After leaving the banquet, Quan Heng was troubled and walked along the Imperial Garden path, deep in thought.
Ziyun, seeing her mood, remained silent and simply kept her company.
Suddenly, they heard footsteps behind them. Instinctively, they turned to look.
To their surprise, it was Xie Fengyun.
He had run all the way over, hair slightly disheveled, panting, and smiling as he said, “Miss Quan, long time no see.”
In that moment, Quan Heng felt a mix of relief and disappointment.
She was relieved it wasn’t Wen Zheng—she wouldn’t have known how to face him.
But also disappointed. The man who used to be with her day and night was gone, never to return.
Since there was an engagement between the Hou and Xie households, and the two families had always been close, Quan Heng didn’t want to make things awkward. Even if she didn’t like him, she forced herself to speak.
“Mm. Young Master Xie, it has been a while.”
Seeing that she was finally willing to speak to him, Xie Fengyun let out a breath of relief.
For some reason, though he had always been a flirt and had never truly cared for anyone, after seeing Quan Heng once, she had haunted his thoughts ever since. Even his dreams were filled with her—it was hard to let go.
Just now, seeing her leave the banquet, he had found an excuse to slip out and followed her all the way here.
He thought perhaps he had been too forward last time, too enthusiastic, and Quan Heng didn’t like that. So this time, he restrained himself.
Carefully approaching her side, he asked with concern, “Last time, after you saved the Sixth Prince, I heard you caught a chill as well. Are you feeling better now?”
Quan Heng forced a smile. “I’m fine now. Thank you for your concern.”
Xie Fengyun scratched his head and continued, “Well… I wonder what kinds of food you like? If we meet at another banquet, I could have our chef prepare something and bring it for you.”
At that moment, Quan Heng’s mind was in turmoil, and Xie Fengyun just wouldn’t stop talking. She didn’t want to respond but couldn’t ignore him either, so she perfunctorily replied, “Nothing in particular. No need to trouble yourself.”
Xie Fengyun knew she was brushing him off but didn’t get angry. He persisted, “Miss Quan, on the fifth day of next month, would you be willing to go boating with me on the lake? After that, we could go admire the spring flowers?”
Quan Heng turned her head away. “No. Young Master Xie, please find another lady.”
Just then, the sound of hurried, chaotic footsteps approached. Quan Heng turned her head and saw Wen Zheng.
His face was full of fury, his eyes practically shooting fire.
He rushed up and grabbed her hand, trying to drag her away. “Ah Heng, this Xie Fengyun is just an empty-headed fool. Don’t associate with him!”
The moment their hands touched, Quan Heng felt a tingling sensation that spread from her fingertips to her heart.
For a second, it was as if her heart skipped a beat, and a flicker of joy stirred inside her.
But when she looked up and saw his face, it felt like she was staring into the eyes of the tyrannical prince from her nightmares.
A wave of fear and sorrow washed over her.
She thought: there’s no future for the two of us anymore.
Xie Fengyun, enraged by Wen Zheng’s words, forgot who he was speaking to and dared to retort, “Your Highness, you are no longer Yongning Marquis’s kin, and you have nothing to do with Heng’er. She is my fiancée. As an outsider, what right do you have to interfere between us?”
Quan Heng sighed and pulled her hand away from Wen Zheng’s grasp. She lowered her head and stood silently, seemingly acknowledging Xie Fengyun’s claim.
That gesture completely shattered Wen Zheng’s composure.
He forcefully pulled Quan Heng into his arms and, right in front of Xie Fengyun, kissed her hard on the lips.
Stunned by the sudden turn of events, Quan Heng was overwhelmed with shame. She beat against Wen Zheng’s chest, but couldn’t break free.
Instead, Wen Zheng deepened the kiss, to the point where she could barely breathe.
In desperation, she bit down on his lip, drawing blood. Taking advantage of his pain, she managed to break free for a moment.
But the very next second, he kissed her again, not even wiping away the blood.
The thick taste of iron spread between their mouths—one refusing to let go, the other unable to break free.
His kiss, like the man himself, was overbearing.
Thinking of everything that had happened between them, Quan Heng could no longer suppress the sorrow in her heart. Tears streamed down her face.
The salty tears mingled with the bloody kiss, adding another layer of bitterness.
Realizing she was crying, Wen Zheng finally let her go.
The next moment, Quan Heng slapped him hard across the face.
She didn’t look back. Crying, she ran off.
Xie Fengyun had long been stupefied.
Looking at Wen Zheng, he could clearly see the killing intent in his eyes.
He had no doubt: if he dared tell anyone what happened today, Wen Zheng would really kill him.
“Still not leaving?”
At those words, Xie Fengyun forgot all decorum and ran off without a bow.
Wen Zheng’s gaze darkened as he chased after Quan Heng.
***
Quan Heng didn’t know how long she had run. Her tears wouldn’t stop.
She hadn’t meant to cry, but she just couldn’t help it.
When she finally had no strength left, she leaned against a tree and closed her eyes.
Suddenly, someone held her tightly from behind.
She opened her eyes—it was Wen Zheng again.
