Chapter 149: The Fault Lies in That We Were Both Too Self-Centered

"Wait for me here, I am going to persuade them to leave." Jin'er turned her head to look at He Lingfeng and said softly.

Seeing him frown as if wanting to refuse, Jin'er raised her hand to cover the back of his hand, giving it a gentle squeeze to signal him not to worry.

Her small gesture was not missed by Qingyue. His heart tightened, and he hurriedly raised a hand to press hard against his chest, feeling as though the heartache was about to kill him.

Standing beside him, Shiyuan also clenched his fists tightly, his feet feeling as though they were filled with lead, unable to move even an inch. Had she truly become the Crown Princess? How could that be possible?! Back then, even when she loved Mo Yan so deeply, she chose to leave; how could she possibly stay in the palace as the Crown Princess just because of He Lingfeng?

With He Lingfeng's consent, Jin'er turned back and walked toward Qingyue and Shiyuan, who were about ten paces away. She could clearly see the shock on both of their faces, and even more clearly, the unmasked heartache and disbelief on Qingyue's pale face.

Step by step, the closer she got, the thinner the air felt, making it difficult for her to breathe. When she finally reached Qingyue, Jin'er raised her head to look at his pale face, noticing how much more haggard and emaciated he had become.

"I have wronged you." The opening remarks she had pondered for so long could now only be squeezed down into these four simple words.

"Why?" Qingyue suppressed his emotions to the utmost limit and asked with a tremor in his voice.

"Do not ask anymore. The two of you should find an inn, wash up, get a good day's rest, and then leave." As she spoke, Jin'er took a heavy pouch of silver from her sleeve and handed it to Shiyuan beside him. "Find the best one." Jin'er stared fixedly into Shiyuan's eyes, speaking as if quite casually, yet her gaze carried a profound, hidden meaning.

Shiyuan stared back into her eyes for a long moment before nodding slightly and accepting the money pouch.

"Jin'er," Qingyue suddenly reached out and grabbed Jin'er's hand, holding it tightly as if fearing that the moment he let go, he would never be able to catch her again. "Tell me, did he force you?! Did he use both of our lives to force you into this?!"

Seeing Jin'er frown and shake her head, he hurriedly continued, "I don't believe it!! Let's go! I'm taking you away! Even if it costs me my life, I will never let you suffer the slightest grievance!" With that, he tugged Jin'er, intending to leave, but she held her ground firmly and refused to budge.

"Yue, I have not been wronged; all of this is my own choice. Do not worry about me, alright? Just go." At this point, Jin'er exerted force to pry his fingers apart, one by one. She could feel how shocked and reluctant to let go he was. Although this was merely an act to her, his emotions were entirely genuine, and his authenticity drew her in as well, causing an indescribable ache in her heart.

"Shiyuan, help me take good care of him." Dropping these words, Jin'er resolutely turned around to walk back, only to be abruptly pulled back by Qingyue and folded into his embrace.

"Jin'er, don't go. I cannot live without you... You promised me you would never drive me away... Jin'er..." Qingyue closed his eyes and hugged her tightly, as though the entire world had shrunk down to just the two of them.

"Let her go!" He Lingfeng, watching from across the way, reached his limit and stepped forward, preparing to charge over. At that exact moment, Jin'er violently broke free from Qingyue's embrace and shouted angrily, "Audacious! I am the Crown Princess now, and you and I have nothing more to do with each other! Go, go as far away as you can!"

Qingyue's complexion instantly paled to the point where not a single trace of blood remained. "No, impossible!" He gritted his teeth, leaped forward, and charged directly toward He Lingfeng.

"Yue!!" Jin'er cried out in alarm.

"Protect His Highness!!" The guards rushed forward in unison, and the scene descended into chaos once more.

Jin'er bit her lip in annoyance, turned, and rushed forward to separate Qingyue and He Lingfeng, who were already entangled in a fierce scuffle. "Yue, listen to me." Jin'er stepped forward, stared intently into his eyes, and suddenly took advantage of his lack of preparation to strike his acupoint, causing him to fall into a deep sleep.

Shiyuan, who had been watching quietly from across the way, flashed forward with lightning speed and managed to catch Qingyue just as he was collapsing to the ground.

"Take him away!" Saying this in a low voice, Jin'er did not even spare Qingyue another glance, turned on her heel, and swept away. Yet in her mind, she kept replaying the moment just before he lost consciousness—the heartbreaking pain and unwillingness in his eyes that made her heart ache.

Yue, I am sorry. To keep He Lingfeng from getting suspicious, I had no choice but to be this cruel to you.

Walking all the way back to the Crown Prince's residence in silence, He Lingfeng did not utter a single word, merely turning his head from time to time to look at Jin'er.

It was not until they returned to the room that He Lingfeng pulled her into his arms, embraced her gently, rested his chin on the top of her head, and said softly, "Everything is in the past now. From this day forward, we will live a happy life that belongs entirely to the two of us. I will treat you well, always and forever. Trust me."

"Always? Once you find a new favorite, I am afraid you will not feel this way anymore." Jin'er arched an eyebrow, looking unimpressed as she spoke.

Hearing this, He Lingfeng raised his head to separate them slightly, lowered his gaze to look earnestly at Jin'er, and frowned, asking, "Why would you think that? My love for you will never change."

"No one can predict the future; those in the imperial family are the most ruthless."

