Page 212

"Your Majesty, I..."

"Zhen hasn't eaten either. Would the two Lord Longs care to join us?" Without waiting for her explanation, Zhao Huangpu turned to Long Ang.

Long Ang chuckled and declined. "Xiaoyang and I didn't need to wait for a beauty to get out of bed before eating. We ate early this morning. Your Majesty and Lord Zhu should enjoy your meal."

"Who said that? I'm hungry." Longyang, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke. He stood beside the Dragon Desk with his arms crossed, still glaring at Zhu Bafu.

"Grain from the Imperial Inner Court isn't as tasty as you think, Lord Long." Zhao Huangpu raised an eyebrow. "How would I know without trying? What, do you want to eat with him alone? Am I one too many?" Longyang aimed those words at Zhu Bafu with a glare.

After being slashed by that inexplicable glare again and again, what could Zhu Bafu say? "If you want to eat, then eat. Why glare at me? His Majesty isn't that stingy."

"Xiaoru, how generous of you on Zhen's behalf." Zhao Huangpu chuckled and brushed a finger over her nose. He said nothing more, summoning a servant to order the meal.

While the eunuchs brought in the food, Zhu Bafu hurried into the Inner Chamber to tie up her hair. Perhaps because everyone here knew she was a woman now, she found them all strange. Long Ang spoke strangely, Longyang looked at her strangely, and His Majesty? He was the strangest of all. She touched the tip of her nose, thinking of how he had played with her hair, the way he looked at her, and the intimate tone of his voice. Every word skirted the edge of flirtation without making anything explicit, yet every word seemed to stress that,