Chapter 240: Life Is Cheaper Than Grass

Wan Tang rushed into the Side Hall like a gust of wind, a heavy scent of blood hit her, making her almost vomit.

In the flickering candlelight, Li Ping'er lay on the disordered bed, her face pallid, a thin cloth wrapped around one wrist soaked through with fresh blood.

She stared blankly at the canopy, her breath weak.

"Ping'er!" Wan Tang's heart lurched, she lunged to the bedside, trembling hand reaching to touch her yet not daring.

In the end she could only carefully avoid the wound, pulling the cold body tightly into her arms.

Her voice shattered, "You fool, why are you so foolish!"

Li Ping'er felt her warmth, her hollow eyes shifted slightly, landing on Wan Tang's anxious, pained face.

She forced out an extremely bleak, weak smile, "Sister, the women in this Imperial harem—are their lives even cheaper than grass?"

"No, don't speak nonsense!"

Wan Tang cut her off, hugging her tighter, as if to transfer her own life force to her.

"We are inseparable sisters."

"Your life is very important, hear? To me, it is very important!"

Li Ping'er listened to her urgent words tinged with sobs, and a hint of spirit seemed to return to her eyes.

She laboriously raised her other uninjured hand, gently grasping Wan Tang's sleeve.

Her breath like a wisp, "Sister, Ping'er doesn't know if her guess is right or wrong."

"You don't want... Noble Lady Su's favor, right?"

Wan Tang nodded forcefully, tears finally spilling uncontrollably, dripping onto Li Ping'er's icy cheek.

She shook her head sharply, voice choked and trembling, "I don't care anymore, now I care about nothing."

"Anyone's favor is fine, love whomever you like."

"I only want you safe and sound, I only want you to live well!"

"No..." Li Ping'er stubbornly shook her head, her gaze suddenly stubborn and clear, "Sister wants to climb up."

"To climb to the highest place, to become a free person."

"No longer to be bullied by anyone..."

Hearing this, Wan Tang's restrained emotions finally shattered, she burst into voiceless sobs, like a helpless child.

At her ear, Li Ping'er's satisfied yet weak murmur came, "Sister, I'm so happy you cried for me..."

"I don't want it, I want nothing..."

Wan Tang sobbed, her face buried in Li Ping'er's neck hollow, "I've already received so much."

"I only want you to be well, and Xiao Shunzi to be well too."

"Then, in the future, in this cold Imperial palace, during festivals, someone will accompany me to eat a lively bowl of sweet rice dumplings together."

"Ping'er, promise me, promise me!"

Li Ping'er's breath grew ever weaker, her eyelids heavy and drooping.

Yet the corners of her lips still held that faint, satisfied curve.

Wan Tang clutched her increasingly cold body, crying with gut‑wrenching grief.

As if to pour out all fear, heartache, and lingering dread with her tears.

【Although I used to despise Li Ping'er, watching this now makes me so sad.】

【Li Ping'er loves Yan Wang so much, yet she is only a tool used by Yan Wang.】

【She thought coming here would allow her to avenge her mother. She worked for Yan Wang, hoping Yan Wang would notice her. In the end, she only repeatedly sacrificed herself out of self‑pity.】

【I want to call her stupid, but I also think, let her live; the palace is too cold.】

【Tangtang, don't be sad, the Dog Emperor is coming, Tangtang…】

Chu Yunzheng hurried into the Side Hall and saw Wan Tang, despondent, crouching at the bedside.

Her thin nightclothes were speckled with blood; she seemed to have been drained of all strength.

She stared intently at the weakly breathing Li Ping'er on the bed, not even noticing his entrance.

Tear streaks crossed her face, her gaze hollow and fragile, as if it could shatter at any moment.

Chu Yunzheng's heart tightened, and he immediately ordered, "Imperial Physician, why are you still hesitating! See to it that I cure Noble Lady Li!"

He took a few steps forward, bent down and gently pulled the curled Wan Tang into his arms.

Feeling the chill and faint tremor of her body, his heart swelled with an indescribable ache.

Softening his voice, he cooed, "Tangtang, don't be afraid, I am here."

Wan Tang seemed only now to sense his presence, and she slowly lifted her head.

Her tear‑filled eyes looked at him, revealing unabashed fear and lingering dread.

Suddenly, as if she could bear no more, she thrust her face into his chest.

The suppressed sobs finally erupted, her body shaking violently from the crying.

"Emperor..." her voice shattered, choked with despair, "Will Ping'er be alright?"

"Will she leave me?"

"Later... later, will there ever be anyone again who, like her, foolishly fights for me?"

She lifted her tear‑streaked face, her eyes full of utter bewilderment and pain.

She asked hoarsely, "Why? Emperor, you tell me."

"Do you think that to gain a bit of the Emperor's favor, to survive in this Imperial harem, you must... must pay a price in blood?"

These words, like the sharpest needle, struck Chu Yunzheng's heart unawares.

He clutched Wan Tang's arm, his body suddenly stiffening, the Emperor's deep eyes swirling with complex emotions.

There was heartache, anger, perhaps even a barely perceptible… guilt.

He had never seen Wan Tang display such uncontrolled fragility.

He tightened his arms, pulling the woman, who was crying to the point of near exhaustion, deeper into his embrace.

His jaw lightly rested against the top of her head, his voice unusually low and firm: "There will be no trouble; I will not let her be harmed."

He lifted his hand, clumsily yet gently wiping the tears and blood from her face.

He promised word for word: "Tangtang, you have me."

"I don't want to see you sad; I… will never again let those around you cause any trouble."

His gaze swept over the unconscious Li Ping'er on the bed and Wan Tang's pale face.

A hint of cold sharpness flashed deep in his eyes.

The turmoil in the Imperial harem seemed truly to have crossed his bottom line.

