The Seventh Princess Insists on Making Me Live Off Her - Chapter 14

It was Gao Jingxi who stopped the arrow’s momentum with her index finger. With a slight exertion of force, she reversed the iron arrow’s direction and sent it flying straight toward Gao Hu’s seat.

Everything happened within the blink of an eye. The murderous arrow intent arrived before Gao Hu’s heart, and at that critical moment, the stellar power wrapped around the arrow shattered into fragments and scattered across the table.

Flames immediately erupted across its surface, and the tongues of fire nearly burned away Gao Hu’s eyebrows.

Gao Jingxi raised her phoenix eyes slightly and stared coldly at Gao Hu.

“Eldest Imperial Brother, the osmanthus tree is not in that direction.”

The flames on the table gradually died out.

Although Gao Jingxi was furious inside, a faint smile remained on her face.

“Eldest Imperial Brother should understand that my marriage to the Princess Consort was decreed by Imperial Mother. If you are dissatisfied with the Princess Consort, does that mean you harbor resentment toward Imperial Mother?”

Her words rang powerfully throughout the hall.

Intimidated by Gao Jingxi’s gaze, Gao Hu struggled for some time before finally suppressing the trembling of his body.

Resentment surged within his heart.

In his opinion, the Duke of Yan’s military authority had already been weakened more than ten years ago. Now, there was not even anyone in the household capable of leading troops into battle. Only Lian Pingyou, a scholar, possessed the slightest amount of prestige.

Meanwhile, he was an imperial prince supported by General Weiwu. The throne would belong to him sooner or later.

At that thought, Gao Hu straightened his back again.

“Hahaha! It was merely a momentary mistake. Seventh Imperial Sister, please do not take offense. Since the Princess Consort is unharmed, His Majesty presumably will not blame me either.”

After laughing it off, Gao Hu drew his bow again and shot down petals from the tree.

Everyone else was also rather surprised that Gao Hu had acted so openly.

However, the First Imperial Prince had powerful supporters at court. No matter how astonished they were, everyone could only pretend that nothing had happened.

Looking around, osmanthus petals covered the floor, filling the air with their rich fragrance.

The arrow Gao Hu fired had skewered several osmanthus petals together.

Servants immediately stepped forward and recorded the number of petals attached to the arrow.

Seeing that his result was fairly good, Gao Hu gave a satisfied snort. He announced that he was going to change his clothes and temporarily left the hall.

Meanwhile, Gao Jingxi frowned deeply and took Lian Liejin’s hand.

“Princess Consort, are you all right?”

“I am fine.”

Lian Liejin smiled calmly, light shimmering within her eyes.

After a moment, she touched her sleeve and said softly,

“This humble subject would like to go outside for some air.”

“Very well. Return as quickly as possible.”

Seeing that Lian Liejin showed no trace of fear, Gao Jingxi was somewhat surprised—

When there was a difference in rank, stellar power could exert tremendous pressure. The oppression and suppression caused by that pressure could even affect a person’s mind.

Even though Gao Jingxi had blocked the arrow for Lian Liejin, it was impossible that she had not been affected at all.

Lian Liejin walked quickly and brushed past Gao Hu at the doorway.

At that moment, everyone’s attention had been drawn away by the sound of Gao Qing firing her arrow.

The Fifth Imperial Princess was widely known to possess mediocre talent, while the influence of her maternal family had grown increasingly weak. She was not considered a serious contender for the throne.

Gao Qing appeared to understand what everyone was thinking.

She obediently shot down only a few osmanthus blossoms, then shrugged without concern and returned to her seat.

The flowers on the osmanthus tree seemed to bloom even more brilliantly, and the banquet hall became filled with their intense fragrance.

“Seventh Imperial Sister, it is your turn.”

The First Imperial Prince Gao Hu’s eyes resembled venomous snakes lurking in the darkness, gleaming with malicious light.

The bow in Gao Jingxi’s hands was extremely plain, without any unnecessary decoration. Its black-and-gold body carried a faintly ancient and mysterious appearance.

