It was only after a long while that the Ling family members began to move. Several young ladies stepped down from their carriages one after another, supporting each other as they walked through the palace gates.
Ling Xiao looked up at the imperial palace. The towering, majestic architecture radiated the glory of a prosperous era.
The women of the Ling family were dazzled and entranced. The eldest young lady, Ling Hua, couldn’t wait to step through the palace gates.
In contrast, Ling Xin beside her trembled nervously, her fingers shaking.
Could this demon pass through the palace gates?
The imperial palace in the capital was the most virtuous place; there had never been any rumors of demons harming people here. So, there must be some form of protection.
If the demon, wearing the skin of a Ling family daughter, were to reveal its true form in front of everyone, the Ling family would be finished.
As a daughter of the Ling family, she herself would not come to a good end!
Quick-witted as she was, she soon grasped this reasoning. Ling Xin’s small face turned deathly pale, almost like a corpse.
Suddenly, gritting her teeth, she hurried forward and took Ling Xiao’s hand. Whether out of fear or something else, the icy, cold touch made Ling Xin shudder all over.
The assaulted Ling Xiao wore a confused expression, raising her little face in a bewildered, adorable manner.
“Hold my hand; it might help conceal things.”
After saying this, Ling Xin lowered her head, not daring to linger, and pulled Ling Xiao forward. Along the way, she bumped into the eldest young lady, Ling Hua, causing her to stumble.
They passed through the palace gates without incident. Ling Xiao gently loosened Ling Xin’s hand, which had just been holding hers.
In an eerie, soft voice, she said, “Humans can be so strange sometimes.”
The System didn’t know what madness she was up to. Like a dead salted fish, it rolled over and ignored her completely.
The palace banquet officially began. The nobles above and the Emperor exchanged toasts, chatting and laughing merrily.
As minor officials, the Ling family was seated near the palace hall’s entrance. Without taking the initiative, they naturally gained nothing.
Everyone had their own agendas, seeking opportunities one after another. Only Ling Xin and Ling Xiao remained in their seats.
Ling Xiao watched the singing and dancing with great interest, even mimicking the movements with her hands and feet. Others who saw this simply smiled knowingly.
The adorable little girl stretched out her small hands and danced, her clumsy appearance utterly charming.
Secretly, the System was already screaming in terror, “What are you doing?! Stop it right now…”
Strands of hair, nearly invisible to the naked eye, extended outward like a spider weaving its web, densely covering the entire hall.
Seeing the little system about to burst into tears, Ling Xiao finally stopped. After all, what needed to be done was already done.
Ling Xiao said carelessly, “Relax, relax~ Isn’t this all for the sake of winning favor in the harem?”
“If you want to win favor in the harem, go seduce the Emperor! What’s with covering the entire hall in hair? Are you filming a horror movie?!”
18888 no longer maintained its former elite system demeanor. After shouting this sentence, its voice nearly cracked.
Ling Xiao twirled a strand of her black hair around her finger, her eyelashes lowered. “Shut up and watch carefully how I win favor in the harem.”
The last syllable rose sharply, like the tail of a venomous scorpion carrying a chilling poison!
On the high platform, the Emperor stood up and raised his cup. The lively banquet instantly fell silent.
“My esteemed ministers, since my ascension to the throne… Today’s victory over the southern barbarians is a great joy. We have just offered sacrifices to our ancestors, and the incense smoke rose straight upward. Surely our ancestors have taken notice…”
The ministers below were also trembling with excitement, many lifting their sleeves to wipe away tears, their expressions filled with apparent emotion.
With the ministers so cooperative, Li Yue spoke with even greater enthusiasm. The harmony between ruler and subjects reached its peak, and the atmosphere in the hall soared to a climax.
Some, fearing the excitement wasn’t enough, had the captured Hu barbarian khan change into red clothing.
His face was thickly powdered, his cheeks rouged like a monkey’s bottom, and he made his entrance like a dwarf clown telling jokes in the palace.
Li Yue burst into laughter at the sight, pointing at Zhuo Qi, the Minister of the Court of State Ceremonial, and said, “You mischievous rascal!”
Even so, everyone could see the Emperor didn’t mind. Zhuo Qi shrugged and replied, “If this barbarian can earn a laugh from Your Majesty, it’s his great fortune.”
