112. Yunan Feng is simply too adorable.

Le Qianxue was stunned. Looking at Yu Nanfeng’s frustrated expression and recalling his words, she finally understood.

She had never found Yu Nanfeng so endearing before. She smiled slightly and said, "I didn't eat or drink anything."

Yu Nanfeng finally breathed a sigh of relief. He had been terrified that he might have arrived too late. Now, thank goodness, Le Qianxue was perfectly fine.

However, while Le Qianxue was safe, Yu Nanfeng was now in trouble.

Yu Nanfeng had burst into the Phoenix Palace abruptly, a display of total lack of decorum. How could Empress Yang not be furious?

She stood up abruptly and demanded, "Fourth Prince, what is the meaning of this?"

Yu Nanfeng smiled nonchalantly and replied, "Mother Empress, I am doing nothing wrong. I simply knew Qianxue was here and came specifically to find her."

Empress Yang naturally knew that Yu Nanfeng must have discovered something; otherwise, he would not have spoken those words earlier. Since he had come to meddle today, and she was already looking for a place to vent her frustrations, she seized the opportunity.

"How insolent! To barge into the Phoenix Palace like this," Empress Yang declared. "Guards, take the Fourth Prince away and inform the Emperor of this matter."

Yu Nanfeng did not care. Since his experience with Le Linglong, he had seen through many things. As long as he could save Le Qianxue, he did not care what punishment he might receive.

Le Qianxue interjected, "Your Majesty, is this really necessary? The Fourth Prince was merely acting out of concern."

Empress Yang cursed Le Qianxue in her heart. What did this girl know? How dare she plead for him?

Since she could not scheme against Le Qianxue today, she would certainly not grant her any face. She retorted, "Qianxue, when the Empress is speaking, why do you interrupt? You might be able to act willfully before the Emperor, but do not try such behavior with me."

Seeing Le Qianxue being scolded, Yu Nanfeng could not hold back. Even though his romantic advances had been unrequited, he still felt compelled to protect her.

After all, Le Qianxue had saved him before. Even if he lost his life for her now, he would be perfectly content.

He stepped in front of Le Qianxue and said, "Mother Empress, then punish me instead. I am willing to accept the penalty."

Empress Yang’s face turned livid. This Yu Nanfeng was always stirring up trouble and defending Le Qianxue.

She scoffed coldly, "For breaking into the palace privately today, I will give you a minor punishment as a warning: fifty strokes of the cane. Do you accept?"

Le Qianxue was startled. Fifty strokes—even if they were not lethal, they would leave him torn and bleeding. Besides, Yu Nanfeng had not fully recovered from his internal injuries. To suffer such physical trauma now...

She wanted to speak, but Yu Nanfeng tugged at her sleeve and whispered, "Say no more, or neither of us will be able to leave unscathed."

Le Qianxue bit her lip. Empress Yang had wanted to harm her, but now that Yu Nanfeng had disrupted the plan, the Empress was naturally looking to vent. If she argued further, the situation would only escalate.

Yu Nanfeng wanted to diffuse the situation and get her out of there quickly. Le Qianxue had no choice but to remain silent.

Seeing that she had stopped, Yu Nanfeng knelt down. "I accept. I will take these fifty strokes."

In the end, Yu Nanfeng walked out of the Phoenix Palace with a limp.

Le Qianxue and a eunuch helped him along. Although there was no blood, Yu Nanfeng’s backside would be in agony for days; he would not even be able to sit on a stool, which was the most miserable part.

Every step Yu Nanfeng took made him grimace in pain.

The eunuch remarked, "Fourth Prince, we are lucky this time. I still remember the last time you received thirty strokes—you couldn't even use your backside. You had to lie on the bed for over a month to recover."

Yu Nanfeng looked embarrassed and scolded, "Why are you saying this in front of Qianxue? Shut up!"

The eunuch hurriedly fell silent, not daring to say another word.

Le Qianxue laughed and asked, "Why were you punished so severely with thirty strokes back then?"

Yu Nanfeng walked slowly and said, "I stole one of the Empress Dowager's longevity peaches... It was her birthday peach. I was only thirteen at the time. His Majesty was so furious that he said thirty strokes were too lenient."

"I seem to recall that," Le Qianxue mused, remembering vaguely.

However, since she had taken over the original owner's life, she had forgotten many past events, especially those regarding Yu Nanfeng. After all, the original owner had loved him, but she did not. Why bother remembering? Thus, she had largely forgotten it.

Yu Nanfeng lowered his eyes, his voice softening. "Back then, you were heartbroken and would come to the palace every day to take care of me. But I found you annoying and chased you away every day... It’s ironic now. Back then, I drove you away, and now I want you to stay, but you are no longer willing. I suppose that’s understandable. You must have been truly heartbroken and stopped loving me..."

