"Hahaha, just arrived, Prince Wang Zifei has already made everyone panic."
"Yes, father. I searched every corner of the palace. In the end, I found Prince Wang Zifei not far from Lian Hua Palace." In the palace hall, King and Queen Yishu sat side by side harmoniously. On the right side, Crown Prince Lian Huan sat with his younger sister, Princess Lian Hua, and in front of the crown prince, sat the prince of the Zhanshi Kingdom, Prince Wang Zifei.
Lian Hua straightened her back as she sat, a sweet smile on her face, while her eyes never left Prince Wang Zifei. When they first met, Lian Hua was eleven years old, while Prince Wang Zifei was thirteen. Having not seen each other for five years, she thought her fiancé wouldn't look as handsome as he used to after being at the Borderlands fighting the Barbarians. Who would have thought Prince Wang Zifei's handsomeness had actually increased.
That face was still exactly as she remembered. Small, sharp eyes, a high nose, and thick eyebrows. The difference was, his skin was no longer pale white, but tanned from the sun. Furthermore, Prince Wang Zifei's small, thin body was now filled with strong muscles, his chest and broad shoulders were visible. Just imagining that made Lian Hua smile. Crown Prince Lian Huan, noticing his younger sister's strange behavior, could only shake his head.
"Is Prince Wang Zifei impatient to meet our princess, Lian Hua?" The king teased his blushing daughter.
"Father…" Lian Hua whispered shyly.
Meanwhile, Prince Wang Zifei glanced at the pair of siblings before him. The Crown Prince was dignified, and his younger sister, Princess Lian Hua, smiled shyly. "I was lost and stumbled upon an unpleasant incident. So I decided to help."
"What happened?" Asked the king.
"I caught a young man attempting to molest a palace maid in broad daylight, and I'm certain he's not a member of the royal family." Both King and Queen Yishu looked shocked and embarrassed. Prince Wang Zifei was a guest and envoy from a neighboring kingdom. Discovering such an embarrassing incident on his first day was tantamount to dishonoring the king.
The women of the palace, whether servants or maids, belong to the king, let alone outsiders, even the princes cannot carelessly touch the women of the palace without the king's consent.
"Does Prince Wang Zifei know who that young man is?"
"Father, that is Young Master Chen Lei, third brother's study partner." Lian Hua interrupted from her seat.
"I remember Chen Lei. He was very close to the third prince." The queen said to the king.
"But it's no big deal. One of the maids was wagging her tail back and forth. I think she just wanted to be harassed." The princess said with a disdainful laugh. "Father has many court ladies, why keep a court lady who has been touched by another man? I suggest you give her to someone else." King Lian could never refuse the princess's request, especially if it was for something as trivial as a court lady.
"Then, I'll leave everything to our talented princess. If you think someone likes her, then just give her away." Lian Hua smiled happily. She had already formulated a plan for the maidservant. That cheap woman, not only seduced Chen Lei, but also hugged her fiancée. She was certain she had been targeting Prince Wang Zifei from the start.
"Prince Wang, it's been five years since you and Lian Hua were engaged. Isn't this the perfect time to talk about marriage?" Every day, his daughter kept nagging him, asking when Prince Wang Zifei would return from the Borderlands and come to Yishu Kingdom. She was already eager to get married, and every day all she could think about was marriage, marriage, and marriage. She was tired of the five-year engagement.
"Father... Prince Wang Zifei has just arrived, how can you immediately talk about marriage?" Lian Hua hid her face behind her wide sleeves—she felt embarrassed. Moreover, Prince Zifei's sharp eyes were fixed on her.
The Crown Prince, the King, the Queen, and Lian Hua all awaited the prince's answer, but what came out of his mouth shocked the members of the Yishu Royal Family. "His Majesty said that palace maids can be owned by anyone. In that case, I request that she become one of the maids in my residence for the duration of my stay here."
The glass Lian Hua was holding fell with a loud thud. The Crown Prince immediately panicked and called for the palace maids to clean his younger sister's clothes. Furthermore, he knew the princess's bad temper and was waiting for her to explode.
After waiting, Lian Hua's surprised expression slowly faded, then was covered by a dark cloud, and a few seconds later, she smiled cheerfully. "Ah! I dropped my glass." She said, picking up another glass. "His Highness must be very tired after the long journey. Servants! Serve the food!"
The king and queen breathed a sigh of relief on their thrones. If their daughter had gone berserk right now, they would have lost face. "Ah, right. Let's eat! Prince Wang Zifei, please enjoy your meal. We've also prepared Yishu and Zhanshi specialties for you."
