Before she woke up, Qiu Lanxi gently rubbed her face. You know, even the most beautiful person will have flaws after waking up: messy hair, puffiness, bad sleeping posture, dry lips... and some might even snore or grind their teeth.
While this kind of authenticity might be more heartwarming for those close to them, what Qiulanxi needs now is not this kind of authenticity, but a sorrow that can instantly draw people into a sad atmosphere.
This kind of atmosphere is easy to create.
Qiu Lanxi rubbed her eyes hard, and immediately felt the urge to cry again. Then she tidied her hair. Putting everything else aside, her face must not be covered by her hair.
She knew Yan Qingli knew martial arts, but her movements were not large. If she didn't open her eyes, she would only think that Yan Qingli was wiping away tears, and would not think that she was doing this.
Yan Qingli was indeed awake. She was a light sleeper, a lingering effect of the assassination attempt she had suffered in the past. She would wake up at the slightest sound or movement. But at this moment, she instinctively felt that she should pretend to be asleep.
A moment later, Yan Qingli pretended to have just woken up and straightened up. She looked down at Qiu Lanxi. Her eyes were slightly swollen, and her snow-white skin revealed an indescribable fragility. For some reason, Yan Qingli suddenly dared not look directly at those open eyes.
After a moment of silence, she said, "I'm going to court. You don't need to worry about what happened last night..." She paused, then continued, "I will treat you well."
Qiu Lanxi closed her eyes, as if she hadn't heard, but tears streamed down her cheeks and into her hair.
Yan Qingli reached out to wipe away her tears, feeling a little heavy-hearted. She pulled the blanket back up for her and said, "Qingqing, don't be like this. It hurts me to see you like this."
Her tightly closed eyes trembled, her long eyelashes casting a shadow beneath them.
With a sigh, Yan Qingli finally left.
Qiu Lanxi then opened her eyes, her sorrowful expression revealing a hint of a smile.
Look, when it comes to making promises, she subconsciously refers to herself as "this Empress," probably even she knows how untrustworthy such promises are.
However, no matter how well she understood power politics, she was prone to stumbling in areas where she was not good at it. In the eyes of an ambitious person, a precious relationship was not insignificant, but it was not particularly important either.
But when we lose it, we suddenly realize how precious it was; this is the inherent weakness of human nature.
The same applies to relationships. If something comes too easily, it won't be cherished. Even if it is cherished at first, it will gradually be taken for granted.
Qiu Lanxi didn't think Yan Qingli would become love-struck because of this, but as long as she wanted to regain this relationship, her attitude would naturally change, because she would realize that this was not something that could be obtained simply by having power and influence.
Leaving the princess's residence, Yan Qingli was still not in a good mood. She was now in a position of great power. After all, there were still many aftereffects of the great war. Emperor Qinghe could take this opportunity to find out which family had hidden weapons and which family had extra unregistered servants. Emperor Qinghe would not feel at ease entrusting such matters to his court officials or princes.
Court officials will become powerful ministers, and princes will want the throne. Only daughters, princesses who are destined to be far from the center of power, and eunuchs can handle this matter for him, because he is their support. They cannot rely on anyone else.
Yan Qingli was not one to blur the lines between public and private matters; she remained serious when it came to doing her job. Only the observant eunuch noticed that she was in a bad mood today. After all, as the emperor's daughter, she shared the same flaws as the emperor.
If you're feeling bad, no one else should feel good either.
Fortunately, she vented her anger on the person being investigated. As the eunuch who was highly trusted by Emperor Qinghe, he couldn't help but sigh that Princess Shaoguang was actually the one whose temperament was most similar to His Majesty's. As long as someone had any use, she wouldn't even let her anger affect them. Instead, she could flatter them to the point of elation.
But in reality, if they really get carried away, today's events will be remembered and used against them later. Eunuch An bowed humbly and glanced sympathetically at the officials who were acting like elders in front of Princess Shaoguang. Of those who were treated with respect by His Majesty, how many are still in high spirits now?
It's all the same old story: praise them first, then kill them.
