"Huahua, what's wrong? You look upset." During his Qin practice with the sixth prince, Prince Lian Hong noticed a dark aura surrounding his younger sister. As a good older brother, even though they were only a few months apart in age, Lian Hong asked.
"Do you know Prince Zifei? He's been ignoring me since yesterday." It was already the third day since Prince Zifei arrived in Yishu. They should have been discussing marriage, but the prince wouldn't even talk to her, let alone talk about marriage. Every time Lian Hua came to greet him, the young man would avoid her. When Lian Hua called out to him and wanted to approach him, the prince would walk away.
"Oh, I heard this is quite a serious matter. I heard that father was even afraid that your wedding would be canceled."
"Really?" Lian Hua asked in surprise. How could their marriage possibly be called off?
Prince Lian Hong nodded. "To this day, we are still protected by Zhanshi. To seal the deal, you must marry Prince Wang Zifei. Imagine what will happen if you don't marry Wang Zifei. Our kingdom will be destroyed because it will no longer be protected." The Yishu Kingdom was a weak kingdom and was in a precarious position. Caught between the Zhanshi and Xuanzhe Kingdoms, one day, their kingdom could become the site of war and a power struggle.
"Then what do you think I should do?" Lian Hua asked her sixth brother.
"I heard this is all because of a palace maid. My suggestion is, you teach that maid a lesson, but in secret, if possible, do it outside the palace. As for Prince Wang Zifei, I have a plan for you." Lian Hong motioned his sister over, and whispered in the younger woman's ear.
...
That night, the rain fell heavily again. Her Highness Princess Lian Hua stood in front of Prince Wang Zifei's bedroom door, ordering a palace maid to open the door for her. The door opened and closed, leaving the dim light of a candle at the bedside of Prince Wang Zifei, who was already asleep. She approached, pulled aside the curtains around the bed, and gazed at his handsome sleeping face. Since their meeting, this was the first time she had seen him up close.
Lian Huan untied her hair, letting her long black hair flow down her back. Slowly, her slender fingers untied her clothes, leaving her in the transparent inner layer.
"Go to his room at night and sleep with him. He won't be able to escape once he's caught sleeping with you, and your wedding will take place as soon as possible." She followed her brother's advice carefully. She had someone put sleeping pills and aphrodisiacs in Prince Wang Zifei's drink, after which she would enter the prince's room and climb onto his bed.
Lian Hua caressed her future husband's broad chest, her hands digging into the prince's white nightgown, savoring the warmth of his larger body. She knew her actions would anger Wang Zifei, but she was utterly frustrated and at her wits' end. She just wanted attention, regardless of whether the prince's attention came in this way.
What is to be her, must be her.
Her hand moved downward, intending to untie Prince Zifei's trousers. However, her hand stopped when she was gripped very tightly.
Lian Hua's two beaded eyes met Wang Zifei's open ones. "What are you doing?!" Not panicking in the slightest, Lian Hua lowered her body. "I just miss you, husband." She whispered very softly. The grip on her hand turned into a grip.
"Yo-you." Wang Zifei felt dizzy. The sounds around him were faint, but clearly, his entire body was filled with a burning and hot sensation. His breath was labored. "W-what did you do to me?"
Lian Hua rubbed the young man's chest gently. "I just do something that will make you... happy?" Lian Hua tried to tease the prince. She brought her face closer, whispering in the ear. "I know you want it, look, it's hard here." A moan escaped Wang Zifei's lips as he tried to push Lian Hua away from his body, however, whatever drug the princess had given him was so strong that he felt like he was losing his mind.
Lian Hua chuckled. "I never thought that the rarely-expressed Prince Wang Zifei could look this cute." The prince's breath became increasingly rapid. "I knew you wanted it." It was over. Wang Zifei had lost his mind. He could no longer contain his instincts, his thoughts and logic no longer working as he lifted the body of the woman who was smaller than him, pressing her beneath.
Lian Hua swallowed nervously. She had never done this before, this was her first experience, and she would share it with her first love.
It started with Wang Zifei kissing her wildly, she let the young man do whatever he wanted to her.
....
As if waking from a dream, Wang Zifei sat up abruptly. The movement knocked Lian Hua off balance, causing her to fall to the floor. Their passionate activity had ended an hour ago. Her body was exhausted, and she just wanted to sleep. But just as she was about to kiss the prince's face, she was met with a heavy fall.
Lian Hua was frozen in place. She had never been treated like this by anyone in her life. She had lived and grown up as a princess, with people kneeling before her, but this young man, Prince Wang Zifei, refused and pushed her down, causing her to fall just as the effects of the drug slowly wore off.
From the bed, Wang Zifei glared at Lian Hua. His face was no longer hot and filled with lust, but a dark, cold expression, and his hands were tightly clenched. The prince tried to regain his composure, restraining his emotions. He was angry at the princess's immoral actions, and even more so because he had lost control. "Princess Lian Hua, you've crossed the line this time." The prince said coldly. Lian Hua felt her body shiver with fear at the sound of his voice.
However, she wouldn't give up so easily. Her pride had already been trampled upon, she was already low in the prince's eyes, why pretend any longer? "Why don't you like me now? You really enjoyed what we did earlier." She asked teasingly. Unfortunately, her words only made Wang Zifei's heart darken.
"You're asking why I don't like you? Shouldn't you be asking yourself why I don't like you?" the prince replied, not moving from his position. Lian Hua tried to stand up, but her ankle hurt. "Ouch!"
