After wiping away their tears, the two sat across from each other with nothing to say.
Xie Zhixing hesitated for a moment, finding it hard to begin, "What...do you think?"
"Think about what?"
Yun Jiao was puzzled.
"About me."
Yun Jiao was immediately at a loss. What could she think? "You are the ruler of the world, the Emperor. How can I have any thoughts? If I have to say something, I just hope you’re well." She didn’t want to become an Imperial Concubine, nor guard the tombs.
However, considering how much the Eldest Prince respected her, there might be another way out.
Thinking of this, she suddenly felt there was no need to hope for the Emperor’s well-being.
"It’s all just official words."
Xie Zhixing felt bitter in his heart. Clearly, he was the one who hoped they would keep their distance, yet when he heard her speak so freely, he felt twisted inside.
Realizing this, Xie Zhixing was shocked—
He was confused and hypocritical, wanting everything, how pretentious!
This wasn’t even mutual affection, yet he was already losing his mind. The matter of love is truly terrifying!
"I want to know if you miss me or not. I want to hear the truth."
Afrayed though he was, with her sitting right in front of him, he couldn’t help but ask.
Yun Jiao couldn’t break her habit of courting disaster. She glanced at the Emperor and whispered, "Emperor, are we close enough for me to speak the truth to you?"
Xie Zhixing was at a loss for words.
Indeed, he had neglected her these days, and in her eyes, she must have felt out of favor.
"Do you think I don’t like you anymore?"
"The entire harem thinks so."
Yun Jiao spoke with utmost sincerity.
She had no experience in love and was not one to overthink things. If she liked someone, she wanted to interact more and be treated well. The Emperor suddenly coming up to her and saying such things felt to her as if a game character, an NPC she hadn’t met once in a year, suddenly appeared and declared eternal devotion to her.
How abrupt!
Xie Zhixing was at a loss for words again, yet secretly pleased.
Her blame must mean she cared for him.
"It’s not that I don’t like you, just..."
When it came to concern for the entire harem, it was nothing compared to his feelings for her.
Precisely because he cared too much, he didn’t dare get closer. Looking at her was like looking at an Immortal or spirit; getting too close might lead his heart to be captivated, unsure of what he might become!
"I just want to give every concubine a home. I understand, I’m not jealous."
Yun Jiao nodded understandingly.
When she played "Emperor Growth Plan," she experienced what it was like to be an Emperor. Not only choosing concubines every year, but during the Chongyang Festival, forcibly conscripting women, going on campaigns just for exotic beauties, sometimes even having designs on the wives and concubines of sons and ministers...blame only the illustrations for being too beautiful! How could the Emperor of a wealthy empire not afford a harem of three thousand?
She understood but only to a certain extent.
Seeing this, Xie Zhixing couldn’t help but smile bitterly, "In other matters, you’re muddled, yet only in feelings are you clear, while I’m the complete opposite."
A man indifferent for over twenty years suddenly awakens, becoming so passionate he himself is at a loss.
Yun Jiao was unsure if he was praising or calling her foolish, "Since the Emperor thinks I’m muddled, don’t beat around the bush. I don’t understand."
"What I have expressed is merely the tip of the iceberg of my thoughts over these days."
"Then don’t think too much."
"It’s not as if I want to think so much!"
Xie Zhixing glared at her, his beautiful, almost poetic eyes filled with resentment.
Compared to his lofty appearance, Yun Jiao preferred him with the demeanor of a little grudge bearer, one might even call it cute: "The Emperor thinks of me one moment, and fights three hundred rounds with Concubine Lan the next, clearly indicating the dragon root has its own ideas!"
"Three hundred rounds of battle?"
Xie Zhixing frowned, "Ever since our argument, I haven’t favored any other concubines. I flipped her plaque only to relieve the Empress Dowager’s worries and avoid court gossip. I’m not as devoted to the harem as you think."
Eating buffet every day, yet not a single dish to his liking.
Without moving his chopsticks, he still had to be checked on by elders.
"Then why choose Concubine Lan? Aren’t there better options? The Emperor clearly likes exotic beauties."
Yun Jiao looked at him.
It’s complicated. Xie Zhixing always sought to balance the power struggle between the Wei and Ji families. The families of the concubines all had factions, and favoring any of them was a hassle. However, Concubine Lan, both in rank and background, passed; her family ties were detached from the Court, making her an ideal tool.
He had a small idea—
Both Concubine Lan and Yun Jiao possessed qualities absent in aristocratic women. He thought if he looked at Concubine Lan more, he could rid himself of enchantment.
But the more he looked, the more annoyed he became, the more he thought of Yun Jiao.
If Lady were here, she would understand his difficulties, all without words.
But with Yun Jiao, he had to break it down bit by bit for her to understand a little.
After explaining, Xie Zhixing said, "I haven’t touched her, you can check the records if you don’t believe me."
Yun Jiao shook her head, "No need, I don’t care."
"No, you must see it."
Xie Zhixing ordered Ying Lu to bring the record book, determined to prove his innocence to his beloved.
Yet his beloved thought perhaps he was simply overworked and a bit off.