Chapter Ninety-Five: He Was Dying

I know.

The empress heard the report and paused slightly. Seeing how brightly and happily Gu Li was smiling, she could not help softening into a smile as well. She tucked the blanket neatly around her and had a maid bring a cushion so she could sit more comfortably against it.

The crown prince strode into the inner chamber and first bowed to the empress. "Your son pays respect to Mother."

The empress smiled faintly and nodded, her gaze toward the crown prince as kind and gentle as ever.

"Brother Crown Prince, you still know how to come see me?" Gu Li pouted, feigning grievance.

The crown prince looked at his sister leaning against the bed. She really had grown much thinner; even the undergarment she had worn before now hung loose on her by several sizes. Yet with the poison removed and her wounds nearly healed, the bruises had faded away, and her skin remained as fair and tender as ever. Only because her body was still weak did her face look a little pale.

Still, he could tell his sister was in good spirits, and that eased some of the anxiety in his heart.

The crown prince smiled indulgently. "Wasn't your brother busy these past two days? Look, I came to see you immediately after court this morning."

Gu Li saw that he was indeed still dressed in his court robes and knew he was telling the truth, so she did not press him any further. She smiled and nodded. "All right, then I won't be angry with you anymore."

Seeing her bright, innocent smile just as before, the crown prince thought of the more than twenty days she had lain in bed, lifeless and deathly pale, and his heart swelled with emotion.

Thank goodness.

Really, thank goodness.

"Brother..."

Gu Li had something on her mind and was eager to ask how Chang'an had been, whether he had been injured that day. But with her mother beside her, the words reached her lips only to die there, and she could not bring herself to ask.

A young girl's feelings, especially an unrequited one, were always too shy to voice, even when she was an exalted princess.

Of course the crown prince knew exactly what Gu Li wanted to ask, but he could only pretend ignorance. The empress's warning from that day was still ringing in his ears, and he truly did not dare oppose her openly.

"Mother..."

At last, unable to hold back any longer, Gu Li lifted her little face with a pleading smile toward the empress. "Mother, I want to talk to Brother Crown Prince alone for a bit. May I?"

The empress smiled lightly and glanced at the crown prince, raising a brow. "What private words do you two siblings have that cannot be spoken before your mother?"

"..."

At that moment, the crown prince truly wanted to look heavenward in speechless despair.

Gu Li had not expected her mother to be so uncooperative. She was just about to use a little spoiled charm to smooth things over when the crown prince had already cupped his hands and said, "Mother, this son still has official matters to handle and must return to deal with them. I shall take my leave first."

"Oh..."

Gu Li watched her brother's retreating back as he walked away without even turning his head, and a dull irritation rose in her heart.

What was this supposed to mean? He clearly knew she had something to ask him, and even if he would not help her, he could at least have played along. Instead, he just ran off!

Back in the Eastern Palace, the crown prince ordered Little Jizi to keep watching the movements in the Cloud Smoke Palace. He refused to believe that the empress could truly keep vigil there every moment; as the mistress of the harem, surely she had other matters to attend to.

Power struggles in the harem never lacked opportunities, and the crown prince had always believed that.

Sure enough, in the afternoon, several imperial concubines got into an argument in the Imperial Garden, and the empress had no choice but to return to the Phoenix Hall to settle it.

The crown prince seized the chance and, taking Little Jizi with him, rushed back to the Cloud Smoke Palace.

The empress had barely left when the crown prince arrived behind her.

Seeing him come, Gu Li no longer had the heart to stay angry. She hurriedly asked, "Brother Crown Prince, how is Chang'an? Was he injured that day?"

With the situation urgent, the crown prince likewise had no time for roundaboutness. He said plainly, "He is on the brink of death."