Chapter 49
Chapter 49
*Why must I humiliate myself every single time I meet this man?*
Before Shengsheng could scramble up, a green-clad figure stepped between them.
“Forgive the spectacle, Noble Consort. Xiaohong, why are you still here? Leave.”
Shengsheng clambered upright in a frantic tangle of limbs, but she did not dare go.
She knew Fusheng Duan from the tips of his hair to the backs of his heels.
If she pretended not to recognize him and turned away now…
Well.
She would rather not describe the consequences in detail.
“This servant greets the Noble Consort.”
After saluting Fusheng according to Zhu Kingdom etiquette, she remained where she was.
Displeasure flickered through Weiqing’s eyes.
Fusheng merely pressed his lips into a smile.
Xunlan Liu approached as well. The sight of Shengsheng startled him.
“Beloved Consort, is that not the ugly creature who served you? How is she still alive?”
*I will outlive you. Thank you very much.*
“This servant greets Your Majesty. May Your Majesty live for ten thousand years.”
She rolled her eyes viciously in her heart while bowing with perfect decorum.
With too many strangers and attendants present, Fusheng did not discuss ownership of Shengsheng with Weiqing. After that one remark, he seemed to lose interest in her.
Shengsheng was delighted by his indifference.
She truly wished no one would pay attention to her.
Tonight, however, she would have to find a way to bring Zhiyu Jiang to the banquet.
After escorting Xunlan’s party to the residence arranged for the foreign delegation, Shengsheng followed Weiqing back to the Eastern Palace.
“Your Highness, may this servant bring Miss Jiang to tonight’s banquet? She is a citizen of the Zhu Kingdom, after all.”
Shengsheng offered him tea and asked with great caution.
Weiqing did not lift his eyes. He did not so much as touch the cup.
“No.”
Shengsheng stared at him.
She truly had not expected him to refuse.
He rarely involved himself in Zhiyu’s affairs. The banquet would be crowded, and Zhiyu took up no space. Why could she not attend?
“Your Highness…” Shengsheng tried again.
Weiqing cut her off.
“Do not mention it again. Withdraw.”
Shengsheng pressed her lips together and turned away. Near the door, she changed her mind and came back.
Weiqing raised an eyebrow at her return.
“Your Highness, are you angry?”
She had struck the truth.
Weiqing said nothing.
Only after a long pause did he ask, “What makes you believe I am angry?”
“When the Noble Consort recognized this servant, Your Highness ordered me to leave. I did not. That is why Your Highness is angry.”
Shengsheng did not know who had given her the courage to speak so bluntly to Weiqing.
His chest rose and fell several times.
Then, instead of raging, he laughed.
“You believe I would become angry because of you?”
Shengsheng nodded.
“You think very highly of yourself, Shengsheng Zhou. Who gave you the nerve to spout such nonsense? You will not attend the Spring Banquet tonight. Withdraw!”
He refused to look at her. Sweeping his sleeves behind him, he strode into the inner room as though furious beyond endurance.
Shengsheng had no choice but to leave.
Keep pretending you do not care.
After the door closed, the green-robed man who had stood with his hands behind his back slowly crouched down, regret covering his face.
Had he gone too far?
Damn it. Had he truly made his feelings that obvious?
Surely she would not actually stay away tonight?
***
Naturally, Shengsheng would never abandon the plot merely because Weiqing refused her permission.
The Spring Banquet was held in the Zhen imperial palace’s greatest pride: its imperial garden.
Conveniently, Shengsheng had already explored most of it not long ago.
Pretending she wished to help with preparations, she approached a succession of palace servants. Once they had all politely refused her assistance, she seized the opportunity to study a rockery across the path.
She circled behind it and climbed upward.
From that position, she could see the entire Spring Banquet clearly. Jagged stone peaks concealed her, while the direction of the light prevented anyone across the garden from seeing her.
Once the banquet began, Shengsheng could spread a small cushion across the stone, set out some sunflower seeds, and enjoy herself.
It was practically a luxury private box.
The ventilation was a little excessive, that was all.
As for Zhiyu Jiang, Shengsheng had already devised a plan.
In the original novel, Weiqing Song brought Zhiyu to the Spring Banquet. Her extraordinary beauty and bearing swiftly drew attention from every direction.
Especially from Siran Ming and Fusheng Duan.
The resulting battlefield of jealousy had been spectacular. According to eyewitness reports, the air turned so sour that several young ladies and gentlemen grabbed their own heads and fled the palace overnight.
All right. Back to the point.
The World Law was lazy, and the main characters had already wandered hopelessly off course.
A-Pang told Shengsheng that if Zhiyu performed a single talent before the gathered guests, as she had in the original, the grand scene would count as complete.
The original Zhiyu sang a song that earned thunderous applause.
Before losing her memories, she had mastered the zither, chess, calligraphy, painting, and practically every other refined art.
After losing her memories, Zhiyu knew only how to eat and play.
What could she possibly perform?
Shengsheng had already discussed that question with her.
When the time came, Zhiyu merely had to walk onto the stage.
As for which man Shengsheng belonged to, Fusheng and Weiqing could resolve that between themselves.
She was tired.
***
That night, the rulers of the continent’s three most powerful kingdoms sat together at the Spring Banquet.
Below them were the rulers of numerous smaller nations and their families.
After exchanging a toast with the chieftain of the Java Kingdom, Weiqing kept a mild smile on his lips. A closer look, however, would have found no amusement in his eyes.
Once he had completed a full round of ceremonial toasts, Jian Zhang silently appeared behind him.
Weiqing smiled toward the king of another realm and raised his cup in acknowledgment. His voice, when he spoke to Jian, was cold.
“Have you found her?”
Without attracting the slightest attention, Jian leaned close and whispered in his ear.
Weiqing’s hand paused.
He turned and regarded the utterly unremarkable rockery across the garden with a complicated expression.
Shengsheng Zhou.
How many more surprises did she intend to give him?
With a faint, helpless sigh, he ordered, “Go watch over her.”
At the same time, Siran wore precisely the same expression after hearing Rong Li’s report.
He rubbed his brow with one bent finger and sighed.
“Go keep an eye on her.”
Fusheng occupied the most prominent seat among the consorts and noblewomen. Adoring gazes surrounded him from every direction, and a slight smile rippled across his lips.
Using his wine cup as cover, he released a small white bird from his sleeve.
He flapped across the garden toward the rockery.
Shengsheng sat cross-legged, happily cracking sunflower seeds, when a sudden weight landed on her shoulder.
She turned her head. Half of Pecky’s name escaped her mouth before she stopped.
“You… Did your color wash off?”
The snow-white bird ignored her. He stood solemnly on her shoulder without moving, like a guard at his post.
Even sunflower seeds failed to tempt him.
Behind Shengsheng, one man and one woman dressed in black stared at each other from within the bamboo grove.
They had clearly recognized each other. After exchanging a silent salute, they both turned toward Shengsheng.
“Watermelon, winter melon, honeydew too–if you don’t love me, the fool is you!”
Watching a dancer from some unknown kingdom perform what looked like an exorcism below, Shengsheng could not resist singing along.
The two guards and one bird were forced to endure her beautiful voice in silence.
Then a white figure appeared on the stage across the garden.
“Oh! Xiaoyu is coming on.”
Shengsheng dropped her sunflower seeds, shot upright, and stared with excitement.