Yan Qingli did not intentionally evade the task, but when she went to report to Emperor Qinghe, she was kept behind and given some words. By the time she left the palace, it was already dark. Even though she urged the driver to hurry, she was indeed late when she returned to her residence.
Looking at the lanterns that had been taken down from the courtyard sometime earlier, Yan Qingli pursed her lips slightly before stepping inside.
"Your Highness, you're back? I'll have Chun Su serve the dishes."
Upon seeing Yan Qingli return, Qiu Lanxi went to greet her without hesitation, her face beaming with smiles.
While such behavior might evoke sympathy for a while, it would eventually become tiresome. Moreover, she is a rather sensible and 'smart' person, not a sentimental lover, and has absolutely no need to put on airs.
After all, she couldn't hold back after acting for so long. People are always good at filling in the blanks in their own minds, even if she acts out of character.
Yan Qingli was taken aback by her usual attitude. She had felt sad when she woke up earlier today, but now she showed no signs of sadness at all.
Her makeup was exquisite, and she had a warm smile.
She lowered her eyelashes and responded softly.
The kitchen quickly served the meal. After washing her hands, Qiu Lanxi noticed that Yan Qingli was still staring at her and winked playfully, "Why is Your Highness staring at me? Why aren't you eating?"
Under the dim light, the light gauze dress covering her body made her look somewhat thin, and her snow-white skin seemed to have the texture of ice crystals under the light, but her eyes seemed to be unable to reflect all the light.
Yan Qingli suddenly realized that her pupils were much darker than those of ordinary people.
besides……
Looking at Qiu Lanxi, who only had silk flowers in her hair and no gold or silver jewelry as she usually gave her, Yan Qingli remained silent for a moment before saying, "It's a bit plain."
Qiu Lanxi's expression remained unchanged: "I've been wearing it for a while and I'd like to change into something more elegant. If Your Highness likes it, I can change back tomorrow."
Yan Qingli felt a pang in her heart; that was clearly not what she meant.
In matters of the heart, she was still a novice. Looking at Qiu Lanxi's almost perfect smile, Yan Qingli really didn't know what to say. She even felt that if she brought up what happened last night, the other party could easily brush it off.
But does she really not care at all?
Yan Qingli didn't know, but she didn't want to bring it up again. At least for now, it was actually a good thing for both of them to choose to let go of what happened last night. Bringing it up would be tactless.
Yan Qingli understood this unspoken understanding very well; otherwise, if she insisted on being serious, it would only make both of them uncomfortable in the future.
Having figured this out, Yan Qingli calmed down, stopped looking at her, and ate her meal peacefully.
The room was strangely quiet. It was a quiet place, even though it was usually a quiet place where no one spoke while eating or sleeping. Yan Qingli didn't feel the atmosphere was heavy at all, but now there was an indescribable sense of oppression.
With her brows lowered, Yan Qingli glanced up and saw the other person eating obediently, with excellent table manners.
But in the past, she would often look up and unexpectedly meet her gaze. Sometimes she would hurriedly look away, and sometimes she would wink at her in a quirky way, her eyes seeming to want to crash into her heart, straightforward and passionate.
Yan Qingli finished her meal in silence. She couldn't give the other person what they wanted, so she was able to ignore it all.
Qiu Lanxi, who was eating without having to worry about Yan Qingli's expression for the first time, was in an indescribably happy mood.
After all, trying to flirt while eating can really affect your appetite.
The meal ended with Qiu Lanxi enjoying it immensely while Yan Qingli found it utterly unappetizing. As always, Yan Qingli picked up a book, while Qiu Lanxi, accustomed to this, casually picked up a rope and played with cat's cradle, without disturbing her interest at all.
Yan Qingli felt even more uncomfortable.
In the past, even if she didn't bother her, she would still come close to her, sometimes even distracting her, and she would have to warn her to stop.
She took a deep breath, lowered her gaze, and focused on her book. After a long while, she closed her eyes and finally said, "Come here."
"Your Highness?"
Upon hearing this, Qiu Lanxi immediately put down what she was doing and came over. She even sat on her lap without any hesitation, looking at her with gentle eyes.
Even though everything seemed the same as before, Yan Qingli felt that something was off.
