Chapter 308: Untitled

Translator: Atlas Studios  Editor: Atlas Studios

The two of them stood side by side, one tall and one bent, the female’s sleeve falling on the male’s arm. It didn’t look at all like the Empress holding onto the Emperor; instead, it looked as if the Empress was being supported by a eunuch.

Meng Fuyao immediately smiled frivolously.

The consequences of robbing the cradle were indeed brutal…

Upon seeing Meng Fuyao’s smile, the Xuanji officials immediately felt their eyes hurt.

Since when had His Majesty been like this? He had always been a handsome man, preserving his youthful masculinity despite his age and only starting to show signs of aging during the past half year. But even so, it couldn’t have been as bad as this, what had happened during the last two months of not meeting anyone for him to degenerate into such a state where he couldn’t even stand up straight?

An old husband and a young wife, what a scene…

Behind the screen, the Empress of Xuanji supported the Emperor as he sat down. Meng Fuyao had originally thought that she was going to sit at another place beside him, but when she raised her head, she saw the Empress’ hands rested elegantly on the Emperor’s knee. She actually sat right by the Emperor’s side on the throne itself.

The Xuanji officials paled. In the past, no matter how audacious the Empress had been, she had never officially participated in political affairs. His Majesty had been strict about it, letting her run amok in the harem, but never disturbing the imperial court, so what was happening today? Allowing the Empress to sit at the throne, right in front of honored guests from Wuji and Dahan? This, this, this, this… Weren’t they going to become the world’s greatest joke? Had His Majesty’s illness finally muddled his brain?

They raised their eyes to see King Meng, and sure enough, she was once again laughing shamelessly.

Not just laughing, but with her mouth wide open, not just wide open, but laughing hysterically as well.

“Eh, since when did Xuanji have two Emperors? Wasn’t it said before that no country can have two leaders? Yet now, we have seen the extraordinary.”

Zhangsun Wuji smiled at the green-faced Minister of Rites beside him and said, “May the Minister draw up the charter, I will await the ceremony.”

Based on the customs of the Seven Kingdoms’ royal families, the ceremony for visiting the Emperor and the ceremony for visiting the Empress were different. Given Zhangsun Wuji and Meng Fuyao’s status, they should only have to bow to the Emperor of Xuanji, and the Xuanji Emperor would return the greeting. However, to the Empress of Xuanji, they only had to greet her without bowing. Now that she was sitting at the throne, it naturally became difficult to establish which ceremony to follow.

The Minister of Rites glanced towards the screen, at the arrogant Empress and silent Emperor, unsure how to proceed. In the past, all the ceremonies had proceeded as planned, but now that the Empress was here, what should he do?

The heads behind the screen did not move, and outside the screen, Zhangsun Wuji and Meng Fuyao remained motionless as well, resulting in an awkward yet irresolvable situation. The Minister of Rites began to break out in cold sweat.

Meng Fuyao sat there nonchalantly, picking at her fingernails, clearly bored. She did not feel any pressure at all. At the throne, the Empress felt uneasy and glared at Meng Fuyao, scrutinizing her intently. If that glare could transform into a beast, it would already have attacked.

Hence, upon further rumination, Meng Fuyao realized. ‘It seems that this person was Zhangsun Wuji’s previous father-in-law and precious mother-in-law? It also seems like, the son-in-law who withdrew from the marriage had brought his new girlfriend in front of them to show off?’

Ah, this was certainly too much! No wonder the two looked so tensed and enraged, sitting there without moving, yet their expressions said it all.

Meng Fuyao naturally refused to admit that she was the girlfriend of a certain person, but it seemed that she couldn’t stop others from thinking that way. Moreover, the whole of the Five Regions Continent would think that way after seeing how closely the Crown Prince was watching her.

It seemed that they didn’t just think that way, but there were also many strange and hilarious versions that she had heard from two Xuanji officials during the banquet at West Wind Parlour. The gist of the idea was wondering whose girlfriend Meng Fuyao actually was; clearly, it was Crown Prince Wuji beside her, yet she had become a King of Dahan? Why had she frivolously become Xuayuan’s Regent King after becoming a King of Dahan? The events were simply impossible for anyone to imagine and the rumors of a love triangle or an even more angled love conflict had arisen. As such, she, Meng Fuyao, had soon become the most frivolous female lead in all of the Five Regions Continent…

Sigh… The mother-in-law stared at her ex-son-in-law, her eyes tearing, then looked at the ex-son-in-law’s girlfriend, her claws showing…

When she thought up to this point, she couldn’t help smiling brightly. Below, the Xuanji officials were feeling extremely awkward. Not everyone had the ability to make awkward situations as well as Zhangsun Wuji and Meng Fuyao, and by simply sitting there without greeting, even the Wuji and Dahan officials following them refused to stand, such a situation had never happened before. As such, they could only watch and see what would happen silently.

The princes and princesses of Xuanji were also present, and the Eldest Imperial Princess was looking impatient as she raised an eyebrow, looking as if she wanted to say something. However, after noticing the Ninth Princess’s slight shake of her head, the Eldest Imperial Princess looked up at the ceiling and snorted, not saying anything else.

