Chapter 142
Phoenix lanterns, made of pure gold! The money-grubbing Ye Zhenzhen was immediately tempted.
As she grew older and her knowledge increased, Ye Zhenzhen quickly guessed dozens of riddles, winning numerous small prizes. Since the immortal arts and Spirit Artifact of the Cultivation World couldn't be easily exposed in the mortal Mortal World, she entrusted all the prizes to Ye Wanning and Ye Wanqing for safekeeping. Each of the two children held many prizes, such as lotus lanterns, sachets, handkerchiefs, and various pastries. Although it was a little tiring, the two children ate the pastries non-stop, their smiles impossible to hide.
Ye Zhenzhen originally thought she could easily guess the most riddles and win first place, but unexpectedly, a young man wearing Golden Dragon mask appeared on the scene and guessed just as many riddles as she did.
When only one riddle remained, she and the young man went to the lantern. The riddle was. "A person in a painting (guess a Chinese character)."
Ye Zhenzhen frowned. What was the answer to this riddle? Why couldn't she figure it out?
Suddenly, the young man leaned close and whispered, "Miss, I already know the answer to the riddle. If you win the grand prize and are willing to remove your mask so I can see your face, I will tell you the answer."
Such a good thing? Ye Zhenzhen just didn't know the answer to this riddle.
"Okay." For the sake of the golden phoenix lantern, she decisively agreed and got the answer from the young man's mouth, which was the word "share" for a tenant. "share", tsk, it was all a result of being uneducated. But fortunately, she still won the first place in the lantern riddle competition. Looking at the brilliant and ingenious phoenix lantern, she simply couldn't put it down.
"Young lady, don't forget what you promised me," the young master said.
"Alright." Ye Zhenzhen gracefully pulled off her Ghost Mask, revealing a celestial beauty as radiant as a pearl, stunning the young master who stared at her for a long time, unable to look away.
"A fairy! A fairy has descended to earth!"
"Guards, invite the beauty into the palace for a chat." At the young master's command, more than a dozen hidden guards surrounded her and invited her to a bridal sedan chair.
Ye Zhenzhen:?
What kind of abduction and robbery is this? Are they trying to forcibly take a woman from the street? Interesting, let's play along.
"Could you bring my two children along too?" she asked, feigning helplessness.
"Children?" The young master's gaze fell on Ye Wanning and Ye Wanqing, and his pupils almost dilated in shock. "You actually have two children this big!"
"Yes. It's all my fault for being so foolish. I got married too early and had a child too early." Ye Zhenzhen covered her face, feigning tears. "Please, young master, spare me. Without me, my husband and child will surely not survive."
"It's alright. My lady is so beautiful, I won't mind even if she has a child," the young master insisted. "I will take the child into the palace and raise it as my own. I will also send your husband 1,000 taels of gold as compensation so that he can marry another lady."
A bridal sedan chair carried the three into a magnificent palace. The Human Race palace was far more splendid than the Cloudsky Sect's buildings. One after another, the distinctive halls formed an impressive architectural complex. The palace walls were carved with intricate and elaborate patterns, depicting auspicious dragons and phoenixes, flowers, birds, fish, and insects, all lifelike. The eaves were upturned and decorated with glazed tiles, making it luxurious and dazzling.
Ye Zhenzhen had originally planned to take the two children to secretly visit the palace in the Mortal World, but she never expected that they would be carried in openly.
Haha, what a coincidence.
When Ye Zhenzhen saw the young master with the Golden Dragon mask again, he had already changed into a dragon robe and was sitting upright on the dragon throne, looking down on others with the air of a superior.
"How dare you! You don't even kneel before His Majesty!" the eunuch beside him shouted angrily.
Kneel? Kneel before a mere mortal? Ye Zhenzhen scoffed, remaining unmoved. Just as the eunuch was about to force her to kneel, the emperor rose from his throne to greet her, saying, "One must not be rude to a beauty."
The emperor looked no more than seventeen or eighteen years old. He originally had an imposing and mature appearance, but upon seeing Ye Zhenzhen, he became infatuated with her. She had delicate features, red lips, and white teeth.
Seeing the emperor staring intently at her, Ye Zhenzhen boldly sized him up as well. [He's actually a handsome young man, quite good-looking.] Ye Zhenzhen couldn't help but think to herself.
"How dare you! How can you be so disrespectful to His Majesty!" The eunuch couldn't help but rebuke her for daring to glare at the emperor.
"It's all because your Emperor is so handsome that I only look at him," Ye Zhenzhen said, feeling wronged.
As soon as she finished speaking, she felt a chill run down her spine. Looking around, she met Ye Qingchuan's cold gaze hidden in the shadows. Holy crap! Wasn't he supposed to be in the Demon Realm dealing with the Southern Demon King? How come he's back so soon! She was just about to tease the Human Race emperor, and now she's been caught red-handed. How pathetic!
Over the past few years, Ye Qingchuan had become accustomed to being docile, appearing gentle and affectionate like a puppy, both considerate and clingy. She hadn't seen him with such a murderous aura in a long time, and her heart skipped a beat, thinking to herself, "This is bad."
"My beauty, ever since I saw you, I have been completely captivated by you. I miss you terribly even when we are apart. Would you be my imperial concubine?" the emperor said earnestly.
"Imperial Consort? No way, I'll be Empress if I'm going to be one," Ye Zhenzhen said deliberately.
"But the Empress married me when I was only 12 years old. Over the years, she has managed the harem perfectly and has never made a mistake. I cannot depose her."
"Then please, Your Majesty, allow me to return."
"You have stolen my heart, how can I let go? My relationship with the Empress is only that of husband and wife, but I fell in love with you at first sight." Seeing Ye Zhenzhen's resolute expression, the Emperor suddenly sighed, as if making some difficult decision. "Fine, I've fallen for you. I will immediately depose the Empress and make you my Empress."
Ye Zhenzhen:?
[Is it that easy to depose an empress? My looks are so stunning, how could I possibly be a femme fatale who brings ruin to the country?]
The emperor was about to continue pouring out his heart when he suddenly felt as if something had struck his mouth, causing him a sharp pain. It hurt whenever he opened his mouth to speak.
But the emperor was still flirting with death, reaching out to take Ye Zhenzhen's delicate hand. Before his hand could even touch the beauty's fair skin, it was struck by an invisible flame.