"Hey, what are you doing? Why so mysterious?"
"You... Hua Xiangwan? You're not..."
"You're dead, so now I'm a ghost, here to take your life."
"Hmph, since I'm already dead, dying again isn't so bad."
Hua Wanqing slowly backed away, and just as her hand grabbed a porcelain bottle next to the bookshelf, a pebble hit her with a "thud".
And then, that was it. Hua Wanqing was tied up by Xiang Wan and thrown into the secret room behind the bookshelf.
Xiang Wan sat casually in Hua Wanqing's seat, picked up her calligraphy brush, glanced at the letters on the desk, and continued writing.
It was a letter to General You Qing, who was guarding the border, seemingly summoning her back to Huadu.
The king has been missing for less than three days, and no news has been released to the outside world. Hua Wanqing is already so eager to usurp the throne. She's too impatient.
She instructed her servants to find her a clean set of clothes, and then, in a grand and imposing manner, she assumed the role of the second princess of the Flower Kingdom.
Half-sisters, even if they share the same mother but different fathers, will inevitably bear some resemblance. With a little makeup and mimicking each other's expressions and mannerisms, no one except very close friends or family members would be able to tell the difference.
Fortunately, although Hua Wanqing had several husbands, she wasn't one to lust after men. Whether or not to hire men to serve her was ultimately Xiang Wan's decision.
It was late at night, and no one came to urge Xiang Wan. Usually, if Hua Wanqing was tired, she would sleep directly in the study, which provided a convenient option for Xiang Wan.
The second princess, who was even more diligent than the king, did not use her mind for the right things.
Xiang Wan blew out the light in the study and got up to go into the secret room.
Another place that provides her with convenience, she feels she would be doing herself a disservice if she didn't do something about it.
Xiang Wan lit the candles by the wall, creating a dim, shadowy scene. She stood in the corner with her hair disheveled. A pebble was thrown at her, and Hua Wanqing woke up.
"Hua Wanqing, you have disappointed me greatly!"
Hua Wanqing was slightly taken aback, her eyes focusing on Xiang Wan, trying to figure out who it was.
"Back then, seeing your outstanding abilities and good character, I even considered entrusting the Flower Kingdom to you. Alas, I misjudged you in the end."
That sigh, just like in my memory, was a sigh of helplessness and guilt towards her, but now it had turned into disappointment.
The candlelight in the room flickered without any wind, and Hua Wanqing seemed to see the figure she had admired since childhood. The difference was that the figure never faced her.
"Why? Mother Queen, tell me, am I your biological daughter?"
"From childhood to adulthood, your eyes have always only been on Hua Xiangwan. Have you ever paid any attention to me?"
“You want her to be well-versed in military strategy? Fine, I’ll work even harder than her. You want her to practice riding and archery? Fine, I’ll be a hundred times more diligent than her. You want her to be well-versed in the laws? Fine, I’ll memorize all the laws of the Flower Kingdom. I’m working so hard, why can’t you see it? No matter what I do, in your eyes, I’m nothing more than an accompaniment to Hua Xiangwan. Her flirtatiousness, debauchery, and unruliness are all seen as intelligence and unconventionality in your eyes. My self-discipline, humility, and respectfulness are seen as conformity in your eyes.”
"Why is this so unfair to me, just because she was born a quarter of an hour earlier than me? I refuse to accept this! This country belongs to me, and only I can ensure its prosperity and lasting glory for generations to come!"
"She's dead, you know that? She jumped off a cliff for a man, hahaha, this is the ruler you chose! Hahaha, she's destined to become history, while I, Hua Wanqing, should be written into history books for posterity to admire!"
"Treason and betrayal, is that your bargaining chip for becoming the ruler?" Xiang Wan said coldly.
"This is the means!" The fervor in Hua Wanqing's eyes had not yet dissipated. "To achieve one's goal, one must stop at nothing. This is what you taught me since I was a child."
"What I taught you first and foremost was how to be a human being! You have no bottom line, no principles. If I could, I would rather you had never been born!"
"You finally said it! You finally said it! Hahahaha, hahahahahaha! From the moment I was born, you've never treated me like your own daughter, have you?"
"..."
This is the first time I've ever heard Hua Wanqing have this idea.
"So, you deserve to die, Hua Xiangwan deserves to die! Even my father won't help me, he just keeps telling me not to fight, not to snatch. He deserves to die, you all deserve to die!"
...
Xiang Wan rubbed her ears. What had she just heard?
My heart started pounding and I couldn't calm it down.
Xiang Wan understood that this was the original owner's emotions churning.
In the received storyline, there was never any mention of how the original owner's mother, Empress Hua Wuyi, died. It seemed that Hua Wanqing's father fell seriously ill, and Hua Wuyi was overwhelmed with grief, lost interest in politics, handed over state affairs to the original owner, and then passed away.
As for the original owner's father, he also seemed to have passed away around that time. He died peacefully, murmuring the name of Hua Wuyi.
The original owner of the body at that time had grown up and was capable of standing on her own, so there was no major trouble in the Flower Kingdom when the power was transferred.
"Hua Wanqing!!"
"What, are you angry? Furious? Hahahaha, you didn't expect this, did you? You've all been manipulated by me. I'm going to show everyone in the Flower Kingdom how licentious and tyrannical their ruler is, how blind they are! Without comparison, how will they know that I, Hua Wanqing, am the most suitable ruler? Anyone who stands in my way, anyone who looks down on me, may all die!"
"Wanqing, we are all your family!"
He spoke with a choked voice, which became that of a man. The helplessness and sorrow he expressed through his voice were enough to bring tears to the eyes of those who heard it and to make those who listened sigh.
Hua Wanqing's eyes gradually reddened, filled with hatred and pain, yet this did not diminish her ambition to seize the throne. "Father? You're already dead, what are you doing back here? I, Hua Wanqing, am naturally intelligent and exceptionally talented, yet I have a father who is content with the status quo, only knowing how to talk about love and serve women tea and water. You are not worthy of giving birth to me. My father should be a man who paves the way for me and lends me a helping hand, not a coward like you who is so weak that he doesn't even dare to compete for the position of Empress!"
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