Like a victorious rooster, she strutted about the imperial garden, head held high, declaring: “It’s rare for you to recognize your lowly place, knowing you’re unworthy of Emperor Wanqian. Let me be blunt: only someone as special as me can stand by his side, care for him, and love him. I’ll be the only one who truly understands him. He’ll realize that losing me would be like losing the world itself! We’ll walk hand in hand, until the seas dry and the rocks crumble!”
Ming Ming glanced at the goosebumps on her arms, forced herself to nod and praise, “Yes! Exactly! You’re absolutely right!”
“So how will you help me? Dress me up so I can ‘accidentally’ bump into him? Dance in his path? Or trip and fall into his arms?”
Ming Ming: “…”
“That’s so tacky. A woman as extraordinary as you doesn’t need cheap tricks to win his attention. In fact, even if you do nothing, he already holds you in his heart.”
Jiang Fuling gave her a look that screamed Are you kidding me? “The only place he goes is your quarters. He doesn’t even glance at us. Where exactly is this ‘holding me in his heart’ you’re talking about?”
“No, no, no—you’ve got it all wrong. Sure, His Majesty promoted me three ranks in a row and rewarded me with five hundred gold ingots, eight hundred silver ingots, fifty golden hairpins, forty jade-bead necklaces, thirty jade bangles, twenty pairs of earrings, plus a mountain of random trinkets… but do you know what the direct result of all that was?”
“…What result?”
“The result is, I became the number one target in the entire harem. Every dirty trick is aimed at me now. Think about it—three promotions, mountains of treasure—five hundred gold ingots, eight hundred silver ingots, fifty golden hairpins, forty jade-bead necklaces, thirty jade bangles, twenty pairs of earrings, and all kinds of other junk! Doesn’t that put every eye on me instantly? Doesn’t that make everyone desperate to crush me underfoot?”
The system cut in: “Stop padding your word count, for f*’s sake!”**
Jiang Fuling asked, “And what exactly does that prove?”
“Doesn’t it occur to you that nobody made a big fuss over your promotion in rank?”
Jiang Fuling shot back, “What do you mean nobody cared? The women in my palace are always scheming to trip me up.”
“That’s petty stuff. Is tripping you more serious than poisoning me? I nearly lost my life!”
“Hmph, serves you right.” Jiang Fuling pouted. “And yet His Majesty eats and sleeps with you. That’s the real favor. Compared to that, poisoning is just small potatoes!”
Seeing she still didn’t get the point, Ming Ming coaxed further: “Why do you think the emperor stays with me day and night? Because he’s afraid I’ll be poisoned. And why is he afraid of that? Because if I die, the one he really wants to protect will become the next target!”
A faint suspicion flickered in Jiang Fuling’s mind, but she pushed it away.
“If you died, wouldn’t he still have Jiang Ruotian…”
Ming Ming clutched her chest, grief-stricken: “That bastard emperor even put in a double layer of insurance!”
“…Don’t call him a bastard!” Jiang Fuling snapped.
Ming Ming immediately corrected herself. “Right, right—this doggy emperor even put in double insurance!”
Jiang Fuling blinked. “…What did you just call him?”
Ming Ming cut her off. “Anyway, back to the point. Do you realize how much pressure he’s under? There’s unrest in Jiangbei, ministers stirring the pot in court, trying to turn him into a puppet. Do you think he’d ever allow that? They already see him as a tyrant, itching to topple him and put a tame ruler on the throne. Every step he takes has to be careful, flawless—he can’t afford to show weakness.”
“Now, be honest: if you were the emperor, in a situation like this, could you reveal your true love to the world?”
“True love?”
Jiang Fuling’s eyes trembled, her lips quivering. “He… he… don’t tell me he really…”
The thought was too overwhelming. She shook her head violently. “No, impossible…”
Ming Ming delivered the killing blow: “What if I told you that nothing has ever happened between me and His Majesty?”
The last string in Jiang Fuling’s mind snapped.
So he’s never had another woman. His heart, his body—they’ve always belonged to me!
“Emperor Wanqian… so all this time, he valued me that much… Of course, he wouldn’t let himself be anyone’s puppet. If he lost power, how could he grant my every whim, reach for the stars and moon for me? How could he protect me? He became a tyrant for my sake—for the sake of indulging me in the future!”
Ming Ming stared, stunned. She actually managed to interpret it like that?
Sis, do you even remember the severed head that rolled to your feet the first time you met him? Don’t tell me you took that as a love token?
