Chapter 525 Who doesn’t crave novelty?
Chu Xia listened to her princess's powerful and icy words, and her tense little face finally relaxed. She couldn't help but burst out laughing, and shallow dimples appeared on her cheeks.
She nodded vigorously: "It was my fault that I was confused! In my anxiety, I forgot how powerful our princess is!" Yes, how could her own princess be someone who could be manipulated by others?
Lan Xiyue concealed her sharpness and returned to her lazy look. She stood up slowly, her trailing skirt sliding across the smooth floor, and walked silently to the dressing table and sat down.
On the rosewood dressing table, there was a diamond-shaped bronze mirror inlaid, reflecting her bright yet somewhat distant face.
Chuchun had just neatly made the bed. Seeing this, she immediately stepped forward, picked up the warm white jade comb, and gently combed her waterfall-like black hair.
Chu Xia also followed and stood aside, asking softly, "Princess, should breakfast be brought to your room or to the side hall?"
Lan Xiyue closed her eyes comfortably, feeling the gentle touch of the comb teeth across her hair. Her voice was slightly hoarse from waking up in the morning: "It's very cold outside. I'm too lazy to move. Just bring it inside."
"Yes." Chu Xia responded, turned around and lifted the thick brocade curtain. As soon as she stepped out of the warm inner room, she saw the woman who was stopped by An Yi outside the yard. Chu Xia walked forward.
Anya had a perfectly gentle smile on her face, and her voice sounded softly, "Is the princess up? Please let her know."
Chu Xia paused, her eyes scrutinizing her. She looked Anya up and down without hesitation, her tone distant: "Who are you?"
Xing'er, the maidservant next to Anya who was wearing a pink boa, immediately stepped forward and said in a deliberate voice, "This is the eldest lady of our An family!" Her tone seemed to imply that she was trying to save face for her master.
When Chu Xia heard this, she immediately understood and thought to herself, "He's coming already?" Chu Xia remained expressionless, but her eyes turned colder for a moment.
She quickly averted her gaze and nodded perfunctorily: "Wait." Then she turned around and hurried back to the warm room. The brocade curtain fell behind her, making a slight sound.
When An Yi saw this, he quickly disappeared into the darkness.
Xing'er, who was left standing, immediately showed dissatisfaction on her face. She curled her lips at Chuxia's back and muttered softly, "Look, young lady! She's just a maid. But she relies on being by the princess's side and her eyes are so arrogant. She has no manners or etiquette at all!"
The gentle smile on Anya's face remained unchanged, but a barely perceptible gloom flashed across the depths of her eyes.
She turned her head, her voice still gentle, but with an unquestionable warning: "Xing'er, be careful with your words. This is the Regent's Palace, not the backyard of the An Mansion. There are ears on the walls, so don't cause trouble for me." The secret guard just now disappeared in the blink of an eye, and he might be watching them in the dark.
Xing'er was startled by her glance and immediately fell silent, lowered her head, and dared not say another word.
In the inner room, Chu Xia walked quickly to Lan Xiyue with a bit of annoyance. Lan Xiyue opened her eyes, looked at the angry Chu Xia in the bronze mirror, and said jokingly with a smile: "Hey, who bullied our little Xia Xia? Didn't you go to serve breakfast?"
Chu Xia pouted slightly: "Princess! You're still in the mood to joke! That girl outside, the eldest daughter of the An family, she...she's here! She's waiting outside the yard!"
At this moment, Chuchun had just finished tying Lan Xiyue's hair into a bun, pinning it with a kingfisher-emerald phoenix-tail hairpin. Upon hearing this, she put down the jade comb in her hand, her brows furrowed tightly, and her tone was alert: "She's barged straight into the main courtyard so soon? What... is she trying to do?"
Lan Xiyue's calm face was reflected in the bronze mirror. She stood up and walked leisurely to the soft couch covered with a thick velvet blanket in the outer room. She leaned sideways on it, supporting her forehead with one hand, and her wide sleeves slid down, revealing a piece of her white wrist.
A faint, playful smile played at the corner of her lips. Her voice was low, but rang out clearly: "Oh, now that she's here... Chuxia, let her in. This princess wants to see what Miss An, who was 'invited' into the palace by the Empress Dowager, has in mind by rushing to this main courtyard of hers."
Chuxia turned around and went out to pass on the message, and the sound of her footsteps disappeared outside the carved door.
Soon, Anya came in gracefully, her steps light and graceful, with the unique rhythm of a lady from a noble family.
She stopped in the hall, facing the figure reclining on the chaise longue, bowed slightly, her posture respectful, and her voice clear and melodious:
"Your humble servant Anya pays respect to the Princess Regent."
Lan Xiyue didn't even lift her eyelids completely, but just moved her gaze away from the mutton-fat jade pendant she was playing with in her hand and lazily glanced at Anya's figure.
She raised her hand nonchalantly, "Miss An, there's no need to be polite."
"Thank you, Princess Regent." Anya stood up straight as she was told, with a dignified demeanor.
She raised her eyelids, her gaze bold yet perfectly reserved, resting on the figure across from her, practically sunken in the soft brocade pillow. Sunlight filtered through the crimson gauze window lattice, casting dappled shadows on Lan Xiyue's body, accentuating her fair skin and cloud-like black hair. Her languid posture evoked an indescribable charm.
Anya thought to herself: This face is truly blessed, impeccably beautiful. With such a bad reputation and the loss of the Wu State Marquisate, how could the Regent, a man so aloof and aloof from women, actually be attracted to her? A trace of inquiry and subtle contempt flashed across Anya's eyes.
But…men, especially those in high positions of power, are always eager for novelty after trying something new. Furthermore, the Queen Mother's dislike for this princess was palpable.
Anya remembered the hint given by the nanny beside the Queen Mother before she entered the mansion. The secret ambition in her heart grew like a vine. The Queen Mother wanted her to replace Lan Xiyue.
She, Anya, was a master in music, chess, calligraphy, painting, housekeeping, and management, and she was gentle and sensible. How could she be inferior to a fool with nothing but good looks? She was confident that, given time, she would win the favor of the Regent and secure the position of Princess.
Lan Xiyue naturally didn't miss Anya's almost scrutinizing, blatant gaze. Her red lips curled slightly, a hint of a smile forming. Her beautiful phoenix eyes finally opened fully, locking onto Anya's gaze with a hint of amusement and a touch of coldness.
"Miss An," Lan Xiyue's voice was slightly hoarse as if she had just woken up, but every word was clear, "Is there something dirty... on my face? It made you stare at it the moment you entered the door, huh?" She raised the end of her voice slightly, with a sense of oppression that could not be ignored.
The smile on Anya's face froze for a moment, then turned into a hint of just the right amount of embarrassment.
She hurriedly lowered her eyelids, her long eyelashes trembling like frightened butterfly wings, and her voice was filled with a bit of panic: "Princess, please forgive me! It's not like that at all! It's just...it's just that your princess is so beautiful and stunning. When I first saw her, I was distracted for a moment and forgot the rules. It's really...I have overstepped the boundaries." She bowed slightly, keeping a very humble attitude.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
