Chapter 104: Handcuffs

Qi Shaoyou barely slept all night. She knew Shen Mingjiao's personality; sometimes, even knowing the truth, she would still deceive herself.

It was a self-protective instinct; Qi Shaoyou thought that by breaking Shen Mingjiao's heart, she would live a good life...

But no, it didn't happen.

That bright, sun-like little princess didn't have a good life. Qi Shaoyou could imagine how painful her life was.

The perceptive Shen Mingjiao gradually realizes that something is completely wrong, but she pretends to be the same innocent and carefree Shen Mingjiao because of family ties.

Then... Shen Mingjiao imprisoned her true self in an inescapable hell.

In the warm, cozy bed, Qi Shaoyou's entire embrace was of Shen Mingjiao. Their embrace was like two vines, tightly intertwined and inseparable.

"Hmm..." Shen Mingjiao was half asleep, and even while feeling the warmth of the embrace, she had to open her eyes repeatedly to confirm Qi Shaoyou's presence.

"Awoo..." After letting out a soft cry, Shen Mingjiao bit Qi Shaoyou's shoulder.

She was half asleep and had very little energy. She didn't leave a single mark.

To be precise, she was so sleepy that she only opened her mouth and her teeth didn't even touch Qi Shaoyou's collarbone. The only thing that actually landed on Qi Shaoyou's shoulder was a soft lip print.

It's just like Shen Mingjiao's style. Qi Shaoyou's eyes were full of nostalgia.

He couldn't sleep, he couldn't sleep at all. Every time Qi Shaoyou closed his eyes, the image in his mind was of the peach in his arms crying her heart out.

"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry... It's all my fault for causing you so much pain."

The soft apology was like smoke drifting from Qi Shaoyou's lips. The person in his arms, half-asleep, snuggled closer to his warm embrace upon hearing the sound.

"Bad guy..." Shen Mingjiao mumbled, her sweet face still furrowed in her sleep.

"Yes, I'm here." Qi Shaoyou gently kissed Shen Mingjiao's brow. His princess, his wife, had always been there for her through thick and thin...

Does she regret it? Yes, she does. But if she had to do it all over again, she would still make the same choice. If she hadn't chosen that way, her beloved daughter would never have seen her mother again, not even in death.

When Qi Shaoyou heard that Shen Mingjiao had ultimately gone to fill the rift in the demon realm, she was stunned. After she came to her senses, her heart ached. It wasn't about filling that damned rift; it was that her little princess had chosen to die for love.

She knew the demon race had other methods. She had read through the demon race's secrets countless times. After she had filled in the gaps, there were plenty of ways to deceive heaven and earth.

However, Shen Mingjiao didn't choose her; instead, she chose to fill the gap. The astute lady realized the truth of the matter.

Qi Shaoyou didn't know how sad Shen Mingjiao felt when she realized the truth but still had to deceive herself. All she knew was that at that time, Shen Mingjiao even had to lie to herself and not cry.

Because crying meant she couldn't even fool herself anymore. Just imagining it made Qi Shaoyou feel pain in his internal organs.

That kind of fine, persistent pain is more incessant than summer rain, more biting than autumn wind, and more icy and piercing than winter snow...

She couldn't sleep, she simply couldn't sleep. The little princess in her memory, always so aloof and always smiling, had ultimately endured far too much pain.

Holding Shen Mingjiao in his arms, Qi Shaoyou felt as if he were embracing both the love he once had and the guilt he felt now. The love radiated warmth, while the guilt brought pain, and the two intertwined, making it difficult for her to fall asleep.

This chaotic feeling persisted until five in the morning. The sun, following the ladder cast by time, stealthily rose from the east.

Qi Shaoyou then slowly closed her eyes, drowsiness making her close them.

When Shen Mingjiao woke up naturally, this was the scene she saw. The person she had fallen in love with at first sight was right there in front of her, within reach.

His eyes were closed, revealing long eyelashes. The blue eyes she had seen countless times were hidden beneath them. Perhaps because he was asleep, Qi Shaoyou's features had become peaceful.

That's the same person who once fought against a hundred men in the imperial court for her sake.

The warm, gentle breaths still made Shen Mingjiao feel uneasy.

Shen Mingjiao felt the warmth of the embrace, but she was still uneasy. She moved slowly, trying to keep Qi Shaoyou from waking up.

Shen Mingjiao took the handcuffs from her bedside table with the lightest movement.

During the time Qi Shaoyou was missing, Shen Mingjiao repeatedly asked herself what she could do to keep him.

She kept thinking about it, so much so that she couldn't sleep and suffered from insomnia all night.

People who used to be able to sleep in for up to ten hours have never slept for more than five hours since.

From the day Qi Shaoyou disappeared, she could only sleep for three or four hours. Even during those three or four hours, her dreams were filled with the memory of losing Qi Shaoyou.

The intense pain in her dream left Shen Mingjiao in a daze. But she dared not tell her mother, for if she did, it would be even more difficult for them to be together once Qi Shaoyou returned.

On the third day after Qi Shaoyou disappeared, Shen Mingjiao decided that she would lock him up. What the Demon Realm's Marriage Chart couldn't do, she would do herself, using the most rudimentary method.

She bet that Qi Shaoyou would come back, she bet that they would have a future, she bet that Qi Shaoyou would never hurt her again...

The stakes were her future; she lost the last time, and she absolutely couldn't lose this time.

To avoid upsetting her wicked wife, Shen Mingjiao thoughtfully wrapped the handcuffs with a layer of fur.

"Click." Shen Mingjiao carefully handcuffed herself and Qi Shaoyou to the same handcuff.

Upon hearing this voice, Shen Mingjiao finally managed a slight smile.

The handcuffs bound them tightly; she would never let this wicked woman escape. Now that she was his wife, she should stay by his side for life!

You are not allowed to go anywhere, and you cannot leave her sight!

Thinking of this, Shen Mingjiao suddenly felt a huge emptiness in her heart. She could only touch the handcuffs she had just put on the two of them.

It's alright, Shen Mingjiao. She's by your side, she's by your side...

Chen Ping looked at Qi Shaoyou's tightly closed eyes, trying to convince herself that tears were still streaming down her face.

The once most spoiled and willful little princess now looks at her lover and doesn't even dare to cry out.

Her lover was like the sea foam that the Little Mermaid ultimately transformed into. Sometimes, Shen Mingjiao wondered if she was seeing a fantasy.

Was what she touched real? She didn't know; she felt like she was trapped in a dream, a dream she couldn't wake up from.

When Qi Shaoyou woke up, this was the scene she saw. The little princess she once cherished was now so quiet that she didn't even dare to cry out.

"What's wrong? Who bullied our Jiaojiao?"

Qi Shaoyou had barely uttered his words when he noticed something amiss with his left hand. He was being held captive by his young wife.

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Our Jiaojiao, with the sweetest face, does the most amazing things. First update! Let me see if I can write more today! [Sprinkling flowers]