Chapter 125 Taming the Pet: Is He Really Not Going to Forgive Him?

At this moment, the red spots on his hands and face had all disappeared.

Lu Lingyue finally emerged from behind the gauze curtain, revealing his handsome and flawless face.

However, his pale lips still showed signs of fading.

“Your Majesty, this matter is not solely Yu Shiqing’s fault; Shi Shen also made mistakes.”

At this point, Lu Lingyue had completely lost the aggressiveness she had shown in front of Yu'er, and her words became much softer.

“That day in the Imperial Garden, I shouldn’t have argued with Yu Shiqing because of his words.”

"This time, considering that Minister Yu is young and it was just a momentary lapse of judgment, and that no serious offense has been committed, Your Majesty should let him off lightly."

Lu Lingyue spoke softly, her eyes glistening with tears, her lips slightly pursed, making her look rather pitiful.

The system hissed.

Why does Lu Lingyue's current appearance seem so familiar?

His words seemed to be speaking for Yu'er, but something about them sounded rather strange.

If the system can detect something, Yuan Yan can naturally hear it too.

“He’s not young anymore. If this isn’t a major fault, then what is?”

Given Yu'er's temperament, if she is not severely punished this time, she will surely make an even bigger mistake next time, and then it will be difficult to control the situation.

"Besides, given how Yu Shiqing treated you, are you still going to plead for him?" she asked noncommittally.

Lu Lingyue: "To tell the truth, I don't actually like Yu Shiqing."

After all, who would like a man who dominates the wife's attention?

"But rather than punishing him, I would rather not put His Majesty in a difficult position."

Lu Lingyue's eyelashes fluttered slightly, her words tinged with self-deprecation and a bitter smile. The shadow of her eyelashes fell on her cheeks, and her voice trailed off at the end of her sentence.

Upon hearing this, Yuan Yan stared at him without speaking, and only spoke after a few breaths.

"You don't need to worry about these things."

"I have already made a decision on how to deal with Minister Yu. He will be punished and you will not suffer this in vain."

Her gaze fell on Lu Lingyue's face, and she looked closely. "But what about you? Is your face still itchy or sore?"

When Yuan Yan asked her a question, Lu Lingyue remained silent. She simply gently placed Yuan Yan's hand on her cheek and shook her head slightly.

"The medicine took effect quickly, and I'm not feeling so uncomfortable anymore."

As he spoke, his warm breath gently fell on Yuan Yan's hands.

Yuan Yan felt the cool touch of Lu Lingyue's skin in his palm, and following Lu Lingyue's movements, he touched his face.

Lu Lingyue suffered because of Yu'er.

To compensate him, Yuan Yan bestowed upon him precious tonics and visited him for two consecutive days, staying overnight in Lu Lingyue's palace.

As for Tuoba Yu'er, she directly issued an imperial edict, reprimanded her, and ordered her to be confined to her quarters.

Yu'er was not convinced.

He only used the mildest powder to give Lu Lingyue a small reprisal; he did not really intend to disfigure her.

And in just one day, the remaining poison was cured for Lu Lingyue.

This level of teasing didn't even qualify as poisoning in Yu'er's mind, so why was she confining him to his quarters?

Yuan Yan ignored all of that, looking at Yu'er with a commanding tone that left no room for negotiation.

"Bring out all your medicines. From now on, you are not allowed to prepare medicines without my permission."

"Why are you being biased! Lu Lingyue is perfectly fine, yet you treat me like this."

Yuan Yan interrupted abruptly.

"I do not know about your Wu Kingdom. But in my palace, I will never allow any means of harming people with medicine. This is my bottom line."

"This time, we have already taken into consideration that this is your first offense, and that you provided the antidote to Lu Shiqing, so no serious consequences were caused. Therefore, we have given you a lenient sentence."

"If you refuse, then stay in this palace. You can leave when you've figured it out." Yuan Yan's tone was stern, his face cold, and his words left no room for negotiation.

Looking at Yuan Yan's cold and indifferent expression, Tuoba Yu'er suddenly felt an overwhelming sense of grievance welling up inside her.

His face was slightly pale, his eyes glistening with tears, yet he was holding back an inexplicable stubbornness as he met Yuan Yan's gaze, refusing to yield.

"I won't hand it over. I did nothing wrong. He took you away first." Yu'er argued with Yuan Yan, fighting back her tears.

"I am not an object."

Yuan Yan looked at Yu'er as if she were an ignorant child. "Where I go or whom I favor is entirely up to my whim. So why should I take or not take anything?"

At that moment, Yu'er felt a lump in her throat and couldn't help but shed tears.

A glistening tear slid down his fair cheek, like a pearl rolling down his cheek.

"Yuan Yan, how can you be so heartless..."

His eyes were red from crying, his chest tightened, and he felt an indescribable pain.

Seeing that Yu'er showed no intention of admitting his mistake, Yuan Yan's expression darkened. He had no intention of saying anything more to him and directly gave orders to the palace servants outside.

"Keep a close eye on your master. Without my decree, Minister Yu is not allowed to leave this palace during this period."

Yuan Yan left, leaving Yu'er alone sitting on the cold ground. The grievances and resentment in his heart were like rolling waves with nowhere to be released, surging and roaring, unable to stop.

Yu'er initially thought Yuan Yan wouldn't keep him locked up for long, and she was still sulking, fantasizing that he would take the initiative to make up with her.

Who knew that this wait would last for seven or eight days.

