Chapter Thirty-Two: Empty Chair

The seating arrangements at the banquet were very formal according to rank and station.  Lord Shizi and another high-ranking official sat closest to the prince, followed by Master Pang and the newly promoted Captain Yongli and his wife.  This time MeiLan and Minerva were seated together, and as minors, Lu and the twins were relegated to the far end.  Talk amongst the adults was about politics and war and things that held little interest to Minerva, whose eyes roamed freely between the prince and Pang Xi. 

She thought to herself, if I were to marry the crown prince, I would become a princess, and one day become the empress, the most powerful woman in the eastern world!  But with that position came so many rules and constraints.  Wouldn't it be better to become the wife of a rich and powerful man like Pang Xi?  He could give her everything her heart desired, but she would still have her freedom. 

Pang Xi is old… but still rather handsome.