Chapter 453: Chapter 312 Prince Mu Intimidates

Yhan Qinrui’s arrival was unknown to Gu Changsheng, who was currently immersed in the joy of Tan Nv’s stable condition.

In this painfully backward ancient era, she had successfully found a compatible blood type for Tan Nv and had completed the open cavity surgery. Watching the weak Tan Nv wake up, Gu Changsheng smiled.

“Tan Nv…”

Her chaotic eyes opened for a moment, and Gu Changsheng was momentarily stunned but quickly showed her delight.

Tan Nv struggled to turn her head, reaching out to tightly grasp Gu Changsheng’s clothes with all her strength, speaking incredulously, “You… You’re alright?”

Seeing this, Gu Changsheng quickly held her hand and sat by the bed to reassure her, “Don’t move yet. I’m fine, and you’re fine too! Tan Nv, we’re both alive!”

Upon hearing this, Tan Nv breathed a sigh of relief and murmured weakly, “You’re alright, that’s good… I was really worried about you, not knowing how to explain to the master…”

The master? Zhou Mu, that evildoer?

Gu Changsheng just pondered for a moment before she pursed her lips dismissively, proceeded to tuck Tan Nv in, and said, “Rest assured, Tan Nv, with me here, nothing bad will happen to you. The surgery was very successful, and with a few months of recovery, you will be fine. It’s just…”

Adhering to the principle that the patient has the right to be informed, Gu Changsheng hesitated only briefly before continuing, “It’s just that from now on, you’ll have a quarter less lung than other people. If you catch a cold or flu again, you might have to be extra careful…”

“Lung?” Tan Nv opened her murky eyes in confusion.

Gu Changsheng lifted her hand, pointed to Tan Nv’s tightly bandaged chest, and spoke with guilt, “You were struck by the palm of that Old Devout Woman, the Futu Demoness, injuring all your internal organs, and with your left lung ruptured, I had no choice but to open your chest cavity and remove half of that lung…”

Upon hearing this, Tan Nv was visibly shocked and her eyes widened.

Her chest had been opened?

She could only feel a heart-wrenching pain in her chest. So it turns out her chest had been opened?

Was it like disemboweling? Lady Changsheng seemed to have treated Butcher Wang in this way before…

“Tan Nv, thank you for saving me. Although your body bears many scars, this wound on your chest, even I, I’m afraid, can’t remove it…” Gu Changsheng looked guiltily at Tan Nv’s chest.

She vividly remembered the determination in Tan Nv when she shielded her!

This chest scar from the surgery was caused while protecting her and would likely stay with Tan Nv for life…

“For you, even if it meant death, I, Tan Nv, would have no regrets; you needn’t feel guilty… To be alive is itself a great fortune…”

Tan Nv’s unique foreign accent, with its plaintive intonation, gently brushed over Gu Changsheng’s heart, filling her with indescribable gratitude.

“Tan Nv, if you can, stay with me. I will speak to the evildoer and have you remain by my side!” Gu Changsheng said slowly.

Upon hearing this, joy immediately spread across Tan Nv’s face, and she nodded firmly.

Si Xi, who happened to walk in with a bowl of medicine just in time to hear this, wore an expression of amusement and, while handing over the medicine bowl, said a bit gloomily, “My lady, isn’t it wrong to persuade the master’s people to defect like this?”

This was one of his master’s Five Great Secret Guards, and she had persuaded him so effortlessly?

“What belongs to the evildoer is mine, and what’s mine is still mine! What persuasion? This is, at most, just competing with the evildoer for people! Xiao Si Xi, you should be mindful of where your loyalties lie. You are actually part of my realm, aren’t you?” Gu Changsheng said while blowing on the medicine in her hands to cool it, then spoon-feeding it to Tan Nv, “Drink slowly, try to minimize the movement of swallowing to avoid aggravating the wound…”

Seeing his lady like this, Si Xi couldn’t help but sigh helplessly.

Alright, his lady had used similar justifications to persuade Yhan Ting and Diao Chan to join her… Now it was simply a repeat of the past…

Well, if her master seemed happy with the outcome, why should he fuss over it? After all, he belonged to Lady Changsheng’s country and should be glad about it!

Once he cleared that up in his mind, Si Xi suddenly felt relieved.

Zhou Zongbao had sent Yhan Qinrui away and then returned to drawing circles in his self-blame and guilt at the back door, choosing to go to the kitchen for his meals instead of the dining hall.

Thus, Yhan Qinrui’s visit was kept undetected…

Since Du Chenzhi was on duty in the subordinate territories, Yhan Qinrui still managed to move into the City Lord’s Mansion unobstructed. Just as she settled in, she sent someone to deliver her calling card to Prince Mu’s Mansion, seeking an audience not with just anyone, but with Huo Shuixian.

At this very moment, Huo Shuixian was nestled in Zhou Mu’s Lansheng Courtyard, lavishing him with affection by playing the zither and singing…

Yuan Bao stood by quietly, her lips twitching in distaste.

You’d think that a young lady from the Grand Tutor’s Mansion knows nothing else, but she sure knows how to curry favor!

Wasn’t playing the zither and singing supposed to be the forte of Jiaofang Division performers? Surprisingly, Miss Huo excelled in this area! Recalling the song “Phoenix Seeking Phoenix,” Yuan Bao suddenly realized that in pleasing her master, Miss Huo was truly relentless, coming up with endless ways and completely disregarding both inner and outer appearances, let alone rank and face!

