Sang Luo lay on the large Golden Rattan Wood bed, her gaze fixed on the tall, finely dressed man walking in from the doorway. "Has Ah Ze left?" she asked, her voice weak.
"You an the South Sea r King? He waited at the palace gate for a while, then left." Fei Yuan walked to the bedside and looked at her with a smile. "You little thing. With here to keep you company, you’re still thinking about other Male Beasts?"
"...We hardly know each other."
"We’ll get familiar in ti." Fei Yuan noticed the cold sweat on her face and how pale her lips had beco. "Stomach pains?"
"Yeah." Sang Luo nodded weakly. The final stage of pregnancy was the most difficult, especially this last month before birth. Her belly would ache with contractions from ti to ti. Her previous pregnancies had been shorter and more bearable. This pregnancy was long, and so was the duration of the pain.
Fei Yuan left for a mont and returned with a bowl of dicine. "Good Luo’er, drink this."
She leaned in for a sniff and wrinkled her nose. "What is this? It’s so bitter!"
"Fetus-preserving dicine," Fei Yuan said. "Good dicine is bitter."
Sang Luo stared at the dark, murky bowl of dicine that reeked of extre bitterness, her face a mask of resistance. ’I don’t want to drink it.’
Fei Yuan’s gaze landed on her moist lips. "What’s wrong? Do you need This Emperor to feed it to you personally?"
"No! That’s not necessary!"
"Then be good and drink your dicine. I’m still waiting for you to carry my cub, after all. I’m not going to harm you." Fei Yuan then brought over a small bowl of golden-brown malt candy.
With the sweet candy lting in her mouth, Sang Luo picked up the dicine bowl, squeezed her eyes shut, and chugged the entire thing down. GULP. GULP.
"Heh, was it really that bad?" Fei Yuan couldn’t help but chuckle at her expression, as if she were facing her doom. He took the bowl, which had a layer of dicinal dregs at the bottom, and casually handed it to a nearby attendant.
"It tasted awful, but... it’s actually really effective!" Sang Luo’s eyes brightened. After drinking the dicine, the heavy, dragging sensation in her belly had eased considerably. Her whole body felt lighter, almost as it had in the second trister.
"You’re not so miracle doctor reborn, are you?" she asked, looking at Fei Yuan.
Fei Yuan replied, "A patient learns to heal himself. I simply drew inferences from that and expanded my services a bit."
He reached out, gently gathering her long, ssy hair, damp with a sheen of sweat, and tucked it behind her ear. His voice was low, llow, and languid, sending a tingle through Sang Luo’s ears. "Little Luoruo, just rest and take care of yourself here in the palace. From now until you’ve given birth and finished your postpartum confinent, This Emperor will personally look after you. This is an honor unique in all the world."
He had even dismissed all the concubines in his harem.
All just waiting for her to move into the Beast Palace.
And so, Sang Luo settled down to rest in the Phoenix Palace, feeling reassured.
Every day, Fei Yuan monitored the developnt of the baby in her womb and concocted the appropriate fetus-preserving dicine for her. His skills were simply better than those of the most renowned witch doctors.
Sang Luo advanced her rank by giving birth, but no woman willingly endured the suffering of childbirth. During her pregnancies, she and her Beast Husbands would seek out witch doctors for help, but the dicines they prescribed mostly just protected the fetus. They did little to alleviate the discomforts of pregnancy, and she suffered all the sa.
Especially in late pregnancy, it was a tornt for both body and mind.
Her body’s discomfort grew more intense, and she had to worry day and night about suddenly going into labor...
This had been her longest and most difficult pregnancy yet, but with Fei Yuan attending to her so diligently, Sang Luo had experienced no issues at all during the final stage. She barely even felt uncomfortable.
"Three more days until the birth. It will probably be around midnight." Fei Yuan sat on the edge of the bed, lovingly stroking her large, round belly, as if the child inside were his own.
... ’He can’t lay his own eggs, so now he wants to snatch his nephew’s cub.’
’Fei Yuan and Si Ye’s father, Fei Li, are biological brothers. So, to be honest, this baby might really have so of his blood in it.’
Sang Luo was left speechless by the thought that had just flashed through her mind. She blinked. "You can predict it that precisely?"
"Mm. You must trust This Emperor’s judgnt. The little one is getting impatient to co out."
