Jiang Beiqing: "You like men?!!"
"Indeed." Seemingly unable to grasp the reason for his shock, the young lady continued, "five imperial concubines and one empress."
Jiang Zuoqing: "S, six all together?! One for each day of the week?!"
Yan Beiqing: "...??"
"I don't understand why you are reacting this way?"
Sharp eyes blinked at the youth in confusion as thoughts whirled in an attempt to find the cause of his shock.
[In the end, it must be because I don't have an enough understanding of this place.] The young woman concluded as she vowed to study even more.
"Ah? Ah, sorry, I just didn't expect you to have all male in the harem. I mean, that's fine, everyone has preferences."
Jiang Zuoqing realized that his reactions were a little rude so he apologized in embarrassment.
Catching the meaning of the words in the young man's sentences, dark irises rolled once in contemplation before narrowing with a slight curve.
"Oh?" Seemingly understanding the source of this misunderstanding, the young woman added with a light chuckle of amusement.
"As a female emperor, of course I would only have male concubines in the harem."
"An emperor is merely a title for someone who rules over others, granting protection to its subjects in return for their faith. It does not have anything to do with gender."
Gleams of radiance seem to flicker in the expanse of the young woman's eyes as they stare unblinking at the dazed youth.
"Of course, you are also someone I want to protect."
Tearing his gaze away, Jiang Zuoqing released an awkward cough before asking in an unnatural tone. "So what happened for you to have come here?"
"... …"
The smile on the young woman's lips dimmed as sight lowered to stare at the surface of the table. Fingers clench in subconscious action as the faint sense of pain allowed the young lady to regain some amount of reason.
"I don't really know…"
Soft lips open to mutter a barely audible reply.
Jiang Zuoqing: "Ah?"
"There was a sudden fire in the empress palace, it was too unexpected. I don't know where the empress went nor the servants that were supposed to be nearby. The next thing I knew, I woke up in the body of the Yan Beiqing in this world."
Yan Beiqing regained clarity on the side of the street. There were unfamiliar people wearing strange clothes surrounding her. Some pointing in quiet whisper, others holding onto a rectangle object in her direction.
Only a few actually asked whether she was okay, wanting to help but was politely rejected by her.
She wandered the streets trying to figure out where she was and how to get back. Yan Beiqing wondered to herself that perhaps she would continue to wander throughout this strange land until dying of starvation.
Until…
The young woman saw an elderly couple distance ahead, searching frantically as if trying to find someone or something. This scene made her recall the situation hours ago when she first awoke.
Being surrounded by unfamiliar people but still receiving some bit of warmth from the outstretched hands of strangers.
Yan Beiqing decided that since she also has nothing to do at this moment. She can ask the old couple whether or not they need help in searching for whatever it is they are looking for.
Just think of this as a sign of gratitude for the residents of this plane.
"Excuse me."
Yan Beiqing asked the frantic couple in a somewhat hoarse voice, "is there anything I can help you with?"
_____
"The rest is what you already know."
Staring at the unfamiliar utensil on the table, lithe fingers lifted the item that looks like a rake in hand to investigate.
"How do you use this?" Yan Beiqing raised her sights to ask the man sitting across from her at the table.
Food was delivered a while ago during the conversation under the curious gaze of the young woman.
Dishes that she had never seen before filled the expanse of her widened sights as the emperor of a ruined land sat in her seat.
Despite the eagerness to explore and to taste all these peculiar cuisines.
The demeanor of a past ruler did not once fail to keep its usual grace as Yan Beiqing waited for Jiang Zuoqing to begin.
As a guest to this foreign place and living under the care of Jiang Zuoqing. It is only right for her to wait on this man to start the first plate.
Sharp eyes stare at the man in unblinking anticipation as bright irises sparkle with the dim lights of the hotel room.
Faced with this look of anxious wait, the young man raised a brow before explaining in a low tone.
"That's called a fork. Just stab it onto anything that you want to eat. The silver next to that is a spoon and a knife. Eat and use whatever you like, I don't have a lot of rules when it's just us."
Saying so, Jiang Zuoqing handed the young woman a pair of chopsticks across the table in silent motion for her to take.
"Thank you…" Yan Beiqing sent the youth an appreciative glance while receiving the item with gratitude.
However…
There seems to be another challenge ahead as dark irises stare at the slab of meat too heavy and wide to be picked up.
How does someone eat this? Do they not cut the meat into smaller pieces first?
Brows furrowed while hands gripped at the chopsticks hovering above the slab of meat that emits with a tantalizing scent.
