Consort of a Thousand Faces

She really wanted to talk to him as his Imperial Elder Sister, but could only act as an outsider.

 

Ning Lianchen looked at her eyes and suddenly saw his Imperial Elder Sister in her. That gaze is very similar to hers.

 

He felt a lump in his throat, but still managed to quietly say, “This Emperor will forgive you. This Emperor has invited Prince Hao to stay in the imperial palace and will treat him well. As you serve Prince Hao, we won’t slight you either. Besides, you haven’t done anything unforgivable. This Emperor will allow you to walk around the imperial palace as you wish, so you don’t need to cautiously hide.”

 

Ning Lianchen didn’t think before saying the last sentence. He even thought that it would be good if she could frequently visit his repose palace...

 

“Thank you, Your Majesty.” Su Xi-er paid her respects to Ning Lianchen with a joyful expression. “It is late, Your Majesty should rest properly.”

 

“Alright, you may go.”

 

Yun Ruofeng narrowed his eyes slightly as he watched Su Xi-er’s departing figure. It was only after she was out of sight did he turn back to Ning Lianchen. “I hope Your Majesty will think about what I just said properly. This Prince will be taking my leave. Please rest early, Your Majesty.”

 

“This Emperor knows. Withdraw.” After Ning Lianchen finished talking, he turned around and walked inside the repose palace, completely ignoring Yun Ruofeng’s expression.

 

Yun Ruofeng watched him, but didn’t say anything else before turning around to leave.

 

~~~

 

On the other side of the imperial palace, inside the repose palace that had been set up for guests, Pei Qianhao quietly sat inside Su Xi-er’s room. His hand quietly rapped against the table as he sat there in close to complete darkness, with only a sliver of moonlight to illuminate the room.

 

The most prominent attraction in the room was his pair of onyx eyes that somehow shone in the darkness. He was waiting for someone. 

 

To be exact, he was waiting for an audacious woman.

 

When the sound of soft footsteps could be heard through the door, Pei Qianhao stopped knocking his hand on the table and turned his eyes towards the entrance of the room.

 

Shortly after, the door creaked open, and the silhouette a familiar woman appeared in the room.

 

When Su Xi-er saw the figure in her room, she stopped in her tracks, but wasn’t afraid. Instead, she respectfully bowed and softly said, “This servant pays her respects to Prince Hao.”

 

Pei Qianhao waved his hand and signalled for her to get up. He purposely asked, “Where did you go?”

 

“Just strolling around casually. Prince Hao, you should go back to your room to rest.”

 

“If you don’t tell this Prince the truth, then this Prince will stay here.” Pei Qianhao’s tone was tough, forcibly ignoring the fact that he sounded like a disgruntled thug.

 

Su Xi-er was shocked by Pei Qianhao’s shamelessness, but her expression soon returned to normal. “Prince Hao, this is the bedroom of a woman, how can you stay here? How are you different from an unhappy woman who makes a scene[1]?”

 

“Making a scene?” Pei Qianhao thought it was funny and couldn’t help but chuckle. He had originally been angry, but faced with such a statement, he couldn’t help but laugh.

He stood up from his chair, walked towards Su Xi-er, and finally stopped three metres away from her. “This Prince will stay here. You won’t be able to drive me away, and don’t think about leaving by yourself. Tell me, did you visit the little Emperor of Nanzhao?”

 

Su Xi-er was annoyed to hear the words ‘little Emperor’. She could tell that Pei Qianhao’s words were full of contempt. I won’t allow anyone to look down on Lianchen.

 

“He isn’t little anymore.” Su Xi-er fierce stared at him, as if she would happily argue with him if he said another bad thing about Ning Lianchen.

This made Pei Qianhao extremely unhappy. Ning Lianchen is about sixteen years old and has a handsome appearance, while Su Xi-er is fifteen. Do these two like each other?

1. To be more exact, ‘making a scene’ here directly translates to the three methods of making a scene, often when women try to achieve a certain goal. The three ways are: crying, making noise, and threatening to hang oneself