Chapter 3: Preposterous

"Crown Prince Brother, if there's nothing else, I'll take my leave."

Sang Zhi didn't notice the man's gaze. She only wanted to flee for her life.

She hastily curtsied to Xiao Yan, then turned and bolted out of the Imperial Garden without looking back.

Morning mist curled upward, blurring the man's handsome, cold features.

Watching that lively figure gradually vanish from his sight, Xiao Yan suddenly recalled the first time he'd seen her. She had been so wretched and helpless—knocked down by royal children her own age, not even daring to talk back.

She just stood there with her head hanging blankly, utterly pitiful.

Xiao Yan rubbed the faded red string on his wrist, a doting smile tugging at his lips.

Good thing she'd gotten a bit craftier now. No one but him could bully her anymore.

Still too soft, though. Too timid. Tease her just a little and she'd tremble like crazy.

And when she cried, she was like a little water doll.

He really wanted to pin her to the bed and ruthlessly... her.

Xiao Yan withdrew his gaze and spoke in a flat tone to Li Yu, who had been standing outside the rockery with his back to them the entire time:

"Tell them the person has been found."

*

Sang Zhi stumbled as she ran out of the Imperial Garden.

The palace paths in the early morning were long and silent.

Only the wind chimes hanging beneath the palace walls on either side occasionally stirred in the breeze, letting out faint, tinkling sounds.

Sang Zhi sprinted the whole way back to her Yueli Palace.

When she crossed the threshold, she misstepped, her body tilting sideways as she fell to the ground.

Not far away, the round-faced little maid Doubao, who had been waiting for ages, heard the commotion and immediately looked toward the hall door.

On the open ground before the hall door sat a familiar figure.

It was clearly her young mistress.

"Princess Consort!"

Doubao dashed over to Sang Zhi and quickly squatted down. "This servant will help you up."

She supported Sang Zhi back into the bedchamber and let her sit on the edge of the bed.

"Quick, quick, quick, help me bathe."

After being interrogated by Xiao Yan just now, she'd been so scared her back was soaked through.

Her clothes had been rumpled by him until they looked old and worn. She needed to change right away.

Xiao Yan was far too smart. From now on, she'd have to take detours. She absolutely couldn't run into him.

Hearing this, Doubao raised her eyes to look at her mistress.

Sang Zhi's cheeks glowed with a dewy pink, delicate and enchanting. Those usual watery almond eyes filled with smiles were now brimming with panic and confusion.

Last night, before the Little Princess Consort headed to the Eastern Palace, she'd specifically instructed Doubao to just wait here at Yueli Palace.

Doubao didn't say it out loud, but her heart ached fiercely.

Her young Princess Consort might have already come of age, but her mind was pure, playful, and naive.

If she hadn't overheard people in the palace yesterday saying His Majesty intended to marry her off to the Northern Border chieftain during the Longevity Festival three days from now...

How would the Princess Consort ever have taken the initiative to go offer herself to the Crown Prince?

"Princess Consort, did it work?"

Sang Zhi shook her head and whispered:

"Doubao, I don't want to do it anymore."

The little maid asked in confusion, "But didn't Princess Consort always want to be the Crown Princess? Why are you..."

Sang Zhi puffed out her cheeks and made up an excuse on the spot: "He can't get it up!"

Doubao's eyes instantly went wide as saucers.

No way?

The Crown Prince looked majestic as a dragon, with those bulging chest muscles, and he was actually a silver-tipped spear made of tin?

"Anyway, I'm just not going to provoke him anymore."

Sang Zhi buried her face in the soft blankets and let out a huge sigh. Her own little bed was still the most comfortable.

But after the marriage alliance, she probably wouldn't get to sleep in such a cozy nest anymore.

Thinking of this, Sang Zhi felt so wronged she wanted to bawl.

Other transmigrators got harems and lived it up in drunken bliss. Not only did she awaken late after crossing over...

She got kissed and bitten, and now she had to marry some old man.

So unfair!

Sang Zhi angrily gnawed at the brocade quilt when she suddenly heard a crisp, familiar female voice from outside the door:

"Zhi Zhi, are you in there?"

It was Mu Yao's voice.

Mu Yao, a princess of the Chu Kingdom.

Da Sheng was powerful. Whenever war broke out on the borders, neighboring countries would send hostages over to show their loyalty.

Every time Mu Yao came, she stayed with Sang Zhi at Yueli Palace.

The two were extremely close.

Sang Zhi suddenly remembered that yesterday, she and Mu Yao had agreed to go together to Fengming Palace to pay respects to the Empress.

The Empress!

Sang Zhi's heart beat wildly several times.

