"I thought you would never come back." The Empress Dowager's tone was unreadable.
"I'm too late, it's my fault, Your Majesty, please don't blame me." Gu Yin stopped outside the curtain. The Empress Dowager didn't speak further. Gu Yin looked at the figure inside, his gaze deep and complex.
"Is the Empress Dowager angry?" Gu Yin asked gently, a faint smile playing on his lips.
The Empress Dowager did not answer. Gu Yin waited for a long time before finally reaching out and lifting the curtain himself. The Empress Dowager did not look at him, so he walked up to her.
"Don't be angry anymore, I apologize, okay? I'll accept whatever punishment you want." Gu Yin half-squatted down in front of the Empress Dowager. The Empress Dowager glanced at him, but looked away after meeting his gaze.
"I know I was wrong. I was in seclusion for too long this time. I actually came here when I just came out of seclusion, but I met someone sent by His Majesty on the way and he summoned me to talk to me." Gu Yin's eyes were full of tenderness, and the Empress Dowager turned her gaze back to him.
"Is it rumored that you had it done?" The Empress Dowager went straight to the point. Gu Yin lowered his eyes and said, "It was me."
The Empress Dowager was surprised that what Yu Jingchen said was true, but Gu Yin was perfectly fine, so why would he suddenly do these things?
"Your Majesty, please don't concern yourself with these matters anymore, okay?" Gu Yin didn't want her to get involved in these things any further.
"But what you're doing now is threatening Yun'er, Gu Yin, what exactly do you want to do?!" The Empress Dowager was clearly anxious.
"So are you more worried about me, or more worried about Nan Zhiyun?" Gu Yin asked, looking at the Empress Dowager.
"What are you saying? Don't you know what place Yun'er holds in my heart? Besides, she's pregnant now. What you're saying involves her and the child in her womb!" The Empress Dowager's voice was filled with anger.
"I know, so what place do I hold in your heart?" Gu Yin looked up at the Empress Dowager.
After hearing his words, the Empress Dowager remained silent. Then Gu Yin continued, "Have you ever considered that although you want to protect Nan Zhiyun for the rest of your life, you are also the source of her suffering? Hmm? Don't you think that you are actually the one who instigated a large part of the suffering Nan Zhiyun has endured over the years?"
The Empress Dowager looked at Gu Yin in shock upon hearing this. She hadn't expected Gu Yin to speak to her like that and to say such things.
"Why did His Majesty treat Nan Zhiyun that way? Has the Empress Dowager not thought about it carefully? You are partly to blame, aren't you?" Gu Yin said bluntly.
"Gu Yin, do you know what you're saying? What do you mean?" The Empress Dowager's eyes reddened. She knew, which was why she felt guilty, and why she wanted to protect Nan Zhiyun and make up for the harm she had caused her.
“You know all this. I know you feel guilty, and I know you're not feeling well. I don't want to bring this up to make you feel bad, I just want you to understand that it's not okay just because you're protecting her.” Gu Yin softened his tone. He knew he shouldn't say these things, but… the way the Empress Dowager treated Nan Zhiyun… it truly made him jealous.
"I won't harm her. Trust me, Yu Jingchen can handle it himself. Besides, Your Majesty, you can take this opportunity to see what Yu Jingchen's attitude towards Nan Zhiyun really is, can't you?" Gu Yin didn't intend to explain the reason, and the Empress Dowager didn't ask any further questions.
"A-Su has disappeared. Do you know why?" The Empress Dowager's expression turned colder, and she stood up from her seat. Gu Yin's movements stiffened slightly, and he withdrew his raised hand.
“He’ll be fine. Nan Su’s abilities aren’t so great that these things can stop him.” Gu Yin smoothed his sleeves and stood up behind her.
Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager finally breathed a sigh of relief, but... "Go back, I don't want to see you right now," she said.
"Alright, if you don't want to see me, then I'll go back. If anything happens, just send someone to find me. Also, take the medicine I brought you on time." Gu Yin watched her retreating figure. The Empress Dowager showed no intention of turning around. After a moment of silence, he finally turned and left.
After Gu Yin had completely left, the Empress Dowager slowly turned back. For some reason, she felt a slight pain in her heart. Gu Yin… these past few days you have often appeared in my dreams, but why are you different in my dreams?
Also, why do I feel so sad when I see you? What does it mean by the scenes in my dream? Are they all real? Or is it just a dream?
"Your Majesty the Empress Dowager..." An Xin looked at the Empress Dowager clutching her chest, somewhat worried.
"It's alright," the Empress Dowager said, but her expression didn't look very good.
However, An Xin's worries were not diminished at all: "Your Majesty, the medicine is here." An Xin fed the pills to the Empress Dowager. For some reason, the Empress Dowager had been experiencing heart palpitations lately. The imperial physician had come to see her twice but could not diagnose anything. In the end, it was the Imperial Preceptor's medicine that worked.
"How is Yun'er?" the Empress Dowager asked.
"The situation is not good, but Your Majesty, please rest assured. His Majesty has gone there, so I don't think anything will happen." An Xin helped the Empress Dowager sit down.
"Yes, if anything unusual happens, be sure to inform me." The Empress Dowager said, and An Xin agreed. Then she withdrew because of the Empress Dowager's words. As for the Empress Dowager... the words Gu Yin had said earlier that day unconsciously came to mind again.
Just as Gu Yin said, she also knew that Yun'er's injuries were due to her own reasons, so how could she not feel guilty? But... could she just let her go because she hurt her while trying to protect her?
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