Inside the inner hall of Huichun Hall.
Ling Jingshu and Wei Yan sat facing each other, occasionally exchanging quiet words.
“How have you been feeling lately?” Wei Yan asked in a low voice. “You’ve been taking your medicine on schedule every day, haven’t you?”
Ling Jingshu gave a slightly self-deprecating laugh. “Not a single dose missed. Now my whole body reeks of medicine — I have to carry a sachet to mask the smell before I feel presentable enough to go out. The two of us are sitting so close, haven’t you noticed the smell?”
A faint trace of resentment showed in her tone.
Young girls always cared about their appearance. Who would be happy to meet people while reeking of medicine?
Wei Yan laughed despite himself. “That faint trace of medicine smell — you can’t smell it at all unless you get very close. No need to worry.” His tone carried an unconscious touch of tenderness.
Ling Jingshu looked up and met Wei Yan’s smiling eyes; her heartbeat suddenly quickened. She instinctively looked away.
They only had the chance to meet once every half month, and each time lasted no more than a brief half hour or so. Such rare and precious time alone was something to be treasured.
When they weren’t together, he constantly thought of her, as though there were a thousand words waiting to be spoken. But once they actually met, Wei Yan felt there was no need to say much at all. Simply sitting quietly together with her, occasionally murmuring a few words, the atmosphere was peaceful and beautiful.
Perhaps this was what it meant for time to pass in quiet contentment.
Wei Yan’s eyes brimmed with laughter as he suddenly asked softly, “By the way, I’ve been treating you for over two months now without much effect. Is your father terribly disappointed and dissatisfied with my medical skills? Is he thinking of hiring another renowned physician to treat you instead?”
Since Wei Yan had already guessed as much, Ling Jingshu didn’t hide it either, replying with a smile, “It’s a small matter, I can handle it. You don’t need to take it to heart.”
When it concerned Fifth Master Ling’s impression of him, how could he possibly not care?
Whatever Fifth Master Ling’s faults, he was still Ling Jingshu’s biological father after all!
Even as Wei Yan thought this, he said aloud, “If Fifth Master Ling wants to hire another renowned physician, just use me as your shield. Say that I have an odd temperament, that I don’t like other doctors interfering with patients I’ve already taken on for treatment. If the Ling family hires another doctor, I’ll simply wash my hands of the matter entirely. Given Fifth Master Ling’s nature, he would absolutely not want to offend me right now.”
Setting aside the fact that curing Ling Xiao’s eye ailment had put the Ling family in his debt — simply on account of his standing alone, Fifth Master Ling would never risk offending him by hiring another doctor.
Hearing these words, ripples of emotion stirred within Ling Jingshu’s heart.
No one is made of wood or grass; who could be without feeling?
Although Wei Yan had never made his feelings explicit, he treated her with tender care and thoroughness, quietly doing so much for her. Such a gentle, silent, and tolerant devotion — even if she had a heart of iron and stone, she couldn’t help but be moved…
But for now, she could not, and had no power to, return his affection. All she could do was hold onto her guilt and pretend not to notice.
“Oh right, last time after A’Xiao came back from the Crown Prince’s residence, he mentioned something to me.”
Ling Jingshu broke the silence with feigned ease. “Father prepared twenty thousand taels of silver as a gift of thanks, and you politely declined it. You told him that you would have an important matter to ask of him in the future. Was that just an excuse, or do you really have something you intend to ask of Father?”
Wei Yan hadn’t expected Ling Jingshu to suddenly ask about this. A flush of color flashed swiftly across his handsome face, but he quickly answered with composure. “I saw that he insisted on giving it, and couldn’t think of any other way in the moment, so I made up an excuse to brush it off. Don’t worry, I’ve never had any intention of using a favor to extract something in return.”
Wei Yan’s tone was sincere, his expression as clear and bright as a clear sky after rain. It left Ling Jingshu feeling somewhat ashamed.
Her earlier suspicions had truly been judging a gentleman’s heart with a petty person’s mind.
“Wei Yan, the kindness you’ve shown my brother and me — I truly don’t know how I could ever repay it in the future.” Ling Jingshu raised her eyes, her bright, clear gaze full of gratitude. “From now on, whatever you might ask of me, as long as it’s within my power, I will do my utmost without hesitation.”
Wei Yan gazed at Ling Jingshu and suddenly said, “If you consider me a friend, then please don’t say such things again in the future. I don’t find it pleasant to hear.”
