Chapter 427: I’m So Flattered

Zhao Mingyan took her wrist and began applying ointment to her palm and fingertips.

Ji Qingwu said, "Under the rocks... there was a young soldier. He was trying to protect a sack of millet seeds and was gravely injured. I just couldn’t..."

As she spoke, her voice filled with genuine sorrow.

Ji Qingwu’s voice choked with a sob. "No matter what I did, I couldn’t save him."

Zhao Mingyan placed the vial back in the medicine box, rose, and sat beside her. He wrapped a long arm around her, pulling her into his embrace, his hand gently stroking her back.

His voice was deep. "You did your best."

Being comforted by someone—and by Emperor Wu Su, no less—made Ji Qingwu’s sobs impossible to contain.

"If... if it weren’t for that fallen pillar, I might have... I could have saved him..."

Her crystalline tears fell like pearls from a broken string, striking Zhao Mingyan’s Xuan Armor one after another. Moistened by her sorrow, the dragon scale pattern glistened in the faint light.

His large, warm hand patted her back in a silent comfort that gradually soothed her emotions.

Ji Qingwu buried her face in the space above his collarbone.

There were no thick plates of armor there, only the collar of his inner tunic.

Zhao Mingyan could feel the collar of his robes growing damp, yet tears still welled in the corners of Ji Qingwu’s eyes. Her expression was one of helpless grief.

He lowered his head and kissed the teardrops from the corners of her eyes.

His lips were warm and soft. Ji Qingwu’s eyelashes fluttered, and as if remembering something, she hastily wiped her tears away with her hands.

Zhao Mingyan asked in a low voice, "What’s wrong?"

Ji Qingwu’s eyes were swollen like little walnuts. She said, embarrassed, "My face is still covered in ash..."

’And it’s someone else’s face, too.’

Before, her disguises had been her own creations. This one, however, was an exact copy of Chunhua’s face.

Zhao Mingyan gently flicked a lingering teardrop from her lashes, teasing, "Your tears have already washed it all clean."

He cupped her face and smiled. "It looked better before you wiped them."

A flicker of confusion crossed Ji Qingwu’s eyes.

Her nose twitched. She caught the strong scent of ointment and realized she’d smeared the medicine from her hands onto her face. ’I must look a mess.’

Ji Qingwu grew shy under his smiling gaze. Just as Zhao Mingyan thought she was about to shrink back timidly...

She lunged forward again, pressing her face into the crook of his neck.

Surprised by her uncharacteristic boldness, Zhao Mingyan held her close, his long arms wrapping around her waist, careful not to touch the wound on her knee.

Ji Qingwu rubbed her face back and forth against his neck like an affectionate little creature seeking attention.

The corners of Zhao Mingyan’s lips curled into a silent smile. "What is Ah Wu doing?" he asked.

Ji Qingwu gently brushed his ear with her chin. Her voice, husky and soft after crying, sounded like a ripe peach.

"Your Majesty is injured, too. I’m sharing some of the ointment with you."

She must have been smiling, because her breath warmed his ear, her lips brushing against his earlobe.

Zhao Mingyan’s left eyebrow arched. The depths of his dark eyes instantly lit up, his pupils dilating slightly.

There was a long, scabbed-over scratch on the back of his neck. It didn’t look serious.

But the mark of the wound was strange; it was impossible to tell what kind of weapon had caused it.

Just as Ji Qingwu was about to ask something, Zhao Mingyan gripped her slender shoulders and pulled her from his embrace.

Suddenly deprived of his warmth and support, Ji Qingwu looked at him in a daze.

Staring into her eyes, Zhao Mingyan said, "Have I truly mistaken you for someone else?"

Ji Qingwu froze.

’After all that, how could he still have the wrong person?’

Zhao Mingyan pinched her cheeks, pulling them from side to side as if genuinely trying to determine if the person beneath the disguise was really her.

Ji Qingwu pouted in displeasure. "Would Your Majesty kneel on the ground to personally treat another woman’s wounds?" she retorted.

Unconcealed delight filled Zhao Mingyan’s eyes as he tapped her lips.

"But as I recall, my Ah Wu has never been this thoughtful, even finding a way to put medicine on me."

He sighed. "I’m truly flattered."

A smile graced Ji Qingwu’s lips, her damp, shining eyes reflecting his handsome features.

She said with a proud air, "I’ve always been this thoughtful. It’s happened before..."

Zhao Mingyan asked, "What happened before?"

Ji Qingwu paused. The last time she had applied medicine to him, Emperor Wu Su had been lying unconscious in Zhaoyang Hall.

Remembering it now brought a pang to her heart, along with a twinge of guilt. If she hadn’t taken so many life-saving herbs from Wutong Garden, she wouldn’t have inadvertently caused his True Qi to run rampant.

’This time,’ Ji Qingwu silently vowed, ’I will stay firmly by his side and never repeat the same mistake.’

Ji Qingwu’s lips curled. "There’s a lot Your Majesty doesn’t know. I just prefer to do good deeds without taking credit."

Zhao Mingyan watched her smug little expression, his heart stirring. He was just about to lean in...

"Holy Emperor, Lord Li requests an audience!"

Li Yuzong’s sharp voice came from outside the tent.

Ji Qingwu said, "Official business is more important. I’ll go hide in the back."

Zhao Mingyan held her in place, his brow furrowed in clear annoyance at the interruption.

Imitating his earlier gesture, Ji Qingwu tapped his lips and said with a smile, "I’ll wait for Your Majesty."

Zhao Mingyan’s gaze dropped to her finger, then shifted back to her lips. A flash of conflict crossed his eyes. Just as Ji Qingwu started to retreat, he raised a hand to her shoulder, holding her steady.

This time, it was his turn not to let her go.

Then, Zhao Mingyan raised his voice and called to the person outside, "What is it?"

Li Yuzong replied respectfully, "Reporting to the Holy Emperor, Lord Li has escorted the elite soldiers back as ordered and wishes to take his leave to return to Longzhou. Also, he has another matter to report."

Zhao Mingyan draped his Great Cloak over Ji Qingwu’s head and said, "Let him enter."

Shrouded in the thick outer garment, Ji Qingwu could only reveal half of her face.

The tent flap was lifted. As Li Chengxun entered, the first thing he noticed was the smell of medicine. He lowered his head and said, "I greet Your Majesty."

Zhao Mingyan walked over to the sandalwood desk and sat down.

"Rise."

Li Chengxun rose and stepped aside. "Your Majesty, the operation to suppress the bandits of Black Wind Village is concluding..."

His eyes fell upon the person sitting on the soft couch and the medicine box on the floor, and his voice faltered noticeably.

Hearing the words "Black Wind Village," Ji Qingwu also looked up.

For a brief moment, her gaze met Li Chengxun’s.

Li Chengxun immediately lowered his head, suppressing his astonishment, and continued, "The three bandit leaders have agreed to surrender under the persuasion of General Zhenbei. They have already divulged information about the Xijin spies, but... they have one condition."

The Hu Family’s Three Brothers had found Qi Peiyao; as expected, only they could open the secret passage. Currently, the group is still being held under guard in the village.

After listening, Zhao Mingyan asked in a grave voice, "Is it a difficult condition?"

’It must be a difficult problem to solve,’ Ji Qingwu thought. ’Otherwise, Li Chengxun wouldn’t have brought it all the way to the Emperor.’

Li Chengxun said, "Among the caravan the bandits hijacked was a woman skilled in midwifery. She was once favored by the bandit leader’s wife. However, after the hostages were rescued, this woman and her husband disappeared."

Ji Qingwu blinked. ’The person he’s talking about... that must be me.’