Chapter 466: Whether Loving or Not, The Heart is Its Own Proof

Ji Qingwu turned back, at a loss for words. Her good mood returned as she gazed at the handsome, heroic face before her.

Ji Qingwu’s eyes crinkled in a smile. "He might have a few screws loose," she said. "Let’s just ignore him."

Zhao Mingyan smiled back. "Alright. We’ll ignore him."

The two of them walked toward the military camp’s main gate, while Chi Rui and the soldiers stood on either side with their heads bowed.

Yu Wen Tianqing stared at their retreating figures and called out, "Those who pick the Heavenly Mountain Red Lotus must sever all worldly passions! In other words, only a heartless person can obtain the red lotus. The fact that he succeeded is proof that, in his heart, he feels nothing for you!"

Hearing Yu Wen Tianqing’s words, Ji Qingwu’s back stiffened.

This wasn’t the first time someone had told her that only a heartless person could sit on the supreme throne, that Emperor Wu Su merely doted on her but would never be truly devoted to her.

Yu Wen Tianqing was saying it too, and now the red lotus had become the "proof."

The smile on Ji Qingwu’s lips widened.

She had once thought the same, which was why she had always been resisting and pushing him away.

But if she were to doubt his heart now, it would mean denying everything they had experienced together and invalidating all she had sacrificed.

The black banners at the camp gate snapped in the wind, and the hair unbound down Ji Qingwu’s back danced in the breeze.

Ji Qingwu turned and squeezed his hand. His palm was warm and dry, and a small cut on it pricked faintly against her own soft palm.

She spoke with a scornful curl of her lips.

"’One who picks the red lotus must be heartless?’ Have you ever picked one? It’s nothing but hearsay, you just parrot what everyone else says."

Yu Wen Tianqing’s face darkened. "You’ll learn this the hard way, sooner or later."

Ji Qingwu raised her other hand, displaying the red lotus for all to see.

"But we insist on having that abyssal ice cavern bear witness! We take its ice marrow as our betrothal gift and its serpent’s venom as our oath! Love or no love, our own hearts are the only proof we need!"

An impossible softness filled Zhao Mingyan’s gaze.

He lifted his hand slightly. Chi Rui immediately took the hint and advanced on Yu Wen Tianqing, sword in hand.

*

「Back in the main tent.」

Ji Qingwu quickly and carefully placed the red lotus on a low table. She turned to Li Yuzong by the door and said, "Eunuch Li, please trouble yourself to prepare some water."

Li Yuzong replied excitedly, "This old servant will go at once!"

Then, Ji Qingwu pushed the Emperor onto the bed and started pulling off his clothes.

She was like an impetuous little beast, fumbling with his clothes without any rhyme or reason.

She had been the one to fasten his armor before he left, but now, when it was time to remove it, she had completely lost her patience.

Zhao Mingyan had rarely been in such an awkward position. His breastplate was dangling, the collar of his inner tunic had been pulled loose, and he had to use his arm to fend her off.

He let out an exasperated laugh. "Ah Wu, I can do it myself."

A fine sheen of sweat had broken out on Ji Qingwu’s forehead. She said seriously, "Your Majesty, don’t get the wrong idea. I’m just treating your wound."

Zhao Mingyan lifted his left leg and asked, "This is the only place I’m injured. Why are you taking off my clothes, Ah Wu?"

Ji Qingwu’s eyes shone as she said, reasonably, "I need to check if Your Majesty is hurt anywhere else, just in case you’re hiding your injuries."

’That’s why she was so anxious, wanting to see with her own eyes that he was truly unharmed.’

Zhao Mingyan smiled and pulled her onto his lap. He kissed her cheek with his dry lips and let out a contented sigh.

"I’ve spent the last few days rolling around in sand and dust. How about I go take a bath and get clean, and then you can personally inspect me, Ah Wu?"

Ji Qingwu shook her head decisively. "No. Let me see the wound on your foot first."

