Super-Fertile Darling: Forced to Marry the Heirless Tyrant

Chapter 266: Chapter 266: The Most Powerful Minister, Who Will Be the Emperor

It was just as before, so faint it seemed it might stop at any moment.

The clamor of discussion from the side hall was so loud it threatened to blow the roof off.

Ji Qingwu furrowed her brow. She gently pulled the blanket higher, tucking his large hand back under the brocade quilt.

She didn’t dare touch him with her fingertips again, instead tracing the outline of his features with her gaze.

After watching for a long while, Ji Qingwu pressed her lips together and walked out of Zhaoyang Hall.

Little Dongzi was keeping watch at the entrance, his eyes bloodshot. Seeing her emerge, he forced himself to look alert.

"Miss Ji, is there anything you need?"

Ji Qingwu’s peripheral vision caught sight of something. "Eunuch," she said in a low voice, "please ask Mr. Duan to come here for me."

A voice spoke from the shadows beneath the hall’s eaves. "Will asking him to come be of any use?"

The man stepped out from under the eaves, his face moving from shadow into light.

"The person you should be looking for is me."

Ji Qingwu didn’t look up at him. ’Of course I know he’s the one I should be looking for.’

Since Emperor Wu Su had coordinated with Wei Ting to deceive the court and the people of Xijin, it meant Wei Ting was someone he trusted implicitly.

However, Wei Ting was bound to side with Princess Consort Wei. What she needed to do was find a third party to counterbalance the Empress Dowager and Wei Ting.

Wei Ting walked to the bottom of the steps where she stood.

His voice was unhurried. "This assassination was well within my and the Emperor’s expectations. The two thousand additional assassins sent by Xijin have all been eliminated."

"But there were still a couple of unexpected incidents. First, Yu Wen Tianqing is cunning. He split his forces, intending to take the Prince’s life as well. However, the Emperor had long ago entrusted the palace’s defenses to me, so there were no major mishaps on that front."

"Second, the Emperor fell for a trap."

Wei Ting still couldn’t understand it. He sighed. "The Emperor used himself as bait. At the very moment we were about to achieve a total victory, he was actually willing to die for Liru."

Ji Qingwu kept her eyes lowered, revealing no hint of emotion as she fiddled with her little finger.

"What are you trying to say, General Wei?"

From several steps below, Wei Ting looked up at her.

"I know you are deeply in love with the Emperor."

Earlier, in Qianyuan Hall, Ji Qingwu’s reaction upon hearing that Emperor Wu Su was grievously injured had been unmistakable.

"In fact, I know you very well," Wei Ting continued. "When you want to cry, you blink uncontrollably. Do you have any idea how many times you’ve blinked since you entered this hall?"

Ji Qingwu’s fluttering eyelashes stilled.

"You have the time for such observations, General Wei?" she said coldly. "At a time like this, you should be in the side hall protecting Princess Consort Wei."

"Princess Wei doesn’t need my protection. The imperial edict and the Tiger Talisman in my possession are all the backing she needs, especially with Xijin marching on our borders."

A flicker of understanding crossed Ji Qingwu’s eyes. The situation had changed once again because of Xijin’s invasion.

With the nation in peril, Wei Ting—who held military authority and an imperial edict in the Emperor’s own hand—was the most trusted subject in the land.

He was the single most powerful official in all of Beili.

Not even the Empress Dowager could stand against him now. Finding a third party to create a balance of power seemed impossible.

Wei Ting said, "If you don’t want to hear about this, I’ll stop. In that case, let’s talk about that slap you gave me. How should we settle that score?"

Ji Qingwu finally lifted her lashes to look at him directly. Her dark pupils were filled with defiance, and even the strands of her hair, tousled by the wind, seemed to have grown thorns.

Her dirt-stained silken dress and pink sash possessed a heart-stopping beauty in the dark of night.

Wei Ting’s expression clearly faltered for a moment before he said grimly, "I have something to say to Miss Ji in private. Eunuch, please give us a moment."

Throwing caution to the wind, Little Dongzi moved to stand in front of Ji Qingwu, his voice trembling.

"General Wei, Miss Ji still needs to tend to the Emperor’s injuries."

Wei Ting ascended a step, grabbed Little Dongzi with one hand, and tossed him aside.

