“General Shao may not know, but brewing medicine is very particular—the heat, the portions, even the timing of removing it from the fire…”

“Alright.”

Qiao Zhao was stunned.

He had agreed before she finished explaining?

Shao Mingyuan thought silently: As long as you don’t cry, anything is fine.

“Then, please have someone bring a small stove, General Shao.”

“Bring it here?”

“Yes, I plan to brew it in the corridor. The kitchen is too hot.”

Shao Mingyuan wanted to say they could place ice basins in the kitchen so it wouldn’t be hot, but in the end, he said nothing and arranged things according to Qiao Zhao’s request.

The corridor was well-ventilated. Qiao Zhao moved a small stool to sit beside the small stove, watching the medicine while fanning herself intermittently with a fan. As she fanned, she began to daydream.

A hint of coolness drifted over.

“Miss Li, you can sit farther from the fire.” A man’s low, gentle voice came from behind her.

Qiao Zhao turned her head and saw Shao Mingyuan standing behind her, tall and straight like a white poplar, blocking the harsh sunlight.

She looked down and saw that two ice basins had been placed around her at some point. That hint of coolness came from them.

“They’ll melt quickly.”

“There are plenty more.” Shao Mingyuan comforted her.

Miss Qiao silently twitched the corner of her mouth.

So Shao Mingyuan was this kind of wealthy and willful person. Ice used by wealthy families in summer wasn’t cheap.

The rich aroma of medicine wafted out. Qiao Zhao lifted the purple clay lid to check, then covered it again and sat back down.

“General Shao doesn’t need to accompany me here.”

“I came out for some fresh air.” Shao Mingyuan said with a serious expression.

Miss Li wasn’t a maid. Leaving her alone in the corridor to brew medicine made him feel bad.

One person sat by the fire, the other stood by the corridor pillar. For a moment, silence fell, with only the medicinal fragrance swirling around them.

The sound of hurried footsteps approached.

Both Shao Mingyuan and Qiao Zhao turned to look.

A personal guard came running urgently: “General, someone from the Ministry of Justice has come, requesting Young Master Qiao to go there.”

The fan in Qiao Zhao’s hand stopped moving.

“Understood.” Shao Mingyuan nodded and looked at Qiao Zhao. “Miss Li, I’ll accompany my uncle to the Ministry of Justice.”

“No.” Qiao Zhao firmly refused.

Shao Mingyuan was completely stunned.

Why was this not allowed either? This was official business!

The person who came to report quickly glanced at Qiao Zhao with a face full of admiration.

Heavens! Someone who dared to say “no” so decisively to their General and still live well—this was the first time he’d seen such a person!

The last one who said this was the youngest son of the Tartar chieftain. That beast had captured women from Great Liang for his amusement. When the General told him to release them, he said no, and then he could never say no again—the General shot an arrow that took off that beast’s jewels.

“General Shao’s condition is unstable. Since I’ve taken charge of this matter, as a physician I must be responsible for you, and as a patient you must listen to the doctor.”

The guard lowered his head and twitched his mouth.

Don’t joke around. If doctors could control the General, the Tartars wouldn’t need to send soldiers to the battlefield—they could just send a group of doctors.

“I understand Miss Li’s good intentions, but today’s situation is special. I’d be more at ease accompanying my uncle.”

Many doctors had examined him, but only this girl before him had ever gently told him, “This time it won’t hurt.”

Having seen her crying like rain yesterday, he hoped she wouldn’t be sad again.

Qiao Zhao thought for a moment and relented: “In that case, General Shao, take me with you.”

What?

Shao Mingyuan was completely dazed.

Miss Qiao looked completely justified: “Only with me by your side watching constantly can I be at ease.”

Finally, she could legitimately follow along!

Meeting the young lady’s clear, bright eyes, Shao Mingyuan finally compromised: “Then fine, I won’t go either.”

How could he bring Miss Li? Miss Li was beautiful and refined—even if she dressed as a man, others weren’t blind—

The usually clever Miss Qiao was dumbfounded, her mouth agape for quite a while, not knowing what to say.

He just wouldn’t go!

Did this person have any principles left? For the sake of a young lady, he would abandon her big brother?

“It’s alright. I’ll send a trusted aide to escort my uncle. It’s the same thing.”

While Qiao Zhao was still in a daze, Shao Mingyuan had already instructed: “Escort Young Master Qiao to the Ministry of Justice.”

“Never mind, General Shao should accompany Big Brother Qiao. I’ll stay here and brew medicine for you. If you feel unwell, quickly send someone to call me.” Miss Qiao bit her lip in frustration, feeling very much like she had lifted a rock only to drop it on her foot.

“Alright then, thank you for your trouble, Miss Li.” Shao Mingyuan bid farewell to Qiao Zhao. As he turned around, the corners of his mouth lifted in a smile that flashed and disappeared.

He knew Miss Li wasn’t someone who couldn’t distinguish between important and trivial matters.

The fire at his wife’s family home was full of mysteries. Now that there were finally results, he had to accompany his uncle to get to the bottom of it, no matter what.

Only after Shao Mingyuan and Qiao Mo left did Qiao Zhao realize: had she been fooled by that Shao fellow?

The sun gradually climbed higher. The ice in the basins had long since quietly melted, but Qiao Zhao’s mind was preoccupied with the fire investigation results, and she didn’t notice.

Personal guards silently came over, quietly replaced the ice basins, and silently withdrew, so that when Qiao Zhao came to her senses, she discovered the ice in the basins was still full.

She couldn’t help but glance at the guard standing far away in the corner.

The guard keenly sensed Qiao Zhao’s gaze and hurried over, asking respectfully: “Does Miss Li have any instructions?”

“No, this ice—”

“Oh, our General instructed this subordinate to replace the ice for Miss Li promptly before he left.”

“Thank you.” Qiao Zhao looked at the crystal-clear ice blocks refracting cold light in the blazing sun and sighed quietly.

More footsteps approached. Qiao Zhao looked up to see Chen Guang running over.

“Third Miss, would you like to go shopping?”

Qiao Zhao was silent for a moment, then said flatly: “No.”

Did carriage drivers also provide shopping escort services?

“How about I take you to Miss Qiao’s place?”

“Miss Qiao?” Qiao Zhao’s heart tightened. “What, Miss Qiao?”

“Young Master Qiao’s little sister. She’s young and only has a few maids and servants to keep her company, which must be quite boring. Why don’t I take you to play in her courtyard?”

“No.” Qiao Zhao’s tone grew colder.

She wasn’t the concubine’s sister’s maid or servant. At a time like this, how could she have the mood to accompany the concubine sister?

Moreover, she didn’t like hearing others call someone else “Miss Qiao.”

“Then—how about you go inside to cool off? It’s hot outside, and heatstroke would be troublesome.”

“There are ice basins.” Qiao Zhao was certain Chen Guang was acting strangely. After pondering for a moment, she asked: “Speak up, who’s here?”

Chen Guang was stunned, then scratched his head: “You guessed it? Young Master Chi has come.”

How annoying—why did Young Master Chi come when the General wasn’t here? He even brought that male servant dressed as a woman. Just seeing him made Chen Guang want to beat him up!

While the two were talking, a cold voice came: “Li San, why are you here?”