Chapter 63: Regret

Chapter 63: Regret

Zhaoqing stared intently at the distant figure struggling to approach, and as the tear-stained face became clear, her unease peaked. With a trembling voice, she asked, "Where is my brother?"

Initially in a daze, Xie Xuan Yuan seemed to regain a semblance of vitality upon hearing Zhaoqing's voice, glancing at her with his slightly swollen, brownish-grey phoenix eyes, "He was severely injured. I had someone take him back to his palace first."

The tyrant seemed reluctant to elaborate, but it was clear he was greatly disturbed.

Due to the inexplicable bond between the twins, Zhaoqing had already had a bad premonition. Now that her fears were confirmed, it felt as though a tightly wound string in her mind had snapped. Striving to remain composed, she pressed on, "Then my brother... he will be alright, won't he?"

Xie Xuan Yuan appeared to be caught off guard by her question. He slowly halted, silently moving forward to release the sealed acupoints, yet could no longer bear to look directly into eyes so similar to those of his beloved.

After a long silence, he murmured, "I do not know." All he knew was that, whether Lu Changping would awaken or not, he would stay by his side. Even if it meant eventually having to return him to Nan Chu for a proper burial, he would ensure a place by the emperor's side was well prepared for him.

Having prepared for the worst, Xie Xuan Yuan showed an unusual calmness, as if all his tears had been shed next to the Emperor Lu in the fire, leaving him completely drained.

However, Lu Zhaoqing was far from calm. The thought of her only remaining family member hanging by a thread between life and death whitened her face, and in her panic, tears uncontrollably streamed down. Ignoring the numbness in her legs, she ran towards the tyrant's palace without looking back.

"Your Majesty, should we stop her?" The attendants supporting the tyrant did not immediately stop Lu Zhaoqing but waited astutely for their sovereign's command.

Watching the direction in which Lu Zhaoqing was disappearing, Xie Xuan Yuan's slender fingers tightened slightly around the jade amulet in his hand, "Let her go. After all, it has been a long time since the siblings had a proper conversation."

……

When Xie Xuan Yuan returned to the palace, the physicians had already treated Lu Changping and prescribed medicine. His injuries were severe, and he hadn't awakened once throughout.

Listening to the trembling Imperial Physician report Lu Changping's condition, Xie Xuan Yuan felt an unreal sensation. Since meeting, Lu always seemed gentle, considerate, and capable of anything.

Be it martial arts or governance, he was flawless, even excelling in women's attire and cooking, making Xie often believe his consort could do anything.

But is anyone truly capable of everything?

The reason Lu Changping excelled was simply because he always took responsibility, naturally playing the caregiver.

By the time he realized this, Xie Xuan Yuan had already reached the entrance to the sleeping chamber. The nearby servants had been sent away, and the heavy carved wooden door was ajar, revealing a narrow slit. A bitter medicinal scent wafted through the gap, adding to the sorrow.

After a moment's thought, Xie Xuan Yuan silently entered. As expected, Lu ZhaoPing was still inside his chamber, attending to her brother's illness, with no intention of leaving anytime soon.

The sound of washing cloths mixed with the soft, tearful sobs in the South Chu accent came from the inner room, revealing that Lu ZhaoPing was secretly crying by her brother's sickbed.

The tyrant halted his steps in time and did not push aside the bead curtain to enter. He never knew how to offer comfort, especially since Lu Changping risked his life to save him and A-Lin, and he didn't know how to face his sister, who had been inseparable from him since childhood.

From the other side of the curtain, ZhaoPing, while crying, couldn't help but reproach, "Brother, you're still injured, how could you recklessly rush in? You didn't even know A-Lin's origins but risked your life to save him, isn't that foolish?"

Unfortunately, the comatose Lu Changping couldn't argue with his sister anymore. He just lay there quietly, accepting all the complaints and accusations, docile like a delicately handsome doll.

Seeing him not responding, ZhaoPing placed a cool, damp cloth on Lu Changping's burning forehead and continued:

"I told you, the poison on those Beiwai assassins' blades is lethal! Even after taking the antidote, you must properly take the medicine I prepared for you for eighty-one days before stopping. Yet you skipped steps while I was away in South Chu!"

As she spoke, her indignation grew, yet all her anger melted into concern upon seeing the face on the bed, so similar to her own. Eventually, Lu ZhaoPing leaned over the bed, whispering almost pleadingly, "Brother, I'm not angry anymore, please, wake up soon, okay?"

The more Xie XuanYuan listened, the more discomfort he felt, wishing not to intrude on the Lu siblings' moment. Yet, there was something he had to know, or he feared he would never find peace.

The bead curtain jingled softly, and a tall, imposing figure silently stopped by the bed. Xie XuanYuan slightly bowed his head, his raven-black hair partly covering the reddish hue at the corners of his eyes and the moisture within: "When did the BeiWei assassins injure him?"

