Chapter 111 - A Bet
"I want to love you. This is my wish, " Ying Lili repeated her words and stepped closer to Sheng Li. "Will you let me love you?" She asked.
"No," Sheng Li plainly replied.
Ying Lili felt bad about getting rejected. "You read a few words from my mother's diary and come up with such a wish!" Sheng Li chuckled and then grasped Ying Lili's chin, making her look at him.
"If I will kiss you now then will you let me?" Sheng Li questioned.
Ying Lili was flustered by Sheng Li's question.
"Do you know what love means for a husband and a wife? I have seen how uncomfortable you get if I get close to you. You lost the bet against me so easily. You told me that you will never seek my love and you wish that no one will love me. But see, what happened? You soften your heart for me," Sheng Li pronounced, and a sly smile formed on his lips.
Ying Lili got nervous just by hearing the words of Sheng Li.
"Do you think I am that ideal man whom you should love? Do you think you can love me? If I will go against your wishes in the future, then there will be a rift between us. Do you think I will love you back?" Sheng Li asked many questions at once.
Ying Lili was confused among those questions. "But I can try." Those words come out of Ying Lili's mouth.
Sheng Li was amused by Ying Lili's response. "Is it some kind of experiment?" Sheng Li queried her.
"Huh?"
Sheng Li leaned towards Ying Lili's ear and whispered, "You are not sure about your feelings, Lili. Don't you think you shall first confirm your feelings before asking for such a wish?" He leaned back and peeked into her eyes.
Getting no response from Ying Lili, Sheng Li said, "Let's go back. The festival is over." He pulled his hand back from Ying Lili's chin and walked ahead.
Somewhere, he was feeling good for not getting any response from Ying Lili. Why? Because he did not want her to be his weakness. He enjoyed being around her but getting love from her would mean that he would break his promise to himself- 'not to love and not to let anyone love him.'
"Sheng Li." Ying Lili called out his name, which brought him out of his thoughts, and turned to her. Ying Lili with slow steps moved forward to him. She halted an inch away from him.
"I truly want to love you, and I am adamant about my decision. Feelings are there that's why I asked for such a wish. Is it wrong to love you? I do not think so! No person is ideal in this world. There are faults in every person, but it does not mean that we cannot love," Ying Lili finally confessed whatever she was feeling. There was a tiny smile on her lips, and her eyes were glistening.
Sheng Li placed his hand on Ying Lili's nape and another on her waist. Bringing her face closer to him and keeping in mind that her right foot would not be injured, Sheng Li said, "I stopped loving after I lost my mother. Do you think you can wholeheartedly love a man like me who will never love you back? Directly or indirectly, I was the reason for your father's demise and your unwanted marriage with me. Do you think I will never hurt you?"
Ying Lili peered into Sheng Li's eyes and nodded. "Yes, I can love you, and I believe there is nothing wrong with that. Judging you based on rumors was my mistake and now, because I get to know you, I want to be someone on whom you can lean anytime. You have never hurt me till now, except a few times in the beginning because of a few misunderstandings.
And I think you will also love me with the same passion as I will," Ying Lili answered every question of Sheng Li.
"You are wrong. I will not love you back. And, you do not need to force yourself and show fake feelings towards me. It is unnecessary to have a loving kind of relationship between us," Sheng Li pronounced.
"How do you know my feelings are fake when you also don't know what it feels like to be in love?!" Ying Lili queried with an astonished expression.
Sheng Li chuckled. "Even you do not know what it feels like to be in love!" Sheng Li proclaimed. He brought his lips closer to Ying Lili's. "Let's confirm your feelings," asserted Sheng Li as he captured her lips. He kissed her, which did not last for more than a few seconds. Pulling away, he looked for an answer.
"Did you feel anything? No! Do you know why?" Sheng Li questioned her.
Ying Lili refused. "Because you are pitying me. Don't throw yourself on me just because of my mother's words. That's why confirm your feelings towards me first instead of giving a philosophical lecture to me. But even if you confirm those feelings, I am afraid I will not love you back. So, better not to love me," Sheng Li affirmed.
Before Ying Lili could speak further, they heard the footsteps of someone coming, which stopped her from speaking. It was General Wang who was coming there.
"Your highness, why did you two come here? I left my eyes from you both and you were not there, which worried me out. It is dark here and it can be unsafe," Wang Hao concernedly stated.
"There was too much crowd, so we decided to come here," Sheng Li came up with an excuse.
"Let's go back. The Festival is almost over," Sheng Li stated and went towards Ying Lili. He took the hat from her hand and put it over her head. They then left that place. Soon they were out of the market.
Sheng Li and Ying Lili got into the palanquin. Ying Lili had taken off her hat and was looking out of the window when she saw a man giving a present to her wife. Sheng Li had removed the fake mustache and beard from his face. He noticed the smile on Ying Lili's face.
"What happened? What's the reason for your smile?" Sheng Li questioned.
"See that man gifted his wife a gift. Isn't that lovely? That's what we call love," Ying Lili stated.
Sheng Li put the curtain away from his side and looked out of the window. He pulled his head inside and said, "Do you want me to do that for you? Ahh, but we don't love each other!" Sheng Li was smirking at Ying Lili.
"I was ready to love you but you rejected me," Ying Lili yanked at Sheng Li.
"Don't tell me it was your first time getting rejected by a guy? Oops, I forgot. Your friend was telling me that you were never proposed to by anyone. So, I am the first guy to reject you," Sheng Li stated while teasing Ying Lili.
"You are in an illusion. Many marriage proposals came for me, almost fifty. You're the one who is not the choice of any woman," Ying Lili blurted out when she realized what she said and bit her tongue a bit.
"I mean you cannot be the choice of any woman except me," Ying Lili quickly corrected her words.
Sheng Li slightly smiled and leaned towards Ying Lili. "What if I become the choice of someone? Will you be jealous?" He raised his brow while asking the question. "I think you will not be jealous because you were the one who was telling me to get myself a concubine. Shall I do that?" Sheng Li muttered while observing expressions on Ying Lili's face.
"But you will not love her," Ying Lili stated.
"So, you will like it if I start sharing the bed with another woman than you," Sheng Li deduced.
"Go then. Who is stopping you?" Ying Lili was irked by Sheng Li. "You promised that you won't have any woman in your life. Liar," Ying Lili murmured.
"I can hear you," Sheng Li stated as he moved closer to Ying Lili.
"You are angry because I rejected you, right? I think you need to make more efforts to impress me. Ahh, I am loving this feeling. An-Ying Lili, the woman of high self-esteem proposed to Han Sheng Li at the Lantern Festival but ended up getting rejected," Sheng Li giggled saying this. He was enjoying how Ying Lili was reacting and glaring at him.
"Let's make a bet," Ying Lili pronounced. Sheng Li raised a brow when Ying Lili continued, " I will make you fall for me. You will start loving me like crazy and I will become your strength instead of weakness. So, do you accept the bet?"
"Lili, why are you still after that? I cannot see you losing one bet after the other," Sheng Li stated, suppressing his laughter.
"The Nation's Crown Prince is afraid," Ying Lili right away replied and grinned.