Chapter 407: Chapter 405: Why Do You Assume, Only I Must Do?
The cool breeze grew colder.
Shen Yinning held a round fan, suddenly curling her lips with a teasing smile: "Your Majesty wouldn’t... still be unable to forget your former wife, would you?"
Lu Ying resisted the burning heat on his face, slowly turning around, the depths of his eyes harboring a sharpness poised like drawn swords.
Shen Yinning still had her back to him, straight and proud, unyielding against any pressure.
Narrow eyes faintly gleamed red; he clenched his hands tightly and said, "You are far too conceited. The lands of the Nine Provinces and seas all belong to my empire—what woman could I not possess? Why would you presume I could only desire you?"
Shen Yinning turned to face him, her enchanting smile tinged with distance: "Since Your Majesty cares not for your former wife, then let us play a little game. From now on, whoever speaks first to the other shall be the little dog. Does Your Majesty dare to play?"
Lu Ying scoffed.
Such a childish game—what would be the point in playing it?
The night breeze fluttered the hem of the girl’s skirt, her light gauze scarf again brushing Lu Ying’s hand.
Soft and light, fragrant scents wafting.
And it was mildly ticklish.
He resisted the urge to grasp it, and the words of refusal that were about to leave his lips instead emerged with stubbornness: "Why wouldn’t I dare?"
Shen Yinning smiled faintly, bowed respectfully, and walked away.
Gui Quan whispered to De Sun, "Who do you think will win—His Majesty or the Commandery Princess?"
De Sun held a horsetail whisk: "Is that even a question? It’ll definitely be the Commandery Princess who wins—"
Lu Ying’s sharp hearing caught their conversation; he cast a cold glance their way.
The two of them instantly lowered their heads in fright, not daring to say another word.
The Chengxi Palace was filled with music and dancing.
Shen Yinning sat alone in a corner; due to her awkward position in the court, no one dared to approach her.
Shangguan Min and Xue Mianmian came over, but before they could exchange a few words, they were forced to return to their seats as the banquet was about to begin.
Xue Ling, draped in wide-sleeved crimson robes, glanced at Shen Yinning from afar and lazily ordered Xue Mianmian: "Stay away from her."
This Mid-Autumn Feast in the palace was attended only by Xue Ling and Xue Mianmian from the Xue family; their seating arrangements were together.
Xue Mianmian lowered her head, not daring to meet his gaze, and softly murmured, "Zhaozhao is my friend."
Xue Ling: "You don’t need friends."
Xue Mianmian: "..."
She bit her lip, her voice growing softer but carrying a hint of defiance: "Before long, I’ll leave the Capital with Father and Mother... Then you won’t be able to control me anymore."
Xue Ling’s gaze shifted.
Like a predator sated mere moments ago, suddenly turning into a ravenous beast starved for days.
He leaned closer to Xue Mianmian, his slender fingers pinching the back of her neck, like gripping a kitten by its scruff.
His thin lips brushed against Xue Mianmian’s ear, the corners lifting in a smirking threat: "Xue Mianmian, do you truly think your wings have hardened now? That you can slip away from my grasp? If you don’t behave, Shen Yinning’s fate will become yours. Do you understand?"
Xue Mianmian’s eyes reddened, her fists clutching her handkerchief tightly.
Nearby, young lords and noble ladies were casting curious glances their way.
Xue Ling raised his head, glaring at them coldly, forcing them all to avert their gazes: "Never seen an elder brother disciplining his sister?"
He was a favored figure before the new emperor, and the group of young nobles dared not offend him, nervously laughing and flattering him: "Young Lord Xue and Second Miss Xue are so close!"
"Naturally..." Xue Ling lowered his thin eyelids, admiring the trembling and timid young girl beside him. "Mianmian, isn’t that right?"
He affectionately used her nickname.
Yet it felt like a beast pinning down a rabbit with sharp claws, its barbed tongue flicking over the rabbit’s head, damp and chilling.
