After Yu Lao removed the needles and left, Gu Yanxi waited with bated breath for A Zhi's reaction. Even the slightest flutter of her eyelids or movement of her fingers would have sufficed—he was terrified, so much so that his hands trembled.
But there was nothing. No response at all. The fever persisted, her breathing remained scorching hot, and nothing had changed.
Gu Yanxi's heart sank to the depths of despair.
"Add more water."
Bao Xia, flustered and anxious, hurriedly complied, refilling the water until it submerged the young lady's chest once more. Meanwhile, Ying Chun continued wringing out a cloth to wipe her neck, armpits, and arms. They forced their minds to stop wandering, focusing only on what needed to be done at that moment.
Yet the young lady's hands had already begun to wrinkle. By their calculations, she had been soaking for nearly half an hour, if not longer...
Suddenly, Gu Yanxi lifted her out of the water. "Tell the kitchen to keep boiling water. We need to change the bath."
"I'll go, I'll go!" Madam Zhu, who had been idly handing cloths to Ying Chun with nothing else to do, hastily stood up and rushed out in a flurry. The two maids worked together to scoop the water out of the wooden tub. Out of the corner of her eye, Ying Chun noticed the regent laying the young lady on top of himself on the nearby couch, tightly wrapped in blankets. Though both were unclothed, there was no hint of impropriety—only an overwhelming sense of sorrow.
These two had endured far too much.
From day to night, she would soak for half an hour, rest for a quarter of an hour, and then resume the cycle. This repeated several times until, by early morning, her temperature had finally subsided slightly.
Gu Yanxi fed her some ginseng soup and held her as they slept for less than two hours before he was awakened by the scorching heat of her body. After another frantic rush, they continued with the medicinal baths. For two days, this torment persisted until parts of Hua Zhi's skin had wrinkled from prolonged soaking. She grew visibly thinner, and even someone as resilient as Gu Yanxi had noticeably lost weight.
This time, the fever finally subsided for a longer period. After examining her pulse, Miraculous Doctor Yu changed the prescription. "If her temperature doesn't rise to the previous level, there's no need for more medicinal baths. Boil some rice broth and feed her as much as possible."
From then on, her fever never reached the scalding intensity it had before, but it lingered intermittently for three more days before finally breaking completely. In just a few short days, she had become emaciated, her body like skin and bones, curled into a small mound beneath the blankets. Whenever Gu Yanxi needed to tend to her, he handled her with the utmost care, afraid that even the slightest excess of force might shatter her.
Seven days had passed. A Zhi had not opened her eyes for seven days. Gu Yanxi, unshaven and disheveled, knelt by the bedside, gently wiping her hands—one finger at a time, with unwavering focus and practiced ease.
Yu Lao's expression grew graver with each passing day. More and more visitors came to inquire, but Gu Yanxi paid them no mind. He naturally assumed the role of master in this courtyard, barring unnecessary outsiders. A Zhi valued tranquility and would not have wanted to be disturbed while she slept.
"I need to go to the palace. Take good care of her."
The maids, who had also lost significant weight, responded in unison. Whether the regent's devotion to the young lady was genuine and how deeply he cared—these past few days had made it abundantly clear. No, it was clear enough for the entire capital to see. In their hearts, they had already accepted the regent as their master. While the young lady was incapacitated, they naturally followed his orders.
Gu Yanxi rode his horse into the palace, for the first time exercising his privileges to the fullest extent.He did not go to see the Emperor, but went straight to the Grand Empress Dowager. With a crisp sound, he knelt down, the hem of his robe sweeping the floor. "Your grandson begs Grandmother to preside over my wedding."
The Grand Empress Dowager leaned forward, her hand pressed against her chest. "How is the Grand Tutor...?"
"Still unconscious." Gu Yanxi's voice was hoarse. "Before I went to battle, A Zhi told me she would marry me even if I were crippled, even if I were maimed, even if I were reduced to nothing but bones and flesh. Now I wish to respond to her with the same devotion. If she lives three days, I will marry her. If she lives one day, I will marry her. Even if—even if she never wakes up, I will still marry her. In this lifetime, I will marry no one but her!"
The Grand Empress Dowager did not want to consent. As both the Grand Empress Dowager of Daqing and Yanxi's grandmother, she could not bear to agree. Once she gave her consent, her grandson, the Regent of Daqing, might have to walk this long life alone. Yet she could not refuse.
This was Yanxi's sincere plea, his heartfelt request. Moreover, she could not bring herself to utter a single word of opposition against that young woman. Except towards enemies and herself, she had been kind to everyone, giving all she could to others—even to an old wretch like her who had never treated her well.
"What does Grandmother need to do?"
Gu Yanxi's lips trembled. He bowed low, pressing his forehead to the ground for a long time without moving. He had run out of options. At this moment, his mind could hold nothing but marrying A Zhi. The country, the new emperor, the old policies—none of it mattered. He only wanted to marry A Zhi, to marry her while she still lived, and then wait for her to wake up, or leave this world together.
To share the same quilt in life and the same grave in death, bound as husband and wife.
The Grand Empress Dowager let out a long sigh and rose to help him up herself. "Grandmother will give you whatever you want and agree to whatever you wish to do. But you must promise Grandmother not to do anything foolish."
Gu Yanxi looked down at his grandmother, her temples streaked with white, and felt a pang in his nose. She had bid farewell to her husband and her son, having tasted the deepest sorrows of this world. And now he...
"Your grandson is unfilial, causing you grief."
"You are the most filial of all. No one is more filial than you." The Grand Empress Dowager's eyes welled with tears as she reached up to touch the scar on his face. How could he be unfilial? Hadn't the late Emperor schemed precisely because of his filial piety? Hadn't she done the same?
"Your A Zhi will surely wake up. She cannot bear to leave you, nor the Hua family she fought so desperately to protect, nor the young Emperor. She will surely overcome this trial."
Gu Yanxi smiled, his eyes red. "Yes, she will."
Patting his arm, the Empress Dowager said in a trembling voice, "Go now, make the preparations. Grandmother will preside over your wedding."
Gu Yanxi kowtowed once more. After leaving, he did not immediately depart from the palace but instead went to the Ancestral Temple. Kneeling before the ancestors of the Gu family, he pleaded in a low voice, "If our ancestors have any spirit, please protect A Zhi and help her through this ordeal. She has rendered great service to the country and to the state. She is a great benefactor of the Gu family. I beg the Gu family to shield her with the imperial aura. Your descendant, Gu Yanxi, kowtows."
After leaving the palace and instructing his men to make preparations, he rushed without delay to the Great Clumsy Temple. Before the majestic statue of the Buddha, he made a vow: "I, Gu Yanxi, swear before the Buddha that I am willing to exchange ten years of my life for Hua Zhi to overcome this ordeal."Afterwards, he went to the renowned Sanqing Temple in the capital to make the same vow. Like someone who never burns incense until trouble strikes, he sought blessings everywhere—even visiting Taoist temples. He even tossed coins into offering boxes and freed captive animals, clinging to every sliver of hope.
At this moment, Gu Yanxi was no longer the formidable chief of the Seven Constellation Bureau, no longer the Heir personally appointed by the Emperor, no longer the high-ranking Regent holding immense power. He was merely an ordinary man terrified of losing his beloved, doing ordinary things.
OpenNovel