During this time, Yuan Yan completely ignored him, and when Yu'er wanted to go to him, the palace servants stopped her according to imperial decree.

As time passed, rumors began to circulate. It was said that Yu'er had made a mistake, incurred His Majesty's displeasure, and had fallen out of favor with no chance of recovery.

Hearing this, He Jia felt relieved and covered her mouth with a handkerchief, laughing with her personal maid.

"Look at how arrogant my younger brother became after gaining power. I knew he wouldn't go far. Now his retribution has come."

"This lowly bastard, raised by a captive, has no shame. He's lucky enough to be favored but doesn't know how to cherish it. He's all looks and no substance, but inside he's wanton and despicable. He deserves this fate..."

Several days passed, and Yu'er went from feeling wronged to becoming restless and anxious.

He summoned palace servants to inquire about the situation outside, but only received news that Yuan Yan was in Feng Qing Palace.

Yu'er paced back and forth in the hall from time to time, wanting to go out but unable to, her mind filled with the cold expression Yuan Yan had on her during their last meeting.

He had not seen Yuan Yan for almost ten days. It seemed that Yuan Yan had decided to abandon him, and had not stepped into the palace during this time.

Looking at the empty and desolate palace around her, Yu'er finally realized and panicked.

Is Yuan Yan really not going to forgive him?

Yu'er had a vague premonition that if he stubbornly refused to admit his mistake and back down this time, Yuan Yan would really abandon him.

A sense of fear and unease welled up inside Yu'er, and her heart clenched tighter and tighter. Waves of regret crashed over her, washing over her heart and making her chest ache. A suffocating feeling washed over her like the sea.

...

It's different from Yu'er's side.

After punishing Yu'er, Yuan Yan put him out of her mind. She had countless court affairs to handle every day, so she had no time to think about matters of the harem.

These days she is promoting the equal distribution of land, allocating unclaimed farmland controlled by the imperial court to farmers for cultivation, encouraging them to reclaim wasteland and increase production.

The system discussed with Yuan Yan the advantages and disadvantages of the equal-field system in this era, as well as ways to improve it, and provided her with information, which could be considered a small help.

Time passed quickly without him realizing it. Yuan Yan was busy for a long time and felt a little thirsty, so he ordered a palace servant to come in and pour him some tea.

"Your Majesty, please have some tea."

The palace servants who entered bowed their heads and offered teacups with both hands.

Yuan Yan hadn't been looking at him, but when he heard the voice, he raised his eyes and looked at the other person.

That voice… Although the palace servants tried to lower their voices, Yuan Yan still keenly recognized a certain familiarity.

“Lift your head up,” she said.

The palace maid hesitated for a moment while kneeling on the ground, then slowly raised her head. A beautiful face appeared before Yuan Yan.

That palace maid was none other than Tuoba Yu'er.

He was dressed as a palace servant, and the clothes, which should have been plain and simple, made his beautiful face even more charming.

Yuan Yan looked down at the person, his eyes darkening slightly as he gazed at Yu'er's face. His expression was aloof, yet contained a hint of displeasure: "What are you doing here? Who let you in?"

"The captives know they were wrong."

Yu'er bit her lip, raised her dark eyes to look at Yuan Yan's face, "I disguised myself as a palace maid just to see Your Majesty... Your Majesty, please don't drive the captives away."

He grabbed the hem of Yuan Yan's robe, pressed himself close, and knelt at Yuan Yan's feet. Yu'er, who was used to being domineering and unruly, was now unusually careful and ingratiating.

Yuan Yan stared at Yu'er, so much so that he dared not speak.

Silence spread through the hall.

"You know you're wrong? Then tell me, where did you go wrong?" After a long while, Yuan Yan finally spoke, his tone revealing no emotion.

“The barbarians…the barbarians shouldn’t have drugged Minister Lu out of momentary anger,” Yu’er said.

"Is there anything else?" Yuan Yan continued to ask.

Yu'er couldn't say anything more and didn't dare to utter a sound. In fact, he didn't think he had done anything wrong even now, but he was afraid that Yuan Yan would ignore him, so he lowered his head first.

Seeing that he remained silent, Yuan Yan knew in his heart that Yu'er had not truly realized his mistake. His expression remained unchanged as he spoke slowly.

"Tuoba Yu'er, my father died at Feng Qing's hands because of poison... Therefore, I abhor any means of poisoning in the harem."

Upon hearing Yuan Yan's words, Yu'er's mind went blank for a moment.

So Yuan Yan's anger that day wasn't because of Lu Lingyue?

He was so shocked by the message contained in those words that he opened his mouth to look at Yuan Yan, but for a moment his throat felt like it was blocked with cotton, and he couldn't say a word.

Yuan Yan's father died from poisoning, and he unintentionally did the same thing, awakening her painful memories...

It felt as if a thorn had pierced her heart. An indescribable sense of regret swept over her, causing Yu'er to bite her lips tightly until they were as red as blood.

"I...I don't know..."

His voice trembled with panic as he shook his head, explaining, "Your Majesty, trust me. If I had known about this, I would never have used such methods against Minister Lu..."

Seeing that Yuan Yan did not answer, Yu'er steeled her resolve, raised her hand, and looked solemn.

He gritted his teeth and said it word by word.

"Alright, I don't need you to beat me to a pulp."

Yuan Yan listened silently until this moment when he interrupted him, "Remember what you said today. If you go against these words, I will never see you again."