It sent shivers down Xue Mianmian’s spine.
She forced a smile to the crowd, yet it clearly looked worse than a cry.
With Lu Ying and Huo Mingyan seated, the Mid-Autumn Feast officially commenced.
The ministers stepped forward one by one, uttering auspicious greetings for national prosperity and peace, and congratulating the Empress and Emperor on the prospect of heirs to extend the royal lineage.
Huo Mingyan smiled graciously, accepting their congratulations with calm elegance.
Out of the corner of her eye, however, she couldn’t help but sneak glances at the corner of the room.
The woman her cousin had loved deeply and solely—what did she look like?
Was she truly as beautiful as the rumors described?
Or had the claims been exaggerated?
A group of palace maids carried dishes fresh from the kitchens, delivering them to the lower tables of the ministers’ families.
The shadows of their hair and fragrant robes blocked Huo Mingyan’s view. The palace maids selected to serve at the feast were all carefully handpicked beauties, like sparkling stars, each uniquely lovely to behold and pleasing in appearance.
In Huo Mingyan’s homeland, women like these palace maids would have been considered rare beauties.
Only when they moved away did she finally see Shen Yinning in the corner.
The hands concealed within Huo Mingyan’s wide sleeves clenched suddenly.
If those palace maids resembled stars, then she was a full moon.
A moon outside the border: capable of being serenely pure, yet also whimsically alluring.
She possessed a beauty radiant enough to illuminate the entire hall.
Even the most peculiar, unconventional critic wouldn’t be able to find the faintest flaw in her.
So this was the woman her cousin had obsessed over since his youth?
Huo Mingyan pressed her lips together, only snapping out of her daze after receiving a long, meaningful glance from Lu Ying, and then smiled faintly as she nodded to the ministers offering their blessings.
It was supposed to be a feast of reunion.
She had already claimed the Empress seat she had yearned for day and night.
Yet somehow, amidst the lively opulence of wealth and dignity, Huo Mingyan still felt a trace of bone-deep chill.
It was the instinctive awareness of a hunter from the steppes.
As if everything she owned might one day be taken away by the woman in the corner.
——Yan’er, when you journey to the Capital, beware of a certain woman.
——Grandmother means Shen Yinning? I heard her father and brothers were killed, she was exiled to Gan State, and married a mere county magistrate. Men in the Central Plains place the utmost importance on a woman’s chastity—since she’s another man’s wife, surely she no longer poses any threat to us.
——Why did her elder brother storm the gates at night with the Commander’s Seal? Why were her father and brothers truly feared by Lu Yu, to the extent that they were executed and displayed publicly? Was it truly just because they overshadowed the emperor with their military power? Was Shen Yan’s downfall merely due to a simple staged accusation? Yan’er, don’t you understand these reasons better than anyone else? With her origins, it’s naturally impossible for her to become the Empress of Great Zhou, but still—you must be wary of her. Yan’er, the future Crown Prince must only be born from the womb of a woman from the Huo family. Only then can we ensure our Huo family’s enduring glory outside the border for generations to come.
Her grandmother’s earnest instructions still echoed in her ears.
Huo Mingyan raised her cup alongside Lu Ying, toasting the gathering of ministers.
The civil and military officials, along with their families, stood and returned the toast.
Huo Mingyan’s gaze subtly swept over the standing Shen Yinning once more.
Her abdomen was already starting to show faint signs of pregnancy.
She wasn’t carrying her cousin’s child—it belonged to Cui Ji.
Huo Mingyan’s anxious and guarded heart relaxed slightly.
She and her grandmother had already quietly orchestrated the downfall of the Shen family once; they feared no further waves raised by this woman.
In ways unknown to Shen Yinning, Huo Mingyan had already defeated her once before.
Her face resumed its composed, graceful expression, her posture steadfast as she sat next to Lu Ying, as if she were always the rightful woman for the position of Queen.