With her deceased husband as her dowry, would Your Highness dare to marry her?

Lin Ci didn't want to hear his voice, so she turned around and covered his mouth with her hand.

Pei Jinxuan gazed into her clear, watery black eyes, his own eyes crinkling into a smile, and kissed her again.

He felt neither hungry nor thirsty, and had inexhaustible energy. His bedding was mostly soaked, but he never complained of being tired.

He thought that Lin Ci must like him, just as he liked her.

No one saw Pei Jinxuan and Lin Ci all day.

The people in the manor assumed that the two masters had gone out on business and didn't pay any attention.

As dusk settled, Lin Ci was seen staggering into Liufang Garden with unsteady steps. The bamboo stick she always carried with her was nowhere to be seen.

"Oh my! My wife, your eyes are healed?!" Siqi stared wide-eyed in surprise, looking at Lin Ci as if she were a rare treasure, circling around her again and again.

Lin Ci didn't say much, just nodded. Just as she was about to speak, she felt her voice was terribly hoarse. She had been hoarse for a day and a night, and afraid that people would hear, she covered it with a soft pillow.

She pursed her lips and swallowed back the bitter taste in her throat.

"How was it cured?" Suwen asked curiously as she heard that Lin Ci's eyesight had been restored. "What kind of miraculous medicine did you use? Tell me, my lady, and I'll make a few doses for my mother too."

Lin Ci smiled, not wanting to elaborate, but simply wrote down a prescription for improving eyesight and handed it over. Su Wen didn't think much of it, happily tucked the prescription into her bosom, and treasured it like a precious gem.

After the idlers had left, Lin Ci dared not rest. She took out a scale and, by candlelight, carefully weighed the medicine, then wrote down the prescription for bringing the dead back to life.

Soon after, the Yan Emperor also heard the news that Lin Ci's eyesight had been restored and hurriedly summoned her to the palace.

During this period, Dr. Xu took my pulse and everything went smoothly without any mistakes.

Lin Ci examined the Yan Emperor's pulse and, seeing that it was steady, felt relieved. She smiled and said, "Your Majesty's pulse is peaceful and your health is improving. This humble woman wishes Your Majesty good fortune, longevity, and health, and a long and healthy life."

The Yan Emperor looked at her with a warm and gentle smile.

"You look much better after just a few days. I suppose Prince Jing'an hasn't been mistreating you."

"How could I dare to mistreat her?" Pei Jinxuan propped her head up with one hand, leaning lazily against the back of her chair, but there was a hint of grievance in her eyes that she couldn't hide. "It's already good enough that she doesn't mistreat me."

Last night he tried to be affectionate with her, but she wouldn't give in and ignored him all night.

Just now in the car, she wouldn't even let me touch her little hand.

He hadn't caught his breath yet.

"Physician Lin has worked hard; please be more considerate." Emperor Yan smiled and shook his head, picking up a few folded books from the table and pushing them to the edge. "Prince Liang impeached you again today; take a look when you have time."

"It's just the same old stuff anyway, might as well ignore it." Pei Jinxuan sat up straight, his casual demeanor fading, and said seriously, "Amo has sent back a message by carrier pigeon; he has joined up with the two generals. The annihilation of the Tiele is just around the corner."

"If that's really the case, then I can sleep a little longer tonight." The Yan Emperor smiled faintly, closed the folding book, and affixed his vermilion seal. "Prince Liang has made great contributions; let him rest in the capital for a few more months."

Lin Ci stood to the side, and although he was an outsider, he could still sense something was amiss. His Majesty was stripping Liang Wang of his power, deliberately confining him to this small area and keeping him under his watchful eye.

"Your Majesty, Marquis Xuanping requests an audience," Eunuch Gao announced as he entered.

The Emperor of Yan nodded. "Proclaim it."

Xiao Jingyuan stepped into the hall, dressed in an official robe that made him look quite respectable. However, his eyes were restless, and as he passed Pei Jinxuan, he deliberately raised an eyebrow at him. Pei Jinxuan looked at him expressionlessly, wishing he could pluck those two eyebrows off right then and there.

