Chapter 184 Memories
There was deathly silence in the imperial study.
You can hear a pin drop.
Every word the emperor spoke was like a poisoned dagger, stabbing Shen He's vitals with precision.
He had paved all the roads and set all the traps for her.
Whether she admits it or denies it, she will be accused of being "ambitious and fickle."
Fine beads of sweat had already appeared on Manager Li's forehead.
He could almost foresee the scene of the emperor's rage and blood splattering every five steps in the next moment.
However--
Chen He, however, slowly raised his head.
Without any fear.
Not a shred of retreat.
Those eyes, as clear as an ancient well, just went straight into the emperor's bottomless dragon eyes.
Tit for tat.
The emperor's pressure and the girl's courage confronted each other silently in the air.
The emperor's brows suddenly furrowed.
He hadn't seen such a pair of eyes in a long, long time.
The last person who dared to look at him like this...
It's a Chenliqin.
She was the woman with extraordinary talent and beauty, but who ultimately resolutely left him.
She is Chen He’s aunt.
picture.
So similar.
The stubborn refusal to admit defeat between his eyebrows and the pride in his bones that would rather die than live in disgrace are simply cast in the same mold.
There was a tremendous rage brewing in the emperor's eyes.
But at this moment, all faded away.
All that remains is a complex and indistinguishable... trance.
The tremendous pressure that almost crushed Shen He quietly dissipated.
Just then.
Chen He slowly lowered his eyes.
The tense, bowstring-like confrontation collapsed in an instant.
She spoke again, her voice cracking with a barely perceptible hue.
"His Majesty."
"once."
"This humble servant has presented her sincere heart, completely and completely, to His Majesty the Third Prince."
She paused, as if recalling the unbearable past, every word stained with blood.
"This servant also thought that what she would gain would be the love and affection she received."
A ripple finally appeared in those calm eyes, which was filled with pain, hatred, and overwhelming resentment.
"But……"
"When this sincere heart of a subject is taken away by the person I love the most, and my closest sister..."
Her voice trembled suddenly, as if an invisible hand was strangling her throat.
"...When I tear it apart, crush it, and then stomp it hard under my feet..."
She raised her eyes suddenly, and this time, there was a blood-red question in her eyes.
"His Majesty!"
"He can dislike me, and he can refuse to accept me!"
"But why did he bring my sister with him to betray me?!"
"Your Majesty, it's you who's in charge!"
“Such a person!”
She spoke each word with great emphasis, tears streaming down her face.
"Can I still... marry...?!"
The last word "ma", with endless sorrow and determination, fell heavily on the cold floor tiles of the imperial study.
She then lowered her head again, as if all her strength had been exhausted.
"I only learned about this at the Queen Mother's birthday banquet."
"But in front of all the civil and military officials, the royal family..."
"I cannot speak because my own sister has brought disgrace upon the Shen family."
"Even more so, I cannot refuse the Empress Dowager's grace in public."
"So, I, the subject, can only choose."
The emperor remained silent for a long time.
He looked at the frail figure lying on the ground, and the scrutiny in his eyes was finally replaced by an indescribable emotion.
So...that's how it is.
These words are more sincere and tragic than any eloquent excuse.
Even he, the emperor, could empathize with the pain of being betrayed by his loved ones.
However, the emperor's mind will never stop at being moved.
He restrained all the emotions that were leaking out, and his voice returned to its cold and indifferent tone.
"In that case."
He spoke slowly, and the new question, like a new sword, hung over Shen He's head again.
"Then why..."
"Choose Jing Chi?"
This question hung heavily in the air of the imperial study.
It was even more deadly than questioning her ambition just now.
Because choosing a fool is itself the most unreasonable and imaginative thing.
Manager Li's heart was in his throat again.
He looked at the thin figure lying on the ground and broke into a cold sweat for her.
However, Shen He did not answer immediately.
She just lay there quietly, as if gathering her last bit of strength.
After a while.
She slowly raised her head again.
This time, the overwhelming hatred and sorrow in her eyes had faded away.
Only a calmness that was almost dead remained.
"His Majesty."
Her voice was soft, but extremely clear.
"May I allow you to tell a story?"
The emperor's eyebrows moved slightly, and he didn't say yes or no.
He just looked at her quietly with those bottomless eyes.
Silent acquiescence.
Chen He got permission, and a very faint and bitter arc appeared at the corner of his lips.
"Back then, I and my younger sister, Chen Jiao, studied together at Yunshan Academy."
"Although I and she are both legitimate children, our circumstances are vastly different."
"She has her mother, the Shan family, to lean on, and she also has a close friend as precious as Princess Ya'an."
"In the academy, I am naturally the center of attention and enjoy unlimited glory."
"And your servant..."
She smiled self-deprecatingly.
"She's just an orphan who lost her mother and is disliked by her father."
The emperor's eyes flickered slightly.
Shen He didn't look at him, but continued to immerse himself in his own memories.
"Princess Ya'an has never liked me."
"Plus, my younger sister is always instigating me, intentionally or unintentionally..."
"Finally, one day, they found an opportunity."
"Beside the lotus pond of the academy, Princess Ya'an and a group of noble ladies surrounded me."
"They spoke the harshest words, looked at me with the most contemptuous eyes, and then..."
"He pushed me into the water!"
Having said this, her voice remained calm, but her clenched hands with white knuckles revealed the turmoil in her heart.
"Your Majesty, I...can't swim."
"The water in the pond was icy cold, and the feeling of suffocation was overwhelming. I still remember it vividly."
"The subject is struggling in the water and calling for help."
"But those people on the shore, my classmates who used to study with me, just looked on indifferently."
"Princess Ya'an has declared that anyone who dares to save me will become her enemy."
“So, no one dared to move.”
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