Chapter 537

At that moment, Gu Jiu Ling could not bear to walk into the ward, worried about disturbing this ill-fated couple.

She composed herself and still knocked on the door; the crying inside stopped abruptly, and then the door was opened from inside, revealing Zhao Lang's stern, heroic face.

He knelt down, a pitiful husband protecting his little wife.

Upon standing, he became the awe-inspiring Protector of the Nation Grand General.

Zhao Lang looked at Gu Jiu Ling with a steady expression; he seemed composed, but his reddened eye sockets gave him away.

He pressed his thin lips together, looked at Gu Jiu Ling, a flash of embarrassment crossing his face as he whispered, 'Princess Consort!'

Having risen in a military bearing, he once again became the formidable Pillar-of-the-State Grand General, staring fixedly at Gu Jiu Ling.

Gu Jiu Ling sighed; her original thought of fanning him changed somewhat.

Looking at his wretched state, Gu Jiu Ling felt a bit sorry for him.

"I'll go check on Jinzhi!"

Zhao Lang hastily moved aside, making a path; Gu Jiu Ling brushed past his shoulder and walked toward the ward, her steps stopping when she passed Zhao Lang.

"General Zhao!"

Zhao Lang stood with bowed body to one side; his apologetic posture was not bad.

"You are a military officer, Jinzhi is a delicate woman; you should cherish her more, don't act like a clueless fool who's never seen a woman, with lust addling his brain!"

Zhao Lang's handsome face instantly flushed crimson, almost turning the color of pig's liver.

He moved his lips, not knowing what to say properly, and still bowed, replying, 'Yes!'

Gu Jiu Ling snorted coldly, turned, and walked into the ward.

Unexpectedly, from behind came Zhao Lang's somewhat cautious question: 'Princess Consort, where has my son gone?'

Gu Jiu Ling's steps halted there; she slowly turned to face Zhao Lang.

"Your son is a premature infant; his condition is not good. I have sent him to a certain place for treatment, but I'll say plainly up front: whether he can be cured depends entirely on his fate."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Lang's face instantly darkened; he stepped forward and said softly, 'I, Zhao Lang, owe you the most in this lifetime, but I still want to see my son.'

"No seeing!" Gu Jiu Ling firmly refused.

Zhao Lang was momentarily speechless: 'But my son… you're a doctor who saves lives and heals the wounded, yet you cannot not let me see my own son.'

Gu Jiu Ling silently thought to herself, 'I actually would let you see him; the problem is you wouldn't be able to see him anyway!'

At this moment, Gu Jiu Ling had already placed the child in the insulated box within her space; these frequent comings and goings from the space left her feeling weak in body and her head aching severely.

At this moment, Zhao Lang was still entangled with her over this, and she could not tell this guy the truth of the matter.

Just as the two were entangled without clarity, a sound came from inside the room.

Zhao Lang and Gu Jiu Ling both fell silent at the same time; only in front of Jinzhi did they two happen to be unusually in agreement.

Gu Jiu Ling shook off Zhao Lang, turned, and walked into the ward.

The ward still smelled of disinfectant; Gu Jiu Ling saw Jinzhi lying on the hospital bed.

"How are you? Feeling better?" Gu Jiu Ling sat beside Jinzhi; Jinzhi's face was pallid, devoid of color, she slowly turned her face and tightly gripped Gu Jiu Ling's hand.

From Jinzhi's gaze, Gu Jiu Ling could see that she also wanted to see her own child, but at this moment the child had already been placed in the insulated box; if she were to take him out again, any bacterial infection would be no laughing matter.

Premature infants inherently have weak resistance, and their own immune system is not yet perfected; if something goes wrong at this time, she truly wouldn't be able to explain it.

Even when Gu Jiu Ling initially placed Zhao Lang's son in her own space, she had hesitated a bit about this.

But she is a doctor; that brief hesitation is a humiliation to her, and she must try it even if Zhao Lang and Jinzhi later come to hate her.

"Jinzhi, I understand what you mean."

Gu Jiu Ling drew a breath, tightly holding Jinzhi's hand, and whispered, 'Let me ask you one thing: do you trust me?'

Jinzhi blinked slightly, then nodded vigorously; in this world, the person she trusts most is Gu Jiu Ling, and sometimes, for no reason, her trust in Gu Jiu Ling even exceeds that in her husband Zhao Lang by a bit.

Back when, in the Third Prince's beast garden, this woman single-handedly stood in front of those convict slaves.

From that moment on, Jinzhi felt that following this woman was correct, and she would follow her to the end.

Jinzhi nodded vigorously; this motion made Gu Jiu Ling feel a faint sourness behind her eyes, as if she wanted to cry.

She remained such a good girl; even though she had become a mother of two, even though her uterus had been removed and she could no longer be a mother, she still behaved so obediently as to make one's heart ache.

"Since you trust me, I will also tell you: I will help treat your child first; just trust me."

Gu Jiu Ling then spoke a few more words to Jinzhi; although Jinzhi's condition had stabilized at this point, the ultimate hidden danger had not yet been eliminated, and should it flare up, the consequences would be unimaginable.

She also dared not delay Jinzhi's rest; she spoke a while longer, then ordered the attendants on either side to go in and watch over her, after which she left the ward.

Zhao Lang was just about to take Gu Jiu Ling's place entering the ward to see his wife, but Gu Jiu Ling stopped him at the door.

"General Zhao, please stay!"

"What orders does the Princess Consort have?" At this moment, Zhao Lang felt immense gratitude toward Gu Jiu Ling in his heart; even if he were to let her sacrifice her life for him, he would not hesitate much, for he owed this woman too much.

Gu Jiu Ling beckoned to Zhao Lang, and Zhao Lang had no choice but to follow behind her to the downstairs parlor.

Gu Jiu Ling likewise sat down, ordered the attendant to brew tea and bring it to Zhao Lang, obviously intending to have a detailed talk with him.

Zhao Lang had no mood for tea at this moment; he lifted his head to look at Gu Jiu Ling before him and said, 'Princess Consort, what is your instruction?'

Gu Jiu Ling said lightly, 'I dare not give instruction, but there are some things I'd like to inquire about: who has been living in your Zhao household recently?'

"I have heard that the old master and old mistress of the Zhao family have returned to their hometown these days; who has been accompanying Jinzhi in the general's residence? Could you clarify?"

Zhao Lang stared for a moment; his paternal great-uncle in the countryside had passed away, and several close relatives had to return to attend the funeral.

Before, when Zhao Lang's father was doing business in Longxi, it was the great-uncle who gave strong support, which is how today's Zhao family came to be.

His whole family held deep affection for the great-uncle, and several times they had wanted to bring him to Shang Jing.

However, the great-uncle had his own wife and children and did not wish to disturb them.

The great-uncle had grown accustomed to living in the countryside, did not like coming to Shang Jing to join the bustle, and therefore had never come.

This time, the great-uncle passed away; his parents must return, but he himself cannot go back.

Now the court is unstable, so he can only remain stationed here.

I had originally wanted to let Jinzhi return to her hometown in Long West, but I didn't expect she would become pregnant again; her body is weak, the journey would be rough, I worried something might happen, so I gave up on that.

Not wanting Zhao Lang to bring up this topic, a hint of deep helplessness crossed his face as he said slowly: "It's a relative of the Esteemed An who has taken up residence at my home; also, Jinzhi's distant cousin said that staying here would make it easier to look after everyone."

What do you mean by 'cousin'? A cousin who came from the An family?