Yun Shishi smiled faintly as she cleared away those messy thoughts and continued reading. “A 19-year-old girl escaped from the Kingdom of Darkness. Her name was Jinling; ever since she was young, the pretty girl had been good at scheming. Her parents passed away when she was a little bit older. Eventually, she caught the attention of the Kingdom of Darkness’ King, who conferred her as an imperial concubine. Alas, she did not know when to be grateful. She joined forces with the Prime Minister to usurp the throne, but the King saw through her plan, so she fled far away.”
“A villain?”
“Yes, a villain.”
She flipped to the next page and continued reading. “When she saw the notice, Jinling was ecstatic. Thinking that the Princess of Love was just her age, she decided to impersonate her to avoid pursuit, and at the same time, enjoy a lifetime of riches! Hence, she engaged the city’s best sculptor to sculpt an identical heart-shaped jade pendant for her. Unbeknown to her, the real heart-shaped jade pendant was fragile. To prevent potential complications, she killed that hired craftsman. Thereafter, she brought the jade pendant to the palace… The moment the King laid his eyes on her and the jade pendant, he wept joyously as he professed his longings for her. She also feigned weeping, but in her heart, she was already celebrating her success. And that was how she became the princess.”
“She actually impersonated the princess?” Upon hearing this, Little Yichen clenched his rosy fists in indignation. “Where is the real princess, then?”
“The real princess was adopted by a fisherman. No one knew her name, but from her innocent look, they called her Zhenzhen. She lived a happy life with her adoptive parents. She knew that the fisherman and his wife were not her real parents, but unfortunately, she did not know who her biological parents were. Only a heart-shaped jade pendant could prove her identity. Love was only 18, yet her beauty was already apparent. Because her family was poor, she entered the palace as a servant and was tasked by the head eunuch to serve the princess.”
“How pitiful…” Little Yichen clenched his fists even tightly. Sorrow appeared on his handsome little face as he got engrossed in the story. He felt heartbroken for the princess.
“One day, when the King and the fake princess were having a meal, he recalled the past and had the desire to see the heart-shaped jade pendant. The fake princess took it out unthinkingly. She was about to give it to the King when the real princess, who was holding a dish, collided with her, causing the jade to fall to the ground, yet it did not shatter. The princess lambasted, ‘This dog slave 1 ! Dropping a precious item to this princess and King, what punishment shall I give you?!’ At this, the real princess fell to her knees in fright. ‘I deserve death! Forgive my offense, princess!’…”
“Ah…”
Little Yichen suddenly sat up on the bed, his heart in a mess, as they progressed into the story. “That fake princess is evil! How vile! She’s clearly not the real princess, yet she dared masquerade as her. Didn’t the King find out her deceit? That’s too much.”
She broke into a smile. “The King didn’t know at first that she was an imposter.”
“What happened next? What happened next?” he pressed on nervously.
“…’On account of your young age, I will be merciful and spare your miserable life. Hmph!’ said the fake princess in contempt. Meanwhile, the King’s mind was elsewhere. What’s wrong with Love? She’s never treated the servants like this before. Sigh… Perhaps, I’m being oversensitive—wait! Shan’t the fragile pendant shatter upon falling to the floor? Unless it’s an imitation; is it… The King suddenly had his doubts.”