Huqing blinked a few times. She was too speechless to reply. Indeed, what can she do if he refuses to answer? She sent the guards at duty away to enjoy her moments of peace and so that she can rant her heart out without anyone hearing her.
Who knew it would cause her so much trouble? The potions she had for self defence purposes are on the bed which is a few feet away from her. What if he has a quick reflex? Then again he didn't make any move on her yet. He could just be a visitor. Chances are low but…
Fenhua felt that he could visibly see the wheel inside her head turning from the concentrated thoughtful expression on her face.
He continued staring at her as he felt intrigued by her more and more. There was pindrop silence inside the room, both of them being immersed in their own quiet thoughts and observations.
"I am interested in the gown design." Huqing spoke up. She couldn't come up with any other sentence to get rid of the eerie silence in the room that was making her feel spooky.
Fenhua didn't respond to that. Instead he walked past her and sat down comfortably on the bed. A lingering faint scent of jasmine wafted off to his nose when he got closer to her. His heart rate wasn't as co-operative with him as other days.
To regain composure he picked up a book from the shelf by the bed, he flipped a few pages randomly and stopped on one. Trying his best to focus on the words on it.
Huqing, who was blatantly ignored in her own room, was genuinely baffled.
'So basically a strange guy was eavesdropping on me first, then entered my own room starting a conversation with me out of nowhere, refused to answer whatever I asked him and now is just acting like I don't exist?'
A few minutes passed. She stood where she was glaring at the man. He didn't look up even once after grabbing that book. Feeling irritated, she strode away from her room. She must find her elder brother …wait no, he would blame her for being unable to fight, she must find her grandfather and let him seek justice on her behalf. Hmph!
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"Grandfather! I need help." She shouted out even before entering her grandfather's room.
To her surprise there was no one inside the room.
'Strange, where can he be?' An ominous feeling rose inside her heart. She also couldn't spot any guard on duty nearby, which was quite unusual.
'Could it be that the stranger in my room is some kind of omnipotent attacker who already claimed his position as the ruler of this kingdom? Wait no way, if that was the case he wouldn't have addressed me as princess right? But what if he was just being sarcastic? Her brother? Right, what happened to her brother?' The entire lotus palace didn't have any maids or servants. Even if a royal guest had arrived it shouldn't cause such a scene.
She walked along the corridor while trying her best to come up with a plausible explanation.
"Hey, where are you going?" A familiar voice made her turn around.
She breathed a sigh of relief. At this time, when she was feeling confused and quite a bit worried as well, even the teasing tone made her feel safe.
"Jiyanyu, you are here." She said.
Li Jiyanyu was initially planning to tease her about how dusty the end of her gown was. But her response made him stunned. There was a tone of faith in her voice. It was as if she was glad to have seen him there.
"You are good right?" He asked. He touched her forehead to check whether she had a fever or not. Her cheeks were a bit flushed even though it was a day with pleasant temperature.
'Was she running?' He wondered.
"Yeah, I am fine. I am good. It's alright." She mumbled three sentences of reassurance. It was also to comfort herself. Since Jiyanyu appeared normal nothing out of ordinary must have occurred.
"Oh right, I had to ask you something. Why are there no servants or guards visible in my palace? Did all of them disappear? Also I didn't see grandfather in his room? Do you know where he is now?"
"Ah..The prince of the northern kingdom has paid the castle a sudden visit. Since young he wasn't allowed to step a foot outside his palace. Apple of his parent's eyes. However as per the rumours he is really capable and despite always staying inside, he even has his own secret troops which he established himself." After spilling this much information Li Jiaynyu leaned closer to her and whispered in her ears.
"However, he is a dangerous man. Try to stay away from him."