Thunder and Ice
Ling Zhan's words were like a thunderclap from the heavens, exploding in the quiet air of the imperial study.
Every word carried a chilling intent that seemed to freeze everything, striking Wei Jin with pinpoint accuracy.
He felt as if he had been struck by an invisible hammer, staggering backward and crashing into the heavy rosewood imperial desk with a dull thud. The memorials and writing implements on the desk trembled, mirroring the turmoil in his heart.
"What did you say?"
His voice was terribly dry, almost squeezed out from the depths of his throat, trembling with disbelief. His peach blossom eyes, which were always filled with fervent love or playful laughter, were wide open at this moment, their pupils filled with utter bewilderment, shock, and a near-collapse-like blankness.
Never intended to have children?
Why?
How is that possible?
Countless questions clashed wildly in his mind, yet he couldn't find a single answer to rely on. He looked at her, trying to find a trace of humor, hesitation, or even pain in her excessively cold and calm face.
But no.
There was nothing there.
She was stating a fact that was irrelevant to her and already established.
"Why?" He finally found his voice, a suppressed roar erupting as he grabbed her arm with such force that he almost crushed her bones. "Give me a reason! Ling Zhan! Tell me why?!"
Is it because she doesn't like children? Yet she loves and cares for Shen Zhangwu, Shen Yu, Sui He, and Hong'er so much!
Is it because of her physical condition? But she is Ling Dahua, who possesses divine power!
Is it because...she doesn't love him? That's why she doesn't want to have his child?
His last thought, like a venomous snake, gnawed at his heart, causing him excruciating pain that made it almost impossible for him to breathe.
Ling Zhan did not break free from his grip, but merely frowned slightly, as if he felt that his reaction was a bit excessive.
She calmly met his fiery gaze and remained silent for a moment.
His gaze seemed to pass through him, looking towards something deeper, more vast, and colder.
That was a world that Wei Jin could not comprehend at all.
“I am not a person of this world.”
She finally spoke, her tone calm yet carrying a chilling sense of detachment: "Here, there is no obsession with continuing the bloodline. For me, deep ties are not necessary, but rather... a burden."
"Not a person from this world?"
Wei Jin repeated the sentence, the storm in his eyes growing even more chaotic, "What do you mean? You're not Ling Dahua? Then who are you?!"
A tremendous panic welled up inside him, even more so than when he heard that she didn't want to have children.
He was afraid that the person in front of him would suddenly disappear, afraid that everything he thought of was just an illusion.
He recalled her incredible strength, something that Ling Dahua, who was known for her street brawls, could never possess.
Ling Zhan looked at the panic and despair in his eyes and remained silent for a moment. She seemed to consider how to describe that indescribable vastness and despair in a way he could understand.
Yes and no.
She gave a mysterious answer, her fingertips unconsciously curling slightly, as if sensing some invisible boundary: "Ling Dahua is my form in this world, but my origin... lies where the stars are shattered, where the path home is cut off."
Her words carried a chilling, epic quality that made Wei Jin's heart clench suddenly.
"Are you leaving?"
He tightened his grip on her, pulling her closer, his voice filled with a fear and despair he himself hadn't realized, "Are you planning to leave?! Just like you were suddenly betrothed to me, will you also suddenly disappear one day?! Is that why you don't want to leave any ties behind? Is that it?!"
His thoughts immediately jumped to the worst-case scenario.
Ling Zhan tilted her head slightly, seemingly weighing the concept of time, before giving Wei Jin an answer that utterly shattered her: "When we can set off again is hard to say. Perhaps a thousand years, perhaps ten thousand years, perhaps even longer..." Her tone held no expectation, only a statement based on cold, hard facts. That was what Zero had told her.
The timescale required to rekindle the spark is so long it's almost despairing.
"A thousand years... ten thousand years..."
Wei Jin murmured repeatedly, as if he had heard the most absurd joke in the world, or as if he had been sentenced to life imprisonment. Overwhelming rage and the panic of not being able to grasp or hold onto her instantly consumed all his reason. He couldn't comprehend this concept of time; he only felt that she was leaving, leaving in a distant future beyond his reach!
He abruptly released her, as if he had been burned, and stumbled backward, causing the imperial desk to shake again.
"Very good! Very good!"
He pointed at her, his fingers trembling slightly from extreme anger and sorrow, his eyes even reddening. "Ling Zhan! You're really something!" All his love, expectations, and visions for his future family seemed so ridiculous and insignificant in the face of her cold, lifeless words.
