[...]
Listening to these words, Yun Wanyao felt a bit dazed.
Sickly person?
What on earth is this?
And what does ânearing death, must drag a beloved to die togetherâ mean?
Why would my little sister say this?
Before she could make any sense of it, her body was suddenly pulled forcefully into an embrace.
He held her tightly, his chin resting on top of her head, one hand soothingly stroking the back of her head.
Surrounded by the aura of a man, Yun Wanyao felt as though facing great danger, her entire body tensed up, instinctively wanting to struggle, yet he seemed to have anticipated this, holding her even tighter.
[Ah???]
[All men are indeed the same, starting to get handsy with my sister already, what should I do, should I beat him?]
Yun Wanyao, just about to struggle, immediately quieted down upon hearing this, obediently letting the man hold her.
Her little sister was still merely conflicted, but if she struggled forcefully, her little sister might immediately take action and indeed beat the Emperor up.
This is not to be taken lightly.
The room contained only her and him; if he were inexplicably beaten up, he would certainly hold her accountable afterward. How could she explain?
[Eh, since sister isnât struggling, then Iâd better not meddle, meddling usually annoys people.]
[Hmm, better keep observing...]
With the plan successful, Yun Wanyao felt relieved, then heard the manâs deep and hoarse voice, filled with guilt.
"This matter is my fault, how can I be forgiven? You can say it, as long as itâs not abandoning me, not endangering the realm, or the subjects of the world, Iâll agree to anything."
Upon hearing this, Yun Wanyaoâs eyes instantly lit up.
"Really? As long as itâs not the two points mentioned by the Emperor, anything can be promised to this ministerâs daughter?"
"Yes, truly."
Wonderful!!!
Yun Wanyao was so happy that it felt like her heart would bloom from joy, even though she tried hard to restrain it, the corners of her mouth couldnât help but curl up high.
"Alright, this matter weâll discuss later, the Emperor still hasnât told this ministerâs daughter why he wanted to kill her back then?"
Although Yun Wanqing had expressed her inner voice earlier, she faintly understood something but still couldnât completely resolve her doubts.
Now that she had opened her mouth, today, no matter what, she must understand.
As for his promise, it was completely an unexpected delight.
Mo Yuanlin frowned, unwilling to face the matter; every time he thought of it, he was overwhelmed by guilt, self-blame, and regret.
But evidently, some things canât simply be ignored as if they never happened.
He did indeed owe her an explanation.
"Why, you ask? Because I was ill, a madness!"
Yun Wanyao: "..."
"Ha, Yaoâer doesnât believe it, does she? But itâs true, I did get mad, so upon feeling like I was dying, I conceived a crazy idea, that was to drag down Yaoâer to die together..."
"I was still so young, how could I die alone?"
"Yaoâer must accompany me, only thus, even in death, I wouldnât feel alone."
"I liked Yaoâer so much, how could I let Yaoâer stay alone, to become someone elseâs wife in the future? Father originally intended to betroth you to me, but itâs all Mo Yuanhaoâs fault, who intervened half-heartedly..."
He initially planned to kill her and then go kill Mo Yuanhao, but upon seeing her pained look, he softened.
Of course, there was no need to tell her this.
After hearing this, Yun Wanyao felt a mix of emotions, never imagining the reason why the Emperor wanted to kill her back then was this.
She wondered what the reason could be.
[Loving her means dragging her to die together, hmm, indeed quite mad.]
[Honestly speaking, I canât appreciate these mad, sick affectionate settings in novels.]
[However, the Emperor seems much saner now, with none of those dark attributes visible, perhaps greatly related to his matured mindset.]
[Elder sister, you think hard, should you want this person though.]
[Wait, wait, youâve both spoken to this extent, elder sister already has no chance to retreat, want or not, you must take.]
[Ah, the Emperor likely wonât force elder sister, continuing to watch, infringes upon her privacy, quite impolite indeed.]
[Elder sister, Iâm leaving now, have a good chat with the Emperor, okay.]
[...]
The inner voice growing increasingly distant, soon completely vanished.
Yun Wanyao concentrated hard to listen for moments, apart from the sound of their breathing, no more sounds, her sisterâs spiritual power truly left.
She felt relieved, her tense nerves relaxed, reached out to push the man in front, yet her hands were grabbed firmly.
"Emperor, let go of this ministerâs daughter."
"No, I wonât, you want to know, Iâve answered, why donât you speak?"
He not only didnât let go, but rather held tighter, as if trying to embed her into his bones, squeezing her till she couldnât breathe.
Unable to break free, Yun Wanyao panted heavily, giving up struggling.
"Speak what? Speak why the Emperor wanted to drag this ministerâs daughter to die together? But this question, this ministerâs daughter probably has the answer, the Emperor likes this ministerâs daughter, right?"
Earlier hearing the Emperor liked her, she didnât believe it.
As a child, she loved clinging to him, always calling him Crown Prince, attached to the Eastern Palace, unwilling to leave, yet he always remained indifferent, responding half-heartedly to her, never displaying a good face.
She never felt discouraged, still eagerly stuck her warm face to his cold backside daily.
Until that night, she was frightened, vaguely realizing he disliked her greatly, to the point of wanting to kill her.
She didnât understand why but started consciously avoiding him, never appearing before him proactively again.
Yet now, him coming to her in the dead of night, and the thoughts of her little sister heard, made her believe he somewhat liked her.
As for how much this âsomewhatâ was, she had no clue.
Mo Yuanlin slightly raised his eyebrows, openly admitting.
"Yes, I like you very much, so, when will Yaoâer agree to enter the palace?"
"With national affairs being busy, the distance between the Imperial Palace and the Yun Family isnât close, running between two places long-term is not only exhausting but may also delay state matters, could Yaoâer care for me, for the sake of the realm and its people?"
Yun Wanyao: "..."
Upon hearing him admit he liked her with her own ears, she felt a bit shy, yet hearing those later words, that bit of shyness instantly vanished, leaving only speechlessness.
"The Emperor doesnât need to run back and forth."
Enter the palace???
Ha, even if she decided to be with him, she hadnât planned to enter the palace temporarily.
Firstly, her engagement had just recently been undone.
Secondly, she couldnât bear to part with her parents, couldnât bear to part with her little sister, couldnât bear to part with everyone in the Yun Family.
Finally, being trapped in the palace at such a young age would be miserably unfortunate.