The Sickly Beauty Substitute Called It Quits

11

Shen Yu pretended to be ignorant. "What does Your Majesty mean? What do I have to say to Your Majesty? Does Your Majesty want me to say every day that I like..."

"Shen Yu," Shang JunLin interrupted him lightly. "You know what I'm talking about."

"If I said it was truly just a coincidence, would Your Majesty believe me?" Shen Yu lowered his eyes. His voice was full of uncertainty.

"What do you think?" Shang JunLin asked.

I wouldn't. Shen Yu knew that if it were him, he wouldn't believe it either. How could there be so many coincidences in the world? Coincidences were rare, and most were man-made.

"Your Majesty." Shen Yu took a deep breath. "I went to see Shen Yue to question her and for no other reason. Believe it or not, what happened after that was really and truly an accident."

Shen Yu had no idea that the day he chose to visit the dark prison was also the day of Young Master He's escape attempt. He didn't know if the heavens were trying to help him or harm him.

"Put that aside for the time being. When you saw those suspicious people, you insisted they were trying to free someone from the prison. This emperor asks you—how did you know that? How did you know about He JinYuan?"

Shang JunLin drew closer to Shen Yu with a sense of oppression like impending thunder. His eyes stayed on Shen Yu's face, and not a single flicker of expression escaped him.

Shen Yu remained impassive, but inside he felt a little flustered. He JinYuan was the personal name of Young Master He. Shen Yu could find a reasonable excuse for anything that happened that day, except when it came to Young Master He.

Shang JunLin reached out and touched Shen Yu's cheek. His hand was warm as usual, making Shen Yu feel cold by contrast.

"Shen Yu, don't lie to me."

"Your Majesty." Shen Yu reached up and covered the man's hand with his own. "Your Majesty must believe that I'll always be on your side."

"Of course this emperor knows that. Otherwise you wouldn't be in Yuzhang Palace but in the dark prison." Shang JunLin's eyes were dark and unreadable. His fingertips stroked Shen Yu's face.

Shang JunLin had full confidence in the Hidden Dragon Guard he'd personally trained. He deliberately revealed information to a few people, but it was impossible for anyone else to know He JinYuan was in the dark prison. Shen Yu couldn't know unless...

He was involved with those people.

Before entering the palace, Shen Yu had associated with the King of Yue. Were there other connections between them he didn't know about?

As the shadows in Shang JunLin's eyes grew darker and darker, Shen Yu quickly rummaged through his memories. He had to dispel Shang JunLin's suspicions. He came here to live an easy life. There was no point in being reborn if he was just going to cause trouble for himself.

"Your Majesty, before I entered the palace, I overheard some people talking about a 'dark prison' and 'replacing' someone. The person who said this looks somewhat similar to Your Majesty, and he was speaking to his subordinates. I only heard it once. When I saw suspicious people in the dark prison the other day, I suddenly remembered what I heard and my mouth was faster than my brain...."

After it happened, Shen Yu knew he'd been too impulsive, but at the time, his only thought was that he couldn't let the King of Yue's men escape with He JinYuan. He didn't stop to think that he was the son of an aristocratic family who hadn't left the residence for many years due to illness, and he shouldn't be so perceptive.