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墨書 Inktalez
White Cat occasionally paused, then leaned forward again, with a clear target in sight: Mei Shuang.
Mei Shuang was startled and felt quite strange. Although she knew that Anriyan was here and that White Cat couldn't harm her, she still wanted to leave as soon as possible.
"Let's hurry up."
After saying this, Mei Shuang turned and walked away quickly. Her wide sleeves fluttered as she moved, and behind her, Anriyan suddenly caught a faint, elusive fragrance.
At the same time, White Cat became entranced and quickly closed the distance, lunging toward Mei Shuang from about ten feet away.
The situation unfolded suddenly. In a moment of panic, Anriyan swiftly wrapped his arms around Mei Shuang, turning to face White Cat. Ignoring Mei Shuang's startled cry, he pulled off the thin veil covering Mei Shuang, throwing it over the approaching White Cat. The cat became entangled in the veil, losing its direction and falling to the ground, whimpering.
In the blink of an eye, Mei Shuang looked down at her remaining strapless long dress, her shoulders and arms exposed. Stunned and furious, she broke free from Anriyan's embrace, ready to scold this shameless Yamatai envoy for tearing off her clothes to evade the cat's attack. However, she saw that Anriyan was looking at the whimpering White Cat with a serious expression. "Miss Lin, it was unavoidable. I apologize... but I believe you are no longer in danger now."
Following Anriyan's gaze, Mei Shuang saw that White Cat had poked its head out from under the veil and was curled up on top of it, licking the fabric as if it found something delicious. Its gaze was entranced and its demeanor lazy; it seemed much calmer now.
Cui Xin exclaimed in surprise, "Miss, look! That cat seems to be eating something!"
Mei Shuang also noticed the peculiar behavior and forgot to reprimand Anriyan for his earlier actions. Her expression changed slightly. "What is going on?"
"This cat is not ordinary; it has a keen sense of smell and has been able to identify various spices since it was young. It has a particular fondness for one type of spice, and your clothes carry that scent, which naturally attracted its attention."
Mei Shuang was speechless. There was no need to elaborate; she had just unintentionally come into contact with the cats from the Consort Chen Palace along with her maids.
She asked Anriyan, "How did you end up here?"
Anriyan replied, "I have heard that the palace of the Great Qin Empire is extravagantly luxurious. I've been here for some time but have only explored less than a third of it; I came out for a stroll..."
Although Mei Shuang was quite suspicious that Anriyan was following her, his response was perfectly fine. The palace was so large; how could she control where he walked?
Of course, this was a minor issue. The bigger problem now was that she felt somewhat exposed in her clothing.
Moreover, there were people moving about the palace everywhere. With her current appearance alongside a strange man, anyone who saw them would undoubtedly be suspicious, making it impossible to escape the accusation of infidelity.
"Cui Xin, let's go." Mei Shuang couldn't bother with pleasantries with Anriyan and hurriedly left after saying a quick "thank you."
Watching the worried Mei Shuang leave in haste, Anriyan crouched down. The plump White Cat nestled in the thin gauze of her clothing let out a soft whimper, occasionally lifting its green and blue eyes to look around.
The smile on Anriyan's lips gradually faded, and his gaze grew serious. He suddenly stood up and said to the attendant beside him, "Go call Ziqing over."
Princess Ziqing was leisurely chatting and laughing with her maid in her quarters when she saw Anriyan rushing in. She playfully said, "Brother, come quickly! You have to hear the funny stories from today’s outing in the Great Qin Empire. I nearly died laughing..."
Anriyan maintained a stern expression and dismissed everyone else before directly asking Ziqing, "Did you cause this trouble?"
Princess Ziqing's smile instantly froze as she asked in confusion, "What?"
Anriyan sat down and stared at Princess Ziqing's face for a while before calmly asking, "There are countless women around the Emperor of the Great Qin Empire. Why do you specifically have an issue with her? If I hadn't arrived in time, that big cat would have truly harmed that woman. What punishment do you think you would deserve?!"
By the end of his statement, Anriyan's tone had become almost fierce.
To be honest, Princess Ziqing was not his biological sister; if she were, he would have slapped her by now. They had worked hard to come to the Great Qin Empire with the purpose of forming an alliance. If such a trivial matter ruined their plans, it would be a wasted trip and could potentially lead to animosity between the two nations.
It was rare to see Anriyan display such an expression; his amber eyes were like ancient ice. Finally unable to withstand the pressure, Princess Ziqing lowered her gaze and muttered defiantly, "Who has an issue with her? She offended me first that night. Besides, since she is not the Empress, why does she need to pretend to sit in the Empress's position? That arrogant demeanor makes me furious..."
"Enough!" Anriyan slammed his hand on the table and stood up angrily, saying in a deep voice, "Clearly, you provoked her first."
"What is it?" Ziqing was also angry upon hearing this. Anriyan had always spoiled her, so she had become accustomed to being arrogant in front of him. "Brother, why are you speaking up for her? Do you think she is pretty too? Hmph, no wonder the concubines in the palace say she is a seductive troublemaker!"
"Enough!" Anriyan was infuriated by Ziqing's increasingly outrageous remarks and raised his hand to slap her across the face.
Seeing her brother, who had always cared for her, strike her for a woman, Ziqing was stunned, covering half of her numb face with tears glistening in her eyes.
