Li Weiyang’s face showed no sign of pain. Instead, she raised her eyebrow and stared at him: “Is this what you call having no ill intentions?”

The gray-clothed man shouted angrily: “Stand down!”

The green-clothed man behind Li Weiyang immediately retreated a step but still stood not far away, vigilantly holding his long sword.

Li Weiyang discovered that the other party seemed only to care about Li Minde’s life or death. In his eyes, she was nothing more than an ant, completely insignificant… But for some reason, he didn’t want her life. Her gaze fell on the already unconscious Li Minde.

“What do you intend to do with Minde!” Li Weiyang said slowly.

Everyone’s expressions changed again. This time even the gray-clothed man’s face was full of surprise. This girl before them was just a young lady, yet encountering mortal danger and being threatened by blades and swords, she could still calmly assess the situation and even know that he had come for Li Minde. This was absolutely not something an ordinary young girl could do—it shocked and startled him!

Just then, a green-clothed man nearby suddenly said: “His breathing is becoming weaker and weaker!”

The gray-clothed man’s expression changed. He quickly crouched down to pick up Li Minde. Li Weiyang blocked his path, pointing at Minde and saying word by word: “You cannot take him away!”

For the first time, hesitation appeared on the gray-clothed man’s face. Then he made a decisive decision: “You come with us!”

Li Weiyang’s expression changed slightly, then she quickly made her decision.

The gray-clothed man ordered them to blindfold Li Weiyang, then they seemed to board a carriage. Li Weiyang suddenly said: “There are also my two maids.”

The gray-clothed man took a deep breath and said: “I’ll send people to find them.”

The carriage traveled far and arrived before an estate. Only then was Li Weiyang’s blindfold removed.

“Sir, the physician is ready…” Maids came forward and curtsied, saying, without glancing at Li Weiyang.

“Good, begin treatment immediately,” the gray-clothed man said.

Li Weiyang observed all this, her suspicions about these people’s true identities growing stronger.

“Please wait here for now, County Princess.” The gray-clothed man’s voice came faintly.

Li Weiyang looked at Li Minde in his arms and frowned: “I must ensure his safety.”

The gray-clothed man no longer insisted. He carried Li Minde into the room, took a step inside, then suddenly looked back at Li Weiyang: “Come in.”

Li Weiyang stepped inside. The room door was then closed.

That he allowed her to enter showed the situation wasn’t too terrible—at least the other party didn’t want their lives. Li Weiyang breathed a slight sigh of relief in her heart and looked up to survey the entire room. Inside stood a clay-gold painted mountain-and-water screen. Delicate warm incense rose from a pierced censer. Calligraphy, paintings, brushes, and ink were all present, yet all were brand new… Apart from the luxurious and dignified furnishings, no trace of the owner’s preferences could be seen, nor could the owner’s identity be guessed.

A man with completely white hair and beard stood trembling in the room carrying a medicine box. The gray-clothed man gently and carefully placed Li Minde on the couch, then said in a low voice: “Treat him.”

The physician nodded and lowered his head to begin examining Li Minde’s wound.

Li Minde remained unconscious. His skin, smooth as jade, carried not a trace of blood color. The jade crown had been lost somewhere. His head of black hair lay spread beneath him like brocade.

“Minde—” Li Weiyang suddenly grew nervous and couldn’t help calling softly again.

“He’ll be fine…” The gray-clothed man’s voice sounded nearby. “He absolutely cannot come to harm!” As he spoke, his fists clenched slightly, his voice hoarse. To find him, they had spent years of effort, evading countless dangers. Now the person was right before their eyes…

The physician turned around, his expression grave.

“He’s alright, isn’t he?” The gray-clothed man was emotionally agitated. He quickly stepped forward, staring intensely at the physician.

“Though a large amount of toxin was just removed, residual poison has entered his bloodstream. Right now, the situation is very dangerous…” the physician said trembling.

“You can’t cure him?” A trace of anger appeared on the gray-clothed man’s face as he grabbed the physician’s collar.

The physician’s entire complexion changed, too frightened to speak.

Seeing this scene, Li Weiyang also felt somewhat anxious. She said angrily: “Release the physician! Do you truly want to watch Minde die?!”

The gray-clothed man was startled.

