Forced to Love (GL) - Chapter 23

Lingxi sat in a central position on the right side of the banquet. The main seat was reserved for the Divine One, while the Prime Minister sat diagonally below her.

She gazed at the dishes placed on the table with a calm expression, suppressing the urge to look toward the higher seat.

Just moments ago, she was still considering how to reject the marriage. But now that she knew the Divine One was the princess, Lingxi had no thoughts of rejecting it anymore.

Not only could she not refuse, but she also had to persuade the Divine One.

However, this was another challenge. The original Lingxi had leaned slightly toward the Prime Minister’s faction. The Divine One must have known this, which meant she had no reason to marry her.

But then… why had the Divine One come to the Prime Minister’s banquet?

A sudden thought struck Lingxi, and she instinctively looked up at the high seat.

The Prime Minister stood up and clapped his hands. A group of dancers entered the hall in an orderly manner. As music played behind them, they gracefully began their dance.

The banquet had officially begun.

Zhao Qingsui held her wine cup, took a small sip, and casually glanced at the dancers. Then, her gaze shifted to those watching the performance.

Finally, her eyes landed on her future consort—Lu Mu.

He was staring at the dishes, lost in thought. It took him a while before he finally raised his eyes to look at the dancing women before him.

But it seemed like he was looking without truly seeing.

As the dancers moved past him, his gaze did not follow them. Instead, it was as if he had simply chosen a random spot to rest his eyes.

Zhao Qingsui recalled the way he had looked at her earlier outside—his gaze unwavering, filled with countless unspoken emotions.

Yet, surprisingly, within those emotions, there was none of the cruelty or arrogance she expected.

Instead, there was an inexplicable sense of familiarity.

Even though they had only just met, it felt like she had known him before.

She swirled the wine cup between her fingers. The clear liquid flowed down her red lips.

Zhao Qingsui narrowed her eyes slightly.

Interesting.

As one performance followed another, Lingxi sampled the dishes on the table. After a few cups of wine, her body grew warm.

From the corner of her eye, she saw the figure seated on the high seat, attentively watching the performance.

Lingxi rose and quietly stepped out to get some fresh air.

Outside the courtyard, night had already fallen. She stood by the lake, gazing at the moonlit surface. A cool breeze swept through, dispersing the lingering scent of alcohol from her body.

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps rustling through the grass behind her caught her attention.

“Who’s there?”

Lingxi’s expression changed as she turned around, only to feel as if she had fallen into an endless ocean with no lifeline in sight.

Her initial sense of defense vanished instantly. She immediately bowed respectfully and greeted, “Your Highness.”

Zhao Qingsui easily caught the shift in her demeanor.

“No need for formalities, Lord Lu. Why have you stepped out of the banquet?”

“Your Highness, I had some wine and came out for some fresh air.”

“Oh? I thought Lord Lu wasn’t very fond of such banquets.” Zhao Qingsui’s tone carried a deeper meaning.

Lingxi paused for a moment before replying, “I am indeed not accustomed to them.”

“Is it because my presence dampened your mood?”

Lingxi bowed again. “I wouldn’t dare. It has nothing to do with Your Highness. It is my own issue.”

Zhao Qingsui glanced at her before stepping forward into the garden.

“The night is pleasant. Accompany me for a walk, Lord Lu.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

The two walked along the cobblestone path in the garden, with Su Rui following at a distance behind them.

The night wind blew gently, stirring their hair.

The figure walking ahead of her stood at the pinnacle of power in this lifetime. Yet, Lingxi did not let her guard down.

In turbulent times, the higher one’s power, the greater the danger.

“Your words in court today were rather clever, Lord Lu.”

Zhao Qingsui suddenly broke the silence.

Lingxi was slightly stunned. “May Your Highness clarify?”

“I wish to know—if this case were handled by the Court of Judicial Review, how would Lord Lu proceed?” Though Zhao Qingsui’s tone was calm, it carried an undercurrent of hidden tension.

“I would never fail the trust of His Majesty and Your Highness.”

Zhao Qingsui abruptly stopped and turned to look at her, her gaze deep and unreadable. “Then how will you explain yourself to the Prime Minister?”

Lingxi knelt before her. “I am a subject of His Majesty and Your Highness. My allegiance lies solely with you.”

Zhao Qingsui observed her for a long moment before finally parting her lips slightly. “Is that so? But as I recall, the Governor of the Capital Prefecture and the Prime Minister are relatives. I saw you speaking with him today, and I assumed you were on good terms.”

Lingxi frowned slightly. She had still been a step too late.

“I am willing to prove my loyalty to His Majesty and Your Highness through my actions.”

After a brief pause, Zhao Qingsui withdrew her gaze.

“Rise. It’s cold. Don’t catch a chill.”

“Your Highness, I have a small request.” Lingxi remained kneeling.

“Speak freely, Lord Lu.”

“I ask Your Highness to protect my title as heir.”

Moonlight cast their shadows on the ground. The wind rustled the surrounding trees, creating a natural veil for their conversation.

…

Late at night, Zhao Qingsui left the Prime Minister’s residence. Su Rui followed closely behind her as they both boarded the carriage.

“Your Highness, the Ministry of Rites has sent word. An auspicious date has been chosen within the next few days. About the engagement…” Su Rui hesitated.

“Hmm. Let it be set then.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Zhao Qingsui watched as the streets outside receded into the distance. Holding a warm hand warmer, her expression remained indifferent.

