Chapter 255: Poison (1/2)

Nan Xun shook his head and put on a smile. “It's nothing. I just think that the jade stone we saw was a good one. Do you really not want it?”

Jun Huang didn't notice that he was changing the subject. She sighed thinking that Nan Xun actually wanted the jade. “It's not about my preferences. The stone is of second-cla.s.s quality. It looks the way it does because the shop owner has treated it with solution. It's beneath your status. If you wear it in public, you'll get laughed at. I promise I have your best interest in mind.” She smiled and added, “What, are you unhappy with me for that?”

Her eyes and eyebrows curved like a waxing moon. The setting sun shone on her dimpled cheeks. She looked arresting.

“No, I'd like to thank you.” Nan Xun smiled back at her, putting aside the uneasy feeling that someone was watching them.

After walking for some distance, he turned around to check again, but there wasn't anyone suspicious. He allowed himself to relax.

Qi Chen narrowly escaped Nan Xun's detection when one of the men Prince Duan sent out pulled him into an alley. He frowned at the man and growled, “What do you think you're doing?”

“Please forgive this subordinate,” the guard said respectfully. “Prince Duan ordered me to keep an eye on Your Highness. Please do stay calm. It'll be bad if we get detected by soldiers.”

Qi Chen huffed. “What, do you think I'm scared of them?”

“This is a critical time, Your Highness. Please don't ruin the plan for short-term satisfaction.”

The guard's tone remained polite, but Qi Chen took his words as mockery. However, he could only swallow his pride. The guard was Prince Duan's confidante. He'd lost his influence in the court after what happened and needed Prince Duan's support.

He took a deep breath and walked away in big strides. The guard followed him closely, worried that he might do something reckless again.

Jun Huang was getting tired. Nan Xun stayed with her without a word. Every once in a while he'd check on her, making sure that she was doing alright.

Jun Huang a.s.sumed that it was simply exhaustion affecting her. Nan Xun noticed her change in gait and said, “Let's go back if you're tired.”

Jun Huang looked up at his open expression. She thought back to the rumors on the street. People already believed that they had a relations.h.i.+p. It didn't matter if she followed him back home with the public as their witness. She pushed aside her concerns about proper courtesy and nodded. “If I do, am I going to be the other master in your manor?”

She meant it as a joke, but Nan Xun answered with a tender smile, “If you're willing, I'm more than happy with that. I'll tell the servants to address you as such.”

Jun Huang coughed in mortification, caught off guard by his response, her ears burning hot. She took a deep breath to calm herself and turned back to Nan Xun. “You know I was joking. No need to tease me like that. Let's go home. I am tired.”

Nan Xun nodded. He knew not to push his luck. If he was too forceful, Jun Huang might end up feeling uncomfortable. That wasn't what he wanted.

They made their way to the manor without a word, sparing no attention for the vendors lining the street.

After they arrived at the manor, Nan Xun asked Jun Huang to wait for him in the garden and went off to order the servants to prepare some food and snacks. He worried that she might be hungry.

Once she was alone, her body seized up suddenly. It was painful for her to even breathe. Worried, she took a deep breath and took her own pulse, but she didn't notice anything wrong.

She was reminded of what her master once told her: a doctor shouldn't make diagnosis for themselves. Fear crept up to her. Her forehead broke into sweat.

There was no one around. Pain drained her face of any color. She tightened her fists to stay awake, her nails biting into her palms.

She'd have to be a fool to not know what was happening. It wasn't the first time the poison wreaked havoc in her body. The last few times had been pretty consistent in their intensity, but this time, her body reacted more violently than she antic.i.p.ated.

She held onto the edge of the stone table, her knuckles going white. Her face looked even paler. The servants pa.s.sing by thought that she was taking a rest, so they didn't get closer.

When Nan Xun returned to the garden, Jun Huang was lying on the stone table. He too a.s.sumed that she was simply tired. Worried that she'd catch a cold, he retrieved a robe and put it around her shoulders.

The moment he got closer, she clutched at his s.h.i.+rt, alerting Nan Xun. He knelt before her and brushed back her hair. She was as pale as a sheet, her brows knitted tightly in pain.