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At the time when His Highness was at his lowest…
The spring hunt was not far off, just a little over ten days away.
Li Yunli had received the news in advance. After taking a moment to catch her breath, she had enough time to prepare. Messages were sent and received in a flurry, like falling snowflakes, but time was still on her side.
The one who was tense, however, was Yun Chu.
A few days earlier, Li Yunli had already noticed his unusual behavior.
Since returning from Yongzhou, she had not restricted his movements. Yun Chu could come and go freely, with secret guards accompanying him.
Yet despite this, he had always been someone who rarely stepped outside. However, in the past few afternoons, he was barely seen.
He always returned before dinner and spent the nights in the same room with her, eating and living together. Li Yunli noticed his anxiety but had not pointed it out.
Previously, he had tasted the forbidden fruit, and once he had experienced it, he craved it every night.
But in these past few days, even in their most intimate moments, she could sense his distraction.
Finally, Li Yunli could not hold back anymore.
“Who did you meet today?”
The two of them lay side by side under the same quilt. Li Yunli pushed his shoulder, and she could clearly feel the tension in his back.
“I…” Yun Chu closed his eyes in the darkness, his voice calming. “I didn’t go out today, Your Highness.”
Li Yunli doubted, “I didn’t see you all afternoon.”
“I wasn’t at Hanmei Residence. I was in the small courtyard behind the old bamboo grove.” Yun Chu blinked lightly. His words were seamless. “The transplanted flowers and trees have started to grow.”
Since their return, he had been living with Li Yunli in Hanmei Residence. She had nearly forgotten about the small courtyard that once belonged to her consort.
She exhaled lightly. “You’ve been back for so long, why have you been going there these past few days? Are you anxious? Or avoiding me?”
“I’m not avoiding you. Dongsheng mentioned that the interior decorations were being arranged, so I went to make some decisions.” Yun Chu reached out and gently touched her face, rubbing against her in a search for reassurance. “And yes, I am worried. The spring hunt is approaching, and we still haven’t retrieved the White Tiger Token.”
His admission was honest. Yun Chu sighed lightly. “It was my oversight. I thought we could retrieve it later, but things changed unexpectedly.”
He had wanted so badly to return to her side. So when Li Yunli told him to come back in Yongzhou, he had ignored the consequences.
The price of that recklessness was the worry and regret he felt now. He had always been walking on the edge of a cliff, and though he wanted to turn back, both directions led to sheer drops.
Li Yunli, unaware that she was one of those cliffs, frowned slightly. “You probably don’t understand the skills of the royal secret guards. Yishui alone has more than a fifty percent chance of success, and now he has help. You can rest assured.”
After all, in the book, the royal secret guards were practically omnipotent, skilled in every field.
Yun Chu lowered his gaze.
Of course, he knew the royal secret guards’ capabilities. In his past life, he had suffered countless losses at their hands. If he didn’t trust them, he wouldn’t have sent Yishui alone to retrieve the White Tiger Token.
At this point, he only hummed lightly in response.
His demeanor clearly showed he was still distracted. Li Yunli couldn’t understand why he was so deeply worried over a mere token. If he truly cared about his old subordinates so much, how could he have been the ruthless Prince Wei from the original story?
She wasn’t necessarily suspicious, but something just didn’t feel right.
“You’re hiding something from me.”
Li Yunli stared at the embroidered canopy above the bed. It wasn’t a question—it was a statement.
Yun Chu’s expression froze for a moment, staring at her in shock.
Li Yunli: “Do the words you’ve said before still hold true?”
“Of course they do!” Yun Chu’s voice grew urgent. “No matter what, every word I’ve ever said to you is true! I haven’t hidden anything from you!”
“Then what are you worried about? That Yishui won’t succeed? That the old forces of Wei might actually be mobilized? That I would deal with them decisively?” Li Yunli gazed at him. “I am willing to trust you, but do you not dare to trust me?”
“No, it’s not like that, Your Highness.”
Yun Chu immediately denied it, but Li Yunli had already sat up in bed, looking at him calmly. Yun Chu quickly followed suit, sitting up as well.
“I do trust you, Your Highness, I just…”
The crease in his brows betrayed his excessive unease.
How could he tell Li Yunli that he was actually small and insignificant, that he had done too many things that wronged her, and that he was afraid she would remember the past?
But Li Yunli was not a mind-reader. She couldn’t see the worries he hadn’t voiced and could only analyze the situation from a strategic perspective.
“Just what?”
“I…”
Looking into Li Yunli’s eyes, he felt as though he was falling into an abyss, unable to see the bottom. The weightlessness and dizziness wrapped around his soul, making it impossible to maintain his usual composure.
“If everything is exposed, will I still be able to stand by Your Highness’s side?”
His gaze fell on his hands, resting atop the brocade quilt. His voice was full of despair.
“You…”
Li Yunli was caught off guard.
She had never expected that the thing he was so worried about… was this?
His eyes were filled with sorrow, revealing a deep and unwavering devotion.
Li Yunli hesitated for a moment.
She had long known that Yun Chu loved her deeply. She had already prepared herself to respond to his feelings, yet when she truly felt his fear of losing her, she felt an unexpected sense of melancholy.
She had thought she understood her feelings for him. The career-driven woman who had never fallen in love suddenly wanted to stop and try. But the road ahead seemed long and uncertain.
His love was so overwhelming that she realized her own response was still too shallow.
She had been surpassed. Her competitive nature stirred within her.
Was it true that loving someone too much led to such anxiety and fear?
Did it make one feel constantly in debt, always afraid of losing them?
A thousand thoughts flashed through her mind in an instant before she slowly spoke. “Why worry about this? Even if everything is exposed, I have enough power to ensure my own survival. And beyond that, even if Prince Changling tries to pin the assassination attempt on you, I can guarantee your safety.”
Her gaze at Yun Chu softened.
“Even so, you still can’t feel at ease?”
Yun Chu took a long, slow breath.
His worry was something he couldn’t put into words, and he dared not openly accept her comfort.
This worry was ultimately a struggle within himself—to either accept the consequences or cling to the present moment.
He exhaled and forced a faint smile.
“If so, then I must trouble Your Highness.”
Yet his thoughts remained scattered, unable to settle. He needed reassurance.
He steadied his tone and, with as much normalcy as possible, asked softly, “Your Highness, would you like osmanthus cake tomorrow?”
His fingers had unconsciously gripped the quilt tightly, his entire focus on her answer.
Li Yunli rubbed her temples.
Everyone in the manor knew that the original Li Yunli had loved osmanthus cake. It had to be decorated perfectly, and the osmanthus used had to be Buddha’s Hand Osmanthus.
The problem was, it happened to match her own taste exactly. A new kitchen assistant had once used the wrong type of osmanthus, and she had noticed instantly.
“No.”
She wasn’t deliberately rejecting him, but the recent dreams had given her unpleasant associations. She and the original Li Yunli were too similar.
“I don’t really feel like eating it anymore. I told the kitchen last month to stop making it.”
She didn’t notice how Yun Chu’s expression darkened the moment she spoke.
His fingertips, icy cold, slowly released their grip on the quilt.
Then, in a whisper, he replied, “Alright.”
So… it wasn’t just his imagination. For a whole month, she really had been avoiding osmanthus cake.