Stolen Crown Princess (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 11
The next day, morning.
Ibelia sat before the mirror with a pale face.
It wasn’t as if sleepless nights were new to her, yet lately, facing the morning had become unbearably difficult.
Today, in particular, sleep had crashed over her fiercely only after dawn broke. She longed to indulge in a lazy lie-in while the chance lasted, but even that small comfort was beyond her reach today.
A soft sigh escaped through her colorless lips.
“Oh dear, you seem especially worn out today.”
Pailin paused while applying color to Ibelia’s face and sent her a worried glance.
Ibelia weakly tugged the corners of her mouth upward.
“That’s right. I’m feeling rather exhausted today.”
Unusually, raw, unfiltered honesty slipped out plainly—unlike her usual guarded self.
Truly, today was exceptionally hard. Between constant sleeplessness and the turmoil Liurian stirred in her days, she had more than enough reason to feel drained.
But there was another reason, deeper still.
“Of all days, Her Majesty the Empress had to host a tea party…”
Pailin pouted slightly and muttered under her breath. Ibelia watched her silently for a moment before offering a faint, weary smile.
“It’s fine. It’s not unbearable, so don’t worry too much.”
“But Lady Lellia and her close friends will surely be attending.”
“…I suppose so, after all.”
Ibelia, who had been trying so hard to appear fine, finally bowed her head.
A sigh rose all the way to her throat. Even without attending, she could clearly picture what would unfold.
Though invited, she’d likely be treated as an uninvited guest. And even that would be the better outcome—she might as well be treated like a ghost.
It had always been this way. She’d attended many tea parties like today’s, yet never once had she found an ally in the room.
The Empress never hid her strong support for Lellia and would surely cast her as the perfect heroine once again.
“…Should I have pretended to be ill?”
Ibelia murmured with a bitter smile. Pailin’s hand, busy with cosmetics, stilled once more.
Only then did Ibelia realize she’d spoken out of turn, and she forced a bright smile.
“It’s nothing. I just… for some reason, felt drowsy since morning. I must’ve blurted it out without thinking—just regretting that I couldn’t sleep in lazily if not for this tea party.”
“Your Highness…”
“It seems time is running short. We’d better hurry, Pailin.”
She urged Pailin with words she didn’t truly mean. Yet Pailin’s hand, once stilled, refused to move again.
It took quite a while to finish dressing. Still, Ibelia didn’t rush Pailin’s slow, deliberate movements.
Pailin’s strained, uneasy expression—and her trembling hands that couldn’t quicken despite clear effort—somehow comforted Ibelia, as if they proved Pailin cared for her deeply.
So, for just a brief moment, Ibelia managed a genuinely warm smile.
“Oh my, Your Highness the Crown Princess. You’ve come.”
As soon as Ibelia arrived at the Empress’s glass conservatory, Lellia—who had already seated herself—greeted her with a cheerful smile.
Ibelia halted her slow steps and scanned the faces gathered around the table.
Her gaze swept clockwise once, then immediately counterclockwise—but still, the one she sought was nowhere to be seen.
She turned straight to Lellia and asked,
“My Lady, where is Her Majesty…?”
“Oh, Her Majesty was suddenly struck by a headache this morning and couldn’t attend.”
Ibelia instinctively furrowed her brow at Lellia’s reply, which came even before her question fully ended.
A sudden headache this morning?
That was strange. The Empress had never missed a tea party she herself had arranged.
Not only because she’d personally prepared it, but also because these gatherings were always crafted to corner Ibelia—the thorn in her eye—without restraint. There was no reason for her to skip it.
Yet she’d refused even the pleasure of watching her favorite spectacle and stayed away. Something felt deeply off. A hunch pressed in—there had to be another motive.
“Don’t worry too much. I’ve just come from confirming that Her Majesty received a diagnosis from the Imperial Physician. He said she’ll feel better after a good rest today.”
Perhaps misreading Ibelia’s silence, Lellia rattled on unprompted with details no one had asked for.
Ibelia stared once at Lellia and the young ladies seated beside her, then gave a nod.
“I see. If it’s not serious, that’s a relief.”
“Then please take a seat quickly, Your Highness. Her Majesty prepared many things especially for today. Though she couldn’t attend herself, she instructed us to enjoy ourselves heartily in her stead.”
Lellia spoke brightly, flashing a playful wink. Even another woman would find her utterly charming.
Was that why Liurian’s heart remained fixed on Lellia instead of her?
As Ibelia mulled over this thought that rose instinctively, she began walking slowly—when suddenly,
“Oh, Your Highness. There’s something I’d like your understanding about—may I speak?”
It was an unexpected remark.
Ibelia, who had been heading toward the head seat as if it were only natural, stopped and looked at Lellia.
Though excessively polite, Lellia’s tone carried a strange, ominous feeling—perhaps due to her inexplicably radiant smile.
After a brief hesitation, Ibelia nodded. Lellia immediately continued, as if she’d been waiting for this moment.
