Chapter 35: Acceptance
Yu Lingzhao thought she had hidden it well, she had even managed to deceive herself.
Since arriving in this world, she had calmly dealt with Princess Qing'an, calmly eliminated Xiao Ning'an’s original strategist Shangguan Bai, and calmly handled assassins...
Even when her second brother, Yu Qizhi, asked if she was afraid, she had feigned surprise. Did he really think she was afraid?
Yu Lingzhao only thought that she had hidden it well enough that there shouldn't be any flaws.
But at the moment she was exposed by her brother, watched by those concerned and pained eyes, she found she couldn't even force a smile to say, "I'm not."
"Silly Zhaozhao, what kind of difficult matter has frightened you like this? Can't you even tell Second Brother?"
Seeing his sister's expression grow tense again, just like when she was a child, Yu Qizhi felt helpless and began to coax her in a soft, gentle voice.
Yu Lingzhao stared blankly at Yu Qizhi, and a sudden wave of extreme bitterness surged in her heart.
Perhaps out of instinct, Yu Lingzhao dove straight into Yu Qizhi’s arms, clutching his lapels and beginning to cry.
It wasn't a loud wail, but a silent, teeth-gritting flow of tears.
Yu Qizhi had never seen his sister like this. He was both shocked and frantic, deathly worried that she had suffered some hidden grievance somewhere.
"Good Zhaozhao, don't be afraid. Don't be afraid, Second Brother is here. Second Brother is here. Second Brother is here for everything, don't be afraid, Zhaozhao."
Even for someone as eloquent as Yu Qizhi, when faced with a sister crying so heartbreakingly, he could only repeat those few words in a panicked and helpless manner. He kept telling his sister that with her brother there, there was no need to fear.
But the more Yu Qizhi spoke like this, the harder Yu Lingzhao cried, nearly choking on her sobs.
In his helplessness, Yu Qizhi could only try to soothe her into calming down first.
"Good Zhaozhao, don't cry so hard. If you cry yourself sick, where will Second Brother find another Zhaozhao?"
Yu Lingzhao’s heart skipped a beat. She tried hard to steady her breathing and calm herself down, but she refused to look at Yu Qizhi.
Seeing this, Yu Qizhi knew his sister’s "little stubborn cow" temper had flared up. He let out a long sigh.
"Has Zhaozhao grown distant from Second Brother after coming to the capital?"
Yu Lingzhao didn't speak, only her red eyes and the tears that fell from time to time proved her current mood.
She also found it strange.
Clearly, she had done everything well, and everything was going smoothly so far. Why was it that after being asked such a question by Yu Qizhi, she couldn't hold anything back and cried so violently?
Yu Qizhi had ten thousand points of patience for his sister. If she refused to speak, he would continue to coax her.
The more Yu Qizhi spoke, the more Yu Lingzhao realized the difference between her second brother and her third brother.
The third brother was about the same age as her; sometimes his actions weren't even as proper as hers, and he often needed her reminders.
The feeling he gave Yu Lingzhao was that she was indeed the leader, in control of the known variables.
But the second brother was different. He was someone who could already stand on his own and manage a situation.
After his arrival, Yu Lingzhao could clearly feel that she had become somewhat dependent on him. She couldn't put into words exactly what this feeling of dependence was.
It wasn't because of anything specific he did, it was that no matter what she did, as long as she spoke, Second Brother could always keep up with her thoughts and her pace.
In short, her second brother was an incredibly trustworthy teammate.
Yu Lingzhao did not doubt her own strength; she believed in her abilities, otherwise, she wouldn't have acted so decisively.
On the contrary, there was a tiny shred of fear deep within her heart. Truthfully, Yu Lingzhao hadn't paid this fear much mind in her daily life until it was pricked open by Yu Qizhi today.
Candle shadows swayed. In the bright outer study, aside from the occasional sound of Yu Lingzhao sniffing her nose, there was only the sound of Yu Qizhi constantly coaxing his sister.