The maids in the room were all shocked, their faces turning green. They absolutely hadn’t expected Li Weiyang would dare speak to the gray-clothed man this way.

“I’m fine.” A voice suddenly sounded.

Everyone simultaneously looked toward the couch.

“You’ve finally awakened…” The gray-clothed man’s expression was agitated. He released the physician and stepped forward in a few strides.

Li Minde’s complexion looked very poor, and his eyes held no joy or gratitude at being saved—only annoyance.

Li Weiyang was certain she hadn’t seen wrong. When Li Minde saw the gray-clothed man, what flashed through his eyes was annoyance.

“I didn’t say anything…” The gray-clothed man hastily said. Halfway through, thinking of something, his gaze fell on Li Weiyang standing quietly there. A trace of viciousness flashed through his eyes.

Li Weiyang sighed silently. It seemed the other party didn’t want her to know the truth. She glanced at Li Minde, feeling a trace of hurt in her heart. Though she was surprised she could still feel hurt, Minde clearly knew some things. What she minded was his previous concealment from her.

Li Weiyang said lightly: “Minde, since you know each other, you should stay here to recover.” Then she turned to the gray-clothed man: “Considering I was innocently implicated, please send me back.”

Li Minde’s face turned white, losing even the last trace of color from his lips. He struggled to sit up: “No! I won’t stay here!”

His tone was so resolute, as if there were floods and savage beasts in this place.

“No, you cannot leave…” The gray-clothed man’s gaze swept over Li Weiyang. His emotionless voice said slowly: “Before he’s confirmed safe, no one can leave.”

Li Weiyang sneered coldly in her heart and said slowly: “Oh, you intend to detain me?”

The gray-clothed man said nothing more. Silence filled the room.

Li Minde struggled to rise: “I want to leave with her.”

The gray-clothed man immediately changed his tone. Facing Li Weiyang, he softened his voice as much as possible: “County Princess, he’s very dangerous right now and absolutely cannot be moved. I’m begging you—”

Li Weiyang frowned slightly. Her gaze fell on Li Minde’s pale face. In his eyes was panic—panic at being left behind. Li Weiyang shook her head silently in her heart. She had promised Third Madam she would never abandon him under any circumstances. But what matter did he have that he absolutely had to hide from her? Were these people threatening him? No, that wasn’t right. The gray-clothed man’s attitude toward him was very respectful, as if treating him as a master.

As Li Weiyang’s thoughts raced, the gray-clothed man also watched her warily.

Finally, Li Weiyang nodded: “Fine, but I must leave as soon as day breaks.” Right now she had no time to think too much about other matters. She had to keep her promise to Third Madam.

Li Minde breathed a sigh of relief. The hand resting on his knee stiffened slightly, then he suddenly collapsed backward. The gray-clothed man’s icy face immediately cracked. He hastily ordered the maids to bring water.

The maid fearfully first warmed the teacup with water, then poured in more water, holding it with both hands and lowering her head as she walked to the bedside and knelt.

Watching this, Li Weiyang’s suspicions grew deeper. She vaguely sensed these people probably had long known Minde—no, perhaps all of this was related to Minde’s origins.

But he had once said he was an unwanted abandoned baby.

So where had these people come from?

After drinking water, Li Minde suddenly fainted. The physician nearby hurried over to take his pulse.

The gray-clothed man suddenly twisted his head to look at Li Weiyang and snorted coldly. Since dealing with her once before, he unconsciously no longer treated this girl as just a young lady. She must understand her own situation.

He suddenly stood up, walked over step by step, and suddenly drew his long sword, pressing it against Li Weiyang’s throat.

Li Weiyang’s expression changed dramatically.

“So you are afraid after all! I was wondering—who in this world isn’t afraid of death!” he said mockingly.

Li Weiyang took a deep breath, a smile appearing on her face: “No one in this world isn’t afraid of death—it depends on whether it’s worth it! If I died, he would feel guilty unto death.” She spoke with some disdain. “Then all your painstaking efforts to save him today would be utterly meaningless.”

The gray-clothed man’s face stiffened. Unwillingly yet helplessly, he spat out three words from between his teeth: “You have guts.”

