A New Beginning.

Xie Ming slowly opened her eyes, Jin Liwei's anxious face coming into focus. He was calling her name, worry etched across his features.

"Are you okay?" he asked, his voice filled with concern. "Did you have a bad dream? Are you feeling uncomfortable anywhere?"

Xie Ming fluttered her eyes, still dazed. She took in Jin Liwei's worried expression, feeling a wave of gratitude wash over her. If not for his voice, she might have been lost in that frightening darkness forever.

With trembling, cold hands, she reached out to touch his face. "Liwei," she called softly, her voice raspy from dehydration.

Jin Liwei shivered at her touch, surprised to hear his name spoken so gently from her lips. It was the first time she had addressed him this way, with such a loving expression in her eyes.

Overwhelmed by her vulnerable state, Jin Liwei suddenly pulled her into his embrace. After a moment of stunned silence, Xie Ming wrapped her arms around his waist, accepting the reality of her situation.

'I am not the Empress of the Ji Dynasty anymore,' she thought to herself. 'I am Xie Ming, the wife of Jin Liwei. It's time I accept this unbelievable reality and move forward with this new identity.'

Jin Liwei's lips curled into a smile as he held her, gently patting her back in reassurance. After their conversation downstairs and their first shared kiss, he felt closer to her than ever before. He realized he had misunderstood her all this time and now wanted to know her better, to give their seemingly hopeless marriage another chance.

After a while, Xie Ming pulled back and looked at him hesitantly. "Liwei, I... I got my memories back."

Jin Liwei was stunned but remained silent, waiting for her to continue.

"I know we decided on divorce after my memories returned," she began, but Jin Liwei interrupted her.

"Is that what you want?" he asked softly, concern and a hint of fear in his voice.

Xie Ming looked at him with gentle, hesitant eyes. "No, I don't want that," she said softly, her head bowed. "I know we decided on it before, but I'm not the same Xie Ming anymore. People change, especially after facing life and death situations. I don't see you in the same light either."

She took a deep breath before continuing, "Liwei, I want to start anew. I want to give our broken relationship a chance. Before we consider divorce, I want us to give our best efforts to fix this. Do you feel the same?"

Jin Liwei remained silent, his intense gaze fixed on her. Xie Ming, growing worried by his lack of response, opened her mouth to speak again, "Liwei, why—"

Before she could finish, Jin Liwei leaned in and sealed her lips with a gentle kiss. Xie Ming's eyes widened in surprise, taking in his long eyelashes from this close proximity. Her whole body felt like it was on fire.

Jin Liwei briefly paused, his lips still touching hers. "You can close your eyes," he whispered softly. "It's okay to relax."

Xie Ming blinked and obliged, wrapping her arms around his neck to pull him closer. She decided to let go of all her uncomfortable feelings and embrace this new reality.

After a while, Jin Liwei broke the kiss and looked into her eyes. "I think that answers your question," he said with a gentle smile.

Seeing her slightly confused expression, he chuckled softly and brushed a strand of hair from her forehead. "Ming, I feel the same way. I want to give us a real chance too."

He continued, his voice soft but sincere, "The past is behind us now. I know I wasn't the best husband before, and I'm sorry for that. But since you woke up from the coma, I've started to see a different side of you, and it's made me feel things I've never felt before. I don't know if it's love yet, but it's something I want to explore. With you."

As Xie Ming listened to his words, a smile spread across her face. 'It really is a new start,' she thought to herself.

Jin Liwei gently caressed her cheek, his eyes filled with a warmth she had never seen before. "Let's take it one day at a time, Ming. We have a lot to learn about each other, a lot to overcome. But I'm willing to try if you are."

Xie Ming nodded, feeling a mix of excitement and nervousness. "I am," she whispered. "Thank you for giving us this chance, Liwei."

As the first light of dawn began to filter through the curtains, Jin Liwei and Xie Ming sat together, hands intertwined, ready to face whatever challenges their new beginning might bring. The room that had earlier been filled with tension and worry now held a promise of hope and a future neither of them had dared to imagine before.