One melody to intoxicate one’s heart, one sentence to shatter one’s heart.
“On the fifteenth of the next month, the First Prince will come to marry headliner Ling Long. At that time, everyone is welcome to attend their wedding.”
Ling Long’s celestial pipa music had yet to fade, but Qiu Yue’s words immediately shattered Ling Yu’s heart.
Ling Yu was stupefied, like a wooden dummy.
“This…this is very surprising.”
“To think that the First Prince wants to marry headliner Ling Long. Although the Smiling Daughter Pavilion’s headliners only sell their skills and not their bodies, they are still women from a pleasure quarter. Is it right to marry a headliner so openly in a grand manner?”
“If it were just taking her as a concubine, it should not be a problem. However, there will be a marriage ceremony, so he is taking her as an official wife!”
“However, this is good. A pleasure quarter headliner can marry a prince. This is the best result for her.”
“Yes, we should give headliner Ling Long our blessings. However, we fans will suffer. It will be much more difficult for us to hear headliner Ling Long’s pipa music again.”
The many honored guests in the pavilions discussed this. As they spoke, they still remained incredibly shocked.
However, most people still gave headliner Ling Long their blessings. For a pleasure quarter headliner, this was indeed a fortunate thing.
Even rarer was that the First Prince would personally come to marry her, giving her a wedding ceremony.
[TL Note: Chinese weddings involve the groom coming to the bride’s house to pick the bride up and bring her back to the groom’s house. A concubine is of a lower status and does not have a wedding ceremony.]
If the First Prince Wang Fei won the competition for crown prince, Ling Long would be a consort, or even empress.
At the banquet hall, the Eighth Prince, the Thirteenth Prince, and the other Noble Clan Elders all felt quite startled as well.
Although they all knew that the First Prince Wang Fei walked very closely with the Smiling Daughter Pavilion, no one expected that he would lower himself and marry a pleasure quarter headliner. This would result in an unbreakable alliance.
[TL Note: For those of you who are not familiar with a pleasure quarter, it is another word for a brothel. I went with pleasure quarters instead of brothels because there is more to pleasure quarters than just prostitutes. However, it would not be too strange for ancient high-class Chinese brothels compared to the brothels that most would understand today. People who worked in such places were normally sold to these places and had statuses akin to a slave; the brothel or pleasure quarter owned them. Hence, headliner Ling Long would be redeemed by the First Prince, as he would be purchasing her to set her free. These people were normally socially disdained due to the nature of their work. Of course, as mentioned in the story, the headliners sold only their skills and not their bodies; this was possible in ancient Chinese brothels too. Even so, such people had lower statuses, and it would be a gross mismatch of status for a prince to marry a headliner. During some Chinese dynasties, nobles were even forbidden from associating with such people. A court official caught in a brothel could be executed.]
However, why did the Smiling Daughter Pavilion place their bet on the First Prince?
Some confusion flashed in the Eighth Prince Wang Feng’s eyes as he showed a contemplative expression.
The Eighth Prince had not received word of this matter beforehand, so it was puzzling.
“Congratulations, First Prince!”
“Congratulations, First Prince. Come, let us offer the First Prince a toast.”
The Bountiful Treasure Pavilion’s Liu Zhang took the lead, picking up his wine cup and offering a toast to the First Prince with a joyous expression.
The others stood up as well. Although they found it strange, they still had to maintain appearances, no matter what.
Only Xiao Chen’s group of four did not stand up, conspicuous from the rest.
Xiao Chen could not be bothered to put on a pretense, Ling Yu was still in a daze, and Yuan Zhen feared people seeing his bald head. As for the dirty beggar, he was sprawled across the table in a drunken stupor, snoring.
“You are too polite. I hope everyone will give me some face and come to the wedding ceremony,” the First Prince and the veiled woman said. Then, they picked up their wine cups and returned the toasts.
After everyone finished their wine, they all looked at Xiao Chen.
