Qin Yining said courteously, “Thank you for your trouble, Vice Director Liu.”

“Princess Consort, you’re too kind. This is this humble official’s duty.”

Vice Director Liu then approached, took out a pulse pillow, and half-knelt beside the warm kang by the window to carefully take Pang Xiao’s pulse. After placing three fingers on the cun, guan, and chi positions and examining both hands with focused concentration, he couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.

Although Prince Zhongshun’s body bore old injuries, it had obviously been carefully nursed back to health. He was now vigorous and in high spirits – a man approaching thirty whose physical condition was comparable to that of a young man in his early twenties. How could he collapse?

So there was only one reason for the collapse – the prince wanted to faint.

Vice Director Liu was highly skilled in medicine, but there were countless skilled physicians in the Imperial Medical Academy. Having mixed in the Imperial Medical Academy for many years and risen to the position of vice director, he relied not only on medical skills, but also on his smooth way of handling people.

“Your Highness has overexerted himself from fatigue,” Vice Director Liu said with subtle probing.

Pang Xiao smiled and nodded, saying “weakly”: “On the road back to the capital, heavy snow was falling continuously. The journey was truly difficult to traverse. This prince was anxious to return home, so sleeping in the open and enduring hardships along the way was unavoidable.”

Vice Director Liu immediately nodded knowingly: “Exactly so. Your Highness’s old injuries from earlier years, encountering extremely cold weather, combined with the constant jolting of the journey without proper recuperation – this is what caused the relapse. However, this isn’t any major issue. With proper care, it will improve in as little as three to five days, or at most three to five months.”

Qin Yining almost laughed out loud upon hearing this. Vice Director Liu was truly a wonderful person.

The difference between three to five days and three to five months was enormous, with much room for maneuvering in between. These words both gave Pang Xiao face, could deal with His Majesty, and curried favor with Pang Xiao without risking imperial wrath and implication of himself. Moreover, Pang Xiao certainly wouldn’t expose the truth either. This was truly playing all sides skillfully, remaining completely untainted.

“Thank you for your trouble, Vice Director Liu. Please go outside to write the prescription.”

Qin Yining wiped her tears and instructed Ji Yun to prepare ink and brush, also giving Vice Director Liu a substantial red envelope.

Vice Director Liu smiled as he accepted it, gave a few more instructions, then left the prince’s mansion to return to the palace and report back.

Seeing the person leave, Pang Xiao lay still for a while longer before suddenly leaping up energetically, walking briskly to check at the door, then pulling Qin Yining’s hand to sit on the warm kang.

“It’s cold outside. Look, your hands are ice cold. Are you frozen?”

“I’m fine.” Qin Yining smiled as she sat beside Pang Xiao.

Looking at her red eyes and the obviously swollen eye bags, Pang Xiao couldn’t help but feel distressed: “Don’t use such concentrated ginger juice next time. What if it’s bad for your eyes?”

“It’s fine. I didn’t directly use my sleeve to wipe my eyes. I was afraid my crying wouldn’t look real enough and people would see through it, making all our efforts go to waste.”

Pang Xiao sighed: “When my Sister Yi even furrows her brow, my heart aches for a long time. Making you shed tears hurts me more than being stabbed with a knife.”

His large hand pulled Qin Yining into his embrace, lovingly pressing his lips to her forehead: “In the future, when everything is over, I definitely won’t make you cry.”

Qin Yining couldn’t help but smile, though her eyes became somewhat moist.

Perhaps the ginger juice on her sleeve was just too overwhelming.

“Alright, I cry when I’m happy and I cry when I’m unhappy – these aren’t things you can control. You don’t know how many people envy me for being able to marry such a great hero like you. You understand me, cherish me, respect me, and give me enough space to use my abilities. How many men can’t do this for their wives? Being able to follow you makes me particularly satisfied, so you really don’t need to have any psychological burden.”

“Sister Yi…” Pang Xiao’s throat was dry for a moment. His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down, and only after a long while did he smile and say: “Alright, you are my wife. We’ll weather storms together, and no matter how many difficulties we face in the future, we’ll solve them together. Though the situation is tense now, someday I’ll be able to give you a peaceful and comfortable life. We’ll endure hardship first and enjoy sweetness later.”

“Exactly, endure hardship first and enjoy sweetness later. In the future, we have a lifetime of happiness waiting for us to enjoy.” Qin Yining smiled as she leaned against Pang Xiao’s shoulder. After thinking for a moment, she told him how she had been accosted by the ninth young master of Duke Changguo’s mansion, how she had negotiated with Duke Changguo, and how she had him beaten with boards before sending him back.

Pang Xiao said in amazement: “So it was true? When my people were gathering information in the city, they learned of this incident. But thinking that outside rumors might not be true, and our family has always been in the eye of the storm with people spreading false rumors behind our backs, I never thought it would actually be true.”

Qin Yining raised her eyebrows: “Did I ruin your affairs by doing this?”

“Not at all.” Pang Xiao touched her cheek and smiled: “You did very well. If I had been there, I probably would have beaten him even more severely.”

By the end, the coldness in Pang Xiao’s eyes was impossible to hide. Anyone who dared molest his wife – it was heaven’s blessing that Shang Zhihua still had his life.

Qin Yining then leaned close to his ear and told Pang Xiao her plan in detail.

Pang Xiao blinked, recalling the performance he had coordinated with Qin Yining today and the reaction of the city’s people, then thinking of Qin Yining’s arrangements. He couldn’t help but laugh with both indulgence and delight, pinching the tip of her nose with his finger.

“You little troublemaker, now someone is going to be made to cry by your schemes.”

