Hearing the word “Empress,” Lin Ting immediately pulled back the curtain.
“The Empress sent you to find me?”
“Madam Lin, the Empress instructed me before she passed to deliver this to you.”
The woman chose a quiet, narrow alley to intercept the carriage; there were few people around.
She presented the item.
Lin Ting didn’t accept it casually, carefully inspecting it.
“What is this?”
The woman answered earnestly, “I don’t know either. The Empress only said it must be given to you.”
In the Great Yan, there was a custom of Grand Funeral Rites.
When the Empress died, her close palace maids had to be buried with her, but the Empress had specially pardoned this maid to leave the palace and return home.
Lin Ting eventually accepted the item, wrapped in several layers of silk.
Opening it revealed a set of silver needles, unusually shaped and sized, along with a letter.
She ignored the needles and read the letter first.
The letter detailed a method for restoring Medicine Men to normal people.
The Empress had found it before her death but hadn’t dared to give it to Lin Ting on the day she entered the palace, fearing Emperor Jiade would notice.
So she entrusted a trusted maid to deliver it after her death.
Lin Ting read the letter quickly, overwhelmed with emotion, grabbing Duan Ling’s hand and stifling the urge to scream.
“Look at this!”
She hadn’t hidden the letter from Duan Ling; he had already seen it.
“I’ve seen it.”
If the carriage weren’t so low, Lin Ting might have jumped up, more excited than Duan Ling, as if she herself could restore a Medicine Man to a normal person.
Duan Ling looked at the vibrant Lin Ting before him and instinctively grasped the hem of her skirt.
Fearing she might lose the letter, Lin Ting hurried to memorize its contents.
She insisted Duan Ling memorize it with her to avoid mistakes or omissions.
With her excellent memory, she learned it quickly but kept repeating it until they reached the Duan family estate.
Lin Ting strode into the mansion.
“Should we tell Mother now?”
“Better to wait for another day.”
Her excitement had mostly faded, and she calmed down.
“Alright. It’s up to you. Another day, then. Let’s go back.”
On the way back, they passed a large tree hung with Prayer Ribbons.
Duan Ling stopped to look.
Lin Ting walked a few steps ahead, then noticed he wasn’t following and returned to stand beside him.
“Do you want to take down all these Prayer Ribbons?”
The red ribbons flashed in Duan Ling’s eyes.
“No. A few days ago, I wanted to find the Prayer Ribbon you wrote, but I couldn’t find it anywhere.”
At the mention, Lin Ting recalled the night after the rain when Duan Ling ran out searching for the ribbon.
She climbed the tree immediately and found her ribbon. “Here.”
Duan Ling smoothed out the ribbon.
“You found it right away, but I looked for a long time that night and couldn’t find it.”
“Finding it now is the same.”
Duan Ling read the words on the ribbon and was slightly stunned.
“You wrote my name?”
It read: “May Duan Ling, Duan Ziyu have their wishes fulfilled.”
“Have their wishes fulfilled,” he repeated silently.
Lin Ting touched her nose.
“Why can’t I write your name? I once wrote a Prayer Ribbon for Li Jingqiu when we went to the temple. This time, I gave you the chance.”
“Why did you write me?”
“Because I wanted to.” She changed the subject.
“It’s cold outside; let’s go back.”
On a cold day, a hot bath was the most comforting thing.
Lin Ting immediately asked for a bath upon returning to the room.
Halfway through bathing, Duan Ling slid up behind her like a serpent, kissing her—his lips moving from her neck, earlobe, and finally to her mouth.
Their breaths tangled in the kiss, unwilling to part.
Duan Ling used this to confirm she was still breathing, that she wouldn’t suddenly stop.
The handkerchief Lin Ting held slipped into the bathwater with a splash.
Water splashed onto Duan Ling’s white inner garment, soaking it, with a few droplets hitting his eyes and sliding down his lashes, then landing on Lin Ting’s collarbone, burning so hot her fingers trembled involuntarily, clutching the tub.
Duan Ling turned his head slightly and gently bit her flushed cheek, then returned to her lips, his tongue flicking like a red snake’s forked tongue.
He released his hand into the bathwater.
Ripples spread as Duan Ling slowly curled a finger.
Lin Ting bit his lip, drawing blood.
He groaned softly.
Listening to Duan Ling’s breath, Lin Ting tugged hard on him.
Duan Ling was pulled into the tub with her, water spilling over.
