Because Princess Yonghe insisted on entering the royal court early, the delegation from Great Liang was caught off guard. Their meticulously prepared ceremonial procedures were now in disarray and unusable.
Yet, they couldn’t afford to lose the grandeur expected of a major nation like Great Liang. They had to find ways to recover the lost prestige.
Shen Yushu, who was in charge of all the delegation’s affairs, was overwhelmed. Shen Qingyao had encountered her Eldest Brother several times over the past few days, and she almost didn’t recognize him.
Shen Yushu, who always paid attention to his appearance, looked like he hadn’t slept in days. His clothes were wrinkled, clearly neglected. When he saw her, he no longer lavished her with the usual concerned attention, barely exchanging a few pleasantries before being urgently called away by anxious servants.
Princess Yonghe’s unilateral decision seemed to have caused a major upheaval for the entire delegation. Even Lu Zhao, who was originally just assisting with the marriage escort, had become busier—consulted by Shen Yushu for strategies all day long, he was now practically the strategist of the delegation.
Both her husband and brother were too busy, so she couldn’t ask them to keep her company. In comparison, Shen Qingyao found her time in Nanzhao peaceful and enjoyable.
With free time during the day, Shen Qingyao brought Cui Qiao and Hong Yun to explore nearly every corner of the Nanzhao capital. Having been a southerner in before transmigrating, many things in the city felt familiar to her. Over the past few days, she had grown quite fond of the place. Occasionally, when Lu Zhao asked her about it in the evenings, he would jokingly remark that the Nanzhao capital had completely captivated her heart, making her forget even her husband.
Remembering Lu Zhao’s mock-jealous expression, Shen Qingyao chuckled. He had become increasingly unreserved around her.
“What’s making you smile, Miss?” Cui Qiao asked curiously, not understanding why her Miss was smiling while picking out a jade pendant.
Shen Qingyao simply pursed her lips and waved her hand. Lu Zhao’s childish side was something she wanted to keep to herself. However, she did think it was time to buy a gift to cheer him up.
After a long while of careful selection, she finally picked one: “Let’s get this one! It’s beautiful! And it matches one of Lu Zhao’s outfits perfectly!”
She held up the carefully chosen pendant, its soft tassels primarily white with tips tinged in indigo. Dangling from one side were two translucent blue-white agate beads, which chimed softly like rippling water in the breeze. Imagining how it would look on Lu Zhao, Shen Qingyao smiled in satisfaction.
Cui Qiao paid the shopkeeper, and the two of them turned to leave. Their clothing, distinctively in style of Great Liang, stood out in Nanzhao. Shen Qingyao couldn’t shake the feeling that many people were watching her—discreetly, but intently.
“Cui Qiao, is there something off about me?” Shen Qingyao frowned. It wasn’t her first time shopping here. If she was attracting this much attention now, the people of Nanzhao must have a slow reaction time.
Cui Qiao shook her head, equally puzzled. “Nothing is off, Miss. I also feel strange!”
Shen Qingyao’s heart skipped a beat with a sense of foreboding. She slowed her pace and tried to listen in on the surrounding chatter. She managed to catch snippets of a conversation nearby.
A well-dressed woman was whispering to another, glancing over occasionally: “Hey! Are those people from Great Liang? How can they still show their faces in public? Shameless!”
“?” Shen Qingyao was completely baffled.
Another person chimed in, “Exactly! That so-called princess from their marriage alliance not only entered the royal court without the king’s summons, but also sneaked into the king’s sleeping quarters and offered herself on his bed! Shameless! And she’s supposed to be a princess? Is she worthy of becoming the new queen?”
“???” Shen Qingyao was even more puzzled.
Should she first laugh at the fact that the trivial matters of the Nanzhao palace were so widely known, or should she first clarify the truth?
Princess Yonghe was clearly brought into the court by their side; how could there be no summons? As for offering herself on the bed, with her proud temperament, it was absolutely impossible. Where did these rumors come from?
Moreover, why did it concern Shen Qingyao at all? Just because she wore the attire of the Great Liang, she inexplicably became the substitute for the princess?
