After finishing their meal, Shen Yunxi and the other two left the restaurant. They even went out to buy Shen Anyu's favorite candied hawthorns. They had completed all the things they needed to do that day.
Lin Chen offered to escort Shen Yunxi back to her residence. She hadn't intended to trouble Lin Chen, but he insisted, so Shen Yunxi had no choice but to agree. It just so happened that Lin Chen hadn't visited the Shen family for a while.
Upon arriving at the Shen family home, Shen Yunxi invited Lin Chen inside for a chat, and he followed her in.
Because he had gotten up early, Shen Anyu was a little tired at the moment, so Shen Yunxi asked his maid to take him back for a midday rest.
He then led Lin Chen to the pavilion in the garden to sit and have some tea.
“Brother Lin has been very busy with official business lately. You didn’t need to send us back. My brother and I won’t be in any danger. It’s the capital, right under the emperor’s nose, and it’s broad daylight. No one will cause trouble.” Shen Yunxi was a little embarrassed. She always felt that Lin Chen had delayed his important business because of her and Shen Anyu.
Now that I think about it carefully, Lin Chen was really good to her and Shen An. He never lost his temper with them or got angry with them.
Lin Chen smiled, not caring at all. "It's alright. Things always come to an end. I only came here because I wanted to take a break from my busy schedule. I'm sorry to have made you laugh at me, Yunxi."
“How could I? Brother Lin is so outstanding, how could I laugh at you? You’re always so considerate.” Shen Yunxi smiled. “Sometimes I feel like I want to go back to when I was a child, so that some things wouldn’t have happened, and I might be completely different now.”
If she could go back to her childhood, she wouldn't have sneaked out to look for her father on the day of the hunt, so she wouldn't have encountered the wolf pack, nor would she have been saved by Jun-hyun.
If that were the case, she might not have had such deep feelings for Jun-hyun.
Seeing Shen Yunxi's distant gaze, Lin Chen knew that she must have thought of something related to Jun Xuan.
However, Shen Yunxi's attitude towards Jun Xuan this time made Lin Chen's heart flutter. Could it be that her feelings for Jun Xuan had changed slightly?
Upon realizing this, the usually gentle and refined Lin Chen suddenly looked at Shen Yunxi with some nervousness, his breathing becoming more rapid.
"Yunxi, I have a question for you. I don't know if you think I'm being too nosy." Lin Chen asked tentatively. He didn't want to say it, but he just couldn't control his heart.
Shen Yunxi snapped out of her thoughts, chuckled, and nodded. "Brother Lin, please speak freely. I won't mind, and there's nothing I need to hide from you."
Lin Chen pursed his lips, looked at the smile on Shen Yunxi's face, and slowly said, "Yunxi, when you met the Emperor today, I noticed that your expression didn't change much. You didn't go to the Emperor to say anything as usual. Did you encounter some trouble in the palace?"
After getting to know Jun-hyun, did you become disappointed in him?
Unfortunately, Lin Chen didn't dare to ask that question aloud; he was afraid of hearing an answer he didn't want to hear.
Shen Yunxi paused, her smile fading slightly. She silently lowered her eyelids, suppressing some of her emotions.
"I didn't expect Brother Lin to see through it so easily. I thought I had hidden it very well, and it took the Empress Dowager quite some time to figure it out," Shen Yunxi said softly.
Lin Chen wanted to say that he didn't see it easily, but rather that he cared too much about Shen Yunxi's feelings and could detect it from the subtle details. However, he couldn't say these words, otherwise he might lose the opportunity to get closer to Shen Yunxi.
"Hehe, I've known you since we were little, so I know you quite well." Lin Chen smiled and picked up the teacup on the table.
Strange, it was clearly a sweet-tasting flower tea, but when it entered his mouth, it inexplicably produced a bitter taste. Lin Chen gently put down the teacup and waited for the bitterness in his mouth to subside.
Shen Yunxi paused, feeling slightly depressed. Perhaps she should find someone to confide in.
"I'm sorry to have troubled you, Brother Lin. There used to be some bad rumors about me in the capital. Everyone said I was clinging to the Emperor. But I shouldn't hear such rumors much these days, since I've been deliberately avoiding him and not going near him." Shen Yunxi said with a wry smile.
Lin Chen breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing the result he wanted, but a different kind of doubt followed.
"Yunxi, you are deeply in love with the Emperor, why has he suddenly changed like this? Could it be that he angered you or hurt you in the palace?" Lin Chen's voice was a little hoarse.
Shen Yunxi didn't notice anything amiss in Lin Chen's words. She smiled bitterly and shook her head. "It's not that the Emperor hurt me, but I suddenly realized something I've always been unwilling to admit: the Emperor has no feelings for me whatsoever. I should have known this long ago. If the Emperor cared about me even a little, he wouldn't have failed to honor the late Emperor's decree of marriage. So I've been deceiving myself all along. I won't do that anymore. Since he doesn't care about this marriage, I'll find a good opportunity to return the imperial decree to him. From now on, men and women will have no say in each other's marriages."
Shen Yunxi probably didn't understand why she could tell Lin Chen her innermost thoughts. Maybe it was because he was such a good older brother, always thinking of her in everything.
Having known Lin Chen for so many years, he has always been a good older brother, filling the gap in comfort that Shen Anyu could not provide.
Lin Chen was somewhat dazed upon hearing this, and his heart pounded like a drum, even faster than before.
What did he hear?
Shen Yunxi's feelings for Jun Xuan have changed; is she going to give up on Jun Xuan?
No one knows how long Lin Chen had been waiting for this day. The young girl he longed for had fallen deeply in love with Jun Xuan, forcing him to hide his own feelings.
He was overjoyed to hear Shen Yunxi give up her feelings for Jun Xuan, even though it would take him some time to let go!
“Yunxi, I didn’t expect you to understand. This is a good thing. The Emperor has never been someone you can entrust your life to. You should know that the Emperor’s harem will definitely have many concubines. If you enter the palace, you will probably be disappointed before long. If you find an ordinary family, you will live a very easy life. With your status, you will definitely be the head of the household. But you may not be able to become the Empress in the Emperor’s court. Even if you become the Empress, you will suffer countless grievances. How will your parents face that?” Lin Chen said anxiously.
Hearing Lin Chen say that, Shen Yunxi laughed again, but this time the smile was no longer bitter, but rather relieved.
“Yes, Brother Lin is absolutely right. That’s why I’ve given up my feelings for the Emperor and am just waiting for the day when I can break off our engagement. I was just being stubborn before and couldn’t understand those things, but now I understand them completely. Brother Lin, you don’t need to worry about me.”
Lin Chen looked at Shen Yunxi's seemingly unreluctant expression and his heart stirred. Could it be that he could finally speak his mind?
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