Somehow, listening to his low, gentle, and slightly aggrieved voice, the fear and uneasiness that had gripped Song Wanchu just now ebbed away like a receding tide.
Liang Yuzhou didn't intend to force her.
He had really changed a lot compared to a year ago.
Song Wanchu calmed down and looked into Liang Yuzhou's eyes.
This man climbed in through the window in the middle of the night. He couldn't have come just to kiss her and get rid of the sour taste.
Liang Yuzhou stared into Song Wanchu's beautiful and calm eyes. His Adam's apple bobbed a few times as he said hoarsely, "Wanchu, I've done a lot of things to let you down in the past. I'm not trying to make excuses for myself. I just..."
"Are you trying to explain why you saved Yu Huiyan instead of me during the car accident?"
Song Wanchu had already guessed what he wanted to say from his guilty expression.
"I was entangled by Princess Lingyang for a long time, so I specially sent a group of people to keep an eye on her movements so that I could avoid her.
The car accident happened right downstairs of the Starry Building. That day, as soon as I went out, I received a message from my secret agent saying that Princess Lingyang had gone to the Starry Building.
When the accident happened, she was watching from upstairs. At that time, Yu Huiyan had just returned to the capital, and the news that the old lady was going to make you the legitimate wife had also spread.
Princess Lingyang thought that I had rekindled my old feelings for Yu Huiyan. She was plotting to cause trouble for Yu Huiyan and was also constantly paying attention to my attitude towards you to see if I would listen to the old lady and make you the legitimate wife. I had to confirm those rumors to make her believe them and completely let down her guard against you."
His words brought back Song Wanchu's memories. She remembered that not long after the car accident, Princess Lingyang had publicly humiliated Yu Huiyan. Liang Yuzhou had rescued her, and Princess Lingyang had gone crazy with anger.
Listening to these explanations, Song Wanchu's heart was already calm. She lowered her eyes and showed no expression.
She tugged at the corner of her mouth, but the muscles on her face were too stiff to form an expression.
She didn't know whether she should act indifferent or mock him severely.
"The Crown Prince brought up the old things and stabbed you right in the heart. Did you only start to empathize with me at that time because it hurt?"
Song Wanchu touched her chest. The scar was still there, but the intense and sharp pain had long since disappeared, leaving only numbness.
"But Liang Yuzhou, I've already healed my wounds alone in despair. Your explanation is not a magic pill that can make those scars disappear."
There was a hint of sadness in her calm words.
Liang Yuzhou's heart ached sharply, as if being bitten by thousands of ants. He wished he could destroy himself and be reborn, going back to the time before all the harm had happened.
His eyes flickered, and his tone was low. "I know it's too late."
The small amount of unforgiven resentment that had been suppressed in her heart grew wildly at this moment, breaking through Song Wanchu's chest. She couldn't control her emotions and asked with a choked voice, "Why, Liang Yuzhou? You clearly had many opportunities. Even if you had just explained it to me once..."
His silence made Song Wanchu think that his dislike for her was real.
"I originally wanted to say something, but at that time you had a high fever and were calling Shi Luohan's name in your dream..."
"So you got angry with me and just kept silent, letting me misunderstand and suffer, right?"
Song Wanchu looked up at the sky, and her tears flowed like a broken dam. She couldn't help but laugh.
But she didn't know what she was laughing at. Was it Liang Yuzhou's childish and arrogant attitude in love, or was it herself for misunderstanding for so long and finally finding out that his feelings for Yu Huiyan were fake?
Her tears fell one by one on Liang Yuzhou's heart, as if turning into boiling oil and burning him painfully.
He held her face in his hands and gently wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes, but there were so many tears that his palms could hardly hold them all.
It was completely quiet around them. Only the charcoal stove emitted a little light sporadically, which couldn't dispel the darkness. Song Wanchu couldn't hold back the sobs that escaped from her throat, and her body trembled violently.
Two warm lips pressed down on hers, gently and devoutly tracing the outline of her lips.
Song Wanchu didn't notice when her body had completely fallen into Liang Yuzhou's arms.
His arms wrapped around her slender back, and the salty and wet tears on her face were kissed away one by one by the man.
The silence amplified every tiny sound. The man's heavy breathing was mixed with the sweet fragrance of the woman, intertwining with each other.
It seemed that something in the air was about to ignite.
The man's body was getting hotter, and his muscles were tense and hard, like an iron wall surrounding her.
When Song Wanchu moved, she felt something and her face stiffened slightly. She pushed Liang Yuzhou, but he didn't budge.
"Liang Yuzhou, you jerk."
She should have said this angrily, but after being kissed by him for so long, her voice was as soft as water. It didn't sound like a scolding but rather like a coquettish complaint.
Liang Yuzhou's eyes were full of desire, and the beast in his body was eager to move, but his heart was already satisfied.
What on earth did he do to deserve Wanchu's tears?
Song Wanchu was held in the man's arms. After the passion faded, the two of them were silent for a while.
"I don't deserve to be forgiven."
He condemned himself, but there was a smile on his lips.
Song Wanchu said stiffly, "I didn't say I forgive you."
As soon as the words came out, she regretted it. Saying such things in this situation was just trying to cover up what she really felt.
"I don't ask you to forgive me, but you let me kiss you and hold you."
Liang Yuzhou rubbed his head against her neck, like a satisfied big dog.
Song Wanchu was shocked. When did she start not to resist Liang Yuzhou's closeness?
Liang Yuzhou picked up her hand and kissed it on his lips. "Wanchu, you've seen how the Crown Prince behaves. Come with me."
Song Wanchu's heart seemed to fall from a high altitude. She had to admit a fact that Liang Yuzhou was the only one around her who dared to confront the authority of the Crown Prince.
She had made a wrong choice once. She had given her all to Liang Yuzhou and had experienced heartbreak and despair.
Was she really going to bet her whole life on the same man again?
Liang Yuzhou saw the hesitation in Wanchu's eyes.
"I know what you're thinking. I can wait. Wait until you have a heart-to-heart talk with the Crown Prince. Then you can tell me your choice. It's not too late."
He had already arranged everything, just waiting for Wanchu to make up her mind.
He was patient and wouldn't be bound by his own moral burden like the Crown Prince.
After crying her heart out and having one of the knots in her heart untied, Song Wanchu finally felt sleepy under the influence of the sleep-aiding incense.
Liang Yuzhou waited until Song Wanchu was fast asleep before kissing her lips and leaving quietly.
...
In the study in the backyard of the government office, Shi Minglang was still writing furiously.
A dark figure flashed outside the window. Shi Minglang looked up, surprised. "You're still coming so late?"
Liang Yuzhou pushed open the door and entered the study. The cold wind blew, and the candle flames flickered.
"The Collection of Mingxi's Poems?" He glanced at the desk and rarely showed an expression of disbelief. "The great prefect is not approving official documents or trying cases in the middle of the night but copying a poetry collection instead? When did you learn to be a poseur?"