Truth or Dare (2)

If there was anything Little Seven was, she was not subtle at all. It was almost as if she was making a blatant statement that she was with the Empress, a separate pair of seeing eyes for her planted right into the heart of the Eastern Palace. And more importantly, one that neither Mu Luming or Kesi had the power to remove right now.

So she looked straight at Kesi, her piercing glance unwavering.

"But she never answered if she wanted truth or dare!" Mu Luming immediately protested, a hint of anger edged into his usually calm and cheerful composure. "So you can't just give her a dare!"

He stood up, trying to assert his dominance, but even so, he barely reached the height of the sitting adults.

Sensing that he probably stepped out of line, he added with a slight pout and whine to his voice, "You got the rules of the game all wrong! This isn't fair!"

He flopped back into his chair.

The intensity in her eyes cooled a little as Little Seven licked her lips, unsure of what to say next.

After a brief pause, her face resumed the expressionless look from before, and she offered a polite question. "Truth or dare, Nanny Rong?"

Kesi smiled, one that showed each and every one of her blackened and yellowing teeth. Under the dim lighting, her white hair jutting out at odd angles and a few spots of soot on her forehead, she looked to be on the verge of insanity.

"I'm a bit too old now, wouldn't you say? I might be buried halfway in the dirt by tomorrow, so why not take a little risk."

There was a moment of collective silence, and Mu Luming especially wore a look of concern over his face.

"Nanny—"

"Dare."

"Nanny Rong!" Mu Luming's protest came a split second too late.

The word lingered in the air.

Dare.

If before, they had their doubts, now, Little Seven and A'Hong were both sure that the elderly nanny had completely lost her mind.

"Oh, don't make me say it again. I'm the one with old and broken ears, not you kids!" Half-joking, Kesi acted as if everything was happening as natural as natural could be.

"I don't think I've ever stepped food inside the Empress's quarters, and I would love to go take a look! It's probably beautiful and full of riches, completely unlike our little hut out here!"

By now, even Little Seven looked concerned as she mentally questioned how this nanny managed to survive so many years within the palace.

"Let me change my dare." Previously, all Little Seven had been hoping was that Kesi would reject the dare and be subject to punishment, but now, even she was a little bit scared by the potentially irrational responses.

"Oh no, I insist."

She offered Mu Luming a reassuring smile, sensing that Little Seven was becoming more and more uncomfortable.

"We wouldn't be breaking in, surely. We would be simply showing up uninvited!"

Little Seven subtly twisted the edges of the tablecloth, her hands a bit clammy.

"And if the Empress happens to ask, we can just tell her the truth! I can just say that our Little Seven had the brightest idea to go visit her in her private chambers, and we all thought that it was absolutely brilliant!"

"Maybe she would also want to join in on our game!" Mu Luming added excitedly, catching on to Kesi's act. "And don't you worry now. We'll make sure to give the credit all to you, Little Seven!"

They had to tell Little Seven who was in charge here in the Eastern Palace. And if they let Little Seven get too out of control on the first day without giving her enough of a scare, the future would be unimaginable.

Once Mu Luming began talking, it always seemed like he had no intention of stopping. "Who knows what she might be doing in there! Perhaps those shared secrets will make our bonds even closer!"

This was the last straw for Little Seven. Only one thought crossed her mind: both the Crown Prince and his nanny were insane. There simply was no other word to describe either of them, save otherworldly.

"I have a bit better of an idea for a dare," Little Seven croaked out, her voice cracking. "How about you sing a song for us, Nanny Rong."

"Bahh, that's surely too simple."

"Oh no, I insist. I'm sure that you have a wonderful singing voice."

And so, thanks to Little Seven's insistence, instead of breaking into the Empress's residence, the rest of the table enjoyed angel-like melodies for the next ten minutes.

Kesi's voice was so beautiful that the yellowed leaves shriveled even more. It was so pure that little A'Hong got a piercing headache immediately after. And it was so melodic that Little Seven soon forget the tune of the original song.

Only Mu Luming listened intently, waving his arms in the air to accompany Kesi's voice. Whether it was that he was tone deaf or that he genuinely cared too much for Kesi's feelings to betray the distaste for the song, nevertheless, he acted like it was a top seller that everyone played on repeat.

Finally, the torture was over, and Mu Luming immediately jumped in.

"Truth or dare!" He looked at Little Seven. She had recovered from her earlier flustering, but after ten minutes of Kesi's singing, she didn't know whether to regret her choice of a dare even more than asking to send them to the Empress.

"Tru—"

She stopped herself. What if they asked about her relationship to the Empress? Or even worse, if they asked for her way of contact with the Empress?

Sure, she could lie. But she had surely made it too obvious already.

"Dare."

A sneaky smile took form on Mu Luming's otherwise angelic face.

"I dare you to try to enter the Empress's quarters."

Little Seven's face turned ashen gray.

"By yourself, that is." He clarified, his smile growing even bigger.