Chapter 232 My heart is set on you, and I only want you.

Emperor Wusu asked, "Is it really true?"

Ji Qingwu nodded: "It's real, more real than real gold and silver."

At that moment, General Yuchi, far away in the northern army, had just finished his night patrol of the camp and returned to his tent when he sneezed.

Yuchi Lianping thought to himself that Princess Huachang had finally remembered him, and he slept soundly, feeling content.

After Ji Qingwu finished speaking, she became a little embarrassed and pursed her lips shyly. Emperor Wusu was not interested in the person she was talking about.

He concealed the gleam in his eyes and said casually, "Very well, then I'll wait and see."

Seeing his indifferent expression, it seemed he didn't believe her and was just being perfunctory.

So Ji Qingwu waved to him, signaling him to bend down and get closer to her.

Emperor Wusu bowed obediently, which calmed Ji Qingwu down.

She had just made a discovery, and she certainly couldn't let him underestimate it.

Two soft, pink lips brushed against his ear, and Emperor Wusu felt the warm, damp breath, causing his waist and abdomen to suddenly tense up.

Ji Qingwu's eyelashes brushed against his profile, and she closed her eyes.

Then, she took his earlobe into her mouth.

Emperor Wusu gasped for breath. She mischievously ground her teeth together, and a rapid, panting moan escaped his throat.

The man's voice was already deep, but it was clear only to Ji Qingwu.

When the message reached the two people under the tree, it became blurry and indistinct.

Tao Wanyin tilted her head and looked at the wall covered in tree shadows, asking, "Was there any sound?"

Prince Yong heard it too, but was eager to refute her, and could use the voice as a reason.

He said seriously, "Your Highness is hallucinating. There was no sound at all, and your sense of touch just now was also malfunctioning. I didn't cry at all."

The tears on Tao Wanyin's fingertips had dried, but the feeling remained in her heart.

She suddenly remembered that every time she entered the palace, no matter how cold their relationship was at the Prince's residence.

But in front of outsiders, he would still give her face and respect.

Tao Wanyin felt a pang of sadness and asked softly, "Your Highness, why do you say that I have someone else in my heart?"

Zhao Minghong countered, "Isn't that right?"

Tao Wanyin retorted crisply, "No, I have never done so."

Zhao Minghong scrutinized her expression, and seeing her resolute look, said, "If you don't have one, why—"

"Why what?"

He gritted his teeth and finally asked the question.

"Before you married me, with whom did you have an affair, and to whom did you lose your virginity?"

After saying this, it seemed as if Prince Yong was the one being questioned; large beads of sweat appeared on his forehead, and his heart was racing.

He wanted an answer, yet he was also afraid to hear it.

If he hadn't drunk too much tonight, if Tao Wanyin hadn't slapped him instead of gently touching his face.

Otherwise, out of consideration for a man's pride and self-esteem, Prince Yong would never have asked that question.

Tao Wanyin had considered that this was the crux of their problem.

It was because she felt guilty and unable to make amends that she repeatedly tolerated and allowed Prince Yong to indulge in debauchery outside.

Because she was not a virgin, their relationship was destined to be filled with regret and incompleteness.

After their wedding night, he was still willing to be intimate with her, saying that the matter should be put aside, and she was overjoyed at the time.

However, her body was strongly averse to sexual intercourse, and she couldn't give him what a normal wife should do.

Tao Wanyin found it difficult to speak of this matter before because it was too absurd, and if she really said it, Prince Yong might hate her even more.

If she angers Mr. Tao and loses the support of the Tao family, she will only have one way out: death.

Now, however, Grand Secretary Tao is dead...

Seeing that Tao Wanyin hadn't uttered a single word for so long, Zhao Minghong felt a chill run through him from head to toe; his once rekindled heart had turned to ice.

His eyes were silent as he said, "Even now, you still won't tell me."

Tao Wanyin's lips trembled, her throat seemed to have lost its voice, and she could not speak.

Zhao Minghong called her name.

"Wanyin".

The tone was devoid of anger, even annoyance; it was completely devoid of emotion.

Tao Wanyin's eyes instantly welled up with tears.

She would rather he yell at her than see him looking at her like she was a stranger.

She didn't want to see his indifference.

Zhao Minghong said, "You are the eldest daughter of Grand Secretary Tao. Many people think that I married you in order to consolidate my power in the court."

Tao Wanyin stared at him blankly. Wasn't that right...?

That's always been her belief.

Zhao Minghong said, "Wanyin, I married you back then because I loved you, you were the only one in my heart, I only wanted you, and I didn't want anyone else to be my queen."

Words that reveal one's true feelings should be moving, but the person speaking is already heartbroken.

Tao Wanyin's ears were ringing.

Zhao Minghong continued, "But fate is cruel. If I had known earlier that you didn't want to marry me and that you had someone else in your heart and soul, I wouldn't have bothered to kneel and beg my brother for three days."

"To my shame, I have not treated you well since I married you, and there are many things I have done to wrong you."

Tao Wanyin's tears blurred her vision, and she couldn't see Prince Yong's face clearly.

All that could be heard was his numb voice.

"You have suffered a lot in the Prince's mansion over the years. I both love and hate you. I hate your calm and indifferent demeanor, as if you can accept it no matter who I favor or how many women I bring back from outside."

"I thought there would be a turning point between us, but we've been living like this for so long that I've forgotten how to love someone."

“If it weren’t for your father Tao Changhai’s accident, I wouldn’t have remembered how important you were to me.”

Zhao Minghong's Adam's apple bobbed.

Much later.

He said, "Wanyin, it's all in the past."

"It's over," those three words struck Tao Wanyin's ears with a heavy thud.

Prince Yong spoke to himself, saying everything he wanted to say and everything he hadn't been able to say before.

Then, Zhao Minghong resumed his nonchalant demeanor, a frivolous smile playing on his lips.

"My queen and I have grown tired of each other. It would be better to part ways amicably. I will have Chang Lu deliver the divorce papers."

Tao Wanyin shook her head, her face streaked with tears.

Zhao Minghong said, "You have been managing the accounts of the Prince's mansion. Take whatever you want. The child in your womb is my flesh and blood."

He said self-deprecatingly, "You know that I will never mistreat the women who have been with me."

After saying that, Prince Yong turned around and strode away, as if he wanted to escape from her side as soon as possible.

Tao Wanyin felt a sharp pain in her abdomen. She clutched her stomach and squatted down. The physical pain was nothing compared to the pain in her heart.

She sobbed uncontrollably, "No, no, it's not like that..."

"Nothing! No, you have to tell him!"

Tao Wanyin looked up, tears streaming down her face, at the woman who had fallen from the sky.