The charcoal fire crackled and popped as Emperor Zhenning lowered his gaze toward Bai Yuyang.

“What do you think?”

Without waiting for Bai Yuyang’s response, he turned to He Yixian, “What do you think?”

Neither of them responded immediately.

Emperor Zhenning moved his hands closer to the charcoal fire and mused, “I think this is fair enough. Since you have nothing to say, let’s settle it this way.”

He then addressed Deng Ying, “Come here, I have more instructions for you.”

Deng Ying stood up and walked to the charcoal brazier, kneeling once more.

The jade ring on Emperor Zhenning’s hand had grown hot from the charcoal fire. He removed it and casually handed it to He Yixian, though his gaze remained fixed on Deng Ying.

“The Elder was once my regent minister. Before passing judgment, you must not disrespect him. Otherwise, I will execute you.”

Deng Ying bowed his head and replied, “This servant understands.”

Emperor Zhenning brushed some charcoal ash from his knee. Seeing that Deng Ying hadn’t moved, He Yixian crouched down to help brush off the ash.

Emperor Zhenning swept his gaze across everyone in the hall. Each person was in their proper place, showing no signs of overstepping. He felt quite satisfied and rose to walk toward the inner hall, saying, “That’s all for today.”

Yang Wan stood at the base of the moon terrace, watching Wang Xixiang from the Palace Maintenance Office pour water into the vats, occasionally glancing up at the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

The palace servants working in front of the imperial hall were extremely cautious, not uttering a single word. Yang Wan listened to the flowing water, her mind unsettled.

Soon after, Yang Lun, Bai Yuyang, and others came down from the moon terrace. Yang Wan didn’t look up, turning away to avoid them. Though Yang Lun saw her, he didn’t speak.

Bucket after bucket of water was poured into the vats, inevitably splashing some water that flowed along the ground’s crevices toward the lower ground.

Yi Lang nearly slipped on the water while rushing down the terrace, stumbling into Yang Wan’s arms.

Caught off guard and trying to protect him, Yang Wan couldn’t brace herself and fell solidly to the ground.

“Ouch…”

The palace servants near the hall saw Yi Lang and Yang Wan fall and hurried forward to help.

The water pourers, fearing punishment, had already knelt on the ground.

Yi Lang got up and immediately turned back to check on Yang Wan.

“Aunt, are you hurt?”

“No, first check if His Highness is injured?”

Everyone frantically checked for a while, fortunately finding no external injuries. Yang Wan, however, realized she might have hurt her tailbone, but she couldn’t say it aloud or touch it, so she had to wave away those trying to help her up and sat on the ground trying to recover.

Deng Ying, walking more slowly than Yi Lang, saw Yang Wan just as she was struggling to stand up.

“What happened?”

Yang Wan awkwardly adjusted her hair, “Slipped and fell.”

Deng Ying glanced at the water on the ground and turned to address the kneeling palace servants, “Go receive your punishment.”

Then he bent down to help brush the dirt off Yang Wan’s clothes.

“It’s fine, I’ll just change when I get back.”

“I’m sorry, I was the one who ordered the Palace Maintenance Office to fill the auspicious vats today. The second month is coming, we need to prevent fire incidents before they happen.”

Yang Wan looked at the water in the vats and said softly, “Thunder in the second month does bring more heavenly fires. Things are… truly unsettled.”

She sighed after speaking, “His Majesty’s heart must be unsettled too.”

Yi Lang took Yang Wan’s hand, “But Father praised me today.”

Yang Wan looked down with a smile, “Really? Did His Majesty like the prayer you wrote?”

“Yes, Father especially loved the line you helped refine.”

“That’s good.”

She finished speaking and, enduring the pain in her tailbone, straightened up to adjust Yi Lang’s clothes, “Let Heyu accompany Your Highness to the Hall of Literary Splendor.”

“What about Aunt?”

“Aunt… got hurt, wants to go back and check.”