This rumor clearly didn’t exist yesterday. Now, it suddenly spread everywhere. Even if Shen Qingyao was slow to react, she knew that someone must be fanning the flames behind the scenes. She wondered if Lu Zhao and the others had received the news. Her good mood was completely ruined by these few words. Shen Qingyao’s expression darkened, and she lost interest in continuing her leisurely stroll. Pausing for a moment, she decided it was better to go back and wait for Lu Zhao.
Thinking this, she turned without even looking at Cui Qiao and started walking. Unexpectedly, Cui Qiao exclaimed beside her and suddenly pushed her, “Miss! Be careful!”
Shen Qingyao stumbled from the push, and in panic, she looked up to see a speeding carriage dangerously close. Although Cui Qiao had tried her best to push her away, being a girl, her strength was limited, and she couldn’t get Shen Qingyao out of the carriage’s path.
Just as the speeding carriage was about to reach her, Shen Qingyao froze for a moment. When she tried to dodge, her ankle suddenly hurt again, as if she had twisted it.
It seemed fate wanted to take her life.
In her despair, someone shouted loudly, “Wu Ban! Quickly save her!”
Immediately after, a figure leaped out from behind the carriage, grabbed Shen Qingyao by the shoulders, and pulled her aside.
The out-of-control carriage was stopped. Before Shen Qingyao could react, the person who had saved her had already let go of her shoulders. With red eyes, Cui Qiao rushed over, and Shen Qingyao only just managed to come to her senses, feeling a great fear in her heart.
“Thank you.” She turned her head.
The one who had saved her was a tall young man from Nanzhao, with fair skin and handsome features, his youthful face carrying a hint of innocence. As he had not expected Shen Qingyao to thank him specifically, the young man’s face, which had looked cool just a moment ago, blushed slightly. He awkwardly waved his hand and said softly, “No problem.”
As Shen Qingyao recovered from her fright, she found the inexperienced young man in front of her amusing. Just as she was about to say a few more words, someone suddenly emerged from the carriage and shouted at the young man, “Wu Nan, come over here!”
Looking over, Shen Qingyao was stunned to see the Nanzhao princess she had seen before, whom Lu Zhao had later told her was named An’yu.
Princess An’yu was also very surprised to see her. Pointing at Shen Qingyao with astonishment, she exclaimed, “Why is it you?!”
Before Shen Qingyao could speak, Princess An’yu turned back towards the carriage and excitedly shouted, “Sister! Sister! It’s the envoy’s wife!”
“…Huh?”
Just as she was puzzled, another person came out from behind Princess An’yu—Princess An’ya.
How could it be them? Facing her love rival, Shen Qingyao felt somewhat uncomfortable and unconsciously furrowed her brows again.
“Madam Lu, the horse was startled just now and accidentally bumped into you. Are you alright?” Princess An’ya was calmer than Princess An’yu. Upon seeing Shen Qingyao, she immediately came forward to apologize, then added, “Would you like to come into the carriage? We can take you back.”
Shen Qingyao quickly shook her head, “I’m fine, no need to trouble the princess.”
Saying this, she pulled Cuiqiao to leave, but her ankle suddenly throbbed with pain.
…Shen Qingyao cursed inwardly; she had almost forgotten that she had twisted her ankle just now.
The scene was extremely awkward. She was in such pain that cold sweat streamed down her face, but because of the words that had just left her mouth, she had to tough it out.
Princess An’ya smiled and noticed her embarrassment, showing great empathy. “Madam Lu traveled a long way to our Nanzhao and was frightened by my carriage. It is my responsibility both morally and ethically. Madam, please don’t refuse. Get on the carriage quickly!”
Cui Qiao looked worriedly over. Shen Qingyao gritted her teeth. They hadn’t brought a carriage on this trip. If they relied solely on Cui Qiao to help her back to the inn, by the time they reached the post station, her foot would likely be injured beyond repair.
After hesitating for a moment, Shen Qingyao decided that her foot was more important and nodded in agreement.
Princess An’ya beside them brightened instantly, looking at her with great anticipation. As she boarded the carriage, WuU Nan, the young guard, helped her again. Shen Qingyao looked gratefully at him, his face once again flushing. But just as he was about to speak, Princess An’yu nudged him aside.
“Wow! I didn’t expect it to be you! What a coincidence! I’ve been wanting to play with you, but Sister always stops me!” Princess An’yu exclaimed, glancing back at Princess An’ya with a hint of grievance and successfully receiving a warning glare.
