The Obsessive Crown Prince Can't Let Me Go Chapter 320 - 318 I Know Your Goodness Alone

Handing Shen Yinning over to Lu Ying, Cui Ji had no reason to stay and quickly took his leave.

Iridescent lamplight filled the room.

Lu Ying sat by the bedside, his brows tightly furrowed as he gazed at Shen Yinning, as though trying to peer through her outward appearance to discern the secrets hidden within her heart. His narrow eyes seed to absorb the night’s darkness, boundless and obscure.

After a long while, he finally averted his gaze and gently lifted the thin blanket covering her body.

The wound on her abdon had already been treated, wrapped in heavy white gauze. Judging by the appearance, the injury was severe, with blood seeping through to stain the fabric a deep red.

His eyes betrayed a trace of heartache. After staring for a while, he slowly pulled the blanket back over her.

Shen Zhaozhao...

When will you stop making worry?

The candles crackled softly in the long early-sumr night.

Lu Ying stayed to keep watch alone in the chamber, his exhaustion from days of managing state affairs creeping up on him. Supporting his forehead with one hand, he gradually fell asleep.

At so indeterminate hour in the night, a faint whimper sounded from the bed.

Lu Ying woke with a start, his brows knitting tightly as his gaze shifted toward the bed. "You’re awake?"

Shen Yinning weakly fluttered her eyes open. Her lips, usually a vibrant flush of crimson, were now pale and bloodless. "Where am I?"

"Shen Garden." Lu Ying clasped her hand. "Shen Zhaozhao, why did you have Cui Ji take you to et Yan Zheming? What did you discuss? Did he strike you because of his brother being killed by your elder brother?"

The ntion of "Yan Zheming" caused Shen Yinning’s face to grow even more ashen.

Tears rolled down her cheeks in large, unceasing drops, tracing trails along the corners of her eyes. A few loose strands of glossy black hair clung to her temples, lending her an air of delicate fragility steeped in desolation.

She whimpered with fear. "Brother Lu Ying, he wanted to kill ..."

Lu Ying felt it distinctly—the small hand cradled in his palm was trembling uncontrollably, like a terrified little fox spirit.

Still, his frown did not ease.

Shen Zhaozhao never fought a battle she wasn’t certain she would win.

If she took the initiative to et Yan Zheming, she must have considered all possible outcos. She prized her life so dearly—how could she bear to put herself in such danger?

And yet...

The helpless, frightened young woman in his sight didn’t seem to be acting.

"I..." Shen Yinning choked on her words. "I went to visit him in the night, originally for the sake of my elder brother and Brother Lu Ying... I told him I was deeply sorry for what happened with my brother and promised that, when I have the chance in the future, I would personally travel to the border to pay respects to his brother. I knew Brother Lu Ying didn’t want to cede territory and make reparations, so I told him that Great Zhou is filled with many honorable and resilient n, not as weak as he imagines. For instance, I told him about you, Brother Lu Ying—that you are the most remarkable man in the world. I suggested that instead of forcing a re-demarcation of territories, the two nations should establish mutual trade and exchanges to achieve a win-win outco. But I don’t know what I said to provoke him—he suddenly lashed out..."

Her slender shoulders trembled lightly, and her sobbing painted a picture of pitiful fragility.

Lu Ying remained skeptical.

Shen Zhaozhao, sneaking out in the dead of night to et Yan Zheming just to discuss matters for his sake?

No matter how he thought about it, it seed strange.

But the girl was undeniably injured, and this wasn’t the ti to question her and make her feel chilled to the heart.

He carefully wiped away her tears with a handkerchief. "Protecting our country’s borders is my duty. You, as a woman, why burden yourself with such concerns? During the day, you competed against the won of Yan Country in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting at the Golden Hall. That already counted as doing your part for the nation. Leave the rest to ."

"Brother Lu Ying..." Shen Yinning rested her hand on the back of his, her tear-streaked eyes brimming with emotion. "Though I am just a woman, my teacher always taught , ’Every man has a responsibility to the rise and fall of the nation.’ That’s why I’m willing to do my part. Moreover, it’s not just for the nation—it’s also for you... Brother Lu Ying, during the day when I exposed myself in the Golden Hall, it wasn’t for the so-called title of Commandery Princess or the Red Book Iron Certificate, and it wasn’t to uphold the face of Great Zhou either. It was all for you. Brother Lu Ying, don’t you know? I’m willing to do anything for you."

