Hui Lan looked away from General Feng and Feng Lin who was in front of her to Su Rong and then to the small owl that was showing its back at her.
"Xiao Mao, what's the matter?" Hui Lan's voice rang into its small head.
"Nothing! I'm just sleeping." Xiao Mao quickly tweeted back.
"Come over here."
Xiao Mao slowly looked up before looking away again.
Hui Lan looked up at Su Rong, "Su Rong, can you pass Xiao Mao over to me."
Very gently Su Rong placed Xiao Mao on Hui Lan's lap. The small snowy owl then dug its head into Hui Lan's hand. Seeing the cute gestures from the small little fella, Hui Lan could not help but reveal a small smile.
"Jie, it seemed this owl really loves being with you." Feng Lin was slightly surprised by how close the bird was to a person.
Hui Lan's hand that was patting Xiao Mao halted before she continued patting it. Without looking up, she just simply replied, "Hm."
Deep inside, she was thinking of what else to say, but in the end, she ended not saying anything.
Feng Furen felt there was something slightly off, but she did not probe for maybe Hui Lan might just be too tired.
"Royal Physician Jin, regarding Feng Lin…" Great general Feng began saying.
Meanwhile, Physician Jin had been watching Hui Lan who had been avoiding her parents and her brother's eyes. Although there were questions in his heart, he did not ask anything. There wasn't much for him to get involved either.
The matter of the young master Feng who should be in the border line and not in the capital was also none of his business. What the Feng family and his brother does was neither for him to get himself involved in.
...He'll just watch quietly and do his part as a brother and a master.
Physician Jin looked up and finally spoke, "Do not worry, this physician will not get myself involve with such matter. As for the Empress, it would be best if everyone would leave her to get some rest. Tomorrow, this physician will drop by to check on the Empress again."
There was some resistance in the Feng family as they wanted to stay a little longer, but seeing the Physician's resolute eyes, they did not want to take it too far.
"Thank you, physician Jin." This time it was Feng Furen who spoke up, she placed her hand on Hui Lan's shoulder's gently, "Mother will come visit you tomorrow, get some rest then."
Hui Lan took a brief look at Feng Furen's hand on her shoulders before looking up to give a smile at her, "Daughter will wait for you."
Feng Furen's heart shook ever so slightly, when had Hui Lan ever called herself daughter? It was always just Lan-er between her and her daughter.
Hui Lan was still innocently looking at 'her mother' while Feng furen quickly adjusted herself and smiled back.
The small interaction between the two did not slip away from the Royal Physician, nevertheless, he did not say anything about it.
"Alright, father and mother will leave for now, take care." General Feng got up and said his farewells to his daughter.
"En, I'll come to see you tomorrow, jie!" Feng Lin then spoke up, only to be given a warning stare from his father and mother.
Hui Lan smiled until her eyes were almost not visible and nodded as the three left. While her parents walked out in the open, this little brother of hers flew out from the window and was gone in an instant.
The only people that were left were the Royal Physician Jin and his assistant and Su Rong.
While Hui Lan was patting the small snowy owl, Su Rong looked up at the person in white with a slight unfriendly look at the Royal Physician.
Feeling the gaze, the Royal Physician slowly looked up from his medical box to the source of the gaze.
Meeting each other's eyes, Su Rong nodded her head towards the door.
Physician Jin slowly turned to look at where Su Rong was looking at before looking down quietly.
...Look at this girl chasing him out the door right away.
He looked up again and her eyes were still persistent in chasing him out of the room.
On the other hand, Ah Bao could also feel the dark aura excluding the lady in the light purple dress in front of his master. Slowly, he raised the book in his hand to cover his mouth and then his nose, only his eyes were looking back and forth from his master and the other young lady.
Hui Lan too could feel the tension coming from the two and slowly looked up. Her eyes went quickly from Su Rong to the Physician.
...Kekeke, at this rate, only the Physician would be eating so many losses.
She almost could not keep her laughter in when her eyes were laid on the small teen boy that had a book covering half of his face as he looked at Physician Jin and Su Rong.
"Ahem." Hui Lan did not want to see it going on for so long else she would feel even more worse for her master, "Master, if you don't have anything else for this student, then I will not send you off."
Physician turned to look at the Empress who was trying her best to keep in her laughter.
...Tut tut, this student of his was also like this, then how was to carry on being with these two ah?