In the original plot, after the Empress was framed by "Sang Zhi," she still pleaded for her.

Could she go beg the Empress not to make her take Xiao Wanzhu's place in the marriage alliance?

With that thought, Sang Zhi hurriedly washed up. After changing her clothes, she didn't even check the mirror before running out.

The moment she crossed the threshold, a massive bear hug nearly knocked her off her feet.

"Zhi Zhi!"

"A-Yao, sorry for the wait."

Sang Zhi's eyes curved into crescents. She took Mu Yao's hand, and the two walked out together.

But the instant they stepped out of the hall and saw that tall, straight figure standing outside, the dimples that had just appeared on Sang Zhi's face vanished.

Fuck, why did she keep running into this dog of a Crown Prince?

Her chest was still swollen and hurting!

Yueli Palace was located in the western part of the imperial palace. Anyone going from the Eastern Palace to Fengming Palace or Taiji Hall would pass by it.

The man stood before the hall doors wearing a black round-collared robe that accentuated his broad shoulders, narrow waist, and tall frame.

The morning light outlined his deep, distinct profile. Between his brows lingered the bearing of mountains and rivers. His face was handsome, carrying a natural emperor's pressure.

Mu Yao stopped at the doorway first, crouching halfway in a respectful greeting:

"Greetings, Your Highness."

Sang Zhi followed with a bow, keeping her head down, wishing she could shrink into a ball.

Xiao Yan's gaze landed on Mu Yao's hand tightly holding Sang Zhi's. A trace of chill instantly gathered in his eyes.

"Zhi Zhi, come here."

Sang Zhi wanted to pretend she hadn't heard, but Mu Yao, this clueless girl, kept pushing her forward.

In the imperial palace, the person everyone feared most wasn't the Emperor—it was the heir apparent. As a hostage from a neighboring country, Mu Yao was no exception.

Xiao Yan had once led troops to beat the Chu Kingdom into total submission, his methods violent and ruthless.

Only silly Zhi Zhi chased after Xiao Yan all day calling him "Brother."

Mu Yao pushed her in front of the Crown Prince, then retreated a few steps to give the two space to talk.

Sang Zhi steeled herself, stopped before Xiao Yan, and greeted him: "Crown Prince Brother."

She had changed her clothes.

The pink ruqun was swapped for a blue-green floral skirt. A jade-colored sash outlined her slender waist. Her pale white little face looked meticulously carved, her lips pink and rosy.

Utterly seductive yet utterly pure. Beautiful beyond compare.

Xiao Yan was like a beast that had tasted meat and caught the scent again, the flames of desire below faintly ignited.

His Adam's apple bobbed, his voice turning a shade hoarser: "Have you taken your medicine today?"

Sang Zhi froze, not expecting him to ask that.

She'd been frail since childhood, suffering from a cold-heart condition, needing daily medicine to build her constitution.

Sang Zhi suspected that maybe it was because she wasn't originally from this world that she'd developed such a strange illness.

But why was Xiao Yan asking about this out of nowhere?

Was he still suspicious of her?

But when it came to matters concerning her health, Sang Zhi didn't want to lie.

Sang Zhi honestly shook her head. "I forgot to drink it just now."

The man glanced lightly to the side. Li Yu instantly understood and ordered the nearby servants to quickly prepare the Princess Consort's medicine.

The early summer breeze was somewhat cool, carrying the scent of gardenias as it brushed past, clearing Sang Zhi's head a little.

"Heading to Fengming Palace?"

"Yes, Brother."

She answered obediently, doing her best to play the role of a good little sister in front of Xiao Yan.

Unexpectedly, the next moment, Xiao Yan's slender fingers reached out, barely brushing against Sang Zhi's cheek.

Sang Zhi stiffened, suppressing the urge to dodge backward.

In the past, when she'd intentionally tried to use Xiao Yan as her backing in the palace, she used to hover around him constantly.

She was long accustomed to intimate gestures like this between them.

Xiao Yan was too smart. If she showed even half a hint of abnormality, he'd definitely suspect something.

Fortunately, Xiao Yan merely tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. The movement was natural, carrying a brotherly sort of affection.

"I'll go with you."

His tone was excessively soft.

By the time Sang Zhi looked up, Xiao Yan had already started walking ahead of her.

Sang Zhi followed behind him, deliberately falling a few steps back to walk alongside Mu Yao.

Mu Yao stared at that black-clad figure ahead and quietly tugged at Sang Zhi's sleeve:

"Zhi Zhi, did you hear? Last night His Highness favored a woman, and the whole palace is searching for who it was."

"Do you think that person might be hiding in Yueli Palace?"