Meanwhile, the prince tiptoed through the palace, trying to sneak to his room without anyone noticing. His pride was still a little wet from the earlier "frog-in-the-lake" incident, and he absolutely did not want witnesses.
Just as he thought he was safe, a voice rang from behind him:
"Stop! Stop! Assassin! Assassin caught him! Caught him!"
The prince froze. Slowly, he turned — and saw his sister, Lianhua, standing there with her hands on her hips, looking calm, graceful… and slightly judgmental.
He immediately lunged forward and clamped his hand over her mouth.
"Shhh! It's me! Don't call everyone here!" he hissed.
Lianhua wiggled, but then, giving him a playful spank on the arm, said,
"Then why are you sneaking around like a suspicious person? Like a thief? Are you trying to catch an assassin… or just go swimming like a fish?"
The prince blinked, incredulous.
"Not fish… frog!"
Lianhua gasped dramatically, stepping back a little.
"WHAT?? You're talking?? Frog… not… fish??"
The prince pinched the bridge of his nose.
"No! You heard wrong! I didn't say anything about… no cute or handsome frog…"
"Oh nooo!" Lianhua gasped, patting his head like a worried mother.
"Did you hit your head somewhere? Gone completely stupid?"
The prince looked at her hopelessly.
"Look at yourself!" she continued, flaring her hands like a little storm. "What are you like? What are you saying?"
The prince muttered under his breath,
Blame her!
Lianhua cocked her head, pointing dramatically.
"Who? Her? Who is 'her'?"
"No one," he whispered, "just… a brainless puffer fish."
"A PUFFER FISH??" she screeched, flapping her hands. "You've gone completely crazy!"
At this point, the prince started sneezing nonstop — mid-sentence, mid-whisper, mid-thought.
"Aaachoo! Aaachoo! Aaachoo! Let me… get fresh first… and… send me some hot soup!" he wheezed, marching toward his room while sneezing all the way.
Lianhua crossed her arms and watched him go, whispering to herself in exaggerated sisterly concern:
"Looks like he's completely lost his mind… talking nonsense… maybe he's under too much work pressure. Hmm… I should probably call a psychiatrist for him tomorrow. As his sister, it's my duty, of course!"
Satisfied with her "sisterly responsibility," she turned elegantly, smoothing her robes, and went off to grab her dinner. 🍽️