Xiao Heye looked at Hanzhou, lowered his voice, and said in a deep voice, "Hanzhou, I can't cut my losses now. Pain or torment, I've never thought of letting go... Since she provoked me, she has to bear the consequences. Even if she's never expressed her feelings, as long as I love her, that's enough. She'll never escape my grasp, and even if she doesn't want to, I'll still be entangled with her relentlessly..."

Han Zhou rolled her eyes at him and coldly replied, "Truly hopeless."

Xiao Heye sighed helplessly, his eyes were red, and his voice was hoarse, as if he were drunk.

Xiao Heye has always had a high alcohol tolerance; however, this man, who carries too many burdens in his heart, gets drunk very easily.

The saying "It's not the wine that intoxicates, but the person who intoxicates" perfectly describes Xiao Heye's state at this moment.

Although Han Zhou was disgusted by the love between men and women in this world, he only wanted to help his brother conquer the world. He had no time to care about these matters of love and affection.

But then again, with his brother in this state, I doubt anyone could win him over.

Han Zhou thought for a moment, then asked him, "So what are you thinking now? You can't keep going on like this, can you?"

Xiao Heye nodded and hummed in agreement. He then tilted his head back and gulped down a few more mouthfuls of wine. “I’m very angry, but I can’t bear to be angry with her. I want to have a good talk with her, but she’s not very bright. She’s too emotional and too impulsive… She won’t listen to anything when her family is mentioned. Just thinking about it gives me a headache, and I don’t want to say anything anymore.”

Xiao Heye glanced at Han Zhou opposite him and asked, "Isn't it ridiculous? I know in my heart that this isn't really a big deal. I've thought about just letting it go, since no one's been killed, and pretending nothing happened. But after thinking about it carefully, I realize that Yue'er is spoiled by me. She thinks I won't get angry no matter what she does. If this matter is just left unresolved, I'm afraid she won't learn her lesson, and I'm also afraid she'll always be testing my limits."

What is his bottom line?

Perhaps it's about trust.

Xiao Heye didn't even dare to ask for Su Tiyue's love.

But at the very least, regardless of the nature of the relationship, trust is the most basic requirement.

Xiao Heye saw through the darkness and coldness of the world from a young age, and also saw through the hypocrisy and selfishness of people.

Therefore, he has always been most averse to being deceived or betrayed by others.

Han Zhou understood. He frowned, feeling that the matter wasn't so difficult to resolve; it was just that Xiao Heye cared too much and overthought things, which led to the current situation.

"Concern leads to confusion"—this perfectly describes Xiao Heye.

Han Zhou scratched his head, puzzled, and said, "So the way my brother taught her a lesson was to say nothing and let her reflect on it herself? You're torturing yourself and her at the same time? And then both of you are suffering at the same time...?"

“You just said she’s not very bright. If she could understand this, she wouldn’t have done it in the first place. Besides, brother, you know this is the Prince of Huainan’s scheme to sow discord. The more awkward you two are, the more you play into his hands.”

Han Zhou continued, "You know perfectly well that the Prince of Huainan has ill intentions towards her. Why don't you take this opportunity to solidify your position in her heart? Once the Prince of Huainan returns from the Southern Frontier... oh right, when the Prince of Huainan returns from the Southern Frontier, he will definitely be her brother's savior. At that time, if your sweetheart makes a mistake again and turns around and throws herself into the Prince of Huainan's arms, tsk tsk tsk, I simply can't imagine what kind of madness you will go through then?"

Xiao Heye: "...Would it really be like that?"

"Whether it's true or not, you'll know once you try it."

Xiao Heye's sword-like eyebrows furrowed into a deep frown. Without saying a word, he gulped down a few more mouthfuls of Jinling wine, then slammed the wine jar heavily onto the ground, as if he had made some kind of decision.

He stood up, the gloom in his eyes gradually dissipating: "Hanzhou, I have to go back first. I'll drink with you again next time."

Han Zhou stared blankly at him for a moment, then at the Jinling wine that had been smashed to pieces on the ground, and said with a pained expression, "No... if you're going to leave, just leave. Why did you smash my wine? There are only these two jars of Jinling wine left in the entire Yong'an..."

Xiao Heye walked up to him, patted him on the shoulder and said, "Don't worry, your brother loves you so much, next time I'll give you even better wine than this."

Han Zhou was helpless.

When Xiao Heye reached the door, he twisted his ankle, whether because he was in a hurry or because he was really drunk. Fortunately, Li Xun caught him in time.

The two left Qiushui Residence, leaving Hanzhou alone, clutching the lonely jar of Jinling wine.

For some reason, Han Zhou felt strange. Back then, when his brother wanted to be with that woman, Han Zhou was the one who reacted most strongly among everyone.

But what about now?

When Xiao Heye and Su Tiyue had a conflict, Han Zhou became the master at resolving their relationship.

He sighed, then tilted his head back and gulped down several mouthfuls of wine.

Now, it's Hanzhou's turn to be unhappy.

He deserves to die, he thought.

Since those two have already gone this far, with Han Zhou's silver tongue, all he needs to do is add a few more embellishments and their relationship will probably fall apart.

...

*

The carriage creaked and groaned as it hurried back, but by the time it arrived at Yelan Pavilion, it was already dark.

Before returning to the palace, Xiao Heye went to another place.

The door to the room was pushed open, and Su Tiyue sat behind the screen on a wooden chair next to the dressing table.

She wore her usual moon-white nightgown, which belonged to Xiao Heye. It was thin yet silky smooth, and very comfortable to wear.

She appeared to have just finished showering; she was barefoot, with her legs bent, sitting in a chair.

She heard the door open, behind the screen. She turned and looked towards the doorway.

Xiao Heye closed the door, his steps unsteady due to the alcohol he had been drinking.

He walked straight up to Su Tiyue, holding a vermilion brocade box in his hand.

He lowered his eyes, looked at her for a moment, and then placed the things in his hand on the dressing table.

Xiao Heye squatted down, reached out and warmed her fair, slightly cold feet that were resting on the chair in his hands. He lowered his voice and said gently, "I have something to say..."