Ling Jingshu: “…”
“I am a physician. Healing the sick and saving lives is my calling. Curing a patient is also the thing that brings me the most joy. So you don’t need to keep thanking me for Young Master Ling’s matter. As for you…”
Wei Yan paused meaningfully before continuing. “The two of us came to know each other, and by coincidence came to know each other’s secrets — that too is the bond of fate between us. The little I’m able to do for you is really all there is. When you keep saying these words of gratitude, it only makes me feel that you’re being too polite, too distant, that you don’t truly regard me as a real friend.”
Ling Jingshu had no choice but to explain. “You’ve misunderstood, I absolutely didn’t mean it that way…”
“As long as you didn’t mean it that way, it’s fine.” A gentle smile rippled in Wei Yan’s eyes. “From now on, whenever the two of us meet, let’s not bring this up again.”
Well, fine!
Whoever said Wei Yan was mild and detached — his words were clearly sharp and incisive.
Ling Jingshu laughed somewhat helplessly. “Fine, I’ll do as you say. After all, in the end I’m the one who benefits while you bear the loss. Since you don’t mind, I’ll shamelessly act as though none of this ever happened.”
Who benefited and who lost out wasn’t important.
Once there was a connection, it would inevitably become entangled.
Besides, being able to do something small and insignificant for the girl he liked, something that would stay in her heart — for a man, that wasn’t some heavy burden at all, but something worth being proud and happy about.
Having persuaded Ling Jingshu, Wei Yan felt rather pleased. “Alright, let’s not talk about this anymore. The prescription you’ve been taking has had ‘poor results,’ so today I should change your prescription. This time you won’t need to go fill it yourself — I had all the medicine prepared at the Imperial Academy of Medicine and brought it with me. When you leave, have Han Yi carry it to the carriage. I’ve prepared two months’ worth, to be taken three times a day as before.”
Ling Jingshu nodded in agreement, then laughed self-mockingly. “A patient like me must be a rare sight. Not only do I get free consultations from the most skilled hand in the Imperial Academy of Medicine, I don’t even need to trouble myself over the medicine. If word got out, who knows how many people would be green with envy.”
Wei Yan, rarely enough, made a joke himself. “If your conscience troubles you so, why not offer yourself in marriage as repayment?”
Ling Jingshu pressed her lips together and laughed lightly. “I’d certainly be willing, but I’m afraid Tian Dong wouldn’t be pleased that I’d taken his place as your medicine boy.”
Her reply was witty and clever, deftly steering away from the awkward topic.
Wei Yan wasn’t disappointed by her response. If her heart could be won over so easily, neither Prince Yan nor the Crown Grandson would have gone home empty-handed.
His nature was steadfast; what he excelled at most was patient perseverance.
As long as he waited patiently, the day the flowers bloomed and bore fruit would surely come.
Wei Yan handed the prescription in his hand to Ling Jingshu. “Keep this prescription safe. If Fifth Master Ling is curious, you might as well let him have a look.” He was very careful, holding only the very corner of the paper, so that when Ling Jingshu took the prescription, her fingers would never brush against his.
This small detail brought a quiet warmth welling up in the heart.
PS: I’ve written scheming, dark-hearted male leads before, cold and ruthless male leads, and also cunning ones. A character like Wei Yan — gentle, tolerant, steadfast, from an ordinary family background, having to navigate carefully amid the pressures of power — would typically be a secondary male lead in most novels, never the true male protagonist. So I wanted to write this kind of male lead, a love story that isn’t earth-shattering and full of fireworks, but warm, gentle, comfortable, and embracing. That’s my original intention! To readers who like the Crown Grandson, I want to apologize. From the very beginning, he was always meant to be the secondary male lead in my plan. In another story, he would undoubtedly deserve to be the true protagonist. Here, he’s the young man who, after weighing the costs, gave up love for the sake of the realm! The male lead I’ve decided on, I won’t change. If everyone truly dislikes it, then let’s meet again in the next book. Thank you.
— Recommending a friend’s new novel, working title rendered here as The Noble Branch Wishes to Wed (金枝欲嫁), by the author writing under the pen name Buyao Saoxue. Synopsis: Meng Xia’s life has only had two stages: one of enduring endless torment, forced to watch helplessly as her mother died a tragic death in weakness and despair; the other, after her mother’s death, a rise to resilience and glory forged in blood and hatred! Fortunately, there’s still someone who never left her side, accompanying her through her entire life’s journey. Having met such a wonderful person — well then, why not marry him!