Soaring Phoenix Realm
Inside the sparkling, gold-and-jade harem of the Soaring Phoenix Realm, Empress Wendy Cao was having a meal with Jude Song. Standing before them, trying not to hyperventilate, was none other than Lady Silver—today was her big palace report day, and also the day the Empress had finally agreed to let her see the Crown Prince. To keep her hair extra dark and shiny (gotta look young for her precious Judey!), she kept sneakily sucking up internal energy like a beauty-obsessed vacuum.
That way, she’d look younger, so Zhijue wouldn’t think she was some old granny.
"Master, don't just stand there—come eat something too!" Jude Song grinned at Lady Silver and patted the seat next to him, looking like a puppy trying to lure its owner to the table.
"No thank you, Your Highness—Lady Silver already ate," she blurted out, all teary-eyed from excitement. (Total lie. She hadn't eaten a single grain of rice! She'd been so hyped to see him that she'd basically fasted for a whole day.) This was the first time the Crown Prince had seen her since the Six-Realm Martial Conference at Mount Hua—over four months!
But she knew her place—what kind of lowly Consort dares to sit at the same table as the Crown Prince? Dream on!
Lately, thanks to Empress Wendy Cao's orders, she'd been running around the Jianghu whacking famous heroes left and right—just to make sure everyone stopped blaming the Crown Prince and dumped all their drama on her instead. Sure, being hunted every day was a pain in the butt, but hey, at least the Prince could finally clear his name and bounce back! Priorities, people!
"Lady Silver, how'd it go?" Just as she was floating in her happy daydreams, Empress Wendy Cao's chilly voice sliced through the air like a flying dagger.
At the sound, Lady Silver snapped out of her smile and answered, "Reporting to Your Majesty: I've been glued to their tails, and they've been super well-behaved. Looks like in two months, we'll totally nab the Dragon-Phoenix Jade Seal!"
"Really, Master?" Jude Song instantly dropped his chopsticks and turned to Lady Silver, his face lighting up like a kid on festival day.
"Don't worry, Your Highness—Lady Silver will absolutely help you snatch back that Dragon-Phoenix Jade Seal!" Seeing her son's big puppy eyes, Lady Silver felt her motherly urge go into overdrive. Time to do something heroic!
At this, Empress Wendy Cao flashed a sly little smile. "Oh? Is that so?"
"Replying to Your Majesty, Lady Silver wouldn't dare make wild promises."
"Let's hope so. By the way, I just heard there's some drama brewing in the Jianghu?" Empress Wendy Cao asked, popping a fancy little dish into her mouth like she was sampling snacks at a gossip party.
"Your Majesty, it's a Jianghu thing—they're throwing their own event. The Six-Realm Martial Conference got shut down, so now they're all salty and want to hold another one in two months. And for the alliance leader... they want whoever wins to come kill me!" Lady Silver replied. (Ha! These wannabe heroes think they can take her out? Good luck with that, losers!)
"How dare they? Those reckless idiots—are they seriously hosting another tournament? Are they just pretending I don't exist as Crown Prince?" Jude Song yelled, face going red with rage. Ugh, why can't all these martial artists just go jump off a cliff?
"Please calm down, Your Highness! Lady Silver will help you squash every last one of them!" Seeing Jude Song about to blow a fuse, Lady Silver scrambled to reassure him.
"Really, Master? You're always the best to me!" Jude Song beamed, instantly switching from rage to puppy-dog joy. With Lady Silver backing him up, what could possibly go wrong?
"Don't worry—if anything makes the Crown Prince unhappy, Lady Silver will personally wipe it out!" Lady Silver declared, chest puffed up with loyal conviction.
Empress Wendy Cao's face flashed with a hint of stormy annoyance, but it vanished in a blink. She snapped, "Forget about that for now. Let them play their little games. With your skills, those clowns couldn't touch you anyway. Just keep a hawk's eye on them for me. In two months, if they can't cough up the Jade Seal—kill them. Instantly!"
