The clingy concubine ran away, and the sickly prince lost control.

Luo Qingyan knelt upright and began to copy the text stroke by stroke.

"Oh, Aunt Luo can write?" Cui Rou flicked her sleeve and bent down to look at Luo Qingyan.

The daughter of a minor official of the sixth rank had skin even whiter and more delicate than hers.

Cui Rou leaned close to Luo Qingyan's face to get a clear look.

And then there's this handwriting. She knew that Luo Qingyan was a daughter of an official, so it was impossible for her not to be literate. But Luo Qingyan's handwriting was delicate and beautiful, which made her uncomfortable, so she mocked her for being able to write.

Cui Rou gripped the corner of the paper, a mocking smile on her face, and dragged it away.

Luo Qingyan's handwriting is crooked.

"This one's ruined, rewrite it!" Cui Rou breathed into Luo Qingyan's ear.

Luo Qingyan practiced her handwriting secretly, without her mother's or sister's knowledge. If her sister saw how well she wrote, she would chop off both of her hands.

Luo Qingyan made a face, biting her lip, pretending to be in great pain, as if she had really been pricked by a needle.

Cui Rou was very satisfied. She straightened up, put her hand on Luo Qingyan's shoulder, and pressed down hard.

The needle should have gone in deeper this time! She curled the corners of her mouth into a smile.

Luo Qingyan trembled slightly, as if she was in real pain. However, after Cui Rou pressed her down, she could indeed feel the needle tip. Although it didn't prick her knee, she guessed that her knee brace was ruined.

"Copy it properly. Don't get up until you've finished copying the whole book." Cui Rou wiped the hand that had touched Luo Qingyan's shoulder with a handkerchief, then tossed the handkerchief to the maid Yinxing before leaving.

As soon as Cui Rou left, Luo Qingyan quickly sat down on the ground and checked her knees. Sure enough, the knee pads had several holes in them and she had to make a new pair.

Luo Qingyan still had to copy the precepts for women. She knelt on the ground and copied until noon. Her stomach was already growling. She held her forehead and took a breath. She cheered herself up and decided to finish copying as soon as possible so she could go out to eat.

"Open the door."

It is Pei Shiyuan.

She had just picked up her pen when she heard Pei Shiyuan's voice, accompanied by the sound of his wheelchair rolling.

What is Pei Shiyuan doing here? He didn't speak up for her in front of the old lady just now. Is he here to laugh at her like Cui Rou did?

Never mind, on a whim, Luo Qingyan took off her knee pads and knelt directly on the prayer mat.

"Ouch!" It hurts so much. I gritted my teeth. I'm going all out today.

Instantly, her dress was stained with blood.

Luo Qingyan felt the door behind her open, and the midday sun shone in, making the dim ancestral hall much brighter.

Pei Shiyuan rolled his wheelchair to Luo Qingyan's side, his expression distant, only a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes when he glanced at the words on the table.

Luo Qingyan's forehead was covered in beads of sweat, and the tips of her fingers holding the pen were white. She didn't even look at Pei Shiyuan, as if no one had come in.

"Aunt Luo, are you feeling unwell?"

Even Yuan Qing noticed her unusual behavior, but Pei Shiyuan remained unmoved.

"I didn't, I didn't..." Before Luo Qingyan could finish speaking, she fell straight into Pei Shiyuan's arms.

Pei Shiyuan raised his hand and gently caught Luo Qingyan's little head.

Luo Qingyan felt the firm chest. "Now you can see clearly, right? Don't you have any pity for a woman?"

"Master, Aunt Luo's knee!" Yuan Qing exclaimed.

Luo Qingyan's dress was stained red with blood up to her knees. The needles protruding from the prayer mat were gleaming.

Return to Linfeng Residence.

With a gentle push, Pei Shiyuan gently placed Luo Qingyan's small body into his arms.

Luo Qingyan turned slightly to the side and nestled against Pei Shiyuan's waist and abdomen. I knew it! Beneath that aloof exterior, there was still a bit of a protective instinct that could be aroused.

Yuan Qing pushed the wheelchair, while Pei Shiyuan carried Luo Qingyan out of the ancestral hall.

Standing behind the rose wall, Cui Rou crumpled the flowers in her hand.