Yi Lang nodded, “Then when I return, I’ll have the Imperial Physician sent to Aunt.”

He then cheerfully left for the Hall of Literary Splendor with Heyu and others.

Yang Wan and Deng Ying watched Yi Lang until he disappeared. Only then did Yang Wan ask Deng Ying, “Did it go smoothly?”

Deng Ying nodded, “Smoothly.”

Yang Wan let out a sigh of relief and turned to face Deng Ying, “From now on, everyone except you will be fine.”

Deng Ying smiled, “Wanwan, thank you for helping me.”

Yang Wan pressed her lips together, “Actually, I don’t know if I should help you. Do you know your current situation?”

“I know.”

Yang Wan’s face grew pale, “Nothing can happen to Lord Bai in the factory prison, otherwise His Majesty will use you to appease public anger. But if you want to help clear his name, you must accept the charge of embezzling school land that he accused you of. After that, if Bai Yuyang and others still won’t give up using you to deal with the Ceremonial Office, do you know how miserable you’ll be?”

“I know.”

Yang Wan was silent for a while, then suddenly said, “Then do you know I want to cry now?”

Deng Ying was startled.

Looking up, he saw Yang Wan’s eyes were already red.

He quickly raised his sleeve, his shackles touching Yang Wan’s cheek.

“Don’t cry, Wanwan. No matter where I am in the future, I’ll do everything I can to come back and see you.”

“I just don’t want to believe you.”

“You should believe me. I promised Empress Ning, I dare not break my word.”

Yang Wan lowered her head and smiled bitterly, “Here I am, pushing you into a pit, and now you’re the one comforting me.”

She patted her face, “Anyway, when are you going to the Bai residence to make the arrest?”

“Day after tomorrow.”

“Oh.”

Yang Wan forced her voice to stay steady, “Before then, can we stay at your outer residence for a day…”

For some reason, though she had tried her best to keep her voice steady, it still trembled at the end.

Actually, before a storm, it’s best to avoid quiet places – the extreme contrast only hurts more. But Yang Wan masochistically wanted to be with Deng Ying.

“Is your place habitable now?”

“Yes.”

“Is the bed set up?”

“It is.”

“What about bedding?”

“All there.”

“Is there a place to bathe?”

“There is.”

Yang Wan smiled after hearing this, “Little Ying, just one day, then I’ll obediently return.”

They only stayed for one day.

For most of the time, they did nothing.

Deng Ying’s outer residence was cleaned up by Qin Wende and several factory guards. Because Deng Ying didn’t have extra money, the room only had necessary furniture and no other decorations.

The bed was wooden, covered with gray bedding. The cotton quilt was new, still somewhat stiff.

A thin layer of dust covered the floor.

After entering the room, Deng Ying took a broom and slowly began sweeping. The sound of chains scraping against the floor was constant, so much so that Yang Wan didn’t even hear when it started raining outside.

She knelt on the bed, making it up.

“Deng Ying.”

“Hmm?”

“Do you want to sleep on the inside or outside?”

Deng Ying straightened up, “The outside.”

“Alright.”

Yang Wan picked up a pillow, “I’ll give you this softer pillow.”

Deng Ying put down the broom, “Wanwan, are you hungry?”

“A little.”

“I had Qin Wende bring some ingredients, let me cook something for you.”

Yang Wan put on her shoes and got off the bed, “Can you cook?”

“A little. I learned from Li Yu these past couple of years, though I’m not very good.”

He went to the courtyard and brought in the vegetables and rice from in front of the wooden gate.

A faint rain scent drifted into the room, and Yang Wan finally noticed it had started drizzling outside, like silk threads.

A white mist rose in the courtyard, everything was quiet except for the dragging sound of Deng Ying’s restraints.

Deng Ying rolled up his sleeves and squatted down, taking out the ingredients one by one.

Yang Wan said, “Why don’t I cook instead?”

