The Fake Legend of Princess Mei Mei - Episode 6.6

Gekka gasped and let go of the pot. With a loud thud, it hit the ground right beside her sister, who had and was lying completely still.

” collapsed Ah… Sister…!”

She felt the bl00d drain from her face. Her mind went blank, and the smell of burnt meat filled her nose.

No matter how many times she called out, her sister didn’t move at all. Just moments ago, she had been struggling so violently.

A wave of fear surged through her. Had she died? Just as this thought crossed her mind, she sensed people approaching from all around. They must have heard the loud noises from earlier.

If she stayed here, everyone would assume she was the one who did this. They had been alone, so no excuse would be believable. That couldn’t happen.

“The comb…! That’s right, the comb!”

As she turned to run, she suddenly remembered it and frantically searched around Keigetsu.

Since her sister had started taking off her robes, she thought it must have fallen somewhere nearby. But she couldn’t find it.

Maybe it was under her sister’s body. She reached out to check, but before she could, she heard footsteps and voices getting closer.

Clicking her tongue in frustration, she quickly turned and ran out through the back door.

She hid behind a nearby structure and, after confirming no one was around, she shouted.

“Someone! Call a doctor! Someone has collapsed in the kitchen!”

The people who had gathered, curious about the noise, immediately reacted to her cry.

Watching from her hiding place, she soon saw several court ladies rushing in. Moments later, they screamed.

“This is bad! Someone, go to the medical office!”

“Call the head court lady too!”

“Are you alright?!”

The court ladies worked together quickly to help Keigetsu. Seeing this from afar, Gekka quietly moved from shadow to shadow, distancing herself from the commotion. She couldn’t let anyone know she had been there.

It didn’t seem wise to return to her room immediately either. It would be better to stay away until the chaos settled down.

She hurried towards the far edge of the palace grounds, making sure no one saw her.

Once she reached a beautifully maintained seasonal garden, far from the buildings where the concubines and court ladies lived, the sounds of people had faded into the distance.

Feeling relieved, she sat down and placed a steamed rice cake on her lap.

That was when she noticed her hands were shaking.

She stared at them, trembling uncontrollably, and whispered, “What is this?” Even her voice was shaky. Realizing this, a sudden flood of tears welled up and spilled down her cheeks.

Images of Keigetsu lying on the floor flashed through her mind.

She had slammed the burning hot pot onto her sister’s thin back. The sensation of Keigetsu’s body trembling under the pot still lingered in her hands.

Her sister’s pained cries echoed in her ears, making her rub them desperately. She didn’t want to remember that sound.

“It’s okay…”

She had called for help right away. Her sister wasn’t dead.

“I didn’t kill her… I didn’t kill her.”

She rubbed her ears harder, whispering to herself.

There was no way Keigetsu could die from something like that. A burn like that wouldn’t kill anyone. So, Gekka wasn’t in the wrong.

Keigetsu had fallen onto the pot herself. She had burned herself. Gekka had only been trying to burn off her sister’s tattoo—it wasn’t a big difference.

Her sister had always been lucky. When she fell off a cliff protecting Gekka, she only got scratches. When she fell into a river, she made it to the shore quickly. This time would be the same. At worst, she’d have some burn scars.

Yes, that’s right, Gekka thought.

Her lucky sister would be fine. Nothing would happen to her.

“Besides, it’s her fault for coming here in the first place.”

Gekka had finally found a happy and comfortable life, yet her sister had shown up to ruin it. That was the real problem.

Nodding to herself, she unwrapped the steamed rice cake and tore off a piece.

“Sister as the Crown Princess?”

She popped the piece into her mouth, picturing her sister’s face. The scent of mugwort filled her senses. She loved this moment.

She took another bite and scoffed.

“If she marries my brother, that means brother and sister would be getting married. That’s disgusting.”

Even if they had different mothers, they still had the same father—Enki. That made them full siblings. The idea of them becoming a married couple was revolting.

Gekka swallowed the rice cake and nodded to herself.

“A scarred woman could never be the Crown Princess.”

Even the court ladies, who weren’t concubines, dressed beautifully and kept themselves well-groomed. Even the cleaning women were neat and tidy.

To be the highest-ranking woman in the palace, one had to be flawless. A woman with ugly scars had no place there.

Men always chose beauty over ugliness. Gekka, who had always been admired and spoiled, knew this better than anyone.

“I did a good thing. I stopped an unnatural marriage between siblings.”

Feeling satisfied, she nodded to herself and ate another bite of rice cake.

Keigetsu would have to leave. She might be sent back to their home right away. Once that happened, Gekka’s peaceful days would return.

Now, she just had to deal with Kouji. That girl had seen Gekka before and might say something. She needed to come up with a good excuse to keep her quiet.

She suddenly remembered something from the day before.

(“Mother is dead,” Sister had said.)

Gekka was sure she had heard her correctly when she ran away. But it had to be a mistake.

Their mother often fell ill, especially during seasonal changes, but she never had a serious illness. She just got fevers easily.

She had always been like that. It made no sense that she would suddenly die. Maybe she had caught a more severe illness?

Living in the palace, Gekka had little access to outside news. But she hadn’t heard of any plagues or outbreaks.

She tilted her head in confusion.

Besides, how could their mother die from sickness when their father and Keigetsu—both skilled in herbal medicine—were there to care for her?

Keigetsu must have just said that to get Gekka’s attention. And it had worked.

(But I don’t care.)

She had already cut ties with that family. Whether her parents lived or died didn’t matter anymore.

She was now Princess Houbai. She would never return to that poor, rural life. In the palace, she had fine clothes, delicious food, and no hard labor. She would live here peacefully forever.

Still, it was a cruel joke to make up.

Annoyed, she stuffed the rest of the rice cake into her mouth.

“Sister is so mean.”

She spoke to the last bite before chewing it angrily.

Even if they were no longer family, Gekka still cared for her mother. To hear that she had died—it was just too much.

Suddenly, another thought struck her.

She had asked Minister Sou to send away the woman Enshou loved. The minister had agreed since he wanted his daughter to become the Crown Princess. He had made sure that woman was sent far away.

Yet, Enshou had brought her back.

Could they have mistaken her sister for that woman and taken their mother away instead?

Swallowing the last bite, Gekka considered the possibility.

Her mother was older, but she didn’t look too old. If she had been alone, someone might have mistaken her for a young woman.

(“That minister is so careless.”)

Sighing, she crumpled the empty wrapper and hid it under a tree.

“Alright.”

Feeling much calmer after eating, she licked her lips and turned around.

The commotion was out of sight, but she couldn’t stay away too long. Acting normal was the best way to avoid suspicion.

She planned her next steps—return casually, act surprised, and say some sympathetic words.

Satisfied with her plan, she walked back at a leisurely pace.