SWHCBB 79

Chapter 79: Zhiyu Has Woken Up

Wen Jue remained unconscious for six full days before finally waking. When he opened his eyes, he stared blankly at the gauzy canopy hanging from the bed frame, his expression dazed. He blinked, and his vision seemed to blur again.

No, it was blurry.

Where was he now? But the warm and real sensation in his hand told him he had returned to reality.

Wen Jue lifted his hand and moved his fingers, only to realize that his right hand was being held tightly by someone. He looked over and saw only a head of black hair.

Yunchuan?

His gaze was drawn to a pale white object nearby. It took him a moment to recognize it as a wind chime made of mutton-fat jade, one Yunchuan had prepared for him.

He really had come back. He really was awake. This wasn’t a dream…

None of it had happened. Everyone was still alive. Wen Jue’s eyes turned red, and tears spilled out uncontrollably.

It was all just a dream. Thank goodness, it was all just a dream. None of it had really happened!

His low sobbing startled Jiang Chuang awake. Seeing him crying just as he had regained consciousness, Jiang Chuang had no time to feel relief and instead panicked as he wiped his tears. “What’s wrong? Is the wound too painful? I… I’ll go get Bai Yuan!”

Wen Jue shook his head. He had just started to move when a sharp pain shot through his left chest. Every movement tugged at the wound. He could only clutch Jiang Chuang with his right hand, sobbing softly. He tried to speak, but his voice was so hoarse he couldn’t make a sound.

Jiang Chuang carefully propped up his pillow and slowly helped him drink some water.

Normally, dreams faded upon waking. But for some reason, the more Wen Jue recalled this one, the clearer it became. He trembled from head to toe, the lingering dread and terror had yet to fade.

He looked at Jiang Chuang, all his sorrow rushing out in a flood. “Yunchuan, I had a terrible, terrible nightmare.”

Jiang Chuang stroked his face, too preoccupied to ask about the nightmare. “Let me get Bai Yuan to check on you first, alright? You’ve been asleep for six days. Changning, Her Highness, and I were all scared out of our minds.”

Wen Jue nodded and didn’t press further.

____

After examining Wen Jue’s wound, Bai Yuan confirmed that it was healing well. “Nothing serious. But you’ll need to wait until your body recovers before we can purge the remaining poison.”

Jiang Chuang said gratefully, “Thank you, divine physician!”

Wen Jue added with guilt, “Sorry for troubling you so late.”

It was the dead of night, and Jiang Chuang had personally gone to fetch him. Bai Yuan hadn’t hesitated and came right away.

Bai Yuan replied, “It’s fine, I wasn’t sleeping anyway.” Then he glanced at Jiang Chuang before testingly looking toward Wen Jue. “After all that time unconscious, how are you feeling?”

The events in the dream couldn’t possibly be real, Wen Jue thought. He could act spoiled and pitiful with Yunchuan, but there was no need to burden Bai Yuan with his dream’s troubles.

“I’m alright,” Wen Jue coughed lightly. “Other than weakness all over, there’s no real discomfort.”

Bai Yuan nodded thoughtfully. “Good. I’ll be going, then.”

“I’ll see you out.” Jiang Chuang rose to escort him, but Bai Yuan stopped and looked back.

“No need, I know the way. If you faint halfway there, I’ll just have another patient on my hands!”

With that, he waved and walked off alone.

He said it jokingly, but it wasn’t entirely false. Jiang Chuang’s face was haggard, beard unshaven, eyes ringed with exhaustion. However long Wen Jue had slept, Jiang Chuang had been suffering just as long.

The moment the tension in Jiang Chuang’s nerves eased, he finally felt the overwhelming fatigue, but he still didn’t want to sleep. He remembered how Zhiyu had cried when he woke, and he wanted to stay by his side.

Looking up, he saw Changning hanging around by the trees, he clearly wanted to come in but hesitated. “Go back. Come see him tomorrow once he’s rested.”

Only then did Changning’s tightly-wound heart finally ease.

After changing into fresh clothes and washing up again, Jiang Chuang climbed into bed, carefully pulling Wen Jue into his arms. He let out a long sigh of relief, satisfied. “After so many days… I can finally hold you again.”

Wen Jue leaned into his embrace. The long-lost sense of safety washed over him. That dream had terrified him, so vivid, so real. The despair and sorrow still haunted him.

“You haven’t been sleeping properly these days, have you? Always keeping watch by my bedside?”

Jiang Chuang rubbed his nose against the top of Wen Jue’s head and mumbled, “If it were you lying unconscious like that, could you sleep?”

Wen Jue replied softly, “I…” He couldn’t. He knew he couldn’t.

Looking at the familiar bedchamber, Wen Jue remembered that before he lost consciousness, they had still been in Huazhou. “When did we return to the capital? Are you still going back to the borderlands? Where are Deputy General Huang and the others?”

“That day, your injuries were too severe.” Jiang Chuang still felt afraid recalling it. He closed his eyes before continuing, “There wasn’t a single physician in all of Huazhou besides Bai Yuan. Medical supplies and equipment were lacking too. It wasn’t a good place for recovery. And with an assassination attempt on a prince, something that serious had to be reported to the capital. Bai Yuan suggested we return immediately, and bring you back with us.”

Wen Jue asked in a low voice, “Who was it that wanted to harm me? And Sixth Brother? He was in Huazhou too. Did he come back with us?”

Jiang Chuang fell silent for a moment before answering slowly, “The Sixth Prince is dead. Even with his guards surrounding him tightly, it was no use. He was killed by a single sword strike from an assassin.”

“What?” Wen Jue sat up in shock but then slowly relaxed his clenched hand. “What… what happened?”

Jiang Chuang’s mind was still a mess from everything that had occurred over the past few days, so he simply spoke as the thoughts came to him.

The Sixth Prince, Wen Long, had been killed in Huazhou. By rights, the Emperor should have issued an imperial order for a full investigation, and he did. But just two days into the probe, the Xiang family and the Empress were thrown into prison together. The Empress’s deposition was all but certain now. Whether she would be executed or not, well, that awaited the Emperor’s final decree.

The court was thrown into turmoil. Every minister was on edge. In the chaos, the Emperor had collapsed in illness. When he woke in a daze, he personally handed the imperial seal to Grand Princess Chenyu and appointed her as regent.

The court erupted.

Some officials even resigned in protest. The unrest was giving Wen Yan constant headaches.

Many ministers objected to having Princess Chenyu act as regent. But others argued that with so few princes remaining and the Emperor in poor health, appointing another prince might only incite ambition toward the throne. Princess Chenyu, being a woman and famously devoted to her father, was the most appropriate choice.

And so, more and more ministers gradually began to agree with the proposal.