Zhou Huairang covered his ears with his hands. He couldn’t hear what the Young Prince and the Crown Prince were saying, but he could imagine some of it based on their expressions.

No one understood the Crown Prince better than him. For instance, he was all too familiar with the Crown Prince’s arrogant demeanor. When His Highness wore that expression, his voice was sure to be as cold as ice, and his words were either sarcastic or commanding.

The reason His Highness asked him to cover his ears this time was probably because he was going to scold the Young Prince harshly, and by not letting him listen, he was giving the Young Prince some face.

Then he looked at the Young Prince, who was at first stunned.

Zhou Huairang understood. After just narrowly escaping death, being harshly scolded would definitely leave the Young Prince bewildered.

But then, the Young Prince slowly… smiled? The Young Prince actually smiled?

Oh, I get that too. Sometimes when His Highness, frustrated with his shortcomings, would ask if he could be a little smarter, he’d just foolishly chuckle to make him laugh.

But he wouldn’t smile as handsomely as the Young Prince, that was for sure.

As Zhou Huairang’s thoughts wandered, he faintly felt a slight tremor under his feet. At first, he thought his legs had just fallen asleep, but the tremors grew stronger and stronger. Sand and dust from the ceiling started to fall continuously. The underground palace seemed to have been impacted by the explosion in the kitchen and was on the verge of collapsing.

Zhou Huairang’s dusty face turned deathly pale. He anxiously shouted, “Your Highness, the underground palace… I think it’s going to collapse!”

“Will shouting so loudly stop it from collapsing?” Zhao Mian calmly helped Wei Zhenfeng up. “Come help.”

Zhou Huairang quickly grabbed Wei Zhenfeng’s other arm. They held Wei Zhenfeng on either side and sprinted toward the entrance of the underground palace. The intense tremors chased them from behind, as if a rain of sand and rocks was pouring down.

Just as the collapse was about to catch up to them, they finally saw the main gate of the underground palace.

Zhou Huairang felt that if he was even a second too late, he might be buried under the yellow sand. He anxiously yelled, “It’s collapsing! Your Highness, it’s collapsing!”

A thin layer of sweat formed on Zhao Mian’s forehead. He and Zhou Huairang accelerated, sprinting with all their might while carrying Wei Zhenfeng.

Wei Zhenfeng was sandwiched between the two. “Wait a minute, you two.”

“There’s no time to wait!” Zhou Huairang said anxiously.

Wei Zhenfeng struggled to utter a sentence. “No, I’m saying… I feel like I could run faster if you weren’t holding me.”

Zhou Huairang couldn’t hear Wei Zhenfeng anymore. He was screaming with all his might, “Don’t worry, Young Prince! His Highness and I will get you out of here!”

There were only ten steps left to the gate of the underground palace. Would they make it in time?

Six steps, five steps…

At the last moment, Zhou Huairang couldn’t help but shout the countdown in his heart. “Three, two, one!”

As the “one” left his lips, his feet left the ground, and he face-planted out of the underground palace. He covered his ears, closed his eyes, and buried his face in the dirt. The huge sound couldn’t deafen his ears, and the flying sand and rocks couldn’t hit his vital points. He was prepared for the collapse of the underground palace.

However, the expected loud bang and flying debris never came. He waited a little longer, but still… nothing happened.

That’s not right. What’s going on?

After a long time, so long he could barely breathe, Zhou Huairang cautiously lifted his head.

He saw the Crown Prince and the Young Prince standing next to him, their faces expressionless.

“Your Highness?” Zhou Huairang looked up, his face full of concern. “Are you alright?”

Wei Zhenfeng, exhausted, was slumped over Zhao Mian’s upper body. He wanted to laugh but had no strength. “I feel like the three of us have been reading too many adventure novels. It’s not collapsing at all.”

Zhou Huairang was shocked. “It… it’s not collapsing?”

Zhao Mian rubbed his forehead. “See for yourself.”

He never thought he would be led astray by a kindhearted simpleton. But he couldn’t blame Zhou Huairang. In this circumstance, the underground palace was indeed unsafe, and getting out early was the right thing to do.

Zhou Huairang looked back, and the underground palace was standing perfectly intact. The shaking had stopped, and it looked incredibly solid. He couldn’t help but scratch his head. “This… this is really different from what’s in the stories.”

In all the novels he’d read with similar plots, the moment the heroes got to safety, the secret realm or labyrinth behind them would immediately collapse.

After all that commotion, the three of them were completely exhausted. Even Zhao Mian abandoned his Crown Prince-like demeanor and sat on the ground with the other two.

Wei Zhenfeng’s wound was still bleeding through the bandage. His face grew paler and paler, and he was so weak that he couldn’t even sit up straight. He leaned against Zhao Mian and said, “Can you manage on your own? I want to sleep for a bit.”

