Chapter 4

After Gu Nanjin finished speaking, Jun Mo remained silent for a while. Gu Nanjin assumed he was displeased, but she had no intention of taking back her words. After a moment, just as she thought he might leave in anger, Jun Mo finally spoke. “Fine.” Gu Nanjin was genuinely stunned for a moment before a faint smile appeared on her lips. So this was what it felt like to finally have the truth come to light. Since Jun Mo had not been overly biased in this matter, Gu Nanjin casually asked, “It's almost noon. Would Your Highness like to have lunch here?” Jun Mo considered himself a man of few desires and a disciplined mind. Yet seeing Gu Nanjin like this, he found himself inexplicably wanting to draw closer to her. Unfortunately, he still had important matters to attend to and could only decline. Before leaving, however, he deliberately turned back and said, “I'll be back before dinner.” The meaning was clear. He intended to have dinner with Gu Nanjin, and afterward, under normal circumstances, he would stay the night. Gu Nanjin froze for a moment. By the time she realized what he meant, Jun Mo was already gone. Cui Ping had been serving at the door and had vaguely heard Jun Mo's words. She smiled happily. “Although you didn't plead on Miss Yun's behalf, His Highness didn't blame you at all. It seems that you still matter more to him than Miss Yun does.” Gu Nanjin did not dare to think that way. Still, she did not want to dampen Cui Ping's spirits, so she simply let her happily make the preparations. Yet when the evening reached the hour of Xu, Jun Mo was nowhere to be seen. Gu Nanjin was so hungry that she felt miserable. She glanced at the sky and said, “His Highness must have been delayed by something. Don't wait for him anymore.” Cui Ping hesitated and did not immediately give the order to serve the meal. Unlike Cui Ping, Cui E had never been fond of Jun Mo, whom she considered her mistress's husband. Seeing her mistress go hungry while waiting for him, Cui E immediately headed outside. “Miss, just wait here. I'll have the meal served right away.” Cui Ping could not stop her and had no choice but to let her go. Even afterward, however, she kept glancing toward the doorway. Cui E could no longer stand watching her. With a dark expression, she said coldly, “His Highness is at Tinglan Pavilion right now! You could stare at that door until flowers bloomed, and he still wouldn't come!” She deliberately emphasized the words “Tinglan Pavilion.” It was Yun Tan's residence. Cui Ping panicked. “How do you know?” “I heard it when I went to arrange the meal. They even prepared an especially lavish feast at Tinglan Pavilion.” Even Cui E could not help looking furious. Cui Ping hurriedly glanced at Gu Nanjin. Seeing her perfectly calm expression, she assumed that her mistress was merely forcing herself to remain composed. She quickly found an excuse for Jun Mo, afraid that Gu Nanjin would be hurt. “Miss Yun is leaving for the convent tomorrow. His Highness is probably only going there to see her off out of courtesy.” “Judging by this, I'm not even sure she'll actually go to the convent tomorrow.” Cui E had absolutely no favorable impression of Jun Mo. She felt that he had merely come here today to put on a show and that, deep down, he could not bear to let Yun Tan suffer. Cui Ping actually thought the same, but she did not want this incident to create a rift between Gu Nanjin and Jun Mo, so she quickly said, “His Highness has always kept his word. Since he promised you, he certainly won't go back on it. Even if something changes in the end, there must be a valid reason behind it.” Cui E snorted and was about to say something more when Gu Nanjin suddenly stood up. “I've had enough.” Both maids froze. They stared at Gu Nanjin's calm expression and exchanged a glance, their eyes seeming to say the same thing: Something was wrong with Miss. Normally, whenever His Highness broke a promise because of Yun Tan, Miss would never have remained this indifferent. Could she be forcing herself to act calm? That would not be good for her health! Cui E quickly followed Gu Nanjin to the window and began talking about other matters, hoping to distract her. How could Gu Nanjin not know what they were thinking? She smiled and said, “I'm fine. Go take care of whatever you need to do.” She genuinely did not care whether Jun Mo kept his promise or not. Nor did she care where he was now. Seeing how calm Gu Nanjin remained, the two maids became even more convinced that she was