Born into a prominent family, Li had always stayed within the inner courtyard. She had never been threatened by a vixen before. She was both shocked and frightened, and at the same time, she was filled with anger and hatred. She went to Liu Tuan and cried, saying that if he didn't drive that little vixen out of the mansion, she would divorce him.
Liu Tuan still wanted to maintain contact with Bai Jiuxiao through Liu Ying. He didn't know that Bai Jiuxiao was no longer the Empress, and even if he knew she wasn't the Empress, she was still a fox spirit from Qingqiu.
Liu Tuan was hoping that this mother and daughter would grant him immortality, so how could he possibly let Liu Ying suffer any injustice? Therefore, he agreed to the divorce.
This news shocked the entire Qingwu Kingdom. It must be understood that the Li family, to which the Li clan belonged, was the most powerful family in the Qingwu Kingdom, second only to the Huang family.
Liu Tuan rose to power through the help of the Li family. Over the years, the Liu and Li families supported each other, which allowed them to maintain their stable position in the court. Now that the two have separated, the alliance between the Liu and Li families has also broken down.
Liu Tuan's two legitimate sons are now both officials in the court, possessing considerable status and power. However, these two sons naturally side with their mother; after all, their father, Liu Tuan, wasn't content with just messing around with men, but also with demons?!
To be honest, the two brothers knew very well how their mother, Li, had behaved in the Liu family over the years. She had never been arrogant, never been jealous, and never harmed Liu Tuan's children. She even raised and carefully taught the child that Liu Tuan had adopted from outside. She had done everything she could to be kind to Liu Tuan.
In the end, Liu Tuan actually divorced Li Shi for the sake of a demon, and neither of the brothers could swallow this insult.
The two brothers had both been officials for a long time and therefore had their own residences. After the divorce, Li moved out of the Liu residence and lived with the two brothers.
The relationship between the Li family and the Liu family broke down, and the Li family immediately began to suppress the Liu family. Apart from the children of the Li family who were able to serve as officials in the court, the other sons of the concubines lost the opportunity to enter the court.
Not long after, Liu Tuan was impeached for embezzling military funds and was punished by the emperor and imprisoned. The Liu family was also raided, and the Liu family's illegitimate children either went to the army or became slaves, and none of them had a good ending.
Liu Ying was no ordinary mortal; after being sold, she escaped and even broke into prison to rescue Liu Tuan, taking him with her to Qingqiu. However, upon arriving in Qingqiu, she could no longer enter the barrier and could only contact Bai Jiuxiao.
"His Majesty……"
Chu Nian was learning the art of weapon crafting from Bai Qing, the number one weapon crafter of the fox clan, in the weapon crafting room when she suddenly heard Bai Jiuxiao's voice outside.
Bai Qing also recognized the voice of the former empress. Fearing that Chu Nian would not want to talk to her, she quickly said, "Alright, Your Majesty, let's stop here for today. Weapon crafting is not a skill that can be mastered overnight. Let's take it slowly."
Chu Nian had noticed early on that Bai Qing still held the same respect for the Empress as she had for Bai Jiuxiao, and that she didn't want Bai Jiuxiao to wait outside for too long.
Since Bai Qing had been quite diligent in teaching her, Chu Nian didn't intend to expose him. She simply said "Alright" and went out to see Bai Jiuxiao, asking her, "Why did you come looking for me while I was refining weapons?"
She had instructed these maids not to come to her unless it was important, as she was currently eager to master sophisticated and advanced weapon-forging techniques.
Bai Jiuxiao looked timid, but still mustered his courage and said, "Your Majesty, it's Yingying. She said that the Liu family mansion was raided by the emperor of Qingwu Kingdom, and she and Liu Tuan barely managed to escape back..."
Before she could finish speaking, Chu Nian interrupted her coldly, saying, "It was your precious daughter who couldn't stand other people's rejection of the half-demon and angered the mistress, Madam Li, which led to the disaster in the Liu family!"
Bai Jiuxiao's lips twitched, and she immediately knelt down, crying, "Your Majesty, only now do I—no, only now do I understand what Your Majesty said back then. You were right, Yingying's life with Liu Tuan was not happy, so this servant thought...thought..."
Chu Nian: "You want her to come back and live in Qingqiu, right?"
Bai Jiuxiao: "Yes."
Chu Nian: "She is a fox from Qingqiu, so it's understandable that she's coming back. I don't think the fox people will have any objections. However, after she comes back, she may have to follow the rules of Qingqiu and pursue the life she wants through her own efforts."
Bai Jiuxiao: "This servant understands. This servant will explain to her...explain it to her." The thought of her daughter falling from princess to servant filled her with mixed emotions. She should have never let Liu Ying find the Nine-Tailed Fox. Back then, whether the Nine-Tailed Fox existed or not, she was still the little princess of Qingqiu!
Now look what's happened; she herself has become a slave to the nine-tailed beast, and Liu Ying is no longer a princess.
Chu Nian: "That's good, let her come back!"
Since the original owner didn't have a particularly strong desire for revenge against this mother and daughter, there was no need for her to go through the trouble. Besides, these two women, who used to be so arrogant in front of the original owner, could now only bow and scrape before her, and Chu Nian could feel the physical and mental pleasure she was experiencing.
"Then, what about Liu Tuan?" Bai Jiuxiao asked.
Chu Nian: "Liu Tuan? How can a mere mortal like him come to live in Qingqiu?"
Bai Jiuxiao: "But he... he is still Your Majesty's father..."
Chu Nian: "I broke off all ties with him a long time ago."
Bai Jiuxiao: "Then...would it be alright if this servant settled him at the foot of a mountain outside Qingqiu?"
Chu Nian: "Do as you please. Anyway, he's a mortal and can't live in Qingqiu. I don't care about other places outside of Qingqiu."
Bai Jiuxiao settled Liu Tuan in a thatched hut at the foot of the mountain for the time being. Liu Tuan thought that staying at the foot of the mountain for the time being and gradually transitioning to a better life was reassuring for the time being.
He was just being too optimistic.
Qingqiu is a place where even the Golden-Winged Roc might appear, not to mention demons and monsters, poisonous snakes and ferocious beasts are as numerous as hairs on a cow. He had only lived at the foot of the mountain for less than half a month when he was bitten to death by a leopard. Except for his head, which remained in the thatched hut, his entire body was carried away by the leopard.
Liu Tuan's death has nothing to do with Chu Nian. Even if his lifespan hasn't ended, the underworld won't be able to find her.
However, the underworld did not find the mortal realm. It is estimated that Liu Tuan himself had sins and deserved this calamity. As a mortal, he was not as resilient as Hu Tiantian. The underworld treated the two differently because of the difference in lifespan of three thousand years and ten years.
When Liu Ying arrived at the thatched hut, she only saw Liu Tuan's head and didn't feel sad at all; on the contrary, she felt relieved.
When she broke Liu Tuan out of prison, all she could think of was the care Liu Tuan had given her in the past. But when she arrived in Qingqiu, she was ordered around all day and had to bring Liu Tuan food and drink frequently. This was something she, who had always been pampered, couldn't handle and found very annoying.
Now that Liu Tuan is dead, it's like one less burden for her.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