Although the sudden announcement of a wedding shocked everyone, it was just a minor distraction.
The Elders of the Yanwu Dynasty’s four ancient great Noble Clans, the three princes, and the Smiling Daughter Pavilion’s Pavilion Master all gathered here.
Given the many major characters, it clearly was not just a simple banquet.
“Young Master Xiao, you don’t seem to be happy about this prince’s wedding.” The First Prince Wang Fei smiled faintly as he looked at Xiao Chen.
Xiao Chen sneered, “How dare I? It is just that I have difficulty walking and cannot stand up.”
“I’ll not bicker with you over this. Pavilion Master Yang already told me about the matter between your friend and headliner Ling Long. However, I do not mind this minor matter. He is just an unremarkable piece of trash. This prince does not care about him.”
From the very start, the First Prince Wang Fei never looked at Ling Yu, only staring straight at Xiao Chen.
Ling Yu startled awake and immediately turned enraged, wanting to erupt out on the spot.
However, Xiao Chen placed a hand on Ling Yu’s shoulder, stopping him. Then, he sent a voice projection to Ling Yu, If you trust in Martial Uncle, don’t act rashly.
Ling Yu forcibly suppressed the rage in his heart. He remained silent while showing a sullen expression, but he calmed down in the end.
The Eighth Prince Wang Feng felt somewhat frustrated over his first brother creating an alliance with the Smiling Daughter Pavilion. He threw his winecup onto the table and said slowly, “Alright, let’s stop wasting time. Young Master Xiao, this prince has always held respect for you. I called you here this time so you can return the Heavenly Essence Merchant Association’s written statement of leaving the Heavenly Alliance and restore their flow of resources from the Heavenly Alliance. That is all. This prince will not become your enemy, and I will send over a big gift in the future.”
The Heavenly Essence Merchant Association’s Association Chief, who was at the side, performed a cupped-fist salute and said with a smile, “Lord Xiao, this old man was muddle-headed that day; that’s why I wrote such a statement of leaving the Heavenly Alliance. Please don’t hold it against me.”
The younger Thirteenth Prince Wang Yi gave Xiao Chen a challenging look and said, “I do not have time to waste. I’ll only say one thing: quickly restore the Heavenly Alliance resources to the Golden Essence Merchant Association. The imperial capital belongs to the Wangs and not the Xiaos!”
Wang Yi’s words sounded careless. However, they conveyed an open threat, unlike the Eighth Prince’s words.
The First Prince Wang Fei said indifferently, “My two brothers have already said what I want to say. However, I will add one more thing. Aside from returning the written statement of leaving the Heavenly Alliance and restoring the flow of Heavenly Alliance’s resources to the Bountiful Treasure Pavilion, quickly take out the Fairy Basket in your possession and return it to Pavilion Master Yang as well.”
The situation now was different from before. This time, the Association Chiefs had princes or Noble Clan Elders protecting them. They felt fully confident as they looked at Xiao Chen coldly.
The Nine Cauldron Pavilion’s Fatty Wei felt bitter in his heart when he saw such a setup.
The new envoy inspector seemed incapable of dealing with this. Did he make the wrong bet this time?
The Association Chiefs of the Linlang Pavilion and the Ancient Cloud Merchant Association—the other two merchant associations that signed the new contract—had long been frightened. As they sat at the banquet table, they trembled in fear.
With just the Elders of the Yanwu Dynasty’s four ancient great Noble Clans gathered here, the pressure already felt heavy enough. What more when three princes showed up?
Unexpectedly, this matter would cause such a huge commotion, getting the three most promising princes to work together.
Everyone at the table stared at Xiao Chen, appearing cold and emotionless.
Many Sovereign Emperor figures appeared in the darkness, firmly sealing off the surroundings.
“Pavilion Master Yang, this Xiao has truly learned from today’s matter,” Xiao Chen said coldly. A murderous intent flashed in his eyes as he looked at the veiled woman.
