“This palace has already fed His Majesty the medicine you brought. Imperial Physician Jiang took His Majesty’s pulse and said his pulse is gradually improving. It seems it truly is the antidote. If all goes well, His Majesty will wake up tomorrow morning.”

Zhangsun Wuji breathed a long sigh of relief. “That’s good.” Luoyang had been reclaimed, and Li Shimin had turned from danger to safety. Finally, they could see the moon through the clouds.

After the great weight in his heart lifted, he bowed deeply to Yunyi. “Thanks to Your Majesty’s divine wisdom and brilliant strategy, we were able to attack Luoyang and save His Majesty. Thank you, Your Majesty!”

Indeed, if Yunyi hadn’t thought of using kites to fly people up to Luoyang’s city walls and destroy those catapults and crossbow carts, they would probably still be wandering outside Luoyang City, unable to find a way in. As for Li Shimin, needless to say, obtaining this life-saving pill had taken tremendous effort.

“This palace merely did what should be done. General, there’s no need for thanks.” Saying this, she added, “General Zhangsun has worked hard all the way. Please go rest for a while. As for Li Jiancheng, escort him to the side hall for guarding. After His Majesty awakens, we’ll decide how to deal with him.”

After Zhangsun Wuji escorted Li Jiancheng away, Yunyi returned to the bedchamber. Li Shimin was still unconscious, but his complexion was much better than before. Imperial Physicians Jiang and Qi stood guard nearby without moving an inch. Seeing her enter, Imperial Physician Jiang thought she was still worried and bowed, saying, “Your Majesty need not worry. His Majesty’s pulse has been recovering, and his heartbeat is gradually strengthening. These are all good signs.”

Yunyi nodded. “Do you two imperial physicians know the composition of this antidote?” Although Li Shimin was safe, there were still thousands of soldiers outside the city suffering from the epidemic, in mortal danger.

Upon hearing this, Imperial Physician Jiang’s expression immediately darkened, and he shook his head. “There was only one pill of the antidote, and we had His Majesty take it immediately upon receiving it. We had no chance to analyze the medicine’s composition.”

“So the epidemic poison affecting the soldiers outside the city still has no cure?”

Imperial Physician Qi said hoarsely, “I hope the medicine I prescribed for them earlier will be effective. Otherwise… there’s truly nothing we can do. Please forgive us, Your Majesty.”

“You have already done your best. Let’s hope Heaven shows mercy.” Saying this, she stepped forward and held Li Shimin’s hand, quietly waiting for him to wake up.

This wait lasted the entire night. When the first ray of sunlight came through the window, Li Shimin’s eyelids moved slightly, then slowly opened as he gazed blankly at that visible but untouchable light.

As his sensory awareness and thoughts gradually returned to his mind, he heard a voice nearby filled with surprise and near tears: “Your Majesty, you’re awake.”

This voice…

Li Shimin turned his head with effort and saw Yunyi looking at him with tears in her eyes. Surprise, confusion, and joy flashed across Li Shimin’s eyes one by one.

He struggled to reach toward Yunyi, and she quickly grasped his hand, pressing it against her cheek, choking back tears as she said, “It’s good that you’re awake. Everything’s fine now, everything’s fine!”

Li Shimin looked at her and opened his mouth, struggling to squeeze out a few words from his lips that had not yet regained their color: “You… Yunyi…”

Yunyi quickly nodded. “Yes, yes, it’s your subject consort. Your subject consort is here.”

“Water…” Hearing this word, Yunyi quickly poured a cup of warm water and carefully fed it to him spoonful by spoonful. After drinking the water, Li Shimin’s spirits improved somewhat, and he regained some strength. “Is it really you?”

During his unconscious state, he seemed to have heard Yunyi’s voice and felt her staying by his side, but he had always thought it was his hallucination. After all, Yunyi was far away in Chang’an. He hadn’t expected to actually see her when he opened his eyes.

“Who else would it be if not your subject consort?” Yunyi traced the lines on his palm, letting him clearly feel her warmth.

Li Shimin stared at her without blinking and said hoarsely, “I thought… I would never see you again!”

Yunyi helped him sit up a little and smiled. “Your Majesty once said you would be your subject consort’s companion for life. An emperor’s words are never spoken in jest.”

Li Shimin smiled with relief and stroked her face, murmuring, “Being able to see you again is truly wonderful!”

During his unconsciousness, he hadn’t been completely without awareness. He had felt trapped in endless darkness, unable to find his way out no matter what. Several times he had wanted to give up, but thanks to Yunyi’s whispered words in his ear, he had persevered. This moment of seeing each other was truly hard-won for them both.

After their emotions had calmed somewhat, Li Shimin said, “You still haven’t told me why you’re here.”

Yunyi recounted everything in detail, then knelt beside the bed. “Your subject consort took it upon herself to kill Li Yuanji. Please punish me, Your Majesty!”

“Get up.” Li Shimin helped her to her feet and sighed. “You did this to save me—how could I blame you? Besides, given all the heinous crimes Yuanji committed, his death was well-deserved. The only one I feel sorry for is Mother. Before she died, she repeatedly urged me to maintain brotherly harmony and avoid internal strife. Yet this is how it turned out. In the underworld, I have no face to meet Mother.”

“Your Majesty has already done your best, but they remained obstinate and made mistake after mistake, leading to today’s consequences. Your subject consort believes that if Mother has a spirit in heaven, she will understand Your Majesty’s difficulties, so Your Majesty need not blame yourself.”

“I know, but it still makes me somewhat sad.” Saying this, he gripped Yunyi’s hand tightly. “Thank you for all your thoughtful efforts on my behalf during this time—not only helping Lord Liu and the others attack Luoyang, but also going through countless hardships to find the antidote for me. If it weren’t for you, I would probably already be…”

Before Li Shimin could finish, Yunyi had already covered his lips. “No, Your Majesty is the true Son of Heaven. Even without your subject consort, you would surely have overcome this trial.”

Li Shimin pulled down her hand and said solemnly, “Yunyi, thank you for never abandoning me. Thank you.”

Yunyi raised her eyebrows and smiled. “Your Majesty doesn’t intend to dismiss your subject consort with just these words, does he?”

Li Shimin was taken aback, then chuckled softly. “Then how about I use my entire lifetime to repay you?”

Yunyi pretended to consider this with difficulty. “That’s barely acceptable.” As soon as she finished speaking, she burst into laughter herself and tucked in Li Shimin’s blanket. “Your Majesty has just awakened and your body is still very weak. Sleep a bit more. Your subject consort will go cook you a bowl of porridge.”

After Yunyi left, Li Shimin didn’t fall asleep but stared blankly at the painted ceiling, with memories constantly flashing through his mind.

When Yunyi returned carrying the cooked porridge, this was the scene she saw. She helped Li Shimin sit up and asked while feeding him the porridge, “What is Your Majesty thinking about?”

“I’m thinking about the past. Back then, we were just an ordinary noble family, but we lived very happily. We brothers studied literature and practiced martial arts together, and there was Xiuning—clearly a girl, but she always loved following us in martial practice. She always had the phrase ‘women are not inferior to men’ on her lips and said that when she grew up, she would protect the country and defend the homeland. I always thought it was just playful talk, but I never imagined that twenty years later, she would truly lead thousands of troops as a woman and help us establish the Great Tang dynasty!”