For a moment, the entire place fell silent. Everyone looked at Xue Yan, but no one spoke.
Shen Liufeng was also so frightened by his appearance that he froze, unable to say a word.
Xue Yan was merely looking at him in silence, yet Shen Liufeng felt as though there were a crazed beast violently throwing its body against the iron cage imprisoning it. It seemed not to feel pain at all, smashing its flesh until it was bloody and mangled, while the iron chains clanged and rattled from the impact.
As though, in the very next moment, it would break out of the cage and pounce on him, biting through his throat.
Xue Yan looked at them, his lips pressed together in silence.
Then, he suddenly turned around and strode out.
Prefect Shen froze for a moment, immediately realizing what Xue Yan intended to do.
“Quick, go stop His Highness!” he hurriedly ordered the officials around him.
Having Jun Huailang, a precious heir born to wealth and honor, contract the epidemic was already an extremely serious matter. If Prince Guangling became infected as well, they could have a hundred heads between them and it still would not be enough for the Emperor to cut off.
The officials hurried after him.
But the moment Xue Yan stepped outside, he went straight to his horse. He did not care in the slightest how difficult it was to navigate the winding Jiangnan gardens, with their scenery changing at every step. He raised his whip and charged away.
He disappeared from sight almost immediately.
The others had no choice but to chase him all the way to the entrance of Jun Huailang’s courtyard.
But by the time they arrived, the courtyard was already surrounded by Embroidered Uniform Guards. The moment several of them tried to enter, gleaming Xiuchun sabers were immediately leveled across their chests.
“His Highness has given orders. No one is permitted to enter,” one of the Embroidered Uniform Guards said expressionlessly. “Please return.”
Naturally, the officials did not dare force their way past the Embroidered Uniform Guards’ blades. They could only stop and helplessly crane their necks to look into the courtyard.
But the courtyard was utterly tranquil. Only the bamboo rustled softly, and water murmured nearby, while Jun Huailang’s residence stood quietly within.
The courtyard was completely empty.
There was not a single person in sight.
——
Jun Huailang felt that his illness must have caused him to hallucinate.
Although he had been clinging to consciousness by drinking fever-reducing medicine every day, his mental state was getting worse by the day. This morning, he had barely managed to drink his medicine and eat a couple of bites of food. He had then forced himself to stay awake long enough to listen to the officials’ report, laboriously organize his thoughts, and give them several suggestions for adjusting the order within the city.
After that, he had fallen into a deep sleep.
It had been like this since the second day.
Every day, he could barely force himself to finish his medicine. He could only manage a few bites of food, and once he had taken care of the important matters, he would fall into a dazed sleep that lasted the entire day.
Now, after forcing himself to finish his medicine, he lay on the bed and was about to drift back to sleep.
But just then, he heard footsteps.
Jun Huailang struggled to open his eyes.
Who would come looking for him at a time like this? What could possibly be so urgent?
He secretly pinched himself, forcing himself to wake up a little. Then he raised a hand and grabbed the bed curtain, intending to use it to help himself sit up.
But the footsteps did not stop outside the screen.
The person did not stop at all. He strode around the screen and walked directly into the room.
Jun Huailang frowned. Coughing hoarsely, he said, “Didn’t I say no one was allowed to come in? Why are you still treating my words like they’re nothing but wind…”
But before he could finish speaking, he fell into a hard embrace.
The man pulled him into his arms in one swift motion, practically dragging his entire body up from the bed.
For the first time, Jun Huailang belatedly realized just how hot his own body was.
The man pressed down on the back of his head, pushing his face into the crook of his neck. Jun Huailang felt his forehead and cheeks touch a patch of skin radiating a chilling coolness, like a piece of red-hot iron suddenly plunged into water.
“Who are you still trying to protect?” The man gritted his teeth, his voice frighteningly hoarse. Every word seemed to be forced out through clenched teeth. “If anything happens to you, not a single one of them will live. Do you hear me, Jun Huailang?”