After an indeterminate amount of time, Wan Tang's intense emotions gradually calmed under the Emperor's soft soothing.

Only faint sobs remained. The Imperial Physician, trembling, stepped forward to report: "Your Majesty, Virtuous Consort, Noble Lady Li's life is no longer in serious danger."

"She has only lost too much blood, and the earlier miscarriage damaged her fundamentals; she requires long‑term careful nurturing."

"But…" the Imperial Physician hesitated, then forced himself to say, "This severe depletion of vital energy and heavy damage to the womb will likely make future pregnancies difficult."

Hearing this, Wan Tang's body trembled almost imperceptibly, and a more complex emotion surged in her eyes.

Yet in the end, it all turned into gratitude for surviving the disaster.

Fortunately, the person is still alive.

"Tangtang," Chu Yunzheng felt her tremor, tightened his arm, and spoke in a very gentle voice, "It's alright; everyone has been saved."

Wan Tang took a careful breath through her nose, as if trying to steady herself.

She gently slipped out of the Emperor's embrace, turned, extended her icy fingers, and lightly hooked Chu Yunzheng's finger.

With a force of dependence.

She lifted her small face still wet with tears, bit her lower lip, and finally, looking at him, gave a firm nod.

Then, she no longer looked at him, turned and squatted back at the edge of the bed.

She carefully avoided the wound on Li Ping'er's wrist, and tightly clasped her icy hand within her own palms.

She leaned down, close to Li Ping'er's ear, speaking with a heavy nasal tone yet unusually firm voice.

Whispering again and again, like a promise, like an oath: "Ping'er, get better…"

"I am here, right by your side, staying with you."

"From now on… I will never drive you away again, never again…"

"You must get well…"

Her voice was soft yet persistent, echoing through the silent Sleeping Hall, carrying a soothing power.

Chu Yunzheng stood behind her, watching her slender yet upright silhouette and the tightly clasped hands, his gaze deep, pondering something unknown.

Su Guiren stood in the corner, her complexion even paler than before.

She timidly tugged at Chu Yunzheng's sleeve, her voice trembling slightly: "Emperor… I, I feel a bit dizzy from blood, my heart is terribly uneasy…"

"Could you accompany me back first?"

Her voice sounded especially clear in the silent Sleeping Hall, carrying a plaintive, pitiable tone.

Yet Chu Yunzheng's gaze never left Wan Tang, who was squatting at the edge of the bed.

Wan Tang seemed to have shut out all external sounds, her entire mind focused on the unconscious Li Ping'er.

She clutched tightly the hand wrapped in gauze, her thin yet stubborn silhouette guarding the faintly breathing person on the bed.

The Emperor gave no response to Su Guiren's request, not even shifting his gaze a fraction.

He simply watched Wan Tang quietly; at this moment, in his eyes, even the most delicate beauty could not compare to the one before him that touched his heartstrings.

Su Guiren, waiting for a reply, watched the Emperor's focused profile.

She glanced again at the glaring blood on the bed and Wan Tang's indifferent posture.

The last hint of color on her face faded completely, leaving only embarrassment and a barely perceptible resentment, as she silently released the fingers that had clutched the dragon robe sleeve.

【Xiao Susu must hate Wan Tang to death right now, after all the Emperor was taking off his clothes, and such a huge disturbance broke out outside.】

【At least Wan Tang has fulfilled her promise to Su Yanci, protecting her sister.】

【As long as Wan Tang sheds a tear now, the Emperor will surely stay with her.】

【Dealing with this, Wan Tang is more than capable.】

Su Guiren's timid, insinuating words, like a stone thrown into a deep pool, failed to stir any ripple in Wan Tang's heart.

She still maintained that protective stance, squatting at the bed's edge, gripping Li Ping'er's icy hand, as if all external clamor mattered not to her.

She is tired, also weary.

Su Yanci's entrustment, she tells herself she has done all she could, fulfilling duty and righteousness.

As for those who cannot see the road ahead and recklessly charge forward, she has neither the will nor the strength to stop them.

"Su Guiren, please feel free," her voice came from the bedside, calm and unruffled, even with a hint of bone‑deep cold, "Tonight, I will stay here, keeping Ping'er company."

A flash of triumphant glee crossed Su Guiren's eyes; she looked toward the Emperor with hopeful anticipation, yearning for his favor.

Yet what she met was Chu Yunzheng's pair of cold eyes, hinting displeasure.

"Wan Tang," his voice carried undeniable authority, "you are too willful!"

"The Imperial Physician is here guarding, you need not stay up all night here."

Wan Tang snapped her head up, tears still wet in her eyes and suppressed pain evident.

Her voice trembled with emotion: "She just lost the child!"

"Emperor, she almost lost her life; how can I leave with peace of mind?"

Chu Yunzheng's eyes darkened, clearly moved by those words.

Li Ping'er has truly won my favor; though she lost her child, that bond is rare and precious, I confer the Zhaoying and bestow the "Yuan".

He fell silent for a moment, then again gave orders, his tone heavier: "The Imperial Medical Institute shall keep two people, rotating on duty, and must ensure that Yuan Zhaoying remains safe and sound!"

The title "Yuan Zhaoying" slipped from his mouth, bearing a tone of consolation and compensation.

Li Ping'er, by this tragic means, obtained the Zhaoying.

But the emperor's decision did not change.

He said no more, bent down, and with an irresistible force, lifted Wan Tang, who was still trying to stay by the bedside, and hoisted her sideways.

"Ah!" Wan Tang cried, struggling to get down.

"Don't move!"

Chu Yunzheng tightened his arms, imprisoning her firmly in his embrace, his low voice carrying an irrefutable authority.

It echoed in her ears, "Now, you must rest."

"I will stay with you."