Lu ZhaoPing, startled by the emperor's sudden appearance like a ghost, instinctively looked towards her brother lying on the bed, covered in poultices. But the emperor, oblivious, could no longer stop her from telling the truth.

Her brother nearly lost his life for this tyrant from BeiWei, yet the very person had no clue when the injury occurred! ZhaoPing's sense of grievance deepened, disregarding all else:

"At the Lantern Festival, my brother accompanied you to enjoy the lanterns. We four happened to meet, and my brother gave me the sachet to guide the secret guards, only to encounter assassins from your BeiWei on the way. Outnumbered, and with your wife blindfolded, carrying Ah Lin, how could my brother emerge unscathed in such a situation..."

Xie XuanYuan's heart skipped a beat, as if remembering something. His gaze shifted incredulously towards the silent Lu ChangPing on the bed: "So he didn't come to me for the next fifteen days because his injuries hadn't healed?"

ZhaoPing wiped away her tears, nodding in response: "My brother was in a poisoned coma for seventeen days before waking up, by which time you had already left the palace."

"I thought he had regrets... But he didn't, he didn't!"

Xie XuanYuan murmured to himself, a bright smile eventually spreading across his face. His features were strikingly handsome, and now, with a genuine smile, he seemed like a flower that bloomed in the shadow, suddenly illuminated by a ray of sunlight, dazzling and vibrant.

But before the smile could fade, he seemed to realize something, turning his head towards Lu ZhaoPing with a hint of bitterness in his tone: "But I've wronged him for so long, only to understand his feelings now... Is it... too late?"

Princess ZhaoYun looked at her sister-in-law, draped in the thick air of resenting her husband, fearing he might do something drastic in despair, and hurriedly shook her head in reassurance: "How could it be too late? My brother has never been angry with you. In fact, he's always been worried that you were angry with him. If you no longer hold a grudge against him, he would be more than happy."

Xie XuanYuan stared at the half-exposed, jade-like profile of Lu ChangPing on the bed, suddenly curving his lips into a faint smile. At the same time, a tear silently fell onto the brocade quilt, spreading a small, inconspicuous wet mark.

"So foolish. When have I ever truly hated you..." His voice was almost inaudible in the latter half of the sentence.

ZhaoPing vaguely heard her tyrant sister-in-law calling her brother foolish, but didn't catch the specifics. Just as she was about to speak well of her brother in front of her sister-in-law, Xie Xuan Yuan spoke first: "You've been standing outside all night. You should rest first; I'll be here."

The tyrant had already adopted a posture of sending her off, leaving ZhaoPing no excuse to stay longer and intrude on her brother and sister-in-law's private moment. She thought it over and agreed amicably, "Then I'll come back to take over after I've rested."

With BeiWei newly stabilized, aside from caring for Lu Changping, dealing with state affairs, and looking after A-Lin, it indeed wasn't feasible to stay by his side without leaving. Xie Xuan Yuan nodded naturally, seemingly oblivious to the fact that he had grown accustomed to being called 'sister-in-law' by the Princess of Southern Chu.

……

After ZhaoPing left, the tyrant's sleeping chamber became utterly quiet. The sick beauty on the bed remained silent, and so did the awake tyrant below.

It took a while before Xie Xuan Yuan slowly started to move, inching closer to Lu Changping. Like a moth finally finding a candle flame in the cold night, irresistibly drawn to the light source, yet fearful of getting too close lest he ignite himself.

His cold, jade-like fingers touched the brocade quilt, eventually lifting a corner of the light blanket.

To facilitate applying medicine, Lu Changping's upper body garments had been removed, and the wound was wrapped in thick layers of gauze. Still, blood seeped through the inner layers, staining the pristine gauze with mottled red. But upon closer inspection, the unobscured pale skin bore several semi-fresh, not old scars, clearly inflicted not long ago.

The tyrant's gaze flickered slightly, finding these few scars even more glaring than those on his own body. Lu Changping was different from him; from the beginning, he was the precious Prince of Southern Chu, the sole heir to the throne. Such a person shouldn't bear scars...

Unable to resist, Xie Xuan Yuan moved a few steps closer to the Emperor of Southern Chu, sitting on the bed edge, carefully covering him with the quilt again. When close enough, he brushed aside the sick beauty's disheveled hair, his vermilion lips parting to leave a few tender, lingering kisses on the other's cheek:

"You indeed infuriate me, but I've grown accustomed to being infuriated by you..." The chamber's curtains blurred the westward sun, casting a hazy glow inside. The tyrant buried his head in the Emperor of Southern Chu's neck, his final words almost a murmur, "I can't be without you..."

Author's note:

This is the last twist, folks. Little Lu and the tyrant will soon find their sweet conclusion and walk towards their happily ever after~