At the banquet, an envoy from the Xiongnu publicly asked to marry a royal princess.
The new emperor was young and had no children. His gaze swept over the seats of the noblewomen from the imperial clan, then finally landed on Nantan Xue, Princess Anyuan.
Sensing the emperor's intentions, Nantan Xue sprang from her seat and knelt in the middle of the hall. "Your Majesty, I already have someone I love!"
She pointed wildly toward the officials' seats. "He and I have long been secretly involved, pledged to each other, carrying a child, and sneaking around. At night, our secret love blossoms..."
The hall sank into a heavy silence. No one dared speak. Only the young woman's voice went on, weaving in and out of secrecy, cascading through the room like a string of pearls coming loose.
At the spot her pale fingertips pointed to, a man sat upright on his knees, eyes half-closed, his white robes trailing on the floor. His black hair was half tied up with a sandalwood pin. He looked like a Buddha seated atop a spotless altar.
Nantan Xue's voice faltered. Only then did she turn to look, meeting the cold gaze of his ink-black eyes. In that single glance was desolation itself, and a Buddha's stillness that must not be defiled.
He was her nineteenth imperial uncle, Xiao Su Chen, a man who had taken the tonsure but still practiced Buddhism. Just one look from him was enough to make Nantan Xue's stomach hurt with fear.
Just as she clutched her stomach and put on a pained expression, Le Yun, the county princess who had never gotten along with her, shouted, "Quick, call the imperial physician! Princess Anyuan is having pregnancy pains!!"
Nantan Xue: ...Le Yun, you win.
Grimacing, she quietly moved the hand covering her stomach down to her lower abdomen.
[Reading Guide]
1. They are not blood relatives.
2. I'll add more if I think of anything.
Theme: All things are shaped by fate
