Second minister and thief

Chu Linqiu had just woken up, and his consciousness was still a little unclear. He tilted his head and looked obedient, but his eyes were erratic and unrealistic. It took Xiao Cen to call out a few more words patiently before he could respond.

Xiao Cen always felt that when he was sick, his brows and eyes were a little less sharp and more gentle, which on the contrary touched the tight string in his heart even more.

"Nine merchants? Nine merchants? It's even more bitter when it's cold."

"..." With Xiao Cen's unremitting efforts, Chu Linqiu finally responded.His eyes flickered, then he looked at Xiao Cen fixedly, and after a long time he said in a hoarse voice, "I'll do it myself."

"Your hands are shaking, and it will be troublesome if you spill it on the quilt."

"I'll do it myself." Chu Linqiu still insisted, and was ignored by the spoon that had been raised in front of him.

"..." Xiao Cen looked him up and down suspiciously, secretly thinking that this person must have his reasons for being so persistent.Bravery?shy?Or... fear of suffering?No, no reason, right?Once he had this thought, Xiao Cen immediately felt that the way Chu Linqiu looked at him seemed guilty.Thinking of this, he couldn't help but hold back a smile and plucked the broken hair on his forehead, "Okay, you can do it yourself."

After finishing speaking, he placed the jade bowl in Chu Linqiu's palm, supported those hands to make it move up steadily, and then watched the man lower his head and frown, and drank the pitch-black concoction inside in one gulp.

Before recovering from the nauseating bitter medicine, Chu Linqiu felt a sweet preserved fruit quickly stuffed into his mouth, and when he raised his head, he met Xiao Cen's teasing eyes .

"Lord Chu, if you look at Benhou with such eyes again, Benhou will misunderstand."

"Master Hou."

"Ok?"

"Master Hou worked hard last night. This favor is what Linqiu owes. If it is useful in the future, I will get Linqiu's place..."

"Stop, stop!" Xiao Cen couldn't listen anymore, "Master Chu, when did you not owe me a favor? Why did you suddenly become so lucky this time? If you really want to care about...Master Chu, you How do you plan to pay it back? You are so heartbroken? With your body...you seem to be able to do it. Forget it, if you want to pay it back, you should work hard and stop being sick."

At this moment, the distress in Xiao Cen's eyes was so real that it almost turned into reality, which caused Chu Linqiu to have an illusion: as if he was held in the palm of someone's hand.

Chu Linqiu was stunned for a moment.

"Master Chu? Master Chu? You have returned to your soul! It's almost time, get up and change your clothes." Having said that, Xiao Cen still felt a little worried.Even though they have taken various measures to cool down Chu Linqiu, this person is weak after all, and he still looks like he is going to collapse in the wind, and I don't know if he can last until he enters the palace... maybe the carriage is halfway through, The man passed out.

Xiao Cen originally wanted to save trouble, and directly carried Chu Linqiu into the carriage, but then he thought, this person has his own persistence, if he gets angry again, who can resist it?So, he didn't say a word about it, and got the man half-supported and half-embraced into the carriage with his own strength.

Chu Linqiu was exhausted but still wanted to be brave, instead he was sweating all over his body. After being supported and lying on Xiao Cen's lap, his temperature dropped seven or eight percent.

"After entering the palace, the sage...will inevitably ask...what happened yesterday...you don't need to say much, just, just...cough cough..."

"Come on." Xiao Cen hastily stroked his chest, and fed him another cup of hot tea, which barely stopped his cough.

"Instead of worrying about this, Mr. Chu, you should think more about how you will not lose your composure in front of the saint after entering the palace. You should be the one who speaks less and listens more."

When Chu Linqiu heard this, he also felt that this was the reason, so he stopped talking and enjoyed Dingnanhou's service with peace of mind.

Xiao Cen rubbed his hands repeatedly on his forehead, and instantly a coolness spread through his skin to his limbs and bones, making him want to let out a comfortable sigh.

But before he could make a sound, Xiao Cen had already heard Xiao Cen muttering to himself, "Niu Shang, Jiu Shang, this Marquis has never seen someone as annoying as you."

"..."

The carriage of the Dingnanhou's Mansion had just driven onto the Central Axis Street, and the palace had already sent people out to wait for it.Even so, when Xiao Cen lifted the curtain and saw Yan Zheng's old face, he still felt a little surprised.

"Hey! This battle really flattered the Marquis. As expected, Nine Merchants have a face."

Yan Zheng and the others stood by the side of the carriage with their heads bowed, their expressions unchanged, they just raised their eyelids slightly, and said in a flat tone, "The sage has been waiting for a long time, please follow the old slave to the Chongguang Hall as soon as possible."

"This...don't hide it from my father-in-law," Xiao Cen raised his eyebrows when he heard the words, and said with a half-smile, "Jiu Shang worked hard all night last night, and when he got up today, he felt a little feverish. He was afraid that he would move slowly and delay the time. Why don't you leave first?" Take one step, and accuse the two of us of our crimes in front of the saint?"

"Your Excellency is sick?" Yan Zheng heard this, and a crack finally appeared on his perfect expression.Although Xiao Cen's words were vague, the deep meaning in it was easy for people to comprehend.

The boss flicked his whisk, walked directly under the window, and called softly, "My lord? My lord?"

Chu Linqiu in the carriage seemed to be really out of energy, and only after calling for a long time did he hear a hoarse response.

"My lord, are you alright? Do you need this old slave to summon you..."

"No need. Cough...you go back, Master Hou and this officer...cough, we'll be there soon."

What Yan Zheng didn't know was that Chu Linqiu's current situation was really bad.Without Xiao Cen's support, he couldn't even sit still, so he could only lean against the inner wall of the carriage, slightly closed his eyes, and adjusted his breath secretly.After a while, he took out a blue porcelain bottle from nowhere, poured a pill out of it, and put it into his mouth with trembling hands without looking at it.

This medicine works wonders.After a while, he was able to support the door frame by himself, stepped on the low stool and got out of the carriage. Although he staggered a step forward when he landed, at least he stabilized his figure with Xiao Cen's support and did not slip down.It's just that the person still coughed a little, and his complexion looked a little unwell.

Xiao Cen turned his head and glanced suspiciously, but hesitated to speak.In the end, Chu Linqiu said softly, "Let's go." Only then did he regain his sanity.

He seemed to be hugging Chu Linqiu's waist intimately, but in fact he was secretly supporting his body to prevent him from suddenly losing strength and falling limp.But this time Chu Linqiu was unexpectedly upbeat, except for taking a few steps to stop for a rest, there was no other obvious signs of discomfort.

When he saw the golden dragon hovering around the corner of the eaves, Chu Linqiu suddenly held Xiao Cen's wrist, and said in a voice that only he could hear, "The first time I met the saint was also in this Chongguang Hall."