"Enough," the Venerable One said with a bitter smile, "If it weren't for General Mingde sweeping the northern frontier and saving my sect from the rebels, how would this old Taoist dare to commit the capital crime of deceiving the emperor in the imperial bedchamber? This matter needs to be carried out in secret. If the emperor finds out, you and I will both..."

Ah Zui quickly said, "I understand this."

The old Taoist took out golden needles from the case, about a long inch in length. Mingde opened his eyes and looked at them curiously. As a result, when he saw that the needle was going to be inserted into the back of his head, he immediately refused and turned around to hide.

Fortunately, Princess Qinghe had taken care of him before. She was one of the few women who had never harmed him and had always loyally stood on his side.

Mingde subconsciously still remembered her voice and scent, and did not start shouting and making a fuss because of her approach. They came under the pretext of picking up and dropping off little Mingxiu, doing things under watchful eyes, so there was no time to delay. Ah Zui had to quickly pick up the little baby and stuff it into Mingde's arms, coaxing in a low voice, "Young master, you must hold tight and not move at all!"

Mingde then obediently held the little baby tightly. Princess Qinghe thought it was not safe enough, so she grabbed the little cat she raised in the palace and also stuffed it into his arms. With one in each hand, Mingde didn't dare to move even if he wanted to.

His shoulders were pressed down by Princess Qinghe. He only felt a slight pain in the back of his head as the golden needle slowly pierced in.

Mingde let out a slight cry, but not much louder than the little cat's meow. Even so, a palace servant who happened to be passing by outside knocked on the door and asked softly, "Young master, any instructions?"

Ah Zui pinched the little cat, and it meowed again. At the same time, she turned to the door calmly and said in a loud voice, "The young master and the imperial grandson are playing with the kitten. You all wait outside."

The palace servants knew well that Princess Qinghe was deeply favored by the emperor, so they responded and withdrew. Ah Zui turned her head back, only to feel cold sweat all over her palm.

After about the time it takes to burn an incense stick, the old Taoist pulled out the two golden needles inserted in the back of Mingde's neck and slowly let out a sigh of relief, "Today is only the first day, so let's leave it at that. But I don't know how much he can slowly remember by continuing like this. In any case, he should become a bit more clear-headed."

Ah Zui cried, "If the Venerable One gets implicated, how can I feel at ease?"

The old Taoist put away the case and sighed, "A physician practices medicine to save the world. I've never heard of one being afraid of losing his own head. Your Highness, don't worry too much. Back then, General Mingde pacified the northern frontier. Now I'm saving him. It's all destined."

Princess Qinghe then took the Taoist priest disguised as a eunuch and little Mingxiu and left. Mingde had been pierced by the needle twice and hadn't come back to his senses yet. He just sat on the bed in a daze until the Qianwan Emperor returned from the morning court and still hadn't reacted.

The Qianwan Emperor found his dazed look quite interesting. He couldn't help but hug him and kiss him, asking, "Why are you sitting here and not going out to play?"

Mingde took a deep breath and suddenly said, "It hurts, it hurts so much!"

"Where does it hurt?" The Qianwan Emperor laughed and kissed him, intimately pinching his lower back, "Here?"

Mingde dodged and called out vaguely, "It hurts! It hurts so much! The needle is so long, so long..."

But he said it too vaguely. He had been showing symptoms of delusions recently, and the Qianwan Emperor generally couldn't take anything he said seriously unless it was particularly clear. He leaned down to caress Mingde's leg, which was tied to a splint, and asked in a low voice, "Does it still hurt here?"

Mingde's attention was immediately drawn to the broken bone in his lower leg, and he nodded at the Qianwan Emperor with infinite grievance.

"It's okay, don't be afraid, they can't bully you anymore..." The Qianwan Emperor absentmindedly kissed his hair, "Those people can't bully you anymore, no one can make you hurt anymore..."

Mingde was kissed in a daze and actually forgot about being pierced by the long needle.

The Qianwan Emperor's desire only grew stronger as he got more intimate with Mingde. Unable to resist, he pushed Mingde down on the bed and left unrestrained kiss marks along his neck and collarbone. Feeling uncomfortable, Mingde moaned and tried his best to push him away, mumbling incoherently, "I want... to go out and play! ...I want to go out!"

Sometimes after court sessions, the Qianwan Emperor would take him to watch plays or drink tea in the Imperial Garden. However, today his passion burned so fiercely that he could almost feel the painful hardness of his own desire. He kissed Mingde, trying to calm him down, while reaching out to possessively fondle the submissive organ of the person beneath him with practiced intimacy.

"Good boy... so obedient... don't move, let me enter first... be good..."

Mingde let out a soft gasp, and then was suddenly conquered. He was flipped over abruptly, with a huge, scorching desire pressing against his rear. Such a forceful onslaught left him barely able to utter a complete sentence.

"I want... want to go... go out..."

"I'll let you go out once we're done."

The Qianwan Emperor wantonly kissed the boy's fair back, old tooth marks from the previous year still visible on his shoulder blades - a circle of wounds, intimate yet secret, as if embodying their unspeakable past.

All deliberately forgotten in the flickering candlelight of the palace.

"Mingde, shall I take you to Jiangnan?"

Mingde lay dazedly by the edge of the hot spring. The huge jade pool had seven temperature holes in total, continuously draining cold water and adding hot water to maintain a balanced temperature. The fragrance from the medicinal herbs made one even drowsier. Mingde could barely hear what the Qianwan Emperor was saying.

"Take you to Jiangnan... where fish and rice abound, grass grows lush and orioles sing... the place you most wanted to visit before, the place you always dreamed of... shall I take you there?"

Mingde irritably turned his head away, "I want to sleep."

The Qianwan Emperor silently held him in his arms, feeling only a scrawny bag of bones, as if the life force was slowly, bit by bit, slipping away.

Who was it that once dreamed in this deep palace of apricot blossoms for miles and misty rain in Jiangnan?

Who was it that tottered away step by step in the languid spring rain, yet could never reach the dreams that were once at hand?

Now, even if the whole world was presented before those eyes, that person would want none of it.

Only knowing how to cry, only knowing to eat - the things he once so desperately yearned for that were always withheld, the things he dreamed of having - now, kneeling before him and begging for a glance, he no longer cared.

The Qianwan Emperor buried his head deeply, pressing his face into the crook of Mingde's neck. Mingde, already in a daze, felt wetness on his neck. Irritated, he shrugged his shoulders and dozed off again in a stupor.