After deceiving the villain, I was forced to love him.

After a long while, Lu Jian also sat down on the ground.

"So...stupid...no, like you."

Perhaps out of sheer audacity, Baili Ce stopped using honorifics.

Lu Jian felt somewhat dejected. Not only Baili Ce, but he also felt that his actions were foolish.

Just to confirm a possibility, would you risk your life?

but--

"It's quite relaxing to be silly once in a while."

He desperately needed to know the extent to which Baili Ce could maintain self-control without any prior preparation.

"So, the other person you asked about... is He Yao?"

Lu Jian lowered his eyes gently.

He never hid his preference for Ayao, so it wasn't hard to guess.

"Her condition..."

Ok?

After waiting for a while, seeing that Baili Ce didn't continue, Lu Jian assumed that she had stuttered and gotten stuck.

So he kindly asked, "How about I find you some paper and a pen?"

"......" I felt like swearing.

But swearing requires even more speed of speech, so I'll pass.

Bai Lize could only shake her head, indicating that she had just been thinking, "Her situation... is different from mine."

When they were in Lincheng, she sensed that something was wrong with He Yao.

However, time was of the essence, and she could not afford to delay even a moment.

Furthermore, when they went to Qucheng to recuperate, He Yao seemed to have returned to the capital before they arrived in order to avoid her, so Baili Ce didn't investigate further.

After all, curiosity killed the cat. Who doesn't have a few secrets in this world?

Since neither Lu Jian, who is more cunning than her, nor Li Yuanzheng, who is more experienced than her, nor her sister raised any objections, why should she expose them?

It seems that He Yao is probably on the same track as Wang Qingyan.

"You mean, Ayao also has the power of mortal regeneration."

"That's probably it... but... I guess she didn't really control Asahi... or rather, she probably already is."

Lu Jian felt even more disheartened after hearing this.

Baili Ce, on the other side, couldn't quite sense his emotions. He saw that for a moment, Baili Ce was completely lost and had lost all imperial majesty, like a crane with broken wings.

So much so that when Lu Jian got up, she thought he had become withdrawn and needed to go back alone to calm down...

Little did anyone know that he simply found paper and pen and sketched a picture.

Upon seeing the painting, Baili Ce immediately snatched it away.

Then, his eyes widened in shock, and his whole body trembled!

“I saw this at Ayao’s place. It’s been about ten years. She treasures it very much.”

"..."

Where does the story begin?

Lu Jian didn't know, so he started from the beginning.

He first met He Yao on a bitterly cold winter night. He was warming himself by the fire in a small shop on the frontier when she arrived, bringing with her the wind and snow, like a white plum blossom unafraid of the cold, scattering its elegance across the ground.

But he actually knew that the encounter was something He Yao had orchestrated.

If it were someone else, they would probably be very angry.

But what Lu Jian was thinking was—

Wow! There are actually girls who would go to such lengths for him!

And she's a beautiful and rebellious girl too!

So he turned the tables and showed He Yao what a genuine, unintentional "chance encounter" really was.

"You're so...strange," Baili Ce said, puzzled and greatly shocked.

Time always feels gentle and beautiful when you're with someone you truly love, Lu Jian said, his demeanor softening considerably.

“I have only been emperor for nine years. When I met her, I was in dire poverty. What else could such a vibrant girl be after but me, besides wanting my body and my heart? Of course I was happy.”

So, rounding it off, Ayao truly loved him from the very beginning!

"Uh..." Why does it feel so greasy for no reason?

"What about before you met her?"

Lu Jianyi shrugged. "Nobody respects me anymore~"

At that time, the Empress Dowager did consider asking her maternal grandparents for help, or marrying into a noble family to improve their situation.

Lu Jian at the time also agreed with this approach.

Although it may sound harsh, it is human nature to make use of all available resources.

If one insists on morality, propriety, integrity, and a sense of shame in everything, then one might as well paint a portrait of oneself, hang it on the wall, and then hang oneself in front of the palace gate.

"My mother had seven or eight brothers and sisters from the same clan, but not one of them offered a helping hand."

