I was thinking... if I was a lady in a palace harem and my son was An Nian. How would it be like?
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"My lady, Prince Nian arrives." One of the very few maids in the room announces.
At this moment, the door opens and a man in his twenties steps into the room. His dark clothes not helping with his aura that screams 'stay away'.
"Mother, you called for me?"
Inside the room was a petite lady dressed in a simple plain clothing, it made her look insignificant in the room. She was drinking tea very slowly trying not to burn her tongue. (I don't get why tea has to be scalding hot)
"Ah yes, I wanted to discuss a few things with you my dear son. Come sit down, have tea with me. Be careful, it's hot." The lady puts down her tea cup gently before sending her son a small smile. Once he sat down, she began her questioning.
"How are the other prince and princesses doing?"
"Doing well, still as always."
"Well, that too bad then. I thought that someone would have made a blunder somewhere. Are you sure no one died?"
"Mother, I'm very sure no one died. If there was something I missed out, General Guang would inform me."
"Okay then. Speaking of the general... You two seem pretty close no?"
"Barely friends. He's too annoying."
"Fufu. I think he's pretty hot and sexy."
"Mother, you're married. To the emperor."
"Oh, I know that~ I'm saying that I wouldn't mind if he was my son-in-law."
An Nian almost spit out the tea he was drinking, if not for his fast reflexes to keep it in, it would have already been on his mother's face.
"Is there something wrong, my dear?"
"N-Not at all. Excuse me Mother, I suddenly remembered I have something to do."
Although the petite lady appeared sad and unwilling for her baby to leave, once he left the doors a small creepy smile appeared on her face. Very un-befitting of a palace woman.
"Fufufu... It seems I can finally have some fun after a long time. Lin-er, invite the general over for a chat."
"Yes My lady, do you want us to change the cup?" A mischevious light flashed in her eyes as she grins. "No need, save water you know?"
Having followed her lady ever since before she married into the palace, Lin-er was not sure whether it really was her lady's minimalism or rotten brain.
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This time a man wearing dark blood red clothes arrives at the courtyard of Consort Xu.
"My lady, the general has arrived."
"General Guang greets Consort Xu."
"Come in, come in. No need for formalities, since when did I ever care about those. General, the tea may be a little cold since it was brewed an hour ago. I hope you don't mind?"
"No, of course not. Cold tea is perfect for today's weather. There seems to be tea in the cup already though, did someone drink it before?" She had to praise his observation skills, after all he was the general who won the war.
"Ah, that. No one drank it before, I asked Lin-er to pour the tea in advance. But if you aren't sure then I could ask for a new cup." At this moment, the gentle smile turned into a slight frown. To the general who always liked Consort Xu over the other consorts and concubines, an arrow hit his heart. He always thought of her as his second mother.
"Oh, no no. It is fine for me. I didn't mean to make you upset." He picks up the teacup and drinks from the cup to show that he really didn't mind, his lips landing at the exact spot An Nian's lips were at.
Seeing this, the lady's face brightens and a smile bloomed. They chatted for a long time, the lady asking occasionally what he thought of her son.
While the general may seem like he leisurely came over, he was actually rushing over from his meeting with the Emperor. This of course made the Emperor curious and he sent someone to prode.
After finding out what his wife had done, he could only shake his head. She had been like this since before they married, he doesn't think she'll change anytime soon.
-The next day-
"His Royal Majesty Emperor An arrives."
"Well hello there dear Emperor."
"Not even a proper greeting?"
"Nah, you're never getting it from me in private. Anyways, what are you here for?"
"You're matching our son with the general." It wasn't a question but a statement.
"Fufufu. Maybe~"
"*sigh* I'm somehow glad that you rejected being the Queen."
"Why of course! Who would want to raise those foxes when I could dump them to my bestie to raise them for me? It's way too much work and there hasn't even been drama lately. Aiiiiii, I'll surely rot away in my courtyard reading BL novels and drinking scalding hot tea."
"Sometimes I wonder why I didn't run away on our wedding day."
"If you could run away, you think I can't do it instead?" The Emperor said nothing but started turning around to leave.
"Ah! By the way, I'm still hung up on the fact that I failed at pushing you towards the Prime Minister, are you going to compensate for the heartbreak?" This made the Emperor's ears red. Either from anger, shyness or embarrassment, nobody knew. He just slammed the door on his way out.
"*le gasps* Ai, my kokoro. I almost got a heart attack. He should be gentle with my door, just like how I am with my pairings..."
"Lin-er, do you think we should visit the Queen for some entertainment?"
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Word count: 944 words
S/E: 9 Oct 2020
