Mu Beichen's tears fell silently onto Yu Qianqian's body, and the arm holding her slender waist trembled slightly.

Yu Qianqian seemed oblivious to this, hooking her arms around Mu Beichen's neck as she slowly rose, her fingertips gently wiping away the tear stains on his cheeks, each touch exceptionally tender.

"Does it still hurt?" Mu Beichen carefully placed her on his lap, took her ten fingers in his hand, and asked gently, his voice tinged with a sob.

"I'm not in pain..." Yu Qianqian gently pulled her hands out of his palms, brushed a strand of hair around her fingertips, lifted her eyelids to meet his eyes, and smiled slightly: "Achen, do you still remember when we first met in Beicheng? I was still young then, and you were also an innocent and naive boy. But the moment I saw you, I felt as if we had known each other for a long time. So at that moment, I made up my mind to use all my strength to hold you tightly for the rest of my life."

Looking up at him, her heart skipped a beat, and she paused slightly before continuing unhurriedly, "But we've missed so much over the years. It's been a full ten years since we parted ways at the General's Mansion. Yu Qianqian comes from a military family, so she's naturally wild and fierce, no different from a boy since childhood. It wasn't until I met A-Chen that she gradually developed a gentler side. Therefore, I always felt a great sense of crisis, and only brute force could keep you firmly under my control. But now, I have no choice but to let go..."

"Qianqian, you're talking nonsense again. There's much more to our relationship than just those ten years. We'll be spending many more decades together. You think you can get rid of me in this lifetime? It won't be that easy." Mu Beichen stared intently at her, his gaze unwavering for a long time. His deep pain seemed to pierce her soul. As he finished speaking, he immediately tightened his grip on her hand.

Yu Qianqian sat quietly on Mu Beichen's lap, her eyes unconsciously gleaming. She hesitated for a long time but did not utter a word, and her whole body softly slumped down against his chest.

Feeling a soft object fall into his arms, his heart trembled violently, but his face remained expressionless. He simply raised his hand and gently stroked Yu Qianqian's hair again and again, and slowly said, "Qianqian, if you are tired, go to sleep peacefully. No matter when you wake up, Achen will always be there for you."

He looked down at her, and suddenly felt a cold current rush into his arms. Only then did he see that her pale face was devoid of any color, and even her originally petite and delicate figure was thinner than before. At this moment, she seemed to have lost all her life. From this angle, the person in his arms looked exactly like a corpse.

He knew perfectly well that Yu Qianqian was currently unconscious due to the effects of the poison, yet he still held her tightly in the same position, refusing to let go even in the face of death, fearing that she would leave him forever.

Mu Beichen felt he had never been so terrified in his life. He even thought that if Yu Qianqian were to die, he would abandon everything and follow her in death.

Not long after, when the imperial physician arrived and saw them sitting together with their eyes closed, he swallowed back the words he was about to say. He immediately felt caught in a dilemma, unable to leave or stay.

"Be careful, don't disturb the Empress."

Mu Beichen carefully placed Yu Qianqian on the couch. The moment he spoke with his back to the camera, the quiet atmosphere in the room was suddenly broken by a soft rebuke, which slowly faded away in each other's ears.