Seeing him mutter to himself, Le Qianxue did not know how to explain. The Le Qianxue who loved him was long dead. Whatever Yu Nanfeng said now was of no use. She chose to remain silent; at times like this, it was best not to speak.

They walked slowly toward Yu Nanfeng’s palace, as his pain was excruciating.

Le Qianxue recalled something and asked curiously, "By the way, why did you suddenly go to the Phoenix Palace?"

"Because last night, I saw my Second Brother begging for medicine at the Imperial Hospital, specifically requesting something colorless and odorless. I wondered who was unlucky enough to have caught his eye. He is always sinister, so I usually wouldn't bother, as many maids have been ruined by him, and Mother Empress always covers it up. But when I heard you had entered the palace, I realized he must be planning to make a move on you, so I rushed over," Yu Nanfeng explained calmly.

Le Qianxue nodded. "Actually, I knew as well, but I was just wondering how to escape when you showed up. You might have gone to all that trouble for nothing, but it worked out well—I managed to get away."

Otherwise, she would not have known how to leave, and Empress Yang would not have let her go easily.

Yu Nanfeng’s eyes widened. "You have only been learning medicine from the Divine Doctor Yuan for a short time. How did you attain such insight? That poison is colorless and odorless. Well, never mind, it must have been Prince Zhan’s foresight."

Le Qianxue was taken aback. "Why bring Prince Zhan into this?"

"I am not a reckless person. On my way there, I ran into Prince Zhan. I invited him to go with me, but he simply said you would be perfectly safe, and then he left," Yu Nanfeng said. "Who would have thought he was right? My backside... I regret it now."

Le Qianxue’s expression remained indifferent, and she sighed. Zhan Lianjing must have known she was the Ghost Doctor, which was why he spoke that way. But things were different now; why would Zhan Lianjing care about her? With his personality, he probably wished he could kill her to vent his hatred.

Seeing her silence, Yu Nanfeng thought she was angry and added, "Don't be angry. I don't regret it. No matter what happens to you in the future, I will always be the first to rush to save you."

Le Qianxue regained her composure and smiled. "That won't be necessary. If something really happens, I won't be able to look after you."

Yu Nanfeng felt a pang of frustration. Why did Le Qianxue seem to look down on him now? Was he really that incompetent? It was true, though; when he was framed by Le Linglong, he had no way to defend himself and had nearly died to prove his innocence.

It was a strange feeling. Now, it seemed as if Le Qianxue was helping him everywhere. He was not used to her being so clever after having been so foolish before.

As Yu Nanfeng was about to speak, he caught sight of a figure. "It's Prince Zhan."

Le Qianxue felt a tightness in her chest, almost unable to breathe. She did not want to turn her head; she did not want to see him. Why? Fear, or something else? She could not say.

But by then, Le Qianxue had already helped Yu Nanfeng to stand before Zhan Lianjing.

Yu Nanfeng had been recuperating in the palace for days and was unaware of the conflict between Le Qianxue and Zhan Lianjing. Thinking they were still on good terms, he stopped.

Haoyue, who had been pushing the wheelchair, also stopped. She looked at Le Qianxue, then at Zhan Lianjing, her lips trembling with concern. She knew how things had ended between them; how could they possibly talk now?

Zhan Lianjing was dressed in black, his expression cold and sharp. Despite being the most handsome man in the world, he seemed like an ice sculpture, unapproachable. His gaze swept over Le Qianxue faintly before lingering on Yu Nanfeng.

"It seems the Fourth Prince has successfully rescued the beauty," Zhan Lianjing said, his voice icy.

Yu Nanfeng smiled sheepishly. "Prince Zhan, you mock me. Are you leaving the palace now?"

Zhan Lianjing replied, "This is not the way out. I am going to see the Empress."

Yu Nanfeng was puzzled. "Why didn't you go earlier?" If he had, he wouldn't have had to take those strokes! He could not understand Zhan Lianjing’s motives—was he unwilling to help him, or unwilling to help Le Qianxue?

Zhan Lianjing said nothing more. Haoyue added, "The Prince had urgent business earlier. Fourth Prince, you should go back and rest."

With that, Haoyue continued pushing the wheelchair forward.

From start to finish, Le Qianxue did not meet Zhan Lianjing’s eyes once.

Even Yu Nanfeng felt it was strange. He whispered, "What is going on? You and Prince Zhan don't seem right today."

Le Qianxue took a deep breath. "If you could guess Prince Zhan's intentions, you would probably have achieved as much as he has. Let’s go."

Yu Nanfeng nodded. That was true.

Zhan Lianjing rarely visited the Phoenix Palace. His arrival today, though accompanied only by Haoyue, was heavy with an imposing and aggressive aura.