Quan Feitong suddenly laughed: “Wife? You say it so naturally. Don’t forget your wife also owes me, Quan Feitong, a favor! You asked me for an unfamiliar eunuch to deliver letters to that Xiao Sishan. If I hadn’t agreed, with one link missing, your wife might not have gotten out.”

He glanced at the carriage not far away, where someone was still sleeping.

Sang Zhan put away his smile, speaking each word with utmost seriousness: “She and I have bowed in marriage, she bore children for me. If she’s not my wife, what is she? As her husband, I’ll repay this debt.”

“Or perhaps I’m already repaying you now. Having revealed my identity, Li Zhaoting will certainly be nervous, but will he therefore trust Wei Chenghui again? No – their rift is formed. Wei Chenghui’s rebellion is sooner or later. So Li Zhaoting must rely on you to balance court relations while freeing himself to deal with me. Congratulations, Chancellor Quan – regaining power is within reach.”

Quan Feitong smiled slightly, but didn’t seem entirely pleased. He quickly said: “Have you considered that following you isn’t safe for her? You should entrust her to me.”

“Impossible.” Sang Zhan’s voice grew slightly heavy.

A silence fell between them, with woods rustling and undercurrents surging quietly.

Finally, Quan Feitong touched his nose, laughing: “What you’re repaying, I don’t want. When she wakes, tell her she owes me. I want her to personally bring her daughter to thank me.”

Sang Zhan’s eyes narrowed slightly, showing a trace of danger. Quan Feitong glanced at a distance – there, Xiao Zhou was holding and coaxing the child to sleep.

Finally, Sang Zhan said calmly: “Until we meet again.”

“Your Majesty, if I’m not mistaken, having hidden for years yet daring to publicly reveal your identity to Li Zhaoting and cause his panic, you must have come prepared. Though you didn’t die, you didn’t immediately come to take her away, instead secretly planning your comeback. How bastardly! Didn’t you think what a woman would encounter in a palace surrounded by powerful enemies?”

Quan Feitong suddenly said with a cold laugh.

Sang Zhan’s figure shook instantly, but he said nothing more and quickly turned to leave.

Quan Feitong naturally said nothing more either, departing on his own.

Moments later, meeting with Chao Huang, he stopped and turned to look back with narrowed eyes.

Several large carriages were moving forward.

“Big brother, this person actually isn’t dead.” Chao Huang’s expression was complex – rare for someone like him to show fear and unease.

“Mm.” Quan Feitong responded noncommittally, finally adding lazily: “But he’s right – this is an opportunity for us.”

Chao Huang nodded, hesitated, then suddenly said: “Big brother, you really needn’t give Feng Suzhen to him. He needs our assistance. If we insisted on keeping her, he wouldn’t refuse, having already brought her out of the palace.”

Quan Feitong laughed: “That’s possible, but she’s even borne children for him. Her heart can’t be turned around. Why not have her remember my kindness? Besides, Lian Yu’s late arrival for restoration – when she wakes, she might feel resentment. She’s someone who repays kindness. We’ll definitely meet again, and then I…”

Chao Huang was stunned. Quan Feitong didn’t finish what would happen then, walking out of the woods against the wind.

Suzhen felt she’d had a long, infuriating, painful dream.

In the dream, a strange pine ginseng fragrance slid past her nose and was poured into her mouth. Someone constantly said in her ear: “Feng Suzhen, if you don’t wake up, your child will die with you!”

The voice was sinister and dangerous.

She felt agonizing pain throughout her body, inexplicable suffering, breathing difficulties, almost unable to catch her breath. In confusion, she seemed to see a deep pit with her body constantly falling down, down, but those words made her breathe deeply and climb desperately upward…

“Wah…”

A child’s crying!

“Li Zhaoting, don’t touch my daughter!” Killing intent surged as she shouted fiercely and suddenly opened her eyes.

Unclear whether it was sweat or tears sliding from her forehead and eye sockets, she saw bed curtains. Hearing whimpering nearby, she turned with difficulty and suddenly saw a little bundle beside her twisting, eyes wide open, mouth agape, crying about something.

“Little Lotus…” Suzhen was still unclear about the situation but almost instinctively struggled to sit up and hold the bundle in her arms.

From birth until now, she hadn’t held this child. The substantial feeling in her arms brought tears not only to the child but to her as well.

