Hearing the palace maid’s voice, Wei Linxia quickly wiped away her tears and put the box away. “What is it?”
“It’s time for the evening meal,” the maid said.
The meal was a food box brought by soldiers, containing four small dishes and a bowl of rice, though today it was a thick, hard flatbread that hurt her teeth. Wei Linxia broke the bread and soaked it in the soup. As she broke it, she noticed a small scroll. Carefully looking around, she quickly unfolded it, revealing four characters: Safe, Do Not Worry.
These words calmed Wei Linxia’s heart, and she ate more than usual. Inspired by these words, she felt she had many things to do, including making a new set of clothes for Xi Linxuan, who must have suffered and could no longer wear his current clothes.
As it was spring, she sewed him a robe, incorporating the safety charm Master Xu had instructed her to bring since childhood, hoping to bless him with lifelong peace.
The weather had warmed, prompting Wei Linxia to have the palace maids open the doors and windows to let in fresh air, as the room had developed a musty smell over winter.
That day, while tying the last knot on the robe, she heard Fengchou’s joyful voice calling from outside: “Princess, Princess!”
Wei Linxia bit off the thread, stood up, and spread out the robe. It looked neat. Hearing Fengchou’s footsteps approach, she said, “Walk slowly, the ground is slippery. Be careful not to fall.”
“The prince has returned, the prince has returned!” Fengchou ran in, still wearing the same clothes from a month ago.
In her eagerness, she dismissed the attendants and had only those she was comfortable with remain, feeling they should not be in the room alone with the prince.
“Why are you standing there? The water is getting cold. What’s to be done?”
She helped him remove his outer and inner garments, her face flushed. Awkwardly, she glanced at his broad back in the tub, feeling it improper, and quickly looked away.
“Rub my back.”
With her heart racing, she obliged with the towel, trying to keep her gaze down.
“Softly,” he said unexpectedly.
“Sorry!”
“Be firmer; you’re not swatting a fly.”
