Chapter 8
◎The Curse of the Founding Emperor◎
Duke Lanxi suppressed his urge to strangle his rebellious son. "Impulse is the devil," he silently told himself, after all, this was his and Ahui's only child.
"Whether I'm courting death or not is another matter, but I can't not go." Lan Hua tried to keep his tone gentle to avoid further agitating his father. If he angered his father to death, then no one would be left to manage the mess in the Southern Region.
Duke Lanxi had already gradually relinquished power several years ago, allowing Lanhua to take over the Southern Region. After Duchess Ning Hui passed away, Duke Lanxi completely relinquished power and went into seclusion on Ning Hui Star, a private planet named after the Duchess.
But no one expected that more than two years ago, His Highness the Crown Prince would suddenly encounter misfortune, which directly caused Lan Hua to go mad. The people of the Southern Region had no choice but to go to Ning Hui Star to beg Duke Lan Xi to come out of seclusion, otherwise no one could control the insane Lan Hua.
Duke Lanxi didn't want to deal with this rebellious son. After all, who isn't a widow? In terms of misery, how dare Lan Hua try to play the victim in front of him? Let him go crazy.
Duke Lanxi initially didn't want to interfere with Lanhua, letting him go mad as a form of catharsis. However, he later realized that without someone to control Lanhua's madness, he would only become more insane and there would be no improvement. He could only stop Lanhua from going insane and courting death before he killed himself.
"If you weren't Ah Hui and my only child, I wouldn't stop you from doing whatever you want to die," Duke Lanxi said irritably.
“Well—” Unexpectedly, Lan Hua actually thought about it for a moment and said, “Back then, my mother chose to use a surrogate mother because of her poor health. The fertilized eggs from the same period as mine are still there.”
"Is that what I meant?" Duke Lanxi was really furious with this rebellious son.
“Actually, I was just about to say something too. Father, you’re still young, and those fertilized eggs are still there. Even if I’m really gone, you can still raise a few more children,” Lan Hua said considerately. “Practice a few more accounts, don’t just practice one. What if it’s another me? You’ll probably have to start all over again.”
Duke Lanxi: "..."
So, this is the truth behind why Lan Hua stopped him from destroying those fertilized eggs back then? At that time, Lan Hua herself was just a tiny child.
Duke Lanxi sneered, "You think your love is the greatest, going crazy and threatening to die. If everyone were like you, the world would be in chaos long ago."
“There’s nothing I can do, I’m a member of the Lan family.” Lan Hua was unfazed by his father’s mockery. He said confidently, “You know that all members of the Lan family are crazy.” The word “you” in particular was full of provocation.
Not content with that, he continued, "We all know what you're doing on Ninghui Star. My mother still has a body, so you still have something to look forward to. If Regas had left a body or something, maybe I could have gone mad quietly like you."
After saying that, he sighed, "The most unbearable thing is that their fate is unknown and they have no news of us at all."
The Lan family are all madmen, they just act differently to outsiders. Outsiders all say that his father, Duke Lanxi, is gentle and kind, but that's because he only has eyes for his mother; he doesn't care about or respect anyone else. After his mother died, he went mad and caused trouble on Ninghui Star, but no one knew about it.
"I just need an answer." Lan Hua felt that his actions were perfectly reasonable, and he continued, "Besides, this wasn't something I did on a whim; I've wanted to do it for a while now."
"You really are great, enduring humiliation for the sake of the Southern Region," Duke Lanxi sneered.
“That’s right.” Lan Hua nodded.
"You really have a big face. These past two years, you've entered the entertainment industry and then pulled this stunt of breaking off the engagement. How much of that was for your own selfish reasons?" Duke Lanxi sneered. "There were better ways to prevent the Emperor from coveting the Lan family, but you chose this farce that the whole universe knows about, and you even used your real face. Don't think I don't know that you're just hoping that if Crown Prince Regas isn't dead, you'll provoke him to contact you."
Duke Lanxi commented, "Naive."
Then he continued, "I understand your pain by letting you act recklessly. But I can't just watch you actually court death."
The current Emperor Leo VI of the Silver Empire did not ascend the throne through normal means. His predecessor, Crown Prince Enya, died under mysterious circumstances, and Princess Sia was sent to the Stafar Sanatorium in the same year. Now, Leo VI's empress is the former Crown Prince Enya's fiancée.
Rumors of Leo VI's illegitimate accession to the throne have circulated throughout the Empire, proving difficult to eradicate. After all, Prince Enya's prestige was similar to that of Crown Prince Regas now. Leo VI, however, had been obscure since his princely days, and his reign was marked by mediocrity, even struggling to maintain control of Chengdu. Externally, the Galactic Federation, previously evenly matched, now showed signs of surpassing the Silver Empire; internally, the once-docile lords of the four regions were now outwardly compliant but inwardly defiant towards the Gaimon royal family.
