A silver candlestick sat on the dressing table, but gentle light filled the room from numerous night pearls.
Yan Xuan pursed his lips, reflecting on how he spoiled her.
He sat by the bed and gently woke her: “Go, trim the candle wick.”
Ruan Ning woke with a start, immediately seeing a different Yan Xuan.
The aura of disgust and rejection emanated from him as Ruan Ning got out of bed and stood by the dressing table to trim the candle.
Yan Xuan leaned against the bed railing, expressionless: “These night pearls he gave you?”
Ruan Ning’s mind was in chaos. She hesitated and said, “Your Majesty, these were bestowed by you.”
Yan Xuan coldly snorted: “You are the Noble Consort. What about the Empress?”
Ruan Ning softly replied, “Your Majesty has not established an Empress.”
Yan Xuan repeated, “No Empress?” After a long pause, he revealed a stiff smile, “Don’t be the Empress. It’ll be fatal.”
Ruan Ning’s heart raced. She dared not continue the conversation and silently trimmed the candle wick.
Suddenly, Yan Xuan strode over, snatching the candle scissors and growling, “What are you cutting? Be careful not to extinguish it!”
His grip was too forceful, and the scissors left a red mark on Ruan Ning’s hand. It was painfully sore, but she remained silent, quietly covering the wound and rubbing it gently.
After his outburst, Yan Xuan’s tense emotions eased slightly. He sat back and asked, “Who sent you?”
“I came from Chen Kingdom,” Ruan Ning wondered if he had some sudden amnesia, otherwise, why would he forget who she was.
“Chen Kingdom,” Yan Xuan thought, remembering that Ning Yi was also from there.
“She was my paternal aunt,” Ruan Ning recalled the Chen Emperor mentioning that her aunt Ning Yi had married Yan Xuan’s father but died soon after.
A warmth flashed in Yan Xuan’s eyes: “She was a good person.”
Ruan Ning’s confusion grew. Yan Xuan had never mentioned Ning Yi before. Why now? According to the Chen Emperor, Ning Yi died when Yan Xuan was not yet ten. How could he remember her?
“In this palace, good people do not live long,” Yan Xuan’s voice turned cold again, “Trim the candle, make it brighter.”