To think that these people laid such a trap for him. He had not expected a banquet at the Smiling Daughter Pavilion to contain such a trap.
The veiled woman said with perfect composure, “Don’t blame me for being too ruthless. Blame yourself for being too extreme. Today, everyone is not here to negotiate with you. If you are wise, perhaps we will leave you with some face and let you walk out of the Smiling Daughter Pavilion fully intact.”
The Bountiful Treasure Pavilion’s Liu Zhang smiled with malicious intent. “I am more in anticipation for Young Master Xiao to do something out of the ordinary. Duke Yun, you are probably thinking the same, right? Hahaha!” As Liu Zhang laughed mockingly, he looked at Duke Yun, behind the Eighth Prince.
Everyone here knew that Duke Yun’s son died a miserable death at Xiao Chen’s hands.
If Xiao Chen did not wise up, the happiest person would be Duke Yun.
Duke Yun glanced at Liu Zhang indifferently, then ignored him. The two stood on different sides; there was no need to speak to him.
Furthermore, the Eighth Prince already expressed his stance. Most of the people here took the same stance against Xiao Chen.
As long as Xiao Chen took a step back and returned the written statements of leaving the Heavenly Alliance and restored the flow of goods from the Heavenly Alliance, they would not do anything to him. Duke Yun knew this clearly. His thoughts did not matter.
However, it would be a rare chance if Xiao Chen did not wise up. Even so, Duke Yun did not hold much hope.
Xiao Chen looked at this group of people who thought they already had him under their thumbs.
Even Liu Zhang, who had nearly wet himself from fright, was in the mood to ridicule and mock.
Xiao Chen thought quickly in his heart, There is a 4-Vein Sovereign Emperor guard with each of the princes. The Elders of the four ancient great Noble Clans are also 4-Vein Sovereign Emperors.
Just counting the people at this banquet table, there are already seven 4-Vein Sovereign Emperors.
Furthermore, more than ten Small Perfection Sovereign Emperors are hidden in the surroundings, sealing off all exits.
With such a setup, there is no viable escape route.
No wonder the veiled woman directly said they were not here to negotiate, implying that I have no choice.
Xiao Chen still neglected one point. Right now, the honored guests in the Smiling Daughter Pavilion did not know what was happening at the banquet table.
Given the Smiling Daughter Pavilion’s rallying power, these honored guests would join in to act against Xiao Chen.
The First Prince Wang Fei looked at Xiao Chen and said indifferently, “Young Master Xiao’s boldness is admirable. Even under the circumstances, you can remain calm. Truly extraordinary. However, even if you delay, nothing will change. We three brothers rarely work together. However, once we do, nothing is impossible for us in the imperial capital. Today, you have no choice.”
The Eighth Prince and the Thirteenth Prince did not refute the First Prince’s words, silently acknowledging them.
The other two princes looked at Xiao Chen coldly, having run out of patience with him.
Xiao Chen said calmly, “Indeed, I do not have a choice…”
The moment Xiao Chen said that, the others immediately rejoiced. In the end, he wised up, not daring to fall out with the three princes and the four ancient great Noble Clans.
This was for the best. Everyone rejoiced that they did not have to cause a huge commotion.
“So, kill me, then.”
Xiao Chen continued without pause, slowly saying, “If the three princes want to kill this Xiao, then this Xiao will definitely die. There is no doubt about that. However, have you carefully considered the price of killing me, Xiao Chen?!”
“Pa!”
Right after Xiao Chen spoke, he slammed his palm on the table, shattering the entire table immediately.
At this moment, a dragon roar rang out, and a berserk, thunderous killing intent surged out of Xiao Chen’s body.
His aura soared, instantly surpassing that of a 3-Vein Sovereign Emperor and firmly suppressing all the 4-Vein Sovereign Emperors present.
For the first time, Xiao Chen activated his Alloy Dragon Armor with his royal Azure Dragon bloodline.