Zhao Mian told him not to worry, and Wei Zhenfeng closed his eyes with peace of mind.

Once the tense string in his body was released, the symptoms of excessive blood loss came rushing in. Before long, Wei Zhenfeng fell into a deep slumber. In his current state, it was impossible for him to cross the desert and return to the Beiyuan Army’s main camp.

After weighing the situation, Zhao Mian decided to return to the underground palace to find some medicine to stop the bleeding. They would make a new plan once Wei Zhenfeng’s condition improved.

Just then, Zhao Mian faintly heard voices, seemingly coming from above ground. Zhou Huairang heard them too and looked terrified. “Your Highness, this couldn’t be reinforcements from the Imperial City Division, could it?”

“Shut your mouth,” Zhao Mian said coldly.

If the people who had come this time were really reinforcements from the Imperial City Division, would he still be able to get out safely with the unconscious Wei Zhenfeng and Zhou Huairang?

In all the time he had been in the desert, Zhao Mian had never felt so uncertain. It wasn’t that he hadn’t been in life-or-death situations before. But whether it was in the Mount Nangong or in the sandstorm, or even the Imperial City Division crisis they had just experienced, Wei Zhenfeng had always stood by his side, fighting alongside him.

But now, it was just him and Zhou Huairang.

Zhao Mian looked down at Wei Zhenfeng. The young man’s head rested on his shoulder. He seemed to be completely unconscious. His two teardrop moles were hidden beneath his long eyelashes. His face was a mix of blood and pallor, and his clothes were in tatters, not a single spot clean.

Disheveled and broken, vulnerable and fragile, a stark contrast from Wei Zhenfeng’s usual carefree and uninhibited self.

Zhao Mian raised his hand and used his sleeve to wipe away the bloodstains from the corner of Wei Zhenfeng’s mouth.

What am I doubting? Of course, I can protect Wei Zhenfeng and Zhou Huairang.

He was the Crown Prince of Nanjing. His two fathers were the revered emperor and a powerful minister. As long as he wanted to, there was nothing he couldn’t do.

He could do whatever he wanted.

Just as Zhao Mian was desperately trying to encourage himself, the voices from above ground became clearer. A familiar feeling assailed his ears.

“My Lord—”

“Young Prince—”

“Your Highness!” Zhou Huairang’s voice was hoarse, so excited he sounded like a squawking duck, “It’s Old Shen and the others! They found us!”

The heavy stone in Zhao Mian’s heart instantly fell. He no longer bothered to give himself passionate words of encouragement and immediately said, “Why are you standing there like an idiot? Hurry up and tell them to come over.”

“Old Shen! Old Marquis!” Zhou Huairang ran wildly up the stone steps leading to the surface. “His Highness and I are here! Old Shen, wuwuwu…”

Zhao Mian and the others successfully reunited with Shen Buqi and his group. According to the Marquis Anyuan, after the sandstorm, they were all found by Wu Yuancheng one after another, but the three of them were still nowhere to be seen, and they had also lost two camels.

As their food and water were about to run out, no one dared to suggest giving up the search and returning the way they came. They had lost the most honorable Crown Prince and the young prince. If they couldn’t find them, even if they returned to the main camp unharmed, a certain death awaited them.

Shen Buqi was in an even worse state. He hadn’t closed his eyes for several days and nights, his mind focused only on finding the Crown Prince. If the Marquis Anyuan hadn’t talked him out of it, he would have searched for them sleeplessly without water or food.

Now that they saw the Crown Prince was safe, the Nanjing people were all smiling from ear to ear with joy. The Beiyuan party, however, could not smile. Yun Yong and Hua Ju took over the task of caring for their prince from Zhao Mian. The two girls’ eyes turned red with heartache when they saw that the Young Prince’s wound was so deep it went down to the bone.

Zhao Mian led everyone back into the underground palace. After investigation, only the area around the kitchen had collapsed. The other areas were completely intact. Among the people who came with them was a Beiyuan Army military doctor who found some relatively rare hemostatic herbs in the palace’s storeroom, which were perfect for Wei Zhenfeng’s use.

With Wei Zhenfeng unconscious, Zhao Mian naturally took charge of the situation. He ordered the Marquis Anyuan to lead people to the kitchen to clean up the aftermath. The report he received was that there were a total of twelve people from the Imperial City Division. Four were assassinated, seven died in the explosion, and only one was left severely wounded.

The severely wounded survivor was the teenage boy who had called Gu Shaodeng “Master.” Before the explosion, Gu Shaodeng had shielded him with his own body, taking the brunt of the blast.

Although the boy survived, he had lost an arm. When he was found, he was covered in his master’s blood and flesh. He was still clinging to one last breath and hadn’t closed his eyes. If he were left unattended, he would die within half a day.

