Chapter 217 - 215: Lu Ying, Why Did You Make Unrequited Love?

Words : 1413 Updated : Sep 25th, 2025

Bamboo Spirit Ice Soul... Lu Ying’s face was as cold as water. He had thought that after the Lantern Festival, with Shen Xinghan’s suspicious and cautious nature, he might continue to suspect Shen Yinning and might secretly retaliate against her. Yet he didn’t expect Shen Xinghan to act so quickly. This poison would make an ordinary man wish for death rather than endure it, yet such a delicate young girl like her managed to survive for three whole days! How could she endure such suffering! He stood up, wanting to see Shen Yinning immediately, but the entanglement of love and hate between them stopped him in his tracks. In what capacity should he see her? She even wanted to kill him, so why should he rush over? Since he had decided to cut ties completely, there should be no lingering entanglements. Gui Quan watched him sit down again and tentatively said, "Your Highness, Miss Wei Yu also said if it’s inconvenient for you to visit Madam Shen, you could reward her with the Blood Ganoderma from the National Treasury. It’s the only thing that can detoxify." Lu Ying lowered his eyes. He knew how to cure the Bamboo Spirit Ice Soul poison. The Blood Ganoderma alone was not enough; it also required someone else to consume half of it, using their body heat to unlock the toxins from her skin and bones. However, every drug has its poison; a healthy person consuming the Blood Ganoderma would introduce heat toxin into their body. Though it could counteract the poison from the Bamboo Spirit Ice Soul, it would still cause great harm to the body. So, even if Shen Yinning obtained the Blood Ganoderma, she wouldn’t find anyone suitable to detoxify her. Forget it. Forget it... This time only, just treat it as cleaning up the aftermath of the Lantern Festival for her. He said, "No need to go to great lengths to the National Treasury, I remember there’s a Blood Ganoderma in my private storeroom, go fetch it." This was given by Qian Duobao after he became an official imperial merchant. He was a merchant who traveled all over, always having rare items that others couldn’t imagine. He thought it would never be used, but it ended up being used on Shen Yinning. Gui Quan quickly retrieved the Blood Ganoderma. Lu Ying consumed half of it, feeling the surging heat inside him, and quietly left the palace with the remaining half. Tonight the rain fell, wet and chilling to the bone. He arrived at the Gao Family in Lotus Lane, where Nanny Chen maintained good discipline. Even with such an incident involving the mistress, the small side yard remained quiet and peaceful. The maids and servants stayed in their quarters, not daring to neglect their duties. The main house was lit. He walked under the corridor with an umbrella, and Haitang and Wei Yu, guarding the door, turned pale upon seeing him, hurriedly curtsying. Lu Ying said, "What are you doing outside? Your mistress is in trouble, and no one is left to serve her inside?" The two maids remained in their curtsying position, too nervous to even lift their heads, let alone invite him in to detoxify Shen Yinning. Lu Ying finally sensed something was amiss. He asked, "Who’s inside?" Haitang and Wei Yu knelt on the ground with a plop, trembling as they said, "Forgive us, Your Highness!" Lu Ying stepped over them and pushed open the vermillion doors. A strange fragrance filled the room, the scent of the Blood Ganoderma. His gaze passed through the beaded curtain. The curtains on both sides of the bed were rolled up high, and Cui Ji sat on the bed, tightly holding the unconscious Shen Yinning. Frost had spread over both of their bodies, even causing ice crystals on their brows and lashes. Cui Ji’s lips were blue and purple from the cold, his whole body trembling, yet he refused to let go of the girl in his arms. Clearly a talented and promising scholar like a jade sculpture, yet he didn’t care she was the daughter of a criminal, didn’t care she was married, didn’t care her reputation was ruined and anyone could have her, but in this rainy night, he embraced her so tightly, as if she were the most precious treasure in his life. He lowered his head to kiss Shen Yinning’s cheeks and lips, with careful affection and lingering love. The Blood Ganoderma started to take effect in his body. As the heat surged from his internal organs, the ice crystals on both of them began to melt into water. Cui Ji was ultimately just a frail scholar. He couldn’t withstand the side effects of the Blood Ganoderma. As Shen Yinning improved, a strand of his hair at the temple quietly turned white. Yet even so, he bore no regret on his face... Lu Ying clenched the brocade box. It seemed Shen Yinning no longer needed his Blood Ganoderma. Lu Ying looked at them, pulling a wry smile on his lips. Without even taking the paper umbrella he had left in the corridor, he turned and stepped into the wind and rain outside, his voice colder than the rain: "Don’t tell her I was here." The night was deep, the wind and rain dark and dreary. The red lanterns of the households on both sides of Lotus Lane, in the dim rain, seemed like they were stained with blood. Lu Ying walked alone through the alley. The early spring chill was biting, and though the raindrops on his face were cold and piercing, sweat flowed from his body. The heat toxin inside surged up his throat, and he staggered to the wall, coughing up a mouthful of blood. His hand on the wall gripped tightly until the joints turned white, his head lowered, shadow cast over his entire face, rain rolling off his jaw, his thin lips practically drawn into a sharp line. The blood at the corner of his lips mixed with the raindrops, dripping onto the ground and seeping into the cracks of the green bricks beneath his feet. "Self-indulgence..." He mumbled hoarsely. "Lu Ying, why do you indulge yourself only to bring shame upon yourself?" Such a beauty as Shen Yinning, no matter how ruined her reputation, as long as she uttered a word, countless men in the world would go through hell and high water for her. Why would she need him to offer his attentiveness? The losses suffered at her hands, the betrayals endured, weren’t those enough? He raised his sleeve, slowly wiping the blood from the corner of his lips. He lifted his head, his eyes dark and cold. The Night Jade Lion gently followed behind him, snorting as it nudged him. Lu Ying grasped the reins, staggered slightly, and mounted the horse. He didn’t want to return to the palace, nor did he want to go to Shen Garden. He needed a place where he could sleep soundly. He patted the steed and said softly, "Go to the teacher’s place." The next morning. Shen Yinning awoke in Cui Ji’s embrace. The poison in her body had been cured, and in the past few days, she had never slept as peacefully as she did last night. She sat up, looking at the white hair at Cui Ji’s temple. For a long time, her expression was unfathomable as she reached out to touch his white hair. Cui Ji woke up startled, seeing her fair and rosy face, he couldn’t help but smile, "It seems Madam has recovered." Shen Yinning withdrew her hand, remained silent for a long time, then said softly, "Thank you." "This life of Cui’s was saved by Madam." Cui Ji got up from the bed, straightening his attire by the bronze mirror, "I don’t think Madam needs to thank Cui." Shen Yinning sat on the edge of the bed, watching his back, gently swinging her feet, "The Blood Ganoderma is exceedingly precious, the Emperor wouldn’t agree to waste it on me. How did you get it?" Cui Ji looked into the bronze mirror. He tucked the Jade Pendant hanging from his chest into his clothes: "That’s my business." Shen Yinning stepped down barefoot, circling to face him. She undid two loop buttons on Cui Ji’s collar, pinched the silk rope, and pulled out the fine Jade Pendant. She raised her eyes, looking directly at Cui Ji: "Cui Ji, who are you really?"

Chapter 217 - 215: Lu Ying, Why Did You Make Unrequited Love?

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