But Jiang Fuling was on a roll: “He didn’t want those concubines standing on equal ground with me, so he raised my rank. Then he put you and Jiang Ruotian above me to draw attention, so all the harem’s hatred would shift onto you two. He was protecting me—because he loves me! And I… I never realized!”
Her excitement only grew. “And it all makes sense! Why Jiang Ruotian is so hard to find—obviously, she’s dodging countless traps. And to think, I once bragged that only I understood him. My devotion isn’t even a fraction of his devotion to me!”
Ming Ming muttered to the system: “See? Logic is unnecessary. She loops herself into self-consistent reasoning all on her own. This is why I love dealing with people like her—no brainpower required.”
Perfect. The world is saved. Ming Ming thought smugly.
The system: “…”
Tears welled up in Jiang Fuling’s eyes. At last, the moment she’d been waiting for. Of course, her transmigration wasn’t meaningless—she was brought here for this earth-shattering love!
She gripped Ming Ming’s hand earnestly. “My good sister, you’ve suffered so much. Don’t worry—when I wed His Majesty and soar with him as his empress, I’ll never treat you poorly!”
That’s exactly the line I was waiting for!
Ming Ming teared up too. “Sister!”
Jiang Fuling shouted back, “Sister!”
“My good sister, tell me—where is His Majesty right now? I won’t let him face this alone. Whatever storm comes, I’ll stand by his side!”
“He’s in Hongyang Palace, but be careful, sister—the road ahead is dangerous!”
“Don’t worry, I’ll bring back good news!”
“Mm-hm!”
With that, Jiang Fuling marched off, head held high.
Behind her, Ming Ming stood on tiptoe, waving her handkerchief. “Good luck! I’m rooting for you~”
The system sighed: “You really are a world-class bullshitter.”
“Of course. But hey, you gave me this analysis first. I just… reasonably utilized the facts to minimize risks.”
In her heart, Ming Ming added: Emperor Wanqian, don’t thank me too much. I’ll generously accept another round of five hundred gold ingots, eight hundred silver ingots, fifty golden hairpins, forty jade-bead necklaces, thirty jade bangles, twenty pairs of earrings, plus a few random treasures. Oh, and maybe throw in a mansion, some farmland, and let me out of the palace to experience the joys and sorrows of mortal life… hmm, tragic but beautiful. Yes. Kill me with kindness already!
—
Meanwhile, Emperor Wanqian had just dismissed another batch of troublesome ministers. He sat in the council hall of Hongyang Palace, drowning in memorials. First, the floods in Hexi, then unrest in Jiangbei—now uprisings were brewing everywhere. Court politics were in chaos. He hadn’t slept properly in days, and even after executing a few officials, the noise hadn’t died down. He was already calculating who to kill next.
The reports in his hands were absurd—requests for raises, pleas to be transferred from the border back to the capital, petitions to shove relatives into cushy posts. He wanted to exile the whole lot.
One secret report said Concubine Lan was wandering the palace, possibly trying to contact Noble Lady Fuling and Lady Tian. It also said she dutifully drank her medicine every day—but mysteriously, all the fortune trees she’d insisted on keeping had withered in a row. She was so heartbroken, she started eating an extra half-bowl of rice each meal.
Emperor Wanqian: “…”
A bunch of headaches, every last one of them.
Just then, noisy voices rose outside. He faintly heard the attendants trying to stop someone. “My Lady, you can’t go in—”
The emperor’s heavy heart suddenly lifted, just for a moment. Which woman in the harem would dare barge into the outer court to find him? Did she think the council chamber was a place for women to just waltz into? No sense of propriety at all.
Troublesome woman. Took her this long to come looking for me.
He asked Gao Fu, “Is it Concubine Lan? Tell them not to stop her… clearly she’s looking to be punished.”
His features softened, the corners of his lips almost curving upward, his voice touched with a rare, unconscious ease.
Gao Fu went to look, then returned, nervous. “Your Majesty… it isn’t Concubine Lan. It’s… Noble Lady Fuling.”
The emperor’s brow furrowed instantly. “Who? What is she doing here?”
Before anyone could explain, Jiang Fuling burst inside, charging straight toward him. “Your Majesty!”
She stopped in front of him, gazing up with blazing sincerity, and declared: “Your Majesty, I’m willing!”
The room froze.
Gao Fu’s shock was tinged with pure confusion.
The servants all lowered their heads in terror.
Emperor Wanqian’s eyes darkened dangerously as he looked at the brazen woman. His voice dripped with cold malice as he asked: “Who gave you permission to enter?”
Lucien On ABRWF Chapter 34.1