Yan Qingli reached out and touched Qiu Lanxi's face, his nose brushing against hers as he stared intently at her. Under his gaze, Qiu Lanxi lowered her eyelashes slightly, the curve of her lips perfectly flawless.
"Your Highness?"
Yan Qingli didn't speak, but suddenly kissed her. Qiu Lanxi tilted her head back and accepted the somewhat intense kiss, her eyes becoming a little hazy and her cheeks flushing red.
But she still felt something was wrong.
Under her gaze, Qiu Lanxi's smile froze slightly, and she looked at her cautiously: "Your Highness, what's wrong?"
But Yan Qingli clearly felt that she seemed to be saying...
Isn't this exactly what you wanted?
Yan Qingli: "Go to sleep, I'll watch for a little while longer."
"Um."
Qiu Lanxi responded and immediately abandoned her without hesitation, getting into bed without a second thought.
Yan Qingli stared at her back until she lay down, and she didn't look back even once.
She furrowed her brows slightly, staring intently at the book in her hands, reading with more focus than ever before.
Qiu Lanxi nestled under the covers, stretching comfortably, silently counting the time. Only when her inner alarm clock rang did she suddenly speak:
"Your Highness—"
"Um?"
After a moment of silence, Qiu Lanxi said in a low voice, "It's very late."
Yan Qingli put down what she was holding and said calmly, "Coming right away."
She calmly put the book back, and a moment later, Qiu Lanxi felt a hollow beside her, and a familiar scent rushed towards her, pulling her into an embrace.
Qiu Lanxi froze for a moment.
Yan Qingli pinched Qiu Lanxi's chin, lowered his head and gently kissed her, slowly saying, "Sleep."
Qiu Lanxi responded softly and fell asleep in her arms.
Yan Qingli gazed at her, her mood improving slightly.
--------------------
Author's Note:
Yan Qingli: She cares about me, she has me in her heart.
Chapter 29
Yan Qingli has been in a bad mood these past few days. Although her plan was actually going very smoothly, with eunuchs watching over it, Emperor Qinghe did not suspect Yan Qingli's involvement. However, he could clearly see how many others had interfered, and he also knew how foolish Prince Jin was. From now on, this prince, who had too many flaws and was not smart enough, would inevitably be eliminated and would never be able to touch the center of power again, even though he had safely weathered this crisis.
But that was the result of compromises among many parties.
In the end, no one was unlucky, because the blame was ultimately placed on the Prince of Fu's mansion.
Because Prince Fu was destined to have no chance of the throne and was arrogant, he could provide clues to almost every matter in the capital, big or small. After all, his residence had long been infiltrated, and he himself didn't care much about anything except eating, drinking, and having fun. Therefore, whenever something was difficult to handle, the results of the investigation would always make Prince Fu take the blame.
This time was no different, ending with the execution of several servants in the Prince of Fu's mansion. The Prince of Fu also wrote a letter of repentance, after all, he also made mistakes, but his biggest mistake was his failure to manage his subordinates strictly.
It was a mistake he had long been accustomed to.
Regardless, at least on the surface, the matter was resolved. However, Yan Qingli knew very well that in the coming months and until the end of the year, people would continue to fall from grace. But this was none of her concern anymore, because her performance was over. She had been rewarded and promoted by Emperor Qinghe, and that was the end of it. Only Prince Jin's image had plummeted in the eyes of the ministers. As for Prince Fu...
In everyone's eyes, he never really had any image to speak of.
Despite having accomplished such a far-reaching task herself, Yan Qingli felt far less accomplished than before.
Even though everything seemed the same as before, and Qiu Lanxi hadn't thrown a tantrum at her, Yan Qingli still felt that something had changed.
If Yan Qingli used to sometimes feel a bit of a headache because of Qiu Lanxi's behavior, now Qiu Lanxi seems to have completely 'settled down' and no longer harbors any unfounded fantasies. She is gentle, considerate, and understanding, a kind and understanding woman that almost everyone would like.
But Yan Qingli still felt that something was wrong.
This indescribable feeling gripped her, making her lose interest in everything she did.