Li Weiyang smiled faintly: “You only hope I’ll keep the secret, but what this secret actually is, I still don’t even know. How could I speak of it?”

The gray-clothed man stared at her and slowly lowered his sword. He did this not because he felt Li Weiyang knew nothing and posed no threat—quite the opposite. He believed this clever young girl must have guessed something, but she was right. If he killed Li Weiyang, the young master would never forgive him.

The physician’s expression became even more anxious. With a grave expression, he turned and said: “It’s even more dangerous now than before…”

Li Weiyang was startled and couldn’t help walking over: “That’s impossible. He was just speaking.”

“Just now when he became agitated, his blood flowed even faster…” the physician said slowly. “This kind of poison—I have no way to treat it, and I’ve never seen it before…”

Li Weiyang’s heart sank bit by bit…

“This is a poison called Crimson Red…” the gray-clothed man said slowly, looking at Li Minde with slight agitation in his expression. “Colorless and tasteless, not easily detected. Just a little will poison the lungs and organs, causing death by suffocation.” If Li Weiyang hadn’t first helped Li Minde remove most of the toxin earlier, he would already be a corpse by now.

“How do you know?” Li Weiyang stared at him.

The gray-clothed man’s expression became very unpleasant, but he didn’t answer.

“If there’s really no other way, we can only fight poison with poison,” the physician said, his palms sweating.

Fight poison with poison?

Li Weiyang’s expression froze. She had a bad premonition and couldn’t help saying: “What medicine will you use?”

The physician considered carefully and answered slowly: “Arsenic, cinnabar, white stone, nine needles, scorpion tail, snake tongue.”

Li Weiyang and the gray-clothed man exchanged glances and couldn’t help changing color. These were all… extremely poisonous substances.

Throughout the entire room, a solidified atmosphere spread, as if even breathing had become shallow.

The gray-clothed man’s expression became even more agitated. He took a deep breath, suppressing his strong emotions: “He must survive, or I’ll kill you.”

Large beads of sweat immediately rolled down the physician’s forehead.

Li Weiyang raised her hand, interrupting him: “If you want the physician to treat him properly, stop threatening to kill people all the time.”

The gray-clothed man was furious: “I don’t need you to lecture me!”

Li Weiyang looked at him, neither hurried nor flustered, her expression unchanged.

The gray-clothed man’s chest heaved violently. Only after a while did he suppress his emotions. He didn’t know why, but he detected in this young girl before him a kind of imposing authority that only those in high positions possessed. How was this possible?! A mere Prime Minister’s daughter who had only been granted the title of County Princess—he hadn’t taken her seriously. Yet before her, all his forceful presence seemed to lose its effect.

“If you don’t want to cause his death, shut your mouth,” Li Weiyang said lightly. Then she asked the physician: “Is there no other way?”

The physician considered carefully for a moment and solemnly shook his head.

Li Weiyang was silent for a moment, then looked up at him: “You were invited here to treat him. This person—” she casually pointed at the gray-clothed man, “—will definitely kill you. But if you can successfully cure him, I guarantee you’ll walk out of here alive.”

The physician looked at Li Weiyang. For some reason, he felt this young girl’s depth of thought was frighteningly deep.

“Who gave you the authority to give orders here!” the gray-clothed man couldn’t help saying.

Li Weiyang looked at him and repeated lightly: “I have the final say!”

“Are you tired of living?” The gray-clothed man laughed coldly.

Li Weiyang answered, her expression composed: “Unless you’re prepared to just watch him die without doing anything.”

The gray-clothed man couldn’t speak. He stared blankly at this young girl before him, feeling he must be seeing ghosts! Because Li Weiyang had been excessively calm before, she had already left an incomparably deep impression in this man’s heart. Though he kept telling himself not to believe it, subconsciously he still felt a kind of conviction toward her. This girl had shocked him too greatly.

His eyes flickered as he struggled fiercely. For the first time, he looked at Li Weiyang directly, his expression becoming serious: “I think you know what you’re doing and what the consequences will be. You don’t know his identity…”

Li Weiyang looked at him without speaking.

The gray-clothed man finally nodded: “Fine, I’ll listen to you for now. If anything happens to him, you’ll pay with your life.”

