Reborn into the palace, she seduces the emperor's heart, driving the chief minister to madness!

Chapter 139 Gentle Breeze and Bright Moon Shining Together

They remained silent, with only the gentle breeze and bright moon shining upon them.

There weren't many rooms in the Liu family's courtyard, so Chu Qingyin and Lu Zhiheng had to squeeze into their son's small room.

It was alright when Lu Zhiheng was bedridden and unable to move for the past two days, but now that his injuries have almost healed, it feels a bit awkward for the two of them to share a room again.

Chu Qingyin spread the blanket on the floor, and Lu Zhiheng watched her bending over and busy herself. His brows relaxed, and he unconsciously smiled a little.

"You can sleep on the bed tonight." His injuries have healed considerably now, and he can't let a woman sleep on the floor anymore.

"Your injury hasn't healed yet, you should sleep in the bed."

Chu Qingyin didn't hesitate at all. She continued to tuck the blanket in without turning her head: "Anyway, I've already slept for several nights, so one more night won't make a difference."

Moonlight streamed through the window and fell on her face, revealing her gentle yet somewhat stubborn expression.

Lu Zhiheng stood up and slowly walked towards her. "The ground is cold. Your body is already weak. If you catch a disease because of this, wouldn't that just add to the trouble?"

The man's deep voice echoed softly in the quiet room, carrying an unquestionable tone.

As Chu Qingyin saw him approaching, she subconsciously looked up.

In an instant, their eyes met in mid-air, and the atmosphere suddenly became somewhat subtle.

After a long while, it was Lu Zhiheng who broke the strange silence first.

He turned his head, coughed lightly, and then reached out to grab Chu Qingyin's arm, pulling her up.

Chu Qingyin's brow twitched suddenly, and she instinctively tried to break free, but the man's grip was too strong, and she couldn't move for a moment.

"Stop arguing, listen to me, go to bed."

Chu Qingyin, "..."

Why is this man suddenly being so domineering and unreasonable?

While she was inwardly complaining, she heard him say in a serious tone, "If His Majesty knew that I made his beloved concubine sleep on the floor, who knows how he would make things difficult for me in the future."

Chu Qingyin's lips twitched. "Do you really want him to know that we live under the same roof?"

This rhetorical question left Lu Zhiheng speechless.

Seeing his speechless expression, Chu Qingyin felt inexplicably pleased, but she didn't argue with him about this trivial matter. She pushed away his hand that was grabbing her arm and walked to the bedside to sit down.

"Since Lord Lu wants to experience what it's like to sleep on the floor, then I won't stand on ceremony with you."

After saying that, she walked to the bedside.

Seeing that she was about to sleep in the bed, Lu Zhiheng also turned away and lay down on the floor, with his back to her.

In the stillness of the night, the lamps and candles were extinguished.

Chu Qingyin lay on the bed, sometimes looking at the tattered mosquito net above her head, sometimes turning her face to look at the figure curled up in the corner, a complex emotion welling up in her heart.

The man who once filled her with hatred is now showing her unexpected care in this difficult situation, leaving her somewhat at a loss.

The moonlight streaming through the window shone on him, outlining his slender yet resolute profile.

Chu Qingyin's gaze lingered on him for a long time without her even realizing when she closed her eyes and fell asleep.

In the middle of the night, all was quiet.

Lu Zhiheng, who was lying on the ground, suddenly opened his eyes. His dark, narrow eyes looked particularly bright under the dim oil lamp.

After confirming that Chu Qingyin was asleep, he quietly got up and left the courtyard.

Soon, a lean man dressed in black appeared in front of him.

"master."

The newcomer knelt on one knee before him; it was Shen Ran, the current head of Qin Lou: "Your subordinate is late, please punish me, Master."

"It's alright, you've arrived fast enough." Lu Zhiheng narrowed his eyes slightly. In fact, Shen Ran arrived much faster than he had expected.

"Tell me, what happened outside?" To avoid being discovered, the two left the courtyard and questioned each other in a grove of trees.

"The Emperor dispatched a hundred guards to search for you and Consort Qiao, but due to the misleading advice of his subordinates, they have gone in another direction and cannot find you here yet."

After saying that, Shen Ran paused again and continued, "On the way here, I also dealt with two groups of assassins who were looking for the whereabouts of the master, and found palace tokens on them. It is likely that they were sent by Empress Wang to assassinate Consort Qiao."

