The original plan had been ruined.
Shen Lang had to find a way to get out now. After all, the mission was her top priority.
And so, as soon as an opportunity presented itself, she immediately put on a disguise, changing back into the man who sold fake wine, and stealthily climbed over the wall to leave the estate.
In truth, she didn't know if the Little Emperor would even leave the palace today. She could only go out and try her luck.
As it turned out, her luck wasn't half bad.
She had just climbed over the wall and barely found her footing when she was seized and trussed up.
They were the Little Emperor's men.
Tsk tsk.
'So crude.'
An unknown amount of time passed. She was about to doze off from boredom when they finally brought her before the Little Emperor.
To be precise, they tossed her unceremoniously at the Little Emperor's feet.
A sinister voice drifted down from above, elegant but laced with a hint of gritted teeth. "...Go on, try running again."
Shen Lang: ...
'Then untie me first.'
"Weren't you so good at hiding?" Jiang Yu sneered, crouching to meet her gaze and tilting her chin up. "You're certainly well-behaved now."
Shen Lang: ...
'So passive-aggressive.'
'Though, this position is a little... suggestive.'
'Two "dudes" like this... isn't it a bit... creepy?'
After a long moment, Shen Lang slowly forced out a question. "...Where is this?"
Jiang Yu said, "Why don't you take a guess?"
'A swindler who dares to fool even the Emperor can't guess where this is?'
Shen Lang was, of course, just playing dumb. She pretended to ponder for a moment before her eyes widened in realization. "This place is so extravagant, it's like a palace, and your aura is so noble... You couldn't possibly be..."
Jiang Yu waited leisurely for her to finish.
Finally, the person before him widened their eyes slightly. "...a male consort, are you?"
Jiang Yu: "..."
Some of the imperial attendants couldn't help but let out a snort of laughter, only to be immediately silenced by a razor-sharp glare from their Majesty.
"Say that again?" Jiang Yu growled, each word squeezed through clenched teeth.
Shen Lang seemed to have an idea. She glanced around furtively and whispered, "It may not be the most glamorous position, but with your beauty, Young Master, you must be the most favored in the entire harem. Your rank must be quite high."
As she said this, Shen Lang was laughing herself silly on the inside.
'This Little Emperor is too much fun to tease. How interesting.'
"All of you, get out!"
Jiang Yu roared, his face turning livid.
'He had planned to deal with this person directly, but they just had to keep pushing his buttons again and again.'
'If any emperor could tolerate such words, then his name wasn't Jiang Yu!'
'He wouldn't be Jiang Yu if he didn't make this person wish they were dead!'
Seeing the storm brewing in his eyes, the towering inferno of his rage, Shen Lang sighed to herself.
'I didn't expect this gentle-looking Little Emperor could get so angry... Tsk.'
'This is making me even more excited.'
She recklessly asked, "Between you and His Majesty... who's on top?"
The moment Jiang Yu heard that, he wanted to tear her limb from limb. He grabbed a whip from somewhere and cracked it hard against the floor. He was so furious he started to laugh, grinding out through his teeth:
"You really have a talent for infuriating Us."
"...'Us'?" Shen Lang looked completely dumbfounded. "You're... the Emperor?"
She struggled to lift her head and looked into Jiang Yu's furious, almond-shaped eyes. And then.
Shen Lang fell silent.
'Finally,' she thought, 'we're getting to the fucking point.'
In the next instant, as if she'd switched masks, Shen Lang started rubbing her face against Jiang Yu's calf—back and forth, in all sorts of creative ways.
She looked up pitifully and said, "Emperor... this humble commoner was blind and failed to recognize Your Majesty. I had no intention of offending you... Please, Your Majesty, forgive me!"
'What an apology.'
Jiang Yu scoffed inwardly.