He turned around abruptly, his back to her, his broad shoulders taut like a fully drawn bowstring, every line etched with rage and hurt.
"Get out." He spat out the word through gritted teeth, his voice icy cold. "Get out of here!"
Ling Zhan watched his violently heaving back and remained silent for a moment.
She could sense the violent fluctuations in his emotional energy, like a volcano on the verge of eruption. But she didn't understand why the "facts" would trigger such a violent reaction. She had simply stated the current situation and the optimal solution.
In the end, she simply said, "Okay."
She turned around and left the imperial study with steady steps, without the slightest hesitation or lingering attachment.
The heavy palace doors closed behind her, separating the inner and outer worlds.
From that day on, the Emperor and Empress fell into an unprecedented cold war.
Wei Jin never set foot in Kunning Palace again.
Even in necessary public occasions, he would still uphold her dignity as empress, stand shoulder to shoulder with her, and receive the worship of the people. But the eyes that looked at her had lost all warmth, leaving only the majesty of an emperor and a bottomless ice.
In private, he became more irritable and unpredictable than ever before. In court, the slightest dissatisfaction would trigger his wrath, and the Asura Guards would be mobilized everywhere, casting a low-pressure atmosphere over the entire palace and even the previous dynasty.
The four forces keenly sensed something unusual.
Although the specific reasons are unknown, the discord between the emperor and empress is almost an open secret. In particular, the news that the empress had no heir and that the emperor and empress were at odds has stirred up the minds of those who were initially awestruck by the emperor and empress's grandeur at the enthronement ceremony.
The Huo family's study.
The candlelight cast a dim and indistinct shadow over Huo Ying's deep-set face.
Huo Xian sat at the lower end of the table, clutching a handkerchief tightly in his hand. His face showed both excitement and a hint of barely concealed anxiety.
"My lord, is the news reliable? Is His Majesty and the Empress truly..."
Huo Xian kept his voice very low, as if afraid of disturbing the impending wealth and honor.
Huo Ying stroked his beard slowly, his eyes gleaming: "There's no smoke without fire. His Majesty's temperament has become increasingly unpredictable lately, and the Shura Guards have been making frequent moves, yet Kunning Palace has not shown any reaction. That Ling family member still goes to the Ministry of Agriculture every day, completely unaware... or rather, completely indifferent. This in itself speaks volumes."
He paused, his tone tinged with sarcasm: "His behavior at the coronation ceremony, in retrospect, was nothing more than the impetuousness of a young man, a pursuit of perfection. In the end, it couldn't withstand reality—the Empress's greatest original sin is her lack of an heir."
Upon hearing this, Huo Xian's anxiety subsided and was replaced by eagerness.
"Then...then doesn't this mean our Wan Jun's opportunity has arrived? We should push forward with the talent selection as soon as possible!"
"Of course we'll have to hold a talent show."
Huo Ying spoke calmly, as if discussing a routine political matter, "And it should be a grand election. His Majesty is currently in a fit of anger, and if the court officials collectively submit a memorial at this time, emphasizing the importance of the foundation of the nation, he is highly likely to agree."
He looked at his wife, his gaze sharp: "But you must understand, sending Wan Jun to the palace is not just about enjoying a life of luxury, nor is it about becoming an ordinary couple. It's a battlefield."
Huo Xian's heart tightened: "What does Master mean?"
“His Majesty is deeply in love with the Empress. Even if he is choosing a concubine out of spite, the resentment in his heart will not disappear overnight. When Wan Jun enters the palace, her primary task will not be to compete for the Emperor's favor; that is something only a fool would do.” Huo Ying’s voice was low and cold. “What she needs to do is to ‘look like’ the Emperor.”
"Similar?" Huo Xian asked, puzzled.
"Like the Empress... but not entirely like her."
A calculating glint flashed in Huo Ying's eyes. "Learn that calmness, that independence, but remove the coldness and add gentleness; emulate the lack of contention, but be more considerate. His Majesty seeks but cannot obtain. If he happens to see a substitute whose features and temperament are somewhat similar, but who is more 'sensible' and more 'needs' him than the original owner, what do you think he will do?"
Huo Xian gasped, feeling that her husband's thoughts were terrifyingly deep.
"Secondly," Huo Ying continued, "the most important thing is to produce an heir as soon as possible! No matter who His Majesty loves, if the eldest son is from the Huo family, half of the empire will be of the Huo family bloodline! At that time, will it matter whether the Empress has children or not?"