It was a dish Yan Beiqing had never seen before placed before her in a white plate embossed with golden designs.
Carrots and other greenery made a crescent arrangement to curve around its main character. A streak of brown sauce glimmers on top with an alluring glaze that still drips in slow motion.
Falling onto the side of the meat whose surface is a charming brown with a darker criss cross of patterns.
"What kind of meat is this?" The young lady asked with curiosity, "this doesn't look like pork or chicken?"
"It's beef." Jiang Zuoqing answered in a careless tone while lifting the glass of red wine to his lips. "Here."
Before Yan Beijing knew, a pair of well structured fingers stretched out in front of the young woman. Her plate was replaced with the youth's whose dish was sliced in perfect pieces.
Small enough for the young woman to pick up without much trouble.
Yan Beiqing: "…Jiang Zuoqing."
The young woman murmured in a low tone as obsidian irises stare at that plate of cut meat.
"What?" Thin lips curve into a secretive grin as our president assumed he would be hearing another word of thanks. "You don't need to be so courteous…"
But that was not it.
"The chef forgot to cook the meat…"
Sharp eyes quiver in bewilderment at those bloody pieces of flesh oozing with red liquid.
It seeps out in slow motion to intermingle with the brown sauce on the side. Turning it into a faint watery hue of a murkier dark.
Jiang Zuoqing: "…The steak is cooked like this, medium rare."
A sense of shock ran through the young woman's heart as a slender hand lifted the glass on the right. Hovering the burgundy liquid over cherry lips only to pause with a sudden jolt.
Unable to hide her surprise any longer, widened sights raised to lock onto the figure of Jiang Zuoqing whose hand held the same type of drink.
"This water is spoiled! Don't drink it!"
Jiang Zuoqing: "…That's fermented wine made from grapes. The sour smell isn't because it's spoiled."
Yan Beiqing: "… …"
Putting down the glass and silverware in a ponderous silence. The young woman contemplated for a few serious seconds before raising her eyes once more to ask in a careful voice.
"Do you have rice and tea?"
"... …"
Almond eyes lowered to stare at the same dish of medium rare steak seeping with streaks of redness. Before moving to look at the swirl of burgundy liquid resting within the transparent glass.
Releasing a helpless sigh, Jiang Zuoqing pushed the plate aside before standing to make a call.
Jiang Zuoqing: "…Hold on."
_____
"They need about half an hour before the meal could be brought up. Why don't you try the cake first?"
Jiang Zuoqing rested his left cheek against the surface of well structured digits as right index finger raised to point at the dessert.
"It's a chocolate mousse cake."
Yan Beiqing: "Mouse cake?"
Jiang Zuoqing: "Mousse ca-… Just try it."
Sharp eyes grew wide from the first bite as the young emperor savored the depth of this mouse cake. It was a flavor that she, as a past ruler, had not tasted before despite being the most noble woman of her time.
Just this single spoon was akin to the most uplifting of spells that lightened the heaviness of the young woman's mood. Making the tension that weighs on Yan Beiqing's heart loosen to a more bearable degree.
"This is a fascinating cuisine!"
Yan Beiqing raised her sights to comment with a wide grin.
Sharp eyes glisten with a flare of innocence and breathtaking charm that seems heightened by the scene of city view outside.
A couple, one male and one female.
Alone in a wide hotel suite dining beside the open curtains of a romantic nightscape.
The lights are dim, visions connect, temperature arises in this tensioned filled ambience that seems to burn in warmth scarlet.
"... …"
Almond eyes stare in a daze with unblinking intensity as it reflects the image of the woman across.
The way cherry lips curve and sharp eyes arc as long strands of hair fell to frame the face on pale skin.
Jiang Zuoqing felt that he must have eaten something wrong as he merely watched the sudden actions of the young woman.
Observe in silence as Yan Beiqing stood abruptly from her seat to stride towards him.
A slender arm stretches out in what felt like an eternity in time before the tip of those lithe fingers reach.
Touching the collar of his dress shirt which induced an unusual shiver to run down the man's back.
The sensation of her fingers were warmer than what he had expected upon touching his skin.
Causing Jiang Zuoqing to swallow from nervous anticipation.
However…
Before our president could register the next set of oncoming events.
The lithe digits that caressed so gentle grew fierce as they grasped at the fabric around the neck.
"Be careful!"
Yan Beiqing warned while throwing Jiang Zuoqing to her left like a sack of potatoes!
Crash!