merely putting on a brave face. They wanted to stay and keep her company for a while, but in the end, they had no choice but to obey her orders. Once they were outside, Cui Ping glared fiercely at Cui E. “This is all your fault. You're usually such a steady person, so why do you become so reckless whenever it concerns His Highness? Why did you have to tell Miss about something like that?” Cui E was already blaming herself. She lowered her eyes, looking dejected. “I was just angry because I thought he had broken his word, so I spoke without thinking.” “You...” Cui Ping let out a long sigh. But the matter had already happened, and there was no point saying anything more, so she let it go. Still, the two of them remained worried about Gu Nanjin and waited outside her room. Just like that, more than half an hour passed. Gu Nanjin eventually called for them and told them to prepare hot water for her bath. Cui Ping opened her mouth as if she wanted to say something, but Cui E quickly tugged at her sleeve. Since His Highness had already broken his promise, he probably would not be coming tonight anyway. With that thought, Cui Ping decided not to say anything. After bathing, Gu Nanjin went straight to bed. As usual, Cui Ping extinguished the lamps, then quietly left with Cui E. “I'll stay here and keep watch tonight,” Cui E said. Cui Ping had been taking the night watch for several days in a row, so she nodded when she heard this. “If Miss needs anything, call me at once.” “Don't worry. The world won't stop turning just because you're gone.” Cui E teased her lightly before watching her leave. However, just as Cui E finished tidying up and was preparing to rest for a while, she suddenly caught sight of Jun Mo's figure. “Your High—” Before she could finish, Jun Mo raised a finger to his lips, signaling for her to be quiet. When he arrived, he had already noticed that the lights at Jiangxue Pavilion were out. Gu Nanjin must have fallen asleep. Since he was the one who had been delayed, how could he possibly wake her now? Fortunately, he had already bathed before coming over. Otherwise, no matter how careful he was, he might still have made some noise. Seeing Jun Mo quietly tiptoe inside, Cui E's eyes widened in astonishment. What had gotten into His Highness? He was actually being this considerate? Then she remembered that he had probably done something at Tinglan Pavilion earlier. He must have felt guilty now, which was why he was acting so carefully. With that thought, Cui E rolled her eyes in disdain and silently cursed him countless times. Inside the bedchamber. By the faint moonlight, Jun Mo stared intently at the graceful silhouette on the bed, his emotions indescribably complicated. Jun Mo was a man who often reflected on his own actions. After uncovering the truth about what had happened at Lotus Garden, he had seriously thought about the way he normally treated Gu Nanjin. In the past, he had always believed that he treated her fairly well. Although she came from a modest background and had no parents to rely on, he had never mistreated her. He had given her all the dignity and respect befitting a Princess Consort. But now that he thought about it, what else had he actually given her? The most serious problem was that whenever a matter involved her and someone else, he had so easily chosen to believe the other person instead. Was that why Yun Tan had dared to hurt her so recklessly? Thinking about what had happened at Tinglan Pavilion that day, Jun Mo rubbed his aching forehead. Yun Tan had once saved his life, and because of that, he was willing to do everything in his power to protect her. But what he felt toward her was nothing more than gratitude. From Yun Tan's perspective, however, his repeated protection of her might have caused her to misunderstand his feelings. Perhaps that was why she had developed inappropriate expectations and ultimately hurt the Princess Consort. That was his own negligence, as well as Yun Tan's delusion. To put an end to these misunderstandings, Jun Mo decided that once Yun Tan returned from the convent, he would find a suitable marriage prospect for her. That way, the Princess Consort should finally be able to put her mind at ease, right? Jun Mo was quite pleased with what he considered a perfect solution. He felt that, as her husband, he had already done everything he could. With that thought, all the wrinkles in his heart seemed to smooth out. He even began imagining how touched Gu Nanjin would be when she heard the news.