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墨書 Inktalez
In the past two days, Gu Qingning had been helping Pei Zhiqing with acupuncture to alleviate his pain. With the beauty before him, he could only look but not touch, and Pei Zhiqing's expression grew darker by the moment.
Gu Qingning watched him, feeling a mix of amusement and exasperation. Once a man indulged in his desires, it was hard to rein him in. Right now, she could use his physical discomfort as an excuse to refuse him, but once he recovered, any excuse would be useless.
These two days had been the happiest for Pei Zhiqing in over a decade. The entire Jing Wangfu appeared gloomy on the surface, but everyone inside was secretly delighted for him. Since arriving at the Wangfu, Bai Zhi and Lu Yan had found their tasks much easier.
The wind blades and golden sands hid among the branches, exchanging glances with each other, making the days suddenly feel dull.
That day, everything was prepared for Gu Qingning at her door; the carriage was waiting at the entrance of the Wangfu. Just as they were about to leave, Pei Zhiqing coughed a few times and fainted again.
The people of the Wangfu were in a flurry, urgently calling for Doctor Du to come and take a look. When Doctor Du arrived, he immediately set to work with acupuncture and concocting medicine. By the time Pei Zhiqing woke up, it was already past noon.
He was eager to see Gu Qingning as soon as he regained consciousness and insisted on going out.
At the entrance of the Wangfu, whispers filled the air. "The princess is so pitiful, married to a sickly man!"
"Isn't that true? I heard that the prince has been ill for a long time; even the doctors have declared he has only a few years left."
"This morning he coughed up blood again; it caused quite a stir in the Wangfu. They even sent someone to the palace to summon a physician."
"I heard that the princess cried her heart out; she must be devastated."
"If it weren't for an arranged marriage, who would want to marry a dying man? It's like inviting misery upon oneself! Who would want that?"
A crowd of curious onlookers gathered outside the Wangfu, watching as Gu Qingning pushed Pei Zhiqing out and helped him into the carriage.
Inside the carriage, Pei Zhiqing's face was pale as he looked at Gu Qingning, who was trying hard to suppress her smile. He almost felt tempted to take advantage of her.
Everyone thinks I married you just to endure a living widowhood; it seems your acting skills are quite impressive!
This man's acting truly was remarkable. In her previous life, Gu Qingning had also believed he wouldn't live long. She never imagined that it was all intentional.
It’s not just my wife who thinks things through! Pei Zhiqing's lips twitched slightly.
Before leaving, Gu Qingning fed him a dose of poison. Within less than fifteen minutes, he began to cough and spit blood uncontrollably.
"I'm just trying to make your performance more convincing, so no one suspects anything," Gu Qingning retorted, feigning modesty.
Pei Zhirui was just like Emperor Jing, deeply suspicious; a lighthearted act would not fool him. In his past life, he had regarded Pei Zhiqing as his strongest rival, intent on eliminating him. Fortunately, he had managed to escape each time by sheer luck.
She had always believed that Pei Zhiqing's serious illness was the reason he repeatedly evaded Pei Zhirui's attempts on his life. Now it seemed that Pei Zhirui was not even a match for him in the slightest. No wonder he could survive until the end.
Upon arriving at the Duke of Zhongyuan's residence, as soon as the carriage came to a stop, Gu Haotian stood beside it.
Gu Qingning peeked out from the carriage curtain and smiled upon seeing Gu Haotian. "Elder Brother."
"Come on, let me help you down," Gu Haotian said indulgently, extending his hand to Gu Qingning.
Gu Qingning supported Pei Zhiqing as they exited the carriage together.
"Elder Brother," Pei Zhiqing greeted with a slight smile.
Gu Haotian was two years older than Pei Zhiqing and had always treated this childhood friend with kindness, given their mutual affection since they were young.
Watching the subtle relationship between the two made her curious. Did Pei Zhiqing's rushed journey to the border while gravely ill have anything to do with his brother?
Gu Qingning had never understood why, despite Pei Zhirui having ascended to the throne and being too preoccupied to deal with him, Pei Zhiqing chose to venture to the border instead of living a carefree life as a prince. He opted instead to join his brother in defending against foreign enemies.
"Wan Ning is still waiting; we should head inside," Gu Haotian said. Hearing her brother's words, Gu Qingning nodded and walked into the Duke's residence alongside Pei Zhiqing.
Once inside the main hall, Gu Qingning spotted Gu Yanran and Pei Zhirui; their gazes revealed an unusual significance.
Gu Qingning smiled knowingly, realizing that the two would surely not miss such a good opportunity. She thought to herself that today’s banquet would not be simple; she needed to tread carefully.
She pushed Pei Zhijing to sit beside Gu Changqing and then took her place next to Wan Ning. Today was Gu Qingning's banquet, and not only was Old Madam Gu present, but even the members of the second branch had come.
At that moment, Gu Yanran spoke up, "Sister, you and the prince seem to be very affectionate. I heard that the prince was unwell today. I wonder if he is feeling any better now?"
Pei Zhijing coughed twice and weakly replied, "Thank you for your concern; I am much better."
The performance was convincing enough to evoke sympathy from those around. If it weren't for Gu Qingning helping him with the poison, he might have been able to fool them all.
She kindly supported Pei Zhijing and said, "The prince still needs to rest; let’s take our seats."
"You should pay more attention to your health, Ninth Brother!" Pei Zhirui expressed his concern as an elder brother, albeit somewhat perfunctorily.
Li Ruofeng sat there with an impatient expression. Given that Gu Yuxuan was not feeling well, she had no patience for the pleasantries and theatrics of those around her.
As everyone settled down, Old Madam Gu announced the start of the banquet. Gu Wan Ning couldn’t see what was happening, while Gu Qingning kept serving her dishes without noticing Pei Zhijing's dark expression.
This woman is doing it on purpose.
"Here you go." Under Pei Zhijing's disappointed gaze, Gu Qingning shyly served him some food.
Faced with a mountain of dishes, Pei Zhijing felt awkward about where to start eating.
Gu Changqing watched as Gu Qingning continually piled food onto Pei Zhijing's bowl and shot an angry glance at his son-in-law, feeling a mix of emotions. It had only been a few days since they were close, and now his daughter seemed to belong to someone else.
As a father, he felt a pang in his heart!
Gu Yanran watched Gu Qingning and Pei Zhijing being affectionate and then glanced at Pei Zhirui, feeling furious inside. If it weren't for their schemes to frame her and Pei Zhirui, their relationship wouldn’t be so strained, nor would she have to constantly curry favor with him.
Pei Zhirui cast a glance at Gu Yanran before looking over at Gu Qingning across the table, feeling a mix of discomfort within himself.
The reunion dinner ended in silence among the crowd.
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