"Your Majesty, what has happened to you? Why do such heavy dark circles linger beneath your eyes? Could it be that Your Majesty was unaccustomed to the room? Had I known, I would not have retired so early—I would have sent soothing incense to help you rest," Wen Fei said in one breath, her face etched with worry.
Watching her, Mei Liang felt an odd stir in her heart. How could Wen Fei not know that she had entered the emperor's chambers last night? Did she truly not realize that she and Xiang Long Wei had not rested until the third watch?
Even if Wen Fei had truly gone to bed early, her maidservants would surely have reported everything to her by morning. So how could she possibly not know? Yet the way she looked at the emperor was not that of a woman in love—it carried the warmth of a friend, not the gaze of a lover.
