To say Xiao Zhi was angry was an understatement. She was far beyond that now. She was simply done.
It wasn't a hot, screaming kind of anger, though. It was a cold, heavy weight sitting in her chest that refused to lift. Even though the Khan had given her a pass to stop doing servant's work, she needed to be here. Staying still would have crushed her.
She scrubbed the cloth harder than necessary. Her hand stung, but she welcomed the pain. It gave the anger somewhere to go.
She hated the palace today. Everything about it grated on her nerves. She hated the suffocating walls and the dry air. She hated the feeling of cold stone under her feet. Even the smell of the wet wool in her hands made her sick.
But mostly, she hated Ruhan. Not because of the kiss, but because he had run away afterward.
"Different status, my ass," she muttered, dragging the cloth over the board again, harder this time. The friction bit into her skin, but she didn't stop. "You want boundaries? Fine. I'll give you boundaries."
In her mind, Ruhan was a coward.
Always retreating. Always choosing distance over confrontation. If he truly cared, he would have found a way. He wouldn't hide behind titles and rules, pretending that feelings could simply be thrown away because they were inconvenient.
Or maybe it should have been her marriage that stopped him.
But it wasn't.
Kabil married her only to torment her. There was no love on either side. That truth was painfully clear, and Ruhan knew it. He had seen the bruises, tended the wounds, pulled her back from pain he himself had witnessed.
How could he stand there and pretend their situation made any real difference?
They could have hidden. They could have stolen moments. Even something small, something secret, would have been enough for her.
The maids returned while she was rinsing the last garment.
Without a word, without even looking at her, they lifted the clean clothes from the basin and dumped them onto the ground beside it. The damp fabric hit the dirt, and dark soil clung instantly, staining the cloth she had just finished washing.
Xiao Zhi stopped. Her hands remained submerged in the basin, fingers tightening around the cloth. She closed her eyes and counted her breaths.
When she opened her eyes again, she wasn't calm. She was furious.
They picked the wrong woman. And the wrong time.
"Please pick them up." She didn't even bother to look at them. "And wash them again."
One of the maids scoffed. "You washed them wrong."
"They were clean."
"They are dirty now," the maid replied, folding her arms. "Wash them yourself."
Xiao Zhi straightened slowly. Water dripped from her hands, splashing softly onto the stone.
"I did," she said, this time meeting the woman's eyes. "That is why I am asking."
The maid stepped closer, as if challenging her even more. "You are not in a position to ask."
Xiao Zhi lifted her head. "Move."
The maid laughed, and somehow that sound annoyed Xiao Zhi even more. "Still giving orders? You should've learned by now. Even Hua has forgotten you."
Xiao Zhi's brow knitted. "What do you mean?"
The maid tilted her head, a fake, sweet smile pulling at her lips. "Oh? You haven't heard?"
The argument between the discarded princess and the maids had drawn a crowd now. The other maids slowed their work and started to whisper.
"The handsome General of Hua," the maid continued lightly. "General Shen Han. He married your sister."
The news was not something shocking, since Xiao Zhi had expected it from the story. But still, the fact that it happened, made her feel something twisted in her stomach.
Already?
"I heard he used to be your lover," the maid added with a smirk. "Guess he chose a crown princess over someone… disposable."
"They say he's very happy," another maid chimed in. "A devoted husband." She leaned closer, a knowing smirk forming on her face. "A passionate lover."
"Strange, isn't it?" the first maid said. "You were sent away, and he didn't even look back."
Xiao Zhi's fingers curled slowly at her sides.
General Shen Han was married. Happy and devoted to his wife.
So another cliché had played out. The sister-steals-lover trope.
The story kept moving forward. And there she was, busy being distracted by a love that didn't even want her back.
Then a memory slipped through the cracks of her anger.
The letter.
The one she had written to Shen Han. The one she had entrusted to Ruhan, believing foolishly that some things could still reach across borders.
She remembered waiting, days at first, then weeks. Telling herself travel took time, that duty consumed men like him.
But there had been nothing. Not a single word of reply.
Now everything made sense. Had he already chosen her sister when her letter arrived?
Or worse… had he read it, folded it away, and decided she was no longer worth answering?
Did he really forget about me?
The maid said something else, something cruel, but Xiao Zhi barely heard the words.
"Hey," the maid snapped, waving a hand right in front of Xiao Zhi's face. "Are you deaf now?"
Frustrated by the silence, the maid lost her nerve. She raised her hand, ready to slap her... but it never came down.
A sleeve caught her wrist midair.
"How dare you," a voice said sharply, "raise your hand to a princess?!"
Ruhan stood between them. His grip was firm but restrained, fingers locked around the maid's wrist with just enough pressure to stop her. His eyes were dark.
The maid froze, then yanked her hand free, face still filled with anger. "She is not a princess anymore," she snapped. "You forgot your place, eunuch."
Ruhan did not raise his voice. "No, you forgot yours."
The maid sneered. "Since when do you decide who is and is not a princess?"
"I do not," Ruhan replied. "But the Khan does."
The name turned the air cold.
Ruhan turned slightly, not taking his eyes off her. "And I will make sure he hears exactly what you just said."
Another maid grabbed her sleeve, whispering urgently in panic. "Stop. Do not mess with him. He is the Khan's personal eunuch."
The maid's face went white. She took a step back, then another, until finally she turned and hurried away. The others followed, their whispers fading and the courtyard emptied quickly.
Ruhan let out a long breath, then turned to Xiao Zhi.
"Are you hurt?"
She didn't answer, just stared at him.
Her anger was too tangled for words. Too knotted with frustration and things she didn't want to feel. There were too many things she wanted to say, or perhaps scream at him instead.
"Why are you doing this work again?" Ruhan asked, picking up the fallen clothes and dropping them back into the basin. "Didn't the Khan tell you that you don't have to?"
And how did he even know that? Did he ask around? Asked the Khan himself?
"I like it. Why do you care?" she snapped, her expression still blank.
"Princess—"
"You just said I am a princess," she cut in.
"Yes."
"Then finish the laundry."
Ruhan frowned slightly, as if he wasn't sure he'd heard her correctly.
"…What?"
Xiao Zhi turned fully toward him now. Her expression now was cold as ice.
"You're a servant." She gestured toward the basin with a small tilt of her chin. "So finish it."
The words landed exactly as hard as she meant them to.
Ruhan went still. For a moment, he looked like someone caught between two instincts: to obey or to argue.
He stared at the basin. Then at her.
Then back at the basin again, as if hoping the meaning might change if he looked long enough.
"...Wait," he said, stepping forward half a step. "That's not what I meant."
Xiao Zhi didn't answer. She didn't even flinch.
Before he could say anything else, she turned away. She kept her head high, not looking back to see if he was watching.
Behind her, Ruhan stood frozen in the middle of the damp courtyard. He watched her figure disappear around the corner, his hand still half-extended as if reaching for a ghost.
The silence that followed was different than before. It was the silence of a bridge being burned. The distance between them was heavier than it had been before.