Phoenix Rising

044

All of a sudden, no one was too keen to draw the curtain to reveal the identity of the people frolicking on the bed. So Zi-ning decided to give them a hand. She sauntered over and flung the translucent drapes aside.

"Ah!"

A girl's high-pitched scream immediately pierced their ears.

The two figures on the bed separated, and audible gasps rang out across the room. The lingering effects of the Hundred Flower Powder finally faded away into the daylight, leaving the reality of the situation bare for all to see.

"Meisi?" Meiyan exclaimed, pointing one shaky finger at girl on the bed, now sobbing while desperate clutching the sheets to her chest.

"I don't know what happened! I was knocked out, and then, and then—"

Han Meisi broke down into a fit of tears, playing the perfect victim in the entire situation. It was not a lie, because she had been knocked out and delivered to the room. But she was certainly no victim.

After Zi-ning had escaped with Ahri last night, they had chanced upon Meisi lurking in the vicinity with her maidservant, waiting. She stopped to eavesdrop on their conversation, and that was when she discovered that Meisi had been the one who had planted the Hundred Flower Powder in the incense burner in her room. She didn't know what Consort Song had bribed her half-sister with, but it probably didn't take much. A jade bracelet, a jewelled hairpin perhaps. Meisi was superficial, and she hated Zi-ning for all the attention she had been receiving, so it was no surprise that she was easily wielded as a weapon by the concubine and the princess.

She had to give credit to Meisi for thinking on her feet and knowing when to grab on to a golden opportunity. Even as she was crying and loudly proclaiming that she knew nothing about how she got here, Zi-ning caught the girl sneaking glances in Situ Zhiren's direction, anticipating his reaction.

Zi-ning knew that look.

It was the same look she had seen on the faces of those eager servant girls and low-ranking concubines who tried to throw themselves at Ru-an in her previous life. But she had also seen how Ru-an had reacted, enough to know that Situ Zhiren would only do worse. Whatever fairytale Meisi was imagining in her head would soon transform into a nightmare.

While all this commotion was going on, the Hua prince had not so much as batted an eyelid. If he was angry at having been set up, he betrayed no such emotion. Instead, he calmly slipped on his robes and fastened his broad belt around his waist.

"Your Highness," Consort Song started, looking a little unsettled by the turn of events, "What exactly happened here? How could you commit such a... such a..." She sighed loudly, as if disappointed with his actions.

As the most senior member of royalty present, it was not against protocol for her to demand answers. Even though the girl had changed, the outcome of this debacle could still work in her favour—as long as Situ Zhiren played along with her plan.

"Is it acceptable to be barging into someone's private quarters in this manner here in Duan?" the prince said in a languid drawl. The more nonchalant he seemed, the more danger Zi-ning sensed brewing beneath the surface. Situ Zhiren was not someone who liked being manipulated.

"This is a temple, Your Highness. It is sacred ground. Even as a prince of another kingdom, it is highly inappropriate for you to be defiling the place like this!" the consort retorted, a sharper edge in her tone. "I'm afraid to say that I must report this matter to the king. We shall have to reconsider the engagement, given these unsavoury circumstances."

Behind her, Princess Xuan's eyes lit up in delight.

Fool, Zi-ning thought. If Situ Zhiren wasn't sure of who he had been set up by before, he would certainly know now. The consort and the princess were too hasty. Had they waited until they returned to the palace before making it known that they planned to use this matter to call off the engagement, perhaps they might have succeeded in pushing all responsibility to Meisi and tricking Situ Zhiren into believing they had no hand in this.