When the Empress Dowager arrives, Crown Prince Li Zhaoxian must go to greet her; he cannot stay here for too long.
"Song Tangxue, you're lucky this time," Li Zhaoxian warned her menacingly. "Don't even think about bullying Ali while I'm not around, or I'll make you regret it!"
Finally, he looked at Song Tangli with heartache, his tone gentle, and his fingertips brushed across the girl's cheek: "Take care of yourself, Tangli. I'll come find you later."
Song Tangli swallowed the resentment in her eyes and smiled, putting on a considerate and magnanimous appearance: "If you have something to do, go ahead and do it. Don't worry about me. I'm all grown up now and can take care of myself."
Li Zhaoxian looked at her affectionately: "If you have been wronged, please tell me."
Before leaving, he glared at Song Tangxue one last time.
Completely unconcerned, Song Tangxue lowered her eyes and immersed herself in the world of the book. It was a travelogue written by a great Confucian scholar from the previous dynasty, and the world depicted in the book was a world she had never seen before.
The choice of words and sentence structure seemed to bring that magnificent brilliance to life before one's eyes, inspiring longing in the heart.
It was dazzling and captivating; she would definitely go see it for herself if she had the chance.
As soon as the Crown Prince left, Song Tangli stopped pretending, propped herself up to stand up, and sneered, "Did you see that, sister? Crown Prince still cares about me."
"No matter what I do, my brother the Crown Prince will always be on my side."
As if gripping something tightly in her hand, Song Tangli was rather strong on the outside but weak on the inside. In Song Tangxue's eyes, she was like a paper tiger, easily broken, yet she still stubbornly maintained her airs.
Song Tangxue concealed the mockery in her eyes: "So what are you trying to say?"
"Don't worry, I won't compete with you for Li Zhaoxian. I will also wish you and your Crown Prince brother a harmonious marriage."
Let them be a loving couple on their way to the underworld.
Song Tangxue's lukewarm attitude angered Song Tangli, whose eyes flashed with fury: "I had no intention of competing with you for the Crown Prince's affections, but he can't bear to part with me, can't bear to part with the bond we've shared since childhood, so I have no choice..."
"Smack."
A loud slap landed on Song Tangli's clean, fair face, interrupting her words. Her cheeks quickly flushed red, and as she touched her cheek with the tip of her tongue, a stinging sensation struck.
Song Tangli touched her cheek in disbelief; her fingers stung as if being pricked by needles.
The pain was so pervasive that it nearly numbed her face.
Song Tangli looked at Song Tangxue in shock. How dare she? The Empress Dowager was also at Huguo Temple. Wasn't she afraid that her actions would be exposed?
"What, didn't you like playing the victim? This slap will keep you pretending for a long time." Song Tangli smiled, her eyes crinkling like a kitten's. "Aren't you going to thank your elder sister?"
Song Tangli's anger flared up instantly: "Song Tangxue, don't push your luck! Do you really think I wouldn't dare to take this matter to the Empress Dowager?"
"And all your past actions, let the Empress Dowager judge for me!"
Song Tangli spoke these words with a fierce but cowardly expression, rubbing her face and gritting her teeth, as if she wanted to pounce on Song Tangxue and tear a piece of flesh from her body.
They were watching her intently.
Song Tangxue sneered dismissively: "The Empress Dowager is not like those fools in the Song family and the blind Crown Prince. She has seen all kinds of schemes and tricks in her life."
"Why don't we guess who will suffer if this matter reaches the Empress Dowager? Do you really think I don't know about the Song family's scheme?"
Song Tangxue said leisurely, "Besides, this slap was just to discipline my disobedient half-sister. What will the Empress Dowager say about me?"
The imperial family is very particular about the hierarchy between legitimate and illegitimate children. Song Tangli gritted her teeth, tears welling up in her eyes, her hands clenched into fists, her face filled with suppressed resentment: "Song Tangxue, you are very good."
Song Tangxue wasn't afraid of her causing trouble; on the contrary, she was afraid that she wouldn't cause trouble.
Otherwise, there would be much less fun, and you wouldn't be able to find fault with her and make her pay the price she deserves.
These words left Song Tangli speechless, and she slunk away, leaving behind those words.
Haitang bumped into the doorway and glared at her fiercely. Haitang walked into the room, bewildered: "What's wrong with Second Miss? She's acting like a shrew, kicking people like that."
"Who knows? The Empress Dowager is here. Come and help me wash up. We're going to see her." Song Tangxue got up and changed her clothes.
I found a simple, elegant blue robe and put it on.
After asking the young eunuch, Song Tangxue found the room where the Empress Dowager was.
Before even entering the door, I heard Tang Li's annoying voice: "Your Majesty, as soon as I heard you were coming, I couldn't wait to come and admire your face."
"People outside have praised you as being unparalleled in the world, which I didn't believe at first, but now it seems they've underestimated you."
"Looking at you, you could easily pass for a 18-year-old."
Her voice was soft and delicate, yet she used the same tactics she used to deal with men on the Empress Dowager, exaggerating and making things up. She was utterly incompetent.
Song Tangxue lowered her eyes and went into the inner room. The room was crowded with people, and all the worshippers from the temple had arrived, making her, who had arrived late, quite conspicuous.
Unaffected, Song Tangxue knelt down respectfully to pay her respects.
The Empress Dowager wore a high-necked black robe with wide sleeves, adorned with dark red embroidery. The dark patterns on the robe were made of dark ink-colored silk thread, and with every movement and turn, the flowing patterns on the robe seemed to come alive. The Empress Dowager, sitting high in the main seat, looked down at her.
He glanced at her discreetly, without telling her to get up: "Why are you so late?"
The Empress Dowager was displeased. She picked up her teacup, took a small sip, and stared at the figure on the ground with her narrow eyes.
Song Tangli, her eyes gleaming with undisguised schadenfreude, sat down next to Li Zhaoxian and looked at Song Tangxue with an arrogant air.
So what if she's the Crown Princess? As soon as I entered the room, Li Zhaoxian called me over and personally introduced me to the Empress Dowager.
The Empress Dowager even nodded and praised her, saying, "Good child."
"Oh my, where did this beast come from!" A woman suddenly stood up, patting her chest and looking at a snow-white fox that had appeared in the hall at some unknown time with surprise and disbelief.
The ladies had never seen such a wild animal before, and some of the more timid ones watched it warily, their bodies tense.
The fox walked in a strange way, its hind leg seemingly injured. It limped around the ladies' feet and headed straight for Song Tangxue, hiding behind her and peeking out.
It has a certain spirituality.
The Empress Dowager's tense body relaxed a bit, and even Song Tangxue, who was looking at the fox with affection, felt better.
The lady realized she had lost her composure and hurriedly apologized and sat down.
"I ran into this little thing when I came out. It had injured its right leg, and I happened to know a little about medicine, so I bandaged it up for it."
She said with some helplessness, "I've wasted time, and I don't know how it managed to catch up with me here. Please forgive me, Your Majesty."
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