Yuan-gege really knows how to make her angry. In broad daylight, he just hugs her like that, is he trying to make her not marry him?

She really wants to get married, can you blame her? Who told you to become the top scholar in the imperial examination a year ago and then start having health problems that are now incurable?

Pei Shiyuan was already a highly decorated general, fighting against hundreds of enemies on the battlefield. After returning to the capital, he passed the imperial examination and became the top scholar, which amazed the entire capital.

The Duke of Xun's mansion has produced a prodigy, a true scholar and warrior.

She was heartbroken. She truly loved Yuan-gege, but fate had cruelly separated them.

She couldn't stand her brother being close to other women.

No, as long as Yuan-gege is alive, he can only have eyes for her. I have to go find my aunt.

Her aunt always accepted her as her fiancée, and even though she delayed getting married, she didn't complain at all and still loved her as always.

Linfeng Residence.

"woke up?"

Pei Shiyuan sat in his wheelchair, coldly watching Luo Qingyan lying on the bed, her face pale. She had suffered, and now she didn't want to stay!

Luo Qingyan glanced at her knee, which was still bleeding. They had carried her back from the ancestral hall and just left her there without treating the wound. She had no choice but to get up and apply the medicine herself, since she could no longer pretend to be unconscious. "Young Master, I'm going to change my clothes."

"Go back! It's better to work odd jobs at the clinic than to be harmed here."

Pei Shiyuan uttered cold words through his thin lips, his face devoid of any emotion.

They wanted to get rid of her? So watching her get punished was just to make her give up.

Luo Qingyan wanted to continue working odd jobs at the clinic, not seeking great wealth or status, but simply for three meals a day, plain and simple.

But a woman must eventually marry, and if she went back, she would have to marry that playboy Ye Hui, which she did not want.

She had also considered not getting married, working odd jobs at the clinic for a few years, saving some money, and then starting her own small business to make a living when she got older, without relying on anyone.

However, in our dynasty, for a woman to make a living independently, she still needs the recommendation of a powerful and influential man. Where can she find a man of status to act as her guarantor?

Luo Qingyan's idea of ​​making a living independently only briefly floated in her mind.

Supporting her knees, Luo Qingyan returned to the side room, applied some medicine, and changed into clean clothes before coming out: "Young Master, it's hot in the summer, have some cool tea."

Pei Shiyuan carried her back from the ancestral hall and sat down next to her without drinking any water.

"Didn't you hear me? I told you to leave, don't you understand?" Pei Shiyuan refused the cold tea that Luo Qingyan offered him.

"Young Master, if I go back, I might be married off to someone else. Please take me in." Luo Qingyan knelt down with a thud, her skirt stained with blood again. If she were to return to the Luo family like this, Madam Sun would sell her to the old Marquis of the North City to be used as a spittoon. The old Marquis was willing to pay a thousand taels for a living spittoon.

"Your Highness, don't you want to leave behind a son or daughter?"

"I don't want to. Children without parents are too pitiful." Pei Shiyuan had seen too many orphans of soldiers on the battlefield, and he couldn't bear to look into their eyes that longed for their parents.

Pei Shiyuan's aura plummeted to freezing point, the chill piercing Luo Qingyan's heart.

Her attitude was very firm, and Luo Qingyan's words of persuasion were choked back. This was not a good time to persuade her; her first priority now was to stay.

"Then please allow me to take care of you, Your Highness." Luo Qingyan kowtowed.

If she could get through this month and find the miracle doctor who could save Pei Shiyuan, she could also use this merit to secure her position in the Duke's mansion. The Duke's mansion had a good reputation in the capital, and they would surely be grateful for her kindness.

Pei Shiyuan spoke slowly, his voice devoid of any warmth:

"Since you don't have a suitable place to go, you can stay for now. As long as you don't have any improper thoughts and serve me well, I will arrange a place for you when I'm gone."

Keeping her here will save his mother from having to put other people in his room.

"Thank you, Your Highness."

Staying is the first step to success.

"Young Master, the Old Madam has asked Concubine Luo to go and serve lunch," Zheng Mama announced.

Luo Qingyan looked down at her rumbling stomach and the pain in her knees, and forced herself to say, "Granny, please wait a moment."