Chapter 34: Daughter, You Must Marry

“Heavenly bearing!”

Lü Chunqiu blurted out, but what truly filled him with both awe and dread was the overwhelming aura of righteous energy emanating from this imperial decree.

In an instant, cold sweat drenched Lü Chunqiu’s forehead.

“This decree was delivered from the Great Chu’s traveling palace—written personally by the Emperor of Chu?”

“That young emperor, whose cultivation seemed so ordinary—merely having just entered the Nascent Soul stage. Yet in truth, he is a master of the Confucian Path whose depths even I cannot fathom?”

“With such a true dragon at its helm, the Great Chu will surely flourish for at least five centuries!”

Lü Chunqiu quickly reached his conclusion, his gaze growing covetous as it fell upon the decree once more.

As a practitioner of Confucian cultivation, to witness the brushwork of a living sovereign who has achieved mastery in the Confucian Path was a fortune beyond compare.

“A single stroke?”

He saw it clearly now. Apart from the imperial seal of the Great Chu, the only mark upon the decree was a single brushstroke.

“Father, what does this imperial decree mean? Why does it look like an unfinished character?” Lü Fubao asked curiously.

Lü Chunqiu was known as the teacher of all scholars beneath the heavens. With his wisdom, he naturally grasped the meaning more quickly and profoundly than his son.

He nearly guessed the truth in an instant, yet pondered it again and again, unwilling to err.

When he was finally certain of his deduction, a look of satisfaction—and even gratitude—appeared on Lü Chunqiu’s face.

He spoke slowly, “A character begins with a single stroke.”

“Father?” Lü Fubao still did not understand.

Lü Chunqiu fell silent.

He was convinced he had comprehended everything.

This was the Great Chu Emperor’s favor bestowed upon his family!

The Emperor had personally signaled his willingness to appoint Lü Fubao as the Imperial Consort of Great Chu—if only the Lü family would consent.

Such a sovereign, a master of the Confucian Path with a boundless future, yet still willing to treat the Lü family with such courtesy and humility?

Lü Chunqiu seemed to see, in his mind’s eye, that once his clan pledged allegiance to Great Chu, Emperor Xiang Ning would surely honor the Lü family above all!

“Fan Li did not deceive this marquis,” Lü Chunqiu murmured to himself.

The favor that Great Chu would bestow upon the Lü family would outshine that of the Jiajing Emperor a hundredfold!

And as for the Emperor herself, she would never fall short of the Ming’s Jiajing Emperor!

Lü Chunqiu’s gaze, as he looked upon the decree, shifted from admiration to reverence.

“Your servant, Marquis Wenxin Lü Chunqiu, accepts the decree and offers thanks for this grace.”

...

“Ding!”

“Detected: Lü Chunqiu’s attitude has shifted and he has decided to defect to Great Chu.”

“Given Lü Chunqiu’s reverence for the decree’s brushwork—which is, in fact, reverence for the Host—the system recognizes the Host’s completion of the mission [Martial Unification], which was to cultivate your own power base beyond the borders of Great Chu.”

“Congratulations, Host, on receiving your mission reward: one [Substitute Doll].”

Fan Li was dining with Xiang Ning.

Or rather, the imperial cuisine was so delicious that he’d decided to join in for a free meal.

As he was slicing venison, Fan Li suddenly felt something materialize in his hand—a reward from the system: the Substitute Doll.

He paused for a moment before quickly slipping it up his sleeve.

“Lord Jin, what have you got there? Let me see!” Xiang Ning had actually caught a glimpse—it was clearly a dainty little fabric doll, crafted with exquisite needlework.

“Why would Fan Li carry something like that? Did some woman give it to him?” she thought, a stubborn streak flaring. She insisted on having a look at the doll!

“No,” Fan Li replied irritably, glaring at her.

Was this woman really getting out of hand lately? Even daring to covet his personal belongings?

“Heh, so Lord Jin is hiding something shameful? I always thought you were honest and upright—a real man,” Xiang Ning retorted, though her attempts at goading him only earned another eye roll.

“Hand it over!” she demanded.

When a woman is both angry and embarrassed, her EQ and IQ seem to vanish, leaving only impulse.

She forgot entirely how formidable Fan Li was and lunged for him.

The guards stationed throughout the palace were shocked.

“This is bad! Her Majesty is about to assassinate Lord Jin!”

These were all elite soldiers, loyal first to Fan Li, then to the Emperor. They nearly drew their swords, but watched as Xiang Ning merely tugged at Fan Li’s sleeve.

“Let me see, just one look!” she pleaded.

The guards breathed a sigh of relief, but Fan Li was thoroughly exasperated.

“Good heavens, what is wrong with this woman?”

He fought back, kicking and twisting, trying to break free.

But how could he, with her Nascent Soul–level strength?

Rip!

The sound of fabric tearing echoed through the hall. Fan Li’s left sleeve was ripped wide open, and something tumbled out, striking the hard flagstone floor with a thud that left a small dent.

Fan Li stared in shock at the object on the ground.

The Substitute Doll was still in his sleeve, but what had fallen was an imperial jade seal.

Not the imperial seal of the Xiang family of Great Chu—but his own.

Xiang Ning was stunned as well.

“What is this?”

“It looks just like my imperial seal…”

This seal is brand new—definitely not mine.

“Oh… it’s the traitor’s own imperial seal… I’ve just found an imperial seal on a traitor…”

“Before the ancestors of Chu, I am surely destined to be the last emperor of the Xiang line, ha ha ha…”

Xiang Ning’s wits returned at last.

She remembered the Van family’s absolute power in Chu, Fan Li’s dominance at court, and that every palace guard was from the garrison army.

If she knelt down and kowtowed to Fan Li now, would it save her life?

“Ahem!”

Fan Li cleared his throat, attempting to dispel the awkwardness, but Xiang Ning shuddered.

He forced himself to squat and retrieve the Van family’s imperial seal.

“Your Majesty, as you can see, this is just my personal seal… nothing more than that, right?”

“Yes…” Xiang Ning replied dryly.

Personal seal?

Was it really necessary to engrave ‘Mandate of Heaven, everlasting prosperity’ on a personal seal?

Did this treacherous official think she was illiterate?

Fan Li nonchalantly slipped the seal back into his sleeve and said gravely, “Your Majesty, once the summit of the three emperors concludes, we can return home to prepare for the grand ceremonies—your marriage as Empress, and the investiture of the Imperial Consort.”

“Lü Chunqiu agreed?” Xiang Ning’s expression was odd.

Where did this fellow get such confidence?

Did he truly believe all his schemes would succeed?

The Lü clan had remained neutral for thousands of years—how could they be persuaded so easily?

She was still pondering this when a young eunuch entered, bowing, bearing a folded document.

“Your Majesty, Marquis Wenxin Lü Chunqiu has sent the birth characters of his daughter, Lü Fubao.”

Xiang Ning: “???”

She took the document in disbelief, unfolded it, and found several lines of neat, elegant script.

The handwriting was upright and gentle, subtly conveying respect and humility.

“Your servant Lü Chunqiu, fortunate to receive Your Majesty’s favor, dares not be ungrateful and will serve with utmost loyalty. Herewith submits the birth characters of my humble daughter, Fubao, as follows…”

Xiang Ning was stunned.

What shocked her was not Lü Fubao’s birth details, but Lü Chunqiu’s choice of words.

Your servant Lü Chunqiu?

Not ‘your subject from without, Lü Chunqiu’?

And he wished to serve, to fulfill a minister’s duty?

Had Lü City truly submitted to Great Chu?

“Before the ancestors of Chu, I have actually expanded the realm…”