Chapter 144: Half-Naked Is Nothing
Chapter 144: Chapter 144: Half-Naked Is Nothing
Cui Lingyao had thought Xie Jinbai would be unable to stop himself from rushing over to inflict some terrible punishment on Shen Tingyu.
But when he heard the news, he showed little reaction.
His gaze was lowered, as if he were deep in thought.
His tall, erect figure stood still in the night, straight and unmoving as a pine.
The air around him was heavy and silent.
Liu Rong dared not disturb him, taking an imperceptible half-step back and quieting his breath.
After a long moment, Xie Jinbai tilted his head slightly and spoke in a low voice, "You’re saying..."
He paused. "Right before Shen Tingyu lost consciousness, did he see the Princess Consort?"
...
The weather grew colder after the downpour. The autumn wind swept past, a chill that seemed to bore into one’s bones, yet a thin sheen of sweat still broke out on Liu Rong’s brow.
No one understood just how deranged their master could become better than his closest confidants.
He was normal enough most of the time, but not when the Princess Consort was involved.
Those of them who served him had learned to be extremely careful.
Now, faced with a direct question he couldn’t evade, Liu Rong considered his words carefully. Steeling himself, he said, "There’s a folk saying that the dying can see things ordinary people cannot. Mr. Shen is gravely ill and near death. It’s possible he truly did see the Princess Consort... but... but it’s also possible his illness is making his eyes play tricks on him..."
Xie Jinbai looked up at him.
Liu Rong’s spine stiffened. He quickly said, "Your Highness, why not go and ask him yourself? You’ll know for sure once you do. I’m certain he wouldn’t dare deceive you."
Cui Lingyao: "..."
’This man’s control over his subordinates is far too intimidating.’
’Liu Rong is the Head of Guards for Prince Yu’s Mansion, a man of considerable standing. And yet, a single glance from Xie Jinbai scared him so badly he wanted to drag Shen Tingyu out to use as a shield.’
’It’s simply...’
But Xie Jinbai thought he had a point.
He lifted his chin. "Lead the way."
"Yes." Liu Rong immediately set off, leading the way.
...
The courtyard where Shen Tingyu was staying had been hastily prepared.
It was remote and desolate.
At least there was no shortage of servants.
They were all servants of the Shen Family who had followed from the Capital City.
With their master grievously injured, how could his personal servants fare any better? Naturally, they were sick with worry.
They bustled about, inside and out.
Only Shen Er remained on high alert. When he saw Xie Jinbai’s figure appear at the courtyard gate, his whole body jolted. He pulled himself together and came forward to greet him with a cupped-fist salute. "Greetings, Your Highness."
Xie Jinbai didn’t even glance at him. His pace never faltered as he headed straight for the main room.
’He’s clearly here to cause trouble.’
Shen Er steeled himself and was about to step forward and stop him when his arm was seized.
"Are you trying to get yourself killed?"
Liu Rong grabbed his arm, twisted it behind his back, and pinned him securely. He growled in a low voice, "My Prince wants to see someone. How many lives do you have to get in his way?"
’The Princess Consort just had her accident; who would dare to provoke the Prince at a time like this?’
’It’s a death sentence.’
While the two were still struggling, there was a sudden, loud BANG!
Xie Jinbai had kicked open the tightly shut door to the main room.
’So aggressive. He was like a completely different person from the one who had snuck into my room without a sound.’
Cui Lingyao’s eyelid twitched as she watched the entire scene unfold.
Inside the room, Shen Tingyu was sitting on the bed. His hairpiece had come undone, his handsome face was pale, and he was bare from the waist up as two physicians applied medicine to his wounds.
Besides the stab wound, he had used his own body to shield the person in his arms from scraping against rocks at the bottom of the lake, leaving his torso covered in cuts and scrapes of all sizes.
The door was suddenly kicked open, and a gust of cold wind rushed in. The startled old physician who was applying the medicine flinched, his hand trembling so much he nearly spilled the medicinal powder.
Shen Tingyu looked up.
His expression remained blank upon seeing who it was.
Cui Lingyao, following close behind Xie Jinbai, walked in and was caught completely off guard by the sight of the man’s bare torso...
