No. Incompetent, maybe, but what would I be if I pointed that out to them?
Utterly useless, anyway.
“Incompetent, you say?”
“Yes! Completely useless. A real hassle to deal with. That’s what I said.”
“I see…”
What’s wrong with this emperor? How much trouble could I have possibly given him? I’m just minding my own business, doing what I’m supposed to do.
Meanwhile, Shasha hesitated before tightly holding my hand.
“Sis, you were ill. Unable to even stand… I was so worried I might lose you.”
Don’t worry, Shasha. I, Isabella, have managed to live a long life by being cursed at by the readers outside this world.
How long I’ve lived, doing worthless deeds even within the story. I’ve cursed myself along the way.
I’ll live on, cursing until I paint the walls with excrement. So, I’ll live a long life.
“This will never happen again.”
“Umm… That’s a relief. But… shouldn’t I protect you?”
It seems Shasha thinks I’m rejecting her because of what the emperor said.
“No, you should protect me!”
“Really? Then Shasha will train hard! So that I can protect you anywhere, anytime!”
“Yes!”
“And His Majesty! About your exercise…”
“Huh?”
Shasha seemed to want to say something but then closed her mouth.
“Shasha?”
“Uh? Yes?”
“What did His Majesty say to you?”
“Nothing! He just gave me a task… I mean, just talked. Hehe.”
Shasha scratched her head and let go of my hand.
“Shasha…?”
Then she ran ahead, scampering off.
It seems like there was some kind of incident with the emperor, but Shasha won’t say anything. She only laughs as if it’s fun.
Shasha’s laughter is beautiful and seems happy, so I let it go. But I feel uneasy, like there’s a story only I don’t know.
In the meantime, we managed to arrive at the garden. A white tea table lies on the blue grass. Having been immobilized for several days, I instinctively sat down.
It’s not a matter of my stamina; my leg muscles have weakened from being seated for so long.
‘It’s all because of that damned potion. Damn pig.’
Just thinking about it makes my hands tremble. If it weren’t for that, I wouldn’t have collapsed from overwork or have nightmares I don’t want to remember.
‘I should put that bastard in a human hamster wheel for the rest of his life.’
While my hands tremble in anger, Shasha is happily moving about the flowerbed. She then picked a bunch of flowers and presented them to me.
“A gift for Sis!”
“A bouquet of flowers?”
“Yes!”
The colors don’t match, so it’s not harmonious. Just big and flashy flowers. Pretty flowers in terms of color. Shasha seemed to find it beautiful, and she innocently offered it to me.
“It’s beautiful.”
“Yes! Hehe.”
As I held the flowers, something strange occurred to me.
“Now that I think about it… It’s a bit odd.”
“What is?”
What is this eerie memory that’s tickling my mind? It seems to be connected to the flowers. After staring at the flower for some time, I finally nodded.
“Ah…! Yes!”
And then it clicked.
“Didn’t Shasha promise to pick flowers for me every day?”
“Yes! But I couldn’t for several days, so today I’ll do it a lot!”
“Then… what are those flowers that changed every day?”
Shasha tilted her head in confusion.
“The flowers changed?”
“Mm… Are they just decorative flowers?”
They did look like the flowers from this garden. Who brought them?
“Even if they are from the garden, should we pick them so carelessly?”
It was then.
A very familiar voice was heard.
Like Pavlov’s dog, my body reacted to that voice. Before I knew it, I had risen from my seat and bowed to the emperor.
As if to show how vulnerable to authority I am.
“Your Majesty.”
“Yes.”
“Hello, Your Majesty.”
“Yes. You’ve been well, Shanencia?”
“Yes!”
Shasha bowed her head slightly and stared intently at the Emperor. She was completely dispirited because of what the Emperor had just said. I hugged Shasha tightly in my arms.
“Your Majesty.”
“Yes.”
Though he hadn’t spoken, he had already sat at the tea table and shifted his gaze to Cherti, who was standing to one side. I hadn’t even noticed her arrival, but Cherti was standing there, holding a tea pot on a silver tray.
As the Emperor looked at her, Cherti personally poured tea for us.
“So, why did you call me? Do you have something to say?”
“Is it not allowed to pick the flowers in the garden?”
Even if he is the Emperor, to dampen my younger sister’s spirits.
“No?”
“You mentioned just now that one should not randomly pick flowers in the garden.”
“Ah. Did I say that?”
“I thought it was okay to do so because you picked the garden’s flowers!”
Defending herself, Shasha spoke up confidently.
“You also picked the flowers?”
“Yes! You did. I saw it from beyond the window even when my sister was asleep.”
“Then the flowers in my room…”
Could it be that the Emperor placed them there? I squinted my eyes as I looked at him.
“Why would I? I wouldn’t place flowers in that room every day.”
Unperturbed, he shrugged his shoulders.
“Of course. You wouldn’t do something like that.”
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.”
