"I NEVER THOUGHT the fifth imperial uncle was actually neglected by the imperial family," Lily muttered, irritation flashing across her face. "You're really taking this meal seriously?"
The dark lines on her forehead deepened. The invitation she had made earlier was never meant to be genuine—it was merely a taunt to annoy the medicine pavilion's insufferable housekeeper. She had already explained as much to the man now sitting comfortably across from her, but he had stubbornly insisted on following through.
She didn't want to entertain him. But she had been the one to say it, and Lily, despite her capriciousness, wasn't so shameless as to go back on her word entirely. Begrudgingly, she'd relented.
"It's not every day that I get to share a meal with Young Miss Pei. How could I pass on such a rare opportunity?" Hugo said with his signature gentle smile.
Lily cast a sideways glance at him. He still carried that composed, graceful air—a refined gentleman untouched by worldly troubles. Yet, there was something in his eyes that made her uneasy. They weren't just looking at her; they seemed to peer straight into her soul. Was he… flirting?
She snorted inwardly. Impossible.
This was a man who once seriously considered becoming a monk. A man who had claimed to renounce earthly attachments. He must be teasing her. That had to be it.
"I'm not here to please anyone. So why should I bother entertaining you?" she asked bluntly.
Hugo sighed, sounding genuinely dejected. That wasn't what he meant at all. Why did his words always get twisted when it came to her? He'd been thinking hard about how to get closer to this girl. But nothing seemed to work.
He considered acting shameless, but worried she'd hate him for it. A part of him even contemplated taking what he wanted by force—but what if she cut ties with him entirely or even swore revenge? That would be catastrophic.
So, in the end, all he could do was move slowly. Carefully.
"One of the Medicine Sect's elders was in the pavilion earlier," Hugo informed her, changing the subject.
Lily paused mid-sip. Her hand froze on the cup. "An elder?" she repeated sharply.
Could it be that elder?
In her past three lifetimes, the one constant behind her tragic deaths was the same man—an elder of the Medicine Sect. After her marriage to the crown prince, though they shared no affection, she was nonetheless crowned the future empress. That status alone made her the prime target of the prime minister's daughter, Olivia.
Olivia had always wanted both the crown prince and Lily's title. When she couldn't remove Lily through court scheming, she turned to her brother, whose master happened to be an elder in the Medicine Sect. That elder agreed to help her, and from there, Lily's downfall was sealed.
Eventually, her grandfather took revenge, parading the elder's corpse throughout the empire and toppling the Medicine Sect. But that retribution only came after three excruciatingly dull years of marriage.
Back then, her engagement to the crown prince wasn't ideal, but it at least bought her time. Time she could spend idly. That was the whole reason she severed the engagement—so she could live freely, without expectation or scrutiny.
So why was this elder showing up now, before the proper timeline?
Wrinkles of displeasure creased her forehead. She had planned for peace, not premature chaos.
"Young Miss Pei?" Hugo asked, concerned by the fire burning in her eyes.
"Was that elder's name Leo?" she asked coldly.
Hugo blinked. "How did you know?" His surprise was genuine. As far as he was aware, Lily had never interacted with anyone from the Earth Realm, and there was no known Pei family beyond this empire.
"So, it's really him!" she growled, slapping the table hard. They were in a private room, but the sound still echoed, drawing the attention of patrons in nearby rooms. Curious gazes turned toward them.
"Young Miss Pei has a connection to the Medicine Sect?" Hugo asked, eyebrows furrowed.
Lily sneered. "What kind of connection could I possibly have with them? That old man is the master of the prime minister's son. How could I not know him?"
Hugo nodded, mulling it over. "The emperor is unaware of this, then. Otherwise, he wouldn't treat the prime minister with such favor."
Lily rolled her eyes. "Your emperor is an idiot. Don't compare me to him next time."
Hugo chuckled, amused by her straightforward disdain. "Noted."
He then leaned in slightly. "The emperor's birthday banquet is scheduled for the third day of next week. During the last few court sessions, he has been dropping hints about making the Prime Minister's daughter a concubine of the crown prince. It's highly likely he'll make the announcement at the banquet."
He held her gaze, waiting for her reaction. Lily might be lazy, but she was never foolish. She would understand the implications of such a move.
The prime minister was ambitious. His daughter even more so. And someone like Olivia would never accept being a mere concubine. Not when she had the backing of her brother and Elder Leo. Hugo didn't know exactly why Leo agreed to help, but he suspected it had something to do with power.
He didn't care about the elder's motives. He only cared that Lily stayed safe. Especially now—his maternal family had been urging him to return, though they wouldn't say why. He might have to leave the empire for a while. But leaving Lily alone, knowing that trouble was brewing, made him uneasy.
"Thank you, Fifth Imperial Uncle, for telling me this," Lily said.
Her voice was cold, but the sincerity was unmistakable. Still, irritation remained in her eyes.
She now deeply regretted cancelling her engagement.
At the very least, with that farce of a marriage, she had been guaranteed three years of peace. Now, trouble was coming early.
It wasn't that she feared conflict.
She just hated moving.
Later that evening, upon returning home, Lily marched straight into her grandfather's study. She slumped onto a chair, looking utterly defeated.
"I shouldn't have cancelled the engagement," she muttered.
Duke Pei almost spat out his tea. His eyes bulged in disbelief.
"What?!" he roared. His hand twitched, itching to slap her head open. He wanted to see what was going on inside that constantly contradicting mind of hers.
"The crown prince is immoral! Why are you suddenly changing your mind again?!"
Now that he had calmed down from the initial fiasco, Duke Pei had firmly decided—no matter what, he would never allow his granddaughter to marry that crown prince. The boy was unfaithful and weak. In the future, he'd take in countless concubines, and his granddaughter would suffer. That was unacceptable.
"I know," Lily said quietly.
"Then why the sudden regret?" he demanded, trying his best to remain patient.
With no better option, Lily shared what the Fifth Imperial Uncle had told her. Of course, she left out the tiny detail that she had died three times thanks to Elder Leo. No way she was explaining all that. Her grandfather would bombard her with a hundred questions—and frankly, she was too lazy to answer any of them.
Much too lazy.