14
Morgan Carter didn’t like vegetables either, so he told me to sit down and served himself. Even though he didn’t like them, he finished the bowl of vegetables I’d just piled up for him.
I suddenly felt a little more warmly toward him. At the same time, my curiosity stirred. “Your Majesty, do you really not remember me?”
He glanced at me. “I remember. At the spring banquet, the calligraphy you copied was very good.”
“My handwriting is awful—it looks like chicken scratches. I didn’t write that. It was my own older sister, Tô Mộ Lan. My name is Alex Hill.”
“Oh, I mistook you for someone else,” he murmured, as if he’d only just realized.
“Do all women look alike to you?” I couldn’t help asking.
Morgan Carter wasn’t angry at all. He just gave a soft “Mm.” “Some are taller or shorter, heavier or thinner, but their faces all look pretty much alike.”
He studied me for a moment, then said, “I remember Riley Brooks once said that the person who wrote the calligraphy that day was Alex Hill, dressed to the nines. The other young lady from the Carter family was dressed more plainly. Judging by today, he got it wrong.”
“So are you going to switch my place with my sister’s?” As soon as I said it, I clapped a hand over my mouth.
Suddenly, I felt that maybe it wouldn’t have been so bad if Riley Johnson had poisoned me and made me mute the other day.
Morgan Carter gave a faint, crooked smile. “Never mind. Let’s just leave things as they are.”
“…” I took a deep breath, then remembered what I’d wanted to ask for as a reward today.
“Your Majesty, actually, we’ve met before. I helped you find Taylor Anderson…”
Morgan Carter gave a slight nod. “I know. You used to be Prince Sheng’s secondary consort.”
“I think you forgot to reward me.”
He raised an eyebrow. “What reward do you want?”
I dropped to my knees with a thud, the words in my head spilling out in a rush. “I once fell and injured my head, so I can’t control what I’m thinking and end up saying it out loud. If I say something inappropriate in the future, I beg Your Majesty not to punish me. And if you do punish me, please leave me a way to live. If you spare my life, don’t send me to the Cold Palace, either. I hear it’s haunted. The convent outside the city sounds pretty nice; you could exile me there. But I know there’s a small path I could escape by. I really don’t want to become a nun…”
By then, tears were already streaming down my face. I looked up into his deep, ink-black eyes and forced a smile. “Your Majesty, you see? The thoughts in my heart just come tumbling out like that.”
Morgan Carter looked me straight in the eye, then suddenly laughed. “You really are a fascinating woman, my consort.”
“Am I not Consort Jin?”
“You’re Casey Carter now. Consider it a reward.” He paused, then continued, “I know what you just said. Try to keep it under control from now on.”
Try? Keep it under control?
“That damn emperor even knows how to choose his words carefully.” My face went pale.
Morgan Carter’s expression darkened. I thought he was about to lose his temper, but to my surprise, he managed to hold it in and continued eating dinner.
“Your Majesty is truly magnanimous.” Unable to stop myself from praising him, I stood to offer my thanks and put a piece of short rib in his bowl. “If you keep practicing your patience, you’ll get used to it eventually.”
Oh my God, what was I saying?
“Alex Hill.” He suddenly said my name, startling me. Through clenched teeth, he warned, “Don’t push your luck.”
Then he picked up the rib from his bowl and ate it. He seemed angry, but not entirely.
15
Later, when I thought it over carefully, I figured he probably wasn’t angry. Otherwise, why would he have kept me around to spend the night with him?
As I helped him bathe, I briskly stripped off his clothes. His ink-black eyes reflected the candlelight, and the sharp lines of his face seemed softened by a touch of warmth.
But my attention wasn’t on his face. It was on the body beneath his clothes.
“Your Majesty, you have a truly beautiful physique. After risking everything to enter the palace, I’d say it was worth it.”
Morgan Carter’s eyes flickered. Even an emperor who had seen so much of the world had never heard anyone say anything so bold.
He looked down at me. “This is your first time in my bed. Haven’t you ever heard of being demure?”
“I really want to be demure, but I can’t control myself.”
I knew what I’d just said, and my face burned with embarrassment. But I never imagined my next words would make me want to dig a hole and crawl into it.
I stared at Morgan Carter’s abs and said, “I’ll hurry through your bath, and then we can get right to it. That way, I can get pregnant with your heir sooner. Then even if I anger you later, you’ll have to be patient with me.”
“…”
16
The first time I spent the night with the emperor, I was immediately promoted to Consort Casey Carter.
Word around the imperial harem was that it was all thanks to my “playing hard to get” and “waiting for the right moment.”
Some even copied my behavior, dressing in pale colors and gradually slipping out of Morgan Carter’s sight. The result? He forgot they existed.
To avoid causing any more trouble, I did my best to stay in my own palace and not go out. I also found a way to manage my condition.
Riley Carter had somehow heard about my “truth-telling” illness, and deliberately asked, “I wonder if you know any interesting secrets, little sister. Tell me one to amuse me.”
My personal maid, Avery Brooks, immediately tugged at my sleeve and whispered in my ear, “Your Highness, what would you like for lunch?”
“Shark fin, red-abalone pearls, stir-fried rabbit, mung bean cakes, almond milk…” I began listing the dishes.
Riley Carter stared at me, wide-eyed and bewildered. Once I’d finished listing the dishes, I calmed down too, managing to suppress the urge to tell the truth.
“I’ve recently discovered that the Imperial Kitchen makes these dishes really well. You should try them sometime, big sister.”
That was how I managed to keep Morgan Carter’s face blindness a secret for three months.
But when the autumn hunt came around, I still couldn’t stop myself from scolding him in front of everyone.
17
The weather was beautiful that day, and I really wanted to go out for a walk beyond the palace.
As the consorts and I saw him off at the palace gates, I lowered my head and murmured, “I want to go to the autumn hunt too.”
To my surprise, he heard my mutter. His gaze swept over the consorts before finally settling on me.
“Casey Carter, come with me.”
He knew it was me… He really recognized me…
I walked slowly behind him and climbed into the carriage with him. I moved at a leisurely pace, catching the gossip behind me: “Isn’t Casey Carter relying on that face of hers?”
Sorry, this time I really wasn’t relying on my looks. If I was relying on anything, it was probably my mouth.
Once we were in the carriage, I couldn’t resist my curiosity and asked him, “Your Majesty, how did you know I was the one who’d just spoken?”
Morgan Carter looked at me and said, “In this imperial harem, aren’t you the only one who says whatever she wants?”
“Then how did you find me?” The corners of my mouth lifted despite myself. “Could it be you’ve finally recognized my beauty?”
He raised a hand and adjusted the pearl hairpin in my hair. “I gave this to you two days ago.”
“Oh.” I was a little disappointed. So he was still face-blind.
A little while later, he suddenly asked me, “Is beauty very important to you?”
“Of course it is. A pretty face can make people like me at first sight.” I sighed. “It seems I don’t have any other good qualities besides my looks.”
Morgan Carter raised a hand and gently brushed his thumb over my cheek. “Your candor is adorable, my dear. You’re not overly calculating, and I find you very likable.”
It was the first time he’d ever praised me. I was a little dazed, then nodded and couldn’t help covering my mouth to stifle a laugh.
“I think I’m very likable, too.”