"Jin'er!" He Lingfeng said in displeasure, his brow furrowed tightly. "Will you stop generalizing like that? I am certainly not that kind of person. If you don't believe me, I can swear—" Just as he was about to take an oath, his mouth was muffled by Jin'er's small hand.

"Alright, alright, I believe you." Although she said she believed him with her words, He Lingfeng could still sense the lingering doubt in her heart.

"Jin'er, earlier you said that my identity is my greatest disadvantage—did you mean this?" He lowered his gaze and asked with a serious expression.

Jin'er took a deep breath, nodded, and said, "Yes. I lack a sense of security, I am terrified of getting hurt, and my possessiveness is extremely strong. I cannot tolerate sharing the man I love with other women." This could be considered her first time truly dissecting her own inner thoughts. There was one more thing she left unsaid: she loved freedom and despised being constrained.

Hearing this, He Lingfeng smiled and pulled her back into his arms. "I understand. Don't worry, worst comes to worst, I will only marry you and want no one else."

Jin'er pursed her lips into a smile and said domineeringly, "Even if you wanted to, I wouldn't let you. Marry one, and I will kill one; if you dare to go behind my back, I'll kick you out!"

Hearing this, He Lingfeng felt cold sweat prickling down his spine. "Good heavens, truly the most venomous is a woman's heart. It seems I am destined to fall into your hands for the rest of my life."

"Regretting it?" Jin'er teased with an arched brow. "Shall I grant you your freedom right now, then?"

He Lingfeng pressed her head down into his chest. "In your dreams! I am your person in life, and your ghost in death!"

"Pfft!" Jin'er could not help but laugh out loud. "Haha! Exactly who is the husband here, and who is the wife? But I love hearing those words, say them again."

"I am Jin'er's person in life, and Jin'er's ghost in death!"

"Hahaha..." Jin'er laughed heartily, took the initiative to wrap her arms around his waist, and as she laughed, tears actually welled up in her eyes. Hastily closing her eyes, she buried her face in his chest, tightened her grip around him, and desperately tried to suppress her sobs.

"What is the matter? Are you trying to strangle me to death?" He Lingfeng lowered his head with a smile and said.

"Don't move, let me hold you for a moment."

Hearing this, He Lingfeng smiled and stopped struggling, allowing her to hold him tightly, feeling sweeter than if he had eaten honey. In truth, he loved this feeling more than words could express. The tighter she held him, didn't that simply prove how much she needed him?

Deep in the night, Jin'er turned over and got out of bed, lit a candle, and quickly changed into a night-walking outfit. She then took out a pre-written letter of annulment and farewell from her bundle, placed it on the table, and pinned it down with an empty cup.

Afterward, she walked slowly to the bedside and sat down. At that moment, He Lingfeng had already succumbed to her sleeping potion and was deep in slumber.

"Clearly, you were the one who forced me into this marriage; why am I still unable to hate you? Perhaps love has no right or wrong; the only mistake is that both of us are far too self-absorbed..." Jin'er murmured softly as she gently stroked his handsome, peaceful sleeping face. Finally, she lowered her head and pressed a gentle kiss to his lips.

Slingshotting her bundle over her shoulder, Jin'er walked to the door and flicked her wrist, plunging the room back into pitch darkness. Waiting a short while longer, she quietly pulled the door open, slipped outside, and closed it gently behind her.

Listening carefully to the surrounding movements, she confirmed there was no abnormality before turning around to move swiftly and silently down the adjacent corridor. Then, with a light leap, her toes grazing the ground with exceptional agility, she scaled the inner courtyard wall.

"Who goes there?!" An abrupt, startled demand rang out, followed by a muffled grunt as the person was instantly silenced. At the same time, Jin'er vaulted cleanly over the top of the wall.

"Catch the assassin!!" An angry shout echoed from behind, but Jin'er paid them no mind, weaving through the imperial palace like a phantom and dodging the patrolling guards as much as possible. Even though shouts to capture the assassin continued to rise behind her, her speed was far too fast for them to catch up to anytime soon.

"Who is there?! An assassin!" Just as she neared the outer wall of the palace, her movements were detected by the captain of a nearby squad of guards. With his sharp shout, two squads of guards stationed by the palace wall in front rushed forward simultaneously, blocking Jin'er's path.

Yet Jin'er showed no intention of stopping, charging straight toward them.

"Catch her!"

A chorus of miserable screams rang out as nearly half the men were struck by Jin'er's poisoned needles. In a flash, Jin'er rushed through the gap with flames billowing from both sleeves. As countless weapons slashed toward her, she suddenly let out a sharp cry and whipped her sleeves outward to the left and right. Two billowing trails of scarlet fire lashed out like water sleeves, looking from a distance much like a pair of flaming wings, breathtakingly dazzling and brilliant.

A fresh wave of screams erupted as a crowd of men rolled frantically on the ground in agony, wailing endlessly. The reinforcements who had hurried over were forced to split up—some rushed to help extinguish the flames and rescue the wounded, while others pressed on in pursuit. But how could they possibly hope to catch her? They could only watch helplessly as that lithe, enchanting figure used her toes to lightly graze the surface of the palace wall, scaling the towering barrier as easily as walking on flat ground, and vanished from the ramparts in the blink of an eye.

"After her!" A squad of guards turned, preparing to charge toward the palace gate, only to be stopped by a loud roar from the Imperial Guard's deputy commander.