Yu Jingchen looked at Nan Zhiyun, who was standing silently with her head down, and a complex emotion flashed in his eyes.
"Nan Zhiyun, this world isn't as simple as you think, and things aren't as straightforward as you imagine. It's not as simple as you say it, nor can you do whatever you want. Before you do something, have you really considered the consequences?" Yu Jingchen's words seemed to carry a hint of earnest advice.
Nan Zhiyun's eyes were red, she wanted to cry but couldn't find a reason to cry, and dared not cry, because no one here would allow her to be unrestrained.
"So... Your Majesty already knew all along, and today you deliberately wanted to make me give up the idea of leaving the palace, is that right?" Nan Zhiyun asked.
"If I directly told you you weren't allowed to leave, would you listen? Would you be happy? Would you give up? So only by letting you experience it for yourself will you know that some things aren't as you wish. You want to leave the palace? Fine, do you have the ability to protect yourself?" Yu Jingchen could see Nan Zhiyun's grievances, but what could he do? Some things were already facts, and they wouldn't change just because she shed a few tears, would they?
Nan Zhiyun couldn't hold back anymore. She turned her head away, her eyes gushing out like a floodgate had opened. She didn't want to cry, but she really couldn't hold it in.
Yu Jingchen watched her turn her head to one side and cry sadly, but there was nothing he could do for her at the moment. If he went up to comfort her, he was afraid she would become even more uneasy.
"Nan Zhiyun, the palace is the safest place." Yu Jingchen's expression was complicated, but he still said this.
Is the palace the safest place? But this place is now the place she fears most, dreads most, and loathes most…
"Come back to the palace with me," Yu Jingchen said once again.
Nan Zhiyun stood still, not moving. She didn't want to go back, but where could she go alone? What if something like today happened again? For the first time, she felt so useless.
Seeing that Nan Zhiyun seemed unresponsive to his words, Yu Jingchen wasn't annoyed. He took two steps forward, getting closer to Nan Zhiyun.
"If you really don't want to go back, I can stay outside with you for a while so you can adjust and sort out your feelings." Yu Jingchen had made the biggest concession he could.
Nan Zhiyun still didn't respond. Yu Jingchen's patience was running out, so he grabbed Nan Zhiyun's arm. Nan Zhiyun was startled by this sudden action and instinctively tried to resist.
"Let go of me..." Nan Zhiyun tried to pull Yu Jingchen's hand away.
"Nan Zhiyun, that's enough! I've already made myself perfectly clear. What are you still thinking? Are you out of your mind? Or do you just want to die?" Yu Jingchen didn't have the time to waste with her any longer.
"I don't want to... let go..." Nan Zhiyun didn't know if she had lost her mind or what, but she was very resistant to Yu Jingchen's touch.
Yu Jingchen took a deep breath, barely managing to control his anger, and pulled Nan Zhiyun back onto the carriage. Nan Zhiyun's resistance was futile, so she had no choice but to follow.
"Mount up!" Yu Jingchen shouted as soon as he got on the horse, and Xing Lai quickly directed the men to ride away.
Nan Zhiyun's wrist ached from Yu Jingchen's grip, and she harbored a deep fear of him. It was ingrained in her bones and couldn't be changed overnight; she even had a stress response to it.
Yu Jingchen looked at the uneasy little figure in front of him and felt a pang of pain in his heart: "Sit still. I will let you go when you calm down."
Nan Zhiyun tried her best to calm herself down and not lose her composure. Seeing that Nan Zhiyun gradually calmed down, Yu Jingchen slowly let her go.
"Are you done?" Yu Jingchen asked her. Nan Zhiyun remained silent, and it was unclear what she was thinking.
The atmosphere inside the carriage suddenly became quiet, to the point of being eerie. Yu Jingchen couldn't discern Nan Zhiyun's thoughts, and Nan Zhiyun didn't know what she should do, how to interact with Yu Jingchen, or where they were going...?
"Do you want to go back to the palace or stay outside?" Yu Jingchen asked her. Nan Zhiyun didn't say a word. Her attitude was really annoying.
"If you want to return to the palace, I will immediately have someone transfer you back. If you don't want to go back for the time being and want to calm down, I can allow you to stay outside the palace for a while and walk around and see what's going on." Yu Jingchen felt that all the patience he had in his life had been used up today.
“…” Nan Zhiyun slowly raised her head, but hesitated to speak.
"Speak your mind, say whatever you want to say," Yu Jingchen said, having already seen through his words.
Nan Zhiyun seemed hesitant to speak, her eyes red like a rabbit's, as if she had been badly bullied.
"If you don't want to talk about it, then you don't have to," Yu Jingchen said deliberately.
Sure enough, Nan Zhiyun finally spoke: "I don't want to go back... I don't want to." As soon as Nan Zhiyun finished speaking, tears streamed down her face. "Is there a river in your eyes?" Yu Jingchen thought to himself, speechless.
"You don't have to go back. I'll give you two days to rest and adjust. You don't have to go back to the palace during these two days; you can stay outside the palace." Yu Jingchen agreed quite readily this time.
Nan Zhiyun even felt like she was dreaming. Had she really agreed like that?
"However, I will stay with you." As soon as Yu Jingchen said this, Nan Zhiyun's heart turned cold. She didn't want to be alone with Yu Jingchen.
Yu Jingchen clearly saw Nan Zhiyun's resistance, which displeased him, but considering the special circumstances today, he didn't bother to dwell on such details.
"If you want to stay outside the palace, you must accept this. Otherwise, return to the palace immediately, and don't even think about leaving the palace gates again." Yu Jingchen was clearly forcing her, but given Nan Zhiyun's current state, how could he take any further action without pushing her?
Compared to returning to the palace, this seemed less unacceptable. So Nan Zhiyun compromised…
“Okay…” she replied.
Yu Jingchen raised an eyebrow, having finally succeeded. Taking a good rest and relaxing outside the palace for the next couple of days might not be a bad thing; after all, it's nothing serious.
"Where would you like to stay? At the General's Mansion, or at an inn outside?" Yu Jingchen had already begun making preparations for the next step.
“…Let’s stay outside,” Nan Zhiyun said. She didn’t want to go back to the General’s Mansion with Yu Jingchen, and she didn’t want to live with him in the General’s Mansion, so she suggested staying outside.
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