As the Southern Barbarian Khan began to dance, the atmosphere reached its peak. Ling Xin gradually relaxed, pouring herself a cup of light, clear wine.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw that demon leave their seat.
Oh, heavens!
In the splendid, music-filled banquet hall, the small figure of a young girl walking to the center initially went unnoticed.
But someone eventually noticed, and when palace attendants tried to pull her away, they fell aside without even touching the hem of her clothes.
Slowly, Ling Xiao finally reached the center of the banquet.
Li Yue was no fool. Seeing a little girl standing before him at some point, he didn’t even frown. Instead, he gave a hearty laugh.
“Whose little lady is this? How did you get here?”
Others also noticed the young girl below the Emperor’s high platform.
Dressed in a light red upper garment and a moon-white skirt, the fabric wasn’t what palace servants wore—she must be the young daughter of some family.
However, she wore few accessories, and they weren’t of high value, suggesting her family wasn’t particularly prominent.
Everyone exchanged glances, wondering which family could be so bold.
Ling Xiao tilted her head slightly. In Li Yue’s view, her large eyes were pitch-black as she stared at him and suddenly uttered:
“You said you made offerings to the ancestors, but why haven’t I received any incense?”
As soon as these words were spoken, the entire hall was shocked.
Minister Xu, a veteran official of two dynasties, trembled with rage, his beard quivering as he pointed at Ling Xiao and roared:
“You insolent child! How dare you speak blasphemy against the imperial ancestors? Your crime is unforgivable!”
He strode forward, and no one doubted Minister Xu’s determination to defend the dynasty’s dignity.
Not only would the young girl suffer, but her family would likely face demotion as well.
With Minister Xu taking the lead, others were eager to join in. The guards standing by with swords drew their blades in unison.
No one noticed the terror on the faces of the humble official’s family near the palace entrance.
“Enough, she’s just a little girl.”
Suddenly, a calm voice rang out. Minister Xu’s beard stopped trembling, his expression quickly returning to normal as if nothing had happened, and he halted his steps.
Everyone looked up at the high platform, where the young Emperor stood up, first patting the hand of the Empress beside him, who looked furious.
He slowly descended the steps, approaching Ling Xiao step by step. The Chief Eunuch beside him made a gesture to block him, but the Emperor gently brushed it aside, and the eunuch lowered his head and remained still.
Seeing this person drawing closer, Ling Xiao showed no fear. Instead, she let out a soft laugh.
By now, the music and dancing in the hall had stopped unnoticed, and the guests no longer chatted over their cups. The silence was so profound one could hear a pin drop.
The young girl’s soft laughter carried far.
The Emperor crouched down, looking directly at her, and said solemnly:
“You’re still young and don’t understand the consequences of speaking recklessly. As one of my subjects, I can forgive you, but don’t do it again.”
These few words showcased the Emperor’s broad-mindedness. On the platform, Empress Wen’s eyes shone with admiration—this was the man she revered and respected.
The ministers couldn’t help but be moved as well. A broad-minded emperor was always preferable to a narrow-hearted one.
With this thought, they felt more lenient toward the nonsensical Ling Xiao. Very well, very well—for His Majesty’s sake.
The unknown head of the Ling family let out a long sigh, his flushed face returning to normal as his colleagues around him looked on in surprise.
That was terrifying. He thought that wretched girl would implicate the entire family. Fortunately, Your Majesty is magnanimous.
“When that bastard returns, I’ll sell her to a brothel, and then…”
Ling Hua had also been badly frightened earlier. Now, having regained her composure, she instantly flew into a rage, spewing one filthy insult after another.
Though she was cursing her own biological daughter, the head of the Ling family found it cathartic. Out of propriety, he refrained from joining in, but inwardly, he wholeheartedly agreed.
They couldn’t let that wretched girl off easily!
Ling Xin watched her father and elder sister with a bitter smile, thinking to herself, “She’ll be lucky if she doesn’t kill you. That’s a demon…”
The next moment, Li Yue, who had been about to tell the little girl to leave, widened his eyes more and more, as if seeing something unbelievable.
He watched as the little girl’s hair visibly grew longer and longer before his eyes, reaching the ground in just a few seconds.