I became the tyrant's only belief.

Chapter 526 I Must Not Be Nervous

The dark bed curtains hung down, and the candlelight was dimmed.

The luminous jewels in the box by the bedside shone brightly, enveloping this small world.

Chu Liuzheng lay flat on the pillow, clutching the cool blanket with both hands, pondering whether it was better to take the initiative or be passive.

Just then, a voice came from beside me, "Are you nervous?"

"No," Chu Liuzheng denied decisively.

[You can lose anything but face. It's just consummating the marriage; you've been sleeping together for so long, you can't be nervous.]

Xiao Jingfan, who had been listening in the background for a long time, couldn't help but chuckle softly and reach out to pull the person into his arms.

The familiar sandalwood scent, the familiar embrace—Chu Liuzheng leaned in naturally, blinking rapidly a few times.

Wait, wait, wait! I haven't decided yet whether to take the initiative or be passive!

Can someone give me a coin?!

"Cough." Xiao Jingfan tried his best to suppress his laughter, hugged the person and patted him, "Go to sleep, a few more days won't make a difference."

Chu Liuzheng: ?

She looked up at the emperor, "You're not good enough?"

Xiao Jingfan: "..."

Xiao Jingfan: "..."

Realizing he had said something offhand, Chu Liuzheng quickly tried to cover it up, "You're really something, look into my sincere eyes."

Xiao Jingfan: "It's too late."

A hand slipped under the quilt, lifting the hem of the nightgown and slipping inside. Warm palms pressed against smooth skin, caressing the slender white waist for a moment before moving downwards, pinching the rounded curves.

Chu Liuzheng's pupils contracted, and he grabbed the unruly hand with his own. "Wait."

"Hmm?" A sound slowly escaped from his nose. Without the fabric between them, the smooth touch on his hand made His Majesty's eyes darken.

Feeling the heat from a certain spot, Chu Liuzheng wished he could slap himself for saying the emperor was no good just a few breaths ago.

Isn't this just asking for trouble?

She took a shallow breath, held the emperor's hand, tilted her head back, and kissed his thin lips.

Temptation.

Dancing together.

Sink.

His breathing gradually picked up and then subsided.

With his superb skills, Chu Liuzheng successfully rescued himself from the dragon's mouth.

Xiao Jingfan pulled the person into his arms, inhaling the delicate fragrance of jasmine, his voice low and husky, "On our wedding day, you just wait."

Chu Liuzheng silently tied her sash, not daring to flirt with him at all.

Honestly, the emperor's madness just now terrified her.

She even considered saying, "Maybe we should stop waiting and do it now." Otherwise, if she had to make up for five years' worth of work in one night, she was afraid she would be ruined.

But when she thought about the consequences of saying "no" earlier, she silently swallowed her words and even began to consider the possibility of running away from the wedding.

If I run away from the wedding, the tyrant will...

Before he could finish thinking, he was interrupted. Xiao Jingfan asked, "What are you thinking about?"

"I want to sleep." Chu Liuzheng inexplicably sensed a danger in the emperor's calm tone, and had the feeling that she had been caught before she could even escape. Her heart pounded, and she took the initiative to tilt her head up and kiss Xiao Jingfan's chin. "It's getting late, go to sleep. You have to go to court tomorrow."

"Mmm." Xiao Jingfan lowered his head and touched her lips, then pulled her into his arms like a dragon guarding a treasure, and closed his eyes. Chu Liuzheng was also tired, and didn't take the fleeting thought from earlier seriously. She turned her head and leaned against the emperor's chest, falling into a deep sleep.

The scents of jasmine and sandalwood mingled, their breathing even, and they slept soundly through the night.

*
The following day at the court assembly, the Grand Tutor stepped forward and requested the Emperor, for the sake of the country and its people, to establish Lady Chu, the Phoenix Maiden, as Empress. All the officials agreed.

The emperor gladly agreed and made Lady Chu his empress.

