Returning after a three-year escape from death, the tyrant has turned evil.

Chapter 2: Concealing Identity, Wearing a Veil

Song Yi respectfully kowtowed, still deliberately keeping her voice low, and said in a hoarse voice, "Your Majesty, please forgive me. This servant has caught a cold and is afraid of passing on my illness to Your Majesty, so I cannot remove it for the time being."

After he finished speaking, an eerie silence fell over the hall.

Just as Song Yi was wondering what he was thinking, Jiang Lanye suddenly stood up and walked up to her.

"stand up."

It was still that familiar, unquestionable tone.

Song Yi swayed as she stood up.

Jiang Lanye was tall and slender. Song Yi was not short for a woman, but when she stood in front of Jiang Lanye, she could only see his Adam's apple. If she wanted to see his face, she would have to look up.

The oppressive atmosphere was intense; a shadow fell, and Song Yi lowered her head even further.

Suddenly, he reached out and grabbed Song Yi's chin tightly, forcing her to lift her head, revealing a section of her fair neck.

"Look at me."

Song Yi had no choice but to look at him seriously.

Jiang Lanye's expression relaxed for a moment.

so similar.
He raised his hand, stroking the veil beside Song Yi's ear, and with a flick of his finger, he was about to lift the veil off her face.

Song Yi's pupils contracted instantly.

Immediately afterwards, Jiang Lanye swayed slightly, his brows furrowing.

Song Yi was puzzled and was about to ask a question when suddenly the tall figure fell down, landing unexpectedly on top of her.

Song Yi quickly caught him, but Jiang Lanye was too heavy, like a dark cloud pressing down on her. She couldn't hold on for long and collapsed to the ground with a thud, still holding him.

He just fainted like that?

what's the situation!
The unique, icy scent emanating from Jiang Lanye enveloped Song Yi, who was filled with mixed emotions. Before she could react, Eunuch Cao rushed in from outside the door.

"Your Majesty, His Majesty has fainted again! Quickly, fetch the imperial physician!"

After he finished speaking, several people rushed in and helped him lie down on the dragon bed.

Song Yi followed with suspicion and found that Jiang Lanye was lying quietly on the couch with pale lips. He was asleep and had lost some of his domineering aura. His eyes drooped down, making him look inexplicably pitiful.

Fearing that Eunuch Cao might misunderstand her actions, she quickly waved her hand and explained, "This servant doesn't know what happened, His Majesty suddenly collapsed."

Eunuch Cao gave her a deep look and sighed helplessly.

"It's none of your business; it's His Majesty's old problem."

Old ailment?
How come she didn't know before that Jiang Lanye had a chronic problem of fainting at the drop of a hat?

It seems that this only happened during the three years she was away.

Song Yi nodded meekly and asked, "Then, this servant will now..."

Eunuch Cao said helplessly, "You should go back first and pack your things at the laundry department. His Majesty will probably want to see you again when he wakes up."

Song Yi left without saying a word.

She ran all the way back to the laundry department, where the palace maids greeted her with sarcastic remarks: "Didn't His Majesty take a liking to you? Why are you back?"

"Perhaps His Majesty no longer wants her; she wears a veil, or perhaps she is ugly."

"But when exactly did this person come to the laundry department? I don't remember her at all. It's like she just appeared out of nowhere."

Song Yi ignored them; she had more important things to do right now.

She had only been here for two days. The head maid gave her two sets of clothes, both of which were maid dresses that she would change into every day. Other than that, she had nothing. She was extremely poor.

Just as she was about to bury her head in her arms and walk into the room, she suddenly asked, "Does anyone have any rouge that I can borrow?"

The group looked at each other, and one of the more good-natured palace maids said, "Use mine, it's in the box."

"Thank you!"

Song Yi filled a bucket with ice-cold water, hesitated for a long time, and finally gritted her teeth, took off her clothes, and immersed her whole body in the icy water.

To make herself truly sick, she gritted her teeth and endured the pain for a long time, soaking in the water until her limbs were numb and she lost all feeling. Only then did she shakily stand up and put on her clothes. Afterward, she picked up a brush, dipped it in rouge, and drew a large area of ​​burn marks on her face. To make the effect realistic, she even outlined it with wood ink.

Fortunately, she had some drawing experience, so the burn marks she drew weren't too fake, but they still couldn't withstand close scrutiny.

After doing all this, she put her veil back on, packed her things, and left the laundry department.

Night falls inside the Golden Palace.

Jiang Lanye slowly opened his eyes, adjusting to the candlelight in the hall.

The candlelight was too bright, and after a while, he said unhappily, "Put out all the candles."

Eunuch Cao quickly cut all the candles, leaving only the single small candle on the table. The hall was instantly plunged into darkness, appearing even more gloomy and eerie.

Jiang Lanye has always disliked bright light, a habit he developed over the past three years.

"What did the doctor say?"

He asked in a hoarse voice.

Eunuch Cao carefully chose his words and replied, "The imperial physician said that Your Majesty is overworked and not getting enough sleep. You often have nightmares at night, which is why you frequently have headaches. Your body is weak, which is why you suddenly fainted this time."

After hearing these words, Jiang Lanye slowly closed his eyelids and gave a soft "hmm".

Clearly, they don't care much.

It's not that he doesn't want to sleep; he often gets so tired that he can fall asleep the moment his head hits the pillow.

However, he would always be awakened by nightmares less than an hour after falling asleep.

For the past three years, he has had nightmares whenever he falls asleep.

Over time, in order to avoid having nightmares, he gradually began to avoid sleeping.

Only when he truly couldn't hold on any longer would he take a short nap, and then, unsurprisingly, be startled awake again.

I was plagued by nightmares, and no amount of medication could help.

After a while, he threw back the covers, sat up, and asked, "Where did that palace maid from earlier in the day go?"

I vaguely remember that before he fainted, he wanted to tear off her veil to take a look.

"Your Majesty, the palace maid has gone back to pack her clothes and is now waiting outside the palace."

Jiang Lanye didn't say what rank she would be given or where she would be placed, and Eunuch Cao didn't dare to make decisions on his own.

He lifted his eyelids and said calmly, "Let her in."

Song Yi carefully carried two sets of clothes into the hall and found it to be dark.

She cursed inwardly, thinking that if she hadn't been so familiar with the layout of the Golden Palace, she would have surely fallen to her death upon entering.

She walked slowly and hesitantly to Jiang Lanye and knelt down.

"See Your Majesty."

She was still wearing a veil, but this time her voice was truly hoarse, and she no longer needed to deliberately lower her voice.

Jiang Lanye continued to scrutinize her, and said, "Take off your veil."

This time, she had no choice but to comply.

If you resist repeatedly, it will only arouse suspicion.

So, with trembling hands, she slowly removed the veil.

Jiang Lanye stared at her without blinking.

The veil slipped off, and her face was obscured in the dim candlelight, except for the scars on her face that stood out.

He noticed the scar immediately, followed by a long silence.

Song Yi could clearly feel that his aura had turned cold.

Jiang Lanye looked away in disappointment.

(End of this chapter)