While he was looking at Hui Lan, a thought came into his mind, "Niang Niang, your scar?"
Hui Lan averted her eyes slowly before looking back at the Physician, "Can you also keep this a secret?"
Physician Jin tilted his head slightly, "Why?"
Hui Lan smiled dryly, "I just don't want to see…"
"My brother?" Physician Jin interrupted.
Hearing the straight forward words from Physician Jin, Hui Lan did not back away and answered honestly, "En."
Physician Jin could not help but sigh...his brother and this sister-in-law of his were both stubborn ah.
"Fine. This is also none of my business. You can do whatever you want." Physician halted for a brief moment before looking at Hui Lan with a serious look on his face, he continued, "Just don't make this my business."
"Tch, it's all just good words." Su Rong commented on the side.
When Physician Jin turned to look at her, she continued, "What the Physician said was just only speaking nonsense, since you already heard and know about it, you can only be counted as being on the same boat as us." Before speaking her next sentence, Su Rong's eyes became cold, "Don't you even dare tell anyone about this."
Ah Bao's hands on the book gripped onto it tighter.
...Somehow, this jie jie in the light purple dress was not just scary but very scary.
Hui Lan was watching silently as she tried keeping her lips from revealing a smile.
"Miss Su Rong, this physician does not understand." Physician Jin still denied it until the end.
"Master, I think at some point Su Rong is right. By keeping quiet, you are also helping me. In the end, whatever you say, others will still think that you are helping me." Hui Lan spoke leisurely while stroking Xiao Mao's head. Her words did not imply much, but it was enough for the Physician to understand.
Ah Bao turned his eyes to look at the lady in the fiery red dress who had just spoken. Although the Empress was not staring with scary eyes, her demeanor was excluding a hidden danger.
Royal Physician did not waver and replied truthfully, "This Physician does not like fighting especially between those close to me. If Niang Niang wants me to be more honest, I would prefer there would be no fighting at all."
Hui Lan's lips hooked up frostily, "Even if the person who started that war was your brother?"
"No matter who started it or who is on which side, I will still stand by my word, I will not choose any side."
Hui Lan's lips were now smiling brightly, "Bengong will wait to see which side you will choose, but one thing that Bengong wants to tell you. If you are on Bengong's side, there will be much less bloodshed."
"Says the person born from a military family?" Physician Jin's voice grew slightly colder as he spoke. Though he was not a hot temper person, he too had a temper.
Hui Lan raised one of her brows up before speaking even coldly, "Says the person who has never had blood on her hands but her own."
The Empress' words caught him by surprise. A moment ago he had spoken the feelings he had been hiding inside and it was just a slip of moment, but he realized his mistake for putting such irrelevant claims on the person who had no knowledge of that incident that had happened.
"I am sorry." Physician Jin knew his fault and apologised.
Hui Lan did not keep it into her mind and brushed it off, "Thank you for what you are doing now already. I won't force you anymore."
The Physician nodded before standing up with his medical box and had already turned around when Hui Lan's voice spoke from behind, "But you should know one thing, Royal Physician Jin, one day, you will have to choose one side."
He halted in his steps before replying, "There will be no such day."
Hui Lan smiled as she thought of the Physician's aspiring thoughts, "Bengong will wait."
"This Physician does not deserve Niang Niang's patience."
"Oh. Master has devalued your worth. You do not need to be deserving."
Physician Jin turned his side to glance at the Empress before leaving. However, her words were still being replayed in his head.
Hui Lan watched as the Physician made his way out.
In the end, the person who was wrong would be made known, but it will depend on what side he chose to be on...
Hui Lan took her eyes off from the Physician Jin to the lady beside her, "Su Rong, I will get some sleep. You can also rest."
"...But."
"I'll call you whenever I need help, but don't worry because I'll be sleeping."
"Fine, I'll leave."
"Thank you." Unlike the cold smile she had given to Physician Jin, Hui Lan revealed a slightly weary smile to the only trustful person beside her.
When Su Rong was gone, Hui Lan carefully laid herself onto the soft quilt.
She finally closed her eyes.
...Ah, finally she can get some more sleep.
Seeing his miss fall asleep, Xiao Mao quickly searched for a place to snuggle and ended up resting beside Hui Lan's neck again.
The two then drifted away into sleep land.