The Marquis Anyuan asked, “Young Master, how do you wish to deal with this boy?”

“Kill him,” Zhao Mian said without hesitation. “Give him a quick end.”

Ji Chong said, “Lord Xiao, could you wait for the prince to wake up and let him decide? If we keep him alive, we might be able to get more clues about the remaining members of the Imperial City Division from him.”

Zhao Mian was unimpressed. “Gu Shaodeng is dead. The remaining members of the Imperial City Division can hardly achieve great things; with or without clues, your prince can exterminate them all. This person witnessed with his own eyes his master and companions die under Wei Zhenfeng’s scheme. His hatred for Wei Zhenfeng is imaginable. He has nothing left to lose. Don’t you understand the principle of ‘Don’t corner a desperate enemy’?”

Ji Chong was very embarrassed. “But… this is, after all, our Beiyuan’s own matter…”

In consideration of Wei Zhenfeng’s injury, Zhao Mian gave Beiyuan some face. “Fine. Do as you wish.”

After handling the matters of the Imperial City Division, Zhao Mian finally had time to check on Wei Zhenfeng.

The military doctor had changed Wei Zhenfeng’s clothes, cleaned his wound, applied medicinal powder, and re-bandaged it. Yun Yong and Hua Ju stood by Wei Zhenfeng’s bed, not leaving his side, wiping his hands and face clean.

Zhao Mian asked the two girls to leave first, then asked the military doctor alone: “Is the prince alright?

“The knife wound is not serious,” the military doctor said. “It’s just that the prince has lost a lot of blood. He is currently very weak, coupled with recent overexertion, irregular eating, and sleeping. He urgently needs a period of rest to regain his vitality.”

“How long is this period of time?” Zhao Mian asked.

The military doctor said, “At least ten days to half a month.”

Ten days to half a month… but tomorrow was the fourteenth of the twelfth month.

“I have a question,” Zhao Mian asked without blushing, “Does this injury affect… intimate relations?”

The military doctor, who had practiced medicine for many years, was knowledgeable and well-versed, and was not by Zhao Mian’s question. “It does not affect it. Wait until the prince’s injury improves a bit…”

Zhao Mian interrupted him. “We can’t wait. It has to be tomorrow night.”

The military doctor’s mouth fell open. He was completely dumbfounded.

The military doctor had been stationed in the desert for many years and was not very familiar with matters outside the desert; others would not casually mention the strange gu in the Young Prince’s body. He looked at the unconscious young prince and dared to give his advice. “Lord Xiao, forgive my bluntness, but must this… activity happen?”

Zhao Mian was silent for a moment. “Yes.”

Military doctor: “…”

Zhao Mian didn’t feel like explaining further, only saying, “It must happen. If it doesn’t, both I and the prince will die.”

The military doctor didn’t dare to ask more. He wiped his sweat and said, “If it must happen, remember not to be too vigorous or intense. It should be gentle and slow.”

That wasn’t difficult.

Zhao Mian nodded. “I’ll remember.”

The military doctor hesitated again and then said, “Also, in the prince’s current condition, it is probably not suitable to… uh, be the passive party.”

Zhao Mian’s face turned ugly, “Okay.”

With the careful nursing of Yun Yong and others, Wei Zhenfeng recovered quickly. But no matter how fast he recovered, he couldn’t return to his usual energetic self, moving as swift as the wind, full of energy, and able to hold a beauty in one hand and undo a belt with the other.

The next morning, Wei Zhenfeng woke up once, drank medicine, had some food, and after learning they had successfully reunited with the others, drowsily fell asleep again.

Yun Yong and Hua Ju were initially happy about their prince’s awakening. However, when they realized that the prince had slept from day until late at night, with no signs of waking up as the hour of midnight approached, they couldn’t stay put.

The military doctor didn’t know what the Young Prince had to do that night, but they did.

They tried to wake the prince, but no matter how hard they tried, he didn’t react. The military doctor also came to check on him. He said the same thing again: the prince was not seriously ill, and it was normal for him to be in a deep sleep.

Hua Ju was so anxious that her eyes welled up with tears. “If the prince doesn’t wake before midnight, there will be serious trouble!”

The military doctor thought for a moment. “How about I try to give the prince a few acupuncture needles?”

“Will that work?” Yun Yong asked.

The military doctor answered honestly. “It depends on the person.”

While they were all anxiously fussing in the outer hall, Zhao Mian walked in. Seeing them huddled together, he knew that Wei Zhenfeng hadn’t woken up yet.

Sure enough, as soon as Hua Ju saw him, she said anxiously, “The prince is still sleeping. Lord Xiao, what should we do?”

Zhao Mian forced himself to stay calm. “It’s fine. Leave it to me. You two should go back to your rooms and rest.”

Author’s note:

Mianmian (with a cold face): Yes, we absolutely must get into bed.