Fu Zhun curled his lips into a smile, raised his hand to tidy her messy hair, and comforted her with a wry smile.
“I know this trip is fraught with danger, but I raised him myself and I know his character. If it weren’t for the tense border war that threatens the Great Chu’s territory, he would never have allied himself with the Northern Hu.”
He shook his head, sighed, and his eyes were full of reluctance.
“This time, I’m afraid the Northern Hu are coming with overwhelming force, and the border warriors are powerless to resist. As the Prince of Zhenbei of Great Chu, it is my mission to protect my country. Even if he hadn’t used your life as a threat to force me to go today, I would not have stood aside.”
Meeting Fu Zhun's lingering gaze, Su An felt as if her heart had been gripped tightly by a giant hand, causing her unbearable pain.
Those bright eyes, which should have been full of spiritual power, were now veiled with mist, looking sadly at Fu Zhun.
Her pink lips pursed down, and she shook her head, sobbing.
“You are a human being, not a god. Why should such a heavy responsibility be imposed on you? I don’t want you to be some great hero who protects the country. I just want you to be safe and sound.”
Upon hearing this, Fu Zhun rubbed the calluses on his hands with his thumb, a warm feeling washing over him.
People praise him, fear him, and exploit him; this is the first time someone has genuinely worried about him.
He tenderly wiped away Su An's tears and talked on and on.
"Stop crying, it won't look good if you keep crying. I've already given instructions to the guards, they will be at your command from now on. After I leave, if you don't want to stay in the palace, they can take you away at any time."
"You've always been clever and quick-witted, and your business will definitely grow bigger and bigger in the future. With them around, you'll be safer. Oh, by the way, I have a sum of money hidden in the Prince's mansion. It will all be yours from now on. The key is with An Yi, and I've already arranged it with his sect."
...
This posture is as if he is giving his last words.
Su An's tears flowed even more fiercely. She gripped Fu Zhun's sleeve tightly, her eyes bloodshot from crying.
"That's yours, I don't want it. Even if you want to give it to me, you have to come back and deliver it to me personally, otherwise I'll have An Yi hand over all that silver to that dog emperor!"
"Didn't you say you wanted to marry me? I'll wait for you to come back, and when you come back safely, I'll give you a chance."
Perhaps infected by her emotions, Fu Zhun also felt a pang of sadness in his heart.
He suppressed his reluctance, brushed Su An's hand off his sleeve, turned away, and spoke with a hint of resolve.
"Our fate in this life has come to an end. You don't need to wait for me anymore. If you find someone you like in the future, then marry him!"
After saying this, he strode away from Cining Palace.
Just then, a strong gust of wind swept by, causing the petals and green leaves in the garden to flutter and scatter in the air, as if they were sensing something from Su An.
"No, Fu Zhun, I don't want you to die..."
Su An squatted helplessly on the ground, hugging her knees, crying uncontrollably.
Scattered memories flashed through her mind, and she suddenly felt a little regretful. Fu Zhun had confessed to her so many times, so why did she keep rejecting him? If she had agreed earlier, would things have turned out differently?
As she was blaming herself, a pair of black boots with intricate gold embroidery on the edges appeared before her.
He trampled all the petals and fallen leaves under his boots.
Su An stopped crying, wiped away her tears with her sleeve, raised her head, and looked up.
Chu Yi bent down, extended a hand to her, and smiled as he gestured for her to be friendly.
"Miss Su's tears make my heart tremble. Miss Su, please don't cry anymore. How about I take you to the Imperial Kitchen for a delicious meal?"
All they do is eat, eat, eat.
Seeing Chu Yi's face, Su An felt inexplicably angry.
She jumped up and angrily pointed at his nose, berating him.
"Do you have any conscience? Even if Fu Zhun was a bit strict with you before, did he ever have any intention of killing you? Did he ever do anything to cause you any real harm?"
"Fu Zhun is risking his life to fight the Northern Hu with his back to the river in order to secure your rule. Instead of being worried, you are only thinking about eating, drinking and having fun. You are not worthy of being the emperor!"
He doesn't deserve it?!
Why does this sound so familiar?
Chu Yi withdrew his hand, stood up straight, stared at Su An with interest, and calmly threatened.
"Su An, now that your royal uncle has left the palace, you have no one to protect you. How dare you insult me like this? Aren't you afraid that I will have your head chopped off in a fit of rage?"
It would have been better if he hadn't said those words; the moment he did, Su An's emotions flared up.
She pointed to her neck and confronted Chu Yi head-on.
"Come on, if you've got the guts, have someone kill me right now. I'm telling you right now, I've had enough of this life. I'm going to be used by you in this palace anyway, so I might as well die sooner and be done with it."
Hearing her say that, a hint of surprise flashed in Chu Yi's eyes.
But he quickly composed himself, instead raising an eyebrow and smiling as he moved closer.
His fingertips lightly brushed across Su An's face as he said in a smug tone, "You want to die? I'll just let you have your way. Miss Su is intelligent and quick-witted. How about I bestow upon you the title of Noble Lady An?"
"Bah! Who wants to be your Consort An? Don't forget, you promised Fu Zhun you wouldn't touch me. You're the ruler of a country, how can you talk like you're spouting nonsense?"
Feeling nauseous, Su An spat on the ground without any hesitation.
“If Fu Zhun knew that you were going to break the contract the moment he left, he would definitely tear you to pieces.”
At this point, Chu Yi narrowed his eyes, snorted coldly, and flicked his sleeve.
"Stop dreaming. He's gone and won't come back. Even if I break the contract, what can he do? I'll take Miss Su into the palace and take good care of her. He'll be incredibly grateful to me in the afterlife!"
No sooner had he finished speaking than a series of hurried footsteps were heard.
Next, what came into view was the nanny who served the Empress Dowager closely.
The old woman bowed to Chu Yi, her eyes lowered, and said.
"Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager is frightened and cannot sleep soundly. She has asked this old servant to summon Miss Su to keep her company!"
This fright was, after all, thanks to Chu Yi.
Chu Yi could not refuse the Empress Dowager's request, whether out of a sense of face or guilt.
He gave Su An a deep look before nodding with a smile.
"Alright, then I'll trouble Miss Su to take good care of my mother. I suppose my mother probably doesn't want to see me right now, so I won't bother her. Please give my regards to my mother, Granny."
Having said that, he flicked his sleeve and left the place.
The old woman breathed a sigh of relief, then looked at Su An and offered some gentle advice.
"Miss Su, please come with this old servant!"
She was now at the mercy of others, like a fish on a chopping board; even if she didn't want to, she couldn't refuse.
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