"Lady Silver, I’m not letting you mess with Jianghu drama. Them throwing another Six-Realm Martial Conference is exactly what I want! Once we get the Dragon-Phoenix Jade Seal, you’ll be stuck living on the run, chased by martial artists and causing chaos everywhere. And then—oh, then—I’ll let Judey handle you personally!"
"Yes!" Lady Silver chirped, totally clueless about Empress Wendy Cao’s evil schemes. (Oops.)
Empress Wendy Cao flashed her signature fake smile. "I trust Lady Silver to get things done." Then she turned to Jude Song. "Judey, all those nasty rumors lately have been a mess. Mother wants to throw you a big, happy event to clear away the bad vibes and get the people cheering for you again."
"Mother, what kind of happy event do you want to throw for your precious son?"
"Bride selection!" Empress Wendy Cao smiled, dropping those two little words like a bomb.
"Bride selection?" Jude Song frowned. "Mother, I’m not even—Isn’t that a bit too dramatic?"
"Not dramatic at all! Your father’s been gone for years, and it’s only because we’re missing the Dragon-Phoenix Jade Seal that you haven’t taken the throne. But the people don’t know that—they just think you’re too young and need Mother to hold your hand. Now you’re all grown up, so if we don’t do something, everyone’s going to start doubting. Don’t worry, I’ve already stacked the court in your favor—most of the officials are team Judey. The rest?" She curled her lips in a frosty sneer. "They’re still useful for now, so I’ll let them live a bit longer. But honestly, those two or three geezers couldn’t threaten you if they tried."
Since your father died, Soaring Phoenix Realm hasn’t held a bride selection. All those officials’ daughters are super salty—who doesn’t want a shot at marrying into the palace? We’ve put it off for nearly twenty years, so the complaints have just piled up. To win over the officials and calm the masses, not only are we doing a selection, we’re making it huge! First, it’ll prove you’re ready to ascend and pick a consort. Second, it’ll shut up all the recent gossip. Third, once you choose a bride, it’s basically a neon sign saying you’re about to be crowned." Empress Wendy Cao grinned.
"Mother always thinks of everything!" Jude Song admired Empress Wendy Cao more than anyone—she was basically born a genius, always paving the way for him. Having a mom like her? Best cheat code ever!
This chapter’s not done yet~.~ Click next page for more chaos and drama!
"This bride selection, after twenty years, is going to be the biggest gossip bomb ever! We'll make it so huge, it'll shake the whole palace. Once the consort selection parade kicks off, even if we don't have the Dragon-Phoenix Jade Seal, Mother will make sure you get that throne. Nobody can stop you!" Empress Wendy Cao's eyes sparkled with smug delight.
"Mother, you really have a plan for everything, huh?"
"There's always a way. This bride selection is my personal present to you! When the time comes, I'll tell you exactly which girls to keep. Every important minister's daughter stays—yes, even those stubborn old geezers' kids. Once their daughters marry you, if you're not emperor, they're stuck as nameless concubines forever. If they want their girls promoted to consorts, they'll have to back you up!"
"Empress Wendy Cao, your ideas are genius!" Lady Silver couldn't help blurting out her admiration. (Seriously, if it were up to her, she'd never have thought of this stuff.)
"Mother!" Jude Song grabbed her hand, eyes shining. "I'm so lucky to be your son this life. Next life, and the one after that, I still want to be your child—forever, only yours!"
At those words, Lady Silver shook all over, her legs turning to jelly. She just barely managed to stay upright, but her eyes were full of heartbreak. Her own son had already signed up to be someone else's kid for eternity—her chest hurt so much she could barely breathe.
"Master, are you okay?" Jude Song noticed something was off and shot Lady Silver a worried look.
"Lady Silver... Lady Silver's fine!" she squeaked, trying to look chill.
Empress Wendy Cao couldn't help but smile, secretly thinking: Lady Silver, did you catch that? As long as I'm his mother, you—this life, next life, forever—are out of luck!
"Empress Wendy Cao, does the Crown Prince need Lady Silver to do anything for the bride selection?" Lady Silver asked, trying to keep her heartbreak from leaking all over the floor.
