Xuanyuan Lige collapsed hard to his knees on the ground, blood pouring endlessly from his mouth.

This was the price of forcing himself to hold back for so long—once it finally broke free, everything he’d suppressed came surging out at once.

Yet no one present seemed to care. Situ Haonan and Yingzi remained silent, while Second Young Master Beast wore a cold sneer, watching with icy detachment.

These men all saw him as an enemy. Cooperating with him was treading carefully, dealing with a tiger for its skin.

But Yelu Qianqian suddenly wrenched her arm free from Situ Haonan’s grip and rushed forward, dropping to her knees before Xuanyuan Lige. “Master Xuanyuan! What’s wrong! Xuanyuan Lige, hold on, I’ll get a physician right now, just hold on!”

Panicking, Yelu Qianqian wiped at the blood while crying out urgently, “Someone, get a physician here, quickly! Hurry!”

Situ Haonan stared, dumbstruck, at this scene. He simply couldn’t believe how frantic Yelu Qianqian was, so shocked he didn’t even think to rush over and pull her away!

But Yelu Qianqian had no attention to spare for Situ Haonan. Both her handkerchiefs were soaked with blood; she had to use her bare hands to wipe at it instead—but why was there so much blood, and why was it black?

She was so, so frightened.

“Master Xuanyuan, please don’t do this, hold on, if you die, who will find Ziqing!”

“Master Xuanyuan, just hold on a little longer, the physician’s coming!”

“Wait, your medicine—Master Xuanyuan, where’s your medicine?”

…

Yelu Qianqian was frantic, tears streaming down her face. Xuanyuan Lige looked at her, and suddenly smiled. “Princess Qianqian, don’t cry…”

“I won’t cry, I can stop crying, just please don’t do this!”

“If you die, who will find Ziqing—we haven’t found her yet! Please don’t give up!”

“Silly girl, you… don’t you know… that we’re actually… actually enemies?” Xuanyuan Lige asked flatly, blood still welling steadily from his lips.

Yelu Qianqian’s hands were entirely covered in blood now; she was too frightened to keep wiping at it.

“But you’re Ziqing’s friend!”

Tears streaming down her face, Yelu Qianqian said earnestly, “Master Xuanyuan, let’s find Ziqing together, let’s not give up, I’ve… I’ve…”

She turned to look at Yingzi. “Yingzi and I said long, long ago—until we see Ziqing’s body with our own eyes, we will never give up! Do you understand!”

“Master Xuanyuan, hold on, if not for yourself then for Ziqing’s sake, please hold on. If Ziqing saw you like this, she’d be heartbroken, she’d cry even harder than I am!”

Only then did Xuanyuan Lige seem to gain a little strength, a faint smile blooming amid the crimson blood. “Would she? Would she really?”

“She would! She absolutely would! She’d be heartbroken!”

“Master Xuanyuan, do you know—Ziqing never once gave up on helping you find medicine. Even on the battlefield, she said that once the peace conference ended, she wanted to visit the little town in the northern desert, to see you.”

“And the moment she got back to Akbachu, she immediately started looking for the blood kite for you!”

“Master Xuanyuan, for Ziqing’s sake, please hold on, please!”

Perhaps the others watching didn’t realize it, but Yelu Qianqian was so close to him, she could clearly sense the scent of death. This man had truly been so gravely ill, so, so weak.

“Truly?”

“Truly, truly!”

Xuanyuan Lige was smiling, and even in such a wretched state, his smile remained so beautiful. Yet Yelu Qianqian found it frightening to watch—it reminded her of a smile she’d seen as a child, her mother’s smile before she died.

Her mother had smiled at her father just like this back then, so achingly beautiful, and yet it had left everyone in tears.

“Master Xuanyuan, don’t go… consider it me pleading with you on Ziqing’s behalf, please don’t go…”

Yelu Qianqian was crying so hard she’d become a mess of tears—but suddenly she remembered something. She’d promised Ziqing she would never tell, not to anyone, ever!

She didn’t know whether saying it would give Xuanyuan Lige the strength to hold on. Whether it frightened him into staying alive or not, anything would do.

She only hoped there was still one conviction left that could keep him going!

She leaned quickly toward Xuanyuan Lige’s ear, whispering the secret she’d seen that day in Yelu Chenyi’s hidden storeroom while searching for the blood kite.

The smile on Xuanyuan Lige’s lips froze instantly. His blood-smeared lips and teeth began clenching, tighter and tighter!

Yelu Qianqian didn’t know whether this final effort of hers could give the man one last bit of support.

Though this support carried no warmth at all, nothing beautiful about it!

But still, she refused to give up!

With her thin, frail arms, she forced Xuanyuan Lige upright, then spun around and shouted furiously at Situ Haonan, “Save him! What are you standing there for!”

“You…”

All of Situ Haonan’s simmering anger was instantly swallowed back down. He’d meant to pull Yelu Qianqian away, but her shout stunned him into obedience, and he rushed forward foolishly to help, using his internal energy to protect Xuanyuan Lige’s meridians as they hurried him toward the physician.

As long as they didn’t give up, there was still hope!

Just as Yelu Qianqian had always said—until she saw the body, she would never give up.

Fortunately, thanks to Yelu Qianqian and Situ Haonan’s swift action, Xuanyuan Lige’s life was saved. The physician had no idea what illness afflicted him, no idea what medicine to prescribe, and could only administer herbs to protect his heart meridian, keeping him stable as best he could.

Looking at the unconscious man on the bed, the physician kept shaking his head, clearly holding back words he wasn’t sure whether to speak.

Seeing the physician hesitate, Second Young Master Beast, who had remained silent this whole time, couldn’t help but speak up. “Physician, this illness… is there truly no cure?”

The physician shook his head helplessly. “No cure, no cure at all. Even if Physician Beiqiu himself came, it would be useless. It’s only…”

“Only what?” Yelu Qianqian asked anxiously.

“Only… ai, Princess, this old man isn’t sure whether he should say this.” The physician looked troubled.

“Stop stalling, just say it!” Yelu Qianqian said sharply. Even the faintest sliver of hope, she wouldn’t give up on. It wasn’t that she’d forgotten propriety in front of Situ Haonan—she knew exactly what she was doing.

Even a husband sharing your life through thick and thin might not necessarily help you destroy your own sister, however unforgivable that sister might be—yet Xuanyuan Lige, for Ziqing’s sake, had made an enemy of Xuanyuan Zhaoxi!

Setting everything else aside, this alone was enough to earn Yelu Qianqian’s complete admiration.

She was doing this for Ziqing. She knew—if Ziqing were here, she would want Xuanyuan Lige to live, and live well.

The physician didn’t dare hold back any longer, quickly saying, “Princess, forgive this humble official for speaking bluntly—a body in this condition should have passed long ago. That he’s held on this long must mean there’s some unfulfilled wish keeping him tethered…”

At these words, Yelu Qianqian stumbled back several steps. Even Situ Haonan, Yingzi, and Second Young Master Beast were moved, and looking at the man lying peacefully as if asleep on the bed, every heart in the room trembled.

This man was weak—but he was a real man, a man in every sense of the word.