Chapter 8: A Rather “Fatal” Problem
Gan Qiongying had originally planned to establish a friendly alliance tonight. Who could have expected things to turn out like this?
Soon, Manyue entered with the maidservants. Gan Qiongying watched as the Consort, wrapped in a quilt, returned to the bed, slipped behind the bed curtains, and covered his head completely.
Clearly, he had misunderstood, thinking Gan Qiongying had done this intentionally to humiliate him.
After all, those several black-clad men who had suddenly rushed out, ready to take the Consort’s head, were obviously Gan Qiongying’s subordinates…
The problem was, Gan Qiongying herself had no idea they were her subordinates!
Where on earth had they come from? Like ghosts!
It was awkward to ask directly. Gan Qiongying went to the outer chamber, turning the matter over in her mind. After returning to her own room, she suddenly swept the teapot and teacups off the table onto the floor.
The sound of the teapot and teacups shattering caused all the maidservants, led by Manyue, to kneel in fear.
Gan Qiongying slapped the table and said, “Didn’t I order that no one was allowed to enter?”
Her phoenix eyes were icy, her willow-leaf eyebrows raised in anger—this was the “uncontrollable rage” she had practiced in front of the mirror for a long time.
Directly asking who had barged into the room would be tantamount to telling others she had lost her mind.
After much thought, Gan Qiongying decided that throwing a tantrum was the best approach. For this, she had to thank the original Princess Duanrong from the plot, who was truly a neurotic character—unpredictable in mood, prone to fits of madness, and able to solve any problem by acting out.
Sure enough, her indiscriminate outburst left all the maidservants trembling like sieves. Manyue, as Gan Qiongying’s head maid, fared slightly better, at least able to keep her back straight and defend herself.
But even she was terrified by Gan Qiongying, her voice trembling as she said, “Princess… the eighteen shadow guards are under the Emperor’s command, responsible for protecting Your Highness’s safety. Apart from the Emperor and Your Highness, we servants cannot command them…”
Upon hearing this, Gan Qiongying’s eyebrows twitched violently, and the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end. Cold sweat broke out all over her back in an instant, and her fingers trembled within her wide sleeves from fear.
So they were shadow guards assigned to her by the Emperor…
Gan Qiongying had only ever seen shadow guards in TV dramas and novels. But then again, this world was a novel world, so it wasn’t all that surprising.
Gan Qiongying’s legs went weak from her own fright.
She had been too careless, too presumptuous.
She had thought that since this world had no surveillance or recording devices, as long as she sent the servants far away, she could discuss cooperation with Consort Li Hua for mutual benefit.
But she hadn’t expected that this world truly had shadow guards capable of lurking silently by one’s side—and they were the Emperor’s people!
If she had followed her plan tonight and said something to the Consort, those words would likely have reached the Emperor’s ears by the same night.
It probably wouldn’t have been long before the Emperor found an excuse to burn her at the stake as a demon.
After all, as a Princess who openly colluded with officials for bribes and showed contempt for imperial authority, her existence was nothing but an eyesore to the Emperor.
Gan Qiongying stood by the table for a long time without speaking. Her expression showed no abnormality—just her usual cold anger—but inwardly, she was in a state of panic.
Fortunately… fortunately, the Consort had threatened her with the blade right from the start, preventing her from spouting any of that nonsense.
Gan Qiongying leaned on the table for support, then slowly sat down after a moment.
The room was filled with kneeling attendants and maidservants, as well as the eighteen shadow guards she couldn’t see and had no idea where they were hiding. Despite the room being packed with people, Gan Qiongying felt an indescribable loneliness at that moment.
An unfamiliar world, a destined tragic ending, a situation surrounded by enemies on all sides… She must be even more cautious with her words and actions. The eighteen shadow guards were like twenty-four-hour surveillance cameras hanging over her head.
She absolutely must not let anyone detect her abnormality.
This was a play that, once begun, must be performed to the very end.
She and Lihua… they were destined not to become partners in breaking free from the plot.
A brief wave of despair washed over Gan Qiongying. In her past life, she rarely even watched palace intrigue dramas. She questioned whether she possessed the cunning and intricate mind needed for such things. Having arrived in this world, could she truly survive until the grand finale?
As she sat there in silence, the maids kneeling below remained prostrate, not daring to move a muscle. The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
Even Manyue, who usually pleased Gan Qiongying the most, dared not utter an extra word at this moment.
She had been feeling lately that the Princess was different from before.
Although the Princess of old was also capricious, her likes and dislikes were written all over her face and spoken aloud. As long as one avoided her taboos, she wasn’t difficult to please.
But ever since the fall from the horse and her injury, the Princess had become withdrawn and taciturn. Though still capricious, she was often as she was now—distant and indifferent, making it utterly impossible to guess her thoughts, preferences, or aversions, which was unnerving and terrifying.
Fortunately, Gan Qiongying only remained silent for about the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea.
That melancholic, sorrowful mood receded from the depths of her heart.
She was worrying unnecessarily. What was the point of thinking so much?
Wasn’t life all about taking one step at a time and seeing what comes next?
At least she had read the book and knew part of the plot in advance. It wasn’t necessarily impossible to avoid it.
Moreover, she was, after all, a Princess, and after all, had a significant role in the plot. Such a hate-inducing character was bound to survive until the later stages.
Even if everything remained unchanged, she could at least be wildly arrogant for a long time. Though surrounded by enemies, thinking about it the other way, she didn’t even have to regard the Emperor with any deference. That was already a relatively favorable situation.
Taking a step back, ten thousand steps back, this was a second life given to her by the heavens. It only required her to be cautious with her words and actions. What did she have to complain about?
Thus, Gan Qiongying slowly let out a breath.
She tapped her fingers on the table and said to Manyue in a low voice, “Go and have someone carry the Consort to my bed. He’s shy, so wrap him in a quilt. Remember to search him thoroughly and tie him up properly, lest he pull out some blade on me again. If I can’t enjoy myself to the fullest and get interrupted by the shadow guards again…”
Manyue kowtowed upon hearing this and replied in a trembling voice, “Yes.”
The fact that the Consort had hidden a blade was indeed a failure in inspection on Manyue and the others’ part.
Gan Qiongying didn’t stand on ceremony with them either, stating directly, “Regarding the blade incident, go and receive your punishment yourselves. This time, I’m in a good mood, so I’ll spare your little lives. If you are this negligent again, I’ll bury you all in the peach blossom grove in the backyard to serve as fertilizer!”
Manyue and the other maids in the room were overjoyed to the point of tears upon hearing this, repeatedly kowtowing to thank the Princess for sparing their lives.
Seeing that they had all withdrawn to carry out their tasks, Gan Qiongying leaned back in her chair, picked up her teacup, and began to think.
Since she couldn’t have an open discussion with Consort Li Ye and reach a cooperative agreement, then she could only truly cement the act of being captivated by his looks.
This way, she would have a reason to treat the Consort well and could reasonably avoid the plot point of abusing the Consort to death.
Fortunately, she had a notorious reputation for her romantic pursuits. Her rear courtyard was filled with male consorts as numerous as the hairs on an ox. She doted on each one to the heavens, and within the plot, she was also infatuated with the male lead, Zhongli Zhengzhen, employing every means to pursue him.
Adding one more—her own Consort—was entirely reasonable.
Gan Qiongying took a sip of water when she saw the door open, and several servants quietly carried in a rolled-up quilt.
She nearly choked on her water.
A rather “critical” problem came to her mind.
She couldn’t fake it… after all, she was under constant surveillance, with eighteen cameras watching her twenty-four hours a day.
So… would she really have to sleep with the Consort tonight?