Killer Queen: Tyrant, prepare to die!

Chapter 96 Red-Clad Beauty Shocks the Taiji Palace! She Performs a Merchant's Bow: "This commoner, Ye Huang, greets Your Majesty."

At 3:45 PM, in the Taiji Hall.

Hundreds of palace lanterns were lit together, illuminating the highest hall of the empire as if it were daytime.

The ground is paved with gold bricks, and the dragon pillars reach for the sky.

The throne sits atop nine jade steps, with Nangong Ye dressed in a bright yellow dragon robe, his expression unreadable in the flickering candlelight.

Your Highness, the officials are seated in order.

Civil officials stood to the east and military officials to the west, dressed in purple robes and red garments, with black gauze turbans, exuding a solemn and dignified aura.

The women's seats were located a little further away, surrounded by pearls and jade, with a subtle fragrance of cosmetics.

Today, however, all the ladies and young women, dressed in their finest attire, were glancing, intentionally or unintentionally, toward the palace gate.

She is waiting for someone.

Waiting for that Jiangnan female tycoon who stirred up the entire capital.

Waiting for that... "Lady Night Phoenix" who made His Majesty chase after her carriage in the street.

The murmurs inside the hall paused slightly when the master of ceremonies announced in a high-pitched voice, "The Crown Prince of Zhenbei has arrived!"

Xiao Jue, dressed in the everyday clothes of a prince's heir, with his hair tied up in a jade crown, strode in with steady steps.

He bowed towards the throne, but his gaze quickly swept across the women's section, not seeing the person he wanted to see.

He frowned almost imperceptibly, then calmly took his seat in the reserved area.

As soon as he sat down, Prince Jing, Nangong Shuo, leaned over and said with a smile, "Young Master Xiao has also come to the banquet? The peace and stability of the northern border is truly a blessing for the nation."

Xiao Jue returned the greeting calmly: "Your Highness Prince Jing is too kind. It is my duty."

As the two exchanged pleasantries, the official at the palace gate raised his voice again, this time with a barely perceptible tremor at the end:

"The owner of Jiangnan Jinxiufang, Lady Yehuang, has arrived—"

hum.

All the whispers vanished instantly.

Inside the Taiji Hall, you could hear a pin drop.

All eyes turned to the two heavy, gilded palace doors that were slowly opening.

The first thing that catches the eye is a corner of fiery red.

That red was so pure and intense, like a phoenix feather tempered in fire, crashing into the magnificent golden palace without warning, and suppressing all the surrounding colors, making them pale in comparison.

Then, the true talent was revealed.

Night Phoenix.

She entered slowly, alone.

There were no servants following behind him, only four black-clad guards standing in the shadow of the pillars outside the palace gate, like silent sculptures.

Hundreds of eyes in the hall were fixed on her.

Even their breathing became softer.

The bright red palace dress features a phoenix embroidered in gold thread spiraling upwards from the hem, cinching at the waist, as if poised to take flight.

The phoenix's eyes were two dark obsidian stones, which, with each step she took, seemed to be coldly looking down upon all living beings in the hall.

Her waist was extremely slender, forming a curve so small it could be grasped in one hand, yet she did not appear weak at all. On the contrary, her straight back and smooth shoulder lines gave her a sharp, razor-sharp look.

Her hair was styled in a high bun, adorned with a set of pearl ornaments from the East China Sea.

The largest pearl hung on her forehead, its warm luster reflecting off her porcelain-white face.

Instead of adding softness, it made those eyebrows and eyes appear even more... cold and sharp.

It's not the gentle beauty emanating from the misty waters of Jiangnan like Shen Qingci's style.

It is the ice atop the snow-capped mountain that never melts, reflecting a blinding, chilling light when the sun shines upon it.

She moved forward step by step.

The hem of her skirt brushed against the gleaming gold bricks, making a very slight, rustling sound.

The sound was clearly audible in the excessively quiet hall, like some kind of countdown.

He walked each step with extreme steadiness.

Even though her palace attire was magnificent and heavy, and even though the eyes of everyone in the hall were like arrows, she kept her eyes straight ahead, slightly raised her chin, and walked straight toward the throne.

Finally, she stopped seven steps below the jade steps.

He looked up.

His gaze met that of the person on the throne.

pat.

A very faint, crisp sound.

