Months later, the news of the Xiongnu's change of leadership finally spread throughout the Kingdom of Loulan. The new successor, Qiedihou Chanyu, specially sent an envoy to visit Princess Dana and presented countless precious gifts. This move undoubtedly showed the importance that the new Chanyu attached to Princess Dana. Naturally, the King of Loulan did not dare to neglect her anymore. He immediately ignored other new loves and regained his old love.
The people in this palace were so powerful that when they saw the change of the wind, they all came to show their courtesy. As expected by Princess Dana, in a short time, her palace, which was originally deserted, regained its former bustle, and it was even more lively than before.
With her popularity, the second prince Angui, who was not valued in the past, also turned into a celebrity in the palace. Naturally, there was an endless stream of people who went to his palace to give gifts, all hoping that he could say a few good words in front of Princess Dana. Almost everyone in the palace knew that in the past six months, Prince Angui had completely gained the trust of the princess.
It was a fine day. The April sun was warm and gentle, casting a faint halo on the ground through the intertwined branches. When Na Luo came back from cleaning the courtyard, she happened to see Qu Chi walking into her room.
"Sister Qu Chi, what do you want to talk to me about?" She hurriedly followed him in.
Qu Chi smiled and handed the plate in his hand to her, "It's just right that you're back. This is a gift from the eldest prince. Eat it while it's hot."
Na Luo saw that it was her favorite snack, beef biro, and her eyes lit up. She thanked him and took it.
"Look, the eldest prince is so good to you. Knowing that you like to eat biluo, he orders the servants to make this every now and then, and every time he will definitely make an extra portion for you." Qu Chi looked at her gently, "Since I entered the palace, this is the first time I have seen the eldest prince care so much about a palace servant."
Na Luo scratched her head embarrassedly, "Maybe it's because I'm young, the eldest prince treats me as a greedy child. Besides, he is always kind to his servants."
Qu Chi smiled and said nothing more. Suddenly, her eyes fell on Na Luo's neck. When the other party bent down, a malachite necklace slipped out from his chest, swaying gently in the air, shining with blue-green light.
More charming than the most gorgeous peacock tail feathers, beautiful without flaws.
A glimmer flashed in her eyes, and she couldn't help asking, "Isn't this the eldest prince's malachite?"
Na Luo was a little surprised and blurted out, "How do you know it's the eldest prince's?"
"Of course I remember. This is a gift from the queen when the eldest prince was born. He has never left it since he was a child. I didn't expect it to be given to you..."
"So that's it! That... that's too expensive... How about I give it back to him now?" Na Luo suddenly felt a little at a loss. She knew that this malachite was very expensive, but she didn't expect it to have such an important meaning.
Qu Chi seemed to be amused by her expression, "Silly child, since it was given to you, then you should keep it well. After all, it's the eldest prince's good intention. If you give it back to him, it will make him angry."
Now Na Luo felt that the malachite on his neck weighed a thousand pounds, and subconsciously hid it in his clothes again and again.
Qu Chi seemed to suddenly remember something, "By the way, after you finish your snacks, go to the west garden and help find a maid named Jialan, okay? Just tell her that I need to find her for something."
"The west garden?" Since Na Luo came to the palace, he has basically been either with the eldest prince or the queen, and he is not very familiar with other places.
Yes, go out from here and go west and you will see it. "Qu Chi paused, "If you don't recognize it, I will find someone else..."
"No problem, Sister Qu Chi. I'll go now." Na Luo ran out in a hurry without even having time to eat snacks. But she ran too fast, so she didn't see the strange smile on Qu Chi's lips.
After leaving the palace of the eldest prince, Na Luo walked westward as Qu Chi said. After passing a large area of walnut trees, she saw a not very conspicuous winding path. There were two wooden doors at the end of the path, which obviously led to another garden. Could it be - this is it? Na Luo was delighted and hurried forward to gently push open the wooden door.
The other side of the wooden door was indeed different. In addition to planting many exotic flowers and plants, there was also a row of grape racks along the corner of the garden. It was not the season for grapes to ripen, and the emerald green grape leaves were full of golden flowers, which made people look forward to the beautiful scenery of grapes hanging here.
However, the most eye-catching thing is that under the shade of grape leaves, a beautiful young woman is reclining on the couch to rest. Her fluffy and slightly curly long hair falls softly to her waist, floating with a layer of dark blue luster in the sun, revealing the mysterious and dark beauty of peacock feathers. Her eyebrows are picturesque, and her eyes are like the clear water of the Peacock River under the sun. The lavender silk top wraps her exquisite body. The gold-thread embroidered shoes exposed from under the long skirt are obviously expensive items from the Han area. A pair of red gold earrings sway gently in her ears, exuding a bewitching and different style.
