Nan Zhiyun spent almost the entire afternoon playing with the new kitten, accompanied by Yu Jingchen.
Watching the kitten curl up lazily in her arms, eyes closed, Nan Zhiyun felt a strange sense of contentment.
"Your Majesty, is it asleep?" Nan Zhiyun's voice softened considerably, whispered.
"Yun'er, go ask it. Ask it if it's asleep," Yu Jingchen had recently taken to teasing Nan Zhiyun.
Hearing his words, Nan Zhiyun was momentarily speechless... If it were asleep, could it answer her? Besides, it was a cat.
"Your Majesty, you ask it," Nan Zhiyun retorted.
"Yun'er is its kin, didn't I just say? Yun'er is so much like this little cat," Yu Jingchen said.
Nan Zhiyun: "..." Was he going to hold onto this?
"It's so cute," Nan Zhiyun gently poked the kitten with her finger (don't forget the cat's name is Bell...)
"Your subject actually lulled it to sleep." Nan Zhiyun looked amazed, a sense of pride suddenly blooming within her.
Yu Jingchen watched from the side with indulgence, his smile never fading. But as he watched, his gaze became distant. Watching Nan Zhiyun coax the cat, he couldn't help but wonder if she would be like this if they had a baby together.
Yu Jingchen remembered the child from his previous life... that child had been unexpected. He hadn't thought Nan Zhiyun would have a child, and he had been shocked when he first heard the news.
Truthfully, under those circumstances, that child was something he wouldn't have allowed. He didn't know how Nan Zhiyun had become pregnant; he had made preparations beforehand, and there shouldn't have been any exceptions.
If it had happened a little later, perhaps he could have known about the child in advance. But alas, he had personally ended that child's life. Even if the final outcome wouldn't have changed, at least it wouldn't have been in that manner.
Holding Nan Zhiyun, Yu Jingchen felt a pang of regret. Nan Zhiyun must have liked babies very much, right? Perhaps in her previous life, she had harbored such hopes.
In the last life, when that child was lost, what had she felt? Despair? He looked at Nan Zhiyun, still gently coaxing the cat in his arms, and the feeling of guilt deepened.
In this life... he didn't even know if such a day would come. Nan Zhiyun was afraid of such things, so... Yu Jingchen tightened his grip on Nan Zhiyun, vowing that no matter what, it would be his fault.
"Your Majesty?" Nan Zhiyun looked at him with some confusion, sensing the change in his grip.
"Hmm?" Yu Jingchen quickly composed himself and loosened his embrace slightly.
"What are you thinking about, Your Majesty?" Nan Zhiyun felt that Yu Jingchen seemed a little different today.
"Nothing. I was just jealous because Yun'er likes this cat so much. Is that okay?" Yu Jingchen tried to make his tone normal.
Nan Zhiyun's cheeks flushed. She opened her mouth to speak, but ultimately said nothing.
"Yun'er..." Yu Jingchen called her name, his words trailing off.
Nan Zhiyun looked at him blankly. Yu Jingchen gazed at her innocent, bewildered expression. The words he wanted to say caught in his throat. He was afraid of upsetting Nan Zhiyun and ruining her current good mood.
"It's nothing..." Yu Jingchen finally kept his silence. It's okay, take it slow. Things will get better. There's still a long time ahead.