Chapter 1978: Ascension of the New Emperor
Meanwhile, Zu An walked into a secluded alley before he suddenly turned around, calling out, âYou should come out. Youâve already followed me for a long time.â
Soon after, Meng Chan appeared from around the corner. Her beautiful face was full of awkwardness and nervousness.
âWhy is the madam following me?â Zu An asked seriously. Even though the two of them had experienced a wild night, Meng Chan had taken the initiative to use Worries Be Gone on him back then, and shouldâve forgotten about what happened.
Will he think I'm a scheming woman and feel disgusted if I tell him the truth? Meng Chan thought.
When he saw that she didnât say anything, Zu An turned around. Their relationship was quite⦠unique, so it was better if they interacted as little as possible.
Suddenly, someone threw out a catcall. âWhat do we have here? Which familyâs hot chick is this? Why did you run all the way here in the middle of the night?â
It turned out out there were a few drunk unaffiliated cultivators who were passing by. When they saw Meng Chan around the corner, their eyes immediately lit up. When had they ever seen someone so beautiful before? Moreover, there was a kind of inherent beauty to her appearance that was entirely different from the girls of this district. For people like them who hung around those of lower status, that posed an irresistible temptation.
Zu An, who had been about to leave, frowned. He had made sure to take unnecessary turns to try and shake her off, but that had only ended up bringing her to the cityâs north side. The law and order here was far from that of the king manorsâ streets, a place where people could drink together and claim to be brothers one moment, only to slam their beer bottles on the heads of those same âbrothersâ a moment later. The darker alleys were even more so places for murder and business that didnât want any unwanted attention.
Even so, Zu An still didnât want to get involved. Meng Chan was a princess and a well-known talented cultivator. Dealing with these ruffians wasnât difficult at all.
For some reason, though, Meng Chan only shrunk further into the corner and didnât do anything. She didnât even say a word and only had a look of fear on her face. And yet the more she acted like that, the more it brought out the beast inside those people.
To them, it looked as if the madam of some great clan had accidentally gotten lost and ended up in the wrong place. She seemed to be a young lady who rarely left home and didnât have any common knowledge or ability to protect herself. The prostitutes they met normally couldn't compare to even a single finger of this woman. Normally, this was a woman who, forget about their current lifetime, even if they were given another lifetime, they still couldn't touch. And yet the heavens had dropped this delicious pancake right out of the sky for them!
The woman's clothes were exquisite and made of good material, so she was clearly from a wealthy clan, and yet they werenât worried at all. This kind of woman cared the most about their reputation. For the sake of protecting their own name, they wouldnât dare to talk about what happened.
Who knew, the men could even have a chance of forcing her to speak her identity. That way, they could use what happened today to continue to blackmail her. Then, they would have both this beautiful woman and endless resources. None of them would have to live their damned bloody lifestyle anymore.
They were getting more and more excited. One of them couldn't hold himself back and reached out to stroke Meng Chanâs face, saying, âBabe, donât be scared. Big brother here will make you feel amazing!â
Meng Chan turned her face and did her best to shrink backward and avoid his hand. Unfortunately, there was a wall behind her and she couldn't avoid it any longer.
When they saw her act so weak and delicate, the others also couldn't take it anymore. They grabbed straight at her chest to tear away her clothes.
Meng Chan closed her eyes in âfearâ, but no one touched her body. Instead, several groans quickly filled the air. She was overjoyed. When she opened her eyes, sure enough, Zu An was standing in front of her, and the ruffians were already lying motionless on the ground.
Zu An asked, âWas your cultivation harmed?â
Meng Chan bit her lip and shook her head, but her face was radiant with happiness. The dusky alley suddenly seemed as if it were blossoming with flowers and full of light.
âThen why didnât you fight back?â Zu An asked impatiently.
âI wanted to see if you would save me,â Meng Chan finally said. Her eyes were full of smiles.
Zu An was speechless. Is there something wrong with this woman?
âWe're enemies, so why would I save you?â Zu An replied with a stiff expression.
Meng Chan didnât say anything and just continued to look at him with a beaming smile.
âThen what if I didnât come back? Would you have let them do all that to you?â Zu An couldn't help but ask.
âNo, I would have killed them,â Meng Chan said matter-of-factly. âBut if I had to do that, I would really have been broken-hearted.â
Zu An was speechless again. He turned around to leave.
