Encouraged by the Heavenly Emperor, Shen Zhiyu confidently ascended the sacrificial altar.
After completing all the rituals, he opened his arms and waited for the cheers of the people, during which his fortune soared.
Before long, the sun shone brightly, and it seemed as if a golden dragon was dancing in the sky, heading towards him.
Shen Zhiyu's smile grew wider and wider. The darling of heaven has arrived!
Not only Shen Zhiyu, but even the civil and military officials standing below were shocked and stared wide-eyed.
"It's a dragon! It's a dragon!" they cheered excitedly. "No emperor in the history of the Great Zhou Dynasty has ever been able to summon a real dragon during the sacrificial ceremony to Heaven."
"May Heaven bless Your Majesty! May Heaven bless the Great Zhou!"
All the officials looked up, eagerly hoping that the dragon would land on Shen Zhiyu.
Unexpectedly, the golden dragon merely circled around Shen Zhiyu before turning around and knocking Shen Zhiyu down with its tail, then circled around Si Jin.
It gleams with a golden light that lingers for a long time.
Even Si Jin's clothes became sparkling.
"Look!" All the officials stood frozen in place, speechless with astonishment. Someone exclaimed first, "The Duke of Liang's clothes have faint dragon patterns on them!"
"How did the sacrificial ceremony to Heaven... transform the true dragon into the Duke of Liang?"
How did the sacrificial ceremony turn the true dragon into Mu Sijin?
Shen Zhiyu's mouth was stained with blood from the dragon's slap, and he clung to the railing, completely bewildered.
Didn't that system that called itself the Heavenly Lord say it would help him summon a dragon and make him the darling of Heaven?
What's going on now?
The throne, the wealth, the status—they should all have been his! They were his! How dare that good-for-nothing Mu Sijin steal everything from him?!
Shen Zhiyu was deeply shocked and took a deep breath. Before he could even ask the Heavenly Emperor, the system notification sounded again.
[Summoning the true dragon failed, Luck value -50%, and 50% of the host's soul was extracted.]
[Warning! Warning! Your current luck value is too low. You may be dethroned at any time.]
Pull down, the throne.
Those four simple words were like a heavy punch, striking Shen Zhiyu hard in the heart.
For some reason, his vision went black, he suddenly coughed up blood, and fainted.
The surrounding eunuchs shouted, "The Emperor has fainted!"
The officials' attention then shifted from Si Jin to Shen Zhiyu.
However, that no longer matters.
With all the officials gone, only Si Jin, with her arm around Sheng Linyuan's shoulder, smiled brightly and charmingly: "Shen Zhiyu's throne won't last much longer."
Sheng Linyuan nodded, ignoring the half-dead Shen Zhiyu, and directly pulled Jinjin away from there.
He had no interest in the sacrificial ceremonies of other countries, unless... the emperor was arrogant.
But as soon as he left the sacrificial site, Zheng Yingqin stopped him.
Si Jin took the initiative to ask, "Is there something you need, Eunuch Zheng?"
"This old servant is not seeking the young master today." Zheng Yingqin bowed and said, "Lord Sheng, the Empress Dowager requests your presence."
Sheng Linyuan: ?
… …
Sheng Linyuan was summoned away by the Empress Dowager, and Si Jin returned to the mansion alone with nothing to do, so she went to the outskirts to ride horses to celebrate that Shen Zhiyu and the Old Heavenly Emperor were about to die of anger.
Tired from running, they built a fire and roasted the pheasant they had hunted.
It wasn't until nightfall that Sheng Linyuan rode up on horseback, brought two jugs of wine, and together they talked about his background.
He took the pheasant from Si Jin and helped roast it: "The Empress Dowager said that your real name should actually be... Shen Zhijin. Is this the secret you said you wanted to keep from me for the time being?"
Si Jin nodded, leaned against him, took the small chicken leg he handed her, and ate it pickily.
Sheng Linyuan continued, "The Empress Dowager said that she feels guilty towards you and dares not acknowledge you. She wants me to take good care of you in the future. Otherwise, she will send you durians and make me kneel until the end of time."
"That's good. Your mother is still alive, which is better than me." Sheng Linyuan lowered his eyes, his gaze falling on the flickering flames in front of him, as if he were thinking of someone far away.
After saying that, he focused on roasting the pheasant and didn't say anything more. Si Jin had no choice but to keep him company and drink with him.
Only after the flames had burned out, and Si Jin was slightly drunk, did he suddenly say, "I know, about fifty miles away, there is a small indoor horse training ground nearby, with charcoal fires burning around it, it's very warm, and you won't feel cold even if you're only wearing your outer robe and inner clothes."
"Jinjin." He reached out and pulled the slightly drunk boy into his arms. "Shall we... go horseback riding together there?"
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