Chapter 439

Chapter 439: The King is Near

This novel is translated and hosted on Bcatranslation

“Windchaser! How many times have I told you? No getting on the bed!” Yu Shu stood with hands on her hips, glaring at the dog.

Windchaser looked up at her, confusion written all over its face.

“And don’t look so innocent! Just look at what you did to the girl’s bed!” Yu Shu reached out and poked its forehead with her delicate finger.

Windchaser simply grinned foolishly.

“Yeah, yeah! Windchaser, no more peeing on the bed!” Lu Chao Chao chimed in from behind.

Yu Shu, facing away from Lu Chao Chao, almost burst into laughter at her master’s serious tone of blame-shifting.

They all knew their mistress too well.

Yu Shu discreetly stuffed two pieces of dried meat into the silly dog’s mouth.

“Today, the emperor of the Southern Kingdom is marrying his new empress. We need to arrive early to witness the ceremony.”

Ah, what a bitter irony. Their old madam was once the emperor’s abandoned wife.

Now, the old emperor had commanded the entire city to witness his grand occasion. To her, it was nothing but a form of torment.

The palace had already sent clothing for the event. Lu Chao Chao’s attire was a bright red dress.

Yu Shu styled her hair into a high bun, tying it gently with a red silk ribbon. With her festive red dress, she looked particularly charming.

“I’m going to see Grandmother first!” Lu Chao Chao hurriedly washed up and ran straight to the old madam’s courtyard.

Xu Shi Yun was already waiting in the yard and spoke softly, “Mother is feeling unwell today. She will rest at home.”

Being forced to witness the remarriage of one’s husband was an unbearable cruelty.

Lu Chao Chao declared loudly, “We’re all going!”

She rushed forward, grabbing her grandmother’s hand and shaking it playfully. “Come on, Grandmother! Let’s go together! There’s a great show waiting for us!”

“Mother, bring Grandmother’s scepter necklace!”

Xu Shi Yun shot her daughter a sideways glance, seemingly containing a deep secret she refused to voice.

Although Chao Chao was mischievous, she was not one to be insensitive. Xu Shi Yun had great trust in her judgment.

Old Madam Ning also wished to go and lightly patted Xu Shi Yun’s hand. “I have long since moved on. Don’t worry.”

“It’s good to see it for myself. That heartless traitor—I was simply blind to have once trusted him!”

Xu Shi Yun hesitated briefly, but seeing the hopeful looks of both grandmother and granddaughter, she had no choice but to agree.

“Speaking of which, Mother, you’ve changed a lot these past two months.” Standing beside Xu Shi Yun, she looked more like a sister than a daughter.

Xu Shi Yun had always possessed a gentle beauty.

But Madam Ning had an ethereal aura, as though untouched by the mortal world. Even in plain old-fashioned clothing, her otherworldly grace could not be concealed.

The old madam sat before a bronze mirror and ran her fingers lightly over her face.

“Her true beauty had been suppressed for so long… it still isn’t enough,” Lu Chao Chao muttered under her breath.

Her gaze landed on the scepter pendant around her grandmother’s neck.

A maid came in to report, informing them that last night Lu Chao Chao had only been given a bowl of vegetable porridge for sneaking a midnight snack of preserved duck.

But her mind was too preoccupied with the ceremony to care about food.

The old emperor regarded this wedding with utmost importance.

Rumors had it that he had even invited monarchs from various nations to attend.

For ordinary imperial ceremonies, invitations would be sent out a year in advance. But this time, he had only given three days’ notice—unsurprisingly, no one came.

Xu Shi Yun held Lu Chao Chao’s hand, leading the finely dressed group out of the residence.

The streets of the Southern Capital were already packed with citizens.

However, following the recent scandal involving Nan Feng Yu and Nan Zhi Yi, public trust in the royal family had crumbled. The people’s expressions were grim.

The soldiers cleared a path, personally escorting the Ning family into the palace.

At the palace gates, General Lou, Official Ming, and Official Sang waited with guilty expressions. They bowed to Lu Chao Chao. “Apologies for what happened to the Empress of the Western Palace…”

No one had expected the sudden intervention of the Elf Clan.

The emperor, obsessed with immortality, refused any opposition and insisted on elevating her to empress.

Lu Chao Chao waved her hand nonchalantly. “My grandmother has no interest in being the Empress of the Western Palace.”

She offered no further explanation, leisurely strolling behind the procession with her dog in tow.

“Has she lost her mind from anger?” Official Ming muttered, seeing her smug expression, afraid she might do something reckless.

The officials held their tongues as the ceremonial bells rang, signaling them to proceed into the palace.

At Bright Light Hall, the old emperor, looking sickly and frail, led his court officials to conduct the Heaven-Summoning Ceremony.

His gaze drifted toward Madam Ning. She felt different from before.

Even with her veil, he could see a resemblance to her youthful self.

“Your Majesty, the ceremony is ready,” the eunuch whispered beside him.

The emperor nodded and was assisted toward the sacrificial altar.

The rituals were complex, but he had already simplified them significantly just to endure the proceedings. Yet, the metallic taste of blood filled his mouth, and he struggled to maintain his composure.

“Bring forth the new empress!” the eunuch announced.

The ministers all maintained solemn expressions.

Dressed in a phoenix coronet and embroidered bridal robes, the elf walked forward, ethereal in the sunlight, like a celestial maiden descending to the mortal world.

Despite the heavy ceremonial attire, she still exuded an airy grace.

The old emperor, with his graying hair and deeply lined face, stood in stark contrast to the elf’s youthful, luminous beauty.

“What a disgrace…” Madam Ning gritted her teeth, her eyes burning with rage.

She was long past caring about the emperor’s betrayal.

What enraged her was the fact that he had deceived an elf into marrying a man with one foot already in the grave!

Standing together, they looked more like a grandfather and granddaughter than a husband and wife.

The emperor reached out a hand toward the young elf, who hesitated before placing her delicate fingers in his palm.

One was thin and as white as snow; the other was wrinkled and aged—a jarring contrast.

Even Xie Jing Xi furrowed his brow.

The national advisor stood at the altar, holding incense in prayer.

A string of archaic chants flowed from his lips.

Yet the elf empress kept turning back.

The presence of the King.

She could feel the presence of the King.

“Bi Yue…” The emperor frowned, calling her name softly.

But Bi Yue’s eyes were ablaze. “The King—I can sense the King’s presence!”

“The King is here!!” Behind her, a young girl in green suddenly lifted her head, scanning the crowd with sharp eyes.

But amidst the sea of people, it was impossible to distinguish who the King was.

“Bi Yue, complete the ceremony! This is the Empress’ coronation!” The emperor clenched her hand tightly.

Only one more step—once she uttered her consent before the Heavens, he could share in the elves’ longevity.

Yet Bi Yue’s delicate brows knit together. With a simple shift of her body, she slipped free.

“Empress?” The young elf’s voice turned cold.

“I refuse to be your empress!”

“The highest position in the mortal realm means nothing to me.”

“You claimed to have knowledge of the King. But why has the aura of the King on you nearly vanished?”

“No, you must have had close contact with the King.”

The girl scrutinized him suspiciously.

In recent days, the emperor’s aura of the King had faded almost entirely.

Standing atop the sacrificial altar, the elf empress cast her gaze over the crowd below.

Since the King had already drawn near—

She had a way to make him reveal himself!