Chapter 146 -
Xiao Chen’s dark eyes remained fixed on her, the gentle smile on his lips turning into something far more profound and intense.
"Where did you learn that phrase?" Xiao Chen asked softly, his voice dropping into a quiet, almost fragile tone. "The phrase about the bird in the golden cage."
Yueqing blinked, her brow furrowing in genuine confusion. She tilted her head, her hand hovering mid-air near her tea cup.
"What phrase?" Yueqing asked, looking completely baffled.
"You just said it," Xiao Chen pressed on, leaning forward slightly, his eyes searching every inch of her face for a sign that she was playing with him. "’A bird trapped in a golden cage still dreams of the open sky.’ Where did you hear that? Who taught it to you?"
Yueqing scoffed lightly, letting out a small, airy laugh as she picked up her teacup.
"Oh, that?" she replied plainly, taking a quiet sip before setting the cup back down. "I didn’t learn it from anyone. It’s just something I made up—or maybe I read it in a storybook somewhere. It’s not that deep, Your Highness."
Xiao Chen stared at her. Her expression was completely clear, free of any deceit or hidden motive. She truly had no idea what those words meant to him.
To her, it was just a casual remark thrown over tea and pastries. But to him, hearing those exact words come so naturally from her lips felt like a stroke.
[Nine... why is he looking at me like I just solved a riddle from an ancient scroll?] Yueqing whimpered internally, her eyes darting nervously back and forth. [Is this a prince thing? Do royal people get emotional over basic poetry?!]
[System 009: Warning: Target Xiao Chen’s favorability toward Host has unexpectedly increased by 40%. Host, please refrain from quoting tragic poetry to dangerous political figures.]
[I WASN’T QUOTING TRAGIC POETRY! I WAS JUST MAKING SMALL TALK!] Yueqing yelled in her mind, her jaw tightening as she forced a polite, awkward smile back onto her face.
Xiao Chen let out a low, breathy laugh, the lingering paleness on his face finally fading into a soft, genuine glow.
"A storybook..." Xiao Chen murmured softly, his gaze softening in a way that made Yueqing’s stomach do an uncomfortable flip. "Perhaps. But to me, Lady Sue, your words are far more special than you realize."
"Hmm... is that so?" Yueqing murmured, a clever little idea forming in her mind.
If this prince was easily distracted by silly rhymes and storybook lines, maybe she could keep him happy, fed, and completely harmless until Wenzhe returned!
"Then I’ll learn more poetry and read it to you," Yueqing said, tilting her head with a sweet, innocent smile. "Do you like that?"
She fully expected him to brush it off, scoff at her, or give her one of those arrogant royal refusals.
Instead, Prince Xiao Chen completely froze.
The dangerous, calculating third prince, a man feared in the imperial court sat perfectly still under her gaze. Slowly, starting from the tips of his ears, a deep, unmistakable flush rushed straight to his cheeks, and the very tip of his nose turned a bright, dusty red as he blushed profusely. He quickly looked down at his teacup, coughing softly into his hand to hide his sudden embarrassment.
Seeing a grown, scheming prince blush like a flustered teenager over a simple smile, Sue Yueqing stood completely frozen.
Her smile dropped, her hands halting mid-air.
[NINE!] her mind shrieked in absolute, chaotic horror, her internal persona slapping both hands over its face. [WHY IS HE BLUSHING?! HE IS THE VILLAINOUS THIRD PRINCE! HE IS SUPPOSED TO BE PLANNING A COUP, NOT TURNING INTO A TOMATO BECAUSE I OFFERED TO READ HIM POETRY!]
[System 009: Alert: Target Xiao Chen is experiencing severe emotional turbulence. Host’s unintentional charm attack was critical. Current status: Prince Xiao Chen is completely smitten.]
[I WAS BEING SARCASTIC!] Yueqing screamed in her head, staring at the blushing prince in absolute panic. [WENZHE IS GOING TO KILL ME! IF HE FINDS OUT I ACCIDENTALLY SEDUCED HIS POLITICAL ENEMY WITH A BAD POETRY OFFER, HE WILL BURY ME ALIVE RIGHT NEXT TO THE NORTHERN RIDGE!]
Yueqing stared at the soft, dusty pink on the tip of Xiao Chen’s nose, her hand freezing in place.
The way his eyes darted away, the sudden awkward stillness in his shoulders it hit her with a quiet, sharp wave of realization. It was a reaction that reminded her of someone. Someone from a past she had planned on forgetting for the rest of her life.
Her mind went completely blank.
CLATTER!
Her fingers went limp, and the delicate porcelain teacup slipped from her grip, smashing into jagged pieces against the wooden floorboards.
The sharp noise shattered the quiet moment. Xiao Chen’s head snapped up, his blush instantly fading. "Lady Sue?"
"I... excuse me," Yueqing murmured softly, her voice flat and distant. She quickly stood up, brushing past the broken porcelain before he could say another word, and walked briskly out of the balcony area toward a quiet, deserted alleyway behind the teahouse.
Once she was completely alone in the shadows, her breath came out in short, uneven hitches.
[Nine,] she called out, her voice tight. [Show yourself. Right now.]
A faint shimmer of blue-green light flickered in the dark alley, gathering together until Nine manifested into his physical sprite form, hovering silently in the cold air.
[System 009: Host, your heart rate is abnormal. What is—]
"Tell me the name of the empire we are in," Yueqing interrupted, her voice shaking as she stared at the system. "And the name of the current Emperor."
Nine hesitated. The blue-green glow around him flickered nervously, his digital face going completely blank.
[System 009: Host... such background information is irrelevant to your current survival route. You only need to focus on General Wenzhe and—]
"TELL ME!" Yueqing shouted, her sharp voice echoing in the narrow alley.
Her eyes swelled with sudden, heavy tears that threatened to spill over her pale cheeks. She gritted her teeth, her chest heaving as she glared at the floating light. "Tell me the name, Nine! Don’t lie to me!"
Nine let out a long, digital sigh, the blue-green light dimming as he realized there was no hiding it any longer.
[System 009: Fetching core world records... Displaying files.]
A glowing screen expanded in front of her eyes. As Yueqing read the ancient text, her heart completely stopped.
The realization crashed down on her with suffocating weight.
This was her tenth and final mission and it was taking place in the exact same world as her very first mission.
The current Emperor of this empire was her husband from her first life. In that initial mission, she had been Bai Mila, his first concubine. She had lived a grueling, miserable life in the cold palace for six long years alongside her young son, before ultimately being sentenced to death by poisoning.
And that young son... the third prince she had birthed and died for in her first life...
Was Prince Xiao Chen.
The man who was currently sitting upstairs in the teahouse, blushing over a phrase his late mother used to whisper to him.