Instinctively, Zheng Dan started to stand up, but doing so too suddenly, her head reeled, and she swayed precariously as if about to fall.
Zu An rushed over to support her. "What's wrong?" he asked.
She was a Rank Six cultivator and a strong woman who had once led a gang. He had never seen her so frail.
"It's nothing, I probably just stood up too quickly," Zheng Dan said, leaning on him and forcing a smile.
San Qian, who had followed them, wore a strange expression, noting how intimately natural they were with each other, as if she weren't even there.
However, at the moment, she was also worried about Zheng Dan's health and had no time to concern herself with anything else.
"Why is your body so weak now?" Zu An asked with a frown, his hand resting on her pulse. Although not a doctor, cultivators generally had a good understanding of the human body.
He sent a wisp of his energy into Zheng Dan's body. Zheng Dan clearly felt it, but given their relationship, she had no defenses and allowed his energy to enter.
"I don't know either. It's probably just poor sleep lately," Zheng Dan said, forcing a smile despite her remarkably pale face.
"Poor sleep?" Zu An's brows furrowed deeply. A cultivator's body was far stronger than an ordinary person's; even several sleepless days wouldn't have much effect. Why was she so weak?
He had generally checked her body and found no abnormalities other than the weakness. It was a pity that Ji Dengtu or Xiao Xi weren't here; otherwise, they might have been able to pinpoint the exact cause.
He even considered whether he could invite a few imperial physicians to examine her. Imperial physicians didn't always reside in the palace; they rotated their duties, and when at home, princes and high-ranking officials in the capital often paid large sums to employ them. With his current status, inviting an imperial physician wouldn't be too difficult.
Just then, San Qian spoke up. "We've already consulted all the famous doctors in the capital these past few days, even inviting people from the Imperial Academy of Medicine. But they all said Sister-in-law's body has no problems and just needs more rest. They prescribed some calming medicines, but unfortunately, they haven't had any effect."
Hearing that they had already consulted imperial physicians, Zu An was even more surprised. Not even the imperial physicians could diagnose her condition?
San Qian hesitated for a moment before adding, "Some doctors even implied that Sister-in-law's body is fine and perhaps she has some unresolved emotional issues."
She put it very subtly; a few doctors had even privately told them that Zheng Dan wasn't ill, and if she wasn't faking it, then she must be burdened by some emotional distress.
Her immediate thought was the relationship between Zheng Dan and Zu An. After all, her father had recently rejected Zheng Dan's wish to leave the Sang family, and both father and daughter had indeed suspected this issue was the cause.
"Nonsense! Those quacks are incapable of finding the cause of the illness, so they use such absurd reasons to fob off their patients!" Zu An fumed, railing against the doctors.
A faint smile spread across Zheng Dan's face. As someone skilled in song and dance, she naturally sensed the Sang family father and daughter's suspicion towards her.
It seemed Ah Zu truly understood her best.
At this point, San Qian felt a little awkward and could only explain, "We've personally seen Sister-in-law growing thinner and weaker day by day, and we're very worried, so we wanted to see if you had any solutions."
Zu An quickly looked at Zheng Dan. "Besides the weakness, do you have any other symptoms?"
"No specific symptoms, just difficulty sleeping at night and frequent nightmares," Zheng Dan replied.
"What kind of nightmares?" Zu An pressed.
"A nightmare is just a nightmare, it's really awful," Zheng Dan said, a faint blush spreading across her pale cheeks. She often dreamt of being caught in an intimate moment with Zu An by the Sang family father and daughter, then being paraded through the streets, scorned by countless people, and so on.
How could she say such things in front of San Qian?
Zu An had no choice but to change his line of questioning. "How long has this problem been going on?"
"About half a month ago," Zheng Dan said. After just a moment's recall, she couldn't help but yawn several times, clearly very exhausted.
"Half a month ago? I remember last time…" Zu An glanced at San Qian beside him, then paused before continuing, "...it seemed you didn't have this problem when I saw you then."
Zheng Dan replied, "Actually, even then, I had some instances of waking up in the middle of the night, but it wasn't very serious. It's only recently that the situation has gotten worse."
Her tone was also full of worry. She was still in the prime of her life, and there were so many beautiful things in the world; she certainly didn't want to die so young.
"Then did anything special happen half a month ago? Did you meet anyone unusual? Or come into contact with anything peculiar?" Zu An even wondered if she had handled something radioactive.
"Nothing special happened," Zheng Dan said, looking puzzled. "Most of the time, I stayed at the mansion. Sometimes I went out to handle the Zheng family's business in the capital, and a few times, Xiao Qian and I toured parts of the capital."
"Where did you go?" Zu An asked San Qian, as she was more familiar with the capital and could answer better.
