Shangguan Liqian wanted to say something harsh to scare Luo Wushuang, but when the words reached her lips, she found herself unable to utter them.
Especially when looking at Her Majesty, whose eyes were rimmed with red as if she were about to burst into tears at any moment, Liqian forgot everything she had intended to say.
Wasn’t she the one who wanted to lock me up? Why is she the one crying!
Honestly… this is too much!
Despite her thoughts, Liqian couldn’t bear the sight and reluctantly extended her slender wrists toward the Empress.
“If you’re going to lock me up, do it quickly. I’m hungry and I want to eat.”
Hearing the indulgence in Liqian’s voice, the tears trembling on Luo Wushuang’s eyelashes finally fell.
She didn’t want to be like this, but…
Ever since they were at the Shangguan family estate, a voice in the depths of her heart had been repeating: Lock her up! Chain her! Then she will belong to you and you alone!
She had been suppressing it the entire way back to the palace, even throughout the morning.
Now, hearing her sister bring it up voluntarily, the malice in her heart felt as if it had found a floodgate. Once opened, it was impossible to control.
Yet, she knew her sister was likely unwilling. She didn’t want to do anything that would make her sister unhappy.
But the moment she thought about her sister caring for someone else, she lost all self-control.
In truth, she believed there was an even better solution: she could simply kill Qingdai to end the trouble once and for all. Then she wouldn’t have to worry about her sister’s attention being stolen or live in constant fear of loss.
But her sister wouldn’t want her to do that, would she?
Starving to the point where her stomach felt like it was touching her spine, Liqian heard the footsteps coming and going in the outer hall. She knew the meal had already been set.
Looking back at Luo Wushuang, who was staring at her with teary eyes while clutching the gold chains, Liqian couldn’t help but urge her.
“What are you dazing off for? Are you going to lock me up or not? If not, I’m going to eat.”
She was truly about to die of hunger.
At Liqian’s prompting, Luo Wushuang lowered her gaze. After a moment of silence, she said softly, “I will go with you, Sister.”
Seeing that Wushuang was still caught in her inner conflict, Liqian asked pointedly, “So, no locks?”
Luo Wushuang glanced at her and answered honestly, “I haven’t decided yet.”
Liqian was almost moved to laughter by her sheer honesty. Throwing an outer robe over her shoulders, she walked toward the outer hall and said, “Then think about it carefully. Decide whether you want to try trusting me, or if you want to keep me locked up forever.”
Watching Liqian’s retreating back, Luo Wushuang whispered under her breath, “Will you really not run away?”
Liqian heard her, but she acted as if she hadn’t.
She could tolerate some of Luo Wushuang’s “little quirks,” and she had the time to wait for the girl to slowly learn to trust her again. However, that didn’t mean she would let Wushuang have everything her way.
Having spent years together in their past life, even though Liqian had been constantly trying to escape, she couldn’t deny that she understood this woman deeply.
Combined with having witnessed Wushuang’s descent into madness after her own death, Liqian knew perfectly well that if left undisciplined, this woman truly had the potential to become a bloodthirsty tyrant.
If she continued to indulge Wushuang’s every whim, it would likely lead to…
Just as she was thinking this, a pair of fair, slender arms reached out from behind her. In the next moment, her slightly open inner robe was pulled tight and fastened securely.
Liqian looked at the row of palace servants standing in the distance with their heads bowed low, then at Luo Wushuang beside her, who looked like a small dog protecting its food. The heavy reflections in Liqian’s heart instantly vanished.
She had been wrong. Her Wushuang wouldn’t be a tyrant.
She was… clearly so adorable.
In a much better mood, Liqian pulled Luo Wushuang down to sit with her.
Even though Wushuang was still struggling internally, seeing the fatigue on her sister’s face made her push those messy thoughts to the back of her mind. She focused entirely on serving her sister the meal.
Wushuang was extremely attentive. Whenever Liqian’s gaze landed on a dish, it would appear in her small side plate the very next second.
Liqian took a small bite and immediately met the Empress’s eager, expectant eyes.
“This fish is quite good,” Liqian offered a compliment.
In the next heartbeat, she saw the Empress open her vermilion lips and command the servants, “Reward them!”
“This Eight-Treasure Duck is also nice.”
“Reward them!”
“This—”
“Reward them!”
Liqian rolled her eyes at the beaming Empress. Why did she feel like Wushuang currently looked like a fatuous ruler who had been completely bewitched by a beauty?
And she herself was the “femme fatale” bringing ruin to the nation.
Liqian was amused by her own train of thought.
“What is Sister laughing at?” As Luo Wushuang spoke, she subtly leaned her body closer to Liqian’s side.
Liqian glanced at her and teased on purpose, “This little palace maid is serving me quite well, too.”
The moment the words left her mouth, Liqian realized she had made a slip of the tongue.
This wasn’t a private moment between the two of them; they were surrounded by a circle of serving maids and eunuchs. If someone with ill intentions heard this…
Before she could start feeling anxious, Luo Wushuang took the opportunity to press closer, offering “tender” comfort. “Don’t be afraid, Sister. The people here are all reliable; no one will breathe a word of this outside.”
To Liqian, these words sounded extremely gentle and caring. To the servants, however, the Empress’s tone was anything but kind.
The people serving in the Empress’s bedchamber were naturally reliable—because those who weren’t had already been buried in the Mochen Pavilion.
Before Liqian could sense the eerie atmosphere, Luo Wushuang continued, “So, how will Sister reward this little palace maid?”
Realizing her slip, Liqian naturally refused to continue the topic, but Luo Wushuang remained relentless.
“Sister…”
Her hand quietly reached out from under the table…
“Just eat!” Her waist sore and her legs weak, Liqian gave her a harsh glare. She picked up a bunch of green vegetables with her chopsticks and dropped them into the small plate in front of the other woman.
Luo Wushuang, who loved meat and absolutely loathed vegetables: “…”
She suspected her sister did this on purpose, but she had no proof.
Wushuang’s gaze shifted between the plate and Liqian. Finally, accepting her fate, she picked up the greens and put them into her mouth.
She hated vegetables most of all; they always reminded her of the days when she couldn’t even get enough to eat.
Logically speaking, in that man-eating Shangguan household, her sister’s childhood shouldn’t have been much better than her own. Why did she like eating greens?
Wushuang chewed the vegetables with a frown. Wait? They don’t seem that bad?
Feeling that the taste was acceptable, Wushuang reached out her own chopsticks to take more. But the moment they entered her mouth, her brow furrowed even deeper.
Why do they taste terrible again…
They were clearly the same vegetables. Wushuang tested the flavor in her mouth again and decisively turned to Liqian, pleading, “I want more of what Sister gave me.”
Liqian, who had mostly finished eating, was glad to see the girl finally taking an interest in vegetables. She quickly served her more.
Luo Wushuang looked at the solid pile of green leaves in her dish, the smile on her face freezing.
There’s no need for this many, is there?
She wasn’t a rabbit. Why did she need to eat so many leaves…