Huo Xian was deeply moved, but then a maternal worry arose: "But... but Wan Jun is a simple-minded child, and she is deeply in love with His Majesty. If she enters the palace and finds that His Majesty still has someone else in his heart, wouldn't she be heartbroken? How could she cope with the infighting in the harem?"
Huo Ying snorted coldly: "Nonsense! Now that she's entered the imperial family, what's the point of talking about petty romantic feelings? That's her fate, and the Huo family's destiny! As for infighting..." A fierce glint flashed in his eyes, "Does my Huo family's daughter fear such things? Her family will take care of everything and pave the way for her. You should teach her more often, to put away her naivety, to learn to read people's expressions, and to understand the emperor's intentions. Tell her that her tears should be shed when it's worthwhile, and for those who deserve to see them."
He stood up, walked to the window, and looked in the direction of the palace.
"Selecting concubines for the emperor is a tremendous opportunity for the Huo family, but for her personally... humph, there certainly won't be any easy days of fun and leisure. It's a life-or-death struggle for that immense wealth and power. If she succeeds, the Huo family will share in her glory; if she fails..."
Huo Ying didn't finish her sentence, but the chill in her voice was already evident.
Huo Xian shuddered. In the end, her desire for power outweighed her pity for her daughter, and she nodded emphatically: "I understand. Tomorrow I will begin to instruct Wan Jun, and I will also secretly contact several friendly wives of imperial censors..."
The lights in the Huo family mansion seemed to stay on even later.
Ling Zhan, who was at the center of the storm, seemed to be detached from it all.
She remained the same empress who went to the Ministry of Agriculture every day without fail, her skirt stained with mud, her sleeves carrying the fresh scent of grass, spending far more time with Suihe and Hong'er than in the cold, opulent palace. She seemed oblivious to Wei Jin's anger and the undercurrents within the palace, or rather, utterly indifferent.
She is observing the growth of this season's crops and recording data; these are her current "tasks"—to ensure that everyone in the world has enough to eat.
She sees this detached calmness as normalcy and focus.
In Wei Jin's eyes, however, it was utter indifference and disregard.
Finally, on this day, as she was preparing to leave the palace once again, Wei Jin stopped her on the palace road.
He dismissed everyone around him, his gaze fixed intently on her, trying to find even the slightest trace of guilt or wavering on her face, but he failed once again. The anger, heartbreak, and insomnia of the past few days had left his peach-blossom eyes bloodshot.
"Ling Zhan!"
His voice was terribly hoarse. "All you think about all day is your rice seedlings? Do you know what offspring mean to the royal family, to the court, to the world?! This isn't just your business! It's about the nation and its people! It's the foundation of the country!"
Ling Zhan stopped and looked up at him, his eyes clear and serious, as if he were analyzing a problem.
"I know."
She nodded, and based on her understanding of the rules of this world and her own situation, offered what she considered the most rational and efficient solution: "Therefore, I did not stop you. The succession of the empire requires bloodlines. If you need offspring, you can have children with someone else. I don't mind."
I don't mind.
Those four simple words, like the sharpest ice picks, instantly pierced through Wei Jin's armor, going straight to the deepest part of his heart, causing him almost numb with pain.
All his anger, resentment, unwillingness, and fear transformed into utterly absurd and laughable at this moment.
He fought against the whole world for her; yet she so easily pushed him to someone else? In her cold, detached logic, seemingly born from "the shattered stars," he, Wei Jin, the love he poured out, the marriage he cherished so dearly, could be so easily divided and transferred?
So she really... didn't care at all.
All the sounds were stuck in his throat.
Looking at the beautiful yet cold and lifeless face before him, Wei Jin suddenly felt utterly unfamiliar and utterly exhausted. A bone-chilling coldness and despair completely extinguished the last spark of light in his eyes.
He didn't want to say another word.
In the end, he simply nodded very lightly and very slowly, his eyes filled with nothing but boundless desolation and loneliness.
He turned around and walked away step by step, his back stiff and lonely, never looking back.
This time, he was truly angry.
The kind of anger that comes from being disheartened and utterly hopeless.
Ling Zhan stood there, watching his departing figure, tilting her head slightly, a faint hint of confusion, which even she herself could not understand, flashed in her eyes.
She simply provided an optimal solution based on the current situation.
She needs time to take root and nurture the star core, and cannot be distracted by nurturing the bloodline of this world.
He needs an heir. Having another suitable woman perform this task aligns with the principle of maximizing efficiency.
Why is he angry again?
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