Where is the early stage of the marriage alliance?

Ling Xi choked up, unable to speak, and suddenly tightened her arms, holding Ling Yue tightly in her embrace, wishing she could convey all the debts she had owed over the years through this hug.

After a moment, Ling Yue gently broke free from her embrace, turned to look at the bed, and the sadness he had been suppressing surged up again. His lips trembled, and tears quickly welled up in his eyes.

"Yue'er doesn't blame you. Yue'er came to Jinling with her uncle this time just to see... what Yue'er's father looks like."

He slowly turned his face, his eyes filled with tears again, looking at Ling Xi with wet eyes.

"But he's dying. He was so badly injured that day while saving me. It's all Yue'er's fault, isn't it?"

"No! No... It has nothing to do with Yue'er."

He shouldn't have recklessly run around like that, and he shouldn't have gone to Night City to look for her.

"Don't worry, Yue'er, he won't die, he definitely won't die."

Ling Xi quickly gripped Ling Yue's cold little hand, forcibly suppressing the waves of panic in her heart. She spoke each word with great certainty, as if she were both comforting Ling Yue and reassuring herself.

Not long after, Ling Yue finally succumbed to exhaustion and fell into a deep sleep in Ling Xi's arms.

When Qin Qi stepped into the inner room again, he saw Ling Xi slowly getting up while holding Ling Yue.

"Ling Xi?"

He subconsciously rubbed his eyes, thinking he was just seeing things because he hadn't woken up properly. After seeing the person clearly, he quickly walked forward.

"When did you get here? Yue'er? What are you doing here, Yue'er?"

Ling Xi's face was still wet with tears. She lowered her eyes and felt a pang of guilt. She couldn't find a suitable excuse for herself. She hugged the sleeping Ling Yue tightly, trying to hold him more securely.

"I... was just about to carry him back to his room to rest."

Instead of directly answering Qin Qi's question, she awkwardly changed the subject.

"Oh, I'll do it."

Qin Qi then realized what was happening and immediately reached out to carefully take Ling Yue from her arms.

He glanced sideways at Xiao Ce, who was lying unconscious on the bed, and after a moment of silence, he spoke again:

"I'll take Yue'er back. If Yizhi wakes up, the person he'll most want to see is definitely you."

Ling Xi did not respond, but simply nodded slightly.

Qin Qi carried Ling Yue and turned to walk a few steps. He felt a little relieved, thinking that since Ling Xi had come to guard Xiao Ce late at night, she was finally willing to let go of that hurdle in her heart.

Why is Yue'er here too?

The moment he looked down at Ling Yue's peaceful, sleeping face in his arms, illuminated by the flickering candlelight, his heart suddenly felt empty. He abruptly stopped in his tracks as a terrible thought suddenly rushed into his mind, startling him into stiffness.

The contours of his eyebrows and eyes were exactly the same as those of Xiao Ce, who was unconscious on the bed. He had never thought about this aspect in detail before.

Qin Qi stiffly turned around, holding the child, his gaze fixed on Ling Xi, his eyes filled with disbelief and shock.

Seeing him turn around, Ling Xi assumed he still had instructions to give, so she frowned slightly and waited quietly for him to speak.

"Ling Xi... Yue'er... he..."

Qin Qi hesitated, then looked down again to compare Yue'er's face in his arms, before looking up at Xiao Ce on the bed, as if repeatedly confirming the shocking guess in his heart.

"Yue'er is...?"

The unfinished words stuck in Qin Qi's throat; he was so shocked that he couldn't even utter a complete sentence. Seeing his expression, Ling Xi immediately understood.

"Yes, Yue'er is his child."

Her voice was flat and numb, and her face was devoid of any emotion.

"Didn't Ke Yi say back then that you..."

"I lied to him."

Qin Qi looked towards the bedside. He had witnessed Xiao Ce's unbearable pain and near-madness back then, and this time, he was even risking his own life for her. He was filled with mixed emotions and let out a heavy sigh.

"Ling Xi, you may not believe it, but in Yi Zhi's heart, you are more important than his life."

Ling Xi lowered her eyes and stood quietly in place, without saying a word.

Qin Qi opened his mouth, but said nothing more. He then turned and left, carrying the sleeping Ling Yue.

Once the room returned to calm, Ling Xi numbly moved to the bedside. She slowly squatted down in the spot where she had been, resting her hands on the edge of the bed, staring blankly at the lifeless face.

She inexplicably recalled what Lu Baixu had said during the day: he said he might die, and he had just reassured Ling Yue with absolute certainty. Now, however, she was alone and panicked.

She suddenly straightened her back, hesitated, and reached out to check his breath. Her trembling fingertips hovered there for a long time until she felt a faint but real breath. Only then did she relax her tightly held breath.

She slowly withdrew her hand, her gaze falling heavily back onto his face, lingering inch by inch on his pale, lifeless face.

He had become much thinner and more haggard. She could probably guess that he had never had a single day of comfort in all these years.

Ling Xi's nose suddenly felt sore, and warm tears quickly filled her eyes.

He may have valued her more than his own life, but in his heart, there were many things that were more important, and he originally intended to put his own life last.

The dim candlelight flickered for half the night, and Ling Xi quietly lay on the edge of the bed, already fast asleep.

In her hazy consciousness, she felt a cold touch on her palm. She suddenly opened her eyes, and the icy sensation from his fingertips made her heart pound. She gently grasped his cold hand and shook it vigorously.

"Xiao Ce, Xiao Ce..."

She called his name softly over and over again, her voice rising from sobs to despair, but he remained with his eyes closed, offering no response.

"Xiao Ce!"

The grief she had suppressed for so long finally erupted, and she lay down by the bed and sobbed softly.

She didn't know how much time had passed when she suddenly felt a gentle touch on her cheek. She looked up abruptly, her face still wet with glistening tears.

Xiao Ce was weakly half-opening his eyes, his gaze lightly falling on her face, his still weak hand gently wiping away the tears on her face.

She stared at him blankly, the coldness she had just touched still lingering in her palm. For a moment, she couldn't tell whether what she was seeing was real or a dream.

"Xi'er, don't cry."

His warm fingertips gently brushed her cheek again, and his low, weak voice fell into her ear. Ling Xi was suddenly pulled out of her daze. He was really awake!

She suddenly straightened up, her body slumped over the edge of the bed, staring blankly at him, her eyes still red and swollen, and suddenly felt helpless.

Xiao Ce's hand, which had been suspended in mid-air, slowly fell down, and the faint light that had just appeared in his eyes dimmed slightly.

"Xi'er..."

His voice was as soft as a wisp of smoke. Ling Xi snapped back to reality and hurriedly clutched the hem of her clothes.

"I...I'll go get the doctor."

She immediately stood up, staggered back two steps, and before Xiao Ce could speak again, she turned and rushed out of the room.