"Mm-hmm. I need you to secretly snoop around and write down every official who has daughters but didn't report them for the bride selection. I do NOT allow any missing shrimp—these girls are going to be our biggest bargaining chips!"
"Lady Silver understands!"
"Your Highness! Your Highness!" Suddenly, a maid came running in at full speed, dropped to her knees before Empress Wendy Cao, and cried, "Your servant greets the Empress!"
"What's got you so panicked?"
"The Crown Princess... the Crown Princess has miscarried!" the maid sobbed, tears streaming down her face.
Jude Song's eyes went wide. "What? How could this happen? Quick, go check!" His eunuch immediately wheeled him out like a racecar pit crew.
As soon as they left, Lady Silver frowned, totally confused. "How could the Crown Princess miscarry out of nowhere? There aren't even any other concubines in the harem—nobody would want to hurt her!"
"What do you think?" Empress Wendy Cao replied, her voice icy enough to freeze soup.
Lady Silver's eyes went wide as she stared at her. "Empress... don't tell me—"
"You really think she could have a child?" Empress Wendy Cao said, still cold as ice, unconsciously setting down her chopsticks.
"Lady Silver is clueless—she really doesn't know." After all, it was Judey's own flesh and blood, her own grandchild. How could Empress Wendy Cao be so ruthless to a baby that hadn't even formed yet? Didn't she want a grandkid?
Just then, Luna Moon zipped over and handed Empress Wendy Cao a handkerchief, then shot Lady Silver a look. "Aunt Silver, are you really clueless, or just pretending?"
"Miss Luna, what do you mean by that?"
"Aunt Silver, did you forget why the Crown Prince is disabled? You really think he could have a kid right now? If a baby pops out, the Prince's true parentage gets exposed!" Luna Moon reminded her.
Lady Silver suddenly remembered, stumbling backward in pain. "But the Crown Prince... he's always wanted a child..." Oh Lady Silver, what have you done? If not for that one stupid mistake, Judey wouldn't be disabled—he'd probably have a whole soccer team of kids by now. What kind of karma was this?
Empress Wendy Cao caught Lady Silver's miserable expression, glanced at her nails, and said coolly, "I know you're hurting. So am I." She looked over. "I know Judey's always wanted a kid, and I want a grandchild too. But now is NOT the time. Do you want the baby to get its legs chopped off the second it's born?"
"No—!" Lady Silver wailed.
"Aunt Silver, shhhh!" Luna Moon rushed up to calm her down. "The Empress hurts even more than you do. You might've given birth to the Crown Prince, but it's the Empress who's always been by his side. You think she doesn't want grandkids running around? But now is SO not the time. If a kid shows up, it'll have to lose its legs just to survive. Judey already lost his—do you want your grandkids to go through that too?" Luna Moon reasoned.
Lady Silver just collapsed onto the floor, fists clenched so tight her knuckles turned white. After a long, painful pause, she finally loosened her grip. "Lady Silver is clueless..."
"Enough, get up," Empress Wendy Cao said, not even looking up.
Hearing this, Luna Moon hurried over to help Lady Silver back up.
"Don't worry. Once Judey gets the Jade Seal and becomes emperor, even if his kid isn't born with a gold tail—who cares? You know how Soaring Phoenix Realm's weird genetics work: imperial kids get golden tails, but only princes pass it down. Princesses marry out, and their kids get their husband's tail color. If that demoness who didn't die became emperor, her kids wouldn't have golden tails either."
Lady Silver's eyes suddenly lit up at those words.
"Then I can tell everyone Judey lost his legs, so the golden color can't be passed on. By then, he'll be emperor—who's going to argue with me? Right?"
"Lady Silver bows to Your Majesty's genius!"
"Enough. Now's not the time for drama—we've got tons to do. You know what comes next, right?"
"Lady Silver understands—I'll get right on it!" For once, Lady Silver managed a real smile and dashed out the door.
"Empress, Lady Silver really is clueless," Luna Moon snarked.
"That's exactly why I use her cluelessness to get things done." The Empress smirked, totally satisfied—everything was falling perfectly into place.