The first person to discover Li Weiyang missing was Tuoba Zhen. All the other guests thought Li Weiyang had returned with the Li family carriage, while the Li family thought Li Weiyang had stayed at the Princess’s estate to continue the banquet. Only Tuoba Zhen, thinking about it more and more unwillingly, sent people to monitor Li Weiyang’s movements and thus discovered something was wrong.

“The carriage disappeared?” Hearing the servant’s report, Tuoba Zhen’s face showed some surprise.

“It seems the route was temporarily changed. After entering a small road, it vanished.”

“How could this happen?” Even though it was a small road, it was still an official road. There shouldn’t be any danger randomly. So Tuoba Zhen didn’t think of Li Weiyang being pursued and killed. Instead, he frowned slightly, his fingers tapping the table lightly.

Impossible, it shouldn’t be. Could this girl have run away? Wanting to escape from the Li family from now on? That was truly possible—after all, he felt Li Weiyang had always harbored deep resentment toward the Li family.

“There seem to be bloodstains on the ground, but the area is completely empty,” the servant hastily said.

Bloodstains? Was this girl playing tricks? Or had she truly encountered danger? Tuoba Zhen nodded and casually waved his hand. The servant wisely withdrew. He reached out to pick up his teacup. Li Weiyang’s face floated before his eyes, and his suspicions deepened. There were bloodstains on the ground—if she truly was attacked—Li Weiyang was no easy target either. Who would dare attack on an official road? First Madam of the Li family? No, she hadn’t reached the point of covering the sky with one hand. If she really wanted to kill Li Weiyang, it should be done without anyone noticing. If a County Princess personally enfeoffed by His Majesty died on the way back from the Princess’s estate, it would definitely cause a huge uproar. First Madam wouldn’t be so foolish. Then who could it be?

“Your Highness…” someone came to report.

Tuoba Zhen’s thoughts were suddenly interrupted. He couldn’t help frowning.

The servant brought over a letter and respectfully handed it over: “This is an urgent secret report just received.”

Tuoba Zhen took it and scanned through it rapidly, his expression changing slightly.

The Seventh Prince had returned to his estate injured, hastily bandaged himself, then left the estate again, shaking off surveillance and disappearing without a trace.

What was going on exactly?

At this moment, the rustling sound of rain suddenly came from outside the window. The night grew even deeper.

Tuoba Zhen stood up and walked to the window. He pushed it open. The cold wind from outside, carrying slight chill, rushed toward him.

The entire courtyard was shrouded in rain and mist. In the silent night, the trees in the garden became vast and frightening.

Tuoba Zhen suddenly sneered coldly. What he should most consider was whether Li Weiyang had gotten mixed up with Tuoba Yu. Despite being injured, Tuoba Yu still went out searching—who was he looking for!

He suddenly frowned, seeming dissatisfied with himself for being distracted for so long. He didn’t know why, but thinking it over, his thoughts kept circling around that girl.

At this time, Li Weiyang was extremely tense.

The sound of rain seeped faintly through the window cracks. The atmosphere in the room seemed particularly heavy.

After feeding him that bowl of carefully prepared medicine, the physician’s inner garment was already soaked with sweat. The step he took today was extremely dangerous. If this beautiful young man couldn’t survive, he would have to pay with his own life.

Li Weiyang took a thin blanket from nearby and gently draped it over Li Minde’s waist. However, the young man kept his eyes closed, his brow continually furrowed, his forehead covered with beads of sweat.

It must hurt terribly. Li Weiyang’s heart ached. She proactively took the handkerchief from the maid’s hand and gently wiped for him. She was already being as careful as possible, but each touch still made Li Minde’s body tremble.

The gray-clothed man asked in a low voice: “How is it?”

“If he makes it through till dawn, he can survive,” the physician answered, wiping his sweat. “Success or failure depends on this one attempt…”

“What are the chances exactly?” The gray-clothed man couldn’t help asking again.

Every half hour, this man asked once. Being questioned repeatedly, the physician also grew nervous. He truly had not even one fraction of certainty in his heart, but he didn’t dare tell the truth and could only respond submissively.

Just then, Li Minde suddenly opened his eyes. He looked at Li Weiyang. His eyes held a moment of painful expression, then it vanished. His words, however, were directed at the gray-clothed man: “You go out.”

This was a commanding tone.

