"Alas—a poor soul indeed. But from now on, I shall protect you," Dongfang Yi said, patting Xiaoxing on the shoulder with a determined look in her eyes as she made the promise.
"Thank you, Your Highness—" Xiaoxing said and was about to kneel and kowtow again. Dongfang Yi helplessly supported her and told her that there was no need for such excessive courtesy when there were no outsiders around.
The entire Queen's Palace was filled with a harmonious and happy atmosphere.
It was about a week later that Dongfang Yi finally met Helian Qi.
It was an afternoon in the imperial garden. From afar, Dongfang Yi saw Helian Qi sitting in the garden pavilion, sipping tea.
She was just about to call out to him when she saw Concubine Lian walking out from the other side of the pavilion. She swayed over and nestled into his arms.
The most annoying thing was that Helian Qi was smiling so brightly, and the two of them were being so lovey - dovey that Dongfang Yi stopped herself from speaking.
She didn't know why she was so angry. She casually broke a peony flower beside her, but unexpectedly, the flower stem pricked her finger. With a soft gasp of pain, she flicked her sleeve and left.
Inside the pavilion, Helian Qi saw everything that had happened in the corner of the garden. A mysterious smile appeared in his eyes.
Concubine Lian on his body tried to hug him even tighter when she saw this and even tried to move her lips closer. Helian Qi pushed the woman on him away with a look of disgust, quickly got up, and was about to leave the pavilion.
"Your Majesty~" Concubine Lian grabbed his sleeve with both hands, her eyes full of affection, as if tears were about to fall.
But Helian Qi didn't hesitate at all. He brushed off her hand and turned around, striding out of the pavilion.
"Damn Helian Qi! Bastard Helian Qi! Rascal Helian Qi!"
Dongfang Yi was walking on the road, and Xiaoxing was bandaging the wound on her hand beside her. Hearing her scolding the current emperor, Xiaoxing broke out in cold sweat one after another.
At this moment, Helian Qi, who was following behind her, stopped in his tracks with a black look on his face, listening to the unrestrained insults from the little woman in front of him.
"Dongfang Yi!" Helian Qi called out.
The person whose name was called suddenly stopped scolding. Her body instantly stiffened, and Xiaoxing's bandaging movement also paused.
Dongfang Yi stiffly turned around. Sure enough, she saw Helian Qi with a livid face not far away.
At this moment, Dongfang Yi just wanted to find a hole to crawl into so that she didn't have to face this embarrassing situation.
Then, thinking of the lovey - dovey scene between Helian Qi and Concubine Lian in the garden pavilion just now, as if she had gained some confidence, she straightened her chest and said, "Your Majesty, why are you here? Weren't you just accompanied by Concubine Lian?"
The black lines on Helian Qi's face became even more prominent. He had seen her leave the garden and didn't hesitate to chase after her, but he didn't expect her to scold him here.
"Your audacity, Queen. Do you know what the punishment is for scolding me?" Helian Qi asked.
It's over, it's over, Dongfang Yi thought. So he really heard me. If Xiaoxing could hear her thoughts at this moment, she would probably say: Your Highness, do you know how loud your voice is?
"I didn't, Your Majesty. Maybe you heard wrong. I was just saying that the wind is so strong and annoying," Dongfang Yi said, bowing slightly.
Helian Qi gave a cold snort and walked towards her step by step. After standing in front of her, he asked Xiaoxing beside her, "Is what the Queen said true?"
"Yes... it's true. Her Highness said the wind was too strong and it made people uncomfortable..." Xiaoxing knelt on the ground and stammered.
Helian Qi let out a cold snort in his heart. Good for you, Dongfang Yi. You've even taught the little girl beside you to be so eloquent.
But he didn't know that even when facing such an Dongfang Yi, he couldn't get angry. Deep down in his heart, he even thought she was extremely cute.
He was a bit angry with himself. He had never had such emotions towards any woman before. But now he was so concerned about Dongfang Yi.
"Come back to the palace with me!" Helian Qi ordered and then strode towards the Queen's Palace.
Dongfang Yi let out a deep sigh. She forced a smile, stroked Xiaoxing's hair, and said, "Well done, Xiaoxing!" Then she quickened her pace and followed Helian Qi back to the Queen's Palace.
The Queen's Palace was originally decorated with bright red and gilded ornaments, but Dongfang Yi thought the colors were extremely tacky, so she had them replaced with cyan and emerald green. The once - desolate Queen's Palace was now very exquisitely managed. The spring water flowed again, and the flowers, plants, and trees were trimmed beautifully.
As soon as Helian Qi entered the palace, he was surprised by the changes in front of him. The Queen's Palace in his memory was not like this. He couldn't help but be a bit more curious about Dongfang Yi in his heart.
"Are you ready?" Helian Qi asked.
"Huh?" Dongfang Yi of course didn't forget about the incognito visit. But since she hadn't seen Helian Qi for a while, she was a bit worried that the incognito visit would fall through.
"I'm all ready, Your Majesty," Dongfang Yi replied.
"Good. We'll set off the day after tomorrow," Helian Qi said.
After saying that, he turned around and sat on the couch, then said to Dongfang Yi, "Come here!"
Dongfang Yi walked hesitantly and sat on the other side of the couch.
"Sitting so far away from me. Are you afraid I'll eat you?"
Dongfang Yi felt as if these words were whispered into her ear. When she suddenly turned her head, her forehead touched Helian Qi's.
When did he suddenly sit next to me!
Their foreheads and noses were tightly pressed together, and their lips were only an inch apart.
Dongfang Yi's face instantly flushed. She subconsciously wanted to dodge backward, but unexpectedly, Helian Qi grabbed the back of her head with one hand, and she couldn't move at all.
Dongfang Yi, a person who had never been in love, had never encountered such a situation before. She just felt extremely shy and had nowhere to escape.
"Helian..." Dongfang Yi was just about to say something when unexpectedly, her lips were suddenly kissed by another pair of thin lips. The soft touch made her brain buzz, and her eyes widened uncontrollably.
This kiss didn't last long. It was just like a fleeting touch and then left. When Dongfang Yi came to her senses, Helian Qi was lying straight on the inner side of the couch, as if nothing had happened.
Dongfang Yi also lay on the outer side of the couch in her clothes in a daze, and her mind was in a complete mess.
Why did Helian Qi kiss me? Is it because I'm the Queen and he's the Emperor? Right, right, he's the Emperor. He can do whatever he wants. He didn't mean anything else...
She silently buried her head in the quilt and kept muttering, "I'm the Queen. I'm the Queen. Queen. Queen. Queen..."
Helian Qi looked at her flustered appearance and thought she was extremely cute. Hearing what she was muttering, the smile in his eyes deepened, and the corner of his mouth curled up involuntarily.
Another good night's sleep...