Chapter 14: Zhongli Zhengzhen’s Invitation
Lihua tossed and turned in bed for a long time before silently rising.
The room was pitch black, with no light to be seen. The attendants were all outside, as he never allowed anyone to stay in the room with him.
He lit a candle, cradled it in his hands, and slowly walked to the dressing table, where he sat down.
His long hair was loose, and he wore only his inner garments. He lifted his gaze, his bright, star-like eyes meeting his reflection in the mirror.
This face was familiar to him.
Yet each time he saw it, it felt strange.
Lihua stared into the mirror for a long while before pulling open a drawer in the dressing table. From it, he retrieved a jade-green bottle.
He then took a brush, dipped the tip into the narrow mouth of the bottle, and soaked it thoroughly. Gripping the brush, he slowly moistened the area where his face met his neck.
It had been a long time since he had seen “himself.”
The dampened side of his face slowly revealed a seam so fine it was almost imperceptible to the naked eye.
Lihua set down the brush, reached out to pinch the edge of the seam, and slowly peeled it away. What came off was something that clung almost perfectly to his cheek, indistinguishable from human skin.
If Princess Duanrong hadn’t suddenly taken an interest in him because of his eyes—which he couldn’t conceal—he might have almost forgotten who he truly was.
He looked into the mirror but was startled by what he saw, immediately knocking the mirror away.
The sudden loud noise startled the attendants waiting outside.
“Eldest Young Master, what happened?” Tianjiao’s voice came through, tinged with anxiety.
Lihua didn’t respond, and those outside didn’t dare enter without permission.
He sat for a moment before rising to pick up the bronze mirror that had rolled onto the floor.
Standing before the mirror, he lowered his head and stared at the face that was even more unfamiliar to him—one he had never dared to confront—for a long time without moving.
Fortunately, after tonight… she had received a response from the person she truly desired. She would surely no longer harbor any improper thoughts about him because of his eyes.
Princess Duanrong would definitely not come looking for him again.
Meanwhile, Gan Qiongying was at a banquet in a waterside pavilion along the famous Huishui River in Yindu.
It was a banquet hosted by Zhongli Zhengzhen, the male lead of this book, gathering all the royal relatives and noble sons of the Nanzhao Kingdom.
Tonight’s theme was flower appreciation and poetry composition.
Along the entire Huishui River, countless boats adorned with colorful silk ribbons were lined up around the pavilion. These were the famous courtesans of the renowned pleasure house in this book, the Hundred Beauties Pavilion.
How could such a banquet be complete without song, dance, and beautiful women to liven things up?
However, Zhongli Zhengzhen was a proper man and didn’t let the banquet descend into debauchery. The courtesans’ performances were merely observed from across the water.
The sight made the young noblemen’s hearts itch. The ordinary beauties they were used to now seemed like celestial beings descending to earth under the glow of the water lanterns, graceful and enchanting.
The sounds of string and wind instruments, the clinking of wine cups, and laughter filled the air. Those inspired by poetry wielded their brushes with flourish, and laughter echoed along the banks of the Huishui River.
Seated to the right of the banquet’s host, Gan Qiongying’s face was slightly pale.
Her heart ached, a sharp, twisting pain.
This was already a much milder state compared to the beginning… when the pain had been so intense she felt like she was pedaling a bicycle on the ground.
The cause… was her refusal of the banquet invitation.
She had been perfectly content in the Princess Manor, lying idly in her room, swinging her legs and nibbling on snacks.
She couldn’t have been more carefree.
But suddenly, someone came to report that Zhongli Zhengzhen had invited her to a banquet by the Huishui River.
Gan Qiongying had been living too secluded and comfortable these days, and for a moment, she couldn’t recall who Zhongli Zhengzhen was.
But once she remembered, her first reaction was shock.
Zhongli Zhengzhen… he was the male lead of this world!
But why would the male lead invite a villainous female supporting character to some banquet?
After all, in the original plot, Zhongli Zhengzhen had never shown the slightest courtesy to Princess Duanrong, yet Princess Duanrong didn’t care at all. She was completely obsessed with chasing after him, not even able to hold his hand, and ended up falling behind his horse, injuring herself so badly she was bedridden.
But Gan Qiongying knew that the original body hadn’t just been bedridden—she had died. Otherwise, how could she have transmigrated into this body?
Yet Zhongli Zhengzhen suddenly sent someone to invite Princess Duanrong to a banquet. Something unusual was definitely afoot!
Gan Qiongying was definitely not the type of reckless character in dramas who would rush to investigate at the slightest sound.
She made a decisive decision and sent Manyue, who had recovered somewhat and had the sharpest tongue, to decline the invitation.