The gray-clothed man was startled and blurted out: “Your Highness—”

Li Minde’s expression changed abruptly. The gray-clothed man immediately understood, glared viciously at Li Weiyang, and had no choice but to withdraw.

Li Weiyang had clearly heard everything, yet her face still wore the same smile as always, as if she hadn’t seen Li Minde’s tightly clenched fists in that instant. She sat down beside him and said softly: “Feeling better?”

Li Minde’s beautiful eyes were like peach blossoms—even without smiling, they held affection. At this moment, his head of jet-black hair fell loose, several strands sticking to his cheeks. His expression actually held some panic. Suddenly, he tightly hugged Li Weiyang’s waist.

Li Weiyang felt a moment of resistance. The hands wrapped around her waist were clearly trembling, yet this made her slowly relax her tense spine. Gradually, she lowered her voice as gently as possible:

“What’s wrong?”

At this moment, a flash of lightning fell through the window, coldly outlining Li Minde’s extremely refined features. His fine eyelashes were still trembling lightly, stained with scattered teardrops like crushed jade. Even Li Weiyang, who was used to seeing him, couldn’t help being momentarily lost. She pressed: “What exactly is wrong?”

“Don’t abandon me…”

“I lied to you. They came looking for me, saying my biological father spent great effort searching for me over the years. They wanted me to go back with them. I refused…”

Li Minde lay against her lap, trembling all over, almost making Li Weiyang tremble along with him. She had guessed correctly—this matter was indeed related to Minde’s origins.

She only let out a long breath and gently patted his back. Minde in her arms hadn’t detected her thoughts. After pausing for a moment, he spoke again with a trembling voice: “I didn’t mean to anger you or deliberately hide things from you.”

However, in his heart, he harbored extremely deep fear. There was one more thing, one more thing about his origins that he absolutely could not tell Weiyang. Otherwise she would definitely detest him and think him filthy! He didn’t want that, absolutely didn’t want it! Even if he died, he had to keep this secret! He absolutely couldn’t let Third Sister know! His hands and feet were ice-cold. His heart felt like it had been soaked in snow water—cold without a trace of warmth. The darkness between heaven and earth pressed heavily upon his heart along with the roof beams.

Seeing him so worried, Li Weiyang couldn’t help smiling: “I don’t blame you.”

Everyone had their own secrets. She did too, just as she would never tell anyone about her rebirth. Li Minde also had his own secrets. That he was willing to say these words already showed his trust and reliance on her: “No matter when, I won’t blame you, and I won’t abandon you.”

This was her answer.

Li Minde looked up, earnestly staring into Li Weiyang’s eyes. Seeing not the slightest trace of distance in her eyes, his entire form seemed burned to ashes by fire. Even his heart couldn’t help relaxing as he gently rested his head on her lap: “Mm, I’ll also never leave you.”

Was this child too dependent on her? Li Weiyang felt a moment of bemused helplessness. Then she thought that if he couldn’t make it through tonight, there would be no talk of “forever.” Just then, Li Minde said: “I’m so tired. I want to sleep for a while.”

Li Weiyang understood in her heart that if she let him fall into deep sleep at this time, he might truly never wake up again. So she gripped his hand and said: “Don’t sleep. The jade crown was lost earlier. Tomorrow I’ll give you another gift. What would you like?”

Li Minde’s body moved, then he opened his eyes.

He slowly began: “One year, Mother made me a bowl of longevity noodles. She made them herself…” Li Weiyang carefully helped him sit upright, leaning against the soft pillow.

“So you want longevity noodles?” Li Weiyang said, the smile on her face spreading.

“Mm.” He nodded lightly.

“My cooking isn’t very good—can’t compare to the Li estate’s cooks. But longevity noodles shouldn’t be a problem. After we return, I’ll make them for you.”

Li Minde smiled, but his complexion grew increasingly pale. Li Weiyang knew in her heart this wasn’t good, but her face showed no abnormality.

“I can’t sleep either right now. Keep me company and talk. Don’t sleep, alright?” she said.

Li Minde forced his eyes open and nodded.

“How about we play a game?” Li Weiyang had a sudden inspiration and looked up.

Li Minde looked at her earnestly, then said: “I’m not a little child anymore.”

