Yu Jingchen reached out his hand to her, and Nan Zhiyun handed him the book without saying a word. Yu Jingchen could see her reluctance and found it amusing.

"It's just temporarily putting it down, it's not like I'm not giving it back to you. Looking at it for too long is bad for your eyes, you can take it back whenever you want to look at it later," Yu Jingchen said, then put the book Nan Zhiyun had given him aside.

"What's wrong? Do you like watching it?" Yu Jingchen asked her, simply because he didn't know what to say and was making conversation on purpose.

Nan Zhiyun's expression was a little unnatural; she probably liked it but was just too embarrassed to say it.

"If you like it, you like it; if you don't, just say so. What's there to be afraid of?" Yu Jingchen said helplessly. She patted Nan Zhiyun's head. She wanted to dodge, but she couldn't.

"The Empress Dowager just sent a few palace maids over. Let them serve you for the next few days, okay? If they do anything inappropriate, just tell me directly," Yu Jingchen said. Upon hearing the words "Empress Dowager," Nan Zhiyun finally looked at Yu Jingchen.

"Is it not allowed?" he asked.

"Mmm," Nan Zhiyun replied.

"Say what you don't like, don't keep it bottled up, can you do that?" Yu Jingchen told her. Nan Zhiyun pursed her lips and didn't say anything this time.

"When you feel better in a couple of days, I'll take you out for a stroll, okay?" He wanted to encourage Nan Zhiyun to talk to him more often.

However, Nan Zhiyun didn't understand, or perhaps she did but was too afraid to say it. The two remained at an impasse, and Yu Jingchen waited for a long time without receiving a response, finally giving up. Let's take it slow; there's no need to dwell on this now.

Nan Zhiyun wouldn't completely change her opinion of him based on just a few words; she remained wary of him.

"If you feel uncomfortable, I can have someone invite the Empress Dowager over, is that alright?" Yu Jingchen asked her. Since he didn't get a response from Nan Zhiyun, he was prepared to directly arrange for someone to summon the Empress Dowager.

"No need..." Nan Zhiyun said softly. Yu Jingchen was a little surprised. Was she saying this to him on her own initiative? Or was it a refusal?

"What?" Yu Jingchen clearly heard it, but he still asked on purpose.

When Yu Jingchen asked Nan Zhiyun a question, she immediately panicked and lowered her head.

"What's wrong? Why aren't you saying anything? Tell me what you just said, okay?" he gently asked, but Nan Zhiyun lowered her head further and further.

"Hmm?" Yu Jingchen moved closer to her, his gentle breath washing over her, making Nan Zhiyun's heart flutter with unease.

"Tell me, okay? What do you no longer need?" Yu Jingchen asked her.

“…We won’t go to invite the Empress Dowager…” Nan Zhiyun said softly.

"Why?" Yu Jingchen asked her.

"I don't want to..." Nan Zhiyun didn't want the Empress Dowager to worry too much about her, and she didn't want the Empress Dowager to spend all her attention on her.

Seeing Nan Zhiyun's expression, Yu Jingchen knew she didn't want to say anything more, so he knew when to stop and didn't press further. Instead, he said, "I'm glad. You can tell me this if you have any questions in the future. That's great." He really treated Nan Zhiyun like a little girl.

Nan Zhiyun was surprised to receive such a response from Yu Jingchen, and was still somewhat bewildered when Yu Jingchen held her in his arms.

For two days in a row, Yu Jingchen did not leave Zichen Palace, nor did anyone come here. Or rather, even if they did come, Yu Jingchen did not allow them to enter.

Although Yu Jingchen never left Zichen Palace or attended court, he still brought over the memorials as usual.

Nan Zhiyun had been pampered by Yu Jingchen for two days, and her injuries were almost healed, but they still hurt a lot when touched. Yu Jingchen applied medicine to her every day, and after spending these two days together, Nan Zhiyun's fear of Yu Jingchen was not as intense as before.

Because of her injury, Nan Zhiyun hadn't taken a bath for several days, and she felt extremely uncomfortable all over. Seeing that Yu Jingchen wasn't there, she gave an order to those below.

"Qianxia, ​​have someone prepare water, I want to take a bath..." Nan Zhiyun said this with a guilty conscience, because Yu Jingchen did not agree to let her touch water.

"Your Highness, your injuries haven't fully healed yet." Qianxia wasn't really supportive, but she didn't know how to persuade her.

"It's all ready. Please prepare some water for me," Nan Zhiyun said.

“…Yes,” Qianxia agreed.

"Prepare water first, but don't tell His Majesty," Nan Zhiyun added, perhaps still a little worried.

“…Yes,” Qianxia agreed, but silently added in her heart, “This is Zichen Palace. How could His Majesty not know about this? How could it be kept secret? Especially since His Majesty is right outside.”

Sure enough, just as Qianxia had begun preparations, Yu Jingchen entered. Nan Zhiyun was startled when she saw him, and felt extremely guilty.

"What's wrong?" Yu Jingchen had heard that something was wrong inside, but he didn't know exactly what had happened.

Nan Zhiyun shook her head, but how could her little actions possibly escape Yu Jingchen's notice?

"You lied? Hmm?" Yu Jingchen asked her with a smile.

Being directly exposed by Yu Jingchen like this, Nan Zhiyun felt extremely uncomfortable, her fear written all over her face. Yu Jingchen smiled at this, a hint of helplessness in his eyes. Why was she still acting like a little rabbit?

"I'm not angry, I'm just worried that something might be wrong with you," Yu Jingchen explained. He didn't know if he was overthinking it, but he always felt uneasy, afraid that he might accidentally lose Nan Zhiyun completely.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!