The Side Character Wants to Lie Flat

Chapter 569: Chapter 572: Homecoming

As Hua Manman was sleeping fitfully, she suddenly felt that someone was by her bed.

She woke from her sleep and opened her eyes to find someone was indeed sitting by her bed!

The room was pitch-black.

There was no telling how long the person had been sitting there.

The scene was utterly bizarre.

It sent a shiver down Hua Manman’s spine, and she shot up in bed.

The movement was so abrupt that she inadvertently pulled at her wound, making her gasp in pain.

The person sitting by the bed immediately stood up.

"Don’t be afraid. It’s me!"

The moment Hua Manman heard the voice, she knew it was the Regent King.

She relaxed and couldn’t help but complain.

"What are you doing in my room in the middle of the night? Don’t you know you can scare someone to death like that?"

Li Ji lit the oil lamp on the bedside table.

The dim, yellow light drove back the darkness, clearly illuminating Li Ji’s face.

He was still in the same clothes he had worn when he left during the day. They were covered in dust and full of wrinkles.

Li Ji reminded her, "This is my room, too."

Hua Manman was at a loss for words.

She had almost forgotten she was now living in the Regent King’s bedchamber, sleeping in his bed.

She gave a small, deliberate cough to hide her embarrassment and changed the subject.

"Did you just get back from Shangjing?"

Li Ji replied, "I’ve been back for a while now."

His voice was also a little hoarse, as if he were unwell.

Hua Manman said, "There’s tea on the table. You should go have some."

Li Ji walked over to the table and poured himself a cup of tea.

His throat did feel much better after he drank the water.

Outside, the sky was pitch-black.

It was the dead of night.

Everyone was asleep, and the entire Regent Prince Mansion was silent.

Li Ji returned to the bedside. "Let me see your wound."

Hua Manman shrank back.

"It’s nothing. It’s almost healed."

Li Ji didn’t believe her. "You just cried out in pain. You must have pulled your wound. Let me see."

Hua Manman refused to let him look, insisting.

"It’s really fine. It’s so late, and you must be exhausted from your journey. You should go wash up and get some sleep."

Seeing her clutching her collar, a nervous look on her face like a young wife being harassed by a scoundrel, Li Ji relented.

Evil Lord Li, afraid of scaring his little wife, decided to let her be for the moment.

He lifted the hem of his robes and plopped down on the edge of the bed.

"I can’t sleep. I want to talk with you."

For some reason, ever since leaving Shangjing, he had thought of nothing but Manman.

He desperately wanted to see her.

Even if they did nothing, just talking would be enough.

This intense emotion had been building in his chest.

It compelled him to ride through the night, pushing his horse to its limit to return to Tianjing.

The moment he returned to the Regent Prince Mansion, he made a beeline for the bedchamber where Hua Manman was staying.

When he entered and saw Manman sleeping so soundly, he couldn’t bear to wake her. So he simply sat by the bed, watching her without blinking.

Like a great dragon guarding its most beloved treasure.

Hua Manman did not want to talk.

’She just wanted to stay wrapped in her blankets and go back to sleep.’

But with the Regent King sitting right there on her bed, she couldn’t exactly shoo him away.

She had no choice but to rally her spirits and ask in a gentle, understanding voice,

"Did you run into some trouble?"

Li Ji replied, "No, I’m fine."

Hua Manman was completely baffled.

’If he wasn’t troubled, why was he up in the middle of the night, dragging her into a conversation?’

’Was this jerk deliberately messing with her?!’

Li Ji continued, speaking as if to himself.

"In the years you were gone, I dreamt of you nearly every night. Whenever I woke up and saw the empty space beside me, my heart would ache terribly."

Hua Manman stared at him, stunned.

Even without her memories, hearing these words now, she couldn’t help but feel a pang of sorrow.

Li Ji said, "I used to be unable to understand my mother’s feelings. I didn’t get why she was so fixated on waiting for my father to come back.

Everyone told her that Father was already dead, that it was impossible for him to ever return.

But she stubbornly believed he wasn’t dead and even put the blame on me, thinking I was responsible for his death.

It wasn’t until after you left that I truly understood how my mother felt.

I almost became just like she was back then.

The very person I despised."

At this, the corners of his lips lifted into a small smile, and a faint starlight flickered in his ink-dark eyes.

"Fortunately, you came back in time."

He smiled with pure contentment, like a child who had just been given a piece of candy.

Looking at him, Hua Manman felt a pang of guilt on top of her sorrow.

"But I’ve already forgotten you."

Li Ji said with a smile,

"It doesn’t matter. I remember you, and that’s enough. I’ll stay with you and help you find your lost memories."

Hua Manman murmured, "What if I can never get them back?"

Li Ji said, "Then so be it. Memories are only the past. We have a better future ahead of us.

Every day in the future will be a new memory for us."

Hua Manman’s eyes grew warm, and her heart fluttered at his words.

’She suddenly understood why, after all this time, she had found her way back to this man’s side.’

’Perhaps everything in the world has its proper place.’

’And he was where she belonged.’

Hua Manman scooted over, making room for him on the bed.

"Can you tell me about our past?"

’She suddenly wanted to know how they had gotten together.’

Li Ji took off his dusty outer robe, shoes, and socks. He lay down on his side, his eyes on the woman before him, and began to recount their history together.

Hua Manman listened intently.

Outside, the night slowly gave way to dawn, and the sun peeked out from behind the clouds.

Hua Manman didn’t remember when she fell asleep.

When she awoke, it was already late in the morning.

The spot beside her was empty. The man was gone.

Hua Manman threw back the covers and sat up.

Jinxiu came in with the maids to help her dress and wash.

Hua Manman asked, "Where is the Regent Prince?"

Jinxiu answered truthfully.

"The Prince went out on business. He probably won’t be back until noon."

Hua Manman understood. This meant she was to wait for the Regent King to have lunch with him.

She was severely sleep-deprived from talking so late the previous night.

After breakfast, she went back to bed to catch up on her sleep.

Li Ji had gone out this time to deal with the matter of Li Qi.

This morning, after breakfast, Li Qi had suddenly felt a sharp, burning pain in his throat. He then began to vomit blood and collapsed, unable to get up.

The trusted aide responsible for guarding Li Qi hastily reported the matter to Chen Wangbei, who in turn reported it to the Regent King.

So Li Ji, who had barely fallen asleep, had to get up again, mount his horse, and rush to the Prince Zheng Mansion.

He also brought Feihua Zhenren with him.

After treatment from Feihua Zhenren, Li Qi’s life was saved, but he was left with significant after-effects. His throat was ruined; he could no longer speak loudly, and his voice was now hoarse and grating.

Li Ji looked at Li Qi, who lay on the bed, his breath as faint as a silk thread, and spoke calmly.

"You were poisoned. The culprit doesn’t want you to be able to speak, so the poison was designed to target your throat."

Li Qi croaked, "I know who did it."

There was only one person in the world who would least want him to speak the truth.

The current Saint.

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