Chapter 75: Chapter 75: Did she run away with the money?
Chapter 282: Did she run away with the money?
“Isn’t it? You are so enthusiastic about my son, what else could it be but having feelings for him?” Prefect Dong’s self-righteous guess.
“I’m sorry, Sister Qi Huang, I really can’t deal with that Dog Emperor! So I can only hand you over. Brother Yu has failed your good intentions. Of course, if Sister Hong Ling is willing to sacrifice herself to complete us, I will be grateful to her for life.” Dong Yu, who was beside him, also tried to save face with wishful thinking.
“You’re thinking too much, my enthusiasm for you is just out of basic politeness.” Qi Huang explained helplessly, thinking to herself, I treat you as a brother, but you want to sleep with me, is this proper?
“Then I’m also powerless, and I can only do as His Majesty wishes.” Prefect Dong said in a cold and stern tone.
“Okay! Thank you, Uncle Dong.” Qi Huang’s expression remained unchanged, still as enthusiastic as ever.
“What are you doing? Didn’t you say you wouldn’t enter the palace?” The Cheng Hong Ling next to her questioned through a mind transmission.
“He’s handling my residency registration, not marriage registration. If I don’t take advantage of the benefits, I’m an irresponsible person.” Qi Huang responded.
A moment later, Qi Huang successfully completed the residency registration. Thus, she officially became the second daughter of the Cheng family. Although she had forged a Tooth Token before, it was not as official as household registration.
The Dong family of three felt uncomfortable and left in a hurry.
“By the way, that Eunuch Zhong said that he will personally come to pick you up to enter the palace on the first day of next month. If you are not here, he will let the HongHua Sect disappear with you.” Prefect Dong said gloatingly as he left, looking more like he was watching a show than conveying a message.
“He’s quite arrogant. I’d like to see how he’ll pick me up then.” Qi Huang sneered dismissively.
“Huang’er, it’s already the sixteenth of June. Can you cultivate True Qi before next month?” Cheng Yuan asked worriedly.
“Why would it take that long? It will only take three to five days at most.” Qi Huang said confidently, tilting her chin up.
“That’s great! As long as you cultivate True Qi, Liang will not dare to take you away.” Cheng Yuan said with a confident smile.
“Wife, why are you so sure? Before, when the HongHua Sect encountered difficulties, Sect Leader Qin repeatedly sent people to ask the Immortal Alliance for help, but they did nothing. Is it inappropriate for us to place our hopes on these people?” Jiang Liniang said worriedly.
“Wife, you don’t know this, but the Immortal Alliance didn’t help before because it was the HongHua Sect’s private affair. This time, it involves the agreement they signed with the royal family. If they let it go, how can they convince the public in the future?” Cheng Yuan explained patiently.
“Father is right. This matter involves the interests of the Immortal Alliance itself, and they will never stand by and watch. The Emperor should also understand this principle, so he will not fall out with the Immortal Alliance just for Qi Huang. The price is too high.” Cheng Hong Ling also chimed in.
Jiang Liniang suddenly realized and finally felt relieved.
Qi Huang had planned to go out to take care of business immediately, but when she encountered this matter, she had to calm down and cultivate. After all, preserving her chastity was the most important thing.
…
The matter of the current Emperor appointing Qi Huang as an Imperial Concubine spread throughout the Xihui Dynasty in less than ten days. All the streets and alleys were discussing it. The reason was simple: this matter created countless precedents.
First, the selection of Imperial Concubines was always handled by the inner court, and the Emperor rarely interfered. Historically, most of the Imperial Concubines appointed to the palace became Empresses, as their starting point was higher than other concubines.
Second, this was the first time in the history of Huang Tian Prefecture that a girl became an Imperial Concubine, and she was personally appointed by the Emperor.
Third, this was also the first time in history that an Emperor chose a clone of a cultivator as an Imperial Concubine.
In any case, any one of these points was explosive, so everyone in the Xihui Dynasty believed that as long as Qi Huang was willing to enter the palace, she would surely become the empress in the future.
Therefore, those whose interests were threatened would naturally not sit idly by.
One day, Empress Zheng Zhao of the Xihui Dynasty summoned Elder Zuo, the highest-ranking official of the Immortal Alliance in the country, to her sleeping quarters.
