Chapter 4: The King Will Not Give Up

  "Nan Mu Xuan, Nan Mu Xuan, the Nan Mu Xuan that should have belonged to your husband, Nan Mu Xuan... Ye Yu Shan, how could you forget me? How could you forget me?" The man who called himself Nan Mu Xuan could no longer control himself and rushed forward, tightly embracing Ye Yu Shan in his arms.

  "Xuan Wang, don't do this, if we're seen..." Ye Yushan struggled with all her might, the man's breath giving her a strong sense of danger.

  "What's there to be afraid of? I, the king, fear nothing. As long as you agree, I'll take you far away and we'll soar to great heights." Nan Mu Xuan grasped her face with both hands, lowered his head, and planted a fiery, passionate kiss on her lips, wildly seeking what had been suppressed for too long, emotions that were about to erupt at the slightest touch.

  Ye Yuxuan didn't react in time and was sealed, when his tongue entered her mouth, a face flashed through her mind. It was a bloody face, that face was just like the man in front of her.

  Rumble!

  Just like being struck by lightning, she bit hard and he suddenly opened his eyes, and she pushed him away with all her might.

  "Ah..."

  He let out a cry of surprise, and Mu Xuan covered his mouth, the smell of blood making him wrinkle his brow. His hand dropped, and bright red drops fell onto his fingertips.

  "Your Highness, please restrain yourself. Even if we had something in the past, it's all over now. I am currently the Crown Prince's consort and your imperial sister-in-law. My marriage to the Crown Prince was arranged by His Majesty, so please don't make things difficult for me again, or for yourself." Ye Yusan slightly bowed her head, and even though she had no memories, just based on the intense passion that burned between them, she felt that this man was also worthy of respect.

  Nan Mu Xuan looked at Ye Yu Shan with a defeated expression, standing there for a long time without speaking.

  The wind blew gently, blowing off the withered petals from the flower branches. They fluttered and fell, landing on her red lips. She didn't know that her beauty could drive people crazy, make them suffocate, and make them want to possess her at all costs.

  Nan Mu Xuan's eyes flashed with stubbornness as he once again walked towards Ye Yu Shan.

  He took a step forward, she retreated one step, step by step, he forced her from the middle of the corridor to the gate of the courtyard, leaning against the wall.

  "Your Highness, calm down! Calm down, this is the imperial palace!" Ye Yusan loudly reminded.

  Nan Mu Xuan didn't stop, his strange gaze swept around the surroundings, and he asked in a serious tone: "If you really completely forgot about me, why did you leave Fengyi Palace but not directly leave, instead coming to Mother's Bao Lian Palace?"

  Uh...

  Her mind racing, Ye Yuxuan suddenly remembered that she had been so worried about Jing Gonggong's pursuit earlier that she hadn't even noticed where she was going. Thinking carefully, the road back to Zhao Ming Palace wasn't just this one, why did Jing Gonggong specifically point out this path for her?

  A string of doubts revolved in her mind, she bit her lip and replied: "The king is really misunderstood, I just got lost, and I met a public official who asked for directions earlier."

  "You think such a lie can deceive me? If you didn't care about me, why did you force the marriage in the first place? You'd rather choose to die than compromise. I don't know what made you finally give in, but I can promise you that what Nan Mu Yu can offer, I, Nan Mu Xuan, can also provide."

  Ye Yuxuan was stunned, and only then did she remember that this body had originally been driven to death by a forced marriage, and it was precisely because of this that she had become the eldest lady of the Xiangfu in a twist of fate. But her mother's words to her, her memories of the past two years were almost blank, otherwise how could she not remember such a deeply etched love?

  Unexpectedly, this man turned out to be Nan Mu Xuan, the second prince of Nan Mu Country, and the son of Emperor's most beloved concubine, Lotus Consort.

  It's all messed up, and my thoughts are in disarray. Father didn't want to have that kind of memory, before entering the palace, what did Father say he wanted to do? Not a word was mentioned about this feeling.

  Nan Mu Xuan saw the strangeness in Ye Yu Xiang's eyes again, and gently loosened his hand that was propping against the wall. He shook his head dejectedly: "You... really don't remember anymore."

  "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. I really don't remember anything." Ye Yusan couldn't bear to hurt such a devoted man and could only apologize repeatedly.

  Nan Mu Xuan closed his eyes, took a deep breath. When he opened them again, his eyes were filled with bloodshot veins. After staring at her for a while, the excitement on his face gradually dissipated, and he reached out to hold her small hand. His voice softened: "Ye Yu Shan, this king will wait for you, even if it takes a lifetime. This king believes that one day you will remember, remember the vows we made, remember the feelings between us that are deeply etched in our hearts."

  Sincere confession, touching for one minute!

  Everything in front of me is like a movie, listening to someone else's story, and Ye Yusan can only give the most emotional minute.

  She didn't dare to provoke Nan Mu Xuan, so she gently withdrew her hand from his grasp. A faint smile was forced onto her pale face: "Your Highness, this is what I said before. No matter what happened in the past, it's all over now. As the Crown Prince's consort, if there were rumors about us, it would be detrimental to both you and me."

  Nan Mu Xuan looked at her silently, his eyes filled with deep emotions, but his mood had calmed down.

