“Hail to the Empress.”
At the familiar address, Evelyn turned around. Standing before her was Olivia, her cousin.
“Olivia? Did you follow me up here?”
“I thought there might be some problem since you hurriedly changed your steps.”
A faint smile broke on Evelyn’s seemingly stiff expression.
“It’s not like that. I just have something to check briefly.”
“Check?”
“I saw the First Prince.”
“The First Prince… They usually don’t reveal themselves at the banquet, right? If I recall correctly, the only First Prince I remember is an child around ten years old.”
“That’s why it’s strange. If the First Prince is here without Enoch, wouldn’t that be problematic?”
Considering Calisto declared Ian as the Crown Prince during the court meeting, there must have been considerable unrest among the nobles.
“If Enoch had been brought here, there might have been people asking him various questions. That’s why I didn’t bring him. I thought he might make unexpected mistakes or say something inappropriate.”
“That makes sense.”
“I felt there was a woman with him…”
“A woman?”
“Yeah, but she doesn’t seem visible.”
Evelyn murmured as she slowly circled the second floor. Although the one with hair similar to Ian’s might be around, finding someone with the same height and build was not common.
The woman beside him had blonde hair, but she didn’t seem noticeable.
“A woman?”
“Yeah, but she doesn’t seem visible.”
Evelyn, as if drawn by something, approached the private room right in front of her. She pulled down the doorknob, but it didn’t open from the inside.
“Shall I call the servant to open the door?”
“No, there’s no need for that.”
Olivia seemed like she was about to call the servant, but Evelyn raised her arm to stop her.
“Trouble is looming ahead. Is this just a false alarm? I instructed them to prepare a medicated tea or a decoction in case of an emergency. All I have to do is wait for news that the First Prince is struggling…”
Stopping her thoughts, Evelyn gently touched her own head. What remained was to wait patiently. What she needed now was composure and leisure.
“Um… Your Majesty, there’s a rumor that the Empress might appoint the First Prince as the Crown Prince…”
“There won’t be such a thing, Olivia.”
“What?”
“Whatever you’re worried about won’t happen.”
Evelyn said firmly. Olivia’s eyes widened as she examined the relaxed smile on Evelyn’s lips.
“Surely Your Majesty isn’t considering dealing with someone who is trying to use poison…”
Evelyn smoothly raised her index finger over her lips.
“Be careful with your words.”
“I apologize, Empress.”
Olivia, glancing around, breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, there was no one nearby. There were only curious glances from a distance.
“Everything will flow according to the order of things. So, don’t worry.”
Olivia swallowed her dry saliva with a gulp of relief.
‘Empress, you asked Dylan, my cousin, for the poison to kill the First Prince. If the First Prince suddenly dies, it will cause chaos in the palace. Before that happens, there needed to be a test subject…’
As thoughts were organized, the slightly parted lips remained closed. Given the Evelyn I knew, she would go to great lengths to protect her position as Empress and to place Enoch on the Emperor’s throne.
“Everything will go as Empress wishes.”
Olivia approached the second-floor railing with a subtle smile. She had been deliberately watching Rosebelia from a distance, but she had disappeared from her sight.
Wondering if Klein, the man she had seen earlier, had somehow vanished, Olivia felt the urge to approach with a strategy.
‘Perhaps he knew who the man was and was planning to embarrass him there. Where did he go?’
If it became known that she met a commoner, it would be a huge disgrace to the Viscount’s dignity. Moreover, Rosebelia had never acted so boldly without her usual dance partner.
‘I wonder if Klein didn’t come. Today was the perfect opportunity…’
With so many eyes watching, it was inevitable that a scandal would arise. Olivia felt a tinge of regret.
“Shall we go down now, Olivia?”
“Yes, Empress.”
Startled by the clinking sound, I pushed away from Ian’s broad chest. The sound of the door latch being pulled again echoed, but the firmly locked door didn’t open.
That was close.
“Empress?”
Asking in a small voice, Ian nodded slightly. As if trying to say something, he pursed his lips and suddenly narrowed his eyebrows.
“What’s wrong?”
“Empress is talking to Lady Winters.”
If Lady Winters is Olivia, and if the door hadn’t been locked, it would have been a big problem.
Breathing a light sigh of relief, I raised my gaze. Ian, like someone focused on something, didn’t blink. Then, in a moment, he burst into a bitter smile, but soon his face froze noticeably.
Why are they both making such serious expressions? What kind of emotions can be heard from them?
“Can you guess what they’re talking about?”
“Me… No.”
Ian, who stopped talking, lightly raised his lips. For a moment, the end of his lips seemed to tremble.
“Not some private conversation?”
After Being Cheated On, She Picked Up a Treasure (Female-dominant)
One-line summary: The husband I married on a whim had been secretly in love with me for a long time.
On the day when Jun Shao finally obtained the imperial decree for her marriage, Lan Qu, the person she had admired for six years, defied the decree and ran away.
Her gentleness and devotion, her promise of a lifetime together, were all disregarded by him. Instead, he dreamed of entering the palace to serve the Emperor’s sister as a sixth-rank attendant.
News of this incident spread throughout the capital, and the alleys in front of and behind the Lan mansion were crowded with people who came to watch the commotion.
Jun Shao should have been embarrassed and angry.
But someone stepped in to protect her dignity.
The figure was in a miserable state, yet still possessed an undeniable elegance and handsomeness.
The young lord struggled to climb the wall of the Lan mansion and shouted to her, “If he won’t marry you, I will!”
So, Jun Shao took advantage of the situation and married the person.
She thought the young lord did it to save the Lan family from the crime of defying the imperial decree, but never imagined that from beginning to end, what he coveted was her.
*
After the wedding, Jun Shao felt like she was living in a dream.
Her Wife-master was as beautiful as a fairy in a painting, skilled in the six arts, well-versed in poetry and literature, capable of being gentle and attentive, and also grand and dignified. Most importantly, she was the only one in his heart and eyes.
Jun Shao didn’t know how Lan Shiwu, as a illegitimate son without a father and blessed with beauty, had managed to preserve his purity, recklessly escape, and use his last ounce of strength to ruin his own reputation, all because of his love for her, just to stand before her.
She could only see him gazing at her with eyes full of love, and when she bestowed a name upon him, his eyes shone like stars.
“You have come to me like a weary bird perching on a branch. I shall call you A Qi.”