It was the Nine Dragon Jade Cup that Nangong Ye was holding; the bottom of the cup gently tapped against the imperial table.

His fingers, gripping the cup, had knuckles that were slightly white.

I see it clearly now.

That face... looks like it.

Her eyebrows, nose, lips... even the curve of her jawline in profile, all overlapped by seven-tenths with that gentle face deep in my memory.

But the remaining three points—

They are completely different souls.

In my memory, Shen Qingci always looked at me with a timid admiration in her eyes, like the tenderest leaf on a spring branch, afraid of breaking at the slightest touch.

And the woman in front of me.

His eyes were calm and expressionless.

No, it's not calm.

It was a deep pool. Its surface reflected the bright lights inside the palace, but its interior was dark, cold, and unfathomable.

The gaze swept over, without admiration, without fear, not even hatred—only a detached, indifferent scrutiny.

It's like looking at an object.

Or a... competitor that needs to be evaluated.

Nangong Ye's throat tightened.

My heart was pounding violently in my chest, striking my ribs and causing a dull pain.

Countless days and nights of doubt, speculation, and unrealistic hopes materialized at this moment, violently assaulting his reason.

Is it her?

It must be her.

But why... does it feel so unfamiliar?

The hall remained deathly silent.

Everyone held their breath as they watched this scene unfold: His Majesty gripping his wine cup in disbelief, and the woman in red standing calmly below the steps.

at last.

Ye Huang withdrew her gaze and gave a slight bow.

The gesture was neither the curtsy of a court lady nor the kneeling of a subject.

It is a common greeting among merchants in the martial arts world, consisting of clasped hands.

Cover your right hand with your left and raise it to your chest with a clean and swift motion.

"The commoner girl Ye Huang—"

Her voice rang out.

Not tall, yet clear and melodious, with the smooth, refined quality of the Jiangnan water towns, each word penetrating the silence of the hall with clarity.

"Greetings, Your Majesty."

No, not a concubine.

She is a commoner woman.

It's not Nangong Ye.

It is Your Majesty.

Every word is drawing a clear line.

Nangong Ye's pupils contracted slightly.

The fingers gripping the wine glass tightened even more.

He looked at her lowered eyes, at that pale, delicate neck, at that striking red dress…

The image of her standing amidst the blood and blood of her baby during the fire in the Cold Palace years ago overlaps sharply with the cold and beautiful figure before me.

His Adam's apple bobbed.

When he spoke again, his voice was noticeably hoarse:

"Rise."

Ye Huang straightened up, her eyes still lowered, her posture respectful, yet without a trace of humility.

Nangong Ye's gaze lingered on her face for a moment, as if trying to etch every detail into his eyes.

Then, he looked away and glanced at the master of ceremonies.

The master of ceremonies was startled and immediately announced in a shrill voice:

"Please take a seat—"

A palace attendant carried forward a rosewood armchair.

The chair was placed below the jade steps, at the very front of the princes' seats, just behind the three rows of princes' seats.

His seat was further forward than those of all the first-rank officials.

wow——

A collective gasp filled the hall.

The officials looked at each other, their eyes filled with surprise and uncertainty.

What merit or ability does a merchant's daughter possess to be seated before all the princes, second only to a prince?

What an honor this is!

Or rather, what kind of... test?

Ye Huang, however, seemed completely unaware of how shocking this arrangement was.

She merely glanced at the seat, then turned and walked over with steady steps, brushing her clothes aside as she sat down.

When he sat down, his back was straight and his red clothes were spread out.

Like a raging flame, it burned at the very forefront of this imperial power center.

She looked up and met Xiao Jue's worried gaze from the opposite seat.

He also caught a glimpse of Prince Jing, Nangong Shuo, with a playful smile to his side.

And further away, Liu Chengming's gloomy profile, eyes lowered, wine glass slowly swirling in his hand.

Ye Huang's lips curled up almost imperceptibly.

Extremely shallow.

Icy.

With a hint of sarcasm.

Good show.

This is just the beginning.

She picked up the wine poured by the eunuch in front of her, brought the rim of the white jade cup close to her lips, but did not drink it.

His gaze pierced through the sloshing wine, looking towards the throne in the distance.

Nangong Ye was also looking at her.

Their eyes met again.

A bottomless abyss.

A complex upheaval.

The lights in the Taiji Hall seemed to flicker at that moment.