The Tenth Princess, Eleventh Prince and Twelfth Prince were sitting together. They were all the Empress’ children, and their expressions were unanimous as they flared at Zhangsun Wuji and Meng Fuyao. They clearly wanted to impose pressure on them, but Meng Fuyao didn’t care about them but instead glanced at the gentle-looking man sitting beside the Eldest Imperial Princess twice—that person’s expression had been neutral from the beginning and was extremely calm. No matter how the people in the hall reacted, he had been the only one who had remained apathetic and expressionless.

Looking at that person, it was Consort Ning’s Third Prince? As the only child, he was a rather lonesome individual, yet because of his mother’s status, he was arrogant and stubborn. From the looks of it, he did not harbor good intentions either.

Meng Fuyao’s gaze swept across the princes and princesses of Xuanji, watching them intently when there was a slight movement from the other side, and the Empress finally spoke.

“What’s there to discuss?” Behind the screen, the Empress sneered. Her sharp voice echoed throughout the hall as she said, “His Majesty and myself are here as husband and wife, how are we not fit to receive respect from the juniors?”

The Empress sat upright, determined not to give in even if she were to be punished by the court officials in the future. Today, she was determined to make those two arrogant juniors bow to her and relieve the anger in her heart.

Meng Fuyao raised her eyebrows. She wasn’t stupid; she obviously knew that the Empress was raising the matter of age superiority to suppress them. If they were to go by age and not national superiority, it was apt to bow to her.

It was a pity that Meng Fuyao would rather bow to a pig than to her; she detested that woman that much.

“Done.” Meng Fuyao smiled faintly, speaking grandly in front of the Xuanji officials. “The Empress is benevolent and loves her people, her name is spread through the seven nations, and I have long admired her. This bow is definitely appropriate.”

A cold snort traveled from behind the screen. The Empress of Xuanji knew that no matter how good she thought she was, she knew her reputation was definitely not “benevolent”. Meng Fuyao was clearly being sarcastic.

“Except that the nation is also considered as one entity, and if we were to measure by age superiority.” Meng Fuyao smiled at that before she continued, “If we really were to go by age superiority, ah, wasn’t Wuji founded much earlier than Xuanji? Does this count as being older? In that case, wouldn’t you have to bow to the Crown Prince instead? Aiya, it’s absurd to think of it, truly absurd!”

The Xuanji officials listened to her, flabbergasted. The knew that King Meng wouldn’t have anything good to say, but since the Empress was the one who had instigated such an action, then she should settle it herself.

Meng Fuyao was too lazy to continue talking nonsense with her and directly clapped her hand.

“If Your Grace really wants to discuss seniority that much and wish for the Crown Prince and myself to greet you, then please return to the harem before we proceed any further.”

“How disrespectful of a junior!” The Empress suddenly stood up, and with a swish of her robes, the palace maid standing beside her, fanning her, was pushed down the stairs. The palace maid fell to the bottom of the steps and blood ran from her head, yet she dared not cry out and was soon dragged away by the well-trained eunuchs of Yongchang Palace.

Meng Fuyao’s eyes flashed angrily. ‘This evil b*tch! Judging by her viciousness, how many innocent souls had fallen victim to her hands?’

Feng Xuan suddenly opened his mouth.

“Empress… where is my medicine…”

The old man’s raspy voice reverberated throughout the large hall, and the Empress paused, surprised. Then, she said, “In the harem…” Turning around, she realized that Feng Xuan had already retreated back into the throne, occupying the seat fully and leaving no space for her.

She paused again, and in that instant, she understood that her husband was asking her to leave in a way that did not embarrass her. At this point, it was naturally for the best to go with the flow, but for a woman who had never been placed at a disadvantage for decades, she wasn’t willing to lose out even for a single second, much less be willing to have her husband “take sides.” She stood there and wrangled her fingers under her robes, causing grinding sounds with her decorated fingernails.

Then, she suddenly raised her head and glanced at a certain corner behind the screen.

There seemed to be the shadow of a slender figure.

Meng Fuyao suddenly leaped up!

Just at the moment when the Empress of Xuanji raised her head, Meng Fuyao’s lazy posture had suddenly turned into a flying leopard, shooting from her seat like a ray of light across the quiet hall, towards the throne!

The entire hall was in shock as the Xuanji officials tried to stop her, yet they were unskilled in martial arts and suddenly felt a suffocating darkness sweep across the hall silently, wave after wave. After they managed to hide from it, Meng Fuyao had already reached the throne.

She launched herself towards the screen as a guard clad in golden armor blocked her path, but without even looking at the guard, she sent the guard flying across the hall onto an elaborately decorated pontoon. Before the guard could stabilize himself, she sneered and flipped a stool at him, then sprinted directly behind the screen.

“Show yourself!”

Without looking at the shocked old man and the bewildered woman, Meng Fuyao directly reached behind the screen.

However, her fingers grasped air.

The space behind the screen was empty, since when had there been any silhouette?

Meng Fuyao was stunned. Didn’t she use her full speed to get here? How many people under the heavens had martial abilities that surpassed her? Indeed, in that spur of the moment, the person had disappeared!

She swept her eyes around the hall again, indignantly. There was only a table and stool at the back of the hall, with a carpet covering the ground. The four walls were heavily draped, and Meng Fuyao’s gaze fell on the lowered drapery, wanting to tear them down, but she knew that it was no longer possible.

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