Su Liuyue raised her eyebrows slightly.

From what he said, it seemed that after today, she would no longer need to sleep in the same bed with him.

Thinking of what the man had said to her before, Su Liuyue couldn't help but ask: "Your Highness, do you mean that tonight, our sleeping together in bed is just a show?"

"Yes."

Zhou Yunke paused, and said in a soft voice: "I said before that I would give you time to slowly accept our marriage. The reason why I set the wedding date so tight is just to avoid any more trouble.

But I don’t want to tie you down with this marriage.”

Zhou Yunke smiled, raised the corner of his mouth slightly and said: "You don't need to feel any pressure in front of me. I will let you live as you wish within my ability."

Su Liuyue: “…”

After hearing Zhou Yunke's words, the first feeling that came into Su Liuyue's heart was not touched, but - had her previous mental preparation been in vain?

Should she say that this guy respected her too much, or...he had too little desire for her?
Su Liuyue didn't believe it, took a deep breath, and said, "Your Highness, you don't have to do this. No matter what, we are already married. I am actually mentally prepared for the things that need to be done between husband and wife."

Zhou Yunke was slightly stunned.

However, looking at her unconsciously slightly tense face and trembling eyelashes, he did not speak for a long time.

In fact, what he hoped was that what she said was not something she had already prepared for.

Zhou Yunke didn't think he was a saint who could remain calm in the face of temptation, but when facing the woman he wanted to protect for the rest of his life, he didn't want her to accept him with this mentality.

After all, he wasn't so impatient.

He was silent for a moment, then raised the corner of his mouth and said, "Are you really prepared?"

Is it necessary to ask this question again?

Su Liuyue pursed her lips slightly and said provocatively: "Of course, or is it that Your Highness is not mentally prepared?"

Zhou Yunke couldn't help but laugh.

This woman, even at this time, still did not forget to fight back against him.

We really can't afford to suffer even the slightest loss.

He maintained the posture of holding one of her hands, stretched out his other hand, put it around her lower back, and pulled it in suddenly.

The woman in front of him suddenly threw herself into his arms and was hugged tightly by him.

Su Liuyue only felt that her nose was suddenly filled with the fresh and pleasant scent of the man. The hand on her waist was hard and heavy, tightly holding her like an iron chain.

Her heartbeat also began to get out of control.

However, Zhou Yunke just held her tightly without any movement.

She felt a little confused, as he was holding her like this and she couldn't see his expression.

If she could see it, she would probably be even more surprised.

Zhou Yunke rested his chin gently on the top of her head, his face showing an extremely relaxed and satisfied expression. After a long time, he let out a long breath, gently let her go, looked down at her, and said in a hoarse voice, "That's enough."

Seeing Su Liuyue's stunned expression, he smiled faintly, "It's getting late, go to bed early. Tomorrow, you still have to meet with a group of elders."

After saying that, he let go of Su Liuyue and went to bed first.

He lay down outside and said, "I'm used to sleeping outside. Do you have any objection to sleeping inside?"

Su Liuyue hadn't recovered from the hug yet, and looked at Zhou Yunke with an indescribable look on her face.

Is this a question of sleeping inside or outside?
Could it be that what he just said about wanting to be close to her when he saw her was just a bluff?

Yes, for a mysophobia patient, things in bed are much more difficult to accept than just holding hands and hugging.

However, he kept saying that he just wanted to give her time to accept their relationship... Su Liuyue was confused for a moment, what on earth this guy was thinking. For the first time, she felt that this man was even more difficult to understand than the most cunning and brutal criminal in the world.

It's not that she can't be shameless and demand that they consummate the marriage tonight, but if Zhou Yunke is really not ready, wouldn't it be not good for her to force him?
Su Liuyue was in such a dilemma. She nodded silently, took off her shoes and got on the bed carefully.