The next morning, when Lingxi attended court, Emperor Zhao Cong issued an edict, officially handing over the investigation of the contraband weapons found in the capital to the Court of Judicial Review.

Lingxi bowed her head. In her ears, Zhao Qingsui’s words from the previous night still echoed.

“Then I shall wait and see how Lord Lu proves his loyalty.”

She let out a silent breath.

The Lu family had another legitimate heir aside from Lu Mu—Lu Gaolang, born to the Wang family.

To fulfill the original Lingxi’s wish, she had to complete her duty.

Thus, as long as the Divine One was the one she was engaged to, she could not break off the marriage.

But Lingxi’s prior affiliation with the Prime Minister had made it difficult for the Divine One to trust her. To gain temporary trust, she had to offer leverage.

She had considered revealing that she was actually a woman, but at present, she couldn’t gauge Zhao Qingsui’s stance. Furthermore, such a deception was a crime of deceiving the emperor—one that would be difficult to resolve.

Thus, she chose a compromise.

After court, Ling Xi returned to the Court of Justice with Minister Li Cai and immediately joined the investigation.

After carefully going through the case files from the capital governor’s office, Ling Xi found very few useful clues. So she personally led a team to investigate the scene where the illegal weapons were found.

But the location was in a remote, abandoned house in the eastern part of the city. The place didn’t match the name of the property owner, and few people lived nearby.

Since that lead went nowhere, Ling Xi tried another. With so many weapons, even if they had been hidden during transport, there should be traces of them entering the city.

She spent a whole night checking the city gate records, and finally, her eyes stopped on a few familiar names.

For several days, Ling Xi stayed at the Court of Justice, thinking only about the case.

During the day, she led people to question suspects and search possible locations. At night, she sat alone at her desk, thinking.

At last, Ling Xi received a message—one suspected delivery base had been found.

She brought her team and followed the clues to the yard where the base might be. There were already people watching the place.

Ling Xi split her people into several groups to block all escape routes, then led a team and kicked the door open.

As soon as she stepped inside, arrows flew at her from an angle.

Not good!

“Watch out! There are traps!”

She shouted, and the next second, the sound of arrows cutting through the air came to her ears. Ling Xi raised her sword to block one.

Screams of her subordinates came from nearby, and sounds of things being knocked over came from the back of the courtyard.

“My Lady, someone is running from the back!”

“Chase them!”

Ling Xi frowned and didn’t care about anything else as she stepped into the courtyard, heading straight for the back yard. She smelled something burning.

Under a withered tree in the backyard was a fire basin that had been kicked over.

Ling Xi covered her mouth and nose with her official robe and used her sword to sweep aside the ashes. In an instant, gray dust filled her vision.

The person who ran had already burned everything into ashes, but Ling Xi still found something else—some remains that hadn’t been completely destroyed.

She picked them up carefully with her hands, wrapped them in silk, quickly left the courtyard, got on her horse, and chased after the criminal.

The criminal was cunning. After injuring the guards blocking the road, he escaped into the busiest market of the day.

“Move! Everyone move! The Court of Judicial Review is handling a case!”

Someone shouted loudly, and the people quickly stepped aside.

Ling Xi galloped in. The criminal wore a gray cloth robe, looked back as he ran, and grabbed a butcher’s knife when he passed a meat stall. The blade flashed in the light.

Ling Xi approached on horseback, estimated the distance, then suddenly let go of the reins and leaped off the horse.

The criminal didn’t expect someone to jump off a horse so quickly. Ling Xi grabbed the wrist holding the knife with her right hand and suddenly used force. The man struck backward with his elbow toward Ling Xi’s stomach. She groaned, then tightened her
grip around his neck. As the knife fell from the man’s hand, Ling Xi rolled with him to the side.

Her vision blurred, and it felt like the whole world was spinning. Her body didn’t feel like her own. The two rolled several meters from the force.

As she lay on the ground, Ling Xi suddenly heard a shout in the distance.

“Who dares to be so wild here? You blocked the princess’s carriage!”

Subordinates from the Court of Judicial Review rushed over and pressed down the man Ling Xi was holding tightly.

The criminal was dragged away and forced to kneel. Someone came to support Ling Xi as she frowned, trying to push back the dizziness in her head.

She hadn’t even looked up yet, but as she knelt, her head fell forward, and she could only support herself with her forehead touching the ground to avoid completely losing control.

Li Cai, the Chief Officer of the Court, arrived in a hurry and knelt before Ling Xi. “Please forgive us, Your Highness. We were chasing a criminal and did not mean to disturb your carriage.”

Suddenly, everything around went quiet. The coldness from the stone tiles seeped through Ling Xi’s forehead, and with this buffer, she finally felt how bad her body really was.

Being injured was one thing, but to be caught like this by Her Highness made it worse.

She was the number one weapon at Her Highness’s side, yet now she looked so pathetic. Ling Xi frowned and tried to lower herself more, wanting to hide behind Li Cai.

“Her Highness asks, who is kneeling under the carriage?”

Ling Xi recognized that it was Su Rui’s voice.

“Replying to Her Highness, kneeling here are Chief Officer Li Cai and Deputy Officer Lu Mu from the Court of Judicial Review.”

Another moment of silence passed. Ling Xi didn’t know why, but it felt like this moment lasted forever.

Suddenly, a familiar voice came, calm but impossible to disobey.

“Raise your head.”