…
Back in her room, Lian Hua threw one of the precious pots. Making a commotion, she screamed loudly. "Ah! Damn it! Cheap woman! I won't let you go!" She grabbed whatever object was within reach and threw it again. The princess didn't care if the glass shards hit one of the maids kneeling before her.
"Find out who that servant girl is right now!" Her anger had reached the top of her head. What could this be? Prince Wang Zifei hadn't even glanced at her since leaving the palace hall. He also didn't care about Lian Hua, instead, he cared more about a lowly servant.
"That slut managed to get Prince Zifei's attention! I never thought there would be someone as shameless as her in this world!" She said. She was afraid that if Prince Zifei cared more about her, that care would turn into love. Would that mean she would have to share her husband with someone else? With a servant? Lian Hua refused to accept all of that.
"Court Lady Chang, what do you think I should do?" Court Lady Chang, unperturbed by the princess's anger, spoke. "Today is not a good day, I suggest Your Highness take a rest. Tomorrow morning we can go to Prince Wang Zifei's palace, then forget today's unfortunate encounter and start anew."
Lian Hua agreed with Lady Chang's suggestion. Her mood immediately improved. "You're right, I need a good night's sleep so this pimple doesn't get any bigger!" The girl stood up from her seat. "Clean up this mess. Lady Chang, did you bring the acne medicine from the royal physician? I'll punish him if my pimple isn't gone by tomorrow morning."
"Yes, Your Highness." The princess entered her room, while Lian Hua's maids and palace maids were busy cleaning up the mess she had made.
.....
In the morning, Princess Lian Hua had already emerged from her room. Her face radiant, her luxurious clothes paired with a warm coat, and her way to Wang Zifei's residence. She would make a good impression by waking up early, and she would also apologize to her fiancé for what happened yesterday. After that, they could start over, and they could discuss marriage.
However, her cheerful steps and face immediately vanished, replaced by gritted teeth, a dark face, and quick steps after her eyes caught a familiar figure in Prince Wang Zifei's residence. She grabbed the girl's hand and slapped her hard across the face.
"Your Highness, you don't need to hurt your own hand," said Court Lady Chang, ordering another palace maid to hold the girl who was kneeling on the ground, shocked.
"Y-Your Highness... I... what did I do to make you angry?" The woman's voice was so soft, her tears were almost falling.
This morning, she had already learned this girl's identity. Her name was Shen Ying, a maid at the laundry room. Huh, the laundry room was far away, why would a maid from the laundry room wander around Lian Hua Palace? She could already smell the stench emanating from this woman.
Lian Hua's anger grew as she saw that her clothes, which were originally those of a low-class servant, had now changed into those of a palace lady. Hah! Who was she teasing now? The Crown Prince? The second elder brother?
"You're asking what you've done to make me so angry?! What's a lowly servant like you doing in Prince Wang Zifei's palace? Are you trying to bother my husband?!" Lian Hua shouted angrily, forgetting that she was a princess. She hated having someone take what was hers. Especially someone she looked down on like Shen Yin!
"Your Highness.. I-I.." Not giving the girl a chance to speak, Lian Hua ordered her court lady to drag Shen Ying who was already crying at her feet. "Flog her thirty times until she can't stand up anymore!" She ordered without caring about Shen Ying who was begging for forgiveness.
"What's going on?" Prince Wang Zifei came over after hearing the commotion.
Seeing her future husband arrive, Lian Hua's face immediately brightened. It had only been a day, and she was already missing Prince Zifei. "I've come to visit, Your Highness!"
Wang Zifei didn't smile at Princess Lian Hua, especially after he saw Shen Ying crying as she was forcibly dragged away by Princess Lian Hua's maid. "Let her go." Wang Zifei ordered, clearly showing his displeasure at what they were doing to Shen Ying.
"Let her go." This time it was Lian Hua who spoke. The princess didn't want her future husband to judge her any worse.
"What do you want to do to her?" Asked the prince.
"I just got rid of her. She just barged into your palace. I'm sure she's planning something bad." Lian Hua said, trying to incite Prince Wang Zifei.
However, what she received was a mocking laugh from the prince. "What do you mean she snuck in? She is already my palace maid. She will be the one serving me from now on." Not caring about Princess Lian Hua's expression, Prince Zifei helped Shen Ying up.
Lian Hua's hands clenched at her sides, watching the prince's possessive arms wrap around Shen Ying. She recalled yesterday's incident, where Shen Ying had nestled comfortably against her future husband's chest. She would teach that woman a lesson.