Chapter 200

Gao Liangui closed his eyes reluctantly and shook his head repeatedly.

He's already tried to persuade her several times, but why won't she listen and insist on making herself like this?

Wu Xuzi stared at her calmly, his expression indifferent, as he watched the master and servant flee in disarray.

Along the way, Qiu Lingyao didn't dare to lift her head, afraid of being seen and becoming a laughing stock in the palace. In particular, she couldn't be seen by Consort Liu. She wouldn't lose to that commoner!

Back in the palace, she dismissed everyone and sat alone at the table, letting the cold tears stream down her burning cheeks. Her face was ashen, and she wept silently.

In the end, it was Granny Wu who was worried. She took some ice, wrapped it in a handkerchief, and quietly walked up to her, saying softly, "Your Highness, let's treat the injury first, otherwise it's too painful."

Qiu Lingyao reached out and wiped away the tears that had seeped from the corners of her eyes. With a heavy nasal tone, she said in a low voice, "I'm fine. I've known for a long time that he's heartless and only loves me. I expected this to happen sooner or later."

"What I hate most is that I still harbored ridiculous expectations. In life, people always yearn for things they can never have. Haha... I was wrong, utterly wrong, hahaha..."

In the end, she laughed and cried at the same time, her eyes filled with mockery but deep sorrow.

"Your Majesty..."

Wu Mama looked at her with worry and heartache. She had been by the Empress's side since she entered the palace, accompanying her from an innocent girl to a scheming and ruthless woman.

The imperial harem is a cannibalistic place. It makes everyone unlike themselves, extinguishes your conscience, buries your humanity, makes you hysterical, and turns you into a terrible person.

But some people still haven't realized that the real culprit is actually the person on the throne.

"I'm tired, you may all leave."

Qiu Lingyao closed her tear-filled eyes, a crystal-clear tear rolling down from the corner of her slightly reddened eye, and the weary last syllable of her voice gradually dissipated into the air.

Seeing her in such pain, Granny Wu's eyes involuntarily reddened. Her mouth opened and closed, but she didn't know what to say. She sighed silently and turned to leave.

The hall fell silent once more. Qiu Lingyao's face gradually contorted into a grimace as she thought to herself, "Qi Wei, you forced me to do this. You have no right to blame me."

………

The Prince's Residence.

Tao Tao moved the soft couch to the windowsill, leaned her upper body against the windowsill, rested her arms on her hands, and looked at the large ginkgo tree rustling in the cool breeze. The leaves tumbled in the air and then slowly drifted down.

Her face was filled with sorrow, and she sighed silently. Tao's mother sent someone to call her back, but she didn't really want to go back.

When she gets back, she'll have to appease them again, and she'll also have to endure the interrogative gaze of Tao's mother from time to time. A few days ago, she said she wanted to find her father, that gambling addict, but she hasn't had time to send anyone to look for him yet.

She rested her chin on her hand, looked up at the full moon that radiated a soft, bright light, and called upon the system in her mind.

But after a long time, there was still no sound, and the system did not respond at all.

She suddenly became anxious. Had the system disappeared? Could it be that the system was really broken?

"System? Minor system? Funeral system?"

The funeral service system is currently undergoing maintenance and upgrades. Please stay tuned!

Suddenly, a cold, mechanical electronic voice echoed in my mind, and then nothing happened. I called it hundreds of times, but there was no response.

"Hey? Why did you suddenly need to do maintenance? You could at least have given me a heads-up."

"Am I ever able to go back?"

Tao Tao groaned, annoyed, and grabbed her hair haphazardly. She wondered if Ji Xian had killed too many people in her name and hadn't processed it yet, which was why it leveled up.

Suddenly, footsteps sounded outside the door, and Rong'er walked in and said, "Princess, Miss Jia Hui has arrived. Shall we let her in?"

Tao Tao turned around, a hint of surprise in her eyes, and asked, "What's she doing here?"

Rong'er shook her head in confusion: "This servant doesn't know either."

She frowned slightly, but still said, "Let her in."

"Yes, Your Highness." Rong'er curtsied and turned to leave.

Not long after, Murong Jia Hui, dressed in a light yellow dress, walked gracefully into the courtyard. When she saw Tao Tao leaning on the windowsill, she paused for a moment, seemingly surprised and taken aback.

But after a short while, she composed herself, a gentle smile appearing on her face, and curtsied to Tao Tao: "Jia Hui greets Princess Huai Min."

Tao Tao rested her chin on her arm, lazily looked up and down, and noticed that the maid behind her seemed to be holding something in her hand.

"Just say what you need to say."

She turned to look at the maid, who handed her a pear wood brocade box. She then stepped forward, opened it, and a set of glittering gold jewelry appeared before everyone.

Murong Jia Hui smiled gently and said, "This is a gold and ruby ​​headdress that my mother gave me when I came of age two years ago. It's a pity that I can't bring out the brilliance of such dazzling jewelry."

"But Jia Hui feels that she is a perfect match for the county princess. From the first moment she saw the county princess, she felt that the county princess had an unparalleled demeanor and extraordinary nobility. Jia Hui believes that the owner of this headdress must be you."

Upon hearing this, Tao Tao burst into laughter, her laughter growing more and more exaggerated until tears streamed down her face, and everyone turned to look at her with puzzled expressions.

Murong Jia Hui was puzzled and confused. She even wondered if she had said something wrong, or if Princess Huai Min didn't like to hear nice things.

She wiped away the tears welling up in her eyes with her fingertips, a smile playing on her lips, her voice soft and drawn out: "Put your things down. Is there anything else?"

Thinking she wouldn't accept it, Murong Jia Hui's eyes showed a hint of surprise. After a moment's hesitation, she said, "Princess, have you ever met the Crown Prince?"

She had heard her mother mention that the banquet might be for selecting a consort for the Crown Prince, but when the Eldest Princess arrived, and given her lowly status, she never found a suitable opportunity to strike up a conversation.

Moreover, she noticed that the Empress's gaze was fixed on the county princess for a considerable period of time.

At the time, she thought the Empress was looking at her, so she tried her best to appear generous and socially adept, so that the Empress could see that she could help the Crown Prince manage the inner court.

Upon hearing this, Tao Tao instantly understood her thoughts. Her eyes flickered, and she reached out her fingertips to twirl a strand of long hair that had fallen onto her shoulder. "So what if I've seen her? What if I haven't?"

Upon hearing the two words "I've seen them before," Murong Jia Hui's expression changed drastically, but upon hearing the following words, she immediately returned to normal.