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Chapter 62: Beneath the Calm
At this moment, I actually feel a bit reluctant…
Yun Chu’s body leaned closer, his voice filled with concern. “It’s uncomfortable sleeping here. Did Your Highness have a nightmare?”
“…Mm.”
Meeting his gaze, Li Yunli lowered her head slightly, her throat dry and hoarse.
Having such a dream, then opening her eyes to find the very person from that dream right in front of her—who wouldn’t panic?
Even someone as composed as Li Yunli found this situation both awkward and unsettling.
The original novel mentioned that in the past, Yun Chu obeyed her every word, enduring humiliation and biding his time.
So it wasn’t just words—he had actually endured humiliation to this extent?
Even in the most intimate of moments, he could still maintain such restraint?!
The emotions in his eyes during the dream had been too real, so much so that Li Yunli still felt a bit dazed.
She pressed her fingers against her temples, still not fully awake from the dream.
Seeing her pale face, Yun Chu instinctively reached out to check her temperature.
But as she quickly avoided him, Yun Chu looked at her in confusion. “Your Highness?”
Li Yunli exhaled lightly and curled up her legs. “I’m fine.”
Though she had always led a restrained life, never indulging in excess, she was well aware that a lover who could bring complete joy in intimacy was an absolute soulmate—someone difficult to part with.
Perhaps that was why the original character tolerated all his little manipulations, eventually leading to her demise and the fall of her kingdom.
Beauty was a fatal distraction. Beauty led to ruin.
She let out a slow breath and tossed a log into the fire, quickly regaining her usual composure.
“I was just caught in a nightmare and didn’t sleep well. It’s nothing.”
Yun Chu lowered his head slightly. “I should have been more considerate.”
“No, it’s not your fault.”
Li Yunli secretly sighed in relief.
Fortunately, the Yun Chu before her now was not the flawless, deceitful Yun Chu from her dream. He was real.
She sniffed the air and changed the subject. “The meat is almost done, right? It smells delicious.”
Yun Chu’s gaze returned to the roasting meat, and he smiled lightly. “Your Highness has been asleep for a while. The perilla leaves have been cleaned. Just a little longer, and it will be ready to eat.”
Her stomach had been growling for some time, but the intense dream had momentarily made her forget her hunger.
She hummed in acknowledgment, taking in the aroma, and suddenly realized how starving she was.
As Yun Chu turned the meat over, Li Yunli’s gaze was drawn to his fingers.
His hands were long and slender, clean and warm.
In the dream, the hand that had supported her neck had been just like this…
Li Yunli quickly shook her head, dispelling the distracting thoughts.
No, she couldn’t keep thinking this way!
Yun Chu had already noticed her unusual behavior today. His quiet gaze rested on her.
Leaning against the pile of firewood, Li Yunli tried to focus on serious matters to drive away her stray thoughts.
“There are no large military forces stationed in Yongzhou, only the garrison troops under Yang Xu. If Yongcheng Hou intends to move against me, Yongzhou could also be in danger.”
Yun Chu’s hand, which had been turning the meat, paused.
Even in her dreams, she was thinking about these things?
Still…
He stirred the fire, breaking apart the accumulated charcoal, then looked at Li Yunli. “Miss Ji is in Yongzhou. It won’t fall into chaos anytime soon. Besides, Yongcheng Hou commands the Chu army. There’s no reason for him to attack Yongzhou. Your Highness may be overthinking this.”
Yun Chu didn’t say much, assuming she had just woken up and was still blurring the lines between dream and reality.
Li Yunli coughed, realizing just how ridiculous her offhand remark was.
Not only had her attempt to change the subject failed, but she had also drawn attention to her own distraction.
She pressed her cool palm over her eyes and leaned her head back helplessly.
“Tell me, have I gone mad?”
Yun Chu turned to her, watching patiently.
“Hmm?”
Li Yunli let out a small, bitter laugh and finally admitted, “At this moment, I actually feel a bit reluctant to see you go.”
The thought was so foreign that she hardly recognized herself.
Even as she spoke, the voice didn’t seem like her own.
Yun Chu was momentarily stunned.
“You…”
His expression changed, slowly filling with joy. His heart pounded wildly.
“I should be worried,” Li Yunli continued, meeting his gaze with honesty. “Once you leave, I’ll have no way of contacting you, no control over your actions. Letting a man who has successfully taken his revenge return to the Wei army is like releasing a tiger back into the wild. I’m taking a gamble. A huge one.”
Yun Chu’s eyes flickered. Hearing her words, his spirits lifted instantly. “If it’s a gamble, I will make sure Your Highness does not lose!”
Li Yunli curled her lips into a small smile and nodded.
At this moment, she finally understood something she had never grasped before—the string named emotion.
Just like when King Zhou, on the verge of death, held Su Daji and uttered: I’ve always known my beloved is a fox spirit.
Some emotions were inherently reckless.
Love was like poppy flowers—clearly poisonous, yet impossible to resist once it bloomed.
Even knowing the dangers ahead, the moment the flower opened, one had already lost the power to resist.
Even an emperor could not pass the test of beauty. She was just an ordinary person—greedy for wealth, lustful for beauty, easily tempted—why should she restrain herself?
For now, he was still in a weaker position, and she was not afraid of nurturing a tiger.
“Alright.”
As if making a firm resolution, Li Yunli pushed herself up by her knees and leaned a little closer to him.
“This time, I make this vow—when everything is settled, I will personally welcome you back!”
Ji Wenxun received the news early in the morning and climbed the city walls. Looking down, she saw that the one leading the troops was none other than Yongcheng Hou, He Liancheng.
The banners bore the insignia of the Western Border Army, but the soldiers’ faces and uniforms were unfamiliar.
His troops had been calling at the gates for a while.
Ji Wenxun stood on the city wall, looking at the banners below, and laughed.
“Lord Hou, it’s not that I refuse you entry, but as the acting governor of Yongzhou under the command of the Princess, I must follow the law. Without an imperial decree bearing His Majesty’s seal, these troops cannot enter the city.”
Meanwhile, Li Yunli and Yun Chu made their way down the mountain, only to find their path blocked by water on all sides.
Yun Chu cut bamboo to make a raft, and they drifted downstream.
After a short while, they reached deeper, calmer waters.
Seated on the raft, Li Yunli watched Yun Chu paddle.
She observed how the water was channeled into separate streams.
No wonder this area, though not elevated, had never been flooded—there was an irrigation system in place.
The nomadic Wurong people had built such an infrastructure?
She was surprised.
Deep in thought about Yongzhou’s predicament, she was abruptly pulled back by the sound of music.
She looked up to see Yun Chu holding a leaf to his lips, playing a tune.
A farewell song.
One raft, two people—one seated, one standing.
Their reflections were crystal clear in the water, with fish swimming below.
The melody washed away the exhaustion. A gentle breeze brushed against her face.
Ahead, the early morning sun shone bright and pure.