She cried for a long ti, her voice slightly hoarse, carrying a soft and tender note. She kept repeatedly calling him "Brother Lu Ying."

Like a harmless little rabbit without fangs.

Her soft, delicate hands rested lightly on the back of Lu Ying’s. Her translucent, rosy fingertips were warm and pliant, forming a stark contrast to the inky-black fabric of his sleeve. It was as if a little rabbit’s paw rested on the paw of a wolf.

Lu Ying clasped onto her hand in return.

For so reason, his heart felt filled with sothing unexplainable.

Like drinking a jar of honey, or biting into a bun stuffed with red bean paste—he couldn’t help but feel a sweetness rising from deep within. Though he wasn’t one for sweets, this feeling wasn’t unpleasant.

His voice softened by a fraction. "I understand your kind intentions."

Receiving his acknowledgnt, Shen Yinning cried even more coquettishly.

Lu Ying’s chest tightened painfully at the sight of her tears, and he began wiping her face again. "Why are you crying like this for no reason?"

"Brother Lu Ying, you’re just now acknowledging —I feel wronged..."

"Don’t feel wronged."

Shen Yinning sniffled, tugging weakly at his sleeve like a delicate lotus blossom swaying in vulnerability. "I was so terrified by Yan Zheming tonight. Brother Lu Ying, can’t you stay with ? Don’t return to the Eastern Palace, all right? I want you to protect personally..."

The cold, tough shell of Lu Ying’s heart had long since lted into a formless warmth.

Though a small voice at the back of his mind nagged that she might be deceiving him again, his head overruled, insisting that the little fox spirit had genuinely been frightened.

Her injuries were so severe, and her tears were so real—how could she possibly be lying to him?

He reached out to smooth the stray strands of hair away from her forehead. "I won’t leave. I’ll stay here tonight and watch over you."

"Brother Lu Ying, you’re so kind..."

Shen Yinning’s phoenix eyes glistened warmly, looking deeply into his, as though reluctant to surrender to sleep.

Lu Ying, seated by her side, fully dressed, gently rested his broad hand against her forehead. "Sleep. I’ll send Gui Quan back to the palace to bring over the morials for to handle."

Shen Yinning nestled close to him, shutting her eyes as she leaned in, clinging to his side.

In Lu Ying’s eyes, she appeared exceptionally demure and obedient.

Whatever lingering doubts he had dissipated entirely. Leaning over, he softly kissed the center of Shen Yinning’s forehead.

The days Shen Yinning spent recovering at Shen Garden coincided with fervent negotiations for the alliance between Yan Country and Great Zhou.

Lu Jiazhe often snuck over to visit her, updating her on the latest developnts in the talks. "...Yan Zheming is demanding the lands north of the Qu River and an annual tribute of 5,000 bolts of silk and 20,000 catties of tea. Lu Zhengliu agreed to relinquish the territory but refused to bow his head in submission. anwhile, the Crown Prince intervened firmly, insisting that not even an inch of land can be ceded. Things have been deadlocked for days, with neither side budging..."

Shen Yinning leaned back against a soft pillow, absentmindedly gazing at a vase of freshly arranged lotus blooms on a nearby desk.

They had been brought by Lu Ying the previous night. He’d said he’d passed by the Bright Pool in the palace, noticed the newly budded flowers gracing the waters, and spontaneously picked a few stems for her to enjoy. In a couple of days, their blossoms would unfurl.

She lowered her gaze to her hands.

Slender, pristine, and delicate. Four years ago, she relied on the protection of the Duke Mansion; four years later, she rose once again with Lu Ying’s support.

Those hands of hers had never endured hard labor. Even in the gilded boats of the Jiangnan Liang Garden, tasks as trivial as washing clothes had been handled by Lu Ying in her stead.

Lu Jiazhe, sensing her distraction, couldn’t resist calling out, "Sister Shen?"

"Ah Ze, tell ... what do you think Lu Ying feels for now?"

Lu Jiazhe glanced at the pristine and unblemished lotus buds arranged on display.

At the turn of late spring into early sumr, only a handful of such buds had ford in the palace. Not even Noble Consort Zhang nor the Crown Princess Consort had the fortune to lay eyes on them.

All of them had been bestowed upon Sister Shen by his Crown Prince brother.

He answered earnestly, "I believe, Crown Brother... likes Sister Shen."