"Just some relatively famous scenic spots…" San Qian listed several places, which were indeed common destinations with high daily foot traffic, making it unlikely for problems to arise there.
Zu An thought for a moment and then asked, "Do you have any problems?"
San Qian looked a bit bewildered. "No, my health is perfectly fine."
Zu An fell into contemplation. His first thought was that the Sang family father and daughter had discovered his relationship with Zheng Dan and, to cover up the scandal or avenge their son, had found a way to harm Zheng Dan.
However, he quickly dismissed the idea as unlikely. The alliance between them was currently in its honeymoon period; how could the Sang family make such a dangerous move? If exposed, it would truly be an endless conflict.
Judging by his interactions with them these past few days, there was a much higher probability that someone with Sang Hong's temperament would willingly offer Zheng Dan to him than try to harm her.
The problem, then, must lie with Zheng Dan's activities when she was alone. Most of the time, she stayed in the Sang mansion, and no one else in the mansion had shown any abnormalities…
Suddenly, an idea struck him. He looked at Zheng Dan and asked, "What kind of business does your Zheng family conduct in the capital, and have you had any conflicts with people?"
"Naturally, it's business like silk," Zheng Dan replied, noting that in a place like the capital, engaging in private salt trading like in Brightmoon City was impossible. "As for conflicts, newcomers like us are naturally ostracized by local merchant guilds since we're encroaching on their market. Conflicts are inevitable, but these are just common business tactics, something I've seen plenty of in Brightmoon City before."
Hearing her say this, Zu An was momentarily at a loss, truly unable to guess where the problem lay. He could only say, "I'll stay here and watch over you today, and we'll see if you can fall asleep then."
San Qian's face showed embarrassment. "Brother Zu, isn't that a bit inappropriate?"
Although her father had tacitly approved certain matters, public appearances still needed to be maintained. After all, the Sang family had servants, and if they found out that Zu An was openly staying overnight in the widowed eldest young mistress's room, it would be a huge scandal for the Sang family if word got out, and it wouldn't be good for Zu An's reputation either.
Zu An retorted impatiently, "I didn't say I'd stay overnight. One can still sleep during the day, can't one?"
Hearing it was for the daytime, San Qian finally breathed a sigh of relief. The impact would be much smaller during the day.
Zu An said to San Qian, "Xiao Qian, you can leave now. I'll just stay here and watch over her."
He still had many private things to discuss with Zheng Dan, and having this "third wheel" nearby was quite inconvenient.
San Qian's face was a picture of speechlessness. *This is my home, and she's my sister-in-law. Aren't you being a bit too blatant?*
She could only say, "It's not convenient for me to leave right now; otherwise, if the servants see it, it will easily lead to gossip."
A single man and a single woman alone in a room, even during the day, could easily spark gossip.
*Hmph, if it weren't for the fact that Zheng Dan's health is genuinely poor right now, I would have already turned hostile at such a request.*
Zu An thought it over and agreed. He then said to Zheng Dan, "Go to bed now and sleep. I'll watch over you and see if it makes a difference."
"Okay!" Zheng Dan smiled sweetly. With him by her side, she felt an inexplicable sense of security.
As for San Qian, the current situation left no room for such considerations.
Zheng Dan lay down on the bed, feeling Zu An cover her with the quilt. Her smile softened even more as she turned on her side, quietly watching him.
Zu An looked back at her, gently patting her shoulder. "Sleep peacefully. I will protect you."
"Mm-hmm~" Zheng Dan finally closed her eyes.
Beside them, San Qian's expression shifted, alternating between displeasure and frustration. *These two are truly becoming more and more brazen. Do they think I'm invisible?*
However, she had also witnessed the affection in their gazes, and she sighed softly to herself. *What kind of marriage did Father arrange for Big Brother? These two are clearly in love.*
Whether it was due to extreme fatigue or Zu An's presence, Zheng Dan's breathing quickly became steady, and she evidently drifted off to sleep.
San Qian also breathed a sigh of relief, thinking, *Indeed, this guy is still useful.*
She hesitated, feeling that there were still some things she needed to clarify with Zu An. Just as she was about to speak, Zu An made a shushing gesture.
"Is he annoyed that I'm disturbing him?" San Qian was initially a little annoyed, but then she followed his gaze and noticed that Zheng Dan, who had been lying peacefully on the bed, now had a slight distortion in her brows, as if experiencing something terrifying.
[55 seconds from now] Chapter 1654: Magic Sword
[4 minutes ago] Chapter 1653: Semifinals
[9 minutes ago] Chapter 1652: Conditions
[14 minutes ago] Chapter 1651: Six Major Challenges
[24 minutes ago] Chapter 1650: Secret Chamber
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