I woke up as the Villainous Empress

After taking a refreshing bath, Yang Ning changed into a comfortable nightdress and wore a soft, luxurious robe over it. To thoroughly clean herself and remove all the evidence of her escape from the royal residence, Yang Ning washed her long hair at night.

Her hair was covered in dust and dirt after roaming around the streets all day long. If she didn't wash them, Zheng Liang would have easily caught on to her lie.

To dry her long and thick hair quickly, she wrapped her hair over her head with a cotton cloth. Since there is no hairdryer in this world, it takes hours for the hair to air dry, especially at night.

That is why she doesn't wash her hair generally at night because it makes it difficult to dry at night, and she can catch a cold this way. However, today she had no choice.

She needed to remove all the evidence so that Zheng Liang could not find out about her little secret.

"Has His Highness come back yet?" Yang Ning asked as, after taking a bath, she made her way back to the chamber.

Xiaowei, who followed closely behind her, responded, "Yes. His Highness has returned and been waiting for you in the dining room," she said.

"Oh, okay. I'll head to the dining room after drying my hair," Yang Ning said, quickening her steps to reach the chamber. She couldn't keep the Devil Prince waiting.

More importantly, she couldn't let him catch a whiff of her lies.

He already doesn't trust her much because of those vicious rumors about her from the past. If he found out she sneaked out of the residence while he was away, she couldn't even imagine what wild story he would cook up in his head.

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Upon reaching the chamber, Yang Ning pushed open the door and let out a startled cry as she jumped back in surprise. An unexpected, imposing silhouette stood before her, and she couldn't help but exclaim, "Ahh! What are you doing here?"

She was still figuring out what to say when she would meet him in the dining room. Little did she expect to encounter him in the chamber.

Is he some kind of gossiping ghost? How does he always appear whenever she talks about him?

Furrowing her brows, she shot an accusing glare at Xiaowei, her eyes conveying the message, 'You said he was in the dining room. Why is he here?'

Xiaowei pressed her lips together and lowered her head, uncertain of how to answer her lady's curious questions. She herself didn't know why His Highness was present in the chamber instead of the dining room.

Zheng Liang stood in front of the mirrored table, his gaze fixed on something.

As the door of the chamber swung open, he heard a girl's loud cry of surprise. Looking up at Yang Ning, he nonchalantly remarked, "I was waiting for you."

Nervously swallowing, Yang Ning felt an unexplained sense of guilt. She awkwardly cleared her throat and replied, "Waiting for me? I was just about to head to the dining room for dinner. You didn't have to come personally."

"There's no need to go to the dining room. I had the maid set up our dinner here in the chamber tonight. We don't have to go anywhere," he stated, approaching her with an icy demeanor etched on his face.

"Ah, I see. That... sounds like a good idea," she said, blinking in confusion as Zheng Liang started walking toward her.

'Does he know something?' she wondered, feeling afraid of being discovered. She remained rooted to her spot, deliberately avoiding his gaze.

For some inexplicable reason, she couldn't meet his eyes and embarrassingly lowered her own. His intense and overbearing gaze was too much for her to bear.

Something was different about him, but the question remained: What was it?

Zheng Liang stood before Yang Ning, observing her intently. He smirked, noting her avoidance of eye contact.

How intriguing! Not long ago, this girl was fearlessly battling thugs on the streets, yet now, she was acting like a meek, innocent girl incapable of harming a fly.

What a drastic transformation.

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Zheng Liang glanced over Yang Ning's shoulder and addressed Xiaowei, who stood behind her. "You may leave now."

Xiaowei pursed her lips and glanced at Yang Ning, who signaled her not to abandon her in the lion's den alone.

Contemplating her options, Xiaowei heard a cold voice once more. "Perhaps... would you like to join us for dinner? Is that why you're still standing here?" Zheng Liang asked icily.

"Have a good night, Your Highness!" Xiaowei immediately bowed and hurriedly exited the chamber, resembling a startled cat.

"Damn it!" Yang Ning cursed under her breath when Xiaowei ran away, leaving her alone in the chamber with the Devil Prince.

After Xiaowei hurried out of the chamber, she made sure to close the door behind her.

Yang Ning cursed Xiaowei, not only for being a coward but also for locking her inside the chamber with Zheng Liang, who was staring at her as if he could devour her whole.

While Yang Ning contemplated how to escape the clutches of this sharp-eyed Devil Prince, he suddenly leaned closer and whispered, his warm breath tickling her ear, "You should dry your hair. Otherwise, you'll catch a cold."

Embarrassment flooded Yang Ning's cheeks, turning them crimson. Before she could react, Zheng Liang pulled down the cloth wrapped around her head, causing her long, thick black hair to cascade down.

"Ah! I can do that later. Let's have dinner first. Otherwise, it will get cold," Yang Ning exclaimed, snatching the cloth from Zheng Liang's hands and hurriedly making her way to the small table on the ground, where a food tray with an array of her favorite dishes awaited.

Seeing her favorite dishes, she started drooling.

Before she could sit down to eat, Zheng Liang approached her and firmly grasped her wrist. Confusion filled her eyes as she looked at him, and he took the cloth from her, tossing it aside into a corner.

Holding her hand, he led her to the mirrored table and made her sit on a chair. Whispering into her ear, he said, "Food can be reheated, but you cannot afford to catch a cold." With that, he began to dry her hair using another clean towel that was conveniently placed on the chair.

"Your Highness, I can handle it," Yang Ning said awkwardly.

Having lived alone for so long, the idea of someone else drying her hair felt strange. Furthermore, the person doing it happened to be none other than the Crown Prince of the Zheng Empire.

The male lead of the novel drying her hair? How could he subject her to such a crime? She would die of guilt.

"Stay still," Zheng Liang commanded in a low voice, refusing to give her the towel. Yang Ning had no choice but to sit there like a mannequin while Zheng Liang carefully dried her hair, his gaze fixed intently on her through the mirror.

Nervously, she swallowed, feeling the tension building in the air.

His gaze... why did it feel so familiar?

Seeing his meaningful gaze, she couldn't help but think about the day when they almost lost all of their senses and forgot their boundaries. She nervously gulped, uncertain of what awaited her this night.