  The sudden calmness made Ye Yusan feel a bit strange, and the bloody scene flashed in her mind again. Her heart trembled slightly, and she moved her body to the gate of the courtyard, slightly bowing: "Your Highness, this palace should go back now. Your Highness, take good care."

  "Yeyu Xiang, I, the king, will not give up. I will let you have what you want." Nanmu Xuan made a promise to Yeyu Xiang, a promise as heavy as a thousand pieces of gold.

  This time, Ye Yusan didn't immediately deny his words, but instead silently stared at this stubborn man. The stubbornness in his eyes once again moved her. However, the dangerous aura emanating from him also warned her to keep a distance from this man.

  "Your Highness... Your Highness... I've finally found you." The calm was broken by the sharp voice of Gong Gong.

  Someone ran over from a distance, as if he hadn't seen Ye Yusan at all. The old man said anxiously: "Your Majesty, Queen Lian is looking for you everywhere!"

  "Got it!" Nan Mu's brow furrowed and he glared fiercely at the little eunuch.

  The little eunuch only then realized that someone was still standing beside him, turned his head to look, and was so frightened that his legs went soft and he knelt on the ground: "Little stool for Princess Taizi, Your Highness please forgive me! Your Highness please forgive me!"

  "Get up! Your Highness, I'm lost. Can you let the little eunuch guide me?" Ye Yushan thought this person had arrived just in time.

  Xiao Dengzi stood up, glanced at Nan Mu Xuan with a hint of politeness. Nan Mu Xuan nodded, and he walked in front of Ye Yu Shuang, leading the way towards Zhao Ming Palace.

  As he watched Ye Yuxuan's receding back, the tenderness in Nan Mu Xuan's eyes dissipated, replaced by intense hatred and a surge of murderous intent.

  ……

  Night fell, and after a day of turmoil, Ye Yuxuan felt somewhat exhausted. It wasn't her body that was tired, but her heart. With two years' worth of memories missing from her mind, she couldn't judge what kind of person Nan Mu Xuan really was for the time being.

  After bathing and changing, she sat down in the pavilion. On the stone table in the pavilion was placed an ancient zither, with lifelike peony flowers carved on its surface made of high-quality Chinese mahogany. Although she didn't know how to play it, having seen many antiques before, she could tell at a glance that this zither was extremely valuable.

  "Master, this was just sent by the third young master through the servant girl." Xiaoyu happily carried the fruit plate into the pavilion and saw that the master was staring blankly at the guqin. She put down the fruit plate and spoke again: "Master, you used to play the guqin so well, but since you were 14 years old, I haven't seen you play it again."

  Ye Yuxuan woke up to find that her memories from 14 to 16 years old were gone, as if they had been washed away. She didn't even have any impression of them. It wasn't until Xiaoyu mentioned it later that she knew about playing the piano. She stretched out her hand and looked at her slender fingers, thinking it was a pity that these hands didn't play the piano.

  The little fish saw the master's eyebrows furrow and knew that he had definitely touched the master's sore spot, so he hastily asked in a tentative tone: "Master, if you like it, I'll invite a teacher to come back for you."

  "Agreed!" Ye Yusan replied without hesitation.

  The little fish handed a bunch of grapes to the master, and after eating a few, he looked at her. She slowly sat down, looking at the master with an uneasy expression: "Master... is it that I did something wrong?"

  Ye Yuxuan handed a string of grapes to Xiaoyu, glancing at the entrance of the courtyard. Since moving in until now, the large courtyard had only been occupied by them, master and servant, with food and drink being delivered over. This was also good, quiet enough, and later on, whatever they did wouldn't be noticed by anyone.

  "Master!" The little fish called out again with some concern.

  "What's going on with Nan Mu Xuan?" Ye Yu Shan asked directly, putting down the grapes in her hand and looking at Xiao Yu seriously.

  The little fish's eyes rolled around, not daring to look directly at the master's eyes, slowly lowering his head, his hands clenched together due to tension, and he didn't make a sound for a long time.

  "Little fish, do you know where this place is?" Ye Yusan didn't rush to scold him, but instead asked this sentence.

  The little fish suddenly raised its head, blinked its eyes, and without thinking, blurted out: "Master, this is the imperial palace, the Crown Prince's Zhao Ming Palace."

  "Do you know what the Imperial Palace is?" Ye Yusan asked again.

  "The palace..." Little Fish shook her head in confusion.

  "The palace is a den of dragons and tigers, if you're not careful, you'll come in standing but leave lying down." Ye Yusan said expressionlessly, with a hint of fear misting her eyes. Her mind was racing, thinking of the countless plots in the palace struggles she had read about, and recalling Nan Mu Xuan's excitement today, her guard was raised even higher.

  The little fish heard Master's words and pondered for a moment. She raised her head, and a look of difficulty flowed out from her eyes.

  Yeyu Xiang knows why Xiaoyu is nervous?

  Paper cannot wrap up fire, even if it's not from Xiao Yu's mouth, the rumors in the palace can't be locked up about Nan Mu Xuan's relationship.

  Holding onto Xiaoyu's hand, she gazed at her with affection and her tone softened: "We are not just master and servant, I have always treated you as my sister. If you don't want us to both die in vain one day, it's best if you tell me everything you know."

  "Master, little fish was wrong, little fish will tell you everything!" The timid little fish quickly compromised and told the story of Nan Mu Xuan and Ye Yu Xiang's relationship in a torrent.