Li Hua looked at Gan Qiongying and said, "I don't care. I don't care what has happened to you during this time. You can say whatever you want."

"But I will never let you go. I will never let you out of my control again. Don't even think about lying to me!"

Gan Qiongying then said dryly, "I was indeed seriously ill, which is why I couldn't keep our appointment on time. And the reason I left you is because I discovered that you acted like a little lamb in front of me, but behind my back you were wielding a knife and killing people."

Upon hearing this, Li Hua's eyelids twitched slightly, and then she actually took a few steps forward and slammed her palm hard on the cage.

"So you abandoned me?! Have I ever hurt you?! I never have!"

"The reason I replaced Zhongli Zhengzhen was because I was afraid that if we fled together, we would be hunted down by the Empress Dowager and the Regent. How could I, a mere merchant, protect you then?"

"And why did I take the place of the hostage from Jinchuan? It was because when you entered the palace, you asked me to hold off the Regent for you. If I were just a merchant, how could I possibly hold off the Regent for you!"

"They ran away when they found out I killed someone... but I killed someone for you." As Li Hua spoke, tears welled up in her eyes, and she wiped them away violently, looking extremely disheveled.

Not wanting Gan Qiongying to see him like this, he turned his back to the cage and said, "But none of that matters now, it doesn't matter."

"Anyway, you can never leave my side again."

Gan Qiongying had never argued with Li Hua so face to face before, and for a moment, she felt neither sadness nor anger.

However, given the other party's highly emotional state, any explanation seems rather weak.

However, Gan Qiongying explained, "I was frightened at the time, and since you had taken over the identity of the Jinchuan hostage, I was completely certain that you would not be in any danger before I left."

"I left you a letter after I left, which you should have already seen. Later, I also sent someone to deliver another one. I was really held up by some things."

Li Hua chuckled with his back to Gan Qiongying, as if he were listening to a joke.

In fact, he felt like a joke. He was naturally sensitive and could interpret eight hundred different meanings from a single sentence from Gan Qiongying.

Moreover, Gan Qiongying's explanation was so flimsy that Li Hua simply couldn't believe it.

His smile made Gan Qiongying unable to continue speaking; she even found it somewhat strange…

As the saying goes, absence makes the heart grow fonder. Gan Qiongying had been missing Li Hua for several months. Now that the person she had been thinking about day and night was standing in front of her, Gan Qiongying just wanted to hold him in her arms and be close to him.

Moreover, the way Li Hua cried and went crazy just now was actually kind of...attractive.

Gan Qiongying coughed lightly and reached out from the cage to pat Li Hua's shoulder.

“I didn’t know you were doing all this for me before, but now I do. If you had told me earlier, none of this would have happened.”

Li Hua shuddered when he was slapped, immediately took a few steps away from the cage, and turned back to glare fiercely at Gan Qiongying.

"I did hide something from you back then, but have you been completely honest with me from beginning to end?"

"Why don't you just tell me now! When did you realize that I look exactly like Zhong Lizheng? Did you like him or me at first? Did you treat me as a substitute for him, which is why you suddenly changed your mind and started treating me well!"

"Say it!"

Gan Qiongying squinted her eyes from the shout, withdrew her hand and grabbed the cage, waiting for Li Hua to finish speaking.

Then he said, "I have never regarded you as Zhongli Zhengzhen. How could I possibly like that idiot?"

"I knew from the beginning that you were Zhongli Zhengzhen's biological brother."

Upon hearing this, Li Hua smiled and shed two lines of hot tears.

"So, you humiliated me in every way from the beginning, was it just for fun?"

"No, no!" Gan Qiongying waved her hands so hard they were almost in a jumbled mess.

"That wasn't me at the beginning. The one who humiliated and beat you in every way... that wasn't me!"

"Who else could it be but you? Are you trying to say you're a reincarnation, that you and the person who initially wished I would die are not the same person?"

Li Hua had considered this absurd idea countless times, because there was only one other explanation: Princess Duanrong was using him as a substitute for Zhongli Zhengzhen.

Li Hua preferred to believe that Gan Qiongying was a reincarnation rather than that she was Zhong Lizheng's real substitute.

But every time Li Hua imagined it this way, she felt incredibly pathetic, pitiful, and ridiculous.

The most ridiculous thing is that Gan Qiongying nodded: "I was indeed reincarnated in another's body. The real Princess Duanrong is already dead."

Gan Qiongying said, "After I was resurrected, I brought you back, and then we..."

"Enough!" Li Hua had never been so devastated in her entire life.

The person he had been longing for finally returned, but he was full of lies!

"Don't you find this absurd? Even if you wanted to lie to me, couldn't you... couldn't you think of another reason!"

In fact, as long as Gan Qiongying gives a reasonable explanation, even if she initially treated him as a substitute but later fell in love with him, that would be acceptable.

But she actually tried to use the ridiculous excuse of being resurrected to cover up everything that had happened between them.

Li Hua had never cared about those pains, but Gan Qiongying's behavior really made him...feel sad.

But soon Li Hua covered her face, took a deep breath and slowly exhaled.

The gruesome wound on my wrist looked incredibly muddy and horrible because of the styptic powder.

Li Hua suddenly laughed. He was so handsome, but his smile had a hint of evil about it, which was completely different from his usual demeanor.

His tone also became very low and slow, like a devil luring people into hell: "This golden cage was specially made for you. Do you like it?"

Gan Qiongying blinked.

She blinked again.

She still had a sentence stuck in her throat: "This world is actually a book, and I am a transmigrator who has read this book."

But looking at Li Hua's current... insane state, if I were to say those words out loud, I'm afraid even this cage would be too big for her to roam freely.

The two met far too hastily and unexpectedly; they needed to calm down and have a proper conversation.

We must wait for Li Hua to calm down.

So Gan Qiongying hesitated for a moment before saying, "I like it very much."

That's the truth, because Gan Qiongying loves gold!

It must be said that Li Hua truly understands her. If she were made of iron, Gan Qiongying would find it terrifying, cold, and like a prison.

But since it's made of pure gold, this means Gan Qiongying is sleeping on a mountain of gold.

Li Hua's somewhat distorted smile suddenly froze.

Gan Qiongying gripped the cage with both hands, deciding to try a different, more conciliatory approach.

At least first, she should fully elicit Li Hua's abundant feelings for her before trying to make him understand and believe in the absurdity of this world.

So Gan Qiongying put her face on the cage, looked at Li Hua and said, "I like everything you give me."