The Imperial Palace under the night sky, adorned by candlelight and petals, was beautiful like a painting.

Lin Zichan watched the Emperor and the Empress from a distance not far away; two people of such breathtaking beauty, it seemed to make the nearby candlelight and petals lose their brilliance. The world appeared as if it was only them, as if they were naturally a perfect match.

His eyes flickered slightly.

Under the night, the Emperor leaned down to kiss the Empress.

So.

This is her answer, then.

In fact.

How could there be any great expectations?

From the moment everything turned into the current situation, he no longer had any qualifications.

He truly shouldn’t have appeared in front of her, causing her distress.

It was his selfishness wanting to see them a few more times, selfishly wanting to see that they were well, so he could leave with peace of mind.

Now, he had seen it all.

Lin Zichan lowered his eyes.

Then turned and left.

Even though he had long accepted all of this, it was still hard to face their deep affection directly.

So he didn’t see.

The moment Fu Xingyi approached An Ning, An Ning dodged.

Fu Xingyi’s kiss landed on An Ning’s cheek.

Once again, she rejected him.

An Ning could feel the emotions stirring in Fu Xingyi.

She didn’t want to hurt him.

To him, she was still An Ning, still his girlfriend, still the woman who loved him very much.

But she had changed.

In the end, she betrayed their feelings.

An Ning’s eyes were a little red.

She never thought there would be a day she’d hurt Fu Xingyi like this.

She’d really reject him.

She said, "I’m sorry."

Sorry.

In Fu Xingyi’s heart, it felt as though a thousand ants were biting.

The pain made it seem like he couldn’t breathe for a moment.

He hadn’t expected that she would really put their feelings aside.

He hadn’t expected that missing just a few years would mean missing out on her entire life.

"I cannot marry you." An Ning bit her lip and stepped back.

The two of them maintained a distance.

She knew clearly.

That night when Lin Zichan kissed her, she chose to acquiesce.

And now.

She just wanted to leave.

It’s hard to force oneself against the heart’s desires.

Fu Xingyi watched An Ning’s actions, seeing her keeping a distance that seemed like an unbridgeable chasm.

"Have you already decided?" Fu Xingyi asked her.

"Yes." An Ning nodded.

It was already decided.

She didn’t want to hurt two people anymore.

The more she struggled, the more she conflicted, the more it tormented the three of them.

Might as well.

Just let it be.

In the end, someone had to get hurt.

She could only selfishly follow her heart.

Didn’t want to be indecisive anymore.

In fact, since returning from Wenzhou, she had already thought things through, and decided to make things clear to Fu Xingyi. But she hadn’t expected Fu Xingyi to prepare a surprise for her, adding to her guilt, yet also solidifying her determination to explain things clearly to Fu Xingyi.

Fu Xingyi deserves someone better.

"Could it be just an impulsive feeling in your heart? We’ve been apart for too long." Fu Xingyi wasn’t angry, just sad, and in his gaze were all the emotions.

"I know very well who it is that I like now." An Ning stated bluntly, but dared not meet Fu Xingyi’s eyes, "The past between us ended long ago. Your presence only confuses me temporarily but doesn’t change my feelings."

"It was I who missed out on you." Fu Xingyi’s murmuring was low and deep.

She could feel his sadness as well.

But she had no choice.

She said, "This place is yours."

Fu Xingyi looked at An Ning.

"Throne, power, empire." An Ning spoke plainly, "I will take Youyou and Luming and leave the Imperial Palace."

"To follow him?" Fu Xingyi asked.

Then he would be left alone in this strange place.

In this lonely cage.

"Yes." An Ning nodded.

"If you hadn’t met him, would you still make this choice?" Fu Xingyi continued to ask.

An Ning bit her lip and honestly nodded, "The reason I stayed to help you manage affairs and to quickly help you with the kingdom was to gain your approval quickly and then leave here."

"So even if he were dead, you still wouldn’t be with me."

"I’m sorry." An Ning apologized.

"You’ve already said that."

"But aside from sorry, I don’t know what else I can say to you." An Ning looked at Fu Xingyi, "I once really loved you, loved you so much. Your death hurt me greatly back then. If it weren’t for your death, I might not have been bitten to death by grief, might not have ended up in this place! But now, everything has changed, I’ve changed."