“When the Empress Dowager was in favor, they were so affectionate, as if they wanted to give me all the good things.”

"The word 'pamper' itself implies that one can be discarded at any time."

Bai Lize disliked the phrase "so-and-so dotes on so-and-so," because the word "dotes" is only repeatedly mentioned or evoked when superiors are bestowing favors upon those in lower positions in a self-righteous manner.

What's the difference between saying "He spoils you so much" or "You're so pampered" and praising a dog that's trying to please its owner?

She never used this word when raising Lai Fu and Fu Gui.

"Yes, they thought my son and I were useless and were afraid of getting involved in anything, and there were also people who took advantage of our misfortune."

"After the initial novelty wore off, my bastard father felt that my mother was not gentle and obedient enough and was dependent on him, so he quickly grew tired of her. Later, during a trip, he treated her like a servant and then threw her away along with me."

"But my mother was never pessimistic, and she did not mistreat me because I had the blood of a bastard in my veins."

"She taught me poetry, literature, music, horseback riding, archery, and principles of conduct, but also taught me to be flexible and to assess situations."

"She told me that being a woman is not easy, and that no matter who I marry in the future, I must give them enough respect and take good care of them."

"So the moment I saw Ayao, I knew that she must have had some great difficulties to lie to me."

A woman uses her beauty to please a man, not because she likes him, but because she has no other choice.

Furthermore, because his mother had no one to help her during her most difficult times and had suffered so much for him, he thought that if He Yao needed him, he could give it a try.

Little did they know that this one test would determine their lifelong commitment.

"After we confirmed our feelings for each other, I felt that she was hiding many things from me, but she was unwilling to say, so why should I pry into it?"

In short, Ayao wouldn't harm him.

"Then you want to know?"

"Of course I did."

"So you... never suspected her because of that?"

Lu Jian asked incredulously, "Why would you be suspicious?"

"Just because she can't let go of her pride and can't tell me all her secrets, should I doubt her sincerity towards me?"

All relationships are the same: if you think too clearly and want too much, there will be no love left.

"And I could sense that she wasn't saying it because she was afraid of losing it."

"My mother once told me not to do anything that would frighten the other person."

"After thinking about it for a while, I realized it didn't matter anymore."

If revealing the secret would be like stripping He Yao naked, then he would rather she never tell.

Have you said these things to her?

Lu Jian shook his head. "If I tell her, she will be in a very awkward situation."

Later, Lu Jian said a lot more.

This includes He Yao discussing court affairs with him, helping him train the Dragon Armor Army, keeping an eye on the restless concubines in the harem, and scolding him to wake him up when he was carried away with his pride.

He found the painting of "wearing a purple-gold crown, dressed in an ochre-yellow robe, and walking in cloud-patterned shoes" in He Yao's dressing box. He was scolded by He Yao and was so frightened that he thought He Yao was going to break up with him.

Fortunately, he was very receptive to his mistake and vowed never to do it again.

He Yao's favorite face powder is most similar to the scent of roses. She likes to braid a small braid in the lowest layer of hair at the back of her head. She doesn't like Sichuan peppercorns, but like He Yao, she loves dried fruit. She doesn't like gold, silver, or jade jewelry, but she enjoys making bracelets and cutting paper snowflakes...

The entire night passed, and Baili Ce stared at Lu Jian's drawing of the Monkey King, looking at it again and again.

Lu Jian had only met her once, but after so many years, he could still draw her with a 70-80% likeness, and he hadn't even forgotten the five-pointed star on the Great Sage's face, which showed how much he valued everything about He Yao.

He still remembered every habit of He Yao and respected every idea of ​​hers... That's so good, so good.

Finally, something incredibly good has happened.

Rubbing his eyes, which were no longer wet with tears, Bai Lize forced a smile onto his face.

"thank you"

"Huh?" The latter was confused.

"This is very, very important to me."

"Then...would you be willing to go to Jiangzhou?"

"it is good"

“It’s to kill people, to kill a lot,” Lu Jian emphasized.

"it is good"

Persistence is key.

She was not changed by the world, nor will she let her own sisters be changed by the world.

No one can.