Episode 3 – Not So Noble, After All

The morning court dragged on with dull reports—until the doors opened again.

A woman in soft yellow silk entered, her belly modestly rounded beneath gauzy veils. The hall stirred.

Lady Mei. The supposed mother of the Crown Prince’s child.

She bowed demurely. “Your Majesty, Your Highness… Consort Lin.”

Lin Xie didn’t blink. “What a surprise. I didn’t realize this was an open house.”

Gasps. Jian Yu shot him a warning glance, but Lin Xie only tilted his head and smiled like sin in silk.

Lady Mei's voice trembled with practiced sweetness. “I merely came to express my gratitude for Your Highness’s kindness.”

“Oh?” Lin Xie’s voice lit with venom. “Then should I prepare baby clothes? Or perhaps a cradle fashioned from royal shame?”

The court froze.

Lady Mei paled. “I–I mean no offense—”

“Oh, I’m sure,” Lin Xie interrupted, stepping forward. His fan snapped open. “After all, it takes a special kind of virtue to claim royal blood while standing in front of his legal consort.”

“Lin Xie,” the Crown Prince warned.

“Don’t worry, Your Highness,” he said silkily, not even glancing at him. “I’m merely conversing. Isn’t that what nobles do—smile while stabbing?”

He turned fully to Lady Mei, eyes glowing cold.

“Do you know what I endured to be accepted as the Crown Prince’s mate?” His voice lowered, sharp as a blade. “I bled. I bowed. I bore it all.”

“And yet,” he laughed bitterly, “a single pretty face with a swollen belly appears, and everyone forgets the law.”

One minister spoke up timidly, “Lady Mei claims the child is—”

“If claiming something made it true,” Lin Xie cut in, “I’d be Empress by now.”

That shut him up.

“Now listen closely, dear Lady Mei,” he said, circling her like a predator. “If that child is royal blood, then let His Highness declare it publicly—here, now. If not, remove yourself before I ask if you're even qualified to stand in my presence.”

She trembled, eyes darting to Jian Yu, silently begging.

Lin Xie turned to him at last. “Well, Your Highness? Will you humiliate me further, or shall I escort our guest out myself?”

Jian Yu opened his mouth—but found no words.

Lin Xie smiled and stepped back, voice sweet as honey over daggers.

“No answer? How unlike you.”

The silence was thunderous.

He turned to leave, brushing past stunned ministers and frozen servants. But before exiting, he looked over his shoulder.

“I was called selfish once. Cruel. Cold. Perhaps they were right.”

He smiled.

“But I’d rather be a selfish consort than a silent one.”

With that, Lin Xie vanished behind the curtain of red and gold—leaving behind a shattered silence and a court full of ghosts too afraid to speak.

Full Name: Jian Yu (简御)