SYADEPCO – CH027

Chapter 27 – The Young Lady Is About to Be Found

When Chu Baihan returned to the Prince Lin’s residence, she had barely stepped through the door before spotting a certain prince sitting inside. She was startled.

“Your Highness, do you not have matters to attend to today?” she asked in confusion.

“I have been in the residence this entire time. Could it be that the Princess Consort does not wish to see me?” the prince replied nonchalantly.

*Cough, cough, cough…* Yan Lian, beside them, nearly choked on his own saliva.

His Eighth Royal Brother clearly went out earlier today—how had it suddenly become “in the residence this entire time”?

Forget it, forget it. Eighth Royal Brother was becoming more stubborn with each passing day.

“You’re exaggerating, Your Highness. You’re my patient; how could I possibly not want to see you?” Chu Baihan huffed.

*Patient? Just a patient?*

Yan Lin’s gaze darkened.

For some reason, he was feeling… a little unhappy.

“Your Highness, we’ll continue with acupuncture today,” Chu Baihan said as she walked over to him.

She was eager to cure his poison so he could help her rescue Nanxing. Right now, she felt like performing acupuncture on him eight hundred times a day wouldn’t be enough.

“We’ll be doing a medicinal bath during acupuncture. I had the decoction prepared last night. We can go now.”

Without waiting for Ziying to react, Chu Baihan had already reached Yan Lin’s side. Wanting to be quick, she unconsciously took his hand.

When her cool fingers touched his palm, Yan Lin’s body stiffened slightly, and his breathing changed.

Ever since his injury, his inability to see had made him even more repressed and averse to physical contact.

If anyone else had touched his hand like this, he likely would’ve broken their wrist by now.

But this time, feeling the softness in his palm, he didn’t feel any disgust.

Ziying, worried that Chu Baihan might anger their master, was about to intervene.

But Yan Lian quickly stopped him.

*Didn’t you see?* their master wasn’t rejecting the princess consort’s touch. Yan Lian signaled with his eyes.

Ziying paused, then suddenly understood.

That’s right—the prince… seemed to be starting to accept the princess consort.

Chu Baihan was oblivious to all this. She led Yan Lin to a stone pool behind the rock garden in the residence.

“Didn’t expect the residence to have a pool like this. Perfect for a medicinal bath,” she muttered.

After instructing the servants to pour in barrels of hot water and medicine, she dismissed them all.

Then she frowned and looked at Yan Lin. “Your Highness, why haven’t you undressed yet?”

“How… how much should I take off?” Yan Lin gritted his teeth, looking slightly uneasy.

“Of course, the same as before.” The words slipped right out of Chu Baihan’s mouth.

This time, she was paying more attention and noticed the faint blush creeping up his ears.

She raised an eyebrow. *Could it be… he’s shy?*

*The mighty Prince Lin, shy about something like this?*

Even with his eyes blind, he could still sense that scorching gaze. He gave a light cough and gritted out, “If you keep staring, I’ll gouge your eyes out.”

Chu Baihan: “…”

Yep, missed a dose and started going crazy again.

To think she’d just thought he was being pure—must’ve been her illusion!

“Don’t worry, Your Highness. I’m not the least bit interested in your two taels of flesh. If I wanted to look, I’d just spend two taels of silver on a courtesan boy.” Chu Baihan shot back.

That did it. The prince’s face turned even darker, and a fire began to burn in his chest.

He wasn’t even sure what angered him more—her mocking tone, or the fact that she’d actually consider going to see a courtesan boy.

“All right, Your Highness. Get in the water. I’ll begin the acupuncture.” Chu Baihan ignored his scowling face and instructed him to get into the pool.

She laid out her silver needles, had him sit in the water, and began inserting the needles into his head.

“Today, I’ll force out a portion of the poison from your head. The acupuncture will hurt a lot—bear with it.”

Entering full physician mode, Chu Baihan now completely treated Yan Lin as a patient. Her tone even softened unintentionally.

When the needle pierced his skull, Yan Lin’s brow furrowed deeply, but he didn’t make a sound.

As he slowly opened his eyes, his heart clenched slightly.

He saw a faint silhouette swaying in front of him. Her delicate fingers were cupping his face as she gently inserted the needles into his acupuncture points. A faint, pleasant fragrance from her body lingered in the air.

He couldn’t help but lose focus for a moment. A thought flashed through his mind—

*If she were to become the true mistress of Prince Lin’s residence… living like this for a lifetime might not be so bad.*

But soon, his expression turned solemn again, his aura shifting.

Because he remembered what Ziyu had told him just half an hour ago.

There was news about the owner of that jade pendant. His little girl was about to be found.

“Your Highness, the acupuncture is done. I’ll stay here and wait for—”

Chu Baihan had intended to say she’d wait two hours, since she remembered that he didn’t like her leaving early.

But before she could finish, Yan Lin interrupted coldly, his tone distant: “Since the acupuncture’s done, you can go back. Wei Jia will come later to remove the needles.”

*What’s with that attitude?*

Sensing his coldness, Chu Baihan felt both puzzled and irritated.

*Using me and then tossing me aside?*

But she quickly calmed down. This prince’s mood swung like a pendulum anyway.

They were both getting what they needed. No point in getting angry over something so small—it’d only damage her health.

She stood up, brushed off her clothes, and said calmly, “Very well. I’ll take my leave.”

With that, she turned and left without a trace of hesitation.

Sensing her resolve, Yan Lin clenched his palm tightly. There was a stifling pressure in his chest, and nowhere to release it.

“Ziying,” he called out hoarsely, closing his eyes.

From the shadows, Ziying quickly appeared. “Your Highness.”

“Ziyu said someone in the capital saw the owner of the jade pendant. Go investigate.” Yan Lin said slowly.

Ziying’s expression grew serious. He hesitated, then asked, “Your Highness, if that young lady is found… what should be done about the princess consort?”

That one question made Yan Lin’s expression grow colder again.

After a long pause, he finally responded with an unreadable tone—

“Find her first.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Though he felt a bit sorry for the princess consort, that girl… was someone the prince had longed for over ten years.