The silver-haired girl’s crescent-shaped dimple showed as she smiled, her petite mouth revealing a row of pearly white teeth, her smile bright and lively.
So cute.
Sista unconsciously thought so, standing frozen in place like a statue.
At the same time, a surge of sourness and jealousy welled up, tumbling like a storm within her heart.
That girl spends all her time with Su Ling, and ever since the beginning has always worn that resentful, pining expression in front of her, never showing this kind of radiant smile.
She had thought she already possessed all of Su Ling, but the burning sting in her chest clearly told her that, at Su Ling’s side, there was someone else who was closer than she was.
When that girl laughed and joked, she looked so happy, and Su Ling too was carefree and unburdened, their gazes meeting every now and then, so different from how Su Ling was with her.
The more harmonious and intimate the relationship between the maids became, the more deeply her own dissatisfaction grew.
Sista’s expression grew ever more complicated. She gripped the gift in her hands tightly, her fingertips turning slightly pale from the force.
“That person must be the same, right? Not only secretly going off to be close to other women behind my back, but even when she’s with me, is she still thinking about someone else? Doesn’t that mean she hasn’t put me in her heart at all?”
“I hate this… I hate it. You’re supposed to be mine…!”
It’s all the fault of those maids. Because of those women, Su Ling’s heart couldn’t be kept in her own hands!
Why not just make them all disappear! Anyway, as An Muer, the noble Blood Noble Princess, everyone else is just an inferior enemy. As long as she gives the order, all those annoying things around Su Ling can be eliminated!
Murderous thoughts surged up, and Sista took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm the turbulence within.
No, no matter the reason, killing on a whim is not her style. Sista glared at the culprit with a piercing, bloody stare.
Shaking off the bothersome thoughts, Sista turned and walked away, passing through the long corridors of the Castle. Her footsteps grew ever more hurried. At this moment, her mood had reached rock bottom.
So hateful, her mind was filled with nothing but that physician’s face.
The bright, gentle smile that girl showed her was never directed at herself!
She had no appetite to eat, nor could she read at all. Even invitations from the younger Blood Nobles couldn’t stir up the slightest interest.
Back at the study, Sista gritted her teeth and shoved the book of genealogy in front of her. With a “thud,” the pages scattered across the floor, startling the new maid who had just entered.
“Your Highness, wh-what’s wrong?”
“Get out.”
“Ah, this is…”
“Are you deaf? Must I say it a second time?”
Sista didn’t even know what was wrong with herself, only a vast, helpless anger with nowhere to vent.
She started to hate that bothersome Su Ling, hated why Su Ling would treat others with more warmth than herself. Yet, at the same time, she couldn’t help but look forward to Su Ling finishing her other tasks and coming back to her side at lunchtime.
“In any case, I won’t be the one to call her over. If she really cares, she’ll come find me herself.”
Sista muttered to herself, pouting as she gazed out the window.
One minute, two minutes, three minutes… an hour passed.
“It’s not like it matters if I don’t see her.”
Sista picked up her quill and paper, aimlessly scribbling across the page.
A tiny blob, one hour and twenty minutes…
It wasn’t even mealtime yet—why did the morning feel so long?
The new maid was flustered, busy tidying up the room. The carpet was spotless, and the books were sorted and neatly arranged on the shelf, but Su Ling’s shadow was nowhere to be seen.
Yet on the sheet Sista was scribbling on, for some reason, Su Ling’s name began to appear over and over, scrawled densely, covering the entire page.
Before she knew it, there was no space left to write.
Sista could no longer restrain herself. She leapt up, pressing her palms to her face.
Stupid!
“Your Highness, are you alright?” The new maid gasped, dropping the handkerchief in her hand and bumping her toes on the floor.
Sista ignored her completely, striding out the door, leaving only the sound of her high heels tapping against the ground.
“If I don’t use my authority, my things will still come back to me.” She mumbled in a low voice, her mind made up.
Books about humans, human affairs—if she could understand them all through study, surely she could regain control over her beloved plaything.
As she turned to leave, Sista suddenly remembered what Su Ling had said to her that morning.
“…Because you are an unattainable Blood Noble Princess.”
Unattainable? So that’s where the problem is? Or is it something else? Ah, what a bother…
Her mind was awash with all sorts of thoughts about Su Ling.
Sista realized that deep down, her reliance and affection for Su Ling had already surpassed the bounds of master and servant.
Su Ling encountered something rather strange.
Inside the Castle, she felt as if she was being watched.
Ever since around noon, she kept feeling as if a pair of eyes were fixed on her. Whether she was cleaning laundry in the washroom, or stretching in the hallway after lunch, that intense gaze was everywhere, making her uneasy.
But whenever she stopped walking, closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and tried to catch whoever was following her, she found nothing behind her at all.
“Am I imagining things? Or… am I just too tired?”
Su Ling shook her head and continued her work.
In a royal Castle with such strict security, there couldn’t possibly be any suspicious characters sneaking around. She couldn’t figure out why she kept feeling like she was being watched.
Just then, a clear, energetic voice rang out—it was the head maid, Karine, who came bustling over.
“Su Ling, there’s something I need you to do!”
The head maid, Zhan Shanmei, waved at Su Ling. “There are more and more sick people in the Castle lately. The Royal Physicians are overwhelmed. Go help them out for a while, would you?”
Help the physicians… It was rare; the Royal Physician and the servants usually belonged to different departments, and seldom borrowed staff from each other.
Unable to spare any more thought for that strange gaze, Su Ling quickly threw herself into work. She put down what she was doing and looked up at the head maid. “I understand.”
“I knew you’d agree, come with me!”
Following Zhan Shanmei’s brisk pace, Su Ling arrived at the brightly lit, herb-scented infirmary. The physicians bustled around the rows of beds, the air thick with a subtle, almost imperceptible tension.
“Alright, my person is here,” Karine said. “Hurry up and give her some work.”
The leading Royal Physician saw Su Ling and brightened instantly, quickly saying, “Perfect timing. There’s a patient here who needs your care.”
Su Ling followed the physician’s pointing finger and saw a one-eyed woman lying on the bed, her face pale, helplessness written all over her expression.