The next morning, I woke slowly in a pool of warmth.
What lingered at the tip of my nose was the familiar scent unique to Xiao Yuhuang. When I opened my eyes, the first thing that came into view was her sleeping face, close at hand.
When she slept, all the cold sharpness and imperial severity that usually clung to her brows had completely receded. Her long lashes lay still like butterfly wings, her nose was high and straight, her lips beautifully shaped, her features so soft it was almost unbelievable.
For a moment, I seemed to see again the little girl from long ago, the one who would look at him with shining eyes whenever no one was around.
Moved by some inexplicable impulse, I lifted my hand, wanting to smooth the faint crease between her brows—to erase that tension she could not fully let go of even in sleep.
Her lashes fluttered, and then she slowly opened her eyes. Those dark brown phoenix eyes still held a trace of waking haze at first. She did not move, simply letting my fingertips linger as she looked at me intently, her gaze filled with undisguised attachment and contentment.
"You're awake? Does anything still hurt?" Her voice was husky from sleep, unusually magnetic.
I shook my head, trying to withdraw my hand, but she gently caught it and rubbed her cheek against my palm.
Then she rose, and like the most practiced attendant, began to help me wash and dress. Her movements were meticulous and gentle, even more attentive than Chunyu's. As she combed my long hair, her fingers wove through it with such care, as if afraid to break even a single strand. Through the bronze mirror, I watched her focused expression, my heart a jumble of emotions. This tenderness down to the smallest detail—was it love, or was it atonement?
Xiao Yuhuang straightened up. The sleeve of her black robe brushed past the table, stirring a faint breeze. "I… I need to go to the prefectural office for a bit. Rest well. I'll be back shortly."
Qin Auntie came over as usual to check Su Yuzhi's pulse. Afterward, she nodded slightly. "The young master's pulse is noticeably calmer today. This Jiangnan residence is indeed quiet and secluded, far from the clamor of the capital and the oppression of the palace. Even the air carries the freshness of bamboo groves and the light elegance of lotus ponds. Perhaps with his spirits eased, and after days of quiet rest, the young master's body has finally relaxed a little. Though he is still sensitive to cold and easily fatigued, that bone-deep sense of chronic affliction seems to have lessened, if only by a fraction."
I felt it myself as well. But my body felt a bit sticky. "Auntie, I'd like to bathe."
Qin Auntie understood at once—it was likely from sweating the night before. "That's good. It will help dispel the cold. This old woman will prepare the medicinal bath."
The bathing room had been specially arranged, just east of the small tower. The underfloor heating made it wonderfully warm, cutting off the chill outside. In the large cypress-wood tub, hot water steamed with the faint fragrance of herbs—a warming, circulation-promoting prescription prepared by Qin Auntie. Chunyu and another attendant, Moyu, carefully tested the water temperature and helped me remove my cumbersome robes.
"Young master, we'll wait just outside," Chunyu reminded me uneasily.
"Mm. I want to soak by myself for a while." I sent them out. It was rare to have a moment that belonged entirely to me; I didn't want even my bath to be watched.
The door closed softly.
I slowly immersed myself in the warm water. The perfectly balanced heat enveloped my body at once, driving the chill from my bones, so comfortable that I couldn't help letting out a faint sigh. The water rose past my collarbones. I leaned back against the smooth tub wall, closed my eyes, and let the steam dampen my lashes and ease my frayed nerves.
I didn't know how much time passed before I vaguely heard Chunyu and Moyu outside lowering their voices in greeting. "Your Maj—"
Before the words could finish, the door to the bathing room was gently pushed open.
Startled, I opened my eyes and instinctively sank lower into the water, leaving only my head exposed as I looked toward the newcomer with a hint of panic.
It was Xiao Yuhuang.
She had clearly come in a hurry. Her hair was slightly loosened, and she wore only her usual black casual robe, cinched loosely at the waist. There had been obvious worry on her face at first—she had likely heard from the attendants that I had been soaking for a long time and feared the water had cooled, that I might catch a chill.
However, the moment she took in the scene in the tub, all her words and concern stuck in her throat.
Her gaze, as if drawn by invisible threads, locked onto me.
I could only curl up in the wooden tub, trapped beneath the heat of her eyes, with nowhere to hide.