AUBTN -Chapter 24 Prince Ning’s Test

“Shut up.”

Lu Yan coldly spat out the two words, yet the pressure in his hands subtly eased just a fraction.

Yu Qing looked at the handsome face right beneath her eyes.

In that instant, the little drama queen in her heart forgot all past grudges:

【Tsk tsk tsk, is this what they call a rare bloom on an iron tree? The iceberg is melting? Lu Yan, that damn contradictory cuteness!】

Lu Yan’s hand, which had been about to tie the knot, abruptly froze.

For a moment, it felt as though a wave of heat surged straight up his neck to his forehead.

This commander of the Jinyiwei, who hadn’t flinched even amidst mountains of corpses and seas of blood, now had ears visibly reddening before anyone’s eyes.

He suddenly stood, awkwardly turning his back: “It’s all bandaged. Don’t get it wet these next few days.”

With that, he practically bolted out of the room, his retreating figure betraying a rare hint of panic.

“Ugh, why is he running?” Yu Qing muttered, scratching her head in frustration.

For the next half month, Shen Jue publicly claimed a relapse of his old injury and shut himself away from visitors.

Meanwhile, Su Hewan had suddenly transformed into the chief steward of the inner courtyard of the Eastern Bureau.

“Take away the bird’s nest—it’s just sugar water, what use is it? Bring fish porridge, deep-sea fish, light and low-oil!”

“Open the windows for ventilation. The wound needs oxygen. Don’t listen to those imperial doctors who cover it up—if pus forms, who will take responsibility?”

Su Hewan stood with her hands on her hips, directing a group of junior eunuchs running in circles to keep up with her orders.

Shen Jue leaned against the soft couch, holding a scroll, yet his gaze kept drifting, almost unconsciously, toward her busy figure.

In the past, anyone daring to boss him around like this would have been dragged out to feed the dogs.

Now, watching her chatter and hustle in front of him, he surprisingly felt… not bad at all.

Sometimes, he read while she ground ink.

He changed dressings while she handed him scissors.

No unnecessary words, only that subtle, unspoken understanding whenever their eyes met.

For once, they had developed a rare, flirtatious tacit understanding.

Su Hewan no longer saw him as that cruel, terrifying director of the bureau.

Sometimes, she would even tease: “Shen Jue, if you keep being picky, don’t blame me if your wound takes longer to heal.”

Shen Jue raised an eyebrow, a faint smile tugging at his lips, and actually obediently opened his mouth to drink.

However, this cozy rhythm didn’t last long before an uninvited guest arrived.

“Prince Ning has arrived—”

With a shrill announcement, the massive doors of the Eastern Bureau were thrown open.

Prince Ning’s face was flushed, and four attendants carrying trays followed briskly behind him.

“I heard Commander Shen’s old injury relapsed. I’m beside myself with worry!”

Prince Ning smiled like a cunning old fox, yet his eyes scanned Shen Jue’s body, searching for the slightest weakness.

Leaning half against the bed, Shen Jue’s face remained pale, but a cold glint flashed in his phoenix-like eyes: “Your Highness’ concern honors me. I’m but a humble servant; I won’t die.”

“Of course. The Commander is the Emperor’s right-hand man, after all.”

With a wave of his hand, Prince Ning’s attendants immediately brought over a steaming bowl of ginseng soup.

The soup was thick in color, its medicinal potency obvious from the smell, with a nauseatingly sweet-fishy odor.

“This ginseng is a thousand-year-old root specially requested from the palace, simmered with deer antler and tiger bone for three full hours into a supreme tonic,” Prince Ning said, offering the bowl to Shen Jue with a polite smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

“This is a powerful restorative. Commander, drink it while it’s hot. I need to see with my own eyes that you recover, then I can rest easy.”

Su Hewan stood beside them, her pupils contracting sharply.

【Old fox! This isn’t tonic, it’s a death trap!】

【Shen Jue was wounded by an arrow; the remaining poison in his body hasn’t cleared, and there’s inflammation. Drinking something so hot and tonifying will only accelerate his blood flow, causing the wound to burst and poison to invade the heart!】

【If he drinks, he’ll hemorrhage and die tonight. If he doesn’t, it will be seen as disobedience—but at least he can prevent Prince Ning from probing the true condition of his injury.】

The Prince of Ning looked as if he was about to scrawl the words “I want you dead” right across his face.

Shen Jue stared at the bowl of soup, a flicker of murderous intent passing through his eyes, and was about to reach for it.

Once he touched it, even if he drank it and then tried to purge it, he would have to get through this trial first.

The moment his fingers grazed the rim of the bowl—

“Ah—!”

A sudden cry shattered the tension.

Su Hewan lunged forward with all her might and collided squarely with the Prince of Ning’s arm.

Smack!

The blue-and-white porcelain bowl shattered into pieces on the floor.

Scalding ginseng soup splashed everywhere.

The Prince’s smile froze, the corner of his eye twitching violently, and a violent aura erupted from him in an instant.

Before he could fully lose his temper, Su Hewan had already dropped to her knees with a thud, trembling all over, crying with pearly tears:

“Your Highness, have mercy! Please, Your Highness!”

“I… I am clumsy, and seeing Your Highness’s majestic presence, my legs went weak… and I accidentally spilled the medicinal soup!”

She kowtowed continuously, while in her mind she was screaming silently:

【My acting! If Qingqing were here, she’d definitely praise me! Spending time with her really did improve my skills!】

【Scold me, hit me, anything—just as long as he doesn’t drink that poisoned soup!】

Shen Jue watched the woman kneeling and shivering, all the while fully immersed in her own performance.

His icy fingertips curled slightly.

She had done it on purpose.

To save him.

The Prince of Ning’s face turned an iron blue with rage, his finger trembling as he pointed at Su Hewan:

“Wretched maid! Do you know this is an imperial gift? How dare you!”

“Your Highness, please calm your anger!” Shen Jue spoke just in time. Though his voice was weak, it carried an unmistakable authority.

“This girl just entered the residence and doesn’t know the rules, thus disturbing Your Highness. Guards, take her away and give her twenty heavy blows!”

The back-and-forth actually bought them a reprieve.

If the Prince pursued the matter further now, it would make him, the Regent Prince, look petty for picking on a lowly maid.

The Prince of Ning drew a deep breath, glared viciously at Su Hewan, then cast a long look at Shen Jue, sneering:

“Looks like the rules in the Prefect’s Mansion do need to be firmly established. Since the soup is spilled, it’s clearly the Prefect’s misfortune. Let’s go!”

He flicked his sleeve and stormed off.

Only after his footsteps had completely faded did Su Hewan collapse to the ground, exhaling a long, shuddering breath.

【That scared me to death…】

Before she could even get up, a pair of slightly cool hands reached out to her.

Su Hewan looked up and met Shen Jue’s deep, bottomless eyes.

“If he had really tried to kill just now, you wouldn’t have survived.”

There was no emotion in Shen Jue’s voice.

Using his support, Su Hewan stood up, brushed the dust from her knees, and beamed at him, revealing shallow dimples:

“But the master is here, isn’t he? I knew you wouldn’t let me die.”

【I feel like my life is really tough! No matter what, I survived this trial!】

Shen Jue paused, his gaze falling on the spot on her forehead that she had deliberately reddened for the act, his eyes darkening slightly.

“Don’t do such foolish things again.”

Though he said it, he casually pulled a bottle of fine Jade Dew Ointment from his pocket and tossed it into Su Hewan’s arms.

“Wipe it. It’s an ugly mess.”

Su Hewan held up the bottle to the light, then smiled warmly.