The quietness and coldness of Huanqing Palace was something that Yi Huaiyu had not expected. Perhaps it was because of the cold character in the name. There were always few people here, the vegetation was withered, and only the flickering lights in the palace could make people feel the warmth.
The palace maids and eunuchs had all been taken away. When Yi Huaiyu opened the wooden door of the bedroom, the first person he saw was not Sima Tulan but Shen Junfang. He was surprised for a moment but then relieved - it was he who asked Shen Junfang to teach the prince his homework.
, why did you forget? If he was not in the imperial capital, only Shen Junfang could take care of Sima Dulan for him.
"Your Majesty?" Shen Junfang, who was taking a nap by the stove, was awakened by the sound of footsteps. When he saw that the person who came in was Yi Huaiyu, he was first surprised and then panicked. His face turned red and he was at a loss. "I, I will make some medicine for the Queen."
I didn't know why I fell asleep..."
Yi Huaiyu glanced at Sima Dalan who was sleeping on the bed, put his finger up to his lips and shook his head gently. Shen Junfang understood, covered his mouth and tiptoed out of the bedroom, leaving only Yi Huaiyu and Sima Dalan in the room.
Thick calloused fingers carefully caressed Sima Duran's sleeping face, hard but gentle. Yi Huaiyu sat on the edge of the bed and watched quietly, looking at the haggard face, watching the sins he had committed engraved between a woman's eyebrows
The cruel scars, looking at them, I can no longer bear to stare at them.
Compared with the arrogant and domineering daughter of the general, today's Queen Dayao is much more mature, and there is a faint mark of fatigue in the corners of her eyes. Yi Huaiyu doesn't know if Sima Duran will age quickly like other women, he only knows
, the time I gave her was really too little, too little.
"Tu'er..." He lowered his head and kissed the sweat on his forehead. There was a vague bitterness of medicine. This taste was more or less than the pain in Sima Duran's heart. Even if she didn't say it, he knew it.
A little heat between his brows made Sima Duran's chaotic dream dissipate, he opened his eyes dimly, and then closed them again.
"It's a dream again..."
The murmur of a hidden sigh made Yi Huaiyu instantly feel like a knife. He clenched the pale and cold palm hard and buried his head deeply into Sima Tulan's neck. How ridiculous, he who rarely appeared in Huanqing Palace finally came.
, he sent him tenderness and concern as she expected, but she chose to close her eyes when she saw him, preferring to believe that what she saw was just another sad dream.
Has he already left her so hopeless?
If a person could still live after having his heart removed, he really wanted to take out Sima Duran's heart and see how it was riddled with holes. He even wanted to take out his own heart and show it to her.
You know, he doesn't dislike her or hate her, it's just that... he can't convince himself to get close.
He loved her, and it was already decided on the night when it should not have happened.
The too real breathing finally made Sima Duran wake up. When her fingers touched the cold armor that she had not yet taken off, she suddenly lost all words and actions.
Yi Huaiyu had never been so tender to her. How should she respond to this sudden move? Should she hug him tightly and tell him about the long period of desolation and loneliness, or should she push him away mercilessly and let him experience the painful feeling of being abandoned?
?Of course, she will not beg for anything with tears. Her character does not allow herself to show her weak side, otherwise she would not have reached this point.
The two of them were in a stalemate in the flickering candlelight. It wasn't until a light cough sounded from outside that Yi Huaiyu stood up and sat down.
"How are you doing?"
"It's no longer a problem. Master Shen's wonderful hands and miraculous medicine can cure the disease."
"Yeah." Glancing at Sima Tulan's slightly thin cheeks, Yi Huaiyu wanted to persuade her to get more rest, but he swallowed the words back and sighed lightly, "I didn't expect that someone in the harem would use such dirty methods.
, I will have to punish him severely when I catch the murderer, not only to serve as a warning to others, but also to give you justice."
Sima Duran snorted and still lay lazily holding the quilt: "What is justice? I haven't seen it for eight hundred years. What's the use of it now? Just catch the person and deal with it. I can't see this disgusting thing in my eyes."
thing."
Yi Huaiyu twitched his lips and smiled bitterly, raised his hand, hesitated for a moment and then gently placed it on the back of Sima Duran's hand.
"Go on to sleep, I will watch over you tonight."
Without words of gratitude or refusal, Sima Duran accepted Yi Huaiyu's proposal calmly. She even refused to be polite. She just stared at him for a long time, then hugged the warm hand and slept quietly.
go.
Having him without having to share it with others, having him so gentle without being utilitarian, is a rare thing for her at the snap of her fingers. However, there is something that Sima Duran still doesn't know - the key to breaking through the Jiang Kingdom and marching straight into the Zhao Kingdom.
At that moment, Yi Huaiyu, who heard the news of her poisoning, did not hesitate to give up the attack and return to the imperial capital.
"I would rather lose ten cities than lose my imperial queen." The emperor of Dayao, who stood in front of Yanghun Pass with horses and silver armor holding a gun, spoke loudly.
That was his biggest wish in the first half of his life, to break through the Zhaoguo city, replace its hegemony, and let the people who once oppressed the Yaoguo pay with their blood. The world cannot be abandoned by one person. Yi Huaiyu understands this better than anyone else, but he knows it better.
He understands the value of Sima Duran. With her, he can fight on the battlefield without any worries. Without her, his heart is missing, and even if he has the world, he cannot make up for it.
So he came back to protect her from being in danger.
"I have only loved two women in my life, but I have failed both of them. All I can do now is try not to let you get hurt as much as possible. Tu'er, will you forgive me?" A weak voice rolled on her lips.
Suddenly, the deep guilt contained in his tone could only be heard by the speaker.
Yi Huaiyu waved his sleeves and turned off the lights. He held Sima Duran's hand and clothes and lay down. He closed his eyes and breathed evenly into his ears to induce sleep.
When the lights in the room were turned off and the night fell, Shen Junfang, who was waiting outside, knew that Yi Huaiyu would not leave tonight. It is normal to think about it. The king of a country and the queen of a country have experienced life and death together. That kind of friendship
How could it be possible to just break up? Laughing at himself, Shen Junfang regretted that he had spoken nonsense in front of Sima Duran, and his young face was full of loneliness.
"The Emperor has returned to the palace, Master Shen can go and rest." The door opened and closed, and Ou Suiliang stood in front of Shen Junfang with a calm face, just in time to block the pair of eyes that were looking at the door of the inner room.
Shen Jun lowered his head and grabbed the corners of his clothes like a child: "General, can you walk with me for a while? I... I have something to say to General."
Ou Suiliang nodded, a trace of excitement flashing in his eyes.
The aura exuded by that young man seemed to be different from before he left the palace, decadent and desolate.
His deep gaze swept across the quiet interior, and in a blink of an eye he moved to the courtyard where there were no palace maids or eunuchs waiting on him. Ou Suiliang was walking in front of him. Shen Junfang didn't say anything, and he also refused to speak.
Walking through the winding path of the deep palace, when he reached the shadow of the moonlight obscured by the dead vine branches, Shen Junfang suddenly stopped and stared blankly at the back of the figure who stopped behind him. He was silent for a long time before he hesitated to say a word.