As expected, no sooner had they finished lunch than a messenger from the palace arrived with an invitation. The Sunward Consort had heard that the Golden Jade Chamber of Commerce had new wares and wanted Ji Ya to bring some over for her to see, along with catching up on old times.
As the chief manager of the Golden Jade Chamber of Commerce, Ji Ya was one of the top socialites in the Sunward Royal Capital. She did indeed share some friendship with the consort, who rarely left the palace confines.
But even without her rebirth, she knew full well this was a banquet with ulterior motives.
“I’ll go with you, Sister Ji Ya. That way, if anything sudden happens, we can rush in right away.”
In the script, by the time he and Long Ying arrived at the scene, Aunt Mu was already gravely wounded and even prepared to self-destruct to take the experts from the royal family and Divine Dream Palace down with her. Jin Tong and Yu Nu, meanwhile, had fought bloody battles to protect Sister Ji Ya, desperately carving out an escape route amid the encirclement of guards.
Yan Zhen had no desire to see Aunt Mu, Jin Tong, or Yu Nu covered in wounds.
Ji Ya felt the same, so she nodded readily.
The group all boarded the beast carriage.
Ji Ya’s personal beast carriage was a custom-ordered luxury ride, spacious enough for ten people with room to spare. It came equipped with a bed, a couch, even a cooling chest and a Reflecting Light Mirror—like a mobile home on wheels, fitted out in extravagant style.
Yan Zhen sat in the back seat, flanked by Cai Lian and Yi Xian’er, with Long Ying perched on his lap.
The loli dragon girl grabbed his hands and wrapped them around her little waist, her short legs swinging back and forth. This made Yan Yan, still in the womb, a touch jealous. She piped up,
“I want to sit on Father Emperor’s lap too.”
Cai Lian rolled her eyes. Her foolish daughter had just claimed to be eighteen, and now she wanted to sit on Father Emperor’s lap? Ignoring her, she could only reply,
“We’ll talk after you’re born.”
“But I want to sit now!”
“How? You’ve fused with the fetus. You can’t just separate willy-nilly.”
“Then… then Mother Concubine can sit on Father Emperor’s lap. That way, it’s basically like I’m sitting on his lap too.”
“What kind of twisted logic is that? No.”
“Mother Concubiiiine~~~”
Yan Yan started acting spoiled.
Cai Lian kept a straight face, thinking to herself that no eighteen-year-old could possibly be this childish. At eighteen, she herself had been handling City of Water affairs and preparing to inherit the throne as female monarch!
A sudden tumult stirred in her belly, and Cai Lian felt the world spin before her eyes. She couldn’t help leaning against Yan Zhen’s shoulder.
“Yan Yan, no more nonsense!”
“Wuu wuu…”
Long Ying blinked, ever the sensible one, and said,
“Sister Cai Lian, if Yan Yan wants to sit, let her for a bit.”
With that, she hopped off Yan Zhen’s lap and scooted over to sit beside Yi Xian’er.
“Don’t spoil her,” Yan Zhen said.
He pulled Cai Lian—his snake wife—into his arms and settled her on his lap, his hands gently caressing her slightly rounded pregnant belly.
Cai Lian’s cheeks flushed red as she struggled weakly.
“L-Let go of this sovereign.”
Sensing she wasn’t really trying, Yan Zhen chuckled.
“I suddenly felt like holding you. Just let me for a while.”
“You always spoil her!” Cai Lian huffed. “Yan’er’s so disobedient because you indulge her.”
Yan Zhen said nothing, simply holding her close.
It wasn’t just Cai Lian’s water-snake waist that was a marvel; thanks to the pregnancy, her rear had grown even fuller and softer, a delightful sensation pressing against his legs.
“Aww, Mother Concubine, where am I disobedient?” Yan Yan wheedled. “I’m a good girl. I love Father Emperor and Mother Concubine the most~ Don’t you want to sit on Father Emperor’s lap too, Mother Concubine? I’m just helping you fulfill your wish!”