Deng Ying smiled, “Wanwan, can we not have noodles today?”

Yang Wan said, “Little Ying, are you complaining that I only know how to make noodles?”

“I’m not.”

He looked up, “When His Highness eats the noodles you make, I can eat them too. It makes me feel that maybe I’m not completely without dignity.”

Yang Wan’s gaze shifted.

“Just a bowl of noodles, can I give you dignity?”

Deng Ying looked at the ingredients before him, “Wanwan, do you remember when you told me to ‘get up’ in front of Guangji Temple?”

Of course, she remembered.

Though that incident happened two years ago, the Yang Wan of that time still maintained pure fearlessness and didn’t yet love Deng Ying. She was still an external force then, though powerful, not enough to mend another’s inner wounds. She fell in love with Deng Ying while spending time with him, and it was in the shadows of the Great Ming that she truly saw the shadows within Deng Ying. These shadows, she never wrote about in the biography she wrote to clear his name.

She had once used her writing skills to portray a tragic and heroic Deng Ying, but she didn’t know that this person had tender skin and fragile bones. His clothes, his writing hand, and the places where he had sat and lain, all carried that ancient sentiment of “plantain leaves in the rain beneath the eaves.” For a modern person, he had brought male fragility and humility to a brilliant extreme.

So-called “dignity” couldn’t solidify into stone. For him, shattered with cracks all over, it could only turn into glue, seeping bit by bit into his life.

Thinking this, Yang Wan held Deng Ying’s arm and pulled him up from the pile of rice and vegetables.

“Get up.”

She bent down to pick up the rice and flour, “If one day you feel you can live with me without treating yourself as a criminal, you must tell me.”

She coughed once, “I’m not a very sensitive person. When you told me at South Lake that you didn’t know why you were treated that way, I didn’t know how to comfort you then, just kept saying it wasn’t your fault. Looking back now, I was quite foolish. Later, all I could do was make you feel at ease, even when you kept hurting yourself in front of me. As long as you felt better inside, I didn’t say anything. But Deng Ying…”

Yang Wan lowered her eyes, “Sometimes, I feel quite awful…”

She sniffled, “At first, I really wanted to be someone high above others, but now I don’t want that anymore.”

She paused here.

“You’re not going to ask me what kind of person I want to be?”

“What kind of person do you want to be?”

“I just want to be Yang Wan. A nameless woman of the Great Ming dynasty, unable to resist fate, but I just won’t give up, won’t give up on myself, and won’t give up on you. I will use all my life’s strength to live well with you, take care of you, and let you live a long life.”

Deng Ying looked down at his wrist, “Wanwan, actually even in this state, I don’t want you to take care of me. I can take care of you.”

“You mean like cooking for me?”

She picked up a large cabbage from the ground and shook it at Deng Ying.

“Vinegar-stir-fried tastes good. I’ll wash it, you go start the fire, be careful with your hands. I brought some of the medicine His Highness gave you, I’ll help you apply it after we eat.”

“Wanwan.”

“Yes?”

“Does where you fell yesterday still hurt?”

Yang Wan turned around holding the cabbage: “Still a little, why?”

“Let me take a look later.”

Yang Wan smiled, her eyes curving, and walked a few steps closer to Deng Ying: “Do you know where I got hurt?”

“Where?”

Yang Wan said, “His Highness fell into my arms from the steps, and I fell straight onto my bottom, hitting my tailbone.”

Deng Ying froze.

“Little Ying, you can still blush?”

“I…”

“You, you, you… what?”

Yang Wan put down the cabbage and gently wrapped her arms around Deng Ying’s waist, “Deng Ying, it’s okay. Sometimes I feel like I’m some kind of cultural hooligan, but I can’t bring myself to do anything to you.”

Deng Ying pressed his lips together, “Actually… I’ve been learning too.”

“Learning what?”

“Uh…”

He paused, “Wanwan, I can’t say it out loud.”