Nan Zhiyun slowly walked forward. Without the embellishment of rouge and powder, Nan Zhiyun's face looked even more haggard.

Rather than saying she looked haggard, it was more like she had a poignant beauty that evoked pity and heartache.

"Your Majesty," Nan Zhiyun curtsied.

Yu Jingchen had never really looked at Nan Zhiyun properly before, but now that he saw her carefully, he felt that she was really thin and frail, as if a gust of wind could blow her away.

However, in his previous life, she had also taken a sword for him. Although he could have avoided that sword, and Nan Zhiyun wouldn't have needed to do that for him, she still bravely blocked it. Perhaps Nan Zhiyun's motives weren't pure at that time, but Yu Jingchen had to admit that it was impossible for him not to have some emotional turmoil.

Therefore, in this life, he had much more patience for Nan Zhiyun, and he thought it was probably only for this one reason... Perhaps that was it...

"Rest," Yu Jingchen said without saying anything else.

Nan Zhiyun didn't say anything more after hearing that. She was... well, very nervous. It had been a long time since she had spent time with Yu Jingchen like this, and besides, Yu Jingchen had never been so calm and collected towards her before.

Even when Yu Jingchen did certain things with me in the past, it was just like a routine, with absolutely no extra expression on his face. After finishing, he usually wouldn't stay.

When Nan Zhiyun lay on the bed, her body was stiff, and she didn't dare to move. Yu Jingchen could naturally feel it; after he lay down, he clearly sensed the tension and unease on Nan Zhiyun's side.

There was still some distance between the two, and Nan Zhiyun didn't even dare to breathe too heavily.

"Go to sleep," Yu Jingchen said nothing, simply closing his eyes.

When the two men stopped to rest, the palace servants at the gate went to extinguish the candles and then withdrew.

Yu Jingchen could sense that Nan Zhiyun's breathing became noticeably erratic after the candlelight went out. Was she afraid? Afraid of the dark?

Yu Jingchen frowned: "What's wrong?" he asked.

"It's nothing..." Nan Zhiyun's voice was a little unsteady.

"Afraid?" Yu Jingchen did not give in.

“…Hmm,” Nan Zhiyun did not deny it this time.

She's afraid of the dark; she's been afraid of the dark since she was little.

There was no sound from Yu Jingchen's side for a while. Nan Zhiyun gripped the blanket tightly in fear, trying her best to control herself so as not to disturb Yu Jingchen.

After a long while, Yu Jingchen let out a barely perceptible sigh, seemingly helpless.

"It's dark even when you close your eyes, so why are you afraid of the darkness when the lights are off? It's all in your mind, don't worry about it too much." Yu Jingchen grabbed Nan Zhiyun's hand and then let her hold his arm.

“That should make things better. Lighting the lamps is out of the question. You’ll have to overcome this problem yourself sooner or later, so let’s start now,” Yu Jingchen said.

When Nan Zhiyun's hand grabbed Yu Jingchen's arm, it felt somewhat unreal, and even the words Yu Jingchen was saying now seemed too surreal to her.

However, she did not let go of his hand, nor did she dare to actually hold his arm; she merely held onto his clothes, maintaining a proper sense of propriety.

However, this didn't help much; he was still afraid, and Yu Jingchen seemed helpless.

"Still afraid?" he asked.

"Hmm... I'm sorry to bother Your Majesty," Nan Zhiyun said, fearing she would incur Yu Jingchen's displeasure again.

"It's quite troublesome; I'm not very bold when I should be," Yu Jingchen said. Before Nan Zhiyun could even feel down, Yu Jingchen reached out, looped his hand over her head, and placed it on her shoulder. It was like he was hugging her, only with a distance between them.