The Emperor's Obsession

Chapter Twenty-Two || His Majesty, His Dear Majesty

Lihua stood up and stretched, "I'm going out now. You don't have to follow me." She hurried past them and ran out to the gardens.
"My lady! Wait!" But she didn't listen. She let out a small laugh as soon as her feet touched the grass, having completely forgotten about the emperor and her guilt. It was nice, not having to remember things that take your happiness away in a flash. She suddenly ran into someone and gasped, stumbling backwards and falling. She closed her eyes tightly, waiting for the pain to come.
But it never did.
Her eyes fluttered open and they widened immediately when she saw the prince's face dangerously close to hers. His arms were wrapped around her waist, holding her.
Her mouth fell open in surprise, but no words came out.
They stared at each other, the world around them disappearing.
"Lady Wu," the prince began with a gorgeous smile.
Blood rushed to her cheeks and her heart raced. "Sh—your highness," she responded breathlessly and removed his arms from her waist, lightly pushing him away and standing straight. She cleared her throat shyly and bowed respectfully, "I did not mean to behave so.. inappropriately. Forgive me."
"You are forgiven." He said.
Lihua looked up, and that's when she noticed the woman standing next to him. She looked mature and had the features of a grown lady, yet she seemed very soft-spoken and kind. She had this motherly, feminine vibe. Her long hair was in a low ponytail, decorated with beautiful hair ornaments. She wore beautiful silk robes, and she had a warm smile on her face. "So this is the famous Wu Lihua I keep hearing about?"
"U-Uh.." Lihua blushed and bowed again, "yes, that's me. It's a pleasure to meet you, Lady Hei-Ran."
The older woman's smile faded for a moment and she winced, as if she was suddenly in pain.
"Hei-Ran?" The prince said, concerned. "Are you alright?"
"Yes.. yes, I'm fine. I just need a little bit of rest. I will retire to my bedchamber now. It was nice meeting you, Miss Wu." She managed a weak smile and a maid rushed over to walk her to her chamber, leaving the girl and his highness alone.
"Is she ill?" She asked worriedly. "I hope she gets better. She seems like a good woman. You two look great together, by the way."
They began walking.
It was silent for a few minutes, then the prince spoke, "why have you become my brother's wife?" He sounded upset. His voice held a hint of anger and.. jealousy? But Lihua didn't notice. She sighed and bit her lip, "I didn't have a choice.." She mumbled, frowning in displeasure. She didn't want to talk about it.
"Did he force you?"
"Sort of. Listen, Shim, I don't want to talk about him, alright?" She realized she called him by his nickname and she quickly corrected herself, "I-i mean, your highness."
"It's fine. You may call me Shim when we're alone."
"I can't. You're a prince, and we're not children anymore. Plus, even if our ranks didn't matter, you're older than me." She argued. 'Respect your elders' was the ultimate rule of those lands. You could only call the people younger than you nicknames, and speak informally with them. From the corner of her eye, she saw a flash of red. She turned her face to that direction and her breath hitched when she saw the emperor. He was walking across the stone bridge with a few ministers behind him. He stopped walking when someone familiar approached him with a smile.
Hae Won.
"What's wrong?" The prince asked.
"I'll be right back." Lihua said, before making her way towards them. They both looked at her and the beautiful woman immediately glared at her.
She ignored her glare and bowed in front of the emperor, "Your Majesty.. I hope I'm not interrupting anything, but I must speak with you." She said as politely as she could. Please say yes.. please say yes..
The emperor didn't reply.
"You are interrupting." Hae Won growled, "you should leave. The emperor clearly does not wish to speak to you."
That's when she snapped.
Slowly turning to face her, Lihua spoke, her face hardening and her voice as cold as ice, "who are you?" She

asked, "who are you to speak to me that way? Listen to me and listen to me well, I am His Majesty's wife. And you? You are merely a concubine. A shameless woman he likes to use in his free time." She said harshly, "talk to me that way again, and I swear to the gods, you will regret it. I have tolerated you and my patience has run thin. I hope you do not cross the line again, Hae Won."
The concubine's mouth hung open in shock. The ministers all looked shocked.
Lihua turned back to the emperor, who had a slight smirk on his face. A smirk so faint and slight it was almost invisible. But she noticed it. "May I speak to you alone, Your Majesty?"
"Can you not see that I'm busy?" He said coldly.
"Please." She whispered.
That made him raise a brow. He stared at her silently for a few moments, then gestured for the people to leave. The men bowed and left. Hae Won gritted her teeth, sending her one last glare, before leaving as well.
Nervousness and fear filled her stomach. She took a deep breath and looked up at him, opening her mouth to say something. But no words came out. Her heart was beating so fast, pounding furiously against her chest, she was afraid he could hear it.
"Well?" He pressed, his face blank.
"I.. I.. uh.. I wanted to.." come on! Say it! She cleared her throat, ".. apologize. I-I wanted to apologize for.. yesterday. For all the awful things I said.. I was angry, and I wasn't thinking—"
He held a hand up, and she shut her mouth.
"Let me make something clear, wife," his face turned dark, "I could care less about your apology, and I definitely do not need to hear it. Do not ever approach me so freely or declare yourself as my wife to make yourself feel better. You think you're so special because you had my attention for a short while? In the end, you're nothing but a part of my harem. A worthless, useless whore. Do not worry, I won't touch or look at you ever again. I don't want to dirty my hands by touching someone like you."
Lihua was speechless. Not in a good way. His words hit her and it felt like she'd just been stabbed a hundred times. Tears formed in her eyes and she exhaled, her hands balling into fists.
"How pathetic," he sneered in disgust, "if you're going to cry because of the truth, then go somewhere else. I'm not wasting my time with this." He walked away from her.
"Why.. Why did you marry me?" She asked weakly, her voice breaking.
He stopped, and looked at her with an evil smirk. "Why?" He repeated, "because I was bored. And you seemed like a good target. That's why."

"So.. so you.." she slowly pointed a finger at him, "you decided to ruin my life by forcing me to marry you when I clearly did not want to.. you decided to make my life a nightmare because.. because you were bored?"
"Exactly."
"You're a monster.." A tear rolled down her cheek. "I was right. You don't deserve to be loved."
"Are you really that desperate for pity and attention? Go cry somewhere else, where nobody can see you." He said coldly and walked away.
What have I done to deserve this?
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