Shocking! The actress was dragged to the regent's bedchamber every night.

One month later...

When the doorbell rang, Su Wuli was sitting on the sofa in a daze.

The TV was on but there was no sound, and she wasn't interested in watching it.

Numbly, I stood up and walked to the door, glancing out through the peephole.

It's Lin Liwen.

Opening the door, I saw Lin Liwen standing in the doorway, carrying a bag.

The plastic bag was transparent, and inside were a boxed lunch and soup.

Lin Liwen didn't say anything, glanced at Su Wuli, and then walked in and put the bag on the coffee table.

Sit down on the sofa.

Su Wuli closed the door, walked back, and sat down next to her.

Lin Liwen glanced at her, her gaze shifting from her face to her eyes.

"Xiaoyuan called me and said you looked terrible after your photoshoot today, but you wouldn't say anything when I asked her."

As he spoke, he took the boxed lunch out of the bag, opened the lid, and pushed it in front of Su Wuli.

"Let's eat first."

Su Wuli looked down at the lunchbox, where white rice was topped with braised pork and green vegetables.

It's shiny and oily.

Normally, Lin Liwen would definitely not let her eat too much.

Su Wuli looked at it for two seconds, but didn't touch her chopsticks.

Lin Liwen didn't rush her and brought out the soup as well.

Su Wuli slowly picked up her chopsticks after a moment, took a piece of braised pork, and put it in her mouth.

He chewed twice and swallowed, then picked up another piece.

She ate slowly, chewing each bite for a long time.

Lin Liwen sat beside her watching her eat, observing her movements as she picked up food and the slight movement of her cheeks as she chewed.

He only spoke after Su Wuli swallowed the third piece of meat.

"You've lost weight," she said softly.

Su Wuli didn't look up. She picked up another piece of green vegetable, put it in her mouth, chewed it, and swallowed it.

"No." She put down her chopsticks and pushed the lunchbox aside. "I can't eat anymore."

Lin Liwen looked at the boxed lunch, which was still more than half full, with several pieces of braised pork left.

They only touched one corner of the rice.

She closed the lid of the lunchbox and placed it on the edge of the coffee table.

He asked, "Didn't you sleep well again?"

Su Wuli lowered her eyes and remained silent.

Lin Liwen didn't ask any further questions, but pushed the soup towards her, saying, "Have some soup."

Su Wuli picked up the bowl, took a sip, and put it down.

The soup slid down my throat, but it had no taste at all.

Lin Liwen stared at her for a long time.

His gaze shifted from Su Wuli's reddened eyes to her pale lips.

I want to say something, but I don't know where to start.

He then reached out and placed his hand on the back of Su Wuli's hand, pressing it gently.

Hesitantly, she asked, "Is it because of him?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Su Wuli's hand twitched slightly beneath her palm.

It didn't retract.

Su Wuli's lips moved slightly, but no sound came out.

Lin Liwen waited for her to speak.

"I can't dream anymore," Su Wuli said softly. "I can't see him anymore."

Her eyes reddened, the redness slowly spreading from the corners of her eyes to her entire eye sockets.

His lips were trembling uncontrollably.

Then he started shaking all over. "I waited for a month, every single day, and nothing came."

Her voice began to choke.

"It's never been this long before. I don't know if he's still alive."

After saying that, tears fell from her eyes.

Lin Liwen felt a pang of sadness when she saw her tears.

She recalled the beginning.

Lin Liwen wanted to help her at that time, so she sought out many so-called "masters".

She was afraid that the dream would hurt her.

At this moment, she actually had selfish motives.

If only that dream could end, if only that man could disappear.

If Su Wuli can return to a normal life and stop being held back by those illusory things, that would be good.

That man isn't human; it was only a matter of time before he did.

There's absolutely no way it will work out.

She hadn't dared to tell Su Wuli these things before.

However, now that it has become a reality, Lin Liwen looked at her and felt so choked up that she couldn't speak.

She removed her hand from Su Wuli's hand, pulled her into her arms, and gently patted the back of her head with her palm.

"It will be alright."

She didn't know if she was comforting Su Wuli or comforting herself.

She held Su Wuli in her arms and felt her shoulders trembling slightly.

Lin Liwen didn't say anything, but just hugged her and patted her back repeatedly.

Su Wuli buried her face in her shoulder, without crying out.

But she felt the fabric on her shoulders slowly getting wet.

…………

Beijing.

When Yu Chen arrived on horseback, the morning light was just rising.

The horse's hooves moved at a steady pace.

He reined in his horse and stopped at the city gate.

Yu Linxi stood in the very center.

He wore a bright yellow dragon robe, with the pearl strings of his crown hanging down, obscuring his eyebrows and eyes.

Behind him stood civil and military officials, all dressed in their court robes.

Xiao Junyi stood to Yu Linxi's right, wearing a silver-gray robe.

Their gazes fell on Yu Chen.

Shen Qiange stood next to Xiao Junyi, her hand on the hilt of her knife.

Yu Chen dismounted and looked up to see Yu Linxi's face.

The longer his face grew, the more it resembled his elder brother, Yu Feng.

The curve of the jawline, and the expression when those eyes are slightly narrowed.

They all look exactly like the person Yu Chen strangled to death ten years ago.

Morning light filtered through the gaps in the city gate tower, falling on the crown of Yu Linxi, the beads shimmering with a delicate light.

Yu Chen stood there staring at that face for a long time.

The wind blew his robes.

He didn't look away, and neither did Yu Linxi.

Xiao Junyi raised his hand slightly from his side, then lowered it again.

Shen Qiange glanced at Xiao Junyi, then at Yu Chen, but said nothing.

The surface appears calm, but undercurrents are surging.

After a moment, Yu Linxi finally spoke.

"Your Excellency, the Regent, have worked hard."

Yu Chen did not respond.

He stood there, staring at Yu Linxi's face for a long time before slowly speaking.

"Did your father ever tell you how he died?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Yu Linxi's face suddenly darkened.

He pursed his lips, his expression exactly the same as his father, Yu Feng.

Her somewhat naive gaze shifted away from Yu Chen's face.

She glanced at the guard beside her, then looked back at Yu Chen's face.

"Take it down."

No sooner had he finished speaking than the guards rushed forward.

Yu Chen did not draw his sword. Before the first guard's fingers touched his sleeve, he stepped forward.

He grabbed Yu Linxi's right wrist with his left hand and twisted it backwards.

Yu Linxi grunted, his body spun around following his gesture, and his back slammed into a stone pillar of the city gate.

With a muffled thud, the beaded necklace on his crown swung to the side of his face, revealing his completely pale complexion.

The move was so sudden that no one had time to react.

Before they could react, they were already surrounded by Shadow Falcon and his men.

Yu Chen's hand was still holding Yu Linxi's wrist.

The bright yellow fabric of the sleeves crumpled between Yu Linxi's fingers, his hand trembling slightly.

Xiao Junyi took a step forward. "Outrageous! Is the Regent plotting a rebellion?"