“Your Highness, could you stop haunting me like a ghost?”
Hearing her describe him that way, Wen Zheng’s heart ached.
He hugged her even tighter. “Ah Heng, I know you’re angry, but these past days, I’ve been in so much pain too. I don’t want to be the Crown Prince. I just want to stay by your side. Please, just look at me once more. Please?”
Quan Heng didn’t want to be close to him. She struggled with all her might, but the more she fought, the tighter he held on. All resistance was useless.
Just like in her dreams.
In that moment, her anger reached its peak. Without thinking, she pulled a silver hairpin from her head and pressed it against her neck.
“Let me go! If you don’t let go, I’ll kill myself!”
In her struggle, the sharp end of the pin pierced her delicate skin, and blood flowed.
Wen Zheng was finally afraid. He released her immediately.
“Ah Heng, don’t do anything foolish! Put the hairpin down! I won’t hold you anymore, I swear!”
After breaking free, Quan Heng gave a bitter smile. She walked to the edge of the pond and said coldly, “Don’t come any closer. If you do, I’ll jump.”
At that moment, Wen Zheng was utterly powerless, as if all strength had left him.
“Okay, I won’t come closer. Just don’t do anything rash.”
“Ah Heng, that day at the bottom of the cliff, I truly lost my memory. I didn’t know anyone. You were the one who saved me and brought me back to the manor. From that moment on, my life began anew.”
“Even later, when I dreamt, I’d see myself on the battlefield, killing enemies. I thought it was just my past before we met again. I truly didn’t know I wasn’t Shen Zhengyu.”
“Ah Heng, I beg you, give me one more chance. Let’s go back to the way things were. Let’s start over, alright?”
Looking at his bloodshot eyes, Quan Heng knew he wasn’t lying—and her heart ached.
“I know you’re telling the truth. But it’s all meaningless now. You are not Shen Zhengyu. I’ve already reunited with my true childhood sweetheart. Besides, I’m still engaged to the Xie family. Before long, I’ll marry him.”
Looking at Wen Zheng’s face, her heart hurt so badly she could barely breathe.
Tears fell the next time she blinked.
“From now on, let’s act like we never knew each other. You walk your wide, sunlit path. I’ll cross my narrow bridge. Let’s never meet again in this life.”
With that, she turned to leave.
The next second, Wen Zheng smashed his fist against a nearby tree.
A loud cracking sound rang out. Quan Heng froze.
“Your hand… it’s bleeding.”
Instinctively, she took a few steps forward, wanting to tend to his wound. But remembering who they were now, and everything that stood between them, she stopped.
Wen Zheng was in unspeakable pain. “Ah Heng, do you not even want to come close to me anymore?”
Quan Heng opened her mouth. “I…”
Wen Zheng wanted to step forward and hold her, but when he saw the wound on her neck, he stopped in his tracks.
If he pushed her now, she might really do something foolish.
He couldn’t bear to witness such a scene—not even the slightest possibility of it.
In the end, he only clenched his fists and said hoarsely, “Ah Heng, do you really want to marry that useless fool Xie Fengyun?”
Seeing Quan Heng lower her head without replying, as if silently agreeing, he let out a bitter laugh, tears rolling down from his eyes.
“Ah Heng, let’s run away, shall we? I don’t want the title of Crown Prince. All the wealth and glory mean nothing to me. Let’s leave this place, go back to Baixue Manor, and live a peaceful life there, alright?”
Quan Heng looked up, opened her mouth, but in the end only shook her head.
“Ah Zheng, we can’t go back anymore.”
At last, she looked back at him, forced down the pain, and trembled as she said, “Farewell. May we never meet again in this life.”
At that moment, a light rain had begun to fall.
Ziyun raised an umbrella, shielding Quan Heng from the rain and escorting her away.
Watching her fading silhouette, Wen Zheng seemed to lose all strength. He fell to his knees in the direction she had gone, palms pressed to the ground.
In that moment, he wept uncontrollably.
The rain grew heavier.
His tears mixed with the rainwater, his sobs drowned by the rumbling thunder.
The once cold and heartless Crown Prince who held power over life and death now cried like a child.
For the past twenty years, he had not understood love, and so lived without care or restraint.
Perhaps his sins had become too heavy, and Heaven finally punished him—by giving him the feelings of a normal person.
And with that, he came to know what pain was, and what it meant to lose.
The rain continued for a full day.
It wasn’t until the middle of the night, at midnight, that he dragged his exhausted body back to the Eastern Palace and collapsed into bed, falling into a deep sleep the moment he touched the mattress.
In his dream, he was back by her side. She smiled at him, teased him, gave him gifts and joy, making him feel like the happiest man alive.
But suddenly, the dream changed.
He was back in that pitch-black little room from his childhood.
Then came a knock at the door. A eunuch stepped in and said, “Your Highness the Crown Prince, His Majesty has summoned you.”
Wen Zheng woke with a start, and sure enough, the emperor’s personal eunuch was standing by his bed.
“Your Highness, please, His Majesty is waiting for you in Yangxin Hall.”
