Though her heart was filled with anxious thoughts, her face wore an ingratiating smile—after all, in the palace, a servant’s greatest skill is the art of masking true feelings.
Prince Damien snorted coldly, his face full of displeasure. "Is it so wrong for me to be worried?"
"Uh..." The eunuch was clearly stunned, then seemed frightened by Damien’s sudden change of expression. He quickly knelt and pleaded, "Please spare me, Your Highness!"
He was now on the verge of tears. Prince Damien used to be easy to talk to, but ever since he’d been bewitched by the Enchantress Consort, his moods had become mercurial—making life miserable for the servants. He sneaked a glance at Morgan Shangguan, eyes full of grievance, then quickly lowered his head again.
Prince Damien had no intention of taking his life; he merely snorted and looked at Morgan Shangguan with lingering reluctance.
Morgan Shangguan’s brow twitched. Wonderful! Now Damien Gray could throw a tantrum whenever he pleased, without even pretending to hide it. After all, everything could be blamed on her—especially since he was so hopelessly smitten.
Morgan Shangguan narrowed her eyes dangerously. Was she really so easy to manipulate?
Seeing Morgan’s threatening gaze, Prince Damien gave a gentle smile. "Go on, Princess Consort!" he urged warmly, adding, "Don’t forget to come back early!"
Morgan Shangguan shot him a glare, then smiled at the eunuch. "Let’s go, sir!"
Damien Gray’s expression darkened. Maxwell Jing, seeing this, couldn’t help but grumble inwardly—was His Highness even jealous of the eunuch now? He glanced at Morgan Shangguan as she left, then at Damien’s face, and asked tactfully, "Your Highness, should I teach that eunuch a lesson?"
Damien Gray shot him a look and said coldly, "What do you think?"
Maxwell Jing sighed inwardly. Just because the Princess Consort smiled at him? He’d better be careful—if she ever smiled his way, he’d have to dodge as fast as he could, or he might not even know how he met his end!
This job was even harder than wiping out an entire clan!
Seeing that Morgan Shangguan and the eunuch had already walked off, Maxwell Jing hurried after them. He had been a bit worried before—given Morgan’s status, if she harbored any ulterior motives, who knew how Damien Gray would react? But in the end, he decided to trust Damien’s judgment and ability. Anything he could think of, surely His Highness could as well. If Damien couldn’t handle even this, he wouldn’t be the Ghostmaster. So Maxwell felt there was no need to fret over nothing.
In Lady Sapphire’s palace, all the maids and eunuchs had been sent away, leaving only Lady Sapphire and Morgan Shangguan.
Lady Sapphire affectionately took Morgan’s hand and led her to sit beside her, ignoring formalities entirely. She treated Morgan as if she were a beloved sister, her face soft with warmth as she asked, "Is Princess Mona comfortable living at the Ghost King's Manor? Prince Damien hasn’t bullied you, has he?" Perhaps Morgan’s title sounded unpleasant, so Lady Sapphire called her ‘Princess Mona’—or perhaps she had another motive, subtly reminding Morgan not to forget her true identity.
Morgan Shangguan gave a gentle smile. "Thank you for your concern, Lady Sapphire. His Highness treats me well!"—if only he weren’t so cunning.
Seeing her tactful reply, Lady Sapphire smiled knowingly, as if convinced Morgan was simply shy. With a meaningful look, she said, "It seems Prince Damien truly cares for you, but Princess Mona mustn’t forget her original intentions."
Morgan Shangguan remained silent, so Lady Sapphire continued, "Though Princess Mona is a bit timid, she’s clever. His Majesty is the most powerful man in Silvermoon Kingdom. You’re all alone here; if you can win His Majesty’s protection, you’ll have nothing else to fear. I’ll be frank—please don’t take offense. With your temperament, it’s hard to survive in the Inner Palace. Luckily, you have such beauty that His Majesty favors you. Don’t let him down. I trust you made the right choice, and you understand all this in your heart."
Morgan’s eyes flickered. So that was it? The original Morgan Shangguan was clever but hadn’t truly grasped the situation. The Inner Palace was treacherous, but the Ghost King's Manor was the real den of dragons! Did she really believe Emperor Alexander would become her protector? A ruler’s word is rarely absolute—most of it’s just for show. How many people truly understood that?
The affair of capturing the traitor had clearly been orchestrated by Emperor Alexander; even Crown Prince Adrian was just a pawn. Alexander’s handling of the matter served two purposes: first, to ensure Morgan Shangguan’s rightful entry into the Ghost King's Manor; second, to make Crown Prince Adrian and Prince Julian realize his favoritism toward Prince Damien, provoking them to act against Damien and thus testing his true capabilities. Yet both princes were patient—even Crown Prince Adrian had yet to make a move.
But Prince Julian was even more deep-minded than Crown Prince Adrian. As for Emperor Alexander’s schemes, perhaps he understood them all along.
Yet what she could never figure out was why Emperor Alexander chose the original Morgan Shangguan. The former Morgan had no training and was timid by nature. Was it just because of her looks, fitting the role of a beauty in a scheme? She suspected there was another reason.
Morgan Shangguan kept her head bowed, listening quietly to Lady Sapphire. After a while, she nodded and softly said, "Thank you for your reminder, Lady Sapphire."
Lady Sapphire was intelligent, but not truly shrewd. How long could her value keep her in favor? Emperor Alexander could scheme even against his own sons, so what was a mere woman to him? Once she lost her usefulness, all past affection would vanish. Alexander truly embodied the phrase ‘a ruthless emperor.’
Lady Sapphire smiled kindly. "We’re all women here. I truly hope Princess Mona finds happiness."
Morgan Shangguan gave a faint smile, though inwardly she disagreed. Happiness? Could a spy ever know happiness? Emperor Alexander could abandon her at any time, and Prince Damien might kill her at a moment’s notice. Yet Lady Sapphire could say it all with such sincerity!
If the original Morgan Shangguan hadn’t had her soul mistakenly swapped, she probably wouldn’t even have had this meeting.
Afterward, Lady Sapphire subtly inquired about Prince Damien. Morgan answered flawlessly, though she found it amusing—Lady Sapphire had already made her intentions clear, yet still spoke so cautiously. But in terms of patience, Morgan would never lose to a mere consort.