Her expression seems lazy, but she faintly reveals an unconcealable noble temperament.
Na Luo's heart suddenly surged with a sense of déjà vu. Although he had only seen the back of that person once in the dark before, for some reason, the same person emerged in his mind...
At this moment, a loud shout came from behind, "You bold servant, you dare to trespass into Princess Dana's private garden! You are simply asking for your own death!"
Na Luo turned around in fear and saw a serious-looking woman staring at her coldly. Her eyes were as sharp as a sword, causing a layer of cold sweat to appear on her back.
How could this be Princess Dana's private garden? What's going on? But Na Luo couldn't think so much about the current situation. No matter what, she had to save her life first. She had no choice but to kneel down in front of Princess Dana and hurriedly explained, "Princess Dana, I really didn't know that this was your private garden. I was just ordered to find a maid named Jialan. Please forgive me this time."
"It is a capital crime to disturb the princess's rest! Come on, take this ignorant thing down immediately!" the woman said sternly.
"Wait a minute. "The princess seemed to be completely out of the matter just now, and only then did she speak lazily, "Mima, how did this child get in? Where are the two guards outside?"
Guards? Na Luo was a little confused. He didn't see any guards when he came in just now. But when he heard the name Mima, Na Luo's heart sank. How could he run into this person? It's not like she hasn't seen the cruel methods of Mima, the female official. It's over, it seems that this time it's not good.
"Replying to the princess, the two guards at the door said that they heard a strange noise nearby, so they went to check.
What nonsense. "Princess Dana frowned, "It's obviously a dereliction of duty and he's still making excuses. Give the order, take those two people and beat them to death immediately, and don't bury their bodies."
Na Luo felt a chill rising from the soles of his feet to the top of his head. If he was beaten to death for not guarding the door, then wouldn't the people who trespassed here be...
"Princess, what should we do with this slave? Why not beat her to death as well?" Mi Ma suggested cautiously.
Before the princess could answer, a young man's voice that sounded like the sound of nature came from outside the door, "Mi Ma, Miss Mi Ma, can't you think of any other punishment besides beating to death? "
Upon hearing this voice, the princess's face seemed to be slightly moved, and her eyes softened a little. But Na Luo was even more frightened, her whole body trembling like a fallen leaf in the autumn wind. What is it called "a house leaking in the rain all night", what is it called "a dead end is coming to an end... At this moment, she can be said to have truly experienced it.
"An Gui, you came at the right time." The princess raised her eyebrows and glanced at him, "This little girl trespassed into my private garden, how do you think I should punish her?"
"Princess, second prince, I think this lowly maid should be beaten to death immediately to set an example." The attitude of the female official Mi Ma was still tough. Now that the princess is in power again, her methods of treating the palace people have become even more severe.
"As far as I know, this girl is deeply loved by my brother. If she is beaten to death, princess, what do you think?" He smiled slightly and walked in front of Na Luo.
"Is it just like that? If we let her go, will the princess still have prestige in the palace? Will anyone be able to trespass here in the future? "Mi Ma retorted unconvincedly, "Even if they are the eldest prince's people, they have to know what the rules are."
"Mima, there are many ways to punish a person. It doesn't have to be killing her to be considered a punishment. "An Gui smiled and bent down, stretched out his hand to pinch Na Luo's chin, forcing her to raise her face. At the moment she saw her face, Princess Dana's eyes seemed to be a little surprised, but it soon disappeared in her calm eyes.
Na Luo trembled all over and met the man's gaze. What caught her eyes was still that stunning face, dark golden hair, ice-green eyes, charming eyes and extremely enchanting to the point of fatality. The second prince, Princess Dana... They obviously have such beautiful faces, but why do they all have a heart more cruel than Asura?
He suddenly sneered, and the corners of his lips raised a sarcastic arc. The endless darkness in the depths of his ice-green eyes seemed to be able to swallow her in an instant.
"Are you scared? Poor little thing. It's your luck that you met me today." As he said, he turned to the princess and said, "Then spare this little girl's life and punish her to kneel here for a night. "
"Princess, this punishment is too light!" Mima was obviously not satisfied with this suggestion.
Princess Dana looked at Na Luo, then slowly retracted her gaze and said lazily, "Just listen to the second prince."
"But..."
"Mima, help me up. I should go to His Majesty's bedroom." She interrupted the other party and stretched out an arm as white as jade. Mima moved her lips, as if she wanted to say something, but she didn't say it after all, so she had to go forward and help the princess up.
Although she saved her life, Na Luo didn't feel relieved at all. On the contrary, the fear of the unknown became stronger and stronger, almost pressing on her chest and making her unable to breathe. Could it be that this demon prince let her go so easily? Impossible, absolutely impossible. He must have more vicious tricks to deal with her.
