Beloved Empress

Chapter 39

The Empress’ Secret Lover

"I knew this person?" Don’t tell her this young man is a secret lover that the previous owner kept? Oh, things will get messy! If Jun Qian Che finds out, she will be in deep trouble.

After recovering her thoughts, Bai Jiu laughs, "Seems like my disguise is working, even Second Sister cannot recognize me!"

"Second Sister? Who is Second Sister?" Mo Qi Qi asks in wonder.

Bai Jiu points at her, "You!"

Mo Qi Qi is furious upon hearing that, "You wretched thing, you dare to call bengong crazy! You must be tired of living!"

(TN: Second Sister is ’Er Jie’ in Chinese. ’Er’ is also the slang to call people crazy/stupid.)

Bai Jiu laughs out loud, "Second Sister, your temper is getting worse by the day. I have been calling you that ever since I was little, why are you suddenly upset at the way I addressed you?" After that, Bai Jiu takes off his headgear and his long hair flows down like a waterfall.

Mo Qi Qi is stunned when she looks at Bai Jiu, "A-a woman?" After that, she looks at Ban Xiang.

Ban Xiang leans onto Mo Qi Qi and whispers, "Your Ladyship, this is the Third Miss, your younger sister."

"What? M-my sister?" Mo Qi Qi looks like she has been struck by thunder.

Bai Jiu seems curious, "Second Sister, what’s wrong? I am your younger sister, Mo Jiu Jiu ah! I am only wearing men’s clothing, there shouldn’t be any drastic changes in me. Even Ban Xiang saw right through my disguise, why couldn’t you?"

"That....." Mo Qi Qi scratch her own head before sending Ban Xiang a look.

Ban Xiang nods understandingly before explaining on her behalf, "Third Miss, Her Ladyship knocked her head when she fell off the viewing tower the other day. She lost all of her memories."

Bai Jiu is shocked, "She lost her memories?"

"Sshhh! Xiao Mei, only Ban Xiang knows about this! I didn’t tell anyone, I didn’t want Father and Mother to worry! You must keep this a secret!" Mo Qi Qi carefully tells her.

(TN: Xiao Mei means little sister.)

Bai Jiu nods, "Xiao Mei understand sister’s worry. After all, you are the empress. Losing your memories will get a lot of people talking. It will be bad for you and Mo Clan. Don’t worry, xiao mei will keep this a secret!"

Mo Qi Qi laughs, "Thank you, xiao mei! But, xiao mei, you are a woman, why did you participate in the martial arts tournament? This is a crime of deceiving the emperor. If His Majesty finds out, not only will you lose your life, the entire Mo Clan will be implicated along with you."

Bai Jiu laughs confidently, "Don’t worry, Second Sister! I will be really careful, no one will find out!"

"Xiao mei, this matter cannot be solved by just being careful. You are at the army camp, you will work with men all the time. How will you keep this a secret from them?" Mo Qi Qi tries very hard to persuade her. If this matter is exposed, it will implicate her, the empress, herself.

"Second Sister, don’t even bother persuading me anymore. I have done a lot of deliberation before participating in the tournament; I have to enter the camp. No one will change my mind!" Bai Jiu stubbornly insists.

"But, you have to think for Mo Clan ah! No wonder Eldest Brother stepped out to offer you a place in his camp that day, he saw right through you! Since Eldest Brother could, others could as well. Oh right! The emperor asked me if I recognized you that day, perhaps he already saw right through you!" Mo Qi Qi’s heart suddenly jumps. Oh God! If Jun Qian Che knows this, wouldn’t he grip her little life to death? If she knew her identity from the start, she would have done anything to make her enter Mo Cheng Xuan’s camp.

Bai Jiu immediately comforts her, "Second Sister is this worried because you lost your memory. Actually, I was extremely weak when I was born. Father and Mother were worried they couldn’t keep me alive so they handed me over to a Master in the jianghu, my shifu. In the past sixteen years of my life, I have only occasionally returned to Duke Zhen’s manor. Even the servants in the manor barely knows me, much less the people from outside. It is impossible for the emperor to recognize me."

Hearing what she said, Mo Qi Qi gradually feels reassured. But still, she does not agree with her staying in the army barrack. "Xiao mei, you are a girl, why are you so adamant to live in the army barrack? Even if the emperor doesn’t know you are Mo Clan’s Third Miss, what if he knows you are a girl? This is a crime! Xiao mei, the army camp isn’t a good place to play with, I think you should leave the camp."

"Second Sister, I didn’t go there to play." Bai Jiu’s face looks earnest.

Mo Qi Qi asks her in wonder, "Then what are you there for?"

"Stop asking, Second Sister. Xiao mei will not tell you for now. You just do your thing as the empress, don’t bother with the rest. If you do, you will get worried. Xiao mei has her own reason for doing things." Bai Jiu’s smile is very bright.

But Mo Qi Qi’s heart still cannot ease down.

Bai Jiu stays there for a while before leaving. Mo Qi Qi can feel the guillotine hanging right above her neck, she feels as though it is going to drop on her real soon. She touches her neck, shivering. "No! I must find the way to travel back and I need to find it quick! Every member of Mo Clan is such a mess, they will put me to death one day! The Father is arrogant to death, he didn’t care for even the emperor, a typical case of a monkey trying to reach for the sky! The little sister on the other hand, wants to go against the sky. She dressed up as a man and went around winning a martial art tournament. The crime of deceiving the emperor is enough to put the entire household under the chopping block! She is not above the sky! Hu hu, wearing the title of the ’Miss of Mo Clan’, everyone will be implicated by her ah. I need to leave this place quick!"

She quickly takes out the map of the palace and studies it.

serene: Chapter 39 is sponsored by Rabikah!