In ancient times, the powerful and wealthy seized power step by step.

Her reply came too easily, too casually, so casually that it seemed unreal, to the point that Gu Zhao didn't react at first and thought he was hallucinating.

Did she say yes?

Is she saying yes to him?

Gu Zhao didn't even dare to move, and his voice was so soft as if he was afraid of scaring her away, as he asked:

"Qingyu, did you just say 'okay'?"

Zhu Qingyu tiptoed, lightly touched his lips to the corner of his mouth, took a step back, and smiled:

"Yes, I meant it, but..."

How can there be a "but" at this point?!

Absolutely not!

Even if she were a fairy from heaven, it wouldn't work!

Gu Zhao was getting anxious, so he quickly took another step forward, grabbed her hand, and said urgently:

"No buts, you promised me! I heard you! You can't go back on your word, no buts!"

Zhu Qingyu suppressed her smile and looked at him seriously:

"Shouming, listen carefully to me. I want to talk to you about the difficulties and costs we face."

It felt like a sharp sword was about to fall from above, and Gu Zhao felt her breath catch in her throat because of her "but".

Is she going to say it? She's a fairy from heaven, will she be punished for marrying a mortal?

If that's the case, if that's the case.

Gu Zhao thought to himself that he would rather live a solitary life than have her punished.

Zhu Qingyu said:

"But I can decide my own marriage. Can you decide yours? Shouming, your elders won't agree to this decision. We can only begin if they agree. If you can't get their approval, you can fight back, but you can't let others become the price we pay, especially the Zhang family. Zhang Jingyan is very important to me; he's family. If the Zhang family is harmed, then we should call it quits."

Gu Zhao was prepared to accept the thunderous wrath of heaven and earth, but this is what happened.

Because it was so different from what he had imagined, Gu Zhao even wondered:

"what?"

What the heck? What kind of attitude is that?

Zhu Qingyu became even more serious:

"I'm telling you this seriously. If your elders don't agree, we don't have to force it. Between you and me, only heaven and earth know, you and I know, and we don't necessarily need a conventional marriage."

That won't do!

Gu Zhao became anxious:

"What do you mean 'only heaven and earth know, only you and I know'? Without any official status, you want me to be your mistress? Don't even think about it! Zhu Qingyu! I want a proper marriage! The whole world will know! I'll get my elders' approval. As for you and Zhang Jingyan, even though you're not really husband and wife, you have to divorce him. I won't allow him to take your husband's title!"

Of course, they should divorce. In the past, it was just to cover for each other. Everyone agreed that it wasn't real.

But now that she has someone she loves, even if she and Gu Zhao can't be together, she shouldn't maintain the status of husband and wife with Zhang Shen anymore. It's unfair to Zhang Shen and unfair to Gu Zhao.

Zhu Qingyu replied:

"I will divorce Jingyan, but the Zhang family cannot be implicated because of us. Your elders must also agree to our marriage. These are my conditions. Only when these two conditions are met can we begin. Can you do that?"

Seeing that she repeatedly put the Zhang family first, Gu Zhao felt very jealous, and a bitter expression appeared on her face:

"I can, but why are you so good to Zhang Jingyan, even better than to me? In your heart, do you love him more than I do?"

Sigh, these are not the same feelings, how can you compare them? I don't know what Gu Zhao is comparing.

If we don't make things clear to him, he might keep overthinking things and always harbor hostility towards Zhang Shen.

Zhu Qingyu reached out and lifted the corners of his mouth, which were drooping due to unhappiness, and replied:

"When Jingyan married me, it was out of kindness that he wanted to give me a married status as protection. Jingyan wrote the false account book to accuse Zhao Shiyuan because Zhao Shiyuan wanted to marry me as his concubine. Jingyan went to great lengths to bring him down and protect me, even incurring this imprisonment. To me, Jingyan is my closest relative. Do you understand, Shouming?"

Gu Zhao not only understood, but was also somewhat shocked, so much so that he just stared at Zhu Qingyu, speechless for a moment.

He had never cared why Zhang Shen falsified the accounts, but he never expected it was for her.

Gu Zhao finally understood why Zhu Qingyu had gone to such lengths to save Zhang Jingyan. It wasn't out of love between husband and wife, but because she felt indebted to him, since Zhang Jingyan had also done the same for her.

As the two were talking, Xie Ze appeared furtively at the door, even coughing as if to cover his tracks:

"Well, I was saying that General Wen and the Grand Princess have arrived and are waiting in the consultation room. It's been quite a while now. It wouldn't be appropriate to keep them waiting any longer."

The arrival of General Wen and the Grand Princess at the same time suggests that something important must have happened. Zhu Qingyu and Gu Zhao had no time to discuss their personal matters and hurried to the clinic.

Upon arriving at the clinic, General Wen indeed had important business to discuss with Gu Zhao, and brought out a folded document:

"Lord Gu, this great victory at Jiufeng Mountain needs to be reported to the imperial court. Let's take a look together at how to write this memorial. We'll send it over by express courier in the next few days as soon as possible."

The Grand Princess came specifically to see Zhu Qingyu, and even found a place to speak with her alone, asking:

"Lord Zhu, once this epidemic subsides, what are your plans for the future? The position of Director of the Imperial Medical Academy is currently vacant. If you are interested, I can recommend you."

Although the head of the Imperial Medical Academy was the highest-ranking official in the academy, after experiencing the emperor's illness, Zhu Qingyu was already thoroughly weary of court intrigues and had absolutely no interest in the position of head of the Imperial Medical Academy.

Therefore, Zhu Qingyu replied:

"Thank you for your consideration, Your Highness, but serving high-ranking officials in the Imperial Hospital is not my wish. I have heard that the court is promoting the Huiyi Temple. If possible, I would like to join the Huiyi Temple, practice medicine, and benefit the people, so that they can see a doctor for only twenty coins. That would be my wish."

The Grand Princess nodded:

"Lord Zhu is a man of great ambition and has done great deeds for the Northern Frontier. I admire him greatly and am willing to lend him a helping hand. I just wonder, which position has Lord Zhu set his sights on at Huiyi Temple?"

When it came to this, Zhu Qingyu didn't quite understand the ins and outs of getting promoted, so she hesitated:

"I'm currently a sixth-rank official. Suppose I wanted to become a fifth-rank official in the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, I wonder if that's possible? Would jumping two ranks be too difficult?"

The Grand Princess smiled:

"It's not quite right. A mere temple assistant is subject to the control of his superiors at every turn. How can he possibly fulfill Lord Zhu's wishes? Lord Zhu has both the merit of saving the emperor and the merit of quelling the epidemic. Looking around, which physician in the world can compare to you even a fraction of your skill? Lord Zhu, you should not underestimate yourself. In my opinion, a third-rank physician from the Huiyi Temple is a better match for you."