Qiao Zhen: [Xiao Ling! This emperor's character has collapsed, hasn't it?!]
Xiao Ling: [Let me see, when Emperor Qi Yuanlu of Qi ascended the throne, three or four women in his harem all bore a striking resemblance to Zhen Zhuxian. He was capricious and intermittently silly. This should be intermittent sillyness; the character hasn't broken character.]
Qiao Zhen found this character setting very confusing. She lowered her eyes and hesitated for a moment, then tilted her head to look at Lu Yuanchuan. She refused, saying, "What's wrong with being a wife? What's wrong with being a concubine? If he takes another wife or concubine, I'll just pack up and run away."
Lu Yuanchuan was slightly displeased; he found it hard to believe that a princess of a nation would utter such vulgar words.
Emperor Qi Yuanlu, however, disagreed. He had never wanted to be bound by worldly conventions, and his great talent and ambition made it unnecessary for him to be. "But if you have children in the future, will you not consider the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate children?"
"I'll say it again: if he takes wives and concubines, I'll pack my bags and get out of here," Qiao Zhen said defiantly. She only dared to say such a bold thing because of the persona that Xiao Ling had just given her.
Lu Yuanchuan tightened his arms around Qiao Zhen's waist.
"You look a lot like your mother."
Emperor Qi recalled how Zhen Zhuxian's answer was almost identical to Qiao Zhen's when the late Emperor of Li seduced her. He could never forget that the radiant smile of the Zhen woman had captivated him for the rest of his life.
He remained silent for a long time, reminiscing about his youth, before regaining his relaxed tone, "If you don't call me 'Father,' I won't let you become Lu Yuanchuan's legal wife. And don't try to play any tricks; your little schemes are just leftovers from your mother's youth."
Qiao Zhen leaned silently against Lu Yuanchuan's chest, absorbing the coldness emanating from him, and then said in a drawn-out, coquettish tone, "Husband, you won't take another wife or concubine in the future, will you? I'm a very petty person. If you dare to find me some girlfriends, I dare to give you a few cuckolded brothers. I always keep my word."
Lu Yuanchuan looked down at Qiao Zhen, who was leaning against him without any decorum, and said, "I may never have any children in this life, so how could I dare to harm another family's daughter?"
After hearing Lu Yuanchuan's words, Emperor Qi's expression became somewhat solemn. Although he had caused Qiao Zhen's country to fall and her family to perish, he still did not want the woman in his memory to have no descendants. "I will grant Qiao Zhen a letter of divorce. The two of you should sever all ties as soon as possible."
Qiao Zhen found Emperor Qi's words rather puzzling. "Why? It is said that a ruler's word is law. Since you arranged for my husband and me to be together, why are you issuing a letter of divorce now?"
Emperor Qi looked at Qiao Zhen, finding it difficult to speak about her question. He had given Qiao Zhen to Lu Yuanchuan simply because Lu Yuanchuan resembled him in his youth, and Qiao Zhen was Zhen Zhuxian's daughter. He had placed his hopes for being with Zhen Zhuxian on Qiao Zhen and Lu Yuanchuan, never expecting that Lu Yuanchuan would be a man who could not have children.
Before Emperor Qi could answer, Qiao Zhen exploded, "How can you be like this? If you call me father, I'm your legal wife; if you don't, you want me to be divorced!"
Emperor Qi had a headache. The girl before him was exactly like her mother when she threw a tantrum. He wanted to get angry but couldn't bring himself to. "Listen to me. He will have no children in the future. If you marry him, you will have no one to rely on. If you are in love with him and still want to marry him, I will have nothing to say. But if because of my matchmaking, you will be destitute for the rest of your life, and if Zhen Niang knew in the afterlife, she would probably resent me!"
Qiao Zhen glanced sideways and weakly rested her head on Lu Yuanchuan's chest. "Fine, let's have a divorce then. I don't like this forced marriage either."
Lu Yuanchuan tightened his grip on Qiao Zhen's arm, looking down at her, his breath catching for a moment.
Qiao Zhen felt the pressure on her waist and added, "But if I am still going to marry Lu Yuanchuan in the future, you have to make him grant me the position of his principal wife."
Emperor Qi readily agreed, "Very well. I have been out for a long time today and it is time for me to go back. You just wait for the letter of divorce."
After Emperor Qi left, the young man in dark blue robes looked very unpleasant, but he still teased him in a wicked way: "Young Master Lu should keep a close eye on Miss Qiao. She now has the Emperor to rely on. If you're not careful, you'll be cuckolded. It does match Young Master Lu's clothes quite well today."
Qiao Zhen tore off a piece of Lu Yuanchuan's green outer robe and tossed it over the head of the dark blue-clad young man. "I think what you said actually suits your clothes better today."
The young men around them all pursed their lips and suppressed their laughter, while a few of them, who were of noble birth, even laughed out loud.
The young man in dark blue robes stammered "you" for a long time before finally leaving in a huff.
Qiao Zhen took Lu Yuanchuan's arm and led him to the deck of the boat to see the scenery on the lake. After all, it was their first date, so they wanted to be romantic and create some memories.
Xiao Ling: [Emperor Qi is truly a devoted man.]
Qiao Zhen: [A devoted lover with a touch of scumbag tendencies.]
Xiao Ling: 【(。?_?) Why?】
Qiao Zhen: [He either needs to let go of Zhen Zhuxian, marry, and have children, or even if he still thinks of her, he needs to bury her deep in his heart. What's the point of him marrying several women who resemble Zhen Zhuxian? It's clearly a desecration of her. Because he can't have the real Zhen Zhuxian, he uses substitutes to soothe his desire for her. Zhen Zhuxian was a person, not a figurine.]
Xiao Ling: [Ugh! What a scumbag!]
Qiao Zhen: [But considering the historical context—a patriarchal world, and Qi Yuanlu being the emperor—it's truly remarkable that someone of his high status could genuinely care for a woman. You haven't seen anything truly perverse. Some perverts, unable to obtain a woman, might develop twisted desires, wanting her daughter or marrying their daughter to her son. Even worse, they might cut out features resembling that woman and piece them together to create her likeness.]
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