Princess Wang Xiu's words hung in the air, a thinly veiled threat disguised as a compliment. Li Lan felt a primal warning run down her spine, a cold, prickly sensation that had nothing to do with the Princess's tone. It was a new feeling, an unpleasant energy that seemed to emanate directly from the woman herself—an aura of cutting ambition and bitter resentment, a hunger for power so fierce it felt suffocating.
This was nothing like the soft, protective warmth she had felt from her husband moments before. No, this was something else entirely—a cold, sharp edge, a cruel intent that lurked beneath Wang Xiu's perfect smile.
Li Lan looked at Prince Wang Cheng, who still held her hand, his knuckles white with a tension she hadn't seen before. She wanted to cling to him, to hide from this sudden, overwhelming darkness, but she knew she couldn't. This was the moment Li Mei had warned her about. This was the threat her sister had tried to protect her from.
Li Lan straightened her back and met the Princess's gaze, her face a mask of polite indifference. "Your and your sister's performance was quite the talk of the court," Wang Xiu repeated, her smile not reaching her eyes. "I never knew you were so talented."
Li Lan's voice, when she finally spoke, was calm, her words measured. "The truth is," she said, looking the Princess directly in the eye, "we are Li daughters. There is a lot you do not know about us."
Princess Wang Xiu's smile faltered for a second, a fleeting flicker of surprise. Li Lan's words were a veiled threat in kind, a silent acknowledgment of the power that lay within her. She was no longer the quiet, unseen girl from the shadows. She was a queen, and she was going to rule this kingdom.
Princess Wang Xiu's smile vanished completely. The polite mask she wore cracked, revealing a clear flash of fury in her eyes. Li Lan felt the cold aura emanating from the Princess intensify, a sudden, sharp spike of malice that made the hair on her arms stand up. The air itself seemed to grow heavy with Wang Xiu's palpable resentment.
Prince Wang Cheng's hand, still clasped firmly in Li Lan's, tightened instinctively. He had felt the shift, the sudden, sharp change in his sister's demeanor. He remained a silent shield, his presence standing against the hatred that now openly radiated from Wang Xiu.
"How bold of you," the Princess said, her voice now laced with venom. "You're a long way from home, little sister-in-law. It's easy to get lost in a place you don't know."
With that thinly veiled threat, she turned to leave, her silk robes swishing with a finality that suggested the conversation was definitively over. But Prince Wang Cheng's voice stopped her, cutting through the tense silence.
"I thought you had something to say," he said, his tone deceptively mild. "Why did you come?"
Wang Xiu stopped, her body still half-turned toward the door. She looked over her shoulder, her cold smile back in place. "No," she said, her voice a soft, mocking purr. "Just wanted to see you, brother."
And with that final, cutting remark, she swept out of the study, leaving an oppressive silence in her wake. The tension finally broke. The cold aura faded, instantly replaced by the familiar warmth of her husband's presence. He finally released Li Lan's hand, his knuckles white from the strain of holding on. Li Lan knew at that moment that Wang Xiu wasn't just a rude courtier. She was her first true opponent, and the real game had just begun.