Chapter 10: Giving Herself Away
The summer breeze stirred gently, and the candle flame flickered.
Two silhouettes drew steadily closer.
The Princess Consort of the Southern Pacifying King ranked first on the Tang Kingdom's rouge ranking, a beauty of unparalleled grace.
Now, she was within arm's reach.
No matter how much self-restraint Fang Yang possessed, he was finally struggling to hold himself back.
His breathing grew faster and more erratic.
And this sight only further confirmed the princess consort's suspicions.
The fiend held the eight corners of the world beneath his heel and had always been ruthless and domineering. When had he ever lost his composure like this?
He must have suffered cultivation deviation.
The shadows drew closer and closer...
Han Lingxuan grew increasingly excited as well, clenching her teeth, bone-deep hatred flashing in her eyes.
She had already slipped out her jade-adorned hairpin.
She gripped it in her palm.
"Fiend, go and d-mmph."
The first light of dawn tore through the darkness.
Wutong Courtyard.
The once serene, elegant room was now in utter disarray.
At that moment, a stunning young married woman lay on the bed, her hair disheveled and her flawless oval face filled with bewilderment.
She looked like a piece of rotting wood, her soul utterly lost.
"Your Highness?"
"Your Highness, don't frighten me!"
"Please wake up!"
The little maid stood beside the bed, shaking Han Lingxuan with a sob in her voice.
Only after a long while did Han Lingxuan come to her senses. She stared blankly at the little maid's tear-streaked face before her.
"Ling'er, what happened last night?"
"L-last night, that fiend bullied you."
Ling'er wept, her eyes full of heartache.
"Wah... Your Highness, that fiend is far too vicious and cruel. You're no match for him."
"Can't we just live peacefully here in Wutong Courtyard and stop provoking him?"
The little maid's eyes were swollen from crying, and her voice even carried a pleading note.
"..."
The princess consort was speechless.
She had taken Ling'er in off the streets, and the girl had stayed by her side ever since. Timid and shy by nature, she rarely interacted with outsiders, and she was still young.
There were many things she did not understand.
She thought her mistress had merely been bullied, just as she herself had been bullied by the other maids in the prince's residence.
But while the little maid did not understand, she did.
She had been defiled by the fiend!
Just last night, after she had made every preparation, the fiend had suddenly unleashed his beastly lust.
All her schemes had become a joke.
She had truly lifted a stone only to smash her own foot.
What on earth had happened?
Where had things gone wrong?
Wasn't the fiend impotent?
She had verified that point many times. It was beyond any doubt!
Why had she ended up being violated instead?
Could it be...
The fiend had spent that month in death seclusion to cure his private ailment.
And now he had recovered completely?
That had to be it. It was the only possibility left.
Thinking of all her supposed meticulous planning and how triumphant she had felt last night, Han Lingxuan wished she could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.
Strictly speaking...
The fiend had not forced her at the beginning.
Instead, she had delivered herself into his jaws, one step at a time.
Not only had she been utterly oblivious, she had even been smug about it.
So stupid!
So arrogant!
There was nothing left to live for!
At that moment, Han Lingxuan truly despaired.
Her eyes were empty and lifeless.
She did not even answer the little maid, leaving Ling'er frantic.
Tears pattered down.
"Your Highness, are you still planning to take revenge on that fiend? He's really vicious."
"If you insist on taking revenge, I'll go with you. If that fiend wants to hit you, he can hit both of us."
Ling'er sobbed, looking utterly pitiful.
The princess consort let out a long sigh. She had just tried to rise when she felt an unbearable ache throughout her body, as though her very bones were about to fall apart.
Her delicate brows drew together. Enduring the pain, she sat up and stroked Ling'er's hair.
Then she picked up a wooden basin, tossed in a couple of changes of clothes, and silently headed toward the Back Mountain Hot Spring.
Perhaps it was time to consider what path she should take from now on.
Mist curled through the air, and steam rose from the spring.
The Princess Consort of the Southern Pacifying King sat bathing in the spring, her cheeks flushed, her beauty as vivid as a blossom heavy with dew.
Beside her floated a cat.
The White Snow Lion Cat.
The cat was gazing at her resentfully.
Through the long, long night before, the Lion Cat had stayed in the room the entire time.
Early that morning, the cat had come to the hot spring.
The cat had even arrived a little before the princess consort. That unblinking stare left her inexplicably guilty and uneasy.
As though she had committed a betrayal.
In the end, she deliberately ignored the cat and began thinking about her own affairs. Before long, her mind was a tangled mess.
In truth, despite her exalted position as the Princess Consort of the Southern Pacifying King, she was merely an ornamental vase in the prince's residence.
Her life had not been particularly pleasant.
Especially after the Southern Pacifying King passed away, her days had become even harder.
The entire residence was steeped in intrigue and scheming, leaving her utterly exhausted.
By comparison, these three years in Wutong Courtyard seemed far more peaceful and pleasant.
Even the restlessness of recent days had vanished completely after last night...
Last night...
The moment those two words crossed her mind, the princess consort's expression grew complicated. Her gaze turned hazy, and she bit down hard on her crimson lip.
Then... murderous intent surged.
She had hated the fiend already. Now, a blood-deep feud had been forged between them.
Neither could rest until the other was dead!
Revenge! She had to take revenge!
The Princess Consort of the Southern Pacifying King gritted her teeth and began thinking once more.
She had already reviewed everything. This failure had nothing to do with her own abilities. It was purely because she had not known the fiend had completely cured his hidden ailment.
That was why she had swallowed such a huge... loss!
Now that she knew the fiend inside and out, she could devise a far more detailed plan.
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