When Hua Manman woke up, she was already back in the Prince Mansion.

She felt a severe pain in her legs, especially from her insteps to her knees. It felt as if they were being pricked by a thousand needles, a dense and constant ache.

Li Ji had been keeping watch by the bed and noticed the moment she woke up.

He immediately helped her sit up, had someone bring medicinal soup, and personally fed it to her.

Licorice had been added to the medicine, so the taste wasn’t too bitter.

Hua Manman drank it all with a frown.

Li Ji placed the empty bowl aside and asked nervously.

"How are you feeling? Is it still very uncomfortable?"

Not wanting to worry him, Hua Manman forced a smile and tried to act as if nothing was wrong.

"Rest assured, Your Highness. I feel fine. It’s likely nothing serious."

Hearing her true thoughts, Li Ji couldn’t help but frown.

He asked in a low voice.

"Tell me the truth. Where else does it hurt?"

Hua Manman saw that she couldn’t hide it and had to tell the truth.

"My legs hurt."

Feihua Zhenren walked in at that very moment. Hearing her, he said.

"The Princess Consort’s legs are frostbitten. The pain is quite normal. I will perform some acupuncture, supplemented with a massage. That should make you feel more comfortable."

He took out his needle pack and began administering acupuncture to Hua Manman.

Hua Manman took the opportunity to ask.

"Zhenren, why are you back? How is my mother?"

While skillfully applying the needles, Feihua Zhenren replied, "The Madam has already woken up. Her life is not in danger. She just needs a period of rest and recuperation."

Hua Manman felt relieved and said sincerely.

"Thank you. It’s all thanks to you. I’ll remember this favor."

Feihua Zhenren just smiled. "There’s no need to repay the favor. Just allow me to come here for free food and drink often in the future."

Hua Manman naturally agreed wholeheartedly.

"You can come whenever you want. We’d be delighted."

After the acupuncture was finished, it was time for the massage.

It was inappropriate for Feihua Zhenren to directly touch Princess Consort Zhao’s legs, so Prince Zhao took his place.

Feihua Zhenren taught Li Ji the massage techniques one by one. After Li Ji learned them, he then applied them to Hua Manman.

It was the first time in Li Ji’s life that he had ever given someone a massage. His technique was clumsy, and he often hurt Hua Manman by not controlling his strength properly.

Fortunately, he was clever enough to learn after a few tries.

When the massage was over, Hua Manman felt that her legs indeed hurt less.

By now, the sky had grown dark. Seeing that Hua Manman was fine, Feihua Zhenren returned to his own room to rest.

Before leaving, he didn’t forget to add a reminder.

"Later, the Princess Consort’s legs might start to cramp and ache. Don’t worry, that’s normal. Just give her legs a massage."

Li Ji indicated that he understood.

Having just woken up, Hua Manman wasn’t the least bit sleepy.

She looked at Li Ji and asked.

"Your Highness must be tired, right? Why don’t you go get some sleep? I’ll be fine with Si Yun to look after me."

But Li Ji refused to leave.

He took off his outer robe, lifted the covers, and slipped in, lying down beside Hua Manman.

He turned on his side to look at the woman next to him, a smile rippling in his eyes.

"I’m not tired. How about I read you a storybook to pass the time?"

Hua Manman happened to be bored, so she nodded in agreement. "Okay."

Li Ji took out the copy of *Xun Xiangji* that he hadn’t finished before and began to read it from the beginning, word by word.

His voice was deep and pleasant, his pace unhurried. It was very nice to listen to.

Hua Manman listened quite intently.

At first, she thought it was just a clichéd love story about a poor scholar and a rich young lady getting married. But when Li Ji read about the young lady and the poor scholar pledging their lives to each other, secretly undressing in a room, and beginning to kiss and caress, Hua Manman finally sensed something was amiss.

It wasn’t incomprehensible for things to get physical when passions ran high.

’But... but isn’t this description a little too detailed?’

Even though the words in the text were archaic and not as easy to understand as plain language, listening to it still made Hua Manman flush red to the ears.

When Li Ji read that the two main characters had started to change positions to continue... you-know-what, Hua Manman could no longer hold back and interrupted him.

"O-Okay, that’s enough."

Li Ji looked up at her, a smile playing on his lips. "What’s wrong?"

Hua Manman said, embarrassed, "I’m sleepy. I want to sleep now."

It wasn’t as if she had never read erotic novels before. After all, those old-school romance stories from her time almost all had explicit content. But that was always a private affair; she had never read this kind of story with a man before.

Especially having it read out to her, word by word and with such feeling, by a man—it was enough to make her so embarrassed she could have carved a new Imperial Palace underground with her toes.

Li Ji heard her thoughts.

’So Manman has read this kind of risqué storybook before.’

’That means she understands everything, then.’

’Since she understands, there’s no need to read this book anymore.’

Li Ji tossed the book aside and replied readily.

"Then let’s sleep."

As if granted amnesty, Hua Manman nodded vigorously. "Mhm."

Even though she wasn’t sleepy, she closed her eyes and forced herself to sleep.

It took a long while, but she finally began to feel a little drowsy.

Just as she was about to fall asleep, she suddenly felt her legs cramp, the pain coming in sharp spasms.

She couldn’t help but turn on her side, curl up, and press her hands to her calves.

Li Ji woke up instantly.

He threw off the covers and sat up. By the candlelight at the head of the bed, he saw Hua Manman’s brow furrowed and her face pale, and he hurriedly asked.

"Are your legs hurting again?"

Hua Manman said in a weak voice, "My legs are cramping."

Without even bothering to put on his shoes or socks, Li Ji ran barefoot to the cabinet and took out a bottle of medicinal wine.

He poured the medicinal wine into his palms, rubbed them together to warm them, and began to massage Hua Manman’s legs.

There were large bruises on the front of her knees and shins—marks left from her forced kneeling. Her calves were slightly swollen, and you could see the faint blue veins beneath her pale skin.

Li Ji massaged her legs with extreme care, constantly watching for any change in her expression.

The moment she seemed to be in pain, he would immediately lighten his touch.

While Li Ji was observing Hua Manman, she was also observing him.

From this angle, she could see the man’s long, thick eyelashes and the high bridge of his nose. His long, black hair cascaded over his shoulders, and his slender, well-defined fingers kneaded her skin rhythmically, his movements extremely cautious.

He was wearing a loose, lavender-blue robe, a very plain and common garment.

But at this moment, in Hua Manman’s eyes, he was handsome in an indescribable way.

When Li Ji looked up, their eyes met.

He caught her thoughts at that moment. His heart stirred, and he couldn’t help but lean in and give her a light kiss on the lips.

By the time Hua Manman reacted, Li Ji was already back in his original position, continuing to massage her legs with earnest concentration.

The corners of his mouth were turned up in a smile; he was clearly in a good mood.

Hua Manman felt her heart begin to beat a little faster.

She instinctively felt that this situation wasn’t right.

’Reason tells me that since I can’t be sure I can stay in this world forever, I shouldn’t give him too much hope, let alone develop feelings for him.’

’But when have feelings ever been something that reason could control?’