She opened her mouth, wondering where to begin.
"Alright." Pei Junwu sneered, "I know you're just trying to keep me here. I'll pretend I didn't hear you."
She looked at him, but he still didn't respond.
“Junwu, no, what I’m saying is true.”
"Really? I don't know what's real and what's fake anymore." He finally looked at her. "I'm just asking you, how long can you stay with me? If it's only a few days or months, you might as well leave now." He asked sarcastically, mocking himself and mocking fate.
She knelt opposite him, looked at him, and said, word by word, "One—life—one—world."
He suddenly burst into laughter.
"Really?" He smiled, completely disbelieving.
"You know something about the Xiao family's secrets, don't you?" She said with a stern face, only by feigning indifference could she steady her shattered heart. "Having the incantation alone is useless. Activating that treasure only happens once a year, and it requires two things."
He stopped laughing, stared blankly at her, his whole body tense.
"Junwu, the person you are betrothed to is me."
He looked at her, and his whole body began to tremble...
She recounted coldly her story, from their encounter by the lake on a rainy night, to her kiss under the moonlight, to the helpless yet sweet night amidst the sea of flowers… She spoke as if she were telling someone else's tale, merely recounting a not-so-noble story. She could even say, without lifting an eyelid, that amidst those flowers, she gave herself to Yi Chunjun.
Only in this way could she open her mouth and speak out.
His face grew paler and paler, but his eyes grew brighter and brighter.
She dared not stop; once she stopped, she didn't know if she would have the courage to continue. The story seems long, but in reality, it's only a few sentences long.
After she finished speaking, she was stunned...
She originally thought that revealing the secret would be incredibly satisfying, that "Xiao Juyuan" would be banished to hell, and that she would laugh triumphantly while stepping on Xiao Juyuan's face. But now that she's told the truth, her heart is being slowly tortured by every word. Everyone who knows this absurd secret of the substitution has gone to hell!
"Do you hate me?" Finally, all her suppressed emotions boiled over, about to shatter her fragile facade of indifference. She looked at him, and he looked at her, neither of them uttering another word, as if afraid that if they opened their mouths, they would break down first.
"As long as you don't mind..." Her tears finally flowed. How ridiculous and pitiful that she had to say such things to him, even though she originally felt that he had wronged her and owed her something. "I will stay with you for the rest of my life."
He suddenly jumped out of bed and ran away!
She laughed, tilting her head back, but with an intense resentment, she wanted to question the heavens: Is this fate?!
Run? How far can he run? Can he escape everything fate has imposed upon him? First, the ancestral precept of lifelong loyalty, the responsibility of guarding the treasure. Then, the young master's wife whom he doesn't love. Finally, the woman whose body and soul belong to another!
Who says he's a favorite of fate? Fate has only ever toyed with him time and time again!
And her?
Isn't that true?!
I initially thought I had lost everything, filled with resentment and hatred, and I hadn't laughed heartily for ten years. Later, I realized I was lucky; I hadn't actually lost anything—a stable life and love.
And then...
Chapter 59 of "The Smiling Flower": Returning to the Origin
She lay silently on the bed, completely exhausted, feeling tired and weary even while lying down.
The door opened, and Yi Chunjun walked in with a faint smile. His voice was low and gentle, captivating yet causing her great pain. "Are you feeling better? I heard you actually fainted."
She calmly turned her head to look at him, and her gaze startled him, causing him to stop smiling. "What's wrong? Still feeling unwell?" He frowned, took a step forward, sat down on the edge of the bed, and took her hand, but she shook it off forcefully, making him stiffen.
"What is it now?" he asked, sounding rather displeased.
"Where have you been?" She looked at him; his smiling eyes and handsome face... all of this made her feel both eerie and terrifying.
He looked at her inquisitively for a while, then suddenly smiled, leaned down and pressed her down, raising an eyebrow slightly, "Missed me?"
"Get up!" she shouted coldly. He was stunned again, his face finally turned cold, and he sat up.
"I'm going to marry Pei Junwu," she said simply and decisively.
He sneered, "Anything new? I'm tired of hearing it. It's still the same two words: Don't even think about it."
"Actually, this has nothing to do with you. I'm just letting you know." She gripped the bedsheet tightly, speaking harshly to him. Who was really hurting more, him or her?
"Is that so?" His eyes flashed with that violent glint again. "What did I tell you last time?" He flung his sleeve, slamming the half-closed door against both walls. He straddled the bed, forcefully mounting her. "If you dare say another word like that to me, I'll take you in front of the entire Pei family! Let's see how Pei Junwu marries you!"
She looked at him indifferently, even smiling slightly, "Palace Master Mieling, do you think I still care about this?"
She saw a sharp, cold glint flash in his eyes.
"You know?" He looked at her and slowly withdrew from her.
"How does it feel to have your secret exposed, Palace Master?" she sneered.
"What difference does it make to you who I am?! My heart is yours, that's all!" he said harshly, as if making a declaration.
“Young Master Yi, who knows everything,” she looked at him with a hint of sarcasm, her eyes slightly blurry, “do you even know what the ruler of Later Shu was called?”
He glanced at her with some annoyance. "I don't know. Why are you asking?"
"The rulers of Later Shu have always been called 'Moon King'."
He had been looking impatient, but suddenly froze, as if remembering something. His face grew paler and paler, and after a moment of silence, he understood many things.