(BL) Reborn as Lycan's Emperor's abandoned Beta concubine?!

Chapter 35: 35. Special royal cloth

AT THE SAME TIME

XAVIER

I stared at the tiny copper box sitting in front of me. It suddenly felt much heavier than it looked. Zhao Rui’s expression had changed completely.

"That box..." He said quietly. "It was made for our son."

"What?"I blinked.

Lin Rui slowly nodded, her eyes fixed on the copper box.

"We gave it to him when he was born. It was supposed to remain with him as a family heirloom."Lin said and smiled.

My stomach dropped as Huan suddenly became very interested in the garden floor.

"You knew?"I looked at him.

"I knew it was important."Huan’s smile became painfully awkward.

"That’s not what I asked."I said.

"I may have suspected." Huan said nervously.

"Huan!" I gasped.

"I didn’t know it was connected to the missing heir!"He immediately raised both hands.

"The symbols confirm it."Zhao Rui carefully touched the box.

I stared at it. This was supposed to be an important plot object. In the original story, the female lead was supposed to discover it and use it to uncover the lost prince’s identity. Except now it was in my hands.

"Ding. Major plot deviation detected." The system flickered. "Original plot holder: Female Lead. Current holder: Host."

"That’s not good." I said.

"What isn’t good?"Lang Li immediately looked at me.

"Nothing."I said.

Before anyone could question me further, Lang Li approached.

"For me?"I asked.

He opened it, and inside was a beautiful emerald hairpin. My eyes widened.

"It’s your birthday." Lang Li said.

"You remembered?"I stared at him.

"Of course."He said.

"Perfect!"The Empress Dowager immediately clapped her hands.

Servants suddenly appeared carrying trays, flowers, ribbons, pastries, tea, and several wrapped gifts. I stared in horror.

"Wait. What is happening?" I asked.

"Your twenty fifth birthday." The Empress Dowager announced happily. "You are celebrating it properly."

"I didn’t ask for a party."I groaned.

"I know." She smiled. "That’s why we are giving you one."

Ana and Hin appeared with even more food. Mei Lin brought flowers. Even Shen arrived carrying another wrapped box.

"This is too much."I looked around helplessly.

"You deserve it."Lang Li quietly placed the emerald hairpin in my hand.

My face warmed. Then my eyes returned to the copper box, there was something wrong. The box had no key. I remembered the story: the original heroine was supposed to find the key later, but then another memory surfaced. I touched the necklace around my neck. I had worn it ever since I woke up as Wei, and it had always felt strangely important. According to Wei’s memories, it was the only family heirloom he had ever possessed. I slowly pulled it out as a tiny metal pendant rested against my palm. My breath stopped. The shape was almost identical to the symbol engraved on the copper box.

"Ding." The system flickered violently. "Matching heirloom detected."

I stared at the necklace then at the box.

"No..."I whispered.

"What is it?"Lin Rui noticed my expression.

I slowly held the pendant closer to the box and a tiny click came from inside. Everyone froze and Lang Li’s golden eyes narrowed.

"That necklace..." Huan went completely pale and Zhao Rui whispered.

"Royal bloodline verification..."The system glitched again. "Beginning."

My twenty fifth birthday had officially become the strangest birthday of my life as I reached for a box. The tiny click echoed through the garden, nobody moved. I slowly lowered the necklace toward the copper box again.

"Please don’t explode." I whispered.

"Why would it explode?"Huan blinked.

"I don’t know. Everything else in this palace does."I said.

"Ding." The system appeared. "Relationship status update."

"What relationship?"I froze.

"Emperor Lang Li affection: 20%."The system ignored me.

"WHAT?"I nearly dropped the necklace.

"What happened?"Lang Li immediately looked at me.

"Nothing!"I said quickly.

"Ding. Empress Dowager affection: 30%."A system said.

"Why are you telling me this now?"I stared at the system. "Because the host appears emotionally unstable."

"I am unstable because you keep announcing numbers!"I groaned.

Huan coughed into his fist. Mei Lin covered a smile, even Shen looked like he was trying very hard not to laugh. Then the copper box suddenly clicked again, and the lid opened. Everyone went silent, and I carefully lifted it. Inside was a piece of beautifully folded red cloth. At first, I thought it was simply silk. Then Lin Rui saw it as her face changed.

"Wait." She stepped closer. "That cloth..."

"What is it?"Zhao Rui looked at her.

"This pattern."Lin Rui gently touched the edge. Her fingers trembled. "This is not ordinary silk."

"What is it?"I swallowed.

"It is wedding cloth."She looked at me.

"Wedding cloth?"Then one of the visiting omegas whispered.