She didn’t have time to think and hastily looked away.
But then she caught herself.
’What’s the big deal about being half-naked?’
’In my own world, I saw stuff like this all the time.’
’What’s there to be shy about?’
After giving herself a little pep talk, Cui Lingyao turned her head back, her conscience clear.
She quickly realized that this time, Shen Tingyu couldn’t see her.
That one glimpse had apparently been a fluke, a trick of the moment.
Or perhaps there was another reason.
As her thoughts ran wild, Xie Jinbai had already strode to the bedside. He walked past the two physicians, who were bowing and trembling like leaves in the wind, and looked down at the man on the bed. "You saw her?" he asked bluntly.
Who "she" was.
They both knew exactly who he meant.
The moment Xie Jinbai had entered, Shen Tingyu’s gaze had darted behind him.
When he didn’t see the familiar, lovely figure, he had scanned the room from top to bottom, refusing to give up hope.
Finally, his search came up empty.
He closed his eyes, swallowing all hope. "Perhaps my eyes were playing tricks on me."
Xie Jinbai refused to believe him. He sneered, "Describe her. What did she look like?"
What did she look like...
"She..." Shen Tingyu faltered, his expression hesitant. "She seemed to be wearing some kind of sleepwear. The style was odd... I’ve never seen anything like it."
The moment he heard "sleepwear," Xie Jinbai’s expression turned terrifyingly dark.
And when Shen Tingyu added that he’d never seen anything like it, Xie Jinbai’s gaze sharpened.
Forgetting his jealousy for a moment, Xie Jinbai demanded in a low voice, "Tell me! What was so odd about it?"
Cui Lingyao looked down at herself.
’I came in such a hurry this time.’
’I haven’t had a chance to look properly. It turns out that when the system brought me to this world, I was still wearing the nightdress I had on when I was sick in bed.’
’It’s a slip dress, knee-length.’
’The neckline is a little low.’
’Good thing it has a built-in bra, so it’s not... too revealing.’
’At least, not in my world.’
’But in Great Yue, an outfit like this is utterly scandalous.’
’No wonder Shen Tingyu’s eyes went wide when he saw me.’
He...
Meanwhile, Shen Tingyu, under pressure from the questioning, frowned slightly. After a moment’s thought, he dismissed the two physicians.
After the door was closed, he said, "She was wearing very little."
He described the scene exactly as he had seen it.
Her arms were bare, she was barefoot, and her calves were visible beneath the hem of her dress.
In short, she was indecently dressed.
The veins on Xie Jinbai’s forehead throbbed as he listened.
But his reason had begun to return, and he sensed something was not right.
’If it were just a hallucination, how could he conjure such a vivid and detailed image?’
’Especially an outfit so strange he’d never seen it before. That couldn’t have just appeared out of nowhere.’
’His Yaoyao... what secrets was she hiding?’
’This afternoon, before she died, she told me she’d already had one miraculous encounter.’
’Perhaps this is the second.’
At the time, drowning in grief and despair, Xie Jinbai hadn’t dared to get his hopes up. He thought she was likely just trying to comfort him.
’So he wouldn’t follow her cleanly into death.’
’And now...’
Xie Jinbai took a deep breath and scanned the room with bloodshot eyes. "She’s really not here?"
Shen Tingyu slowly shook his head. "I don’t see her. This afternoon, right before I passed out, I saw her float over from your side. Our eyes met for an instant..."
His voice was strained. "I don’t know if it was a hallucination or not. If it was real, why can’t I see her now?"
’But if it was fake, how could I have imagined her like that?’
’Wearing such a bizarre outfit I’ve never seen before?’
’Why?’
Liu Rong’s words suddenly surfaced in his mind.
’"There’s a folk saying that the dying can see things ordinary people cannot"...’
Xie Jinbai trembled, a brilliant light flaring in his once-dead eyes. "Perhaps it’s because you almost died this afternoon. And now... now you’re not dying."
’It’s that simple.’
’One must be on the brink of death, when the soul is barely tethered to the body, to be able to see his Yaoyao.’