Chang Lili wriggled out of Meng Yuxiu's arms, her eyes shining as she looked at the food box in his hand, her face full of anticipation, and her previous gloom had disappeared.
Meng Yuxiu gave a helpless smile, swallowing back the words he was about to say.
"Your nose is quite sensitive," he said, both amused and exasperated.
Chang Lili watched as he calmly placed the food box on the table, then immediately sat down beside it, eager to get started.
He couldn't help but joke, "This nose reminds me of a dog. I'm afraid only a dog's nose can compare to yours."
Chang Lili frowned and said with dissatisfaction, "What do you mean? Are you putting me in the same category as a dog? Let me tell you, birds of a feather flock together. By grouping me with something, you are grouping yourself with that same thing."
She was as sharp-tongued as ever, and these hardships and the shocking whip marks on her body seemed to have never hurt her in the slightest.
Meng Yuxiu's smile deepened, but he didn't say anything more.
The dishes, which looked delicious, were laid out on the table one by one, but Chang Lili remained silent. The aroma filled the air, and she, who had been drooling just moments before, just stared at the dishes with tears in her eyes.
"What's wrong? Don't you like it?" Meng Yuxiu asked me anxiously.
Chang Lili couldn't hold back any longer and a tear fell, which she immediately wiped away.
Meng Yuxiu reached out to touch her face, but saw her smiling like a child, saying, "These are all my favorite dishes!"
As she spoke, she picked up her chopsticks, grabbed some food, and began to wolf it down, a stark contrast to her quiet demeanor just moments before.
Meng Yuxiu couldn't help but say, "Slow down, no one's going to take it from you."
But looking at Chang Lili, who was completely unlike a girl, he felt that this was the real Chang Lili!
She's never acted like a girl; she always does things recklessly.
He watched as she contentedly stuffed the food into her mouth, picked up food for her, and poured her wine.
Chang Lili ate for a while, then looked at the wine glass in front of her with a strange expression. The aroma of the wine wafted over, but the liquid in the glass was as clear as water.
"You...are you planning to drink yourself into oblivion with me?" she asked worriedly.
Meng Yuxiu laughed and said, "Even if you want to get drunk, this wine isn't enough. When I went to the palace before, I saw that you really liked the fruit wine at the banquet, so I got some for you."
Chang Lili nodded in relief.
After a while, she had probably finished eating. She put down her chopsticks and sighed, "I feel like this is the last meal I'll have before I die, like it's sending me off, letting me die a full-bodied ghost."
Meng Yuxiu looked at her displeasedly and scolded, "What nonsense are you talking about!"
Chang Lili smiled, but the smile was bitter.
Meng Yuxiu frowned, feeling as if needles were pricking his heart at her appearance.
He pondered for a long time before saying, "Do you remember? You promised to marry me."
Chang Lili's eyes trembled as she stared at Meng Yuxiu, gazing blankly, and asked, "Did I...did I say that?"
The torches in the dungeon trembled, as if in response to Chang Lili, the clear wine shimmering with a gentle firelight.
"You would forget something so important?" Meng Yuxiu looked at Chang Lili in disbelief.
This made Chang Lili feel embarrassed. She scratched her head and said, "It seems like there is such a thing."
Whether she said it herself or not, I really can't remember. Thinking about it, the reason she can't remember is probably because this matter has been going on for so long that she has already tacitly agreed in her heart. So what does it matter whether she said it herself or not?
Meng Yuxiu's face darkened, and he downed a glass of wine in a huff.
Chang Lili smiled apologetically and said, "There's a reason why I don't remember. Look, I live in the General's Mansion, and our affair has already spread throughout the capital. I'm a young lady, isn't it only right that you marry me? Things have come to this, how could I not marry you?"
Her words revealed her helplessness, but Meng Yuxiu, unwilling to give up, grabbed her wrist and stared intently at her, asking persistently, "Then are you willing to marry me?"
His eyes reflected her stunned face, and the expectation in his eyes shone brightly.
Chang Lili looked at him, unable to utter a word of refusal.
“Of course…of course I’m willing.” She blushed as she finished speaking, her ears turning red as well.
Meng Yuxiu smiled brightly, like a child who had just received candy.
Chang Lili was unwilling. She withdrew her hand, raised her head and said, "Now that things have come to this, I can't refuse. In order to protect my reputation, I can only reluctantly agree to this marriage."
Meng Yuxiu blinked, withdrew his hand, and said, "I had no choice. I'm a man of my word, and it's too late to regret it now. I can only reluctantly marry you."
"You're in a difficult position? What's wrong with you? What's wrong with me? Although I'm not exactly a beauty that could topple a nation, I'm still capable of bringing disaster to the country and its people," Chang Lili said angrily.
Meng Yuxiu couldn't help but chuckle. Faced with Chang Lili's words, he no longer refuted them, but simply smiled gently and looked at her with doting eyes.
Faced with Meng Yuxiu's words, Chang Lili finally couldn't continue. Her face flushed and her voice lowered as she slowly sat down, still defiantly saying, "It was you who suggested it, not me."
"Then... how about we drink a toast together first?" Meng Yuxiu suddenly said with infinite tenderness, holding the small white porcelain cup in his hand and raising it towards Chang Lili.
Chang Lili looked at him in surprise, and after a long while said, "A toast to the deceased?"
Meng Yuxiu nodded slightly, still holding his hand up, waiting quietly, as if it were the most natural thing in the world; he said matter-of-factly.
Chang Lili picked up the wine glass as if possessed and looked at Meng Yuxiu.
She hadn't even touched a drop of alcohol, yet she already felt somewhat dazed, as if she were drunk. Her hands and feet didn't feel like her own, her eyes didn't feel like her own, and even her wildly beating heart didn't feel like her own.
Meng Yuxiu smiled, his handsome and rugged face now quiet and gentle.
The firelight seemed to transform into candlelight, illuminating this small space. The two slowly approached each other, their arms intertwined, gazing into each other's tender eyes, both revealing joyful and peaceful smiles. Without prior arrangement, they tilted their heads back and drank the wine in their cups in one gulp.
As the warm sensation traveled from her throat straight into her lungs, Chang Lili came to her senses, feeling lightheaded and her cheeks burning.
Her alcohol tolerance shouldn't be that low, but she does feel like she's having trouble even standing up right now.
Seeing her swaying, Meng Yuxiu quickly put down his wine glass and pulled her into his arms.
“If we do this, we’ll be pledging our lives to each other.” Meng Yuxiu’s voice was a little lower than before, a lower voice that made one’s heart itch.
Chang Lili's hair and skin exuded a fragrance that captivated him, and his throat felt a little dry.
Chang Lili belatedly exclaimed, "Huh? A secret engagement?"
Despite Meng Yuxiu's reluctance, she broke free and said, "A secret engagement? Why would we be engaged? My mother-in-law wouldn't object to us being together, so how can this be called a secret engagement?"
Helpless, Meng Yuxiu pulled her back into his arms and murmured, "Without the consent of our parents or the words of a matchmaker, we are already engaged. Don't worry." Feeling the person in his arms begin to struggle again, he smiled helplessly, "After we get out, we will get married."
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