"Your subject pays respects to Your Majesty." Xiao Jingyuan knelt and bowed.

Lin Ci turned her head to look at the voice. She remembered that voice; it belonged to Young Master Xiao, who had escorted Pei Jinxuan back to his residence that night.

When Xiao Jingyuan looked up, his eyes met hers. His eyes lit up instantly, and his demeanor became several degrees more refined.

Pei Jinxuan watched all this, and a surge of anger rose within him. He rose and bowed, his tone turning cold: "If Your Majesty has nothing else to say, I shall take my leave."

The Yan Emperor nodded in agreement. He then turned and left with Lin Ci.

As soon as Lin Ci stepped out of the palace gate, he lowered his head slightly, and the scenery in front of him became somewhat blurry again.

Startled, she quickly grabbed Pei Jinxuan's hand. He held it tightly without showing any emotion and led her to the carriage.

The carriage creaked and groaned as it drove along the bluestone slabs.

The peach branches along the street have already sprouted tender buds, and the spring atmosphere is creeping into the window cracks.

The interior of the car was also filled with springtime charm.

Lin Ci sat on Pei Jinxuan's lap, biting her lip tightly with every jolt of the car, not daring to make a sound.

Pei Jinxuan was determined to be mischievous. He grabbed her waist and pressed down hard. A muffled groan finally escaped her throat, a sound that was utterly captivating.

"This love potion is truly deadly." His heavy breathing brushed against her ear, rising and falling with the wheels of the car. "If you keep doing this, won't you be unable to leave me day and night?"

Lin Ci raised her hand and covered his mouth to stop him from speaking. Only when the passion dispelled the darkness in front of her inch by inch did she finally soften her body and lean on his shoulder, breathing softly.

She tried to back away, but the arms around her waist tightened even more.

He whispered in her ear, "I'm not ready yet."

Before he finished speaking, he exerted his strength again.

Just then, the carriage passed through the bustling market, the noise of the crowd so intense that it seemed as if they were right beside her, even through the curtain. Lin Ci blushed, biting her lip tightly, afraid to make a sound.

Back at the mansion, after getting off the carriage, all traces of the previous eroticism had vanished.

One lowered his head and composed himself, while the other walked with a solemn air. After entering the house, they became more and more serious than the other, as if the absurdity inside the car had never happened.

With the arrival of spring, time flies like a wild horse that has broken free of its reins, impossible to hold back.

Lin Ci spent almost all his time in the cellar, focusing all his attention on the art of bringing the dead back to life.

For Pei Jinxuan, this should have been a good thing. He had been brought back from the dead, and he could save his brother and stabilize the country. But for some reason, he became inexplicably anxious and couldn't eat or sleep.

If that dead man were to truly come back to life, what would he be? A lover?

Should we serve Lin Ci's dead husband a cup of tea to distinguish between them?

What a joke! He's the Prince of Jing'an!

But the more I thought about it, the more uneasy I felt.

When the night was deep and quiet, having exhausted himself, he leaned close to her ear and kept asking, "Do you like me? When did you start liking me? What do you like about me?"

Lin Ci simply held him, like comforting a little child who was begging for candy. His eyes, which could already see, were lifeless and dull, as if he were thinking about something.

The more she refused to speak, the more he pestered her, forcing her to reveal the whole truth, as if he would win over the one lying in the coffin if she finally opened her mouth.

How can the living compare to the dead?

Even though he was perfect in every way and considerate in every aspect, he couldn't erase the lingering regret in Lin Ci's heart. Regret, over time, turned into guilt; guilt, over time, solidified into a faint, aching scar on her heart.

She no longer wanted to associate with Pei Jinxuan, not even for the sake of her eyes. While she could still see, she spent her days in the cellar, eating and sleeping with a coffin.

Those who knew her simply thought she was diligently studying medicine.

Those who didn't know better would think she was hiding from someone.

Pei Jinxuan knew. But he felt that she was avoiding him.