Just then, as the two were staring at each other, with one set of eyes large, one small, a familiar voice called out from behind them, interrupting their showdown.

  "Xia Yuqing, come."

  "Mi-milady, His Majesty’s calling for you." Although clearly afraid of the nearby He Wenzhong, Xia Yuqing’s maid didn’t forget to remind her mistress.

  "Me?" Xia Yuqing looked in the direction of the voice, and there was the scoundrel, sitting on the seat of honor with a stormy expression, glaring at her. Seeing her looking towards him, he crooked his finger at her.

  "……" Bitch please. What are you, beckoning a dog?

  Mentally, Xia Yuqing stabbed his voodoo doll with tons of needles, while gliding towards Feng Tingye with a guileless smile on her face.

  "Let me introduce you. This is my third uncle, the border general—Prince Rui. Third Uncle, this is my new concubine, Consort Qing."

  Xia Yuqing had just reached Feng Tingye’s side and sat down when his introduction came. Her smile stiffened. She looked in the direction he’d indicated and saw a dashing-looking uncle of about forty. A lifetime outdoors had weathered the face that resembled Feng Tingye’s; and it had lost some of its aloofness. The many years of fighting had also marked his countenance with a harshness. He looked at Xia Yuqing a little shockedly.

  "Greetings, Your Highness."

  "Hahaha. I’ve heard that Your Majesty gained a lovely lady who’s both pretty, graceful, and talented. I thought the rumors were exaggerated at first, but now I see that all the praise for the princess of Xia is well-deserved."

  "I didn’t think that Uncle would be so well-informed in the borderlands, but yes, Qing’er has completely won my heart." Feng Tingye’s eyes narrowed. He reached out to hold Xia Yuqing’s cooling right hand, pretending he hadn’t heard Prince Rui’s insinuation. He raised his hand for a toast.

  Xia Yuqing might not be super smart, but she wasn’t dumb either. She’d detected the abnormally cold hostility in their short exchange. Looks like the relationship between this Prince Rui and Seme-sama isn’t as harmonious as it appears. It’s best I hold my peace right now.

  "Tch tch, as soon as Prince Rui comes back, he brings up Consort Qing’s status as the neighboring country’s unfavored princess. He must be drunk." Yan Ran squinted at the reflection of the moon in his

  "At least being pretty and graceful technically isn’t a lie. But as for being ’talented’.…… Heh, I’m afraid that’s not about the notorious retarded princess? Prince Rui’s not afraid of running his mouth tonight. He dares to publicly mock Our Majesty for being short-sighted." Shao Zitang snorted coldly. He glanced at the people at the head of the table.

  "Retarded? The girl might be a little silly, a little crazy, and really weird, but how is she dumb? Oh, but she’s pretty quiet today. Is she being scared dumb?"

  "Restrain yourselves a little. We’re not here to enjoy the show." Leng Ruofeng interrupted coldly, bring the discussion back on topic while doing his best to ignore the laser beam-like gaze behind him.

  Now he understood why those two were so concerned about that girl. This burning stare…… He’d merely leaned in to Feng Tingye to tell him something earlier. Then he’d been immediately locked onto by that girl. This felt…… very dangerous.

  Xia Yuqing didn’t know that her gaze had been detected. She was feeling super lucky right now. It’s swimming with pretty boys besides Seme-sama. First there’s Gorgeous Tutor, then there’s the Shouta Strategist, and now we have a portable iceberg for A/C in the summertime!

  With this many ukes, Besides morning court / They can also hold down the fort / And warm up your bed / Be reliable in your stead. They’re just too FABULOUS ’kay.

  In one corner was Xia Yuqing, holding her hands to her face and engrossed in her imagination; in the other was the trio who were discussing seriously. They shuddered, their backs crawling.

  "I keep having this bad feeling."

  "Same here." For once, Shao Zitang agreed with Yan Ran. "Prince Rui has brought three generals to the palace with him this time. The strongest among them is General Wang Feng, who is sitting next to him. He is a valiant and accomplished man. He once took the enemy general’s head from their camp with a single man. He cannot be underestimated," he said grimly.

  "How is he compared to you?" said Leng Ruofeng coldly, his face grave.

  Shao Zitang touched his chin. He smirked superciliously, "Who knows? We’ve never clashed."

  Yan Ran stroked his chin. After a while, he said, "This is getting interesting. Anyways, wasn’t it said that besides his trusted generals, Prince Rui also brought a beauty back to the capital? We’ve seen all the generals now, but the beauty……"

  As he spoke, the sound of the qin changed, spiralling up like soft birdsong in an vacant valley, like ripples of water in a spring.

  Everyone turned towards the sound, and watched as dancers parted from a floating pavilion nearby, revealing a seated young woman, strumming the strings of a qin. It was a brilliant debut.

  Xia Yuqing was shocked by this battle formation. Once again, the half-eaten osmanthus cake in her mouth responded to the call of gravity, and dropped onto the table.

  Fudge. What the heck is this, the introduction of the female lead from some soap opera? Seme-sama’s eyes haven’t left her at all since she appeared. She’s definitely a vixen!