The next day, when Jiang Yunshu awoke, she found Xie Lin still lingering in Weiyang Palace.
"Does the Chief Steward have no duties to attend to today?" Jiang Yunshu asked.
Xie Lin replied, "No matter how pressing my affairs, they pale in comparison to Your Highness. Today, I shall remain by your side to serve you."
Jiang Yunshu trembled at his words, uncertain what Xie Lin intended to do to her this time.
Soon, she found out. When she ate, he fed her spoonful by spoonful. Wherever she went, he carried her in his arms...
"I can walk myself..." Jiang Yunshu struggled. She was blind, not crippled.
Xie Lin refused. "Your Highness must not move recklessly. Do you wish to stumble as you did yesterday?"
Jiang Yunshu thought to herself that yesterday, the lingering effects of the anesthesia had left her limbs weak. Today, she had fully recovered. Though her eyes could not see, she could feel her way forward slowly.
But Xie Lin paid no heed. When she insisted on walking, he said, "If Your Highness falls again as you did yesterday, I shall have no choice but to bathe you once more."
Jiang Yunshu immediately fell silent.
For the entire day, wherever she went, Xie Lin carried her. She did not even wear shoes or socks—she had no idea where they were.
She did not know how she endured that day.
Blind to the shifting light outside, time crawled unbearably slowly.
At last, when night fell, Jiang Yunshu silently counted—one of the three days had passed.
Two more, and Taoye and Zhezhi would return.
If she could endure two more days like this, surely Xie Lin would be satisfied?
She only hoped that when her maids returned, she could preserve at least a shred of dignity before them.
On the third day, Jiang Yunshu finally wore shoes and socks again. She asked to walk around Weiyang Palace on her own.
Xie Lin feigned hurt. "Has my service been lacking?"
"Wherever Your Highness wishes to go, I shall carry you."
Jiang Yunshu replied, "You may carry me for a day, two days, even five—but you cannot carry me forever."
"Weiyang Palace may be vast, but if I walk slowly, feeling my way, I will learn it. In time, I won’t need eyes to navigate..."
Xie Lin watched her, his gaze dark and unreadable.
He was certain Jiang Yunshu remained unaware of the truth—that she still believed her eyes had been taken.
Yet her reaction was far calmer than he had anticipated.
Though she suffered, even now, Jiang Yunshu showed no regret.
Did such people truly exist?
Just what kind of woman was Jiang Yunshu?
The more time Xie Lin spent with her, the less he understood her.
Jiang Yunshu stretched her hands forward, feeling her way as she walked.
Xie Lin stayed close, at first hovering protectively, but before long, he pulled her fully into his embrace.
Pressed against him, Jiang Yunshu strained to listen—were there others nearby?
Where were the palace maids and eunuchs? Could they see her like this, held in Xie Lin’s arms?
Every rustle of wind made her tense.
And Xie Lin—he seemed to relish her distress.
She heard him chuckle softly, the sound brimming with wicked amusement.
"Mind the threshold..." Xie Lin warned, but too late—her toe struck the step, sharp pain shooting through her as she collapsed against him.
He lifted her effortlessly, carrying her to what felt like... a long, narrow desk?
Her hands brushed against books on either side, confirming her guess.
The desk stood near a window. Jiang Yunshu’s back pressed against the sill as Xie Lin cradled her ankle.
"Did Your Highness twist your foot?"
"No!" she insisted.
Ignoring her, Xie Lin slid off her shoe and stocking, his scorching palm enveloping her foot, fingers tracing slow, deliberate circles.
"A sprain is no trifle. Allow me to examine it..."
A cool breeze drifted through the open window behind her.
The window was open!
She didn’t know which room they were in, nor what lay beyond that window—was anyone outside? Could passersby see her like this with Xie Lin?
Her fingers touched the silk blindfold. So this was the terror of blindness.
In the darkness, every sound and touch grew unbearably vivid.
The whisper of fabric...
The heat of Xie Lin’s hand gliding up her calf, pushing her trousers higher, the breeze chilling her bare skin...
The chime of white jade prayer beads at his wrist, clinking softly...
"Let’s... return to the bedchamber," Jiang Yunshu pleaded, her voice unsteady.
Xie Lin’s only answer was his breath drawing nearer.
Clutching his neck, she feared leaning back—would she tumble through the open window?
For the first time, she understood: gentleness could be as cruel as brutality.
Biting her lip, she dared not make a sound by the open window.
She tried not to move, yet her body trembled uncontrollably. Would this harm her injured eyes?
A dull ache pulsed around them—no illusion, the pressure was real.
Then—light.
A sliver of gold seeped past the blindfold’s edge.
Jiang Yunshu froze. She tore off the covering.
The setting sun’s glow, though tender, stung her long-deprived eyes, drawing tears.
She could see!
The courtyard beyond the window—empty.
The distant sky—a haze of lavender.
And Xie Lin’s face—utterly absorbed, his deft fingers moving with the precision of a jeweler polishing his most treasured gem.
Their eyes met.
Xie Lin’s smile was knowing. "Half a day early?"
"Your Highness’s blood must have surged fiercely to reopen the acupoints ahead of time."
Before she could speak, his fingers brushed her sleep point.
Darkness swallowed her again as she slumped into his arms.
