Chapter 2685 — A Reunion After Long Separation
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 2
"It's been a long time..."
"It's been a long time..."
Silence hung between them for a moment. Neither had expected the other to speak at the same instant, and to say the very same words—a coincidence that left them both taken aback.
Yet once those words were out, neither truly knew what to say next. The situation now was different from any ordinary meeting: Wei Zhao had just neutralized the poison in Yuning, and Yuning had been abducted here by Zhao Qibing. Wei Zhao had no idea what topic to broach...
After some thought, Wei Zhao could only manage a polite "Are you all right..."
"Are you all right..." To Wei Zhao's surprise, Yuning had asked the very same question at the very same moment. That struck him as rather funny—and Yuning naturally felt the same. She had meant to ease the awkwardness between them, but never expected Wei Zhao to say the identical words along with her.
Even so, it did serve to lighten the mood between them, and the two could not help but exchange a smile...
"Mm, I'm well... and not so well either..." Yuning had truly never imagined she would see Wei Zhao again under such circumstances. She had thought it would be hard to ever meet him again, yet in her most desperate hour, there he was once more...
Just as before, on that night she had been most afraid, Wei Zhao had given her warmth and carried her safely through a Valentine's Day she could remember without fear...
Moved by her longing for Wei Zhao and her nostalgia for the past, Yuning found herself talking without restraint, pouring out to him the yearning she had held for so long...
She thought especially of the domineering words Wei Zhao had flung at Zhao Qibing the moment he entered, and a secret delight welled up in her. It seemed Wei Zhao still cared for her—his feelings had never changed. So after that brief silence, everything Yuning had bottled up all these years came surging out like water through an opened floodgate...
"Wei Zhao, do you know? Do you know how much I've missed you all these years... When I first heard from my brother Yang that you had reappeared, do you know how thrilled I was... How I wanted to run to you and see you then..." Yuning began recounting her longing for Wei Zhao, and once the gate was open, it was hard to shut again. "Later, I kept track of news of you through my brother. When I learned you were all going to the Ice Palace for the trial, do you know how happy and how worried I was? My brother said you had lost all your strength, and I was like a headless fly, trying to get my hands on some rare treasures from my family for you. But the very next day, my brother told me you had recovered your strength—oh, how overjoyed I was! You defeated Zhang Naipao and Feng Nitian, two experts from the ancient planes. I was glad for your strength, and yet afraid their backers would make trouble for you. But from the look of things, they haven't—which sets my heart at ease... Only, when I learned you went to the Ice Palace trial for your girlfriend's sake, I felt a pang of sorrow and yet was glad for her. For her, you would brave such peril... Do you know how I envied and resented it in all the days that followed? But today, I don't envy her anymore, because when I was in danger, you came too—which means that in your heart, I am just as important as she is..."
Yuning came from the hidden Yu family, where the notion of one husband to one wife was not held very clearly. She had grown up in a household of multiple wives and concubines, so she saw no conflict between Wei Zhao having a girlfriend and her own place in his heart. She was simply happy that Wei Zhao still remembered her.
"Heh..." Wei Zhao gave a small laugh. "Your place in my heart is actually rather special. I can't say it's more important than Xiaoxiao's, but it is one of a kind."