Super-Fertile Darling: Forced to Marry the Heirless Tyrant

Chapter 278: Chapter 278: Countering in Kind, The Emperor’s Unease

Emperor Wu Su stiffened at the sarcasm in her words.

Ji Qingwu continued, her tone still gentle.

"Your Majesty claims not to care what the history books will say. That’s because outsiders won’t denounce you—they wouldn’t dare."

Her gaze was crystal clear, devoid of resentment or anger as she looked at him calmly.

"But would they spare me? Have you ever considered what I will have to face, Your Majesty?"

Zhao Mingyan’s Adam’s apple bobbed.

His voice was low as he asked, "Why did you marry Wei Ting? As long as it wasn’t because..."

Just then, Ji Qingwu let out a soft laugh.

She raised her hand to his face, pressing her index finger to his lips to stop him from speaking further.

"Whatever the reason, it’s too late now."

The darkness in Emperor Wu Su’s eyes deepened.

’Too late. She said it was too late.’

The True Qi in his body began to surge once more, crashing against his internal organs until they ached.

Ji Qingwu deliberately ignored the pain in his eyes and said what she truly meant to say.

"Your Majesty must be well aware: a main general leaves his home on his wedding night, risking life and limb to defend the nation, while the Emperor sleeps in that general’s very bed."

"Does Your Majesty truly not realize this will chill the hearts of the hundreds of thousands of soldiers on the Northern Border?"

Most of the soldiers on the Northern Border served under Wei Ting.

With Xijin on the attack, the situation was already critical. If the morale of Beili’s army was shaken by this, how could the soldiers be expected to fight and defeat the enemy?

Ji Qingwu had chosen to marry Wei Ting not only for Yuan Heng’s sake but also for the stability of Beili. She didn’t want the turmoil of imperial succession to lead to countless more shattered families and lost lives.

That Emperor Wu Su had woken up... whether it was by his own design, no matter how great the deception behind it...

She felt a genuine sense of relief and joy. ’As long as he’s alive, that’s all that matters.’

Zhao Mingyan’s voice was tight with suppressed agitation. "You want to stay by Wei Ting’s side?"

Ji Qingwu replied gently yet firmly, "This is a matter between the two of us."

’Us.’

’She referred to herself and Wei Ting as "us."’

Zhao Mingyan stroked her long hair and said coldly, "Ah Wu, you still don’t understand anything, do you? If you want him to die on the Northern Border, then by all means, keep talking."

Without missing a beat, Ji Qingwu retorted, "Does Your Majesty think I care whether Wei Ting lives or dies?"

Zhao Mingyan was stunned by her reply, his fingers freezing in her hair.

Her eyes shone with a strange brilliance. "I don’t care. I don’t care about anything. Your Majesty was on your deathbed, while Wei Ting’s power was unmatched by anyone in the entire court. So, I turned around and married him."

"Now Your Majesty is awake and well, Wei Ting has left on campaign tonight, and I am once again in Your Majesty’s arms."

The implication was clear: she didn’t care about anyone, only power.

Zhao Mingyan’s hand tightened, his fingers clenching a lock of her hair. For the first time, a flicker of unease crossed his face.

Ji Qingwu even curled her lips into a smile, leaning closer into his embrace.

But her tone was nonchalant. "What is there for me to care about? My own thoughts stopped being important long ago. Wouldn’t you agree, Your Majesty?"

With that, she closed her eyes. The long ordeal had left her utterly exhausted.

Emperor Wu Su gazed at her peaceful face. In the end, he didn’t stay the entire night, leaving the Wei residence sometime between 3 and 5 a.m.

He could handle Ji Qingwu arguing or crying, but he couldn’t stand her calm self-deprecation as she recounted all the injustice.

The moment the bed curtains were gently lowered, Ji Qingwu’s eyes snapped open.

There wasn’t a hint of drowsiness in her eyes. She watched his silhouette depart, then turned her gaze away and heaved a long sigh.

The night was finally over.

