The walk back to her palace felt like a journey from one world to another. Li Lan left behind the suffocating tension of the prince's study and stepped into the quiet solitude of her own home. She dismissed her new maid, needing a moment to process the emotional and political storm that had just passed.
She sat by her window, the setting sun painting the sky in soft shades of orange. It was in this quiet moment that she finally allowed her mind to replay the last few days: her spontaneous courage at court, the raw honesty of her conversation with her husband, and the chilling confrontation with Princess Wang Xiu.
Li Lan realized she had been profoundly different in those moments. She felt a sense of clarity, a certainty that was both exhilarating and terrifying. It was as if she could see beyond the smiles and the polite words, peering directly into people's true hearts—she could see what was hidden.
When she looked at Prince Wang Cheng, she felt a surge of warmth, a sincere affection and pride that had no room for falsehood. When she had called him "my heart," she had instantly felt his relief and his love so powerfully that it had melted the walls she had built around her own.
But with Princess Wang Xiu, the feeling had been a stark, cold contrast. Li Lan hadn't just seen her cruel smile; she had felt it—a bitter resentment, an icy malice that emanated from her. It was a dark, suffocating feeling that had nothing to do with her deceptively polite words.
It finally clicked. This was the "awakening" she had felt. This was the power the gods of the Xialan Kingdom had gifted her. She was no longer a shadow, a forgotten middle daughter. She had a purpose, a fate to fulfill. And now, she possessed the means to discern friend from foe, to find the hidden threats and opportunities in this perilous world of political intrigue.
But why her? She had never been ambitious. She had always been the quiet, unassuming daughter, content to fade into the background. Yet, in the last few days, her mind had been consumed with a single, burning purpose: to help her husband rise to the top. It was more than a desire; it felt like a calling. A destiny.
The pieces began to fall into place. Her lifelong lack of ambition wasn't a weakness; it was a purity of heart. She wasn't a schemer hungry for power. She was a vessel, chosen for a mission that was bigger than herself. The gods of the Xialan Kingdom had gifted her with this ability to ensure their will was done.
They had given her the tools to navigate this dangerous court. With her ability to read auras, she could see through the lies and deceptions that had ensnared her husband. Her purpose was to guide him, to awaken his own hidden potential, and to protect him from the shadows that wished to see him fall.
And the first step in that journey was to understand everything about the man she was destined to help. Why was he, the kindest and most sincere of men, the one chosen for a marriage of such little political significance? Why was he the prince with the least promising future? She needed to know his history, his strengths, his weaknesses, and his relationships with those in power. She had to understand the chessboard before she could make her next move.
Her purpose was no longer her own. It was a shared destiny with the man she was beginning to love. And with the gods as her guide, she would not fail.