If the transition to the throne by Prince Regas could proceed smoothly, the internal and external troubles might gradually disappear with Regas's rule. However, Prince Regas disappeared more than two years ago. Although he disappeared, everyone assumed he was dead; under such circumstances, no one could possibly survive.
Prince Regas's disappearance has further complicated the already turbulent situation.
King Leo VI had been working to unite the powers of the four regions, so he married the eldest daughter of the Sopedu family of the Eastern Region, who had once been the fiancée of Prince Entai. In recent years, he had also tried to gain the support of the four regions through marriage alliances.
The Lan family has never been one to concern themselves with such matters. Although the Southern Region is one of the four regions of the Silver Glow Empire, the combined power of the other three regions is no match for its strength. Since the founding of the Silver Glow Empire, the royal family has had no influence over the Southern Region. The reason the Southern Region became part of the empire is simple, but both the royal family and the Lan family have remained silent about the truth.
The founding emperor of the Silver Glow Empire was a man of unparalleled beauty, while the head of the Lan family at that time was exceptionally adept at discovering and appreciating beauty… In short, the Southern Region nominally belonged to the Silver Glow Empire, but in reality enjoyed a high degree of autonomy. The reason for its affiliation with the empire remained a secret, neither the royal family nor the Lan family spoke of it.
The disappearance of Crown Prince Regas shattered the fragile balance of power within and outside the Silver Empire. Although Leo VI appeared to be keeping a lower profile, he and the remaining princes had actually begun to frequently and proactively make contact with the key figures at the heart of power in the four domains.
The Lan family didn't want to take sides, but they were thoroughly annoyed by this harassment. However, to maintain appearances of peace, they couldn't afford to completely break off relations. Of course, if Crown Prince Regas were present, the situation would be different.
Thus, an illegitimate son named Lan Ye, bearing the blood of the Lan family, was born. He was jilted at the altar, committed suicide, and ended up in a sanatorium. The royal family could no longer harass the Lan family and attempted to gain the support of the Southern Region forces through a marriage alliance.
Duke Lanxi scoffed at this roundabout approach. After all, with the Lan family's power, even if they directly refused the marriage alliance with the royal family, the royal family wouldn't dare to break ties with the Southern Region. Lan Hua's actions were mostly driven by his own selfish motives, a madness known throughout the universe.
Lan Hua said, "Anyway, the royal family won't be considering a marriage alliance with the Southern Region anytime soon. Take good care of the fertilized eggs from the same batch as me. If I really die, hatch a few more. That way, you won't be left without a child born of my love with my mother."
"Are you making your final arrangements?" Duke Lanxi sneered angrily. He had seen people who weren't afraid of death, but he had never seen anyone so eager to die, yet afraid that others would ruin his plans.
"Whatever you say goes," Lan Hua said indifferently, his heart no longer there.
He stood up, walked towards his father, and then hugged him tightly. Duke Lanxi, who was about to continue scolding this unfilial son, suddenly froze.
Lan Hua rested his chin on his father's shoulder, a rare, tender smile appearing on his usually carefree face. "Father, I'm sorry, I can't not go. Even if the future is unknown, I have to try. If I were to put Regas in my mother's shoes, you would definitely go too. Too many people in the Lan family are troubled by love; perhaps this is the curse that Seloe Gamondon cast upon the Lan family. Neither of us is exempt." Seloe Gamondon was the founding emperor of the Silver Glow Empire, and the grudges and entanglements between him and the former head of the Lan family were beyond comprehension.
"You, sigh—" Duke Lanxi really wanted to slap this unfilial son, but in the end he sighed and patted Lan Hua on the back, "You brat, you actually tried to trick me with your feelings."
Lan Hua released his father and said, "I and others have calculated the spacetime path in that area countless times. The explosion of that black hole merger was 3 billion light-years away, and the gravitational waves that affected the Regas fleet were secondary waves. Based on his location when he disappeared and the data of the gravitational waves, if he had entered the precisely interacting subspace at warp speed, he might have been able to escape."
Duke Lanxi understood, but he was still annoyed and deliberately poured cold water on the idea, saying, "There are so many people in the empire, and you're the only one doing the calculations? This possibility has been raised before. The royal family and relevant departments have been conducting live searches, checking every spatial coordinate."
“Because they dared not go in.” Lan Hua smiled coldly. “Due to the influence of gravitational waves, everything in that space was pushed into the Hella black hole during that period.”
Duke Lanxi laughed in exasperation, "Yes, they wouldn't dare, but you would! You're quite something, daring to brave the black hole for love."
"You flatter me," Lan Hua said modestly.
Duke Lanxi was at his wits' end. What could threaten someone who dared to enter a black hole? He knew Lanhua's intentions the moment Lanhua spoke, but he couldn't stop him. Lanhua had wanted to do this before, but he had stalled for two years, and now Lanhua still hadn't changed his mind, so he was powerless to stop him.
“Remember this, your mother and I will only ever have you as our child,” Lanxi said. “So protect your life, don’t think it’s worthless.”
A note from the author:
A breathtaking love story hidden in a black hole (*￣︶￣)
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