They sat facing each other.
The kiss was broken briefly, but Duan Ling cupped her face and kissed her again.
No one knew how long it lasted. His white inner garment and trousers, thrown out by Lin Ting, were soaked.
Lin Ting’s back rested against the tub’s side, pressed against Duan Ling.
She raised her head and kissed his jaw.
Duan Ling lifted his neck, and Lin Ting traced his rolling Adam’s apple.
Just a light touch made the corner of his eyes flush pink, moistening slightly, almost losing control.
Her hand moved to his shoulder.
Duan Ling turned Lin Ting around so her back was against him and her front pressed against the tub.
He kissed her from behind again, brushing aside her dripping hair, planting countless kisses on her nape.
Lin Ting’s hands pressed on the tub’s edge, feeling his kisses.
The bathwater covered their elbows, sometimes brushing the skin just above Lin Ting’s legs, making her shift her kneeling posture.
Warm water flowed down her back like a stream, sinking below, making her shoulders lift slightly.
Duan Ling kissed her shoulder.
The bath cooled quickly, so he lifted Lin Ting out, dried her, then went to the bed, pulling the covers over her before slipping in himself and kissing down her collarbone.
An hour and a half later, Lin Ting was asleep.
Duan Ling lay awake, staring at the ceiling with his hand resting on her heart.
Her heartbeat rose and fell, and his hand moved with it.
Duan Ling slowly closed his eyes.
Lin Ting felt uncomfortable with his hand pressing on her heart and swatted it away.
Duan Ling opened his eyes, but before he could react, Lin Ting crawled into his arms and wrapped her arms around him.
***
As Jin Anazi said, the Shian Marquis, together with Xie Qinghe and others, led troops to Jingcheng within a month, advancing fiercely.
Everyone in the city was on edge.
Since the day the enemy besieged the city, Lin Ting rarely went out—either chatting with Li Jingqiu and Duan Xinning or tinkering with clay figures in her courtyard, molding several small versions of Duan Ling.
Emperor Jiade frequently summoned Duan Father, and occasionally Duan Ling, signaling that if they remained loyal and helped the Crown Prince defend Jingcheng, he would reveal the method to restore Medicine Men to normal people; otherwise, it would be buried with the coffin.
Every time Duan Ling returned from the Palace, Lin Ting would lift his sleeve to check for self-inflicted wounds or bloodletting for the emperor.
Today was no different.
As soon as Duan Ling came back, Lin Ting immediately pulled back his wrist guard.
Tao Zhu, unaware of the situation, saw Lin Ting eagerly tugging at Duan Ling’s clothes and thought they were about to do something inappropriate.
She quickly led the other servants out and closed the door behind them.
Lin Ting finished checking and breathed a sigh of relief.
There were no new scars on Duan Ling’s wrist, only occasional pinch marks—red and sometimes bruised spots caused by her, scattered over his skin like abuse marks.
But Duan Ling pulled down his sleeve without comment.
He still liked the marks she left on him—whether intentional or accidental, Duan Ling cherished them.
Lin Ting, satisfied there were no wounds, didn’t look further—unaware of the pinch marks that would emerge later.
“Let’s have dinner at Mother’s tonight, and celebrate something.”
Duan Ling removed his official hat and took off his somewhat heavy flying fish robe.
“Celebrate what?”
Lin Ting rummaged through the wardrobe and found his regular clothes.
“Celebrate that Mother finally got the divorce. I don’t know what Mother used, but Third Master Lin obediently signed the divorce papers this time.”
He hesitated before taking them.
“Why not wear the two sets I left outside?”
Leaning against the wardrobe door, Lin Ting glanced at the clothes he mentioned.
“You always wear those two sets. Try something new.”
Duan Ling smiled faintly and said, “No need. One of those two sets is fine.”
Lin Ting opened the regular clothes to him.
“Really won’t try? I had the tailor make this for you; it was just finished and delivered yesterday.”
As soon as she finished speaking, the clothes dropped into Duan Ling’s hands.
He casually asked, “How much silver did this cost?”
Tailor-made clothes were far more expensive than ready-made.
She waved her hand and said, “Don’t ask. Asking hurts.”
Then she ate an apple.
Otherwise…
She swore this was the last time she would buy clothes for Duan Ling.
Really the last time, no next time, absolutely no next time.
She watched Duan Ling change, grabbed an apple, and bit hard into it, chewing a few times before swallowing.