
In the next moment, I heard her sigh softly.
“Pushing yourself even when it hurts this much.”
“Xue Zhuxin, you must have suffered a great deal.”
***
I was woken up by the pain. The wound on my shoulder felt like it was being seared by fire.
I subconsciously curled up, only to hear a cold voice.
“Don’t move.”
The tent was dim, lit only by a single small lamp. A young man sat by the bed, looking down at a medical text.
He possessed a handsome, refined face. His features were seventy percent similar to Meng Changhuan’s, yet he lacked her vibrant, spirited aura. Instead, he carried an air of detachment.
He closed the medical book and glanced at me.
“I just finished stitching your wound. If it tears open, I can’t guarantee I can make the scar look decent.”
I blinked hesitantly. “Physician Meng?”
I had heard of him. Meng Changning, the youngest Chief of the Imperial Academy of Medicine.
Rumors in the capital said his medical skills were divine. No matter the incurable disease, it would find a cure in his hands. However, he was known to be cold and indifferent. Even when treating His Majesty, he kept a frozen face, refusing to offer even a hint of a smile.
Meng Changning gave a casual hum of affirmation. He walked to the desk and picked up a brush to write a prescription.
“My elder sister asked me to look after you. She said you’re quite bold and told me to keep an eye on you so you don’t kill yourself with your own antics.”
I pursed my lips.
Meng Changning looked up at me. “If you have something to say, say it.”
“Where is General Meng?” I asked.
Meng Changning clicked his tongue, wearing a look that said ‘I knew you’d ask.’
“She has matters to attend to and can’t get away. But she was worried about you, so she kicked me over here instead.”
I whispered my thanks.
Then I heard him say, “I didn’t want to come.”
He glanced at me. “I’m too lazy to save people who don’t value their own lives. But the Empress also sent word, telling me to look after your injury.”
He seemed like a decent person, but his tongue was sharp.
As I was grumbling internally, Meng Changning placed a small celadon bottle by my pillow.
“I’ll come once a day to change the dressing. If it hurts, take one pill. Don’t try to be a hero.”
I silently took back my previous thought. Fine, he did have one nice thing to say.
After Meng Changning left, I toyed with the small celadon bottle and spoke softly.
“Have you seen enough?”
In the shadows where the candlelight couldn’t reach, the Ghost manifested.
“Xue Zhuxin, you really are ruthless.”
He stepped out of the darkness, letting the moonlight pass through his translucent body. He sneered.
“Do you think I can’t see what you’re plotting?”
I said nothing.
His voice grew hoarse. “You went to all this trouble to set up such a scheme, nearly losing your life in the process. All just to break off the engagement with me?”
Our eyes met. The emotions in his gaze were plain to see: shock, anger, confusion, and… resentment.
“We were husband and wife for a lifetime. Do you truly have no heart?”
I laughed out loud in surprise.
“Zhuxin-a bamboo’s heart-is empty to begin with.”
There was nothing wrong with that. Bamboo is resilient because it is hollow. Thus, the wind cannot break it, and the snow cannot crush it.
He stared at me blankly, his eyes clouded with a layer of mist.
Can ghosts cry?
I was curious. But then I realized-he didn’t even have a physical body, so where would tears come from? It was nothing more than the work of his obsession.
What kind of deep affection was he trying to fake? Thinking this, I asked him directly.
“You’ve been watching this play for so many days. Do you really not find yourself disgusting?”