Now, besides saying sorry, he didn't know what else to say. Meng Wan shook her head: "There's no need to say sorry. Loving you is something I did willingly, not something I was forced to do. And facing this disaster with you is also my choice. You don't need to blame yourself. Just please promise me one thing."
"What is it? Tell me."
"If we manage to get out of here alive, can you promise me that you will remember me no matter what? To be forgotten by you is more painful than death for me!"
Chu Heng's heart began to tremble again. He admitted that after hearing her words, his heart trembled uncontrollably. He knew that he was willing, very willing to know, what kind of deep affection could make a woman persist in this way.
He nodded heavily: "If I could, I would definitely remember you, even if it cost me my life."
Tears streamed down her face, but a smile appeared on Meng Wan's lips. She thought, "That's good. Even if I die now, I won't have any regrets in this life."
As her thoughts raced, the entire thatched hut collapsed amidst a deafening explosion. Standing at a distance, the Empress watched the raging flames and couldn't help but burst into laughter, "Haha, Huangfu Shenghua, did you see that? Your beloved son and daughter-in-law are gone just like that. Next, it will be you!"
"Is that so?" A loud, unrestrained laugh suddenly rang out from behind, echoing her own. The Empress was startled and turned to look. When she saw who it was, her smile deepened: "So it's the Eighth Prince. Too bad you're too late. Meng Wan and your Seventh Brother have both been blown up. Haha, hahaha..."
"Is that so?" The same question came from the other side of the raging fire. Two figures staggered into view. Who else could it be but Meng Wan and Chu Heng?
"How could this be?" the Empress exclaimed in surprise.
"Why not?" Meng Wan asked with a smile, her body still bearing the marks of the explosion, though not serious. She gripped Chu Heng's hand tightly, looked at the Empress, and raised an eyebrow: "Do you really think I'd be foolish enough to come alone?"
"No way, how is that possible? How could you all have come out alive?" The Empress was still incredulous.
"As long as you take the rope with you when you go out, all your traps will be solved at once. How difficult do you think that will be?" Meng Wan asked rhetorically, raising her eyebrows.
"Ah!" Perhaps provoked by those words, the Empress screamed wildly, "Guards! Seize them! Guards! Guards, come quick—"
"You can give up now. Your men have already been dealt with by the people I brought. So I advise you to just surrender." Huangfu Yi snorted coldly.
"Impossible, no way, how could this happen..." The Empress went completely mad. She simply couldn't believe that her long-planned scheme could have failed at the last hurdle.
Seeing her frantic state, Meng Wan didn't bother with her anymore. She turned to look at Huangfu Mi, who was somewhat unconscious beside her. Thinking of how Huangfu Mi had shielded her during the explosion, a smile unconsciously appeared on her lips.
Perhaps this will be a good start.
Chu Heng seemed to be having a long dream. In the dream, a pair of gentle hands held his hands tightly. The familiar warmth seemed to spread from his fingertips to his whole body. Even in his sleep, he couldn't stop feeling a flutter in his heart.
But that wasn't all; those hands then caressed his cheeks and his hair...
In a daze, he opened his eyes, letting out a slightly uneasy groan. What came into view was the flickering, dim light, and shifting shadows. And then...
He sat up abruptly, and a familiar figure came into view.
"You're awake!" A pleasant female voice rang out with amusement, her gaze fixed on him, as if she couldn't get enough of looking at him.
My mind cleared instantly. My last memory was of the gunpowder explosion. So... they were saved?
"Wan'er, we..." The way the words came out naturally startled Meng Wan, but then she was filled with warmth and gratitude: "That's right, we escaped, we didn't die..."
"Thank goodness, we're alright, we're still alive, Wan'er, we're still alive..." Almost without thinking, overcome with emotion, he pulled her into his arms. It was the joy of surviving a disaster, the emotion of gazing into each other's eyes, and his voice was choked with emotion.
"Um..."
Meng Wan nodded, but didn't dare to reach out, because she wasn't sure if he truly believed her at that moment.
Seemingly sensing her hesitation, Chu Heng released her and took her hand, saying, "Wan'er, thank you!"
This expression of gratitude came from the bottom of his heart; it was gratitude for what she had said in the thatched hut, and also gratitude for her refusal to give up on him.
"Then you..." Her heart suddenly surged with emotion, seemingly because of her words of gratitude.
The voice suddenly stopped, as if he wanted to say something but hesitated. Chu Heng smiled and then nodded: "I think I should love you. When I heard what you said in the thatched hut, and saw that you were willing to die with me, I believed that I really am Huangfu Mi!"
"Really?" Meng Wan's eyes suddenly lit up, her joy a rare and genuine expression.
"Hmm." Chu Heng chuckled softly, a slight smile playing on his lips.
"Then..." She hesitated for a moment, then, under his gaze, she finally asked, "Are you willing to come back with me?"
Upon hearing this, Chu Heng was taken aback. Meng Wan, thinking that she was unwilling, hurriedly said, "If you are not willing, we will stay in Western Shu until you regain your memory."
Her anxious look, as if she were afraid he would run away, made Chu Heng smile, his heart warming even more: "Silly boy, I just didn't know how to tell the King of Western Shu and the princess!"
Although the King and Princess of Western Shu had deceived him, they were the ones who saved him back then; otherwise, he would probably have died long ago. So now that he wants to leave and return to Lanling, he must tell them, no matter what.
The next day, after resting for a while, the two went together to the palace of the Western Shu emperor to request an audience.
The King of Western Shu heard Meng Junheng recount the events of the previous day early in the morning. He was embarrassed but also deeply moved by Meng Wan's persistence. She was willing to risk her life for Huangfu Mi. Who could bear to hurt such a woman?
He only apologized to Meng Wan and Huangfu Mi for his previous concealment. He knew that if it weren't for that, the two children wouldn't have had to suffer so much.
Finally, he gave a few more instructions, nothing more than telling Huangfu Mi to take good care of himself after returning to Lanling and try to recover his memory as soon as possible. After that, he instructed Meng Junheng to send the two of them out.
Meng Junheng was naturally more than happy to have it.
Now that Huangfu Mi has realized his identity, although his memories have not yet been restored, with Hua Jiuye by his side, it is only a matter of time before he recovers his memories. So it seems that the others will soon leave Xishu and return to Lanling. As the heir of Xishu, it is obviously impossible for him to follow them back.
Moreover, even if the King of Western Shu were willing, the Prince of Ning was still eyeing Western Shu covetously, so how could he put his mind at ease?
So I could only say a few more words while they were still here.
It was simply a matter of asking Meng Wan to go back and help him explain to Prime Minister Meng his identity and why he wasn't going back. Meng Wan agreed to everything, and finally said, "Brother, don't worry, I'll take care of things at home. But you, you must be careful!"
Meng Junheng nodded. "I know, don't worry. When I have some free time, I'll go back to visit you and Father, and also—"
Before he could finish speaking, a figure suddenly flashed past at the end of the corridor. Meng Junheng abruptly stopped speaking and looked over, shouting, "Who's there!"
But a young girl's back was seen hurrying away. Meng Junheng recognized her at a glance as Huang Die, who was next to Hongxiu. He stopped and turned to look at Huangfu Mi: "It seems that Hongxiu sent her here."