Chapter 105: A Heart-to-Heart

Luo Wushuang remained still until Lou Yanhui’s figure had completely vanished from her sight. Only then did she turn and make her way toward the main hall.

At the sound of the doors pushing open, Shangguan Liqian’s hand paused briefly as she trimmed a stray flower branch. She turned her head, watching Luo Wushuang stride toward her, and asked with a smile, “Is the deal done?”

“Mhm,” Luo Wushuang grunted in response, taking Liqian’s hand and leading her to a nearby chair.

Once they were seated together, Luo Wushuang briefly summarized the key points of their conversation before falling silent.

Liqian was keen enough to sense the shift in the air. Noticing the Empress’s strange mood, she patted her hand and ventured a guess. “You aren’t upset again just because you heard the Princess of the Western Regions is getting married, are you?”

Something similar had happened just two days ago. When Prince An returned to the capital to report on his duties, he had mentioned wanting to move up his wedding date. Luo Wushuang had dismissed him, but she had come back and thrown quite a fit.

Today’s atmosphere felt remarkably similar to that day.

Finding her thoughts laid bare, Luo Wushuang turned and buried her face in Liqian’s embrace. She let out several muffled groans and whines, refusing to actually admit it.

She had just finished making a scene a couple of days ago and felt too embarrassed to keep acting out. Yet, if she didn’t vent, her heart felt stifled and uncomfortable.

I haven’t even gotten married yet, so what is everyone else in such a rush for? I am the Imperial Sister! If I’m not married, then no one else can even think about it!

Looking down at the Empress, who was currently sprawled across her chest like a spoiled child taking liberties, Liqian didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

Hadn’t they already set a date for their own wedding? Why was this woman still acting so insecure, as if she were constantly afraid of losing everything?

Liqian thought about it seriously for a long moment. She reached down, cupping the small face still buried in her lap with both hands, and spoke with a hint of hesitation. “Do you… not trust me?”

Luo Wushuang’s pupils constricted. She shook her head instinctively. “No, I trust you, Sister.”

“Wushuang, look me in the eye. Tell me exactly what it is you’re worried about.” Liqian’s voice was incredibly gentle, carrying a soft, guiding quality.

Perhaps it was Liqian’s tenderness and patience that gave her the courage to speak. Luo Wushuang curled her lip and whispered her insecurities. “The wedding is coming up so soon, but you haven’t asked a single thing about the arrangements. You haven’t even mentioned the wedding dress once. Is it… Is it because…”

Luo Wushuang trailed off, unable to bring herself to finish the sentence. Liqian’s brow furrowed slightly.

Do I really look like the type of person who treats feelings like a game?

However, looking at it from Wushuang’s perspective, she could somewhat understand the other woman’s anxiety. It had only been a few short months since she had changed her attitude toward Wushuang. It was only natural for Wushuang to have such lingering doubts.

But with their wedding date fast approaching, she didn’t want Wushuang to harbor this unease or spend her days guessing at Liqian’s intentions. If Wushuang was suffering, Liqian couldn’t be happy either.

Seeing that Luo Wushuang had turned her head away to avoid the conversation, Liqian frowned. She moved to the Empress’s side, speaking with a tone that was both gentle and firm. “Don’t run away. If there’s anything else, say it all right now.”

Luo Wushuang bit her lip and glanced at her but remained silent.

Liqian felt a wave of helplessness, yet she continued to coax her patiently. “Since you are going to marry me, you should know that a husband and wife are one. If you even hide your own thoughts from me, then we aren’t truly the closest people in the world to one another.”

The phrase ‘the closest people in the world’ coming from Liqian’s lips made Luo Wushuang’s heart tremble.

It was true. Once they married… she and her Sister would be the closest people in existence.

And yet, the person who was constantly telling her not to hide things was the very person who was hiding so much from her.

Thinking of this, the spark of joy that had just flared up in Wushuang’s heart vanished. Meeting Liqian’s insistent gaze, Luo Wushuang looked down and muttered under her breath, “You tell me not to hide things, yet you never tell me anything yourself.”

As she spoke, Wushuang began to feel genuinely aggrieved. The look she threw at Liqian was filled with more resentment than words could express.

Facing that gaze—which made her look like some sort of heartless, unfaithful woman—Liqian felt a headache coming on. It wasn’t that she intended to hide things; it was simply that she was physically unable to speak of them.

Every time she tried to explain her origins or the truth of the world, a mysterious force would block her. After it happened enough times, she had simply given up trying.

But in Wushuang’s eyes, it looked like deliberate secrecy. She couldn’t really blame the woman for thinking that way.

Liqian sighed, offering a weak explanation. “It’s not that I want to keep secrets from you. I truly… I just can’t say it.”

Hearing that same old excuse again, Luo Wushuang didn’t let it go. She questioned her in a low, persistent voice, “Why can’t you say it? Didn’t you say we were the closest people in the world?”

“We are, of course, the closest people. If I could, I wouldn’t hide a single thing from you.” Liqian met those aggrieved eyes, her own face written with absolute sincerity.

Luo Wushuang hesitated, wondering if she should believe her.

Sensing her hesitation, Liqian patted her back and spoke softly. “The reason I never ask about the wedding arrangements is because I trust you.”

Liqian paused for a moment before continuing. “I trust that you won’t let anything go wrong with our big day. As for the wedding dress…”

Liqian looked up at Luo Wushuang, a visible blush creeping onto her face.

Luo Wushuang realized belatedly that she might have truly misunderstood her. At the mention of the wedding dress, her ears perked up, waiting eagerly to hear what Liqian would say next.

But after waiting a while without the expected answer, Luo Wushuang couldn’t help but urge her on. “Sister, tell me! What about the wedding dress?”