USWHC -Chapter 505 Alliance (Part 5)

“Greetings, Princess Lanqin!” came a unified chorus as everyone knelt.

Zhu Jie, however, remained perfectly still and only said coldly, “Rise.”

“Sister Jinghan, where are you sitting?” Princess Lanyi exclaimed in surprise. “Are you sitting on the flowers?”

Indeed, Zhu Jie was sitting squarely on Ji Yi, her skirt firmly covering him. “No, Wan Yue just brought me a small stool earlier!”

“In the flower bed?” Lanyi’s voice rose noticeably.

“One can smile among the flowers!” Zhu Jie forced out a smile. “Look—am I beautiful?”

Seeing her strange behavior, Princess Lanyi couldn’t help twitching her lips. What kind of stunt was this now?

Yet Zhu Jie even took the initiative to invite her. “Sister, don’t you want to try it too?”

“Hehe, I’ll pass! Sister can enjoy it alone, enjoy it alone!” Lanyi replied with an awkward laugh.

But at that moment, a strange sound suddenly came from the flower bushes—a muffled “ugh,” like someone suppressing nausea.

Princess Lanyi froze. “This stool even makes sounds?”

“Haha, maybe I moved a bit!” Zhu Jie quickly laughed it off, even swaying her body as if to demonstrate. Though she tried to appear relaxed, her legs were clearly trembling from the strain.

But the moment she moved, there was a thud—Ji Yi collapsed sideways onto the ground. This nearly dragged Zhu Jie down with him; if not for her martial skills and quick stance, she would have made a complete spectacle of herself.

“Why did it suddenly get shorter?” Lanyi widened her eyes even more.

Zhu Jie was drenched in sweat. Forcing a smile, she said, “It’s foldable! A foldable stool I just invented!”

“A foldable stool? Isn’t that just a folding seat?” Lanyi blinked in confusion.

Zhu Jie’s face darkened. “Haha, so it already exists? Look at me, I didn’t even know! Good thing you reminded me, or I would’ve embarrassed myself presenting it as something new!”

Seeing how nervous she was, Princess Lanyi began to suspect something odd underneath.

Smiling, she walked closer and said sweetly, “Now that I look at it, sister, you really do look quite lovely sitting there. Why don’t you let me try?”

The moment Zhu Jie heard that, she panicked—was she actually going to sit?! “Not to be laughed at, but this stool wasn’t designed well. It’s unstable. I’m afraid you might fall.”

“Didn’t sister just invite me to sit? And now, in such a short time, you’ve become stingy?” The more Zhu Jie refused, the more suspicious Lanyi became.

Zhu Jie inwardly wanted to slap herself—why had she provoked her? But now she could only harden her expression and feign anger. “I’ve noticed something—are you deliberately going against me today? When I invited you, you refused. Now that the stool is faulty, you insist on sitting. Are you trying to make a joke out of me?”

Startled by Zhu Jie’s sudden change in tone, Lanyi paused. But this only confirmed her suspicion—there was definitely something going on below.

“Perhaps sister is overthinking it? Why would I deliberately oppose you?” Lanyi continued. “I just find it novel. Since childhood, you’ve loved inventing all sorts of strange little things. Which one have I not tried? Even if some were faulty and I suffered a little, didn’t I always go along with it? Sister should know best—I’ve always supported you.”

Zhu Jie sneered inwardly but her face turned even colder. “But lately, I feel you’ve changed. That day when County Lady Pingning fell down the stairs—why did I feel someone push me from behind? And if I remember correctly, you were kneeling right behind me, weren’t you?”

At the mention of this, Lanyi immediately grew nervous. “I—I didn’t! Sister, don’t falsely accuse me!”

“Is that so? What a pity I don’t have eyes in the back of my head. Otherwise, I would have caught that person and properly dealt with her!” Zhu Jie said, her face suddenly turning ruthless as she smiled at Lanyi—a smile cold enough to freeze the air.