She exerted a small amount of strength.

The bow curved like a full moon, and specks of starlight appeared around the arrow. Bright-golden stellar light resembling tiny bubbles revolved around its shaft.

A dragon’s roar rang out.

The arrow shot forward like a meteor.

Every osmanthus blossom on the tree became enveloped in starlight and gradually floated into the air, forming an enormous flower.

The Seventh Princess’s arrow swept every osmanthus petal from the tree and condensed them around the arrow’s shaft.

The stellar power surrounding it emitted such a dazzling radiance that everyone’s eyes reddened and began to water.

Gao Jingxi had always conducted herself discreetly and placed endurance above all else.

Today, however, she wanted to use this one arrow to make Gao Hu understand—

She, Gao Jingxi, could take his life whenever she wished.

The doors of the banquet hall were suddenly pushed open.

Lian Liejin entered the hall, appearing to stand beneath an enormous umbrella made from osmanthus blossoms.

The starlight and flowers illuminated her face.

Only after a long while did everyone finally recover and rise to applaud.

“Her Highness the Seventh Princess truly lives up to her reputation! The three imperial princes and princesses have given this year’s Poetry and Literature Gathering an auspicious beginning.”

Beneath the golden radiance, Lian Liejin appeared extremely fond of the osmanthus blossoms. She lingered beneath them for quite some time before finally returning to her seat.

Once the Star-Plucking Ceremony was complete, Gao Jingxi’s osmanthus petals were condensed into a preserved specimen by stellar power. Everyone suggested sending it to the imperial palace as a gift for the Emperor.

“You like osmanthus blossoms?”

Gao Jingxi raised an eyebrow.

She remembered that many osmanthus trees had been planted in Guan Xie’s small courtyard on Qingyue Mountain.

“Mm.”

Lian Liejin nodded sincerely.

“Osmanthus cakes are delicious.”

“Very well. You like eating them, do you?”

Gao Jingxi had originally hoped to use this indirect approach to make Lian Liejin admit that she was Guan Xie.

Now, it seemed this woman was simply pretending to be foolish!

She wore an ambiguous smile.

“A-You, bring fifteen plates of osmanthus cakes for the Princess Consort. Princess Consort, only after you finish them will I take you back to the Princess’s Residence.”

Lian Liejin looked confused. After carefully considering her words, she still said,

“But this humble subject never intended to return to the Princess’s Residence.”

“Enough. Remove the osmanthus and serve the meal.”

Gao Jingxi choked on her anger. She immediately turned forward and sat upright, giving orders while attempting to calm herself.

She repeatedly reminded herself that perhaps her attempt had simply backfired.

Lian Liejin might not be Guan Xie, and she could not allow herself to become so obsessively attached to that possibility.

Every Poetry and Literature Gathering began with a meal, followed by competitions in poetry, songs, and literary composition.

As a result, there were always several rounds of song and dance performances. As usual, countless singers and dancers had been invited to perform this year.

Servants entered in a continuous line, carrying plate after plate of exquisite food.

Among the dishes Lian Liejin recognized were Yanduxian, Phoenix-Stewed Peony, Taibai Duck…

When she bit into the plate of golden-thread beef pastries, the outside was crisp while the interior remained tender, filling her mouth with rich meat juices.

“Why is there a dish made from duck?”

Lian Liejin had just swallowed a beef pastry and picked up a duck neck when she heard Lian Pingyou’s slightly angry voice.

“Your Highness, you have never eaten duck. Why was Taibai Duck specially included among the dishes this time?”

There was a story behind Gao Jingxi’s avoidance of duck.

When she was only five years old, someone had poisoned a bowl of duck soup. The Seventh Princess had nearly died and required one or two years to recover afterward.

From that point onward, she rarely ate dishes containing duck.

“Pingyou, you are making too much of this.”

Gao Jingxi gently shook her head.

“That happened many years ago. What did the duck itself have to do with it?”

Lian Liejin placed the duck neck in her bowl, somewhat puzzled by their conversation.

“Your Highness, are you allergic to duck?”