♂?，，

  Grandma Dan walked to the front door and felt around for the door bolt, "Who is it?"

  Under the faintly misty morning light, a handsome young man in green clothes stood upright. He glanced around at the hidden dangers lurking in the alleys and responded respectfully, "Is it Old Lady Dan? My name is Chang Geng, I am a servant of the eldest son of the Duke's mansion, our master is waiting in the carriage, specially came to pick up my family's elder madam to return to the mansion. Would you please announce us?"

  After a while, the door creaked open with a "creak".

  The old lady stepped forward, gazed at the yellow pear wood carved flower horse carriage in front of her with a hint of intention. The curtain was half open and half closed, revealing a beautiful face as white as jade. She let out a soft sigh, lowered her eyes, and said to Chang Geng, "My master invites you to come in."

  After many years, she met someone from the Pei family again, and her heart felt somewhat strange. Moreover, this young master Pei was quite capable and had found out about this secret place in just two days. His servant even blurted out her name as soon as he opened his mouth. Her worries and concerns grew a few more points.

  Bai Jingchen's legs were inconvenient, and a small servant who followed him took the master chair to support him and sat down, using the wooden frame of the sedan chair to lift it up, and slowly entered the small courtyard.

  His face was slightly pale, looking not in great condition, but his eyes were as bright as stars, and he nodded slightly towards Han Xiu, saying in a somewhat weak tone, "I've seen Lord Han."

  Han Xiu still didn't have time to respond when a clear and melodious voice came from inside, "Is it A Zhen? Mr. Han promised that as long as I am willing to copy the Heart Sutra here for 100 days, he will find Yaozhi Baisang for us. Don't worry, wait for me outside for a while, okay? I only have one more piece left."

  "That voice paused for a moment, 'It's cold outside, have you brought blankets and hot water? If not, please ask the owner of this place to lend some.'"

  In just a few words, I will clearly state the cause and process of events, absolutely no room for any misunderstanding.

  Pei Jingchen shook her head helplessly. She thought to herself, if she didn't explain, would he still misunderstand her? But a faint sweetness still lingered in her heart. Since their marriage, she had put effort into managing and nurturing their relationship, and he had seen every bit of it. She didn't want him to misinterpret her intentions, nor did she want to damage their relationship.

  Thinking of this, his eyes added a few more gentle feelings, he nodded obediently, "I'm fine, don't worry. Hurry up and finish copying, let's go home."

  It was as if he had anticipated this, Zhang Cheng took the blanket from his attendant and covered Pei Jingchen with it, not letting the chill of the late autumn morning reach the weak patient. Even the tea was self-prepared, with a residual warmth in the cup, and when drunk, it was just the right temperature.

  Pei Jingchen was gazing at the scenery of the courtyard with a self-satisfied smile that never faded from her face.

  Grandma Dan was stunned for a moment, she gently pulled on Han Xiu's sleeve and asked in a low voice, "Sir, what do you think?"

  Regarding the eldest son of the Pei family, rumors circulating in town were nothing more than descriptions of a frail and dying person. She didn't pay much attention to it originally; her mistress was harmed by the Pei family, and she had an irreconcilable feud with them. However, Granny Dan's heart was soft, always thinking that one thing should be settled at a time - her mistress and the master were victims, and that blood-soaked-to-death county princess and the Pei eldest son were also victims, all being pitiful people in the world, with grievances and debts to be repaid.

  But today I really saw Master Pei, and for some reason, Dan's grandmother felt a pang of sadness again.

  They are of the same root, but in reality, the identity of a grown-up should be more noble than that of Pei's family's eldest son. Alas, they were harmed by others and heaven did not fulfill their wishes. From childhood, they wandered about, and it was only with great difficulty that they met General Han, but coincidentally, it was during wartime. At the age of seven or eight, they went onto the battlefield to kill enemies and crawled out from a pile of dead bodies on the battlefield to survive. Even now, as a high-ranking official, except for the power in their hands, everything else is not smooth sailing.

  And this young master Pei, although he looks frail and has been rumored to have suffered greatly in recent years, still carries the title of eldest son of the Duke of Quanguo, with carriages and horses at his disposal, wearing golden brocade, and is even lucky enough to have married a wife who understands him and devotes herself to him...

  Grandma Dan thought so, her face was somewhat overcast, sometimes sighing, sometimes sorrowful.

  Han Xi patted her hand and said in a gentle tone, "It's not time to go to court yet, I'll sit here for another moment."

  He turned his face away, and his gaze stopped on Pei Jingchen's knees covered with fur. He had been in the northwest for many years and had also operated deeply in the Western Xia imperial palace, so he naturally knew the medicinal properties of this dreamy poison. In his heart, he thought that if it weren't for those two poisonous grasses, Pei Jingchen's legs would probably be like this for the rest of her life.

  A cripple with a leg missing, what great prospects can he have in this life?

  Back then, although both Yongjia County Master and Pei Jingchen were victims, "I didn't kill Bo Ren, but Bo Ren died because of me". To say that there's no resentment at all would be a lie. Moreover, his wife from the previous life is now Pei Jingchen's wife. The old and new hatred combined are enough to make him harbor murderous intentions towards the man in front of him.