Ji Qingwu helped the eunuch up. "Go inside and attend to His Majesty," she said. "I’ll be in shortly."

Little Dongzi’s lips had turned pale with fright. He stumbled back into the hall, his movements stiff and uncoordinated.

In his current position, no one could afford to offend Wei Ting.

Wei Ting didn’t advance further. His eyes remained fixed on her. "Why are you looking for Duan Mingfeng? It’s no use. You’re better off coming to me."

Ji Qingwu said, "Do you know what I intend to do?"

Wei Ting narrowed his left eye. "Yu Wen Tianqing asked a very good question: why are you so protective of the Emperor’s little prince?"

"We just hit it off," Ji Qingwu said simply.

Wei Ting scoffed, strode up two steps, and whispered in her ear, "Because you are the little prince’s birth mother."

Ji Qingwu whipped her head around to face him. Her jade pendant struck Wei Ting’s cheek, and fire blazed in her bright eyes.

He had seen how close Yuan Heng was to her in Zhaoyang Hall.

A smirk played on Wei Ting’s lips as he raised a hand to touch the spot on his cheek grazed by her jade pendant.

"But why don’t you dare tell anyone?"

He pretended to ponder. "Actually, if you told the Empress Dowager you were the Prince’s birth mother, not only would she grant you a title, she would also support Young Master Yuan Heng’s ascension to the throne."

Ji Qingwu turned her head away, unwilling to look at his smug face.

They both knew that if the Empress Dowager were to find out, it would be the same as signing the gravely injured Emperor’s death warrant.

In the face of power, the human heart is fragile, especially that of the Empress Dowager, who was already consumed by her lust for it.

Wei Ting suddenly reached out and gripped her chin.

Ji Qingwu swung her hand to slap him, but he intercepted the blow, catching her right wrist in his grasp.

"Once was enough. You want to hit me a second time?"

"Let go," Ji Qingwu said.

"So you can hit me again?"

Wei Ting said suggestively, "If you want to hit me, you can. Just not here."

Ji Qingwu was mentally and physically exhausted. Not wanting to get entangled with him, she asked, "What is it you really want?"

Wei Ting said, "I just received a message from someone in Xijin. They want to invite me to be their Great General King, promising me gold, silver, jewels, and immense wealth. They said I could name my price."

Ji Qingwu gritted her teeth. ’Those Xijin bastards truly are a pack of treacherous wolves.’

Taking advantage of the chaos within the Beili Royal Family, they dared to try anything.

Wei Ting raised an eyebrow. "Don’t look at me like that. You should have more faith in me. Of course I didn’t accept."

Ji Qingwu glared at him, annoyed. "Then why bring it up!"

Seeing her angry only made Wei Ting appear more relaxed. "I want to make a deal with you, too. I’ll accept any conditions you name."

’Since he knows about my relationship with Yuan Heng, he should understand what my condition is.’

There’s no such thing as a free lunch. Ji Qingwu asked, "And what do you want in return?"

Wei Ting pulled the hand he was holding to his chest.

"Isn’t it obvious what I want? I’ve grown tired after so many years of fighting in campaigns. I’ve never started a family. I want to get married."

Ji Qingwu yanked her hand back forcefully, the skin on the back of it turning red.

"There are plenty of unmarried women in Lin’an. With your status, it would be easy for you to find a wife."

Wei Ting asked bluntly, "Qingwu, even if I can wait, are you sure the Empress Dowager can?"

The debate in the adjacent side hall grew even more heated. The Empress Dowager sounded as if she were single-handedly holding her own against a host of detractors.

Just then, a Palace Attendant came out to summon Wei Ting. Seeing the scene before them, the attendant hastily lowered their head, not daring to breathe too loudly.

Wei Ting released his grip. "What is it?"

The Palace Attendant said, "General Wei, Prime Minister Su is looking for you. He says your presence is required to make a decision on the matter of succession."

Wei Ting waved a hand. "I’m on my way."

After the Palace Attendant had hurried away, Wei Ting said, "But regardless of what the Empress Dowager does, I don’t want to wait."

Wei Ting gripped Ji Qingwu’s slender shoulders.

He whispered, "If this realm is destined for chaos anyway, then does it really matter who sits on the throne?"

Ji Qingwu’s eyes flew wide open.