A Kind of Protection

But she had a strange certainty in her heart that if those things really happened to her, her choice would be exactly the same as that of the Ju Zi in the diary.

Xiao Xiao finished her breakfast in the cafeteria and just stepped out of the cafeteria when she saw the Ju Zi. Her chopsticks paused for a moment.

She didn't have any particular feelings about Ju Zi; when Ju Zi were mentioned in her diary before, she just listened casually.

But after Lin Ye wrote out the complete ending for Ju Zi, Xiao Xiao realized that this woman was not simple.

She went through so much, did so many ruthless things, yet in the end she was still able to live peacefully and raise her son to adulthood.

Xiao Xiao didn't know if this was a good ending. She only knew that if it were her, being suppressed by a god personally, she probably wouldn't have been able to withstand it, but Ju Zi did.

Wang Dong'er was flipping through her textbook in the classroom, making a few marks in the blank spaces of her notebook as she read the contents of her diary.

After reading about Ju Zi's final fate, she didn't have many emotions, only that this woman's resilience was stronger than she had imagined.

Being able to withstand such suppression from Tang San is something not everyone can do.

Wang Dong'er's dislike for Tang San has now reached a very stable level. Whenever she sees Tang San interfering in other people's lives, her coldness intensifies.

Ju Zi's fate was forcibly rewritten by Tang San, and like her, she was a pawn on the chessboard. However, Ju Zi chose to continue playing her own game on the chessboard, while Wang Dong'er chose to find a way to overturn the game.

The paths may differ, but the origin is the same.

Wang Dong'er put down her pen and glanced out the window.

The sun was shining brightly, and students were Playground on the playground, their steps perfectly synchronized.

She looked away and continued reading her textbook. She couldn't control the past, but she had to plan for the future herself.

After reading the end of the diary, Ma Xiaotao snorted through her nose.

She didn't have a good impression of Ju Zi, but her dislike for Tang San clearly prevailed.

Tang San even interfered in the family affairs of a mere mortal empress dowager, going so far as to meddle in the affairs of changing the country's name. His reach was far too far.

Ma Xiaotao closed the diary, jumped out of bed, put on her shoes, and prepared to go out for training.

She didn't want to think about these things anymore; the more she thought about them, the more frustrated she felt.

Some people sit on Godhood, pointing and gesturing, while others on the ground have to be mindful of others' opinions even to breathe.

This world has never been fair.

What was it that allowed Ju Zi to ultimately sit peacefully in the position of Regent Empress Dowager and raise Xu Yunhan?

Some say it was luck, others say it was Tang San showing mercy, but upon closer examination, she didn't have either of those advantages.

What she truly relied on was a ruthlessness rarely seen in others; this ruthlessness wasn't innate, but rather forged through countless trials and tribulations.

When Ju Zi was young, she studied at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy. Back then, she was a girl who could smile at people and had dreams for the future.

What happened between her and Huo Yuhao later changed her into a different person step by step.

She endured all the hardships, grievances, exclusion, and scheming she suffered in the Imperial Family during those years.

She knew she had no powerful connections or backers; the only person she could rely on was herself.

So she learned to hide all her soft parts and only show her hardest side.

This process was very long, so long that she herself couldn't remember the exact day she became a different person.

Her feelings for Huo Yuhao were the only thing beneath that hard shell that hadn't been worn away.

But this relationship is also the most dangerous.

The more she loved Huo Yuhao, the less she could reveal that love.

Because once it's exposed, others will know where her weakness lies.

In the court of the Sun Moon Empire, having a weakness is fatal, so she could only suppress this feeling deep inside, not daring to touch it even herself.

Over time, her love for Huo Yuhao changed, transforming from a passionate affection into an obsession tinged with hatred.

She hated that he didn't understand her, hated that he didn't acknowledge her, hated that he stood out from her, forcing her to spend her whole life looking up at him.

This obsession reached its peak when she used underhanded means to get pregnant with Xu Yunhan.

She knew in her heart that Huo Yuhao wouldn't want the child, but she still did.

As mentioned before, her motivation for wanting this child was that she wanted to leave herself a connection with Huo Yuhao.

But that was only half the story; the other half was that she wanted Huo Yuhao to owe her.

She didn't necessarily want Huo Yuhao to acknowledge this son; she just wanted Huo Yuhao to know that there was a child in this world who carried his blood, and that the child's mother was her.

This matter will stay with Huo Yuhao for the rest of his life. Even if he doesn't acknowledge it, even if he pretends not to see it, he can't truly erase it from his life.

This was the only initiative that Ju Zi had managed to gain for herself.

Huo Yuhao later learned of Xu Yunhan's existence, and as expected, he did not acknowledge him.

What was he thinking? Naturally, he didn't acknowledge the child. However, let's look at this from Ju Zi's perspective.

Ju Zi didn't show much anger at Huo Yuhao's rejection; she only said that Yunhan was her child alone.

This statement sounds like an admission, but it actually represents an attitude that is even more ruthless than anger.

What she meant was, if you don't want to acknowledge it, then so be it. This child will be mine alone, and has nothing to do with you.

You can live your life in the Divine Realm, and I'll live my life in the empire. We'll be even.

With those words, Ju Zi completely pushed Huo Yuhao out of her world; this was the last bit of dignity she could maintain.

But even though she pushed him away, she hadn't truly severed all ties with him.

In the days that followed, she made no further demands of Huo Yuhao, nor did she ask Xu Yunhan to acknowledge him as her father.

She devoted all her energy to governing the empire and raising her son.

She did a great job, so much so that later historical records referred to Xu Yunhan as a great ruler of his time.

But in the quiet of the night, she probably would occasionally think of the person who had completely disappeared from her life.

She won't regret her choice; she'll just feel a little empty.

This void is not one that Huo Yuhao can fill; it's one that she herself can never fill in her entire life.

Huo Yuhao's reaction was very cold after learning that Xu Yunhan was his son.

He didn't go to Ju Zi to ask for Xu Yunhan back, didn't ask how Xu Yunhan was doing, and didn't even publicly acknowledge the matter.

He continued to be the God of Emotions, the Spirit Ice Douluo, in his position, as if the child had never existed in his life.

This kind of indifference has been criticized before, so I won't repeat it here.

One point worth adding is that Huo Yuhao's indifference does not mean that he is truly indifferent.

One reason he didn't acknowledge Xu Yunhan was that he didn't want the child to get involved in the Divine Realm's affairs.