The heartless Princess.

The banquet.

A couple of days later.....

Empress Qing POV.

We have been working hard for this banquet to be on time so that my Alice debut can go smoothly since she has always had problems with the public but now she has matured so I'm not too worried about her.

The banquet is about to start and everything is in order so I'm more relaxed but I wonder where is my child, she is yet to come, I guess that with her newfound maturity came boldness.

Liam's POV.

I'm left wondering where my woman is at right now, I hope she didn't do something as foolish as to run away or something, with her willful personality I would not put it past her, as the thought crosses my mind she finally appears and my does she look beautiful with a purple silk dress, her braided hair and light makeup, not like she needs it since the shameless women is a beauty.

Emperor Qing: Welcome everyone to today's banquet, let's do a poetry competition to break the ice.

As the Emperor suggested the young girls present from ladies of noble houses to princesses showed their talent in poetry.

Lady Lina of the general's mansion presented the following poem;

Blood flows like a river in war,
It stains the earth and leaves a scar,
Filling the air with pain and dread,
As mothers mourn for their dead.

Brothers fight against each other,
Without a thought of a friend or lover,
Their hearts and minds are consumed by hate,
Their actions were sealed by a bloody fate.

Fathers watch their sons fall to the ground,
Amidst the chaos and the sound
Of swords clashing and guns firing
As the battle keeps on raging.

Blood flows like a river in war,
A reminder of what we fight for,
And how we must choose our path,
For the sake of peace and a love that lasts.

Princess Angela presented the following poem;

The night we parted felt like my death,
A part of me was lost, my soul bereft.

The stars in the sky lost their light, As my
heart shattered, in the darkest of nights.

The moon hid behind the clouds up high,
As tears poured down, I said my goodbyes.

My breath became shallow, my mind numb,
As I accepted the pain, and let out a moan.

The memories flooded, in flashes of pain,
As I waved goodbye, and walked away in vain.

The night we parted felt like my death,
As I lay there broken, with nothing left.

But dawn will come, and with it, a new day,
A chance to revive, and begin a new way.

So let the night pass, and the pain subsides,
With each new step, the healing we'll find.

The night we parted felt like my death,
But love will conquer, and breathe life
to our breath.

Princess Charlotte presented the following poem;

In the heart of the woods,
Lies an abandoned pond
Where the forgotten lotus grows
And the stories remain untold.

The petals once bloomed with grace
In the summer's warm embrace
But now they wither away
In the shadows where they lay.

The winds howl through the trees
But no one hears the lotus' pleas
For a love that lasts forevermore
And a place it can call home.

Yet still, it perseveres
Through the darkness and the fears
Holding on to the hope
That one day it may cope.

For in the depths of its soul
Lies a whole beauty
A symbol of resilience and grace
That time cannot replaced.