“I’m only doing this for you. If you don’t like it, I can stop continuing.” Qin Yining said with feigned pride.

Pang Xiao absolutely adored this little expression of hers. Holding her waist, he laughed heartily: “How could I bear to stop you? Good, we’ll do as you say. We’ve indeed worked hard sleeping in the open all the way back to the capital. During this time, I’ll claim illness so we can have a good rest at home.” He then leaned close to Qin Yining’s ear and whispered: “Have some shameless days together properly.”

The topic had been quite serious, but who would have thought Pang Xiao would turn it in this direction at the end.

Qin Yining’s ears turned red, and she petulantly punched his chest: “You rogue! I never noticed you were like this before.”

Pang Xiao caught her soft, boneless little hand and rubbed his thumb on the back of her hand: “Who says? When we first met, I immediately played the rogue with you. Have you forgotten?”

Qin Yining remembered this fellow chasing after her bare-chested in the military camp, even daring to say she was his woman, and couldn’t help but blush.

However, now they had almost become an old married couple. Looking back on those days, although there were embarrassing moments, most were warm and sweet.

Seeing Qin Yining’s shy appearance, Pang Xiao’s mind had already started wandering. He held her hand and coaxed her with sweet words.

At this time, Li Qitian was listening to Vice Director Liu’s report in the imperial study with a gloomy expression.

“You mean to say that Prince Zhongshun’s old ailment has indeed relapsed?”

Vice Director Liu felt uneasy inside, but based on his judgment and understanding of His Majesty, saying this would definitely pass muster.

Therefore, Vice Director Liu nodded calmly and said: “Your Majesty, it is indeed so. Prince Zhongshun has many injuries, large and small, on his body. This time returning to the capital, he encountered continuous heavy snowfall. In the bitter cold with bone-chilling air, his old injuries flared up.”

Upon hearing this, Li Qitian felt inexplicably much more comfortable and slowly nodded: “I entrust Prince Zhongshun’s health to your care. You must be diligent.”

Vice Director Liu kept his head lowered and respectfully agreed. Although he vaguely heard something unusual in His Majesty’s words, he didn’t want to get involved in these matters and pretended not to understand.

Li Qitian casually waved his hand.

Vice Director Liu quickly bowed and withdrew.

Li Qitian’s expression remained gloomy as he crossed his legs and leaned against the armrest of his catalpa wood chair, his fingertips tapping unhurriedly on his knee.

All the events that occurred when Pang Xiao returned to the city today flashed through his mind one by one. Finally, Li Qitian could conclude that this had been premeditated.

Using public opinion to force him to be a virtuous ruler who couldn’t punish meritorious officials.

Going out of the palace today to receive Pang Xiao – if he didn’t go, it would confirm that he treated meritorious officials harshly; if he went, it would instead confirm that Pang Xiao was indeed a meritorious official. What Pang Xiao had done in the south was indeed beneficial to the court, but who could say that everything Pang Xiao did didn’t have components for his own benefit? For instance, when Pang Xiao had used southern affairs to threaten him, forcing him to abandon his intention to kill Qin Yining.

But these behind-the-scenes confrontations were unknown to others – the ministers didn’t know, and the common people didn’t know either.

Since ascending the throne, Li Qitian had rarely suffered losses. Now, carefully calculating, most of the losses he had suffered were related to Pang Xiao.

And this current instance seemed to be another bitter pill he would have to swallow.

Li Qitian pressed his lips tightly together, his eyes squinting due to his mind’s rapid calculations.

Pang Xiao and Qin Yining indeed spent several “shameless” days at home. Although they didn’t go out to play, their lifestyle wasn’t much different from when they had stayed at the Lu family.

The two would read books together, or discuss what to do next. In their leisure time, they would play a game of weiqi with stakes to bet on.

Following His Majesty’s instructions, Vice Director Liu would come to the mansion every other day to take pulses. The medical records he kept were completely based on what Pang Xiao appeared to display. It had to be said that Vice Director Liu was truly a smooth operator. This way, he could complete his own duties without implicating his family or offending any party.

Time thus quickly arrived at the day of the grand court assembly.

Pang Xiao continued to claim illness and not attend court.

However, at the court assembly, something occurred that shocked all the officials.

Duke Changguo, Shang Chuan, stepped forward in the hall, knelt on the ground, and impeached Prince Zhongshun.

“…Your Majesty, when Prince Zhongshun returned to the capital, he gathered several thousand citizens, nearly causing great chaos in the city. The Five Cities Military Commissioner’s Office had to dispatch additional personnel, resulting in many patrol gaps appearing in the city. If this had caused some major incident, wouldn’t it have made people laugh at the capital’s security?

“Prince Zhongshun, being an important minister of the court and deeply trusted by Your Majesty, acted so recklessly and disrupted the capital’s order – this is already an extremely grave crime. When Your Majesty personally left the palace to receive him, he also showed improper behavior before Your Majesty – this is simply great disrespect! Prince Zhongshun is a minister of high position and great authority who should set an example for all officials. Such behavior is truly unforgivable. Please, Your Majesty, severely punish his grave crimes!”

Duke Changguo, Shang Chuan, was an old minister from the Northern Ji period who had always kept a low profile, never formed factions or stirred up trouble, and was famously easygoing.

But today he stood forward to impeach Pang Xiao.

This truly surprised all the civil and military officials in the court.

However, thinking of the rumors that had been flying around the city in recent days, some said that Pang Xiao and Duke Changguo had an irreconcilable hatred?

Looking at it this way, impeaching Pang Xiao at this critical moment indeed showed irreconcilable hatred!