Yu Lingzhao looked at Yu Qizhi’s shadow on the floor, sniffed again, and mumbled something. Yu Qizhi paused, Zhaozhao’s voice had been too quiet just now, and he hadn't heard clearly.
"What did Zhaozhao say? Second Brother didn't hear you just now. Say it one more time, okay?"
Yu Qizhi’s tone was extremely gentle.
Yu Lingzhao raised her red, teary eyes to look at him and said, "Second Brother, are you real?"
Yu Qizhi froze, not expecting his sister to ask such a strange question.
He frowned as he looked at her, realizing she was waiting for his answer.
Yu Qizhi steadied himself, took his sister’s hand, and gave it a little shake in front of her.
"Of course Second Brother is real. Can Zhaozhao not feel me?"
Yu Lingzhao felt it. Perhaps it was because she felt the emotional fluctuations Yu Qizhi brought her that she felt, with absolute certainty, that everything happening was an incredibly vivid reality.
He was not a character in a book, not a fictional person. He had his own thoughts, could see through the waves she hid beneath her calm exterior, and was a person of flesh, blood, and emotion.
Why it was Yu Qizhi who triggered this, Yu Lingzhao didn't understand. What she did understand was that Yu Qizhi’s concern for her was not fake, it was his true sincerity, it was even his instinctive reaction.
Facing someone who could perceive her emotions so strongly, Yu Lingzhao could no longer treat him as a "paper person" from a book.
At this moment, she truly accepted herself as the County Princess Mingzhu, Yu Lingzhao.
And her second brother's patience gave birth to a bold idea in Yu Lingzhao’s mind...
Yu Lingzhao had cried so hard she had to sniff again, saying in a thin voice, "Second Brother, Zhaozhao had a very scary dream. I dreamt that Second Brother was gone, Third Brother was beaten to death, Eldest Brother and Eldest Sister-in-law died in battle, and the Prince's Mansion was sentenced to have the entire family executed. Even Grandfather's whole family did not escape. All of this was because of me..."
Yu Qizhi heard clearly this time. He suddenly smiled, she was a fifteen-year-old girl after all, still getting this scared over a nightmare.
He reached out to rub his sister’s head.
"Did Zhaozhao suffer some grievance in the capital that scared you into such a nightmare? Dreams are all—"
"It wasn't fake!"
Yu Lingzhao said with a firm tone, "I had this dream after I hit my head and lost consciousness at the Princess's Mansion. Because I didn't wake up in time in the dream, Third Brother stormed the Princess's Mansion in a rage and was framed by Qing'an. He received punishment from that person, injuring his leg and becoming disabled for life. If Second Brother doesn't believe me, you can go ask Guan Xiao. On that day, when he stopped Third Brother, they were less than a hundred paces from the Princess's Mansion."
Yu Qizhi didn't speak, just looked at his sister with her red eyes. Regarding that day's events, he had asked Guan Xiao the moment he arrived in the capital, and it was indeed so.
But even so, it didn't prove anything. Just a dream.
Even if the Prince of Zhennan’s Mansion was at the height of its power, as long as Emperor Jianyuan lived, nothing would happen to them.
The Prince's Mansion was a defensive line for the Southern Border, Emperor Jianyuan wouldn't be so foolish as to move against them.
"Zhao—"
"Second Brother, do you know why I am afraid?"
Yu Lingzhao interrupted him. "Because all of this happened because of me. I was blind and misjudged someone, thinking he was a blessing from heaven, only to find he just wanted to use me. Once he achieved fame and power, I was just a useless tool to be kicked aside. Along with me, the Prince of Zhennan's Mansion, the Household of Prime Minister Cui, and even the Liang family Aunt married into, none of them met a good end."
After hearing his sister's words, the first person Yu Qizhi thought of—the "blessing" his sister spoke of, should be the Fifth Prince.
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