“Her Majesty deeply regrets being unable to attend today’s tea party and specifically asked me to fulfill the host’s role thoroughly in her stead.”
Her voice, impossibly cheerful and guileless, delivered words utterly inappropriate without the slightest hesitation. Instinctively, Ibelia let out a hollow sigh.
What Lellia truly meant was clear: the head seat—rightfully the Empress’s place, and now, by default, the Crown Princess’s—would belong to Lellia Garnet today, and today alone.
Ibelia stared at Lellia, momentarily speechless.
Despite the Crown Princess being present to represent the absent Empress, they’d entrusted the role to Lellia instead.
So this was their true aim all along.
Had the Empress feigned a morning headache just to humiliate her in front of the other young ladies?
A dry, humorless laugh escaped through her teeth. All around, people pretended not to notice while openly sneering.
Those small, scattered sounds gathered swiftly, clouding Ibelia’s mind in an instant. Her hand, clutching her dress hem, trembled with unspeakable shame, and her eyes burned hot.
Yet the more she suffered, the merrier and more convivial their exclusive little tea party became.
“Haah…”
Ibelia lowered her head and exhaled the breath that had risen all the way to her throat.
The air where her breath passed felt unbearably hot.
She’d endured this kind of humiliation countless times before—but today, for some reason, it was too much to bear.
Was it because she’d started the day unusually exhausted? Or perhaps…
“My ladies seem to be enjoying themselves.”
Maybe it was because Liurian chose this exact moment to appear.
Ibelia didn’t turn around, even at the familiar voice. She kept her eyes fixed on her toes, straining hard against the heat gathering in them.
“Your Highness!”
Lellia, who had been mingling among the young ladies, dashed toward Liurian without hesitation.
In her haste, she even bumped into Ibelia’s shoulder—but offered no proper apology.
Even that left Ibelia utterly deflated.
“Oh dear, Lellia. What if you tripped while running like that?”
“Well… I was just so delighted to see you unexpectedly that I couldn’t help myself…”
Lellia looked up at Liurian with a shy smile. Liurian gazed down at her warmly, his eyes tender.
“But where is Mother? Is Lellia taking her place today?”
“Oh, Her Majesty couldn’t attend due to a sudden headache this morning.”
“So Lellia is hosting the ladies in Mother’s stead? Well then, thank you.”
Liurian affectionately brushed Lellia’s cheek. The spot his gentle touch grazed quickly flushed red.
Lellia couldn’t hide her emotions, her eyes crinkling with joy.
“No, not at all. I’m only doing what I ought to do.”
She spoke without a trace of hesitation—an utter dismissal of Ibelia standing right behind her.
Yet no one present dared to point out Lellia’s rudeness.
Not even Liurian himself—the future Emperor, who above all should uphold decorum, and Ibelia’s one and only husband.
“By the way, the desserts are running low.”
“Oh! Her Majesty’s desserts were so sweet that, while enjoying them with the young ladies, I didn’t even notice how empty the dishes had become.”
Her obedient reply overflowed with coquettish charm from start to finish. Each time, Liurian’s smile only deepened further—a picture of undeniable affection between lovers.
No one present noticed how it shattered Ibelia’s heart into pieces.
“Serve the ladies generous portions of sweet desserts they’ll enjoy. And especially ensure Lellia’s favorite treats are carefully replenished.”
“Yes. I’ll prepare them at once, Your Highness.”
At Liurian’s command, the maid bowed and quickly turned away.
Only then did he shift his gaze to Lellia, his smile now even gentler.
“I shouldn’t disturb the ladies’ time any longer. Enjoy yourselves, Lellia.”
It was nothing short of lavish treatment for a rumored mistress. And if Lellia hadn’t been blind before, this surely sealed her fate.
Lellia nodded happily, her sparkling eyes openly revealing her joy and elation.
Liurian gently swept a strand of hair from Lellia’s forehead in place of a farewell, then walked past her.
But then, just as suddenly, he stopped—
“Well then, shall we be off?”
—right in front of Ibelia.
Male lead first thought she played hard to get, only to realize she
really disliked him
Short intro:
What she can’t stand the most is the streets full of effeminate men, especially that so-called top beauty whom she avoids at all costs.
Shen Yaoxing looks at Jiang Mingyue, who keeps approaching her with coy shyness.
Shen Yaoxing: Bro, don’t be like this, I’m really about to throw up!
She fears nothing in heaven or earth, except for him getting close to her.
*
At first he thought she was just using the trick of feigning indifference to attract his attention. Later, he learned that she truly despised him.
This dealt a heavy blow to Jiang Mingyue, and he vowed to make her, like everyone else, fall at his feet in worship!
***
Synopsis:
Before transmigrating, Shen Yaoxing only wanted to find a reliable man to spend her life with. Who knew that after transmigrating, she would become a reliable woman herself…
A forced misandrist, highly skilled, and reliable female lead
vs.
An initially aloof and arrogant, later morbid, obsessed male lead
_____
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This chapter is the old chapter I think?