Chapter 3 — The Voice of the Heart Unmasks the Fake

5 Tham Thanh Dao's fingernails dug deep into her palm, blood flowing through her fingers. The sound of her heart was as shrill as screaming: 【Maid?! Tell me to be a maid for a feudal native?! I have memorized countless Tang and Song poems, know how to play the piano, know how to draw, and know how to write calligraphy. In modern times, I graduated from University 985, good or bad, but you guys forced me to serve an ancient girl who doesn't even know calculus?!】 【Okay, I'll endure it. After all, I am a time traveler. Even though I don't know all of the three hundred Tang poems, I still remember more than a hundred poems. I have learned a bit about drawing exams, and revealing a few tricks at random is enough to alarm all around. At that point, who cares if the princess is real or fake? Men in this world have never experienced life, I only need to read two sentences "The moonlight shines on the bedside", they will kneel down and call me a poetess. Wait until the whole court's literary and martial arts people are amazed by my talent, I just need to move my finger...】 Her eyes suddenly turned towards her father. 【Although the old emperor is a bit old, his appearance is really good, his appearance is majestic, and his temperament is enough. Being a favored concubine is not bad. First, bewitch this old man, then step by step climb up... Your Highness, the Queen... Anyway, the Queen doesn't look young anymore, her old age is fading, what can she compare to me? This face of mine is only seventeen years old, youth is my capital.】 The corner of the royal father's lips twitched slightly, the fingers hidden in his sleeves suddenly curled up. 【Wait, the crown prince seems to be younger.】 Her eyes turned to the crown prince brother Hua Thua Yen standing next to his father, looking from top to bottom. 【He's also very handsome, has a proud temperament, and has a good body, but it's a pity that there's a crown princess... But what is a crown princess? When the whole court knows about my talent, the crown prince will naturally see me. Men are all the same, wanting the new and getting bored with the old. At that time, I only need to use a few tricks...】 The queen mother sat on the phoenix throne, her face already extremely ugly. She could not hear those voices. She only knew that the woman in front of her who had just been demoted to the position of maid was using a look that made her extremely uncomfortable to evaluate her husband and son. Those eyes were like a hunter observing his prey. The mother unconsciously moved closer to me, her arms hugged me even tighter.

“Tham Thanh Dao.”

The royal father spoke up, his voice deep and heavy as if weighed down by a thousand pounds of stone:

“Still not giving thanks?”

Tham Thanh Dao trembled, as if someone had forcibly pulled her out of a beautiful dream. She prostrated herself, her forehead touching the cold yellow tile floor:

"My servant... thank you for your kindness. I will definitely serve the eldest princess wholeheartedly, and I absolutely will not dare to be even half lazy."

While prostrate on the ground, she kept thinking: 【Serve wholeheartedly? Serving your heads! Just wait, in a few days I will arbitrarily copy a few poems by Ly Bach and Du Phu, so that you ancient people who have never experienced life can open their eyes. At that time, the whole palace was surprised, I wondered how long Hua Can Nuong, the real princess, could remain satisfied. An ancient girl who has never even read Tang poetry, what can she compare to me? It's okay to be of royal blood, having culture is true bravery.】 ## 6 I lowered my eyes and didn't look at her. Father waved his hand to everyone people retreat. Stepping out of the main hall, the night wind hit my face, blowing the hem of my skirt. I felt Tham Thanh Dao's eyes glued to my back, like a cold, wet snake crawling along my spine. The crown prince walked beside me and said softly:

"Can Nuong, don't be afraid. From now on, there will be a senior brother here. If that maid dares to bully you, just tell me, I will handle her for you."

He thought I was stressed and afraid of the strange palace. He doesn't know what we're really afraid of. That night, my father sent everyone away, leaving me alone in the royal study. The candlelight was bright, and in the hall there was only ambergris smoke lingering around. The person sitting behind the throne was silent for a long time. It's been so long that I assumed he didn't intend to say anything.

“Can Nuong.”

Finally, the person spoke, his voice was very light, as light as fearing the forest's ears:

“You also heard the words in the main hall today, right?”

My heart seemed to stop beating for a beat.

“The words in her heart.”

The royal father looked at me, his eyes carrying extremely complex emotions, both like exploration and the fatigue of someone who had finally found a fellow human being:

“I heard it too.”

I kneel down:

“A girl doesn't dare to hide it.”

The royal father let out a long breath, leaning his whole body against the back of the chair. Candlelight shines on the human face. In those eyes that had been sharp all his life, there was a hint of old age. The imperial aura seemed to momentarily withdraw from him, making him look like an ordinary middle-aged father who was extremely tired.

"I didn't expect there to be such a strange thing in the world. The dirty thoughts in her heart during the day... I heard every word clearly."

He gently caressed his brow:

“She wants to harm you, wants to harm your mother, and also wants to target your elder brother.”

“Father.”

I raised my head:

“When did you discover her?”

His father was silent for a moment, his eyes stopped on the candle, as if looking at a far away place.

"At first sight. Her eyes looked at me wrongly, too greedy. I have seen that kind of greed too much. The courtiers who wanted power, the women in the harem who wanted grace, all had eyes like that. But her greed was not like theirs. In her eyes she clearly wrote one sentence: 'You bunch of idiots.'"

The person stopped and suddenly burst out laughing:

"Then the words in her heart flowed directly into my ears. At first I thought I heard wrongly, but later I gradually understood, I could hear her heart."

“Is it just her?”

“Right now there is only her.”

His father looked straight into my eyes:

"Can Nuong, have you ever heard other people say strange words? Or... have you heard my heart?"

I shook my head:

"No. The girl can only hear her."