The palace of Auroria Kingdom had never been this tense—or this noisy. The air was thick with curiosity, gossip, and the faint smell of nervous sweat.
The royal maids were whispering like wildfire—
Maid 1 (whispering): "Did you hear? The Baiyun royal family has arrived!"
Maid 2 (gasping): "The real Baiyun royals?! As in, Princess Xiaoxi's parents?!"
Maid 3 (panicking): "Oh no… that means her dramatic energy is inherited!"
Meanwhile, inside the main hall, the atmosphere was awkward enough to make even the chandeliers sweat.
On one side sat Empress Meilin and Emperor Junwei of Auroria, with Grandma peering over her fan trying to look composed.
On the other—King Zhaoren and Queen Yuling of Baiyun, with xiaoxi 's and Xiangyun 's grandma looking equally dignified and puzzled.
And in the middle, like two kids caught stealing cookies, stood Haoran and Xiaoxi, both grinning nervously.
King Zhaoren (sternly): "So… this is the Crown Prince of Auroria who… proposed to my daughter?"
Haoran (straightening his robe nervously): "Technically, yes. But it was less of a proposal and more of an… emotional accident."
Xiaoxi (whispering): "More like a kidnapping, but sure, let's go with that."
Haoran (whispering back): "Do you want me executed in front of your father?"
Behind them, Xiangyun stood like a soldier caught between two armies, quietly praying for peace.
Beside him, Lianhua was smiling nervously, pretending not to stare at him every five seconds.
Queen Yuling (raising an eyebrow): "So, this… Haoran, is it? You kidnapped my daughter and she still wants to marry you?"
Haoran (sweating): "Yes, Your Majesty. She's… very forgiving."
Xiaoxi (smiling sweetly): "I'm not. I just like watching him suffer."
The Auroria side gasped. The Baiyun side looked impressed.
Grandma (leaning to Empress Meilin): "Now I understand why our palace walls are always shaking. This child's voice can bring down kingdoms."
Empress Meilin (sighing): "At least she keeps things interesting."
Meanwhile, in a corner, Brother Long Noodles, Brother Chubby Bao, and Brother Tiny Dumpling were doing what they did best—commentary.
Long Noodles (whispering dramatically): "The tension is thicker than my noodles."
Chubby Bao (snickering): "I give it five minutes before someone faints."
Tiny Dumpling (gasping): "Or before the King finds out Haoran once called Princess Xiaoxi a 'pufferfish'!"
Long Noodles: "Sshh! Don't summon death!"
Suddenly, the Queen of Baiyun turned to Lianhua.
Queen Yuling (curiously): "And you are…?"
Lianhua (bowing nervously): "Lianhua, Your Majesty."
Xiangyun (quickly): "She's the one who… helped me find Xiaoxi."
Tiny Dumpling (whispering to Bao): "Helped him find her? More like fell on him when he arrived!"
Bao (choking on laughter): "Best meeting story ever!"
As introductions went on, the awkwardness started melting into laughter.
The two royal mothers exchanged stories, the fathers discussed politics, and the grandmas compared whose grandchild caused more trouble (spoiler: it was Xiaoxi).
At one point, Haoran and Xiaoxi accidentally started bickering again—
Haoran: "Stop kicking me under the table!"
Xiaoxi: "Stop pretending to be polite when you're terrified!"
Haoran: "I am not terrified!"
King Zhaoren: "You should be."
Haoran: "Understood."
By the end of the meeting, the Baiyun royals had accepted the Auroria palace's hospitality—though they clearly realized one thing:
Their sweet, innocent-looking daughter had completely taken over another kingdom with her chaos.
And Grandmas, sipping her tea calmly, said what everyone was thinking—
Grandma: "Heaven save us all. The Baiyun bloodline has arrived."
The palace echoed with laughter and relief, though Haoran's face still looked like he'd survived a war.
Xiaoxi, of course, smiled brightly. "See, Frog Prince? That wasn't so bad!"
Haoran (deadpan): "Says the girl whose father just threatened me with royal execution."