“No matter how old you are, you’ll like this game,” Li Weiyang said with a light laugh, a trace of confidence flashing in her eyes. “I’ll show you—it’s variety theater…”

“Variety theater?” Li Minde repeated.

Li Weiyang smiled faintly and waved her empty hands lightly before Li Minde. Then she circled them around the back of his neck, and suddenly a peony flower covered with dew appeared in her hand. Li Minde’s eyes immediately widened in surprise. Li Weiyang waved her hand, and the peony flower vanished again. Just as Li Minde was about to ask how she did it, Li Weiyang raised her hand—the peony flower from her sleeve transformed into a white dove that circled the room twice and flew into the rain.

“When did you learn this?” Li Minde was shocked.

“I’ll tell you tomorrow…” Li Weiyang looked at him, a smile appearing on her face.

Li Minde was about to ask when the gray-clothed man, who had entered at some point, said: “These are just small tricks. If the young master wants to see them, this servant can perform for you at any time.”

He knew Li Minde didn’t like hearing him use that form of address, so he decisively switched to a neutral term. But Li Minde still frowned: “Didn’t I tell you to go out?”

The gray-clothed man sighed: “Young master, if this servant doesn’t stay inside to watch, I really can’t be at ease.” He felt Li Weiyang, this young girl, was too formidable—the young master might be bewitched by her.

But Li Minde’s face darkened: “Get out.”

Though young, the gentle look in his eyes from before had completely changed, faintly revealing a kind of coldness.

Li Weiyang sighed inwardly. Though Third Madam’s temperament was cold, she had taken extremely good care of Li Minde, so his life in the Li family had always been stable. Unfortunately, Third Madam’s sudden death left him without support. In this man-eating Li family, every step was truly difficult. Yet he was clever and adaptable, his nature resilient. On the surface, that naive weakness was all an act to deceive enemies. Perhaps tonight had allowed her to glimpse his other side.

Suddenly, a jade-green small snake crawled in through the window crack, flicking its tongue as it climbed in from outside.

Li Weiyang was the first to notice. Her expression suddenly changed.

However, the gray-clothed man showed not a trace of surprise. He walked forward and extended his hand, actually letting the small snake crawl onto his palm. Li Weiyang looked at him suspiciously, feeling shocked for the first time in her heart. She had indeed once heard of people raising snakes to transmit messages but had never seen it with her own eyes, because snakes were extremely difficult to control and could easily bite back. If things went wrong, one could lose one’s own life.

A silk ribbon was tied around the small snake’s neck with two lines of coded message written on it. The gray-clothed man took it out, examined it carefully, then walked to the candle stand and burned it. Then he carefully took out another silk ribbon, wrote something unknown on it, and tied it again around the snake’s neck.

Li Weiyang watched the snake, thinner than chopsticks, disappear by the window. A trace of interest appeared on her face.

Li Minde clearly wasn’t interested in that snake, but seeing Li Weiyang seemed very interested, he said softly: “This snake—how is it raised?”

The gray-clothed man was startled, then a flattered expression appeared on his face. This was the first time Li Minde had spoken to him with kind words and expression, leaving him so excited he didn’t know what to do. He quickly said: “This is a jade-green I’ve always raised, young master, look!” He untied the sachet from his waist and carefully handed it over. “This sachet contains a secret medicine. This scent cannot be detected by humans or animals—only jade-greens raised with this medicine can smell it.”

So that was it. Li Weiyang showed slight fondness. Li Minde immediately said: “Can others control this snake?”

The gray-clothed man was startled, then shook his head. This snake was painstakingly trained by him as a secret messenger to maintain contact with subordinates in extraordinary times. Others couldn’t even touch it, let alone approach it—they’d be bitten to death.

Don’t be fooled by this jade-green’s small size—it was extremely poisonous.

Li Weiyang immediately felt disappointed. She was very interested in this little snake.

Li Minde could of course see Li Weiyang’s subtle expressions and said softly: “Is there no other way?”

The gray-clothed man thought he liked it and was overjoyed: “If the young master likes it, this servant can raise two for you that will only obey your commands and absolutely won’t harm you.”

Li Minde nodded.