"Stop pretending. I won't fall for your tricks again!" Lian Hua bit her lip, standing up while enduring the pain. Not just her ankle, but her entire body felt crushed after the wild activities she had engaged in with Prince Wang Zifei.
"Is this all because of that maid? Shen Ying?"
"This has nothing to do with Ying-er."
"Huh, Ying-er? You even have a nickname for her. You spend every hour with that girl, giving her a nickname, but you never even talk to me even once?!" Lian Hua said, suppressing the tremor in her voice. Her heart was hurt, and it was because her first love hated her.
Prince Wang Zifei's silence proved that the prince didn't care about her feelings, didn't care whether Lian Hua would be hurt or not when he didn't try to explain, try to calm her down.
"No matter whether you like Shen Ying or whoever, the one who will be your wife is me! You've slept with me, you'll end up with me no matter what!" She had to get what she wanted, she didn't want to share what was her.
"Your Highness!" From outside, Lady Chang's voice called out, sounding hurried, unlike usual.
"What is it?"
"His Majesty the king has summoned you to appear."
"Right now?"
"Yes!"
Lady Chang never lost her composure. If she sounded this panicked, then it must be something very important. Had her father discovered her plan to trap Prince Wang Zifei into sleeping with her? But that didn't matter, did it? They were already sleeping together, and the wedding had to happen soon.
During the journey, Lian Hua didn't have time to fix her appearance. She simply curled her hair and secured it in a bun, while wrapping herself in a fur coat to keep warm. The night was cold, with the rain falling incessantly. Beside, Lady Chang held an umbrella for her, urging her to walk quickly. Lian Hua forced herself to walk through the pain that coursed through her body.
Arriving at the palace hall, there were already the Queen and the Crown Prince, as well as a middle-aged woman kneeling in front of them, next to the woman, Shen Ying also knelt down. Why was this maid here? Didn't she already have someone to teach her a lesson?
"Father, mother, what's going on?" Lian Hua looked confusedly at her parents, whose faces were all a mix of sour, panicked, and confused. "You can see for yourself, Your Highness. The baby you gave birth to has a mark on the back of her right shoulder, right? Also, you accidentally dropped your baby when she was born and injured her ankle. I still remember all of that very well."
Queen Lian felt like she was going to vomit and faint, but she held her husband's hand tightly, begging for strength. "Do it." Palace maid Chang immediately held her. "Forgive me, Your Highness." She said before taking off her coat and pulling at her collar. Meanwhile, the palace maid where the queen was staying also did the same to Shen Ying.
"There are no marks on Princess Lian Hua's shoulder." Lady Chang turned to her ankle. "There's nothing on her ankle either." Lian Hua, who had just sprained her ankle, along with the pain in other parts of her body, endured the excruciating pain while grimacing.
The queen held her breath.
"I found a mark on Shen Ying's right shoulder, the mark looks like three dots forming a triangle. On Shen Ying's ankle there is also a scar like a bracelet that encircles her ankle."
The queen sat there in disbelief, sobbing, her voice choked. "Father, mother, what's going on?" Lian Hua asked again. But no one heard her speak.
"My poor baby." The queen whispered.
"What's wrong—"
"Lian Hua, you are not your father and mother's child, you are that woman's child. She switched you and Shen Ying when you were still babies!"
Lian Hua was shocked, her eyes widened, and she chuckled. "I— this can't be, right? I was a princess for sixteen years! How could I not be a princess anymore?!" She waited for someone, anyone, to tell her it was all a lie. That she was still a princess, yet the king and queen she had always considered her father and mother didn't even look at her. Queen Lian ran towards Shen Ying, enveloping her in her arms, hugging her tightly.
"Mother." Lian Hua reached out for the figure she had called mother for sixteen years, but now she was hugging someone else. "Hah! Now someone like Shen Ying can be a princess! That's absurd! She's just a cheap servant!" She rushed over, wanting to pull Queen Lian's hand away from Shen Ying. That was her mother, her. She didn't want to share what belonged to her with anyone.
However, what she received was a push from Queen Lian, causing her to fall, her body feeling weak. "Watch your mouth!"
Lian Hua gasped. Today, after Wang Zifei, it was now her mother who had never yelled at her. "Mom." Tears gathered in the corners of her eyes, her chest tightening, and she couldn't help it, and a drop of water flowed from her reddened eyes. "Mom."
"I'm not your mother! Don't call me that!" But I've been calling you mother my whole life. She thought. She clutched her aching chest. It hurt so much.
"Oh, my little daughter. I'm sorry for not recognizing you all this time. Are you cold? Are you hungry?" The heartbroken Lian Hua turned to King Lian, standing tall and feeling pained at seeing his wife filled with guilt.
"Dad..." She whispered.
"Quickly throw this woman out of here!" When the ruler spoke, no one dared to argue with him.
"And also take your daughters with you, throw them to the Border. Never let them return to the capital!"
"I spare your life because you have raised my daughter to this point. Never appear before me again." The king decreed, without anyone being able to dispute it.
"Your, Your Majesty! Don't separate me from my daughter! Ying-er, Ying-er!" The woman was forcibly pulled away by the guards, while Lian Hua allowed herself to be dragged out of the palace.
This was her. The throne was her, the calling was her, those were her parents, they were her brothers. And overnight, none of that was her anymore.