âPrince Mu is out of danger and in stable condition now. Heâll wake up tomorrow morning!â In spite of his mixed feelings, Lingxiao examined Nangong Du carefully before telling Zixiu the diagnosis.
However, Zixiu wasnât in the mood to care about Nangong Du at this moment. Looking at Lingxiao guiltily from behind, he wanted to apologize to him, but didnât know what to say. With a worried look, he clenched and loosened his fists repeatedly, biting his lip.
After quite a while, Lingxiao turned around. Though the depressed look had faded away, there was no smile on his face. Seeing the uneasy look on Zixiuâs face, Lingxiao felt a twinge in his heart, but he remained silent.
Though the two of them looked at each other from time to time, they tried to avoid making eye contact. Now they seemed to have totally forgotten that Yueying was still around with a serious look as if he were transparent.
âEh-hem!â Yueying raised his brows and coughed slightly. âPhysician Ling, I appreciate you very much for your hard work!â With that, he gestured Lingxiao to leave.
Only then did Lingxiao remember that Nangong Duâs personal guard was still here. Casting a glance at this âtransparentâ man, he restrained his rolling emotions and walked past Zixiu with his head lowered.
With the fading away of the unique herbal fragrance, Zixiu felt his heart sink. âGosh! Lingxiao is really upset with me!â
âPrince Mu is still very weak, so youâd better not to disturb his rest!â When he arrived at the door, Lingxiao suddenly stopped and reminded gruffly. Actually, he was hinting the âprincessâ to go back to âherâ own place to rest at this late hour. âHumph! Nangong Du, you asshole, donât expect Xiuxiu to spend the night with you!â
âDarlingâ¦â Unfortunately, the patient in bed suddenly let out a faint cry at this very moment.
Zixiu froze on the spot, holding his breath while Lingxiao turned livid with anger. âNangong Du, if I knew you would wake up so soon, I would have stuck a needle in the acupoint that would make you drowsy!â Lingxiao thought resentfully.
âYour Highness!â Yueying reacted quickly and strode to the bed. However, with his eyes closed, Nangong Du blurted out a string of inexplicable syllables in a trembling voice. It turned out that what they heard was just this princeâs dream talking.
Zixiu breathed a sigh of relief but on the contrary, Lingxiao grew even angrier. âWas Nangong Du calling Xiuxiu? So he saw Xiuxiu even in his dream?â
Burning with anger, Lingxiao was seized with an impulse to beat Nangong Du up. However, as he could do nothing for the moment, he turned to leave without a word.
It made Zixiuâs heart wrenching for no reason. In a panic, he strode out following behind him, disregarding Yueyingâs suspicious look. At this point, Nangong Duâs voice rang again, âDonât leave meâ¦â
Zixiu hesitated for a few seconds before he ran out without looking back.
âLingxiao, wait!â He didnât call Lingxiao by the name until he reached the main hall and saw that nobody else was around.
âDonât bother! Itâs late at night, so youâd better go back to rest.â Though Lingxiao was gentle and calm when he spoke, he didnât stop striding away, so it was obvious that he was still mad at Zixiu.
Zixiu finally caught up with him and managed to grab a corner of his clothes. âWait a minute!â he said, gasping.
Caught off guard, Lingxiao went stiff the moment Zixiu touched him as if he had just been struck by lightning. He stopped short and grabbed Zixiu by the waist when the latter was about to bump against him because of inertia, but next, he pushed Zixiu half a meter away as if he were a hot potato. With a flicker of melancholy in his eyes, he asked at a fast pace, clenching his teeth, âZixiu, do you like Nangong Du? I want you to tell me the truth.â
âHuh?â Zixiu was stunned by this abrupt question. He had been thinking about how to apologize to Lingxiao for his misunderstanding and had totally forgotten that Lingxiao had a crush on him. Moreover, he hadnât realized that Lingxiao was green with envy in the beginning. âHeavens! Seems I really have a certain charisma that appeals to men!â
From Zixiuâs silence, Lingxiao seemed to have known the answer. âI see!â he said in a low voice.
âWhat do you mean by âI seeâ? Are you thinking that I have feelings for Nangong Du? Can you just stop making wild guesses? I didnât allow you to⦠âapproachâ him only because I misunderstood you! My apologies!â
Zixiu apologized sincerely after his helpless complaint, but Lingxiao only focused on the first half of what he said.
âXiuxiu, are you serious that you have no feelings for Nangong Du?â Overwhelmed with joy, he reached out and was about to pull Zixiu into his arms.
Thankfully, Zixiu had figured out what he was going to do, so he took a step backward while answering with a resolute look, âOf course Iâm serious!â
âSure enough, Physician Yan is jealous! Itâs so annoying! How come I feel like Iâm a faithless guy lingering between two women?â He sighed inwardly.
Now that his resentment had melted away, Lingxiao was in high spirits. âXiuxiu, let me escort you back to your place,â He looked at Zixiu affectionately and said without giving it much thought.
Shivering at his words, Zixiu immediately turned him down.
âI donât think thatâs necessaryâ¦â Zixiu was clear that the consequences could be serious if they were found out to be together. âYou must be tired after a long day. Go to bed early! Bye-bye!â
âWhat?â When Lingxiao was wondering the meaning of the last two words of his speech, Zixiu had run away in haste.