Lao Zhan stared at Xi Bao in stunned anger, the two of them simply gazing at each other for quite a while.
Neither spoke a word until a few nuns hurried past them, the sound of their footsteps breaking the heavy silence.
“All right, that’s enough of the story,” Tii said with a smile as she stood up.
“It’s getting late, let’s hurry back to the Royal Palace.”
Su Ling, why did you want to share this story with me?
Such a question lingered in Su Ling’s heart, but she did not voice it, for the answer hovering on the tip of her tongue made her heart ache faintly.
She and Su Ling walked together to the door, facing the bustling square, then made their way toward the Royal Palace.
Life inside the palace was completely different from outside.
Returning from the lively city felt like stepping straight into a deep, oppressive cellar. That sense of dreariness lingered in Su Ling for several days.
The lighting indoors was never quite enough.
Row upon row of benches lined up neatly beside wooden tables, their corners already showing the scars of years; hanging banners and wild hawk pelts of incredible value only made the solemn atmosphere heavier, as if even breathing was suppressed.
Since Lier began to suspect something, the palace was filled with all sorts of baffling new rules and taboos. Everyone moved with extreme caution, terrified of offending the noble Princess.
But of course, there were exceptions.
“Such a mess—”
Tii forcefully pushed open the main hall doors, planning to head to the tavern, but was suddenly stopped by a booming voice coming from the open space between the front hall and the foreign courtyard.
In the center of the courtyard, two tall and imposing knights, clad in ornate armor, stood with their hands behind their backs.
One of them, with a voice both deep and booming, was sternly scolding two guards with bruised and swollen faces.
That voice was like thunder—despite the distance, one could still feel the weight and pressure of his words.
What’s going on here?
A surge of curiosity rose in Tii’s heart. Tii tiptoed closer, wanting to see what was really happening.
Nearby, the maids, like a flock of noisy sparrows, were chattering excitedly about this dramatic scene.
“Heavens, they actually started fighting inside the castle, how utterly disgraceful,” one maid whispered with a gasp.
Another, a male, eagerly chimed in, “This will be interesting. Sir Tang Wan definitely won’t let those two off lightly.”
“What happened?”
At that moment, a male servant also came over with curiosity.
The female servants all started talking at once, their voices overlapping. Tii listened patiently for a while before piecing together what had happened.
It seemed that, in order to get a reward for providing clues about the city’s smuggling, these two guards—already bitter rivals—framed each other. Each tried to report the other, and eventually their lies were exposed, leading to a fierce fight.
While the women found the scene entertaining, the male servant did not. He just shook his head with a sigh and passed by Su Ling.
Su Ling heard him mutter quietly to himself, “Sigh, I really don’t know what women find so amusing about this. There’s not even going to be a spring festival this year, which clearly bodes ill…”
The Royal Anniversary Celebration was one of An Tangersmi’s most important festivals, held to commemorate the founding of the Kingdom.
Every year, King Steyat would invite local nobles, high-ranking clergy, foreign envoys, as well as the city’s prominent merchants and famous scholars to the capital, Veil, to celebrate together.
Now, with less than two weeks left before the festival, there was not a hint of preparation in the castle. Not even the ordinary servants had received orders to start decorating.
The shadow of war and conspiracy still hung over the city. The more oppressive the times, the more people yearned to use festivals to dispel the fear within their hearts.
It wasn’t just the servants and nobles.
The commoners in the city were even more eager.
When Su Ling went out a few days ago, she saw many vendors selling candles and decorations for the celebrations.
No one knew when war might come. If that’s the case, why not enjoy the present while you still can?
Ignoring the crowd of onlookers, Su Ling followed the arrangements and collected the wine, returning to the kitchen to busy herself with the cook for a while.
Afterwards, as usual, she took the afternoon tea snacks and headed to Sista’s study.
It was almost time to deliver the milk.
She pushed open the door, only to find the room empty. Only that diehard fan of Sista, Sara, was cleaning the carpet, humming some out-of-tune song.
“Did Her Highness go somewhere?” Su Ling asked Sara.
“Huh? I think she was heading toward the rooftop,” Sara replied without even looking up, then started muttering to herself again.
“Strange, why can’t I find even a single strand of fallen hair in the study? I’ve been searching all morning…”
Cherish the beautiful life, never forget to support your idol! Let’s go!
Su Ling muttered a quick thanks, then carried the tray of afternoon snacks out of the room. Following the spiral staircase, she made her way toward the top of the tower.
The stone walls seemed to stretch endlessly upward, and the sound of wind grew louder with every step. Finally, she reached the top of the castle tower. A head of silver hair danced wildly in the wind, half-obscuring her line of sight.
“Why did she suddenly run up here…” Su Ling muttered in frustration.
Glancing around, she saw the place was completely empty. Not even the guards who usually patrolled here were present—only the sound of wind howling past her small frame.
Strange, is this the right place? Why isn’t Sista anywhere to be seen?
Could it be that Sara lied? Maybe Sista had already left.
Su Ling sighed, gathering her long hair behind her head, preparing to leave. Just then, she sensed something was off.
At the top of the castle’s pointed tower, there seemed to be a shadowy figure.
Instinctively, she stepped back two paces to widen her view, then looked up.
The golden rays of sunset flowed down like waves, and atop the ancient rampart, a black-haired girl in black stood tall.
She gazed silently at the world beneath her feet. Her long hair, like a waterfall in the night, fluttered lightly in the wind, interwoven with the solemn scenery all around, forming an almost dazzling sight.
Sista? Why did she go up there?
“Your Highness! Don’t do anything rash—!”
Su Ling blurted out the words before she could stop herself, then regretted it. The next moment, Sista’s gaze shifted over, her eyes as if she were looking at a startled bird.
“I would never do something so foolish… Why did you come up here?”
She asked coldly from above.
“It’s time for your afternoon tea,” Su Ling tried to lift the tray in her hands so Sista could see it. “I even brought it all the way up here for you to enjoy…”
Sista looked speechless and let out a sigh.
“Put that down, then come over here.”
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