She’d never raised a child but had seen others do it. She quickly felt the child’s bottom – the clothes were dry, so she was probably hungry.

After giving birth, due to her own deficiencies, she had little milk. Later, she never nursed the child for even one day. How could she feed her now? Ignoring her body’s pain, she kicked around the bed looking for shoes.

At this moment, someone suddenly pushed the door open.

Their eyes met. Suzhen was suddenly stunned – why was this person here?!

She quickly looked around – this was an elegantly furnished room. No! This wasn’t the palace. She was confused again. There, Sang Zhan stared at her, his eyes burning as if about to ignite. Suzhen felt heated under his gaze, uncomfortable in her heart. Just as she was about to ask where this was and why she and Little Lotus were here, he had already stridden over and picked up the child.

“Where are you taking my daughter?” She was startled, reaching to grab her.

“She’s probably hungry. The wet nurse is outside. I’ll be right back.”

His voice was hoarse.

Suzhen nodded, but saw him unconcerned by the child’s tears and snot, lowering his head to kiss her before quickly leaving. She thought worriedly and hurried to follow.

Sang Zhan stopped in front of a left-side room in the courtyard, said something, and a woman in her thirties poked her head out, quickly smiled and took the child, turning to lift the curtain and enter the room.

Sang Zhan seemed to sigh, slowly turning around. Looking up to see her, his face showed a strange expression – seemingly very pleased, yet carrying an indescribable complex taboo, but his eyes were unusually fervent.

Suzhen felt awkward, deliberately looking aside, and saw two basins of clothes in the courtyard – men’s, women’s, and baby’s. She wouldn’t think these belonged to that woman. Looking at his rolled-up sleeves, then down at herself wearing only undergarments, her face grew hotter. Just as she was about to enter the house, he rolled down his sleeves and strode over: “I’ll help you.”

Suzhen was about to say no need when he had already come to support her toward the house.

A clear, crisp scent immediately came – very pleasant but definitely a man’s smell. Suzhen’s heart pounded violently. She had previously had some favorable impression of this person, but since learning he had feelings for her, she instinctively avoided and distanced herself. Now he ignored propriety between men and women, making her somewhat displeased, yet she and Little Lotus seemed to have been brought out by him… Thinking of this, all her doubts came flooding out, and she couldn’t help asking: “Did you come to the capital on behalf of the Murong family? Did you bring me and my daughter out?”

“Since we’ve left, what about Wuqing and the others now…?” Thinking of this made her anxious, almost immediately stopping. Besides her brother, Xiao Zhou, the princess, Leng Xue and others were still imprisoned in the palace! And Guo Sizhen and the others…

Seeing her coughing anxiously, Sang Zhan patted her back to help her breathe while scolding quietly: “Look how anxious you are. Li Zhaoting hid you in the Cold Palace with your people caring for you. I couldn’t let go, always secretly watching – I know the situation. Rest assured, they’re all fine. Your brother, friends, and servants are now on their way to join the Murong family…”

Suzhen was both surprised and delighted, grasping his hand: “Sang Zhan, thank you.”

Sang Zhan almost immediately gripped back. His palm was warm and dry, but Suzhen felt as if burned, hurriedly pulling away. Using too much force, she stumbled. Sang Zhan’s expression darkened as he caught her and bent to lift her up.

Suzhen’s face was red and hot: “I can walk myself, walk myself.”

Sang Zhan said nothing, kicked the door open, carried her straight to the bed, then actually bent down to remove her shoes. Suzhen was dumbfounded, embarrassedly bending to stop him, but her chest still ached faintly. His hands were nimble, already removing her shoes and grasping her feet in his palms. Suzhen couldn’t help remembering long ago when Lian Yu at the villa had also… She trembled slightly all over. The temperature from his hands seemed even hotter. In shame and anger, she kicked him away and awkwardly covered herself with the quilt.

He looked back at her, the burning in his eyes deepening: “The kitchen has chicken soup. I’ll get some.”

Suzhen wished he would leave immediately, quickly saying “Mm.”

However, watching his departing figure, she suddenly remembered something disturbing.

He said Wuqing and the others were already en route to the Murong family, but why separate her and the child alone? Even if her injuries would delay the journey, they should be the ones caring for her, not him! Remembering his strange gaze, her heart tightened.

She was thinking when footsteps suddenly approached. She looked up startled to see him entering with a bowl, staring at her intently with the same gaze – as if she were the soup to be consumed…