After being thoroughly violated, he ran away with the enemy emperor's child.

"Yes."

A guard pushed open the palace door, and the Minister of Literature stepped inside. "Your Highness, His Majesty..."

The words caught in his throat. He looked at the person seated above him, his lips trembling: "Your...Your Majesty?"

"It is I."

Chu Junci nodded: "I was unwell some time ago, and Minister Wen was very kind."

"This is all within my duty."

"Please sit down."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Sitting down below, Wen Xiang looked at Chu Junci and asked, "I wonder if Your Majesty is in good health?"

"Peace and health."

"That's good."

Wen Xiang nodded, and after seeing that Chu Jun had passed away peacefully, he brought up another matter: "Your Majesty has been on the throne for two years, but the harem is empty. In my opinion, Your Majesty should hold a selection of consorts as soon as possible to fill the harem."

"Give birth to a prince as soon as possible to stabilize the Chu dynasty."

"…knew."

Seeing that Prime Minister Wen still wanted to speak, Chu Junci pressed his temples and said, "If there's nothing else, Prime Minister Wen, you may leave now."

The King of Chu issued an order to dismiss the guests, and the Minister of Literature moved his lips and said, "Yes, Your Majesty."

He took his leave and stepped out of the imperial study, letting out a heavy sigh of relief.

He said the young prince wasn't that kind of person, and it seems he was worrying too much.

Stroking his beard, Wen Xiang's back suddenly seemed much more relaxed.

As he walked along the corridor, he looked up at the sky. A corner of the horizon revealed golden clouds; that direction was—

Zhaoguo.

Zichen Palace.

Wu Jue stayed by the bedside all night, telling stories of His Majesty and Empress all night long, until his mouth was dry and his face showed signs of fatigue.

His Majesty woke up once during the journey, but after that he remained silent, even letting go of the hand that was clutching the Empress's robe.

Seeing this, Wu Jue's face grew even more desperate, but he did not give up and continued, "It rained that night, and His Majesty carried the Empress back to Qiyue Palace."

"Midway on, the Queen asked His Majesty if he was cold, and after stopping at Qiyue Palace, she even dried His Majesty's hair."

"The Queen is concerned about His Majesty and worries that he is ill."

"If the Empress knew that His Majesty was unconscious, she would surely be worried."

"..."

After he finished speaking, the person on the bed still did not move. Wu Jue sighed, paused for a moment, and continued, "According to the news sent back by the Yong Kingdom's spies, the Queen returned to the Xie residence yesterday."

"King Chu Ling of Yong Kingdom immediately summoned him to the palace, and the Queen stayed overnight in the palace."

Wu Jue spoke calmly and without changing his expression as he lied. His master had said that what he said to His Majesty did not need to be true, as long as it could provoke him.

He talked about it all night yesterday, but now it's just a desperate measure.

"It shouldn't be long before the Queen becomes Chu Ling's concubine. The two of them were childhood sweethearts and have a deep affection for each other."

"Back then, the Empress even painted a portrait of Chu Ling. The portrait of Chu Ling, which the secret agents couldn't find anywhere, was found in the Xie residence. This is enough to show how deeply the Empress loved Chu Ling."

"If His Majesty does not wake up soon, the Empress will belong to Chu Ling."

"From now on, he has nothing to do with His Majesty anymore. The mountains are high and the rivers are far, and His Majesty will never be able to see him again."

Following his master's instructions, Wu Jue rambled on and on, but as he spoke, he lost confidence and his voice grew softer and softer.

"The Empress..."

"Shut up."

"..."

A voice said "Shut up!" drifted from the bedside. Wu Jue's eyes widened suddenly, his gaze fixed on the bed: "Your Majesty? Are you awake?"

Although the word "shut up" was light, it was real, and it rekindled Wu Jue's hope.

"His Majesty?"

He took a few steps forward, his gaze suddenly meeting Mo Yan's. "Your Majesty..."

Mo Yan looked at him as well, his voice barely audible: "Don't... say it again."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

He lowered his head and picked up the medicine beside him: "Your Majesty, please drink the medicine."

"Help me up."

Every word he spoke aggravated his wounds. Mo Yan was helped to lean against the headboard. After swallowing a bowl of medicine, he closed his eyes and said, "Go down."

His voice was calm and still, and Mo Yan remained expressionless, lost in thought.

"But..." Wu Jue hesitated.

"Get out of here."

"Yes."

After Wu Jue left, Mo Yan looked around. Everything in Zichen Palace was the same as before, except that one person was missing.

Aci's clothes are still there, but Aci is gone...

He left him; he didn't want him anymore.

The scene at the border between the two countries was still vivid in her mind. Aci would rather venture into the miasma mountain and point an arrow at her own heart than leave him.

The words "Mo Yan, go back" still seemed to echo in Mo Yan's ears. He gritted his teeth, his eyes bloodshot.

That's enough...

Just pretend that Mo Yan had never met him.

Aci, if you want freedom, I'll give it to you.

Lying back in bed, Mo Yan couldn't fall asleep. His chest was in excruciating pain, which made him vaguely remember that A Ci also had a wound on her chest, left to save him.

At first, he thought it was Aci who was worried about him, but now it seems...

It was all just a deal between Aci and Wu Xu; otherwise, Mo Yan couldn't have imagined a second reason why Wu Xu would betray him.

When Wu Xu disobeyed his orders and went to Qiyue Palace, Aci made a deal with him. The deal was roughly as follows: Aci would give him her heart's blood, and in return, Wu Xu would help Aci leave.

It's laughable that Mo Yan even asked Wu Xu to investigate the loopholes. If he hadn't asked Wu Xu to do this, A Ci might not have run away so quickly.

He was too stupid.

He, Mo Yan, was too stupid...

Having finally figured everything out, Mo Yan gripped the blanket tightly, a struggle between reason and emotion.

Reason led him to set Aci free, while emotion compelled him to secretly infiltrate Yong Kingdom in search of news of Aci.

In the end, reason prevailed, and he closed his eyes, trying his best to control himself.

Freedom, give Aci freedom...

He thought to himself.

He drifted off to sleep again, and didn't wake up until the next day.

"Your Majesty, would you like something to eat?"

Wu Jue advised from the side, "It's been several days since His Majesty lasted to eat. What should we do if this continues?"

"Pass it on."

"…yes!"

Wu Jue thought he would have to persuade His Majesty for a long time, but he didn't expect His Majesty to be so cooperative. He hurriedly ordered someone to bring him a meal.

The meal was brought to his bedside, but Mo Yan ate it without any appetite. The words "How is Aci?" slipped through his throat, but he didn't ask.

After finishing his lunch, he wiped his lips and said, "Go downstairs."

"Yes."

He was alone in the hall again. He sat on the edge of the bed for a long time, then suddenly got off and walked towards the wardrobe.

When the cabinet door opened, he saw Aci's clothes, including white, light blue, and dark blue outer robes.

In addition, there were fox fur coats, undergarments, and so on...

A faint lotus fragrance wafted into his nose. He reached out and took down several pure white outer robes and undergarments, then returned to the bedside.

The clothes were arranged in a circle, and Mo Yan lay in the middle of the robes, gently curling up his body.

He held Aci's undergarments in his arms, burying his face in them as if Aci were still beside him.