59. Identity Revealed: I am your husband
Xiaoyao Wang and Liu Hanruo each had their own tasks. One cut the snake meat into sections and skewered it with bamboo sticks, while the other placed the snake meat on a rack and started grilling it. Accompanied by the 'sizzling' sound of the flames, a unique aroma of snake meat wafted over. Looking down, one could see the snake meat gradually turning golden yellow under the heat of the flames. The aroma and color were so tempting that they made one's mouth water.
Seeing that the snake meat in his hand was cooked, the carefree prince handed the roasted snake meat to Liu Hanruo, who was busy at work, and said gently to her:
"Ruo'er, look at the slightly browned color and the aroma it gives off. It must be delicious. You've been chilled in the cold pool, so it's time to replenish your energy. Eat something."
Upon hearing the words of the Carefree King, Liu Hanruo's expression changed slightly. She sighed and said calmly:
“I’m not hungry, you should eat first. Speaking of the Cold Pool, if it weren’t for you, I would probably be buried at the bottom of the pool. In the end, even a drop of kindness should be repaid with a spring of gratitude, let alone a life-saving grace. In addition, you are already weak, so you should eat more meat to nourish yourself.”
Despite the Prince of Xiaoyao's repeated attempts to persuade her, Liu Hanruo remained adamant, acting as if she wouldn't eat unless the Prince of Xiaoyao did. Left with no other choice, the Prince of Xiaoyao had to start eating first.
So, the carefree prince ate elegantly, his eyes occasionally glancing at Liu Hanruo, who was sitting by the fire roasting meat. If their eyes met, he would just smile.
Soon after, the sizzling sound rang out again, and the enticing aroma of the roasted snake meat wafted to Liu Hanruo's nose. Liu Hanruo removed the roasted snake meat and put the skewered snake meat back on the rack. Round after round, the two of them ate with great relish.
After eating and drinking to their hearts' content, before they knew it, night had fallen and drowsiness overwhelmed them. Liu Hanruo's eyelids fluttered open and closed, and she looked extremely tired. Perhaps because she was really exhausted, she fell asleep against the edge of the cave in the blink of an eye.
Seeing this, the carefree prince quietly walked to Liu Hanruo's side, gently wrapped his long arm around her, and pulled her into his embrace. In her sleep, she suddenly felt the tenderness, and instinctively moved a few times, finding a position that she thought was comfortable and continuing to sleep.
The carefree prince stared blankly at Liu Hanruo with his head down. He saw that her brows were furrowed and her lips were tightly pursed, as if she was troubled by something.
"Your brows are furrowed, and your expression remains solemn even in your sleep. Are you resenting me from the bottom of your heart? Are you blaming me?" the carefree prince murmured to himself.
"Ruo'er, do you know how many times I've wanted to explain to you, but you've stopped me time and time again? And those veiled words made me even more hesitant. I'm so afraid, so afraid that if I speak out, you'll really leave me heartlessly. If you leave, I really don't know..."
Just then, Liu Hanruo, who was asleep, suddenly flailed her arms in panic, cold sweat pouring down her forehead, and said intermittently:
"No. Don't. How could you do this to me..."
"...Why did you lie to me...I'd rather know nothing..."
"Do you have any humanity left... He's your child too..."
"Xiao Feng... The worst thing I ever did in my life was... marrying you."
Upon hearing Liu Hanruo's words, the carefree prince, who had been trying to comfort him, suddenly tightened his grip, froze, and stood there, unsure of how to react.
The pain jolted Liu Hanruo awake. When she opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was a thick chest. Slightly raising her head, she saw an enormous, magnified scarred face. With each passing moment, she saw those large hands tightly gripping her delicate hand. She coughed awkwardly, trying to wake the carefree prince, but to no avail. Finally, she could only helplessly say:
"Can you let me go?" she asked, raising her hand as she spoke.
The carefree king snapped out of his daze, then awkwardly withdrew his hand and said:
"I'm sorry. I was distracted and I hurt you, didn't I?"
Liu Hanru shook her head, seemingly unconcerned, and said:
"It's okay, I just feel a little cold."
After saying that, Liu Hanruo quietly stepped out of Xiaoyao Wang's embrace, sat down by the fire, and focused her attention on the fire.
Watching Liu Hanruo's retreating figure, the Carefree King hesitated, wanting to ask many questions but unsure how to begin. For a moment, they remained silent.
The cave was quiet, with only the crackling sound of burning wood. The fiery red flames emitted a faint light, revealing everything inside the cave.
After a moment of silence, the Carefree Prince stared intently at Liu Hanruo and spoke first:
"Ruo'er..."
"Hmm?" Noticing the gaze of the carefree king, Liu Hanruo simply responded indifferently.
"Just now, when you were asleep, I saw you were sweating profusely and looked very serious. Did you have a nightmare?"
The words of the carefree king made Liu Hanruo turn her head to look at him. She didn't move, as if she was looking at something else through him. Her eyes were slightly dazed, and she uttered a few words that were neither salty nor salty, and somewhat irrelevant.
Liu Hanruo originally thought she had already let go and no longer loved Xiao Feng, this unfaithful man. However, this dream forced her to re-examine the issue. The heartache, helplessness, and complex emotions of love and hate in the dream remained so clear even after she woke up.
Perhaps the depth of her hatred for Xiao Feng is the same as the depth of her love for him, since love and hate are relative; love is the foundation of hate.
Perhaps from beginning to end, she never truly let go of the past.
