Chapter 19: What Remedies Sorrow? Only Gossip.

"Certainly, my lord~" Qin Suwen whispered coquettishly after biting Fang Xu's earlobe, her voice gentle and alluring. Yet Fang Xu felt as though his entire body were charged with static electricity.

For reasons he could not explain, Fang Xu felt none of the joy or excitement one might have expected in such a moment. Instead, he simply gazed at Qin Suwen in his arms with a sense of strangeness.

Though he had only interacted with Qin Suwen for a single day, the memories of his body's former owner were still vivid. It was precisely because Qin Suwen's temperament was so resolute, almost boyish, that the previous Fang Xu had feared he was to be forced by a man and, in despair, had chosen to drown himself.

If that were the case, it was clear that Qin Suwen would never so easily submit to his authority. Could it be that his own domineering aura had unconsciously overwhelmed her? Fang Xu did not believe himself to possess such charisma, and looked at Qin Suwen with a complicated expression.

At that moment, Qin Suwen was breathing heavily in his embrace, her cheeks flushed even redder than before, making her appear all the more enticing. But rather than losing himself, Fang Xu grew all the more composed.

He realized something was amiss. Qin Suwen's gaze was not that of a woman overtaken by desire. Even though Fang Xu had never been in love, his work had often taken him to places of pleasure for business purposes—though he had never taken undue advantage. He knew well enough the look of longing in a woman's eyes, and what he saw now in Qin Suwen was not that.

Strangely, her gaze was familiar, as if he had seen it somewhere before.

Suddenly, Fang Xu recalled the way Qin Suwen had wiped her nose earlier. Alarmed, he pressed his forehead against hers—and immediately felt the burning heat radiating from her skin.

Combined with the look in Qin Suwen's eyes, the truth became clear: she had caught a chill and was running a fever.

The realization left Fang Xu unable to calm his nerves. He quickly slid one arm around Qin Suwen's waist and the other beneath her knees, lifting her up in his arms.

There was no time to notice the softness of her body. All that mattered was hurrying to the main hall and summoning the imperial physician.

"Someone! Help!" Fang Xu called out as he rushed toward the grand hall, while Qin Suwen lay dazed in his arms, her gaze lost upon the man carrying her.

She herself did not know what she felt—only that her heart beat so rapidly it was hard to breathe.

"Why?" she murmured, lips parched, looking up at Fang Xu’s anxious face.

"What do you mean, why?" he replied impatiently, glancing down at her. Without waiting for an answer, he shouted for help again. Not far off, a couple of palace maids and a young eunuch hurried toward them.

"Your Majesty, Your Ladyship, what has happened?" the maid and eunuch asked, their voices tinged with anxiety as they took in the strange posture of Fang Xu carrying Qin Suwen.

"Her Majesty has caught a chill and is feverish! Fetch the imperial physician immediately!" Fang Xu commanded. He did not know why he was so unsettled—he was not the one with the fever, yet he could not keep calm.

"Yes, at once!" the servants replied, nerves taut; after all, this was the Emperor himself. Should anything go wrong, their heads would be forfeit.

"Wait! You two, help Her Majesty back to her quarters!" Fang Xu called to the departing maids. They turned on their heels and hurried to his side.

"As you wish, Your Ladyship. May I ask where you are headed?" one maid inquired politely. Fang Xu merely smiled, saying nothing.

Yet as he handed Qin Suwen over to the maids, he found himself unable to move—Qin Suwen had gripped his sleeve without his noticing.

Fang Xu looked at her curiously, but when he saw the reluctance in her eyes, he froze, unresponsive to the maids’ calls.

"Your Ladyship? Are you all right?" they asked with concern, worried that Fang Xu himself might have fallen ill.

"Be good. I have something to tend to. Rest well for now," Fang Xu said softly, squeezing her cold little hand with bittersweet gentleness.

He had not expected any of this, but after hearing his words, Qin Suwen’s hand slowly released his sleeve, and Fang Xu quickly left the hall.

He seemed to be heading for the imperial kitchens. Since he had promised Qin Suwen, he intended to keep his word.

Rolling up his sleeves, he prepared to get to work.

Shortly after Fang Xu departed, the two maids finally came to their senses, hastily settling Qin Suwen onto the bed and anxiously awaiting the arrival of the imperial physician.

"What do you suppose the Emperor and Her Majesty were doing out so late at night?" one maid whispered, glancing at the door. In the palace, after all, gossip was the only antidote to the monotony of daily life.

"Are you mad? How can you gossip about the Emperor and Her Majesty?" the other maid hissed, alarmed. While they might gossip about others, no one dared speak of the imperial couple—not if they valued their lives.

"Have you noticed, though, that Her Majesty has seemed different since she was rescued from the well?" the first maid murmured, undeterred.

"You’re right! I’ve noticed it too. She used to have such a gentle air, but since the incident, she’s become much more like a man!" the second maid replied, clearly infected by her companion’s curiosity.

And so, the whispers of the palace continued into the night.