The Other Side of the Mask

"I've troubled all of you today," I tell my companions on this incident, "I will allow all of you a day off tomorrow. If anyone asks, tell them that I allowed it."

"Thank you, your majesty!"They bow as I smile.

"Goodnight, my subjects," I wave goodbye as I head back to my room.

My mood is somewhat relieved from being with the group tonight, but my heart still cannot let go of XiaoLong. Ugh! I try to clear my mind. Ok, so I need to sleep. One sheep...two sheep… three sheep… five sheep… ten sheep… at some point it turned into XiaoLongs, but I was too tired to refute.

Mother and Father scolded me for going out at night again and demanded me to stay under house arrest until the ball.

I rehearse with KaiZhen at the very most. That was all the contact I received from the outside. Bruh… It really did seem that KaiZhen wasn't interested in me, which is a relief. It would be a pain otherwise.

"Commander Yang, do you ever want the throne?"

"...do I look like I would like to deal with politics?" he fired back, annoyed, "I'm a carefree person who likes to mess around!... your majesty."

I chuckle. I totally forgot that Commander Yang is actually quite young. My first impression of him was narcissistic after all.

A couple weeks later, the final day arrives, the day of the trip to the Autumn ball. It honestly has a span of three days, which is a pain. On the first day, we ride a carriage to the Eclipse Palace. Once we get there, Xing helps me with my dresses and makeup. Yes, she's that talented at a young age. She's the top one designer and a makeup specialist.

By the time she is done, I look like royalty and not like QiLing at all. Good! The ball takes place in the evening. The first order of business is lunch. We enter the dining hall.

"Pleased to make your acquaintance, King Huang, Queen Huang, Prince Huang," I address the Yue Kingdom's royal family.

"Ah, pleased to make your acquaintance, Princess Li. Please just call me Prince Fu, most people go by that, since my full name is Huang FuLong," XiaoLong says back, respectfully, with no clue that I am QiLing.

I fake smile, "Very well, you may call me Princess YingYue then."

After the pleasantries, we eat an elaborate meal of both Yue and Ri Kingdom dishes.

"Princess YingYue seems quite familiar with the Yue Kingdom's dishes," the Queen says.

"Hoho, that is because-"

I cut my father off, "I have studied much about the kingdom."

I mouth to my father s-o-r-r-y and my father nods. I have quite a smart family, I smile quietly.

Suddenly, the door to the dining room opens. XiaoLong gets up and escorts a girl to the dining table. The moment I looked up, my mind went blank.

"Hello, I am Concubine TianYu," TianYu says.

"Concubine TianYu is quite stunning," I say as I cover up my mistake.

"Yes, she is a very kind hearted girl," the Queen says.

"Because I haven't chosen a crown princess, my concubine will take the place for now," XiaoLong explains.