Mu Yunchen's expression shifted—confusion giving way to growing alarm.
"Li Feng," he said, his voice gaining a thread of strength despite the pain. "Tell me you... told her. Tell me she knows... why I didn't answer."
Li Feng looked down at his hands, unable to meet his master's eyes.
"I didn't tell her," he admitted quietly. "I thought... I thought it was better to wait until you were stable. Until you could make that decision yourself."
"How long?" Mu Yunchen asked, his voice dropping to something cold and dangerous despite its weakness. "How long have I... been here?"
"Thirty-six hours since the attack," Li Feng said. "You've been unconscious the entire time. We brought you out of sedation this morning, and you're just now waking up fully."
Mu Yunchen's eyes closed, and Li Feng saw his jaw clench with pain—not physical pain this time, but something worse.
"Thirty-six hours," Mu Yunchen repeated softly. "And she doesn't know."
"Master, I made a judgment call—"
