Chapter 12: The Saintess’s Marriage and the Maid’s Dowry?
Wu You was taken away, and the hall fell into silence, with only the sound of Qin Bei’s footsteps and the drip-drip of blood echoing.
“Brother, here.”
Qin Bei handed the heart of the Divine Demonic Body to Qin Si, who took it and began extracting the essence and blood to treat Qin Zhen.
“Xiao Bei, thanks.” Qin Zhen said, a bit weakly.
Qin Bei essentially saved his cultivation career—an absolute huge favor.
“You’re too polite, Brother.”
The two exchanged no more words; everything was conveyed without speaking.
“My son, come forward.”
Emperor Xia was now grinning from ear to ear, and the ministers sighed, marveling at how long it had been since they’d seen him so happy. It seemed that Qin Bei would now be a prince they needed to pay attention to.
“Father.”
“My son, what is your current strength?”
Emperor Xia actually already knew but wanted Qin Bei to say it himself for his own pride’s sake.
“Replying to Father, 300,000 pounds.”
Although everyone had their guesses, hearing Qin Bei’s confirmation still left them feeling it was utterly fantastical.
Just the ninth level in body refinement could yield a strength of 300,000 jin—achieved without relying on any special physique.
What kind of heaven-defying talent is this?
There have been no records of any stronger talent on the entire Cangzhou Continent.
If it weren’t for the challenge from the Holy Demon Empire this time, they might have overlooked such a prince.
“Hahaha, you truly are my son! Speak up, my son has made great contributions this time; what reward do you want? I’ll grant it all!”
The so-called reward was, of course, the already arranged marriage alliance. This was indeed good news for the prince; whoever could marry would have a 10% chance of becoming the next Emperor Xia.
Thus, besides the cultivation maniac Qin Chen, the other princes all secretly desired this marriage quota.
“Father, I have taken a fancy to a woman and wish for you to grant me a marriage.” Qin Bei boldly stated.
“Well~ very good, I understand.”
Emperor Xia’s joy was palpable; it was rare to have a marriage filled with affection.
“Saintess, what do you think of my prince?” Emperor Xia asked, looking at Mu Zhaoxue, who had been staring at Qin Bei.
“Prince Qin Bei is naturally great—both his talent and courage are outstanding.”
Mu Zhaoxue’s reply was clear. If the marriage partner was Qin Bei, then she would accept it, and the Wu Nation would accept it too.
“Hahaha, splendid, I…”
Before Emperor Xia could finish, Qin Bei interrupted from beneath, “Father, you haven’t asked me which family the girl is from.”
Huh?
Not just Emperor Xia, everyone present was stunned.
What nonsense was Qin Bei spouting?
The Emperor on the throne glanced at Qin Bei with a vague feeling of unease.
“Oh? Which family’s girl is she?” Emperor Xia managed to ask, pressing on.
“Replying to Father, the girl I like is the Saintess of Wu Nation…”
Huh~
Everyone sighed in relief upon hearing this. Fortunately, Qin Bei wasn’t causing trouble, however…
“…the personal maid of the Saintess of Wu Nation…”
Huh!
Silence fell upon the entire audience once again.
This…
Everyone turned to look at Qin Bei, eager to see if he was joking.
But observing Qin Bei’s serious expression, it was clear he wasn’t joking.
“Nonsense!”
Emperor Xia initially thought Qin Bei had taken a liking to the daughter of some minister, which would still be acceptable.
But for Qin Bei to fancy the personal maid of the Saintess?
What was that supposed to mean?
Was the Saintess not as good as the maid?
If this got out, Wu Nation might think the Great Xia royal family was humiliating the Saintess.
Only Mu Zhaoxue was internally shaken, realizing that the maid was the Empress of Wu Nation.
Not only is Qin Bei talented, but his taste is also quite refined.
“Father, when I saw her, it was love at first sight. She occupies my every thought. If…”
Qin Bei was cut off mid-sentence by Emperor Xia.
“No matter what you say, I won’t allow it!”
As he saw the system’s task slipping away and the Phoenix Body waving goodbye, before Qin Bei could feel lost, he received another voice transmission from Emperor Xia.
“You little brat! You said you liked the Saintess, why the sudden change of heart?”
“Father, when did I ever say I liked the Saintess?”
“You!” Emperor Xia thought about it; Qin Bei indeed hadn’t explicitly claimed to like the Saintess, which seems he had misunderstood.
“Regardless, you’re making the Saintess look bad right now! For the sake of Wu Nation’s dignity, you must say you like the Saintess and marry her!”
Emperor Xia insisted.
“But…”
“Don’t worry; it’s just a personal maid. If you like her, let this maid accompany you as dowry when you marry the Saintess, but the Saintess must be the primary wife and the maid can only be a concubine!” Emperor Xia added.
“Oh~” Qin Bei suddenly got it; looking at Emperor Xia now, he didn’t seem so serious about it all.
“Father, you’re quite the trickster!”
Qin Bei recalled a well-known saying: only children make choices; adults want everything!
“You brat!”
Though their whispered exchange was shielded by Emperor Xia’s power, so no one could hear the content, the long silence between them spoke volumes.
“Father, I have actually admired the Saintess for a long time. I’ve heard she is the second most beautiful woman in Cangzhou and even possesses top talent; I beg you to grant me this marriage!”
Qin Bei’s sudden 180-degree shift left the ministers baffled.
“So which one do you actually prefer, the Saintess or her maid?”
“The maid was just a fleeting fancy; I have no idea how I’d feel if I saw her again. However, the Saintess is someone I think of day and night and have long admired!”
Qin Bei’s declaration was direct, even causing Mu Zhaoxue’s beautiful face beneath the veil to flush slightly.
“Alright! Then I will fulfill your wish and grant the marriage between Prince Qin Bei and the Saintess of Wu Nation, Mu Zhaoxue!”
“Thank you, father!”
“Thank you, Your Majesty!”
Qin Bei and Mu Zhaoxue bowed together in gratitude.
Mu Zhaoxue understood that Qin Bei might not harbor any genuine feelings for her—it was merely a political alliance. But this was indeed a marriage, with feelings to be developed gradually.
She had already made preparations to be a tool for the marriage; as long as Qin Bei had the opportunity to become the next Emperor Xia, she would choose it, unrelated to feelings.
“Well, since my son also has feelings for the Saintess’s maid, I will allow her to accompany him as a dowry and be a concubine.”
Once Emperor Xia said this, the attendees were again left speechless.
Now everyone comprehended what the whispers between Emperor Xia and Qin Bei had been about, and they understood the sudden flip in Qin Bei’s attitude.
So this was the plan all along.
Although the Wu Nation’s envoys felt somewhat uneasy, they couldn’t fault anything; this was, after all, entirely reasonable.
Mu Zhaoxue felt a little uncomfortable. While it didn’t concern her if she married into their family, if the Empress of Wu Nation was to wed Qin Bei, that became quite…
If this were truly to happen, what difference would there be between Wu Nation and Great Xia in the future? They would just become one family—merely merging.
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