Meng Chan suddenly hugged him from behind, crying out, âDonât go!â
Zu An was stunned. Then, he reacted and asked, âYou remember what happened that night?â
Meng Chan had a bashful expression as she replied, âHow could I possibly forget such an unforgettable experience?â
Zu An felt a bit wronged. He said, âIt seemed the Worries Be Gone doesnât live up to its reputation.â
âThatâs not true. I actually forgot about what happened that night, but I wrote a letter for myself ahead of time. Once I read the letter, I gradually recovered my memories,â Meng Chan said. She hadn't dared to speak about it before, but she'd already sensed his tender feelings toward her from what had just happened, so she decided to talk about it now.
Zu An now understood what had happened. It seemed that Worries Be Gone Rosemary didnât make one completely lose a memory, but rather buried it. If there were other triggers, one would still be able to remember what happened.
âEven so, we're still enemies,â Zu An said seriously.
âNo, you are our benefactor. It's because you were generous that more people were able to survive from the Meng clan and King Dai Manor,â Meng Chan said, holding his hands even tighter.
In that instant, Zu An didnât even know if she was telling the truth or not anymore. When he smelled her bodyâs scent and felt the graceful yet delicate sensation on his back, he felt as if the ki he had finally suppressed with great difficulty was starting to stir again.
âDo you know what your actions are implying right now?â Zu An turned around and asked in a a somewhat hoarse voice.
âI do,â Meng Chan said, her voice starting to shake a bit when she saw his intense gaze.
Zu An didnât say anything else and turned her around before pressing her against the wall.
Meng Chanâs heart was now beating fiercely. Even though she had already made her mental preparations when she sought him out, she really was a bit unprepared if they were really going to do it right here!
However, this novel experience brought her a bit of expectation despite the fear. Her body was shockingly flexible, as her upper body was pressed up against the wall, but her waist was almost parallel with the floor.
â¦
The next day, Zu An returned to Dongâe Peak. He felt completely refreshed, with all of the malicious feelings from the bloody battle with the monsters completely vented out. The cultivation he had obtained from the War Priest was also fully digested.
He had felt that Bi Linglong was just too precious before, causing him to be unable to achieve such a result.
Meanwhile, in King Dai Manor, Meng Chan had just dragged her exhausted body back to the manor. King Dai was already waiting for her in his wheelchair.
âDidnât you say you were going to talk to your close friend? Why did you come back so late?â King Dai asked as he gave the distant setting sun a look. His tone seemed a bit cold.
âI chatted too late last night and was a bit tired. I slept in a bit today too,â Meng Chan said, her expression a bit unnatural.
King Daiâs hands gripped the wheels tighter, but then he let go in resignation. He replied, âJust which close friend was it that they would still be willing to interact with you in this kind of time? A friend in need truly is a friend indeed.â
âIt was the Wang clanâs madam; we were friends since we were young. Sigh, you wouldnât even know if I told you,â Meng Chan said as she hurriedly moved to leave.
King Dai suddenly called out after her, âWhatâs wrong with your neck? Why is it covered by your shirt collar? Were you hurt?â
âItâs cold out there and this helps me keep warm.â Meng Chan left thoese words behind before hurriedly leaving so he couldn't ask anything else.
âYou have to take care of your body no matter what!â King Dai shouted after her.
Meng Chan staggered and almost fell, perhaps because her legs were weak, or because she was scared badly by his words.
â¦
In the next few days, crown prince Zhao Ruizhi officially became the new emperor. The name of this era was Peace Eternal, implying peace and prosperity for the entire world. Crown princess Bi Linglong thus became the new empress, and the former empress Liu Ning became empress dowager.
Normally, Bi Linglong should have moved into the empressâ Palace of Peace, and Liu Ning would be bestowed the Palace of Compassion after becoming empress dowager. But Liu Ning was used to living in the Palace of Peace and didnât want to move. Bi Linglong didnât want to stay in the palace Liu Ning had stayed for so long in either, and she had too many beautiful memories in the Eastern Palace. This place also symbolized the love she shared with her sweetheart, making her want to move away even less.
The situation made all of the officials in the palace lose their minds. In the end, however, Zu An thought of a win-win solution.
The two of them would reside in their palaces, but then the Palace of Compassion placard would be given to Liu Ning, and the Palace of Peace placard would be given to the Eastern Palace. The Eastern Palace would thus be remodeled into the new Palace of Peace. Either way, Zhao Ruizhi didnât have a crown prince and didnât need to use the place. The two women thus reluctantly accepted this solution.
Then, with Zu An taking the lead, the subjects carried out a grand ascension ceremony. At the same time, they granted the world a great amnesty. They hoped it would help quell the unease of the common people brought about by Zhao Hanâs death, while also bringing the entire court together. That way, they could face the following dangers better.
However, an issue appeared in the ceremony. All officials were supposed to kneel to the new emperor, and yet Zu An alone remained standing and didnât kneel. The gazes of those present shifted to him, and a strange silence fell.