"In the Red Moon Flower Empire?"Another omega’s eyes widened.

"Traditional imperial wedding cloth."Lin Rui nodded slowly.

"Wedding?"My eyes widened.

"Yes." She pointed toward the embroidery. "The red thread, the flower pattern, the gold stitching. This particular design is traditionally used for garments worn during an imperial wedding."

I stared at the cloth then at Zhao Rui, then at Lin Rui and then at Lang Li.

"Why would a baby have wedding cloth?"I asked.

Nobody answered. Huan suddenly looked extremely nervous, and I noticed it.

"Huan."I began.

"Yes?"He smiled weakly.

"Why do you look like you want to run?"I asked.

"I don’t."He said.

"You absolutely do."I said.

"I am simply appreciating the garden."He said.

"You are standing on a flower."I argued.

Huan looked down.

"Right."He immediately moved his foot.

"Wait..."Behind us, the palace omegas had started whispering. "If that’s wedding cloth, then why was it inside the missing heir’s box?"

"Maybe it was prepared for him."A second one asked.

"Prepared for a future imperial marriage?"A third one nodded. "That would mean..."

The whispering stopped as everyone slowly looked at me.

"Why are you all looking at me?"I pointed at myself.

Nobody answered.

"The chef..."Another omega whispered.

"The missing heir..."A second omega covered her mouth.

"The wedding cloth..."A third whispered.

"The Emperor..."A fourth slowly looked toward Lang Li.

"No."Lang Li’s expression immediately darkened.

"I didn’t say anything!"The omegas jumped.

"You were about to."He said.

The Empress Dowager looked delighted.

"This is becoming interesting."She leaned toward Lin Rui.

"Very."Lin Rui looked equally stunned.

"Why does everyone look like they’re watching a drama?"I looked between them.

"Because you are the drama."Ana whispered beside me.

"I don’t like that answer."I shook my head.

"I don’t think anyone does."Hin nodded.

I carefully unfolded another small section of the cloth. There were tiny embroidered flowers along the edge.

"The imperial moonflower."Lin Rui immediately recognized them.

"That pattern was reserved for the first imperial heir."Zhao Rui’s expression became serious.

"First imperial heir?"I asked.

"Our missing son."Lin Rui nodded.

"Ding. Major identity related object detected. Connection probability increasing. Red Moon Flower Empire royal connection: 41%."The system flickered violently.

"Forty one?"I stared at the notification.

The system remained silent.

"That’s not reassuring."I sighed.

"Ding. Emperor Lang Li affection: 20%."A system continued.

"Why are you telling me about Lang Li right now?"I rubbed my forehead.

"Relevant emotional data."A system said.

"It is absolutely not relevant to the wedding cloth!"I frowned.

Huan snorted as I glared at him. He immediately stopped.

"I think the cloth means he was meant to marry."The omega whispers started again.

"An imperial marriage?"A second one asked.

"Probably."A third one nodded.

"Who would marry the first heir?"A first one asked again.

"I don’t know."A second one nodded.

"Maybe someone from another empire."One omega glanced at Lang Li.

"Imagine if the missing heir was actually already promised."Another omega whispered.

"Don’t say that!"Someone else gasped.

"Why?"She asked.

"Because His Majesty is standing right there."A second one added nervously.

Everyone suddenly became extremely quiet. Lang Li’s golden eyes swept across them, and the omegas immediately pretended to become fascinated by the flowers.

"This is a nightmare."I covered my face.

"Oh, Wei." Empress grinned.

"Please don’t."I looked at her.

"I haven’t said anything."She smiled innocently.

"Your face is saying plenty."I sighed.

"This was placed inside the box for a reason."Zhao Rui carefully examined the cloth.

"Huan, where did you get this box?"I looked directly at Huan.

"I already told you. A merchant."His smile disappeared.

"Which merchant?" I asked.

"From a neighboring empire."Huan hesitated.

"That’s still not an answer."I said.

He opened his mouth, but before he could speak, Lang Li’s voice cut through the garden.

"Wei was sent here as a war gift."He said.

Everyone turned toward him. Huan immediately looked relieved. Lang Li’s golden eyes remained fixed on the copper box.

"If this cloth belonged to the missing heir, then whoever gave Wei to my palace may have known exactly who he was." Lang Li said.

"Then we need to know who surrendered him."Zhao Rui stepped forward.

"And why they wanted his identity erased."Lin Rui’s expression hardened.

"Ding. Hidden identity connection detected."The system suddenly flickered. "New clue unlocked."

I stared at the message. Then the copper box suddenly clicked again. This time, something was visible beneath the red cloth.

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