Anriyan did not look at her shocked and disappointed expression but directly ordered the attendant, "From today onwards, Princess Ziqing will reflect on her actions here. If she leaves this room, bring her head to me."
As Princess Ziqing watched Anriyan stride out, the hatred in her heart towards Mei Shuang was needless to say. Of course, she hated that damned Consort Chen even more for being so incompetent that it led to trouble with her brother.
Along the way, Mei Shuang felt as if she were exposed and uncomfortable. Fortunately, the back garden was not far away, and she quickly returned to the palace with Cui Xin.
Xiao Luo had just raised his teacup to his lips when he saw Mei Shuang rush in disheveled and flustered. He paused, set down the teacup, and frowned as he asked, "What happened?"
Mei Shuang was startled as well and silently cursed her bad luck. Thankfully, she was quick-witted and pretended to be nonchalant. "On my way back to the palace, a cat jumped on me and tore my gauze dress..."
Xiao Luo glanced at Mei Shuang's bare shoulders and clearly did not believe her but chose not to call her out. He picked up his teacup again and took a sip of tea casually. "Did it hurt you?"
"No, I just wrapped it up with my gauze dress," Mei Shuang explained. Not caring whether he believed her or not, she felt extremely thirsty after running around and poured herself several cups of tea to calm down.
While they were talking, Cui Xin had already gone to fetch a new gauze dress for Mei Shuang to put on. With clothes on her body, she finally felt a bit safer. Mei Shuang changed the subject and asked, "Has His Majesty had dinner yet?"
Xiao Luo had just come from Empress Dowager Mingxi's place. He had heard a lot about Mei Shuang's cooking from Empress Dowager Mingxi and planned to taste her skills tonight.
Upon hearing this, Mei Shuang thought it would be easy to handle and hurried off to the Small Kitchen.
After preparing the ingredients in the Small Kitchen and giving some pointers on how to cook, Mei Shuang went to take a shower.
The dishes in the Small Kitchen were quickly ready, and Mei Shuang emerged feeling refreshed.
Sitting on the Rohan Bed, she faced Xiao Luo across the table. The home-cooked dishes were fragrant and appealing. Xiao Luo, who had grown tired of extravagant delicacies, was drawn in as well. Picking up a pair of silver chopsticks, he sampled each dish and remarked gently, "I didn't know you could make these..."
After her shower, Mei Shuang's lips were red and her teeth white, her complexion fair with a hint of rosy glow. She looked delicate enough to seem like she could be squeezed for water. A few damp strands of hair clung to her forehead, adding a touch of allure. Under the bright candlelight, her expressive black-and-white eyes sparkled with life, exuding a unique fragrance that made it hard for Xiao Luo to look away.
Noticing Xiao Luo staring at her in a daze, Mei Shuang felt a pang of anxiety. She thought he was still preoccupied with what had just happened and hoped he wouldn't ask about it again. She quickly greeted him warmly, "Your Majesty, here, try this one, and this one too. By the way, these two dishes taste even better together..."
Seeing Mei Shuang being so attentive, Xiao Luo lowered his gaze and focused on eating.
Mei Shuang felt relieved to see Xiao Luo so obedient and fell silent.
For a moment, the atmosphere in the room became quiet as they each ate their meal. Mei Shuang was serious about her food but occasionally stole glances at Xiao Luo. Seeing him calm and elegant while eating without any signs of doubt or displeasure allowed her to gradually relax.
After finishing their meal, Xiao Luo took out an envelope and handed it to Mei Shuang.
Mei Shuang looked at the envelope curiously and joked, "Your Majesty, do we really need to write letters to each other?"
Xiao Luo raised his eyes and replied, "It's not from me."
Mei Shuang opened it suspiciously and was surprised to find it was a letter from Lin Tian'er.
In the letter, Lin Tian'er enthusiastically reported all the preparations she had made for her career after leaving the palace. This included site selection, development routes, route descriptions, transportation tools, guesthouse arrangements for group tours, and pricing details. She also asked Mei Shuang for guidance and corrections.
The letter spanned five or six pages and appeared to be a detailed plan overall; however, there were still some rough edges and oversights within it.
Of course, it was not the time for her to correct things as the chief planner. The problem was how this letter ended up in the hands of the Empress of the Great Qin Empire. There was no need to say it; she knew everything.
Lin Tian'er, oh Lin Tian'er, Mei Shuang complained inwardly. This letter was simply a disaster, exposing her carefully hidden thoughts to the light of day. She had promised confidentiality, yet how could she not keep things under wraps?
After reading the letter, she forced a smile and said, "Your Majesty, Lin Tian'er is just so lively and restless, her thinking is unlike that of ordinary girls..."
Upon hearing Mei Shuang's words, Xiao Luo's lips curled into a knowing smile. "Hmm, you two actually make a good pair."
"......"
Mei Shuang felt short of breath and dared not respond. She pretended to pour tea for Xiao Luo while turning away to hide the letter.
Xiao Luo pondered over Mei Shuang's peculiar planning after reading it.
It must be said that for those sheltered young women who rarely stepped outside, this was indeed an excellent opportunity to broaden their horizons. He even realized without much thought that if this plan were implemented, it would surely spark a revolution among the young women in their quarters.
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