Nianzu dressed in a white Hanfu dress and left to meet Chuntao. It was late evening. Nianzu promised Chuntao that he would meet her in the morning, but it got delayed. After walking for half an hour, he arrived at the Wang Residence. He walked in and went straight to the chamber where he had left Chuntao.
He found her sitting around the floor table. "Did you not take a rest?" She heard the voice of Nianzu and stood up immediately.
"I was not tired," Chuntao answered. She saw the troubled expression on Nianzu's face. She walked to him and asked, "Are you okay? Has everything gone well? You look a little troubled." She was anxious when Nianzu did not reply to her for a few seconds.
"Shall we go out? For a walk?" Nianzu asked her..
"Yes," she passed him a tiny smile. Nianzu grasped her hand, and the two left Wang's Residence. The two continued to walk while a few upper-classmen saw them. Chuntao lowered her eyes, tried to hide her face so that she could prevent herself from capturing their glances. At the same time, she pulled her hand back when Nianzu did not let it go. "Are you ashamed to hold my hand in the open?" Suddenly Nianzu queried her and looked at her.
"No," she replied. "I thought those-"
"That should not be a worry, Chun. Let them see us. I have not done any crime," Nianzu asserted. Chuntao realized that something big had happened in the Palace that was why Nianzu looked troubled, though he had not shared it with her. She wondered if the Emperor punished Nianzu when her attention went to his steps. He was walking slowly as if he got hurt.
Chuntao halted at her place, and so did Nianzu. "What happened? Are you tired? Shall I carry you on my back?" Nianzu asked her.
"I am good," replied Chuntao.
"It's late evening. Shall we go to your house?" Nianzu queried her.
Chuntao nodded her head, and the two went to her house. Chuntao opened the lock on the door and told Nianzu to come inside. She then quickly opened the door of the first room in the house. "Let me light a candle," Chuntao said and told him to stay at his place. She lit a candle which illuminated the small room. Placing it on the table, she told Nianzu to come inside.
Nianzu removed his shoes and stepped inside. Chuntao closed the door behind him and put a cushion near the table. "Please sit on it," Chuntao affirmed, gesturing towards the cushion on the floor. "Ahh, it's a little old." She scratched her head.
"It's good," Nianzu said and sat on it. "Did you make that?" He asked.
"Yes. I can do the craftwork," Chuntao replied and sat beside him on another cushion.
"Is it your room?" Nianzu asked her as he looked around.
"Yes. It is quite small, right?" Chuntao muttered.
"It is comfortable and warm," Nianzu answered. Silence again surrounded them. Chuntao fidgeted her fingers while taking glances at Nianzu. "Why is he not saying anything? What is bothering him?" Chuntao thought.
"I will leave the Palace tomorrow," Nianzu finally informed her. Chuntao was bewildered to hear that. Nianzu peered into her eyes.
"Why? Is it because of me?" Chuntao inquired from him as her eyes turned misty. "You should not do this. Your family is there," Chuntao said.
"Family?" Nianzu chuckled. "I have to leave Luoyang, and also I will no longer be identified as a Prince from tomorrow," Nianzu told her. "I will not have anything with me from tomorrow except you. So, do you want to hold my hand even after this?" Nianzu waited for Chuntao's reply. "I know as a woman you want a man who will have a stable income while with me, it's the opposite. You can step back if you want to. I will not complain," Nianzu asserted and smiled at her.
Chuntao could feel how broken Nianzu was! Behind that smile, those things had hidden which he did not reveal to her. "I want a man who can cherish me, not a man with a stable income. I will hold your hand till my last breath," Chuntao said and grasped his one hand.
"You love this place. You have to leave it all behind to live with me. You can never enter Luoyang once we leave this place. It is the order of my father," Nianzu pronounced.
"The memories of them are in my heart. I will take away their memorable things with me. But if you think I will leave you in the middle, then you are wrong. You hold me in my worst time, and I will hold you throughout my life," Chuntao asserted.
Nianzu's worries ended a little upon hearing her. It was what he liked about her. Even if he told her a few things, she understood him. Unlike his family, who always argued with him for every decision he made. They gave him numerous reasons not to go with this relationship instead of understanding him. Though, Sheng Li did understand him. Thanks to him, Nianzu was able to make this decision today, but it cost him. He would lose his relationship with everyone in the Palace. It had hurt him somewhere.
She caressed his hand and said, "You can lean on me. If you want to cry, then cry but do not let it remain inside your heart."
"I made a mistake as I compared my father with the late Empress Wei. Also, I did not converse with Princess Zhu Lin about my feelings for you, so I hurt her. These two things I regretted the most. Other than this, I do not regret anything. A caged bird always wants to be free despite the dangers that it would face outside. I am that caged bird. Finally, I can live the life as Nianzu only... not as the son of a concubine or a Prince or an Empress's son." Nianzu heaved a sigh of relief. "Thank you for being with me in this tough time, Chun." He leaned forward and planted a kiss on her forehead.