A Phoenix With No Wings

21- Another Chance

They are finally together.. hehehe I've waited for so long :))

"I must have made you suffer.." the sadness in his voice really disturbs the empress, " I thought this is the best way to protect you, but I just make it harder for you." He looks deeply at her eyes. "Yu-er I'm so sorry."

She was his home, he was her happiness. The empress remembers the quote on the painting he gave her back then, maybe 7 years ago. She starts tearing up, she now remembered the promise he makes her say, the one that she doesn't understand at the time.

(Flashback)

"Now, do you want to promise Gege something?"

"Huh?"

"Please wait for me." He looks straight to her eyes. "Our life as the parents of the nation will start in a blink of an eye, and it's no flowery path."

"..."

"Lu Yu, it may take a year, two years, or even five years. But trust Gege, I know what I'm doing." The emperor is now very serious.

"Lu Yu doesn't understand.. what does Gege mean?"

"Hahaha.. you don't need to think about it. Just remember that Gege will always love you, even when you thought Gege have totally forgotten about you." The emperor pinch her cheeks, smiling.

(Flashback ends)

The empress sobs, how stupid of her. All this time she only thinks about herself. She doesn't remember, it is the reason of her sadness.

The emperor quickly wipes her tears. "I'm so sorry to make you went through that."

"No.. it was my fault. I.." the empress now understands, he really is her happiness. And she.. she is his home, but she stupidly closed the door because her own misunderstanding, leaving him alone with all of the burden, making him has nowhere he can calls home, nowhere to takes shelter. "The one that needs to apologise is me."

"Yu-er, let's stop apologising. Give me another chance, this time I will not disappoint you." The emperor says with all seriousness.

The empress nods her head and hugs him tightly.

The emperor sighs, "Now I understand why you want to live a peaceful life in San Mountains."

"Huh..?"

"Yu-er, let's live there when we retire.." he hold her hand.

"Retire? Can we retire?" The empress is confused, she never heard of that.

"Technically we can, it's just no one has ever done it before."

"Why?"

"Because.. when an emperor retires, he will lose power, followers and impact, literally everything that he ever own."

"Then why do you want to do it?"

"I don't mind it, it's better than losing you."

Is he really dare to lose everything for her? Is she that important for him?

"Yu-er, I'm building a house near the San Mountains, next to He River, by the time the sun rises tomorrow it must be done already."