266 Untitled (2/2)

Meng Fuyao had always been eloquent and smooth with her words, twisting them to conform to her logic no matter how hard. This time, however, she was finally faced with something that made her feel embarrassed and stumped…

If that Emperor Zhan really obeyed his mother and fed her even a small mouthful of soup, if she couldn't bury herself in the ground, she would find a wall to bang her head against…

Fortunately for her, Zhan Beiye was not Zhangsun Wuji. His face was completely scarlet, clearly indicating that he would probably not be able to perform such an act. He lowered his head and coughed slightly, looking as if he wanted to leave, but after a moment's thought, he decided to stay instead.

Meng Fuyao felt completely out of place at that moment; the number of times she and Zhan Beiye were alone together was not few, yet now that there was a senior present, why did she feel so awkward, wanting to leave yet unable to do so, wanting to shoot her mouth yet unable to act disrespectfully in front of Empress Dowager; what if Meng Fuyao frightened her?

In the end, she could only smile dumbly at Empress Dowager, who also returned her smile happily. When Zhan Beiye saw the pair smiling at each other so harmoniously, he too couldn't help but let out a smile.

The three people in the room just sat there, smiling at each other…

Finally, Meng Fuyao couldn't hold her smile anymore and was about to excuse herself when Empress Dowager suddenly grabbed her hand with surprising speed and with a flick of her hand, secured a bangle onto Meng Fuyao's wrist.

A locking sound followed.

Meng Fuyao looked down to see a new addition to her wrist, a golden, regal-looking bangle. The bangle looked rather aged, and there were no patterns on its smooth exterior surface, but ancient carvings could be seen on the inside. Because it had been worn for a long time and had been in contact with human energy, it had become smooth and warm like soft jade and wearing it did not feel heavy. It was like wearing a cloud on one's wrist.

Meng Fuyao's instinct told her at first glance that this was definitely not something simple, thinking desperately that it had better not be something like a family heirloom ”passed down from the grandmother to the daughter-in-law,” and she hurriedly tried to remove the bangle from her wrist. When the bangle was first put on her wrist, it was still rather loose, but after Empress Dowager ”locked” it, it actually became a perfect fit for her own wrist, and no matter how she tried, she couldn't remove it.

Meng Fuyao felt cold sweat breaking out as she suddenly remembered the words that Zhangsun Wuji had mouthed to her earlier. In the midst of her frenzy, she somehow managed to make out what he had said—”Don't accept anything.”

… This guy, he could even guess something like this!

Upon seeing that Meng Fuyao was desperately trying to remove the bangle, a hint of doubt flashed past Zhan Beiye's eyes. Finally, he couldn't stand it anymore. ”This bangle has been with my mother since young; it was her protective amulet. Why are you trying to remove it?”

Thinking that the significance of this item wasn't that serious, Meng Fuyao finally stopped and said simply, ”I can't accept her protective amulet.”

”I am the Emperor of a nation, do you think I can't protect her myself?” Zhan Beiye stared at the golden bangle hanging from Meng Fuyao's slim white wrist, thinking that it was too pretty to let her remove it. ”Empress Dowager is grateful to you, consider this as a token of gratitude. You don't have to try to remove it already, there's a mechanism hidden in this thing, once it's locked, it can't be removed.”

Meng Fuyao did not answer but instead rolled her eyes, thinking that she would try using the Bone-Shrinking Technique later on. However, deep down, she knew that the Bone-Shrinking Technique could only shrink the muscles and tendons, it couldn't actually change the size of the bones. Moreover, the bangle was secured so tightly, it was definitely going to be difficult to remove.

'Sigh… A trap, there are traps everywhere…'

Upon returning to her room, Meng Fuyao's gaze immediately landed on a certain someone sitting comfortably inside reading a book and hastily pulled her sleeve over the bangle, but Zhangsun Wuji's eyesight was too sharp. ”Received another gift again?”

Meng Fuyao refused to reply, her face sullen. 'What do you mean by ”received presents again”? Do I receive presents often?'

Zhangsun Wuji grabbed her hand and scrutinized it for several moments before declaring, ”What do I do with you? You're soft-hearted when you win, and also soft-hearted even when you lose.”

Meng Fuyao knew what he meant, but she refused to admit it and retorted, ”Tell me, how am I supposed to ignore the hands of the sick?”

Zhangsun Wuji glanced at her and leaned back in his chair, a bitter smile appearing on his face as he said, ”You like this kind of scenarios very much, don't you? Sorry, perhaps I might never be able to give you…”

Meng Fuyao's heart skipped a beat, realizing that he was referring to Empress Dowager Yuan. Compared to the deep bond between Zhan Beiye and his mother, Zhangsun Wuji was not only unable to give her this kind of happiness, he himself couldn't enjoy it either.

Following this train of thought, Meng Fuyao's heart eventually softened, and she patted his shoulder. ”Your mother will understand you one day,” she said.

Zhangsun Wuji wrapped an arm around her waist and murmured, ”It's enough as long as you understand…”

Meng Fuyao massaged his back in a motherly fashion and responded softly, ”Mn…”

Thereafter, she suddenly felt that the Crown Prince's hand on her waist was moving in an increasingly unbecoming fashion, and then…

Ping!

The sound of someone banging into furniture could be heard, followed by loud swearing from a certain someone.

”Zhangsun Wuji, you godforsaken fox!”