Every time the prince opens his eyes, he sees

Xie Qingchen looked at Lu Yaoyao deeply, his eyes filled with complex emotions that eventually turned into forbearance.

Without saying anything else, he turned around and strode out of the room, leaving Lu Yaoyao sitting quietly by the bed.

The room returned to calm again. Lu Yaoyao looked at the closed door, feeling mixed emotions.

She knew that what she had just said might have touched Xie Qingchen and hurt him.

But she is not sure whether this touch can be the key to changing the status quo.

Time passed, and Lu Yaoyao's days of imprisonment went by one by one.

During this period, Princess Changning never came again, and Xie Qingchen only occasionally sent people to deliver some clothes and food, and rarely showed up himself.

Lu Yaoyao knew that he was hesitating and struggling, and this hesitation and struggle was exactly what she expected.

Finally, on a sunny afternoon, Xie Qingchen appeared in front of Lu Yaoyao again.

His stern face was less stern than before and looked more haggard.

"Yaoyao, I've thought about it, and you're right. I can't selfishly keep you by my side. You have your own world and your own responsibilities. I'm willing to fulfill your wish, but you must agree to one condition of mine." There was an imperceptible tremor in Xie Qingchen's voice.

Lu Yaoyao's heart trembled uncontrollably, but she controlled herself, biting her lip tightly as she said, "Go ahead. Go ahead, as long as I can do it, I'll definitely agree."

"I want you to promise me that you will marry out of the palace. Then I will personally issue an order to take you in as my sister and send you off in marriage."

Lu Yaoyao looked incredulous, "You didn't lie to me."

"I wish I was lying to you."

Lu Yaoyao was speechless.

Finally, she nodded slightly, her eyes moist, "Okay, I promise to marry you from the palace."

"If you want to leave the palace now, go ahead and see your relatives in this life or Liu Wenxuan. Once the imperial edict comes down, you can no longer leave the palace at will. You must stay in the palace and wait for your marriage."

Lu Yaoyao understood his intention. He just wanted to keep her by his side and stay with her for a while longer.

After receiving the emperor's leave-the-palace token, Lu Yaoyao left the palace that night.

Seeing her parents and relatives, her mother, with her new identity, hugged her and cried with joy, "Daughter, you are back. I am glad that you are safe. If anything happened to you, I would not live."

"Don't worry, I'm fine. Everything is fine. The Queen just likes me, so she let me stay in the palace for a few more days to accompany her."

"As long as it's okay, it'll be okay."

After a while of conversation, Father Lu said, "Daughter, you should go check on Wenxuan. He's lost his appetite these past few days and has lost a lot of weight. No one can persuade him."

"Okay, I'll go see him.

Inside the Liu Mansion, candlelight flickered. Liu Wenxuan sat alone in the study, tightly holding a scroll in his hand. It was a photo of him and Lu Yaoyao when they visited West Lake together.

The person in the painting is smiling like a flower, but at this moment he has a sad look on his face, as if the whole world has lost its color.

"Dong dong dong..."

"Wenxuan, are you there?" A knock on the door interrupted his thoughts.

He looked up suddenly, a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes, and then dimmed again, thinking that it was just auditory hallucination caused by missing her too much.

How could Yaoyao appear at this time?

She was also imprisoned in the deep palace by the emperor and was not allowed to go out.

But the knock came again, firm and clear.

"Who?" He hesitated for a moment and asked in a hoarse voice.

"It's me, Yaoyao." A familiar and gentle voice came from outside the door, like a spring breeze blowing across the heart, instantly melting the ice in Liu Wenxuan's heart.

The door was suddenly opened, and Liu Wenxuan appeared at the door, his eyes fixed on Lu Yaoyao, as if he wanted to embed her whole body in his eyes.

Lu Yaoyao looked at his thin face and felt a pang of heartache in her heart. She walked quickly forward and the two hugged each other tightly. There was no need to say anything, everything was self-explanatory.

"Yaoyao, you're back, you're really back? Am I dreaming?" Liu Wenxuan's voice was choked with sobs, as if he was confirming a miracle that he dared not hope for.

Lu Yaoyao's voice choked with sobs. "I'm not dreaming. I'm really back. I can continue to be your bride. Our wedding can go on as scheduled, as long as you are still willing to marry me."

"Really? I'm really not dreaming?" Liu Wenxuan still looked dazed and couldn't believe it.

Lu Yaoyao gently patted his back and said softly, "I'm not dreaming. This is real. I'm really back. I'm sorry, Wenxuan, for making you worry."

Liu Wenxuan hugged her tightly again.

The two hugged each other for a long time before slowly separating. Their eyes met, both filled with deep attachment and reluctance to part.

"Yaoyao, what is going on? Weren't you...?" Liu Wenxuan didn't finish his words, his eyes full of confusion and worry.

Lu Yaoyao shook her head slightly, "The emperor didn't do anything to me?"

"How could he?"

Lu Yaoyao held his hand, preventing him from speaking. "Anyway, I'm telling you, the emperor won't interfere with us anymore, and we can get married. Will you marry me?"

"I do, of course I do." He held her hand in his. "We'll get married and become husband and wife, right?"

"Yes, I will be your wife, wear the phoenix crown and bridal robe, marry you, and become the most beautiful bride."

"Okay." Liu Wenxuan was so excited that tears came to his eyes.

"However, the Emperor and I have a condition."

"You say." Liu Wenxuan seemed to have been prepared to accept everything. As long as he could be with her, he didn't mind paying the price.

What he could accept was far lower than Lu Yaoyao could imagine.

"The emperor wants me to marry out of the palace, so we can't meet again before the wedding. The emperor will personally issue an order to grant us marriage at that time." Lu Yaoyao said cautiously, and kept observing Liu Wenxuan's expression, fearing that he would refuse.

But what she didn't expect was that Liu Wenxuan just said, "Is that all?"

"Yes." Lu Yaoyao was a little bit unbelievable and felt endlessly guilty. Liu Wenxuan's feelings for her were actually so deep.

He was a smart man and knew the emperor's intention, but he said that this was all he asked for?

Had he expected worse?

"Okay, I promise." He held Lu Yaoyao's hand and said stubbornly: "Yaoyao, we will definitely get married, right?"

"Yes, we will definitely get married."

"That's good, that's good. Yaoyao, stay and have dinner with me before you leave."

"Okay." She signaled with her eyes to Qingfeng who was following her and hiding in the dark, and he wisely avoided it.

Liu Wenxuan asked his servants to serve the meal.

At the dinner table, the two of them smiled at each other, as if they had endless things to say.

Lu Yaoyao watched Liu Wenxuan pick up food for her, her heart filled with warmth.

After dinner, the two played chess facing the window. The moonlight was like water, sprinkling on the windowsill, adding a bit of tenderness to the quiet night.

It was as if there had never been any unpleasantness in the lives of the two people.

Time passed quickly and it was already late at night. A breeze blew over and Lu Yaoyao knew she had to leave.

"Yaoyao, wait for me, I will definitely welcome you home with great fanfare." Liu Wenxuan hugged her gently and made his promise.