The whole family is insanely eavesdropping on my thoughts Chapter 443
Chapter 443: Chao Chao’s Promise
This novel is translated and hosted on Bcatranslation
The Female Emperor at Three and a Half.
Utterly absurd.
Since the founding of the Southern Kingdom, there had never been an emperor so young.
“Three and a half years old? Can she command the court? Can she subdue the nations?” The moment the edict of succession was announced, the first reaction of the ministers was doubt.
Lu Chao Chao was born in Northern Zhao, raised in Northern Zhao—she was Emperor Xuan Ping’s Princess Sunshine!
Her heart surely belonged to Northern Zhao!
“What do the Divine Attendant Clans think?” The officials turned their eyes toward the esteemed lords.
The lords, however, remained utterly composed, even wearing faint smiles at the corners of their lips.
“Announce the edict of succession to the world. Summon the monarchs of all nations to witness the ascension of the new emperor.” The old emperor lay weakly on his sickbed, his breath labored, yet he mustered his final strength to instruct Lu Chao Chao.
“In the mortal realm, there are five great nations.”
“The Southern Kingdom, Northern Zhao, Eastern Ling, Western Yue, and the Brahma Kingdom. With the Divine Attendants in the Southern Kingdom, we stand as the foremost.”
“Now, if I…” he coughed violently, “if I pass, you are but three and a half years old. I fear you cannot subdue them.”
“Furthermore…”
“The barrier between the mortal and spirit realms lies upon the Southern Kingdom’s seas. You must be vigilant…”
“Within the spirit realm dwell demons, fiends, and cultivators. Before them, mortals are but ants, powerless to protect themselves.”
“Should the barrier falter, the mortal realm will be drenched in blood.”
“You must ensure its stability.”
Having spoken, the old emperor was gasping, his face pale as paper, eyes wide, struggling for breath.
A new emperor, only three and a half—how could she command nations, how could she safeguard the mortal realm?
Though Lu Chao Chao had no desire to rule the Southern Kingdom, nor did she acknowledge this cheap grandfather,
Her heart held boundless love.
She regarded the common people with the utmost importance.
“I never make promises lightly, for once I do, I would give my life to fulfill them.”
“Today, I promise you.”
“As long as I live, I shall never allow mortals to be devoured by demons and fiends.”
This vow was not made for the old emperor—it was for the countless common people!
The old emperor tried to lift his hand to caress her head, but he no longer had the strength.
“It is I… I who have wronged you… wronged your mother, your grandmother…”
His gaze drifted toward Xu Shi Yun.
“Shi… Shi Yun…”
“Shi Yun…” he murmured her name in a trembling whisper.
In all his life, the wives he took were for the sake of securing his throne.
The only one he had ever truly loved was Ning’er.
He had once eagerly anticipated this child’s birth, even fantasized about a future with them.
But his empire, his grand ambitions—he was unwilling to let them go! His eyes bore into her, one urgent gaze after another—his time was running out.
He had not even heard his daughter call him “Father.”
He looked to her expectantly.
Xu Shi Yun turned away indifferently.
Perhaps, he had been a competent emperor, perhaps even a wise ruler. But he had not been a good husband nor a good father.
Her mother had saved his life, yet because of him, an entire village was wiped out.
Because of him, she and her mother had suffered a lifetime of hardship, torn apart.
She did not forgive him.
To forgive would be a blade to her mother’s back, a betrayal of her mother’s suffering!
“Ning’er…” he whispered.
His breath grew weaker, the light in his eyes gradually fading.
Life, extinguished.
Behind him, the imperial princes and princesses collapsed to their knees, wailing, “His Majesty has passed!”
“His Majesty has passed!”
“His Majesty has passed!”
Voices echoed through the halls, and the officials, eyes brimming with tears, prostrated themselves upon the floor.
The mourning bells tolled across the Southern Capital.
The citizens stopped in their tracks.
“One toll, two tolls, three tolls… six tolls, seven tolls!” Horror and sorrow spread across their faces.
“Seven tolls—signifying the passing of a sovereign!”
In the streets of the Southern Capital, countless citizens knelt in silence, paying their final respects to the emperor.
The old emperor had once obsessed over power and the pursuit of immortality, making many foolish mistakes. Yet in his youth, he had ruled wisely, frugal and benevolent to his people, tirelessly striving for prosperity.
Now, with his passing, his deeds—both virtuous and flawed—would be judged by future generations.
In the Cold Palace.
The deposed empress clutched a worn wooden comb, running it through her snow-white hair, listening to the mourning bells resound throughout the palace.
“One toll, two tolls…” As she counted, her voice faltered.
“Seven tolls!” The comb slipped from her grasp.
She sat frozen at the wooden table, then suddenly burst into both laughter and tears. “His Majesty… has passed? Has His Majesty truly passed?”
A palace maid hurried in, falling to her knees. “His Majesty… has passed!”
The empress staggered to her feet, laughing hysterically. “Hahaha! He sought immortality, abandoned me to marry another.”
“And yet, he still died!”
The palace maid pursed her lips, hesitation flickering in her expression.
“At the moment of his remarriage, the Elf King, who had been undergoing tribulation outside, suddenly appeared. He stopped the ceremony!”
The deposed empress was momentarily stunned. “The Elf King?”
The maid lowered her head. “Yes. It is said he was raised in the mortal world to undergo tribulation. Just as the wedding was to take place, he revealed his true form, wielding his scepter!”
The deposed empress sneered. “It must have been quite the spectacle.”
“And His Majesty? Was he not tempted? Is there any woman in this kingdom beyond his grasp?”
The maid trembled slightly before whispering, “The Elf King… was His Majesty’s recently repudiated wife.”
The empress’s eyes snapped up, a sudden clarity piercing her madness.
“You say—the Elf King was Ning? Ning! Hahaha! Ning!”
“Retribution! All of it—retribution!”
“And the new emperor? Who is it? The Third Prince? No, he is too weak-willed.”
“Then the Seventh Princess? She is clever but lacks divine power…” Her gaze bore into the maid, insanity gleaming in her eyes.
The Cold Palace was bitterly cold in winter, yet the maid broke into a cold sweat.
“It is… neither.”
“Then who?” The deposed empress, hair unkempt, racked her mind, yet could not discern the answer.
“It is Princess Sunshine.”
“Princess Sunshine bears divine power, and the National Spirit has acknowledged her as its master. It is said she has even unlocked the Dragon-Patterned Jade!” The words sent the empress reeling.
“Impossible! Lu Chao Chao is but three and a half! How could she be emperor?”
“A three-and-a-half-year-old empress—absurd!”
“Ning, I lost to Ning! Hahaha, I lost to Ning! I lost everything!”
“All my schemes, and yet I lost to Ning’s child!”
“I refuse! I refuse! Hahaha… My Feng Yu was the emperor’s most beloved daughter. Yi’er was the reincarnation of a goddess… Hahaha, I am the Empress Dowager…”
“I am the Empress Dowager… Kneel and pay your respects!” Madness shattered the last of her sanity.
She laughed wildly, her voice echoing through the Cold Palace.
The palace maid collapsed, weeping bitterly.