Hearing Fei Yuan’s words, Sang Luo felt genuinely relieved. For the next two days, she wouldn’t have to live in fear of suddenly going into labor. She closed her eyes, planning to sleep well and save all her energy for the night three days from now.
Fei Yuan rose to replace the burnt-out Concentration Incense in the burner.
A guard announced sothing from outside. He glanced at the drowsy Sang Luo on the bed and slipped out quietly.
Sang Luo hadn’t fallen asleep yet. After a mont, Fei Yuan returned, his expression grim.
"What in the world happened?" she asked, turning her head.
Fei Yuan looked at her, his thin lips parting slightly. "Just so trivial governnt affairs. It has nothing to do with you. You just focus on your pregnancy."
"I heard you talking about the Eastern Region and ntion Si Ye’s na. Is there news about him?"
"...I really can’t hide anything from you." Fei Yuan sighed. "You’re so close to giving birth, I was afraid this would weigh on you. I wasn’t going to tell you."
"What happened?" Sang Luo tried to sit up. Fei Yuan quickly ca over to help her, propping her up against the headboard and tucking two soft pillows behind her back. Sang Luo gripped his arm. "I’ll worry even more if you don’t tell ," she said, her voice laced with concern.
"He’s in the Eastern Region now, and his situation... isn’t good. I sent n to bring him back, but he refuses," Fei Yuan said gravely. "I have no idea how that boy ended up in the Eastern Fla Plateau. There’s nothing there but volcanoes, lava, gobi, and desert. It’s completely barren. Almost no one settles in a place like that. I can’t imagine why he would go to such a godforsaken wasteland."
"His situation isn’t good? I just heard you ntion Heavenly Thunder to soone. Don’t tell Si Ye..." A suspicion began to form in Sang Luo’s mind.
Seeing he could hide it no longer, Fei Yuan relented. "Little Ye possesses a dual beast bloodline. His talent is extraordinary. By last year, he was already on the verge of breaking through to the Emperor Rank. His mother, fearing the Si Family line would be extinguished, made him suppress his Cultivation."
"I see you no longer bear his Soul Mark. I assu that after he removed it, his cultivation level dropped. He must have built it back up over the last six months and could no longer suppress it. In a harsh environnt like the Eastern Region, he faced the Tribulation Thunder. Unfortunately... he failed the breakthrough."
Fei Yuan sighed regretfully. "That little nephew of This Emperor was so capable. Whenever he led troops, he was invincible. He helped reclaim several hard-won territories. He’s never lost, not once in his life. He’s an incredibly proud boy."
"This failed breakthrough must be a massive blow to him. I fear he may never recover from it."
"Why did he fail?" A sharp pain seized Sang Luo’s heart. ’Si Ye is so gifted.’
Seeing Fei Yuan’s hesitation, it seed there was more to the story.
"I underestimated his feelings for you," Fei Yuan said. "He developed a Heart Demon. He lost control, and that is why he failed the breakthrough."
Sang Luo froze. "A Heart Demon?"
"Mm. This Heart Demon is a fatal affliction. If it isn’t purged, never being able to reach the Emperor Rank will be the least of his worries. He could even lose control and beco a Fallen Demon."
"..." A lump ford in Sang Luo’s throat, her heart aching unbearably. "How can we save him?"
Fei Yuan caressed her cheek and said in a low voice, "The simplest thod is to kill the person who caused the Heart Demon to form, thus eliminating the affliction at its root."
"..."
Seeing her pale face, Fei Yuan suddenly smiled. "Of course, there is another, more humane thod: to resolve his Heart Demon."
He continued, "However, the one who tied the bell must be the one to untie it. Even I have no way of resolving this Heart Demon."
"It’s because of . I’m his Heart Demon. I’ll go to him." Sang Luo tried to get out of bed, but Fei Yuan lifted her back onto it.
"What’s the rush? He’s not going to die for the ti being." Fei Yuan glanced at her stomach. "These are the final few days. Right now, nothing is more important than what’s in your belly. Focus on having the child safely first, and we can discuss this after."
Soone else ca to the door looking for him. Fei Yuan glanced uneasily at Sang Luo, then set up layer after layer of protective Array barriers. Before he left, he instructed,
"Good Luo’er, I’ll be right back. Don’t you go running off."
Half an incense stick later, Fei Yuan returned, only to find the bed empty. She was gone.
"..."
’So disobedient.’
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