Chapter 68 - 67: Facing Two Emperors, the Advancing Xie Qingshi!
Chapter 68: Chapter 67: Facing Two Emperors, the Advancing Xie Qingshi!
The girl on the hospital bed looked peaceful. Though she was pale and haggard from the high fever, she was real and warm to the touch.
"Your Majesty..." Qingyuan called out softly again, her tears falling even harder.
After her rebirth, as soon as she earned her first paycheck, she immediately went to buy a copy of the *Chronicles of the Taichu Empress*. She wanted to see how later generations evaluated her Your Majesty.
The Empress had committed grave sins: she had killed her father and brothers, and usurped the throne. Yet the Empress also had monumental achievements: she had reclaimed Jiuzhou and ushered in the Taichu Golden Age. With her merits and faults balancing out, even if her historical appraisal was not as high as that of Emperor Yan Jingzu, she was still more than worthy of being called an "Emperor of the Millennium."
However, the historical texts only objectively recorded her faults, while sparing no ink to smear her accomplishments. They even depicted her as a hideous woman in her portraits. This was something Qingyuan simply could not accept. But what could she do?
History was already set in stone. The Jiang Dynasty, established by the Hong Clan, had long since finished compiling and revising the Xuan History. Even though she was living a second life, there was a chasm of four hundred years between her past and present. She had no idea what had transpired during those four centuries.
Qingyuan gazed at Shi Changying’s sleeping face. She constantly wiped at her tears, but they only flowed more heavily, completely unstoppably. This was her Your Majesty! Though she now wore a different face, her soul remained exactly as it had been.
Qingyuan’s hand trembled, her throat choking up before she whispered, "When Your Majesty saved me yesterday, I thought I was dreaming. I came today just to test the waters. If it wasn’t you, then it just wasn’t. But if it was...
"If it was, then I would at least be making up for the regret of not being able to see you one last time all those years ago."
Shi Changying was still fast asleep. Qingyuan tried her hardest to smile, yet she still couldn’t stop the tears that fell like pearls from a broken string.
It actually was her Your Majesty! Qingyuan began to feel immensely grateful that she had accepted a role in *Dragon Flying Phoenix* and come to Jianghuai to film. She was even grateful that her wire had snapped; otherwise, she wouldn’t have known when she’d finally reunite with her Your Majesty.
However, she wasn’t completely blinded by the joy of their reunion. Shi Changying’s abnormally high body temperature left her burning with anxiety. Logically speaking, the medical technology of this modern, scientific society was far more advanced. Qingyuan’s own fever had broken very quickly, so why wasn’t her Your Majesty showing any signs of getting better?
Qingyuan pressed the emergency call button. After the doctor arrived, there was little to be done; he only instructed that she needed to continue receiving IV drips tomorrow.
The night was as tranquil as water, and time steadily flowed by.
The eastern sky eventually took on the pale light of dawn, and the birds began to chirp once more. Qingyuan jolted awake, not realizing when she had dozed off. The very first thing she did upon waking was check the temperature of Shi Changying’s forehead. It wasn’t as blazing hot as yesterday, but the fever hadn’t completely subsided either.
Standing up to fetch a new cooling patch, Qingyuan opened the door to the hospital ward. At the end of the corridor, a tall, slender figure stood quietly before the window. The early morning sunlight draped over him like a veil of golden gauze.
Qingyuan was initially on guard, but then she blurted out in shock, "Have you been here all night?"
Shaoyuan turned around and raised his eyes to look at her. In that moment, Qingyuan felt as though she were looking at a Sharp Sword being unsheathed, its surrounding icy glint seemingly sharp enough to slice right through the sunlight.
"No, I just arrived," Shaoyuan said nonchalantly. "Though it must have been tough on Miss Lu, keeping watch by her bedside all night."
"It wasn’t tough." Qingyuan paused before adding, "It’s my fault. If I hadn’t fallen into the water, she wouldn’t have..."
Shaoyuan cut her off. "It’s not your fault, nor is it hers. It’s the fault of whoever tampered with the wire."
Qingyuan’s heart skipped a beat. The outside world didn’t even know that her wire had been tampered with. How did he...? Turning her head away, Qingyuan stuck to her original excuse. "I’m going to change her cooling patch."
SMACK.
A small box landed perfectly into her hands.
"Use this," Shaoyuan said.
It was a new topical medication. Qingyuan cautiously scanned the instruction leaflet before finally feeling at ease and applying it to Shi Changying. She sat quietly by the hospital bed, not blinking an eye. To Qingyuan, such moments of tranquility were incredibly rare. It had been a very, very long time since her heart had felt this at peace.
"A Yuan, someone from the company is here," Sister Xu said, rushing over with an urgent expression. "They’re looking for you regarding an important matter. They didn’t say what it was. I’ve already stalled for time, but you must be there before twelve noon today."
Qingyuan hesitantly glanced at the still-unconscious Shi Changying. "Sister Xu, I can’t leave."
"A Yuan, it’s the company, not something trivial." Sister Xu looked deeply conflicted. "I know you definitely want to wait for Miss Changying to wake up, but you just need to step out for a bit. You can come back right after."
Shaoyuan suddenly spoke up. "Once Classmate Shi wakes up, I will notify Miss Lu immediately."
"Sorry for the trouble," Qingyuan exhaled, finally following Sister Xu away.
Shaoyuan sat down on the chair. He cast a sweeping glance over the still-unconscious Shi Changying before taking out his phone and dialing a number. He still used only two words: "The medicine?"
"It’s already been sent out," the person on the other end said weakly. "Just wait a little longer. An hour at most, and you’ll definitely see it."
"Don’t let this happen again," Shaoyuan warned.
The other party fell silent, then began yelling in anger, "I already went as fast as I could! Who could possibly be faster than me? You are not allowed to dock my pay, do you hear me?! If you dock my pay, I quit!"
The call was disconnected.
Shaoyuan didn’t mind. He set his phone aside and methodically wiped his hands clean with an alcohol wipe before placing his palm against Shi Changying’s forehead once again. Much better.
He slightly lowered his eyes, moving his hand down to pinch her cheek, looking somewhat dissatisfied. After a long while, he said flatly, "She eats so much but doesn’t put on any weight. What a waste of food."
Even the stray cat on campus that cared the most about its figure had been fattened up by the students. Yet, after treating her to meals for so long, she had hardly gained any weight at all. He actually felt a sense of defeat. Though, if she were to find out that Emperor Chengtian had experienced defeat at her hands, she might actually be quite delighted.
Meanwhile, inside a garden suite at the Jianghuai Center Hotel.
Xie Qingshi slowly massaged his temples as he walked out of his study. Seeing him, his assistant came forward and said, "Sir, there’s been a call coming in continuously since six o’clock. When I answered, they mumbled something about the Xuan’an Archaeological Center. It’s probably a scammer."
Xie Qingshi’s eyebrows twitched. "Give me the phone."
Unsure of what was going on, the assistant handed the phone over. Xie Qingshi pondered for a moment before deciding to call the number back.
The other party answered immediately, their voice trembling with barely contained excitement. "Mr. Xie Lin, you finally picked up!"
"Apologies," Xie Qingshi said. "I’ve been working constantly for the past few days. How may I help you?"
"No, no, no, I am the one disturbing you," the middle-aged man apologized first, before asking excitedly, "Mr. Xie Lin, the Green Lotus Jade Pendant in your possession... is it something that only the Young Master of the Linsu Xie Family can own?"
Xie Qingshi’s gaze instantly turned razor-sharp. "How do you know that?"