Jun Huailang heard clearly.
It was Xue Yan’s voice.
In that instant, the strength and rationality he had desperately held together these past few days almost collapsed completely.
A sick person’s emotions were naturally more fragile. His nose stung, and tears immediately welled up.
He was afraid of seeing this person, yet in the midst of his confusion, he could not stop himself from thinking about him.
And now, this person had come.
For a moment, Jun Huailang could no longer control himself. He raised his arms, wanting to embrace him.
But just as his palm touched the cool fabric of Xue Yan’s shoulder, still damp with the moisture of the morning dew, he suddenly regained his senses.
His attempt to embrace him turned into an effort to push him away.
“What are you doing here!” Jun Huailang pushed against him while coughing harshly. “This epidemic is contagious!”
“You think I’m afraid of that?” Xue Yan ground out through clenched teeth.
Jun Huailang was already sick, and there was practically no strength left in his hands. Xue Yan did not show him the slightest courtesy either. In just a few movements, he subdued his resistance and tightly trapped his arms against his own chest, leaving him unable to move.
Jun Huailang’s eyes reddened.
“…Stay away from me,” he said hoarsely, his throat already thick with emotion.
After being sick for several days, even in his muddled state he understood that whether this illness could be cured was mostly a matter of fate.
The only thing he could do was his best to help Jinling control the spread of the epidemic and reduce the number of people who became infected.
As for whether he could be cured, whether he would survive… Jun Huailang had already prepared himself.
In his previous life, his closest family members had eventually all disappeared, leaving only him behind. If he could now exchange his life for the safety of his entire family, then perhaps it would be worth it.
But being prepared for it himself was one thing.
Facing Xue Yan was another.
Xue Yan’s eyes reddened as well, but he did not listen to him in the slightest.
“There is no such possibility.” He held Jun Huailang tightly, saying each word slowly and fiercely.
“Stop fooling around…” Jun Huailang struggled desperately in his arms a few times, but could not move even an inch.
Anxious tears gathered in Jun Huailang’s eyes, and they were about to spill over.
“I’m already infected. Do you still want to die with me?”
Redness spread through Xue Yan’s eyes.
Jun Huailang realized he had said the wrong thing the moment the words left his mouth.
But immediately afterward, everything spun.
Xue Yan wrapped an arm around him and forcefully pressed him down onto the bed.
The next moment, a kiss filled with deeply buried, blazing, and frenzied emotion crashed onto Jun Huailang’s lips.
Jun Huailang desperately tried to turn away, but Xue Yan stubbornly refused to let him have his way. Clumsy yet fierce, he entangled their lips and tongues, insisting on making their breaths mingle tightly together until there was no distinction between them.
Jun Huailang gradually could no longer catch his breath, and the strength drained from his body.
His vision was hazy, but he could still meet Xue Yan’s fixed gaze.
Those amber eyes were also veiled with moisture, carrying a hint of obsession and a readiness to face death.
Jun Huailang understood.
Xue Yan was clearly afraid—afraid that something might happen to him.
Yet he stubbornly insisted on staking his own life alongside his.
Tears slid from the corners of Jun Huailang’s eyes.
Only after a long while did Xue Yan finally stop, breathing heavily, though he remained pressed against Jun Huailang’s lips. In a low voice, he warned him:
“Never let me hear you say that word again,” he said. “Behave and wait until you recover. Let me save you.”
Jun Huailang looked at him and asked through a choked voice, “Xue Yan, you’re not afraid of death, are you?”
Xue Yan bit down hard on his lips.
“Afraid of that shit?” he said.
Jun Huailang sniffed softly.
He thought to himself, what was he still struggling with?
He had clung stubbornly to the book he had seen in his previous life, desperately restraining himself and forcing himself not to respond to Xue Yan’s feelings.
But the person who had experienced his previous life was him.
And the person who had fallen helplessly in love with Xue Yan in this life was also him.
What wrong had Xue Yan of this life ever done?