"Well, I see."

Lu Zhiheng nodded, having gained a general understanding of the changes outside. After pondering for a moment, he asked, "Do you have any clues about who sent those assassins at the hunting grounds earlier?"

"No clues have been found. The few surviving assassins have all been detained by the emperor. I suspect that the Wang family is behind this."

"By the way, the Emperor had previously planned to personally go down the cliff to find Consort Qiao, but was stopped by that eunuch Chen Zhongliang. It seems that he had some genuine feelings for Consort Qiao."

Shen Ran thought for a moment and brought up the previous matter again: "Master, if this Consort Qiao can be used by us, it will definitely be twice as effective with half the effort."

Lu Zhiheng frowned, revealing a cold and stern expression. "I've said it before, this matter should not be mentioned again."

"Your subordinate knows his mistake!" Upon hearing this, Shen Ran immediately lowered his head to admit his mistake, though he was somewhat surprised.

The master was so concerned about this Consort Qiao that he didn't want her to be involved in these troubles at all.

It seems that Ling Xiao's guess was indeed correct.

After a moment of silence, Lu Zhiheng raised his head, looked at the distant, hazy mountains, and slowly said, "The situation is complicated now, and various forces are eager to make their moves. I can no longer easily drag her into it."

Perhaps because of Consort Chu's suicide, he couldn't help but worry that Qiao Qingyin would also fall deeply in love with Pei Yuanling and end up with the same fate as Chu Qingyin.

Shen Ran's heart skipped a beat, as if he understood something, but he didn't dare to ask any more questions, and only replied in a low voice, "Yes, Master. So what should we do next?"

Lu Zhiheng withdrew his gaze, his eyes regaining their usual coldness. "Continue to keep an eye on Pei Yuanling's movements. Make sure to find out the origins of those assassins. Don't overlook any clues."

"Understood."

After accepting the order, Shen Ran looked at his master with concern and asked, "Your injuries have not yet healed, and it is not advisable to stay here for long. Should we arrange a safer and more comfortable hiding place?"

Lu Zhiheng shook his head. "There's no need for now. This place is relatively secluded, and the Liu family hunters are quite reliable. Moving here rashly would only make it easier to expose our whereabouts."

"Then you must be extra careful, and give me instructions whenever needed."

Seeing Lu Zhiheng nod in acknowledgment, Shen Ran quickly disappeared into the night.

When Lu Zhiheng returned to the room, Chu Qingyin was still fast asleep. The moonlight shone on her face, like a tranquil and beautiful painting.

Lu Zhiheng tiptoed back to his makeshift bed and lay down, staring at the ceiling, but couldn't fall asleep for a long time.

For some reason, he actually hoped that Shen Ran hadn't been able to find them, so that these days could continue a little longer.

The next morning, when Chu Qingyin woke up, she was the only one left in the room. The mattress on the floor had been tidied up and neatly piled in the corner.

She slept soundly through the night without any dreams, a rare and wonderful sleep. She stretched and went outside, only to find that the sun was already high in the sky.

Sister-in-law Amei was still in the yard tidying up the herbs she had gathered from the mountains, as well as the rabbit skin from yesterday.

These things can be sold for a good amount of copper coins at the town market.

"Yinyin, you're awake! The food's in the pot, go eat it yourself!"

Upon hearing this, Chu Qingyin didn't stand on ceremony with her. She immediately went into the small kitchen, took out two white steamed buns from the pot, and squatted under the eaves to slowly nibble on them.

"Sister-in-law Amei, has Brother Liu gone into the mountains again? Where is Young Master Lu?" She had just gotten up and looked around, but hadn't seen Lu Zhiheng, so she couldn't help but be curious.

"Yes, Young Master Lu insisted on going along, and the master couldn't dissuade him, so he let him go into the mountains with him."

As Amei said this, there was still some worry on her face, "Going into the mountains is dangerous, Young Master Lu, please be careful not to have any mishaps."

"Don't worry, Sister-in-law Mei. He has some martial arts skills, so nothing will happen to him."

Chu Qingyin offered words of comfort, though she herself was also somewhat worried.

The man's injuries hadn't fully healed yet; what could he possibly want by doing this? It's utterly baffling.