Before Shangguan Liqian’s sudden change of heart, Luo Wushuang had not only considered breaking her legs but had also contemplated slaughtering every member of the Shangguan family. She believed that if her sister had no one else to care for, she would have no choice but to focus solely on her.
Even now, such dark thoughts occasionally flickered through her mind.
However, she didn’t quite dare to act on them.
She feared that without the Shangguan family to serve as a shackle, her sister would become like a kite with a severed string, drifting far beyond her control. Without that leverage, Liqian would no longer be susceptible to her threats, and she certainly wouldn’t stay by her side.
Thus, she forced herself to endure the gnawing resentment within, watching the people of the Shangguan family act like jumping buffoons right under her nose.
Whenever she thought about how they used and hurt her sister, Luo Wushuang felt a surge of uncontrollable rage. I can’t even bring myself to hurt her, so what gives them the right?
Just as the fire in Luo Wushuang’s eyes threatened to boil over…
A soft, small hand was suddenly placed atop the back of her own. Shangguan Liqian’s voice drifted over again, her gentle tone carrying a hint of a prompt:
“If I only have you as my family from now on, will you bully me, Wushuang?”
Wushuang hadn’t answered her previous question, so Liqian decided to be a bit more direct.
In Liqian’s smiling, dark eyes, she saw the reflection of Luo Wushuang looking flustered and tense.
“No… I won’t. I… I would never bully you, Sister.”
Luo Wushuang finished her sentence haltingly, then lowered her gaze to hide the complex emotions swirling in her eyes.
What does she mean by that?
What does she mean, having only me as family?
Hasn’t she always placed the Shangguan family above everything else? Could what she just said actually be true?
Does she really want to discard her blood relatives and choose only me?
But why?
Why has her way of thinking changed so drastically all of a sudden?
Could this be… some new scheme to escape me?
At that thought, the excitement in Luo Wushuang’s heart was instantly doused, as if someone had thrown a bucket of ice water over her.
It wasn’t impossible.
The light in her bright eyes dimmed, and her entire aura seemed to be shrouded in a layer of gloom.
If they hadn’t spent this recent time together, it might have been easier to bear. But after being treated so tenderly by her sister, Luo Wushuang found that she had become even greedier.
She didn’t just want her sister’s body to stay by her side; she wanted her heart as well.
She wanted to be the only person in her sister’s eyes and the only one in her heart… only her.
Shangguan Liqian wasn’t surprised by the response.
Wushuang wasn’t lying. Except for when they were in bed, the Empress truly respected her opinions. As long as Liqian didn’t mention the Shangguan family and didn’t try to run away, it wasn’t an exaggeration to say that Luo Wushuang was practically subservient to her.
However… remembering the “vile” behaviors Luo Wushuang was capable of when she felt insecure, Liqian’s mind whirred. She deliberately put on a sorrowful expression.
“Then, if you’re in a bad mood, will you lock me in Phoenix Hall? Will you tie me to the bed, or… break my legs?”
The more she spoke, the more pained her expression became. Her long eyelashes fluttered as if she were a frightened creature on the verge of tears.
Luo Wushuang, who could never stand to see her sister cry, immediately grabbed Liqian’s hand. Her expression was a mix of panic and utter sincerity.
“As long as you don’t think about running away, I won’t be in a bad mood.”
Liqian, who had been secretly observing her reaction, replied with an ambiguous tone, “Is that so?”
Before the Empress could respond, Liqian continued, “Then what if one day you stop loving me?”
She asked this intentionally. Having been reborn, although she was certain of Wushuang’s feelings and had decided to accept them, she wanted an equal romance. She didn’t want a love where she was locked to a bed at the slightest hint of trouble.
That kind of love was too heavy, too suffocating.
Even if she forced herself to accept it, it might be fine for a day or two, or even a month or two. But as time went on, she couldn’t be sure she wouldn’t feel the urge to flee again.
She knew that if things ever reached that point, Luo Wushuang would become even more frantic, and her restrictions would become even more suffocating.
What would be the point of her rebirth then? To exist as a mere pet by her side, locked away for a lifetime just to repay the debts of Wushuang’s devotion from their past life?
She couldn’t accept that outcome, and she knew it wasn’t what Luo Wushuang truly wanted deep down either.
Imprisoning her and forcing her to love back was merely Luo Wushuang’s desperate compromise.
But what if Liqian wanted to love her? What if she was willing to take the initiative and respond to her?
A mutual love couldn’t possibly be worse than a one-sided imprisonment, could it?
It was with this thought in mind that Shangguan Liqian sought to subtly influence Luo Wushuang through their daily interactions, slowly changing the Empress’s thoughts and behaviors. Even if they couldn’t live like a perfectly normal couple in the end, at least…
While Liqian’s mind was a whirlwind of thoughts, Luo Wushuang stared at the woman she had coveted for so long. Her gaze was filled with a resolve so unshakable it bordered on the sacred.
“That will never happen. I love you most of all. I will never, ever stop loving you.”
And as time passes, my love for you will only grow deeper…
Meeting that unwavering gaze, Liqian’s mind suddenly flashed back to the moment in her previous life when Wushuang had climbed into the coffin to hold her lifeless body.
Back then, her eyes had been just as resolute as they were now.
The crimson wedding dress Wushuang had worn then lacked any sense of joy, instead carrying a haunting sense of peace… and brokenness.
Wushuang’s love for her had long since transcended life and death.
“I believe you,” Liqian said, her voice carrying a trace of conviction and emotion she hadn’t even noticed herself.
She believed Luo Wushuang. In this new life, the only person she truly trusted was Luo Wushuang.
This woman would never hurt her; she couldn’t bear to.
Thinking about how many times Wushuang had threatened to break her legs, Liqian lowered her eyes slightly to hide a glimmer of amusement.
Indulging this woman occasionally was fine, but she shouldn’t be soft when it came time to teach her a lesson. Otherwise, this woman would keep professing her love without ever learning how to love someone properly.
Without guidance, her love would only drive the person she cherished further away.
Liqian would have to teach her well… how to love, how to please her, and how to make her stay… willingly.
“What do you want to do outside the palace, Sister?” Luo Wushuang asked softly, glancing at the pensive Liqian.
Actually, she wanted to ask if she could go along. But fearing she might upset her sister, she didn’t dare ask directly.
“What am I going to do?”
Liqian sighed softly, a sound carrying a thousand thoughts and a touch of helplessness that drifted through the air.
In a split second, the look in her eyes shifted. The slight lingering haze of confusion was replaced by a sharp, cold determination.
Along with that subtle change in her gaze, her tone transformed from a gentle inquiry to a firm resolve. “I’m going back to the Shangguan family to have… a final settlement with those people.”
Liqian glanced at the cautious Luo Wushuang and said softly, “Are you free, Wushuang? Do you want to come with me?”
The moment the words left her mouth, Luo Wushuang’s eyes lit up. Her answer was crisp and immediate:
“Yes!”
“Then we’ll go together after we finish our meal.”
With that simple sentence, Liqian completely transformed the Empress’s mood.
the heavy atmosphere between them vanished, replaced by an Empress Regnant whose brow was filled with joy, and a helpless Liqian who watched her, wondering what the silly girl was so giddy about.