“Brother Mu, are you listening to Shuixian at all? You’re so lost in thought; what’s on your mind?” Huo Shuixian waved her hand in front of Zhou Mu, pouting with dissatisfaction.

Zhou Mu then realized he hadn’t turned a page of his book for quite some time. Regaining his composure without a change in his expression, he unthinkingly shifted to the side, maintaining a distance from Huo Shuixian, “Nothing, please continue!”

Upon hearing this, Yuan Bao turned her head and covered her mouth to stifle her laughter.

He returned from Lady Changsheng’s before dawn had fully broken. His spirit seemed vivacious, but his soul was frequently distracted and lost in thought!

I don’t know what he was thinking about, but he surely looked much better than yesterday!

Lady Changsheng indeed is the cure to his illness!

“Brother Mu, if you have any worries, feel free to share with Shuixian. Though I may not be the smartest, the heart of a woman is delicate and perceptive, perhaps I can understand what baffles a man like you,” Huo Shuixian said with both hands propping up her chin, her eyes brimming with affection as she gazed at Zhou Mu, who was just within reach.

The more she looked at her Brother Mu, the more attractive he seemed!

Fortunately, his face was not disfigured by the fire in the Eastern Palace; otherwise, she really would have had to settle for someone else!

Upon hearing Huo Shuixian’s words, Zhou Mu’s eyes lit up momentarily, but he still kept a grim expression and remained silent.

“Brother Mu, you can’t keep such worries to yourself. You must speak them to find relief. Will you tell me…” Huo Shuixian coaxed him with a spoiled tone, radiating the bashful charm of a young maiden.

Zhou Mu, with a trace of scorn curving his lips that vanished as quickly as it appeared into his sharply defined mouth, said, “It was you who asked me to speak!”

“Yes, yes! It was Shuixian who asked Brother Mu to speak!” Upon hearing this, Huo Shuixian eagerly nodded, her face lit with joy.

Brother Mu was willing to share his troubles with her! Did this mean she had made her way into Brother Mu’s heart?

It must be so! Huo Shuixian felt as if her entire being was sweetened by honey, her entire body reaching utmost contentment.

“If the person you cherish is very close with someone else, what would you do?” Zhou Mu looked at Huo Shuixian and asked deliberately, word by word.

At his words, Huo Shuixian froze in place as if struck by lightning, and the smile on her face stiffened instantly…

What does Brother Mu mean by that?

The person she cherished was Brother Mu, and the one closely associated with Brother Mu was Gu Changsheng!

Could it be… Brother Mu knew something?

Zhou Mu watched Huo Shuixian with a relaxed demeanor as if observing a play, a hint of deadly intent flickering in his eyes!

This woman dared to harbor murderous thoughts towards his Changsheng!

The fingers hidden within Zhou Mu’s purple sleeve clenched tightly as he struggled to contain his urge to kill!

It wasn’t just Changsheng who could not endure it, he himself hardly could resist the desire to take Huo Shuixian’s life!

Yet, he could not! Huo Shuixian was now the amulet protecting Changsheng!

He not only couldn’t kill her but had to guard her and elevate her to the center of attention.

“Mu… Brother Mu, what do you mean by that? Do you have someone you are close to? Woo woo…” Huo Shuixian, feigning a grievous and indignant appearance, seemed to accuse Zhou Mu of heartlessness.

Zhou Mu regarded her knowingly misguided performance with a cold look, sneering inwardly. If he had been unaware of Huo Shuixian’s repeated disturbances at the Gu Residence, he might still have been misled by her act as the innocent girl she once was.

But he knew everything!

Her venomous and callous heart was crystal clear to him!

Zhou Mu felt utter revulsion inside, yet he masked it perfectly, maintaining the same ice-cold, expressionless face known to all, “I asked merely in passing, with no particular implication.”

Hearing Zhou Mu say this, the anxiety that had risen in Huo Shuixian’s throat immediately subsided, and she felt a wave of immense relief.

Only then did she realize her back was soaked with cold sweat!

“Brother Mu, you scared me again. I won’t speak to you anymore!” Huo Shuixian feigned fury charmingly and huffed before turning and running off towards the Lansheng Courtyard.

She was frightened! Only at this moment did she understand her overwhelming concern that her Brother Mu might learn the truth!

Two days had passed, and her wet nurse had neither returned nor sent any news. Hearing of the incident at the Gu Residence, she was overjoyed, but with each day she didn’t see her wet nurse, her heart grew restless!

“Miss, the Minister of War from Yan Mansion, Miss Yhan , has sent someone with an invitation asking you to join her at the Cloud Building for tea.” Seeing her mistress return, Ru Ge presented a gilded invitation.

The already apprehensive Huo Shuixian’s expression darkened, “Why has she come to Liuzhou? When we left the capital, wasn’t she nestled in Yan Mansion, awaiting marriage?”

“This maid does not know. Will you accept the invitation?” asked Ru Ge, shaking her head in reply.

“Go! Of course, I’ll go! If I don’t, she might think I’m too scared to meet her,” Huo Shuixian coldly huffed in response.

“Yes! This maid will make the preparations right away!” Knowing her mistress always looked forward to competing with Miss Huo, Ru Ge didn’t dare delay and hastily exited.

On the other side of Lansheng Courtyard, upon hearing the news from Yuan Bao, Zhou Mu’s face instantly tightened in a cold frown as he rose…