Elder Zuo, as one of the supreme powerhouses in the cultivation world of the Xihui Dynasty, was a genuine Shentong Realm master. However, unlike Ye Donglai, he had the aura of menacing killing intent due to being entangled in trivial matters for a long time, rather than the immortal demeanor.
“Greetings, Empress!” Elder Zuo cupped his fists slightly. As cultivators were not restricted by imperial power, he naturally did not need to kowtow.
“Elder Zuo, you don’t need to be so polite. Please sit!” Empress Zheng gracefully pointed to the chair below. Although she was nearly forty, she was very well-maintained and had a plump and hot figure, so she not only did not look old, but also had a mature charm that a little girl lacked.
“May I know what instruction Your Ladyship has for summoning me?” After a brief pleasantry, Elder Zuo got straight to the point, as it was inappropriate for him, a man, to stay in the Empress’s sleeping quarters for too long.
“Hehe, Elder Zuo is indeed straightforward. In that case, I won’t beat around the bush.” Empress Zheng continued with a smile, “I wonder if Elder Zuo has heard about the matter of the Emperor personally appointing a little girl named Qi Huang from the HongHua Sect in Huang Tian Prefecture as an Imperial Concubine.”
“It’s not common for the Son of Heaven to appoint Imperial Concubines. This matter has been hotly discussed throughout the Xihui Dynasty, so I naturally heard about it.” Elder Zuo’s expression remained unchanged.
“Then how does Elder Zuo plan to respond?” Empress Zheng asked.
“Respond to what?” Elder Zuo asked indifferently.
“Why is Elder Zuo playing dumb? It’s not common for the Son of Heaven to appoint Imperial Concubines, let alone appoint a cultivator as an Imperial Concubine. This is unprecedented. If this matter succeeds, then your position as an Elder of the Immortal Alliance will probably be at its end.” Empress Zheng kindly reminded him.
“Not necessarily. I’ve already inquired. This woman has been poisoned with Xieqisan and can no longer cultivate True Qi. If she can’t cultivate True Qi, she’s not a cultivator. What does it have to do with our Immortal Alliance if His Majesty wants to appoint her as an Imperial Concubine?” Elder Zuo asked calmly.
“But the problem is that she is just a clone, not a complete person. And her main body is the well-known Hong Ling Immortal Fairy in our Xihui Dynasty. Can you be sure that the higher-ups of the Immortal Alliance will not hold you accountable for dereliction of duty?” Empress Zheng asked with a teasing smile.
“I’m not sure, but it’s certain that your position as Empress will come to an end. Since ancient times, any woman appointed by the Son of Heaven has eventually become the empress.” Elder Zuo said with a cold smile.
“Yes! That’s why we are on the same boat now. This is why I asked you to come.” Empress Zheng stated her purpose directly.
“What does Your Ladyship want me to do?” Elder Zuo asked knowingly.
“Why is Elder Zuo pretending to be ignorant? In the entire Xihui Dynasty, you are the only one capable of stopping this.” Empress Zheng said bluntly.
“But Your Ladyship, if I do that, I will inevitably offend His Majesty. Isn’t that a loss that outweighs the gain?” Elder Zuo retorted.
“But you will gain my eternal support as Empress.” Empress Zheng showed her sincerity.
Elder Zuo smiled noncommittally and said, “How about this, Your Ladyship? Please give me some time to consider?”
“Then Elder Zuo must hurry. His Majesty will send someone to pick up that Qi Huang into the palace on the first day of next month.” Empress Zheng reminded him.
…
A few days later, Qi Huang once again cultivated True Qi, which meant she had returned to the ranks of cultivators.
With the urgent matter resolved, a heavy stone was lifted from Qi Huang’s heart, so she headed for the prefecture capital. She had three purposes for this trip: first, to find a Storage Ring with a large space; second, to collect the three medicinal ingredients needed by her main body; and third, to collect the money from the auction of Cat’s Eye Tears.
Since the second reason was so righteous and glorious, Cheng Hong Ling naturally had no reason to object. Moreover, she had promised not to restrict the clone’s freedom easily anymore.
Qi Huang, after a period of disguise, soon arrived at the prefecture capital. But when she saw the Juyin Auction House, her eyes went black, because the place had already closed down.
“What’s going on? Did that beautiful shopkeeper run away with the money?” Qi Huang was so angry that her chest ached faintly.
