Chapter 32: In the imperial palace, one must wear a mask!

No longer needing to be married off to the Northern Wang Ting and having escaped a tragic fate, Li Sining was in an excellent mood.

She had barely returned to the palace when she immediately headed toward where Li Chen was staying.

At this moment, her heart was filled with excitement, and even more so with exhilaration.

If any of the other imperial princes were emperor, she perhaps wouldn't have been this nervous.

Those princes had been quite doting on her since she was young.

The Crown Prince, as the future sovereign of the dynasty, knew his younger sister's hobby well and had ordered people to scour for rare books and ancient texts to satisfy her thirst for knowledge.

Moreover, the Crown Prince was learned and scholarly, often able to resolve the confusion she encountered in her books.

Li Sining had always admired this eldest brother, believing that if he were to become emperor in the future, he would surely be a wise ruler.

Because she could see the imperial majesty and wisdom in the Crown Prince.

The Second Prince was an outstanding cultivator with exceptional talent; every time he returned from his sect, he would bring Li Sining a special gift. She still remembered the last time, when the Second Prince brought back a jade pendant containing rich spiritual energy.

Whenever Li Sining wore it, she felt a warm current flowing from the pendant, slowly surging into her body.

Wherever this warm current passed, her meridians seemed to be gently nourished.

Li Sining admired her second brother very much, for he possessed the formidable power to summon wind and rain.

The Third Prince was the commander of the border army, having fought on the battlefield for years and rendered great service to the dynasty.

Every time he returned in triumph, he would always bring some spoils of war for the Princess.

The last time the Third Prince brought back a spirit beast, a grey wolf, she had raised it into a fat dog that panted heavily after walking just a few steps.

This brother of hers didn't say much, but he always fulfilled whatever he promised Li Sining, earning her deep respect.

The other princes also cared for her, but these were mostly superficial.

Because Li Sining was a princess, the Emperor had taught her since childhood to be knowledgeable and sensible.

As a princess, one should enjoy reading, listen to one's elders, not make excessive demands, and act according to one's status.

When receiving care from her elder brothers, she had to strive to praise them; when facing the Emperor's doting, she had to appear extremely delighted.

Her mother had told her since she was young that if she wanted to survive in the imperial palace, she had to learn to disguise herself.

Whether one likes something or not is unimportant; what matters is that others like it.

Everyone in the palace wears their own "mask."

Everyone appears enthusiastic and close, but human hearts are separated by bellies.

This was the main reason why Li Sining disliked living in the imperial palace.

Only in front of Li Chen could she remove her mask and become that mischievous, adorable little sister.

Her thoughts suddenly drifted back more than a decade, to when she particularly loved going to play in Li Chen's room.

Because Li Chen's room was filled with toys she had never seen before; the one she liked playing with most was a toy called "Lego," a name Li Chen had told her.

She thought it was magical that it could be assembled into whatever shape she liked.

Besides that, what left a deep impression on her was the "Transformer"; Li Sining thought it was amazing that the toy could change from a human figure into a car with four wheels.

There were also some beautiful girls with colorful hair; Li Chen told her they were called "figures" and wouldn't let her touch them, which had made her very sad at the time!

Li Chen would also teach her how to play with spinning tops and yo-yos.

Whenever she had free time, she loved running to Li Chen's room to play with these toys.

But as she grew older, the Emperor forbade her from having much contact with Li Chen.

Perhaps in the Emperor's eyes, she should have been interacting more with her other brothers, as they were more outstanding.

Contacting Li Chen too much would lead to becoming a mediocre person who neglects their duties for the sake of play.

The young her knew that she couldn't live the life she wanted.

So Li Sining resumed her princess persona, burying her fondness for Li Chen, along with her innocence and playfulness, deep in her heart, and their interactions dwindled.

But today was different; only the brother she liked most remained in the palace.

Perhaps she still put on an act when outside the palace.

But ever since entering the palace, she began to skip and hop as she walked.

Because Li Chen was the Emperor, and Li Chen wouldn't demand that she act like a princess.

For the first time, she felt the scent of freedom in the palace.

It was no longer that gloomy and rigid imperial palace.

So Li Sining was very excited, because she was about to see this brother.

"Hehe, Brother Li Chen hid it so well, he's actually a powerhouse on the same level as the Master!"

Li Sining felt that Li Chen must have refused the Northern Wang Ting's marriage proposal and even provoked them directly because he cared for her, his younger sister!

!

Even the passing palace maids could see the little stars of admiration filling her eyes.

At this moment, a young girl dressed in gorgeous palace attire was weaving lightly through the long corridor, a look of curiosity and mischief hanging on her face.

She arrived at the door of the Imperial Study with practiced ease, but just as she was about to push the door open, a graceful figure caught her eye.

That figure was standing quietly beneath the window of the Imperial Study, leaning slightly to the side, a pair of bright, large eyes peeking curiously through the lattice at what was happening inside the room.

Her posture was graceful, like a willow branch swaying in the wind of spring, making one unable to help but look more than once.

A sense of curiosity welled up in Li Sining's heart; she approached on tiptoe, as if afraid to disturb this tranquility.

When her finger lightly tapped the shoulder of that graceful figure, the other person was clearly startled by the sudden touch.

The beauty spun around abruptly, her pair of watery, large eyes widening instantly, her eyelashes fluttering like a startled little deer.

Her hands subconsciously covered her chest, her slightly parted red lips revealing a trace of astonishment and shyness.

That appearance was both adorable and moving, making one unable to help but feel a sense of affection.

Seeing this, Li Sining couldn't help but burst into laughter; she felt the girl's reaction was truly too adorable.

She scrutinized this beauty before her, discovering that she was also breathtakingly beautiful, not a bit inferior to herself.

This moment was the first meeting of the "Two Peerless Beauties of the Imperial Capital," and one could tell from their eyes that both were astonished by the other's beauty.

"Eh? Are you Brother's imperial consort?" Li Sining asked curiously, her tone carrying a hint of playfulness and probing.

Hearing this, the beauty's cheeks immediately flushed with two clouds of red; she waved her hands shyly and hurriedly explained, "No, no, no, I am not."

Seeming to feel that this sentence wasn't quite right, the beauty corrected herself, "I am not... yet."

Her voice was crisp and pleasant, carrying a hint of rigor and cuteness.

Hearing this, Li Sining found it even more amusing; she hadn't expected there to be such an adorable yet rigorous girl in the world.

As a princess, she wasn't as constrained in the palace as Chu Ruoyan was.

She blinked her eyes, secretly calculating: As a good younger sister to her brother, she naturally had to help him vet this future consort and see exactly what kind of person she was.

If she really wasn't good enough, she would have to tell her brother properly so he wouldn't be harmed by a demoness.

Just as Li Sining was about to say something, Chu Ruoyan made a "shush" gesture and pointed inside the Imperial Study.

Li Sining leaned her face in curiously; the two breathtaking faces were very close, causing Chu Ruoyan's small face to flush even more, and even feel a little dizzy.

They had just reached the window when Li Sining heard the sound of cursing coming from inside.

(End of chapter)