“His Majesty is clearly senile. He can’t even recognize his own son—what on earth is he trying to pull? Can’t you see it, Prince?”
Xi Yuanshan also thought his father had gone a little mad, but he had no intention of taking up Xie Zhiyao’s words. The two had been married for several years, yet they had never been close.
Neither of them was the sort to lose their head over love. Feelings had never been their priority. In the past, he had still pretended to be devoted in front of other women, but ever since returning from Dayan, he had rarely visited the women’s quarters.
Seeing Xi Yuanshan play dead again, Xie Zhiyao was furious. Her aggressive questions came one after another. “When he’s sober, he knows you’re his son. Once he’s drunk, he says you shouldn’t even exist. Do you have any idea what people outside are saying about you?”
“What are they saying?” Xi Yuanshan asked indifferently. “Let them say whatever they want. Anyone with a mouth can talk.” As for the future, they would have to live long enough to see it.
Based on the things his father had been saying bit by bit lately, Xi Yuanshan actually felt that some of them sounded strangely familiar. He had racked his brains but still couldn’t figure out why. “Could Father really have gone senile?” he muttered inwardly.
“Prince, do you truly not care at all? Even if you won’t think of yourself, shouldn’t you think of your children?”
Xi Yuanshan had one son and two daughters. His eldest son, who was three and a half years old, had been born to Xie Zhiyao and was her greatest source of confidence in Prince Yi’s residence.
If the child had not been so young, and if his uncles had not each been so capable, Xie Zhiyao would not have pinned her hopes on her husband becoming a great man. She would have pinned them on her son becoming one instead!
“It’s precisely because we’re doing this for their sake that we can’t act rashly. At the very least, you’re the Commandery Princess of Dayan. Even if we…”
“Stop talking. My father died at the hands of Xie Fei and Yue Fuguang. I will fight them to the death!”
Unlike Xi Yuanshan’s decision to lie low, Xie Zhiyao was an aggressive advocate of war. She had even met Feng Yuan in secret and revealed everything she knew about Dayan and Yue Fuguang to him and the other hardliners.
Xi Yuanshan was not surprised by her reaction. In fact, he thought her choice was perfectly understandable. The vengeance owed for a murdered father could never be forgotten.
But as he had said, Xie Zhiyao’s decision to fight Dayan—and especially that goddess—to the bitter end was destined to lead her down a dead end.
Yet when he thought of all the secrets he had heard in Dayan, and of the things his wife had done to that goddess, Xi Yuanshan could not help sighing deeply inwardly.
Though they had married with their own agendas and shared no real affection, they were still bound together by their children. He did not want her to walk into a dead end, but he had no way to pull her back.
“Can’t you do it for the children…”
His words were interrupted by Xie Zhiyao once again. “Prince! I, Xie Zhiyao, would rather die than bow my head to the emperor or Yue Fuguang!”
She gazed out the window, her voice revealing neither joy nor sorrow. “If I die, I hope the Prince will treat Little Ping well and protect him until he grows up safely.”
Xi Yuanshan did not know exactly how many times she had tried to harm Yue Fuguang behind the scenes. But he knew that even after coming to Xiqiang, his wife had never stopped. Not only had she stirred up the already murky waters of Xiqiang’s succession struggle, she had also continued trading information about Dayan for personal gain.
Whether he had benefited passively or actively, he was, in truth, one of the beneficiaries.
“Don’t worry. As long as I’m alive, nothing will happen to the children.”
If Goddess Yue truly possessed such extraordinary abilities, she must know everything happening here. How could she possibly let Xie Zhiyao off?
“Let her go? Naturally, that’s impossible. But from the looks of things, she’ll walk herself to her own doom without us having to lift a finger.”
Over the past few years—especially during the period when Xi Yuanshan had lived in Dayan for an extended time—Xie Zhiyao had used Prince Yi’s residence to cause no end of trouble throughout Xiqiang. It was no wonder Yue Fuguang had spared her back then.
Xie Zhiyao was capable enough that even Xi Yan had once exchanged benefits with her.
She was also on good terms with the Feng family, the Huaqiang Tribe, and the various noble clans. She had even considered arranging a betrothal for her son, who was only two or three years old, in order to win over the military powers. At the time, even though Xi Yuanshan was not in Xiqiang, he had still found a way to stop her from becoming any more deeply entangled.
Now that Dayan’s army had reached the city gates, her status as the Commandery Princess of Dayan had made her a welcome guest in the homes of those who remained uninformed. But which of those people was truly easy to deal with?
[I thought you would be the type to show mercy to a beautiful woman.] The system felt that it had indeed been overthinking things. Its host was still the same person who cared only about profit and gave no thought to the lives of men, women, or children. Clearly, it had chosen the right person from the beginning!
“System, don’t get your hopes up about me. For the sake of obtaining my own body, beautiful women and handsome men will receive the same treatment. I won’t hesitate to send any of them on to the next life.” Besides, these people harbored such deep malice toward her. Was she supposed to keep them around so they could bring trouble upon the Yu family? She would be patting herself on the backside and leaving soon enough. She could hardly leave others with a mess to clean up.
[So why haven’t you detoxified Beiyue yet?]
“A half-dead Prince of Beili makes a better subject. Besides, he won’t die anytime soon.”
[Why don’t you just admit that while he won’t die, it will affect his life expectancy?]
Yue Fuguang waved her hand dismissively. “System, haven’t you heard? Everyone dies eventually. It’s only a matter of when.
“Beiyue doesn’t like women, so he’s destined to have no descendants. Once he’s gone, there won’t be any legitimate members of the Beili imperial clan left. Isn’t that wonderful?”
[It is. For Dayan and for the common people who want to live peaceful lives, it’s certainly good news.]
Yue Fuguang and the system were chatting animatedly when she suddenly seemed to hear someone, somewhere far away, murmuring prayers to her.
The Goddess Hall of Dayan was still under construction, but at the foot of Lotus Mountain, the people had already begun offering incense and worshiping from afar, facing the unfinished hall and the statue of the goddess.
She had gone to see the statue herself. Although it was only half completed, the jade likeness of the goddess already resembled her by eight or nine parts out of ten.
For that reason, Yue Fuguang decided to leave it a great gift when she departed.
“System, I think I’m hearing someone murmuring in my ear again. It’s too far away—I can’t make out the words.” Since she could not hear clearly, she first ruled out the people of Dayan.
At that very moment, in a temple in the northern part of Jincheng, Xiqiang, the temple was packed with people. Men and women, old and young, filled the hall like a sea of black, all kneeling, kowtowing, and praying.
