Palein’s inquiring expression seemed to indicate that she would believe any strange story. Evelia, who became even more embarrassed, awkwardly smiled, and after stopping her momentarily awkward steps, she continued walking.
Despite the strong desire to recover her memories as soon as possible without arousing suspicion, it was not easy to secretly focus on it. Evelia had considered telling Palein about her situation and concentrating on recovering her memories. However, doing so would inevitably lead to talking about Khalif.
Especially when it came to my affairs, Palein was always the one to step forward without considering the circumstances. She wasn’t someone you could deceive with vague stories. If it were her, she would persistently question and dig until she was convinced.
It wasn’t that Evelia didn’t trust Palein, but in the Huang Palace, where eyes and ears were known to be everywhere, she hesitated to mention the story even discreetly.
Thinking that anyone who harbored doubts about his identity might pose a danger, even if it was Palein, Evelia’s heart didn’t incline to speak. So, for now, she kept it to herself.
“…It’s more uncomfortable than I thought.”
Evelia muttered under her breath, pursing her lips. As she took a few more steps, the cypress tree-lined path she had been staring at with intensity unfolded before her.
Evelia, feeling tense, pushed her steps through that path. Although nothing came to mind, her chest strangely thumped. It was a solid reaction, as if confirming that the discomfort she felt looking at this place from a distance wasn’t groundless.
Since her body was reacting this much, Evelia couldn’t help but be sure that there must be memories related to the cypress trees.
Evelia slowed down her pace, pretending to enjoy the stroll as naturally as possible. Then, without Palein noticing, she thoroughly examined various spots with cypress trees.
If the memories didn’t come to mind immediately, she had to at least put them in her head as if engraving them, so she could recall them when she returned to the Crown Prince’s residence.
Evelia stared at the trees for a while, concentrating. However, at that moment, Palein, who had been silently following her, tapped her on the shoulder. Startled by the small touch, even though she was deeply focused, Evelia’s body trembled.
“Huh? Why, why?”
Evelia turned to Palein with a puzzled expression. It felt like she had been caught secretly thinking about something.
However, when Evelia looked at Palein’s face, it was unexpectedly bright. Surprised, Evelia turned her head, asking with a curious smile.
“Why are you suddenly smiling so brightly?”
“Your Highness.”
She only asked about the reason for the sudden bright expression, but Palein raised her hand inexplicably and pointed somewhere. Evelia turned her head in confusion to look where Palein pointed.
“…Huh?”
Reflected in her eyes was Khalif walking towards them from the opposite side of the street. A smile blossomed unabashedly on Evelia’s lips.
Her slow steps began to quicken once again. As the distance between them narrowed, her heart throbbed even more violently.
Before she knew it, he was clearly visible a few steps ahead. Almost instinctively, her lips moved.
“Khalif…”
The name that had become a habit roared out of her mouth without her even realizing it. It was truly a strange thing. She had only recently learned that his name was Khalif Dwight, but it felt much more familiar than the name Liurian.
No matter how much she claimed to have known him before Liurian, there was not a single complete memory about him. Nevertheless, her body moved as if it had already remembered him perfectly, moving ahead of her mind, which was fascinating.
“Your Highness.”
Evelia looked at Khalif, who had come close enough to touch, with a shy face. At that moment, he, in a familiar gesture, reached out to hold her hand. It wasn’t just her; it seemed like her body was moving ahead of her mind.
Their physical contact always brought along excessive excitement, creating a strange discomfort. However, now she could endure holding hands to some extent. It was thanks to his persistence in reaching out to hold her hand without hesitation.
Without uttering a word, he grabbed her hand with satisfaction when she willingly held it. He smirked as if content.
“Were you taking a walk?”
“Yes. Your Highness, did you also come out for a walk?”
“The weather was so nice that I thought I might run into you if I went for a walk.”
“Just because you thought I might be out for a walk, you decided to come out for a walk?”
Evelia looked up at him with a bewildered expression. He didn’t hear her say she was going for a walk, and yet, he decided to come out for a walk because he thought she might be out for a walk. The words implied that he had wandered around the garden based solely on intuition.
Evelia had no way to hide her surprise. Without being able to erase those emotions, she looked at him again. Strangely, Evelia felt her heart sinking for a moment.
After Being Cheated On, She Picked Up a Treasure (Female-dominant)
One-line summary: The husband I married on a whim had been secretly in love with me for a long time.
On the day when Jun Shao finally obtained the imperial decree for her marriage, Lan Qu, the person she had admired for six years, defied the decree and ran away.
Her gentleness and devotion, her promise of a lifetime together, were all disregarded by him. Instead, he dreamed of entering the palace to serve the Emperor’s sister as a sixth-rank attendant.
News of this incident spread throughout the capital, and the alleys in front of and behind the Lan mansion were crowded with people who came to watch the commotion.
Jun Shao should have been embarrassed and angry.
But someone stepped in to protect her dignity.
The figure was in a miserable state, yet still possessed an undeniable elegance and handsomeness.
The young lord struggled to climb the wall of the Lan mansion and shouted to her, “If he won’t marry you, I will!”
So, Jun Shao took advantage of the situation and married the person.
She thought the young lord did it to save the Lan family from the crime of defying the imperial decree, but never imagined that from beginning to end, what he coveted was her.
*
After the wedding, Jun Shao felt like she was living in a dream.
Her Wife-master was as beautiful as a fairy in a painting, skilled in the six arts, well-versed in poetry and literature, capable of being gentle and attentive, and also grand and dignified. Most importantly, she was the only one in his heart and eyes.
Jun Shao didn’t know how Lan Shiwu, as a illegitimate son without a father and blessed with beauty, had managed to preserve his purity, recklessly escape, and use his last ounce of strength to ruin his own reputation, all because of his love for her, just to stand before her.
She could only see him gazing at her with eyes full of love, and when she bestowed a name upon him, his eyes shone like stars.
“You have come to me like a weary bird perching on a branch. I shall call you A Qi.”