An Gui stared at her with a smile in his eyes. His transparent ice-green eyes were as gentle as the spring breeze, and his voice sounded so kind. "I saved your life today, why do you look so scared of me? Could it be that I will eat you?"
If she had never seen this person before, Luo would definitely be confused by his appearance, and might even be grateful. But after suffering a few losses, she knew very well that this matter would never end here. It was precisely because she didn't know what the other party would do to hurt her that she felt even more frightened.
Thinking of this, Na Luo bit her lip and simply told the truth, "You are not so kind."
An Gui was slightly startled and couldn't help but chuckled, but her subordinates used a lot of force to pinch her chin, which hurt, "It seems that you, this girl, understand me more and more."
"An Gui, don't make trouble with this girl, don't you also want to go to His Majesty to pay respects?" The princess turned her face and ordered again, "Mima, let that girl kneel in the corner."
Mi Ma, the female official, took the order and immediately dragged Na Luo to the corner with a fierce momentum, holding her body down and trying to make her kneel on the hard and cold stone slab.
"Wait a minute." An Gui suddenly stopped her.
Mi Ma couldn't help complaining, "Second Prince, what do you mean by helping this bitch again and again? Can't beat her to death, can't you punish her by kneeling?"
An Gui ignored her and walked straight to the couch, picked up a glass vase and returned to Na Luo. Just when everyone was confused by the prince's action, he raised his hand and threw the vase to the ground, and the intact vase immediately broke into countless pieces.
"Just kneel here." His careless words made everyone present feel cold, and even Mima, who was famous for her cruel methods, was slightly moved. Only the princess pursed her lips in vain, and even showed a hint of a smile that was not easy to be noticed.
Na Luo looked at the sharp fragments shining in the sun, and for some reason, she felt at ease. This is what the devil prince did, isn't it? Before she knelt down, Mima couldn't wait to press her body down. When the fragments penetrated the skin through the thin cloth, the piercing pain made her almost shiver. Soon, the bright red blood oozed out of the wound...
The elegant and charming second prince didn't look at her again, turned around and followed the princess to leave the private garden. In the blink of an eye, the group disappeared without a trace. In the huge private garden, only Na Luo was left kneeling alone on the pile of debris.
When leaving the private garden, An Gui's eyes quickly swept across a gloom, and whispered, "Mima, when night falls, you go and tell the eldest prince that this girl was punished here."
Mima was obviously puzzled, "Second Prince, this is..."
"Don't ask why, just do what the second prince says." The princess interrupted her again, "You, and those palace servants, go down first."
Mima didn't dare to ask anything else, and responded and hurriedly left with the palace servants.
The two stood there in silence for a moment, and An Gui spoke first, "Mother, don't you ask your son why you did this?"
Princess Dana smiled and said, "Angui, you do everything with a purpose and a plan, so why should I ask you the reason?"
"In that case, don't you suspect that your son has ulterior motives by your side?" He asked boldly.
"Whether you have ulterior motives or not, at least I will never forget your care and comfort for me during those days. It's easier to add flowers to a beautiful woman than to help someone in need. However, the reason why I value and trust you so much is not just this," she paused, "An Gui, we... are the same kind of people."
Something seemed to flash in An Gui's eyes, and a smile quietly emerged on his lips, "It is said that Ishtar loves this child very much. If he hears that she is punished, he will definitely come to rescue her. As the eldest prince, if you break into your mother's private garden at night and are caught by your father, what do you think will happen?"
"No wonder you asked Mima to tell him at night. Breaking in at night is different from breaking in during the day." The princess smiled knowingly, "Maybe your father and I will see this scene by chance." She emphasized the word "coincidentally".
He laughed softly, "Mother, you are really smart."
The princess looked at him meaningfully, "That woman has always wanted His Majesty to make her son the heir. If it is as she wishes, then you and I will not have a good life in the future." Her thoughts seemed to be in a trance for a moment, "If my child is still alive..."
"Mother, now that you have regained the emperor's favor, I believe there will be good news soon." An Gui comforted her in time.
The princess curled her lips and seemed to change the subject inadvertently, "By the way, An Gui, please help me check the background of this girl."
There was a slight fluctuation in An Gui's eyes, which was fleeting. He didn't ask any extra words, but just responded, "I will do it immediately."
The princess narrowed her eyes slightly, and a group of birds flew over the eaves in the distance, fluttering and bringing up a piece of crushed light and shadow, which disappeared into the sky.
(Bilo: A kind of snack introduced from Persia, shaped like steamed buns and steamed bread, with various fillings inside and can be steamed or baked.