  But Han Xiu, although he has a reputation for being unscrupulous, also has his own principles and bottom line. He will not go back on his word once he has promised something, nor is he willing to do so. He can accept Ming Xuan's hatred towards him, but he cannot tolerate her contempt for him. Apparently, if he fails to keep his promise, she may not even be willing to look at him again.

  The persistence of hatred is because it was once cared about.

  She no longer hates him, because she doesn't care about it anymore.

  In the quiet and secluded eastern suburb, a gentle breeze occasionally blows by, creating a faint ripple of mystery on everyone's heart. This ripple swirls around, forming circles of varying sizes, producing different echoes that clarify one's thoughts. However, at this moment, only Han Xiu's state of mind is undergoing a subtle and imperceptible transformation.

  It wasn't long before Ming Xuan came out of the inner room with a sandalwood box in her hands, and her first glance fell on Pei Jing Chen, who was smiling at her. Seeing that he was being taken care of well, she let out a soft sigh of relief, and after giving him a reassuring smile, she turned around and walked towards Han Xiu.

  She lifted the box with both hands, her face serious and sincere. "Lord Han, this is my handwritten copy of the Heart Sutra in 100 volumes. I didn't dare to be lazy for a single stroke or dot. Please check it again. I've done what I promised you, and I hope you won't forget your promise to me."

  Her voice was soft and measured, but it grew firmer with each word. "Yaozhi and Bicao, please fulfill your promise as soon as possible!"

  Han Xiujing fell silent for a long time before suddenly bursting out laughing, "Very good, very good."

  His face was stern and cold, and he said in a low voice, "I have already sent someone to rush to Western Xia with all haste. Calculating the return journey, if there are no unexpected events along the way, it should arrive within twenty days at most. Please ask Madam Pei to wait quietly in the manor."

  Brushing off sleeves and leaving, turning around only a lonely figure remains.

  Ming Xuan's eyes flickered slightly, and she bowed her head to sigh. She bent down to grasp Pei Jingchen's hand, "Your hands are a bit cold, Changgeng, quickly have the servants carry him back to the carriage. It's cold outside, don't let him catch a chill."

  She turned around and smiled apologetically at Grandma Dan, "I've troubled you for two days, thank you so much. I'll take my leave now. It's cold outside, please hurry back inside to rest too."

  She slightly bowed her head, which was a way of saying goodbye, and followed Pei Jingzhen out the door with a gentle and elegant demeanor.

  The old lady closed the door slowly with a complex expression, but she couldn't help opening it again. By this time, the sky had already brightened, and the east showed a pale white color. Under the clear and cold light, she saw the carriage curtain open and close, and the delicate carriage swayed back and forth before disappearing around the corner.

  On the ground, apart from the two wheel tracks, one could see a messy array of horse hoof prints, very deep, with iron shoes on the hooves. She recognized them as belonging to Han Xiu's mount. The varying depth and disorderliness of the prints seemed to reflect his inner turmoil - someone normally so calm and collected must have been in great distress just now.

  "Grandma Dan couldn't bear it, she let out a deep sigh, and her eyes were filled with tears. She whispered softly, as if in a dream, 'Miss, if you have a spirit in heaven, I'm afraid you can't rest your eyes.'"

  In the carriage, Ming Xuan frowned slightly, "Just now there were outsiders around, I didn't dare say it, but my body hasn't recovered yet, and running out like this is really not quite proper. Look, your hands are as cold as ice!"

  She suddenly seemed to have thought of something, and hurriedly asked, "If the master knew, she would definitely not allow herself to be treated like this, it must be that she was hiding from the master and ran out on her own. Alas, how can this be? The master will be worried to death!"

  Pei Jingchen pulled her into his arms, his thick palm extending into her chest, "Don't worry, I came out to look for you, Shifu knows about it. Originally didn't think that this would be said, but indeed my hands are a bit cold, why don't A Xuan warm them up for me?"

  At this moment, Ming Xuan was still dressed as a man, and this ambiguous posture made her face flush with shame. If it were any other day, she would have definitely not tolerated it. If the curtains had been blown open by the wind and someone had seen them, she would have lost all face and wouldn't have been able to show herself in public again. But even though they were separated by two layers of clothing, she could still feel a chill on her chest, and couldn't help but soften.

  She covered his hand with hers, and sighed softly, "That day I bid farewell to Jian'an Bo with Changgeng and returned to Qingliang Mountain. Who would have thought that the coachman was replaced by another person on the way? Han Xiu took me to that other courtyard, I was really anxious and worried about what he wanted to do."

  But later, he spoke bluntly about the poison in his body and said that he had a way to obtain the antidote, but all he asked was for me to copy the Hundred Character Heart Sutra. Although I didn't know what he meant by this, I could gain a glimmer of hope without having to sacrifice my dignity or life, so I wouldn't have hesitated in any case.

  "Ah Zhen, I hope you can understand my heart."

  The next second, Ming Xuan's breath was caught, her lips were gently and violently blocked by Pei Jing Chen, domineeringly entwined.

  After a long time, he finally let her go. "Try every means to detoxify me, hoping that I can stand up again, the heart you understand, this affection I also deeply understand. But also want to understand my heart, compared with yours, whether these two legs of mine can stand up is a trivial matter, if something happens because of this, then it will be what I regret most and cannot bear."

  "Can you understand?"

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