Having taken a seat by the table, Yang Mengchen said indifferently, "Yes."

"Could it be that after all these days of interaction, Ms. Yang doesn't have the slightest fondness for me?"

"No."

Hang Qingming's expression changed subtly. Was it anger in his heart? Or was it loss?

"May I ask who that person is, Ms. Yang?"

"To me, he is someone more important than my own life! To Young Master Hang, he is but a stranger; there is no need for Young Master Hang to know!"

"Where is he now?" Hang Qingming gritted his teeth. He wanted to see just who this paragon was that the young lady could not forget.

Yang Mengchen lowered her eyelids slightly, her lips pressed together without responding for a long time—a time so prolonged that Hang Qingming thought she would not answer—when he suddenly heard her faint voice, "He is no longer here." Her tone was low and broken, a melancholic and plaintive aura swirling about her, wrenching one's heart with sorrow.

Hai Tang kept her head down, standing quietly at Yang Mengchen's side, as if she hadn't heard the conversation between the two.

Hang Qingming was initially jolted, but quickly returned to normal.

He had never experienced a deeply reciprocal relationship, but he had seen the deep affection between the Imperial Uncle and Imperial Aunty. In particular, after the Imperial Aunty left home in anger, the Imperial Uncle immersed himself in regret and madness, unable to extricate himself, and eventually passed away in desolation.

He could understand the young lady's feelings, after all, with her beloved gone, what remained was endless loneliness and pain. Seeing someone who resembled her loved one, it was inevitable to transfer feelings to the person who bore the resemblance. This was understandable.

Yet he felt distinctly uncomfortable. Was it jealousy that the person had earned the young lady's deep love and loyalty? Was it anger that she saw him as only a substitute? Or was it loss that in all this time, the young lady felt not a shred of affection for him? He couldn't make it clear.

However, on account of the young lady's faithfulness to love, there were some things he felt compelled to remind her of, else she might end up harming both herself and others.

"I admire Ms. Yang's unwavering fidelity, but has it ever occurred to Ms. Yang that this could hurt the men who love you?" Hang Qingming spoke earnestly, "If your heart is with only that person, then you should have rejected or even avoided those men right from the start, rather than waiting until they have given their true feelings, and then you find various excuses to reject them.

Isn't this too selfish and hypocritical?

No matter the gender, once one gives true feelings, it's hard to take them back. Even if they are with someone else, their heart will only hold the one they deeply love. Naturally, this will harm the innocent and eventually spark numerous affairs of love and hatred.

And you, Ms. Yang, would be the prime culprit causing all this because of your selfishness and hypocrisy, your self-righteousness, leading so many to consecrate their feelings with blood, with their lives or in lonesome existence. Don't you think you're being too cruel and heartless?"

That's all I have to say. I hope Ms. Yang will give this some thought, so as not to harm yourself or others in the end. Please take care, Ms. Yang. I shall take my leave!" Having said that, he turned and left.

The Imperial Uncle once said he would only have the Imperial Aunty as his wife in his lifetime, yet before long, he took several other women as concubines.

It was only after the Imperial Aunty left resolutely that the Imperial Uncle realized his deep-rooted love for her, unable to fill his heart with any other woman, refusing to step half a foot into the concubines' chambers again, desperately seeking the Imperial Aunty like a madman.

Out of love turned to hatred, the concubines not only poisoned the Imperial Uncle but also stirred up strife, ultimately sparking a bloody and brutal catastrophe.

His reminder to Ms. Yang wasn't to secure Prince Chen's happiness; it was for Ms. Yang's own good.

If Emperor Dongchu came to know that his most beloved son had fallen for Ms. Yang, who initially did not reject him or avoid him, but later disregarded him entirely, then it's certain Emperor Dongchu would have Ms. Yang killed, spelling disaster for the Yang family, for the dignity of the royal family is not to be violated.

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