The daughter of the emperor was reborn and was spoiled by the sickly prince.

Liao Qinglan had never heard him mention these past events.

In her previous life, she thought that all of Gu Mingzhao’s paranoia and cruelty were due to the suffering he endured in the Liao Mansion.

But now, she realized that she didn't know him well enough.

But this story is not logically correct.

She couldn't help but ask the question in her mind: "According to what you said, you changed your name and wandered around without even a household registration. How did you get into Liao Mansion School without even a household registration?"

Gu Mingzhao kneaded her fingers casually, and seemed to find it a bit boring. Finally, he let her go and said nonchalantly: "That's another story."

Gu Mingzhao sat at the table and poured himself a cup of tea.

He paused and continued to narrate his experience: "After leaving that devil's cave, I came to Qingzhou, where scholars and writers gathered. Because of my outstanding appearance and my ability to recite poems and paint, I soon became famous among the Qingzhou scholars."

Liao Qinglan nodded, thinking that this was a matter of course.

People like him will never be buried.

"Later, the daughter of the prefect came to me, saying that she admired my talent and was willing to help me take the imperial examination. She would marry me if I passed the exam." He looked at Liao Qinglan tenderly, as if he saw his distant sweetheart through her. "She is also like you, a daughter of a rich family, gentle and dignified."

Recalling that time, Gu Mingzhao's tone softened, as if he was about to tell a passionate love story.

"During that time, I really had an easy life. She was very kind to me. Not only did she give me a place to stay, she also helped me solve my household registration problem, so I didn't have to hide like a rat."

When Liao Qinglan heard this, she felt relieved.

She thought, fortunately Gu Mingzhao’s past was not all darkness and suffering, at least there was a hint of warmth.

However, after he became emperor in his previous life, there was never such a woman by his side.

Could it be that something unexpected happened later that caused his white moonlight to pass away unexpectedly?

Liao Qinglan asked: "How is she now? Is she still waiting for you?"

Gu Mingzhao raised his eyebrows and laughed when he heard her words: "Miss, you really are... How can you think that someone like her would really want to be with me?"

"What does this mean?" His tone suddenly changed, and Liao Qinglan felt that her brain could hardly react.

"Given my past experiences, how could I trust others so easily?" He looked at Liao Qinglan as if he was looking at a clear and stupid fool.

"I overheard her conversation with her best friend. In her eyes, I was just a homeless wanderer who was not worthy of being with her. She was attracted by my fame in Qingzhou. All she did was to enjoy the feeling of conquering me and making the most famous talent in Qingzhou her lover."

All of this was beyond Liao Qinglan's understanding. She asked foolishly, "So you left after you knew the truth?"

Gu Mingzhao shook his head, thinking that this young lady was really cute in her stupidity, and asked in return: "Why should I leave? There is someone who can solve all my worries for me, what's wrong with that?"

His eyes suddenly became soft, like stars in the dark night, emitting a dim temptation.

He leaned forward slightly, moving a little closer to Liao Qinglan unnoticeably, and his glances seemed to be able to captivate people.

Liao Qinglan was involuntarily attracted by his eyes, as if she was pulled by an invisible force. Her heartbeat began to accelerate and her cheeks flushed slightly.

Gu Mingzhao looked at her reaction and laughed mockingly, with sarcasm and contempt in his eyes, as if he was laughing at her for being so easily hooked.

He raised his chin slightly, and said with disdain: "Ms. Liao has forgotten so quickly what I learned in the past seven years. She hasn't even learned the basics of my tricks."

"She wanted me to surrender, but she didn't know that she was the prey. I didn't do anything, but she was already attracted to me and wanted to get married to me."

"The more I was ambiguous, the more she worried about losing me. She even drugged me and wanted to make things a done deal."

He shook his head gently. "How could I let her succeed? I have seen too many such clumsy tricks in the past seven years. I gave the medicine to her guards and led the prefect over to catch me. I also used this as a threat to make the prefect send me to Liao's academy."

Liao Qinglan was dumbfounded.

She simply could not imagine that Gu Mingzhao would use such means to deal with a woman who loved him deeply.

She was so shocked that she couldn't be more shocked. At the same time, a chill crept into her heart.

"You...how could you treat her like this?" Liao Qinglan asked in a trembling voice.

"What happened to me? She prepared the medicine herself, I just didn't take the bait, how can it be my fault?"

Liao Qinglan was choked by him and was speechless.

This was the first time that Gu Mingzhao took off all his disguises in front of her.

It's clearly a top-notch exterior, but the inside is full of holes.

"Why are you telling me this all of a sudden?"

Gu Mingzhao looked at her and spoke slowly, with a warning in his words: "You are prettier than her, and smarter than her. I tell you this to make you understand that no matter what your purpose is, don't mess with me again."

Liao Qinglan felt a chill rising from her spine, and the hairs on her body stood up.

She finally understood that Gu Mingzhao had always treated her as the same person as the prefect's daughter, and believed that her kindness to him was all ulterior motive.

"I never thought of taking advantage of you or hurting you. If it bothers you, I apologize and I won't come here again." After saying that, Liao Qinglan got up and left.

When she was about to leave the room, she suddenly thought of something, stopped, turned around and said to Gu Mingzhao, "You have offended the prince of Zhengguo, it is not safe to go out, you can live in the prime minister's residence, I promised to take care of your health and find a martial arts master for you, and it all counts."

After saying that, she turned and left again.

Gu Mingzhao looked at her back as she disappeared at the door, feeling inexplicably depressed.

Obviously, this is the ending he wanted.

Today at the archery range, he felt Liao Qinglan's determined gaze and her trust in him.

For a moment, he almost wavered.

He wanted to believe that maybe Liao Qinglan was really different.

But he quickly came to his senses and suppressed the impulse with reason.

He could only harden his heart, uncover all his scars, push Liao Qinglan away, and protect himself from harm.

He smiled self-deprecatingly and touched his face.

I didn't expect that a person like him who has nothing could still be deceived by others with just this appearance.