Zhao Mingyan rested his head in the crook of her neck, inhaling her scent. With his eyes half-closed, he said, "It was just a little snake bite."

Ji Qingwu turned her head and saw the exhaustion on his face. She knew how hard he had worked these past few days, and that on top of it all, he had risked his life to pick the red lotus.

She took off his boot and sock for him, hissing softly when she saw the swollen wound.

At the center of the wound were two greenish-blue marks, surrounded by a network of veins that resembled a frost flower.

Ji Qingwu frowned. "One look at this and you can tell the snake was venomous. How do you treat this?"

The moment she finished speaking, she slapped her forehead and hurried to bring over the red lotus.

She said with conviction, "This red lotus can definitely counteract the poison."

Zhao Mingyan stopped her, raising an eyebrow. "I took an Antitoxic Pill before I left. The venom is already being neutralized. This red lotus is a gift for Ah Wu to admire."

Before, the wound had looked even more terrifying; the frost pattern had been seared to the bone, and the dark, bluish-black veins beneath were faintly visible. It had indeed improved a great deal by now.

Ji Qingwu said, "I’ve already seen how magnificent this red lotus is. It’s best to put it to good use."

She deftly plucked off a petal and applied it directly to his ankle.

Zhao Mingyan looked as if he wanted to say something, but he held his tongue. ’The process of picking this flower was incredibly perilous...’

In the end, he just gazed at the dark hair on her head and smiled.

It was a smile of resignation, but even more so of contentment.

’How could she not know how precious it was?’

’But in her heart, he was the most precious thing of all.’

The Heavenly Mountain Red Lotus’s detoxifying effects were miraculous. After a quarter of an hour, the frost-flower pattern on the wound had already vanished.

’To draw out the poison completely,’ Ji Qingwu mused, ’it’ll need to be applied for the rest of the night.’

From outside the tent, Li Yuzong announced, "The water is ready."

Ji Qingwu said, "Bring it in."

Li Yuzong led his men in with the hot water, bustled about in the washroom for a moment, then came out beaming. "Holy Emperor, everything is prepared. This old servant will take his leave."

"Wait, Eunuch Li," Ji Qingwu said.

Eunuch Li said, "Is there anything else, Miss Ji? Please, tell me."

Ji Qingwu looked at him and said, "His Majesty’s ankle can’t get wet right now. Eunuch Li, you should stay and attend to him."

The moment she spoke, two gazes—one from in front of her and one from behind—zeroed in on Ji Qingwu.

The one in front was, of course, from Eunuch Li. His eyes first met those of his Holy Emperor, and several new worry lines creased his forehead.

He said, "Miss Ji, you are making things difficult for this old servant."

Ji Qingwu asked, "Don’t you usually attend to His Majesty personally, Eunuch Li? Why would it be difficult?"

Eunuch Li’s eyes darted about as he said, "This old servant has rheumatism in his knees. The cold air here in the Northern Border has caused it to flare up. I’m afraid I won’t be able to serve the Holy Emperor."

Zhao Mingyan said lightly, "No matter."

Ji Qingwu’s gaze shifted to his legs. She asked doubtfully, "But this morning, weren’t you chasing the little wolf around, Eunuch Li...?"

The person behind Ji Qingwu seemed to stir, and Eunuch Li immediately said, "Miss Ji, the little wolf still hasn’t been fed! This old servant will take his leave now."

Watching him dash out of the tent like a gust of wind, Ji Qingwu took a breath and turned her eyes to the Emperor.

"Your Majesty, could you possibly..."

Before she could finish, Zhao Mingyan said, "I cannot wash myself."

Ji Qingwu sighed, then tried again. "Fine. Then could Your Majesty please..."

Zhao Mingyan was even quicker to respond. "I cannot walk by myself."

’Just a moment ago he was standing perfectly steady at the camp gate, and now he can’t even walk?’

’Ji Qingwu knew he was putting on an act, but who could blame her for indulging him? That red lotus had bloomed straight into her heart, after all.’