466 Sisters (2/2)

”If I had a sister like you, I would be overjoyed,” replied Xu Yanwei.

”My dear sister.”

”My s-- no, I have to call you 'Princess' or 'Queen.' It frightens me to call you 'sister.'”

”It doesn't matter as long as you're willing to be my sister.”

”It's my pleasure,” said Xu Yanwei.

”My dear sister, I need you to help me,” the Princess said.

Xu Yanwei was not stupid. She had guessed the Princess must have a reason for being so nice to her. Even still, Xu Yanwei could not refuse her because she was quite fond of the Princess. The Princess was delicate, so she could not help trying to protect her. She said in confidence, ”Please trust me. I will keep Dragon King here tonight and try my best to make him sleep with you, at all costs.”

Hearing this, the Princess flushed and interrupted her immediately, ”No, you misunderstood me.”

”Did I? I thought... haha. Tell me, who dares to bully you?”

”I betrayed the Dragon King.”

Xu Yanwei was taken by great surprise. She withdrew her hand from the Princess' hands and said, ”You... cheated on him? How...”

”No, I didn't,” the Princess shook her head repeatedly, and her face became redder, ”I don't have another... It's about men... My betrayal has nothing to do with infidelity.”

”Then what are you referring to? Are you hiding the papers from him?”

”That's not all,” the Princess continued.

”What else did you do,” Xu Yanwei inquired.

”I made another copy and gave it to someone else.”

Xu Yanwei was stunned. ”You've got some nerve,” she said. ”Dragon King told you many times... How didn't I notice?”

”Do you remember that day when the King sent servants to scold me?”

”Of course I remember it; he did it more than once. Your brother likes to meddle and nitpick. He came in person... I see.”

”The brother and sister were acting in front of others. They pretended to be on bad terms, but exchanged information privately.” Xu Yanwei thought.

”I had no choice,” the Princess cried, ”He is not only my brother but also a King. I have to work for him. It's... It's the rule of the Ju family.”

Xu Yanwei sighed and pitied the poor Princess. ”She has lived in the palace since her birth. All she learned is how to be a qualified princess and to contribute to her family. For her, the kinship that others value most is a chain that she can't escape,” she mused.

”When did it begin,” Xu Yanwei asked.

”Two or three months ago when he heard that I was working on a secret manuscript for Dragon King.”

Xu Yanwei scratched her head. She got angry, not because of the Princess' boldness, but her own dereliction of duty. She asked, ”You said you gave the copy to the King. Who did he give the copy to?”

”I don't know. I guess he gave it to the man from Golden Roc Fort. He always told me that they were formidable and Dragon King wasn't equal to them.”

Xu Yanwei became more nervous, and she even regretted agreeing to help the Princess. She asked, ”So it was your brother's plot to kill that pregnant maid, right?

”Yes,” the Princess admitted.

”Did you have a part in it?”

”No, I didn't. I just... I knew his plot, but didn't tell Dragon King.”

Xu Yanwei could only smile bitterly, which was not much different from participating in the conspiracy. ”You want me to help you,” she asked the Princess.

”Dragon King trusts you. Please tell him that I am very remorseful, and I will go along with whatever decision he makes as I am his wife.”

”Dragon King never takes my words seriously. No one can change his decision.”

The Princess wailed with her head buried on the table. After a while, she raised her head and said, ”Then let him kill me. I only beg him to do it himself.”

”I will talk with him and he won't kill you,” Xu Yanwei said and sighed. ”Men are complicatedand women are not simple.” She thought this motto was insufficient, and added, ”Women shouldn't interfere with men' matters.”

Gu Shenwei arrived at the Princess' residence. Before he entered, he was stopped by Xu Yanwei. She begged, ”Dragon King, allow me to leave the palace. You can ask me to do anything except collect information. I can't do it anymore. The Princess is driving me crazy.”

”Did she tell you everything?”

Xu Yanwei nodded and shook her head. ”I shouldn't have impulsively agreed to collect intelligence for Dragon King and drank blood wine for no reason,” she thought.