You don't understand.
These three words were like a bolt from the blue, exploding in Lin Wanwan's mind and shattering all her rationality, composure, and pretense.
Her body began to tremble uncontrollably from extreme anger and humiliation.
She suddenly raised her head, and in her almond-shaped eyes, which had been relatively calm, two raging flames had now ignited. Those flames were even more intense and more... desperate than the anger in Xiao Che's eyes.
"I don't understand?"
She spoke, her voice hoarse, tinged with disbelief and mockery.
She slowly stood up, looking directly at the emperor who was a head taller than her and was radiating a powerful aura of oppression, without flinching in the slightest.
"Your Majesty said...I don't understand?"
Xiao Che was taken aback by her sudden and intense emotional change.
He was simply stating a fact.
She hadn't witnessed those horrific scenes firsthand, so she couldn't empathize with them, and therefore she didn't understand his anger and resolve at that moment.
Is there a problem with this?
His well-reasoned "straight man's logic chain" remained as solid as a rock at this moment.
However, his seemingly unbreakable logic was cracked for the first time by Lin Wanwan's next words.
"Fine, what a fine 'I don't understand'!" Lin Wanwan laughed, a laugh more painful than a grimace. "Then I shall ask Your Majesty!"
Her voice suddenly rose, carrying a reckless sharpness.
"Back in Zhenbeiguan, who was it that, despite pressure from all the generals, proposed establishing the 'Military-Civilian Inspectorate'?!"
"Who stayed up all night to come up with the idea of 'official logistics control' to eradicate the greed of those corrupt officials at its root?!"
"It's me! Lin Wanwan!"
She took a step forward, getting closer to Xiao Che, her eyes burning with fire as she stared intently at him.
"Those plans were proposed by me! Those problems were seen with my own eyes! Those reforms were personally promoted by me!"
"But now, Your Majesty, sitting in this warm and comfortable imperial study, you're telling me, someone who experienced this firsthand... that I don't understand?!"
This series of questions was like a series of resounding slaps to Xiao Che's face.
He was completely dumbfounded.
He...that's not what he meant!
He only said she didn't understand his feelings "at this moment," he didn't say she didn't understand "this matter"!
These are two different concepts!
However, Lin Wan-wan, who was blinded by anger and grievances, could no longer listen to any logic.
To her, Xiao Che's words "You don't understand" were not just a simple "disagreement on political views," but a complete rejection of him!
It is a complete erasure of all her efforts and achievements!
This is no longer a "work disagreement".
This is "emotional betrayal"!
You don't believe me anymore.
You no longer believe me.
This realization, like the sharpest knife, completely severed the last line of defense in her heart called "trust".
All the suspicions, anxieties, and grievances of the past few days have finally found an outlet and burst forth at this moment, like a flash flood!
"Do you think," her voice became sharp due to extreme emotional turmoil, with a hint of hysteria, "that I, Lin Wan-wan, am nothing without 'that' thing?!"
She didn't dare say the words "emoji".
That was her deepest secret, and also her most painful scar at this moment.
She could only use the vague term "that thing" to refer to the "cheat code" that had once made her invincible but had now vanished without a trace.
"Do you think that all the time I was able to help you with your strategies, see through people's hearts, and help you resolve crises was because of 'that' thing?!"
"Do you think I'm just a cheat code that can only 'interpret pictures'?! So now that 'that' thing is gone, I've become a clueless idiot who only causes trouble?!"
She roared out, and tears finally welled up uncontrollably and streamed down her face.
Those tears were not from weakness, but from anger and despair.
"So now you don't believe me! You think my advice is 'womanly compassion'! You think my ideas are 'nonsense' born of 'excess'!"
"Xiao Che, is that what you really think?!"
For the first time, she called out his full name.
This series of earth-shattering, information-packed explosions hit Xiao Che like a heavy hammer, leaving him completely stunned.
He stood there blankly, staring at the woman in front of him, her face streaked with tears and her emotions in complete disarray, his mind utterly confused.
Wh...what is that?
What is "picture description"?
What kind of "cheat device"?
What nonsense is she spouting?!
Xiao Che, the most intelligent emperor of the Dali Dynasty, discovered for the first time that he... could not understand his empress's words at all.
His proud, all-knowing imperial brain completely crashed in the face of Lin Wan-wan's "encrypted call"-like roar.
He only grasped a few keywords.
I don't believe you.
"Nonsense".
Then, his "straight male logic," which had just been cracked, quickly "repaired itself" amidst immense confusion and anger at being unjustly accused.
He felt that she was being silly again.
For no apparent reason, "national affairs" were brought up to "personal feelings".
"What 'describe the picture'?!"
He finally found his voice, his tone filled with confusion and irritated frustration.
"I'm discussing vital military and political matters with you, matters of national importance! What nonsense are you spouting?!"
He thought that his "rational" words, which were "an attempt to steer the conversation back on track," would calm her down.
Little did he know that Lin Wan-wan heard the phrase "What nonsense are you talking about?" as the final verdict on all the accusations against her.
Yeah, I'm being silly.
In your eyes, all my pain, all my grievances, all my anxieties are just... "nonsense".
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