He thought that even if it violated his conscience, even if he had to descend into the Eighteenth Level of Hell after death, then the Heavenly Dao could be the one to punish him.
He would accept it.
Jun Huailang looked at Xue Yan, and more tears fell.
“I’m not afraid either.” He raised his hand and placed it against Xue Yan’s cheek.
Xue Yan froze, immediately understanding what he meant.
The iron chains binding the ferocious beast snapped with a clang.
There was nothing left that could restrain the surging feelings Xue Yan had hidden deep within his heart.
Xue Yan stared fixedly at him, then bent down to kiss him again.
This time, Jun Huailang raised a hand and stopped him.
“If we get through this safely, then we’ll be together, Xue Yan.” His hand rested against Xue Yan’s lips. “All right?”
Xue Yan could only stare at him, completely unable to react.
But Jun Huailang had already seen the answer.
“But right now, you have to go outside,” he said. “Otherwise, I’ll take back what I just said.”
——
Xue Yan acted quickly.
Before noon that very day, he had arranged for all several dozen physicians brought from Chang’an to settle in. He also sent them two patients so that they could study the illness and search for a cure.
Because Emperor Qingping knew that an epidemic had broken out in Jiangnan and was terrified that something might happen to his most favored son, he had practically summoned every Imperial Physician and famous doctor in Chang’an and sent them all to Jinling, along with carts loaded with medicinal herbs.
Immediately afterward, Xue Yan saddled his horse and galloped all the way to Prefect Shen’s residence.
When Prefect Shen saw him, he had not even had time to speak before Xue Yan asked, “Where is Shen Liufeng? Have him come out.”
Prefect Shen did not dare disobey and hurriedly sent someone to call Shen Liufeng out.
“The miracle physician you mentioned that day—is he still in Yangzhou?” Xue Yan asked.
Shen Liufeng, who had originally been confined to his home by Prefect Shen, hurriedly nodded again and again when he heard this.
Xue Yan glanced at him.
“Prepare a horse. Bring out the fastest horse in your residence,” he said. “I’ll go with you to find him.”
Shen Liufeng froze.
Then, overjoyed, he looked toward Prefect Shen.
This time, Prefect Shen did not dare stop him.
Shen Liufeng hurriedly went to saddle the horse. Xue Yan glanced at Prefect Shen, who looked as though he wanted to say something but could not, and said calmly, “Don’t worry. I’ll bring him back exactly as I take him out.”
Prefect Shen knew that Xue Yan had always kept his word.
Within fifteen minutes, Shen Liufeng came rushing over, leading his horse.
Xue Yan did not say anything more to Prefect Shen. He simply turned around and left with Shen Liufeng.
They were going into the mountains to find someone, so they traveled light and did not bring any unnecessary attendants.
Following behind Xue Yan, Shen Liufeng looked at his back, and for a moment, a feeling of admiration welled up inside him.
Although Prince Guangling was cold, taciturn, and rather fierce, he truly was the most loyal and righteous person there was.
Previously, when the mountain had collapsed, he had been the one to rescue Jun Huailang. This time, when Jun Huailang was in trouble and Shen Liufeng himself had been locked up at home, it was once again Prince Guangling who had come to save him.
In Shen Liufeng’s heart, he had already begun regarding this Prince Guangling as a true brother.
With this thought, he jogged a few steps forward. He raised his hand, intending to put it on Prince Guangling’s shoulder and say a few words of thanks.
But Xue Yan seemed to have eyes in the back of his head.
Just before Shen Liufeng could hang himself onto him, Xue Yan raised one hand and, with a single finger pressed against his shoulder socket, forcibly pushed him back several steps.
Then Xue Yan stopped, turned his head, and glanced at him indifferently.
“Stay away from me. Don’t come within five feet of me,” he said.
Just as Shen Liufeng looked at him in bewilderment, Xue Yan turned around and continued walking.
“I’ve been in close contact with a patient. I’m very dangerous.”