Mei Lian's face was quickly covered with a cloth, and she was dragged by the guards.
When her eyes fluttered open, the ceiling above her wasn't cracked plaster—it was painted gold, with dragons swirling around a pearl. The bed beneath her was big enough to host a royal parade.
She groaned. "Okay, either I won the lottery or I died in my sleep."
A young maid burst through the curtains. "Your Majesty! You've awakened!"
" 'Your Majesty'? Uh… you mean me?" Mei Lian pointed to herself. "No, no, I'm just the stand-in. Where's the director? The camera?"
The maid blinked. "Cam…ra?"
"Oh, wow. Commitment level 100. You're so good," Mei Lian said, sitting up and patting the girl's sleeve. "Seriously, the production budget here is insane."
The maid's eyes darted to the door. "I shall summon the physician!"
"Wait—no! Don't break character! I totally respect method acting!"
Too late. The girl fled, tripping over her skirt.
Left alone, Mei Lian kicked off the silk blanket. Her modern jeans were gone, replaced by a scarlet robe embroidered with phoenixes.
She whistled. "Wow, the costume department deserves a raise. But when did I change? I don't remember my casting. Wasn't this drama the first AI-generated?"
The mirror opposite caught her reflection—same face, maybe paler, hair longer. "It looks real for an AI."
A knock. "Your Majesty, breakfast is ready."
"Perfect! I was getting hungry now."
The palace attendants carried silver trays and bowed so low she feared they'd snap in half. Every dish shimmered—lotus soup, golden buns, things that looked suspiciously alive.
She leaned toward one. "Is that… moving?"
"It is the steamed serpent dumpling, Your Majesty."
"Oh. Right. Authenticity!" she said quickly, pushing it away before it hissed.
When the last servant scurried out, a figure slipped through the side door—a woman in black, face half-covered.
"Your Majesty," the stranger whispered, kneeling. "You survived the punishment. Heaven favors you."
"Wow, you guys rehearse hard," Mei Lian said, clapping softly. "You must be from my clan, right. Oh, I remember now, we should plan evil now."
The woman blinked. "Evil…?"
"Never mind, I love your reaction."
The woman lowered her voice. "Now that the Dragon King still breathes, what shall we do next?"
Mei Lian froze mid-bite of a dumpling. "Wait—the Dragon King? As in the hot guy from the show?"
"My queen, he is your husband."
She choked. "Right. Husband. How is it in general? Hot in bed too?"
Mei Lian laughed at her joke.
The woman bowed to her in respect, "Your majesty, you shouldn't talk like this about the king. We should quickly think of how we can kill the king and you can rule over the kingdom. So, we should hurry about our plan?" the woman pressed.
Mei Lian, brain scrambling, decided to play along. Improvisation—her strong suit. "Oh, I'm sorry, I was just kidding, you see. The plan! We shall…" she waved a bun dramatically, "…make a move when the moon blushes purple!"
The woman's eyes widened. "The moon… blushes?"
"Yes! It's symbolism! Very artistic."
The agent of doom bowed, inspired. "Understood, Your Majesty. You're so great and brave. I didn't know you were thinking of killing him tonight."
She vanished into the shadows, leaving Mei Lian confused. "Tonight? Heyy, wait, I was just joking around—"
Unfortunately, two guards hiding near the doorway had heard everything.
One whispered, "She plots again."
"After nearly being executed?" the other hissed. "Inform His Majesty."
They ran off.
Moments later, soldiers stormed in. "Her Majesty is summoned by His Grace!"
Mei Lian blinked. "Wow, he can't live without me, I see? Okay, give me a sec to fix my hair—"
"Now."
"Alright, alright, no need for full-method kidnapping. At least let me prepare for the date—"
They practically dragged her through endless marble corridors until the doors of a vast hall opened.
Inside stood Long Xuan, the Dragon King himself—silver-eyed, impossibly tall, radiating frost.
He didn't look like an actor anymore.
The guards shoved her forward and knelt. "Your Majesty, we heard her plotting once more."
Long Xuan's voice was quiet, which somehow made it worse. "So soon after your punishment, you conspire again?"
Mei Lian laughed nervously. "Wow, I'm impressed. You really sell the angry-husband vibe."
His gaze sharpened. "Angry husband?"
"Yeah, yeah, totally in character."
He stepped closer, each stride echoing like thunder. "Do you mock me even as you plan my death?"
"Wait, what? Death? Who's dying?"
The air around him shimmered; faint scales glinted along his jawline. Heat and power rolled from him in waves, pinning her to the spot.
For the first time, the palace didn't feel like a set.
Her throat went dry. "Hold on… Hey, you don't have to come this close."
He seized her wrist. The contact burned—not painfully, but real, too real.
"Enough," he said, voice like a blade. "If you value your life, cease your games."
The world tilted.
Mei Lian stared at him, heartbeat hammering. The cold in his eyes wasn't acting.
Then she laughed—a startled, reckless sound that filled the chamber."I almost felt like I was going to die. I must say, you're amazing."
She sauntered toward the bed, dropped onto it with one leg propped up, the other dangling lazily."You got any snacks?"
Long Xuan's fury ignited. In two strides he was upon her, pinning her against the bedpost."Don't act as if we are close," he hissed. "You're beautiful, yes—but your heart is black. You ruin everything you touch, even your own family. I know what you did with your parents."
He released her and turned sharply, straightening his robes as though to erase the moment.
The words hit her like knives. She had treated all this like a joke, until now.Because even though those accusations weren't meant for her, they tore open the very scar she'd tried to bury—everyone had blamed her for her parents' deaths. She alone knew how she'd survived it.
Quietly, she rose. Her eyes met his. Then she slapped him."Don't you dare talk to me like that."
And without another glance, she walked away, leaving the Dragon King standing frozen in disbelief.