Princess An’yu stuck out her tongue but still held onto Shen Qingyao, refusing to let go.
Princess An’yu exerted some force, and Shen Qingyao’s wrist, held tightly, throbbed with pain. She frowned and exerted a bit of strength to break free from those hands. Looking down, she saw that her wrist was indeed red.
Shen Qingyao had no idea what was going on with this young princess today. They clearly weren’t that familiar. Shen Qingyao thought cautiously.
Princess An’yu didn’t get angry when Shen Qingyao broke free. She smirked cunningly, her eyes scanning Shen Qingyao up and down, then switching back and forth between Princess An’ya and Shen Qingyao a few times before suddenly saying, “I heard the princess from Great Liang got married the other day. I was surprised then, but now looking at you, I’m not surprised anymore.”
Shen Qingyao was puzzled for a moment, not understanding what she meant. Then she saw An’ya’s expression change. Princess An’yu’s gaze turned unfriendly as she looked at her and said, “You look quite like my sister. No wonder the envoy from Great Liang married you. Isn’t it that there’s no better girl in Great Liang than my sister?”
With a click of her tongue, she innocently continued, “Otherwise, why do people from Great Liang love playing stand-ins so much?”
Shen Qingyao : ??? What is she talking about?
“I look like An’ya? Where? Is she blind?!” She was so angry that the young princess was so young and blind. She even implied that she and Yonghe were the same, just stand-ins for others?
[Host, calm down, calm down.] The system quickly intervened.
Shen Qingyao took a deep breath, feeling somewhat speechless. It seemed like she had been caught up in the whole stand-in issue recently, but she could accept it with her original identity. It was a bit too much to say she looked like Princess An’ya! Although Lu Zhao did not explain much that day, it seemed he could not possibly like An’ya!
“An’ya!” Princess Anya’s face turned completely black. Before Shen Qingyao could say anything, she preemptively spoke in a harsh tone, “If you dare to speak nonsense again, you’ll be thrown off my carriage!”
Immediately afterward, she turned back with an apologetic look towards Shen Qingyao, “An’yu is still young and doesn’t understand. Please don’t mind her, Madae Lu.”
“…,” Shen Qingyao chuckled inwardly. An’yu might be a bit older than Shen Qingyao, how couls she not understand? “It’s alright, I won’t argue with children.”
“You!” Princess An’yu, scolded by her sister and lightly ridiculed by Shen Qingyao, abandoned her previous pretense of kindness. She glared fiercely at Shen Qingyao, but was stopped by Princess An’ya’s outstretched hand.
Such a low-level attempt to sow discord, logically speaking, Shen Qingyao shouldn’t have felt much about it. She might even find it somewhat amusing. But perhaps because she knew Princess An’ya liked Lu Zhao, being compared to her had made Shen Qingyao feel unusually annoyed.
She glanced lightly at the two in front of her with irritation, then turned her face away. However, she missed the hint of triumph that flashed across An’yu’s face.
The atmosphere suddenly became very tense. No one spoke again until they reached the inn. Shen Qingyao frowned and curtly thanked them before quickly getting off the carriage, ignoring the pain in her ankles.
“What have you done?” As soon as Shen Qingyao left, Princess An’ya shook off An’yu’s hand and demanded sternly.
Princess An’yu was no longer the cautious girl she was just moments ago after being scolded. She came up smiling and hugged An’ya’s arm, as if boasting, “Oh, it’s nothing much, just a little trick. It won’t harm her at all!” She lifted her chin proudly. “Didn’t Elder Sister like that envoy from Great Liang? This thing merely amplifies certain emotions. If their feelings are true, they won’t be affected. But if there’s any discord between them, isn’t this just Elder Sister’s chance? I did this all for you!”
An’ya felt a stir in her heart, unable to pinpoint her emotions. She had noticed when her sister tampered with Shen Qingyao, but hadn’t thought to stop her. A glint of darkness passed through her eyes. “Don’t make a big fuss out of this! If something goes wrong, I won’t be able to protect you.”
An’ya warned with a seemingly stern look, then left.
Anyu snorted lightly, nodded, and nonchalantly said, “I know…”
rokumi’s note : translating this chapter really made me want to slap someone!
I don’t think a slap is enough…
Thanks for the chapter!!!!!!