But unexpectedly, not long after, Gan Qiongying began experiencing sudden heart pain.
It hurt so much that she cried out in agony, breaking out in a cold sweat all over, feeling as if she were about to ascend to the heavens.
She summoned the mansion physician, but after taking her pulse, he couldn’t find anything wrong. He covered her body in acupuncture needles like a porcupine, yet it provided no relief at all.
At first, Gan Qiongying also thought she had suddenly fallen ill. She began to wonder if she had eaten something unclean, done something she shouldn’t have, or perhaps been poisoned?
But her food and drink that day had been ordinary, and she hadn’t even left the Princess Manor. The only unusual thing was that she had her maid decline Zhongli Zhengzhen’s banquet invitation.
And when she thought of this, the pain in her chest actually eased slightly.
Gan Qiongying silently mouthed a curse, closed her eyes, and grumbled inwardly, trying hard to recall the plot.
Finally, from her distant memories, she remembered that there was indeed such a scene in the original plot.
However, in the original plot, Zhongli Zhengzhen had invited the newly appointed top scholar, Liu… Liu something or other?
In any case, the remaining nobles and aristocrats had attended voluntarily, and Princess Duanrong only found out about it after the banquet had already begun, then eagerly rushed over.
Naturally, such a banquet wouldn’t be complete without scenes to deepen the relationship between the male and female leads. In the original plot, the female lead was Zhongli Zhengzhen’s honored guest, and there were also other noblewomen from aristocratic families in attendance.
The customs of the Nanzhao Kingdom were open-minded, with freedom in marriage and divorce between men and women. Even relationships between men did not need to avoid public scrutiny. Therefore, eligible men and women in the Imperial City often attended various banquets together.
Of course, while these aristocratic families and nobles might engage in casual affairs, they would not marry recklessly. For them, love was merely the flower on the brocade, while marriages between aristocratic families and even the royal family were the true brocade itself.
These unspoken connections were merely probes between clans and power.
As for the female lead, Wen Xueling, the beloved daughter of Jingxi Wang, her purpose in coming to Nanzhao was ostensibly to find a suitable husband and seek the Emperor’s approval for marriage. In reality, it was because Jingxi Wang harbored ambitious intentions, unwilling to remain content with ruling only over Jingxi.
Attempting to use marriage alliances to expand his own power, he extended his tiger claws into Yindu, stirring up storms in the process.
Of course, the pure and innocent female lead, Wen Xueling, was unaware of these ulterior motives.
She was genuinely here to find a partner.
Within the Imperial City, countless suitors pursued her, including but not limited to various princes who had already been enfeoffed and established their own residences but had not yet been assigned territories, as well as clan leaders and the newly crowned top scholar.
But the female lead is always different from others—she happens to favor Zhongli Zhengzhen, the hostage sent by Jinchuan after its defeat by Nánzhào years ago. Unlike the others who flattered and indulged her, Zhongli Zhengzhen had always been indifferent to women.
And Zhongli Zhengzhen is currently gaining fame, all because… Princess Duanrong of the Nanzhao Kingdom has become infatuated with him to the point of madness. Not only did she employ every means possible to marry him, but she also gifted him countless precious jewels and silver, hoping for just a glance in return.
But how could a dignified princess marry a hostage from an enemy kingdom? Princess Duanrong’s repeated actions have truly brought shame to the royal family’s dignity, thus angering the Emperor. In a fit of rage, the Emperor arranged for Princess Duanrong to marry a lowly merchant as her Consort.
For a time, this incident became the foremost topic of gossip among the nobility and commoners of Yindu during their leisure hours.
And it didn’t stop there. After her marriage, Princess Duanrong wallowed in self-pity for a while. Though she dared not openly defy the imperial decree, she openly kept many male consorts to humiliate the Consort bestowed by the Emperor, deliberately opposing the Emperor.
However, it wasn’t long before she began scheming to get close to Zhongli Zhengzhen again. Just a few days ago, she chased him to the hunting grounds and, in her pursuit of his horse, accidentally fell and injured herself…
It could be said that Princess Duanrong made Zhongli Zhengzhen famous and also drew the female lead Wen Xueling’s special attention to him, sparking her one-sided emotional pursuit of “winning over that icy man,” commonly known as a tragic love story.
As for Gan Qiongying, who is Princess Duanrong, after sitting at this banquet for a while, she could already feel many people secretly watching and gossiping about her.
Clearly, it wasn’t anything good.
She didn’t want to come either!
She had thought that dying and coming back to life was too good to be true. Turns out, the plot couldn’t be avoided—it had to unfold, or she’d be tortured to death!
Damn it all.