Then the gray-clothed man showed an expression of wanting to speak but hesitating. Seeing this, Li Weiyang knew he had something difficult to say, so she simply stood up: “I’ve been in the room too long. I’ll go out for a walk.”

The gray-clothed man snorted coldly. He wasn’t afraid of Li Weiyang leaving because outside were all his people. Without his consent, not even a fly could escape.

As soon as Li Weiyang left, Li Minde weakly leaned back against the cushion. Very obviously, his earlier calm had all been an act. In reality, his entire body hurt terribly. A burning sensation ran from his throat all the way to his internal organs, as if tearing his entire person apart. This kind of pain—he had never experienced before.

The gray-clothed man stepped forward and said in a low voice: “Young master, about that girl outside, this servant has thought it over repeatedly. We still cannot keep her. Think about it—if she learns your identity—”

“If you want to harm her, step over my corpse first!” Li Minde’s heart grew anxious. He abruptly sat up from the couch. However, with this movement, he immediately felt as if someone had placed a basin of flames in his chest, continuously burning. Yet his mouth and nose seemed to have an extra piece of cotton blocking his breathing. Even using all his strength, he couldn’t draw in a breath of air. He immediately collapsed back down!

The gray-clothed man had never expected that Li Minde, who seemed weakened to the extreme, would say such a coldly severe sentence. He was shocked and his expression changed. Originally he thought the young master’s appearance was too beautiful and, having grown up in the Li family, didn’t resemble the master. But looking at him again now, he suddenly felt this youth emanated unyielding determination from his very bones—truly possessing a soul-stirring, extraordinary quality. If he wanted to protect someone, even at the cost of his own life—how similar this was to the master. Truly fatal!

Though he thought this, he didn’t dare act on his own authority, so he quickly knelt and said: “Young master, please don’t be angry. This servant won’t dare again!”

Li Minde wanted to speak, but couldn’t say a word. He felt his blood go mad, ramming left and right in his blood vessels, then surging up layer by layer toward his head, as if about to burst through his skull and spray out. His entire body felt like ten thousand ants were gnawing at him. His limbs and bones ached unbearably. Before his eyes, colorful lights flashed and overlapped, making him dizzy. His breathing also became increasingly difficult. His entire person was tormented to the point of nearly exploding.

He suddenly felt very afraid and desperately reached out trying to grasp something, subconsciously calling Li Weiyang’s name. Seeing this was bad, the gray-clothed man immediately rushed out to call for help.

Li Minde felt he couldn’t endure any longer. Just then, a pair of hands caught him—scalding yet gentle. He forced his eyes wide open and clearly saw Li Weiyang’s face. At this moment, the usual calm and gentleness had vanished from her face, replaced entirely by alarm.

Li Weiyang hadn’t expected to return and see this scene. She was truly burning with anxiety.

At some point, this youth had become someone she cared about deeply. She had originally thought he was her burden and responsibility, but now she had come to regard him as her own family!

“Minde, you must hold on! I swore to your mother—don’t make me fail her! Minde! Listen to me!” Li Weiyang kept talking to Li Minde until he regained consciousness.

Seeing Li Weiyang before his eyes, Li Minde bit his lip and forcibly endured a wave of pain before barely managing to smile: “I’m fine—”

His lips were dry and cracked, faintly showing traces of blood.

Li Weiyang came to her senses and took the teacup a maid handed over. She moistened it with warm water and gently dotted it on his lips: “You’ll definitely make it through. I still need to teach you how to do variety theater…”

Li Minde couldn’t help but laugh lightly and slightly closed his eyes. At least, he had used his pain to exchange for her compassion. This was good. She hadn’t abandoned him like his mother had.

Mother had once promised to always stay by his side, but she was still taken away by death. Now, he only had her left. In this world, she was the only person he believed in.

The physician came again to administer the second dose of medicine. Li Minde’s spirit was extremely weary. He seemed half-asleep, half-awake, leaning softly against the pillow. The candlelight cast a dim yellow glow. Aside from Li Weiyang’s face, everything before his eyes became unreal. The bitter medicine was brought to his mouth. Because he was in this semi-conscious state, his suppressed weariness made him instinctively resist.

“Minde, this is the second dose of medicine.”