Emperor Wu Su’s birthday had also passed in the midst of the chaos.

A glint appeared in Ji Qingwu’s eyes. Her earlier words were merely a taste of his own medicine.

Emperor Wu Su had his schemes, but she, too, had her own plans.

’The war on the border takes precedence over everything.’

Ji Qingwu had spent several years as a military doctor in the army camps and had even been to the battlefield. Swords and arrows on the battlefield were indiscriminate. The soldiers, who put their lives on the line every day, shouldn’t have to die needlessly because of the entanglements between a few people.

Matters of life and death were what truly mattered.

*

「Early morning.」

Lan Zhi quietly pushed open the door.

She saw Ji Qingwu, already dressed and groomed, sitting at a table and casually perusing a book on military strategy.

Lan Zhi rushed forward and knelt, crying, "Fifth Missy, I have failed you."

After the Emperor left, Ji Qingwu found she couldn’t sleep. She had changed her clothes and was pacing the room when she happened upon a chest of books by the tea table. They were books Wei Ting had read, and she picked one out.

Ji Qingwu was discovering the pleasure of military texts. They were actually quite similar to practicing medicine; both revolved around the logic of identifying a problem and finding a solution.

She set the book down and looked at the maid kneeling at her feet. Her voice was calm as she said, "Lan Zhi, don’t kneel. Get up and speak to me."

Tears still stained Lan Zhi’s face as she said, "Last night, I was in the kitchen brewing your medicine, but I somehow fell asleep. I really wasn’t trying to slack off."

Ji Qingwu said, "It’s not your fault."

"But yesterday was your first day in the Wei Family, Missy. None of your dowry maids were with you. I failed in my duty."

Lan Zhi had been instructed by Mrs. Qiao to protect her mistress with all her might, yet she had already failed within half a day.

She was not just terrified; she was filled with self-recrimination.

If the Wei Family servants started looking down on Ji Qingwu because of this, she would be irrevocably to blame.

Ji Qingwu saw through Lan Zhi’s thoughts.

Her tone hardened. "Get up."

"No one dares to look down on me. Besides, you weren’t the only one who had a mishap yesterday."

’Emperor Wu Su had come and gone as he pleased, and not a single servant in the courtyard had noticed. They must have all been taken care of using special methods.’

Sure enough, Xuemei appeared at the door in a panic.

Seeing that Ji Qingwu was already fully dressed, she rushed in and dropped to her knees with a THUD, kneeling beside Lan Zhi.

"I was derelict in my duty. I was supposed to be guarding the door yesterday, but Eunuch Li from the palace came to discuss an urgent matter with the General, so I stepped aside. But... but somehow, I fainted in the corridor."

Ji Qingwu raised a hand. "Both of you, get up. All this crying first thing in the morning is giving me a headache."

She instructed one of them, "Lan Zhi, go see if Jiu Jiu is awake. If he is, bring him here to have breakfast with me."

Lan Zhi acknowledged the order and left.

Ji Qingwu then turned to the other maid. "Xuemei, has breakfast been prepared?"

Xuemei shook her head. "No."

’Ji Qingwu frowned. She hadn’t eaten much last night and was feeling hungry now. Even if Wei Ting wasn’t home, surely the servants wouldn’t neglect to prepare a meal for her?’

Afraid of being misunderstood, Xuemei quickly explained, "Everyone in the Wei Family goes to Madam Wei’s courtyard for breakfast."

Ji Qingwu raised an eyebrow. "Everyone?"

The Wei Family had, by any count, over a hundred descendants. If all of them went to Madam Wei’s courtyard, it would be an absolute mob; there’s no way they could all fit.

Xuemei saw her doubt and explained, "Madam, only the young masters and young ladies who are in Madam Wei’s favor are allowed into the main hall for the meal. The rest eat in the side halls."

’So that’s how it is.’ Ji Qingwu nodded.

Xuemei said, "I will accompany you, Madam."

Ji Qingwu shook her head. "Who said I’m going?"