Thinking of this, Liu Hanruo turned her gaze back to Prince Xiaoyao, lost in thought. If she had never truly let go, then Prince Xiaoyao was perhaps like a piece of driftwood in a vast ocean, a candle flame in the cold winter, something she wanted to hold onto tightly. And all of this had nothing to do with love, but was simply instinct.
Noticing Liu Hanruo's gaze, the Carefree King asked with a hint of doubt:
"Ruo'er, I saw you just now, not moving at all, occasionally uttering a few words. I wonder what you were thinking about. You were so engrossed that you didn't even hear me calling you."
"nothing."
In response to the Prince of Xiaoyao's question, Liu Hanruo only gave a curt reply, clearly unwilling to elaborate. Seeing this, the Prince of Xiaoyao did not press further, but simply repeated the original topic, saying:
"Ruo'er, just now in your dream you seemed to keep mentioning Xiao Feng, talking about a child, saying that he lied to you, and saying that you wouldn't let him off so easily. If I remember correctly, you and Xiao Feng only met a few times. What grudge do you have that makes you so uneasy and full of sorrow even in your dream?"
It would have been better if she hadn't mentioned it, but the mere mention of the dream filled Liu Hanruo with remorse and a desperate urge to vent, yet she knew she couldn't. She struggled to control her turbulent emotions, repeatedly trying to take deep breaths, finally managing to suppress the restless urge within her.
After a long while, Liu Hanruo's gloomy voice was heard:
"Since you've heard it all, I have nothing to hide anymore. Just as you said, Xiao Feng and I are sworn enemies, and we'll fight to the death!"
"Ruo'er...you..."
"If you want to ask how I became enemies with Xiao Feng, I advise you not to say anything, because I won't say a word," Liu Hanruo interrupted.
"Ruo'er, since you insist, I won't force you. But you can rest assured, whatever you do, I will support you one hundred percent. Even if the sky falls, I will hold it up for you!" Seeing Liu Hanruo's firm attitude, the Carefree King stopped pressing her and sighed, "There is one thing you must remember, Ruo'er: I absolutely will not allow anything to happen to you, not even the slightest injury. If you sense any danger, you must inform me immediately! I don't want to have any regrets!"
After hearing what the carefree king said, Liu Hanruo's expression was complicated, and she hesitated to speak.
"You. Actually... I..."
After struggling, Liu Hanruo didn't know how to speak, so she simply closed her eyes to rest and stopped talking, waiting for dawn.
Seeing this, the carefree king closed his eyes and leaned against the wall to sleep.
Time slipped away silently in his sleep. In the blink of an eye, the pitch-black night had passed. When the carefree king opened his eyes, he took in the beautiful sunrise. The sky outside gradually brightened, and as the red sun slowly rose, the sky gradually turned from black to red. From the moment it first appeared until it hung high in the sky, it only took a short while, yet it exuded a unique beauty and radiated an allure, making one unable to resist the allure of the sunrise. Looking at the pale golden yellow in the sky, it was truly breathtaking.
When Liu Hanruo woke up, she saw this beautiful scene, and for a moment, the beautiful sight brought her a sense of peace. She was about to speak when she suddenly saw the Carefree King slightly bent over, his left hand seemingly clenched into a fist and placed in front of his mouth, while his whole body trembled slightly.
Although she couldn't hear him, Liu Hanruo could tell from his movements that the Prince of Xiaoyao was in poor health. Without hesitation, she stood up, walked to his side, helped him sit down, and said calmly:
"You should know your physical condition. You must go back for treatment as soon as possible. This is probably not a place to stay for long."
"Cough cough. Ruo'er, I'm fine. Really...you don't need to worry..."
“There are ancient bamboo rafts, which we can learn from. You rest here and I'll take care of the bamboo raft.”
The carefree prince was about to say something when Liu Hanruo swiftly tapped him on the back of the neck. Suddenly, the prince felt dizzy and collapsed. Liu Hanruo placed the prince by the cave wall, letting his head rest against it. She then gathered some dry grass and covered him with it before leaving.
In the blink of an eye, three hours had passed quickly. Liu Hanruo returned, carrying various fruits and delicacies, looking travel-worn. It turned out that in such a short time, she had twisted hemp rope, tied a small bamboo raft, and made a pole. After finishing everything, she also picked a lot of fruits and delicacies along the way for later consumption.
After checking the time and taking his pulse, Liu Hanruo knew he was about to wake up. She stayed by his side, guarding the Prince of Xiaoyao, ready to set off as soon as he woke up.
Less than a quarter of an hour later, the carefree king slowly opened his eyes, holding his head. Just as he was about to speak, he saw Liu Hanruo help him up without saying a word and walk towards the cold pool.
Once aboard the bamboo raft, they swung the poles and the raft gently moved with the current. The carefree prince tried to help several times, but Liu Hanruo stopped him each time. They drifted in the cold pool for a day and a night, and their food supplies were all gone. Just when they thought they were running out of food, they saw hope. It turned out that they could now see the edge of the river.
Half an hour later, the two finally reached the shore, and only when their feet touched the ground did they truly feel at ease.
At this moment, Liu Hanruo said:
"Now that we're back here, from this moment on, we'll go our separate ways and have nothing to do with each other! Farewell!"
Upon hearing this, the Carefree King became extremely anxious, coughing repeatedly, but insisted on saying:
"Ahem. Ruo'er. Don't go... Let me explain. Actually... ahem, I am the Carefree Prince—Chu Che... and also your husband..."
---Aside---
In recent months, Yao Mei has been going through a lot of troubles. Not long ago, her grandfather also passed away, so Yao Mei has been very busy lately and hasn't had time to update until today. Yao Mei really wants to apologize to all readers for the inconvenience caused.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