“…Take this one more time, and you’ll be better…”

The soft, gentle voice drifted vaguely by his ear, making him swallow mouthful after mouthful of that bitter, nauseating medicine.

“You promised me you’d also stay with me. Have you forgotten?”

Li Minde had almost no response. The gray-clothed man suddenly turned: “Didn’t you say that as long as we found a way to remove the severe toxicity of those substances, we could save him?”

The old physician was covered in sweat. He had done his best. To reduce the medicinal properties of those poisonous substances, he had specially boiled them three times and ground them into powder, then added many precious medicinal materials to neutralize the properties. But severe poison was still severe poison—it wouldn’t be completely removed because of this. To put it another way, if there truly wasn’t any toxicity left, this medicine would be useless. The point was to retain the toxicity to mutually cancel out the poison in this youth’s body.

“Shut up!” Li Weiyang frowned. What time was this to be venting anger?

The gray-clothed man was momentarily speechless. At his age, aside from the master, no one had dared speak to him this way.

The atmosphere in the room immediately became heavy.

Li Minde felt himself walking in darkness, drifting endlessly without end, until a few points of firelight appeared beside him. Though tiny, they kept him from completely losing consciousness.

He knew Li Weiyang had been talking to him all along, never giving up on him. The piercing sensation slowly transformed into warmth. The bodily pain also disappeared bit by bit, yet he found he seemed unable to make a sound. He struggled desperately and suddenly shouted, then opened his eyes.

Li Weiyang, who had been lying by the bed, immediately awoke with a start. Seeing Li Minde open his eyes, her suspended heart finally relaxed.

“Third Sister?” Li Minde looked at her in surprise. She had been lying here all night?

Li Weiyang gripped his hand: “I’m just glad you’re alright.”

Li Minde was startled. He had always felt Third Sister’s eyes were beautiful—her black, bright eyelashes grew neatly, curling slightly. Her whites and pupils were distinct black and white, the pupils black like black crystal, clear and bright like a spring lake surface. However, at this moment, that lake surface was full of bloodshot veins, showing the owner’s fatigue. Li Minde struggled to sit up: “We must return immediately!”

Li Weiyang was slightly surprised, then understood his meaning. A Prime Minister’s daughter not returning home all night—this would definitely become today’s headline! One could imagine how First Madam and the others would smear her! Even if she truly had been abducted by criminals, no one would give her any sympathy. In their eyes, she would become a woman who had lost her chastity, despised for life!

She had thought of this last night, but even so, she couldn’t abandon Li Minde.

Seeing this, the gray-clothed man hastily tried to stop them: “Young master, you cannot leave here!”

Li Minde looked at him coldly: “Prepare the carriage!”

“They already know you’re in the Li family. There will be endless troubles in the future! Perhaps this kind of thing will happen again!” the gray-clothed man couldn’t help saying.

Li Weiyang glanced outside where light was already dimly showing through. Day would break soon. She couldn’t delay any longer.

Li Minde said again: “Prepare the carriage, immediately!”

The gray-clothed man looked at Li Weiyang through gritted teeth. However, she averted her gaze. He had no choice but to say: “Yes.”

The jolting carriage wasn’t suitable for a patient. Li Minde’s face was pale, but he insisted on leaving with Li Weiyang. The gray-clothed man was furious yet helpless. He could only order people to use the best furnishings and softest cushions. Li Minde was lifted onto the carriage. Li Weiyang, seeing his condition, knew returning like this would definitely cause trouble. She instinctively glanced outside.

The gray-clothed man still stood before the carriage.

“At the turning ahead, you’ll find your two maids. But—you’d best not speak of last night’s events…” he said in a low, cold voice.

“Utterly foolish…” Li Weiyang raised her eyebrow, glanced at him, and coldly tossed out four words. Why would she speak of it? Was her brain broken?

Having lived to this age always high above others, this was the first time the gray-clothed man had heard someone call him stupid. His face immediately turned iron-blue: “How dare you!”

“Thank you for the compliment. We’ll take our leave now.” Li Weiyang gave him a faint glance and instructed the driver to leave quickly.

The carriage shook several times with a muffled sound and quickly departed.

Before the main gate, the gray-clothed man exhaled heavily. Someone nearby walked over. He said in a low voice: “Tell the master the young master was injured.”

“Yes!”