Seeing the odd looks from Yi Xian’er and Long Ying nearby, and Ji Ya up front, Cai Lian’s lovely face burned even redder. She itched to drag this dumb daughter out and give her a spanking.
“Who wants to sit… Let go of this sovereign already!”
Yan Zhen hugged her tighter. His small hand pinched the soft flesh near her rear, kneading it like a massage—his technique so skilled that it instantly quieted his snake wife. She didn’t dare squirm anymore.
“Alright, Yan’er. Don’t make your mother concubine angry.”
“I diiiidn’t! I just wanted to get close to Father Emperor, that’s all.”
“Be good. Once you’re born, Father Emperor will play with you every day.”
“Really? Father Emperor’s the best. Oh, Mother Concubine’s great too~”
“…”
Cai Lian clenched her lips, enduring the strange pleasure radiating from her thigh. She feared that if she spoke, an unseemly moan would escape. Naturally, she had no attention left to fuss over her daughter’s silliness.
Regaining her composure, she seized Yan Zhen’s small hand to stop his teasing. He didn’t force it, letting her hold on, only to resume his tricks the moment she loosened her grip—until she clamped down again.
Advance and retreat, retreat and advance: a masterful game of offense and defense that left Cai Lian awash in rising tides of desire. Her long legs pressed tightly together, her feet arching and relaxing in turns.
At last, Cai Lian surrendered. She let her husband have his way, even parting her legs slightly in welcome.
Yan Zhen thus slipped a hand discreetly through the slit in her skirt hem, exploring.
A short half-hour later, Cai Lian slumped softly against him, her bewitchingly aloof features now flushed all over, bereft of her female monarch’s commanding presence—reduced to the shy softness of a young bride.
Yan Zhen wiped his hand on her skirt hem before patting his snake wife’s head, soothing her.
Yi Xian’er, seated nearby, had noticed long ago. Her heart soured like she’d bitten into a lemon, her gaze full of resentment.
—Pregnant and proud, huh? Hmph!
Long Ying remained oblivious, fixated only on her stolen seat. She’d thought Sister Cai Lian would get down after a moment, but she stayed put.
Whimper, whimper, whiiiimper~~~
The carriage came to a gentle stop before the palace gates. Yan Zhen instructed Long Ying, Cai Lian, and Yi Xian’er to wait in the carriage with Aunt Mu, Jin Tong, and Yu Nu.
“Sister Ji Ya and I will head in. You all stay here and wait for my Extreme Flame signal, then charge right in.”
Long Ying puffed out her cheeks.
“Why not just storm in? Why bother with this extra step?”
“Because we can’t play the villains. If we’re reported to the sacred lands, that’ll be trouble. Otherwise, wouldn’t it be simpler to just lob the Heaven and Earth Incineration Art straight into the palace?”
“Hurry then. If I wait too long, I’ll fall asleep.”
“If you actually doze off, you’ll be the one collecting my corpse later.”
“…I-I won’t sleep!”
Long Ying nearly burst into tears.
Cai Lian knew of Long Ying’s trauma and shot Yan Zhen an exasperated glare before quickly comforting the girl.
Yan Zhen ruffled her little head, then followed Sister Ji Ya into the palace.
After a series of announcements, a maidservant led them toward the Imperial Garden.
The Sunward Consort had already set out tea and snacks in the Lake Heart Pavilion, sitting there quietly and awaiting her guests.
Spotting Ji Ya’s figure, the consort’s eyes lit up. She waved them over with warm hospitality.
Yet through his spiritual sense, Yan Zhen detected three Mystic Lord Realm powerhouses hidden in the rear garden—not to mention hundreds, even thousands, of palace Forbidden Guards on standby farther out.
With such a lineup, the Sunward Royal Family and Divine Dream Palace were clearly prepared for talks to break down.
Unfortunately for them, Yan Zhen had come prepared too—and with an even more lavish array of forces!