It was the first time for her to sleep in the same bed with a man. She originally thought that the bed was big enough so that after the two of them lay down, there would be room for another person to lie in the middle, and the man's presence would not be very strong.

However, she didn't know if it was a psychological effect, but even though they were some distance apart, she could still clearly feel the warmth coming from the man next to her. His fresh and pleasant scent even lingered around her. The bed, which was originally quite spacious, suddenly became extremely small.

She originally thought that she would not be able to adapt to the new environment, and she might not be able to sleep on the first night because she was concerned about Zhou Yunke's attitude. Unexpectedly, she didn't know whether it was because she was too tired, or the breath of the people around her made her feel too at ease. She lay in bed for a while, her mind was full of random thoughts, and she fell asleep unknowingly.

I slept better than ever before, without any dreams all night.

The next day, when Su Liuyue was awakened by Er Si and Er An, she forgot where she was for a moment and asked in a daze, "Are my aunt and the others awake yet?"

Er Si looked at her confused daughter and said with amusement, "My queen, are you still dreaming? You have to go to see His Majesty and the Queen later, so you have to get up and get ready."

The extremely unfamiliar voice of "Empress" instantly brought Su Liuyue back to her senses. She shuddered and subconsciously looked towards the place where Zhou Yunke slept last night.

Sure enough, there was no one there.

She paused and asked, "Why are you here?"

Although Ersi and Er'an followed her into the palace, according to the previous teaching nanny, Ersi and Er'an had to pass the palace's training before they could serve her.

Therefore, Ersi and Eran were not among the people who served her and Zhou Yunke last night.

Er Si smiled and said, "It was His Royal Highness the Crown Prince who called us here. He said that the Queen has no acquaintances in the palace, and she would feel more at ease with us serving by her side."

Er An was a little worried, and lowered his voice and said, "My queen, you and the Crown Prince last night... but nothing happened?"

This shouldn't be the case! His Royal Highness the Crown Prince looked at it and it wasn't like he didn't like their queen's appearance!

There is a huge difference between whether such a thing happened or not. It is far from what is shown in TV dramas, where people can just cut their fingers and wipe them on the white wedding veil to cover up the truth.

At least, they can't hide it from the people around them.

But this is the Eastern Palace. Su Liuyue believed that Zhou Yunke still had a way to conceal the truth. Facing Er'an's worried eyes, she didn't know how to tell her. She cleared her throat and said, "There's a long way to go for this kind of thing. Where's His Highness?"

Seeing that Su Liuyue had no intention of saying anything, Er'an was extremely worried, but he didn't want to keep asking, so he said, "Your Highness just got up and is now washing outside..."

Before he finished speaking, Zhou Yunke, who was already dressed, walked in. Seeing Su Liuyue, he subconsciously smiled and said, "Are you up? Did you sleep well last night?"

Su Liuyue: “…”

Didn’t Er’an mean that he had just gotten up not long ago?

He dressed and washed really quickly.

She slowly got out of bed and said, "Your Highness is so quick, you may have to wait for me for a while."

Zhou Yunke couldn't help but smile even more, "Waiting for your wife is only natural."

After saying that, he actually lifted up the hem of his clothes and sat on the couch beside her, as if he wanted to watch her wash and dress up the whole time.

Su Liuyue was being watched by him like this. She went from being a little unnatural at first to being fearless very quickly. She could even observe Zhou Yunke who was sitting behind her through the mirror while her maid was putting makeup on her.

Zhou Yunke was drinking tea. He seemed to notice her gaze. He looked up, accurately met her eyes in the mirror, and smiled faintly.

Su Liuyue's heart was inexplicably tickled by his smile.

When she thought that from now on, every morning, there would be such a person participating in her daily routine, he might wash and dress with her, or he might sit beside her and wait for her patiently like now, or he might have something to do and leave before she woke up.

But no matter what the situation is, his figure will always be in her life, and he has become an indelible mark in her life.

Perhaps, this is the meaning of marriage. (End of this chapter)