To show his respect for the Empress, the Emperor ordered the Imperial Astronomical Bureau to select an auspicious day to hold a belated wedding ceremony for the Emperor and Empress and to offer sacrifices to Heaven.

After the court session ended, Zhou Yuande personally delivered a scroll of imperial edict to the Chu residence.

"By the grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: Empress Chu, whose virtue is as firm as a woman's, has rendered meritorious service to the nation. I am grateful for her virtue and extend my favor to her family."

Er Chuqin, originally a farmer, was simple, kind, and virtuous. He was an excellent father and mother, a true role model for the clan. He is hereby granted the title of Marquis of Ping Le, a hereditary title. Your wife, Lady Bai, is gentle, virtuous, and possesses inner beauty and talent. She is hereby granted the title of Lady of the Second Rank.

"I hope you will all accept this honor and enjoy your privileges, and not fail my grace. This proclamation is hereby issued, so that all within and outside the capital may know. So be it!"

Marquis?

Chu Qin was so shocked that he almost lost his footing. Reminded by Zhou Yuande, he tremblingly stretched out his hand and said, "Your subject receives the decree. I kowtow to thank Your Majesty for your great grace. Long live the Emperor!"

Lady Bai followed up, saying, "Thank you for your great kindness, Your Majesty! Long live the Emperor!"

Zhou Yuande stepped forward and helped the two up. Chu Yuxin jumped up on her own, took her parents' arms on either side, and said happily, "Eunuch Zhou, my sister really became the Empress?"

Zhou Yuande nodded, crossed his hands, and bowed to Chu Qin and Madam Bai, saying, "Congratulations, Your Excellency and Madam."

Bai quickly gave him a large red envelope and even wanted to invite the fat old man to stay for dinner.

Zhou Yuande politely declined, saying, "Thank you for your kindness, Madam, but I must return to the palace to report back, so I will not stay any longer."

Chu Qin said, "I'll see Father-in-law out."

The plaque of the Chu Mansion at the entrance was removed and replaced with an imperial gold plaque inscribed with the four characters "Ping Le Marquis Mansion".

Wow, the firecrackers my family set off like that, Dad probably brought out the whole store's inventory.

Inside a side hall of the Wenhua Hall, Chu Liuzheng, who had just been crowned Empress, lay on a soft pillow as usual, seemingly lost in thought, but actually browsing the system gossip.

She is currently unable to leave the palace and can only check on her family's situation through the system.

Oh my god, the crowds of people coming to congratulate me are overwhelming, it's comparable to when they found out I was a phoenix girl! I'm going to have to host several banquets! Luckily, the threshold of my house is made of sturdy material, otherwise it would have been trampled flat.

[Frog! They've given away so much lucky money! Is this really my mother who used to be so stingy with every penny?]

[Huh? There's a matchmaker among the congratulatory people. Let me see, one, two, three, four, five, five in total, fewer than when they found out I was a phoenix girl last time.]

[Hmm... three are matchmakers for my eldest brother, and two are matchmakers for Xin'er.]

[Over the years, my elder brother has been wholeheartedly following King Xiao in promoting tax reform, and has never thought about getting married. This has made our parents extremely anxious. If they weren't always away from him, they probably would have dragged him to blind dates.]

Chu Liuzheng glanced at the information of the three families who had invited matchmakers to their homes and secretly shook his head.

[Tsk tsk, they're all outwardly glamorous but inwardly filthy, eager to climb the social ladder. No good. Given my family's situation, I still need to find my older brother a girl whose family relationships aren't so complicated.]

[Pfft—Hahaha!! Xin'er's sharp tongue left the two matchmakers who had arranged her marriage speechless, and they slunk away.]

Serves you right for talking nonsense. Your conscience is completely blackened for that little bit of money.

These two young masters, one lustful and the other a gambler, are only held together by their family backgrounds and are reasonably good-looking. They might fool others, but Xin'er, having spent years at Lan Hui Academy and mingling with the elite young ladies of the capital, knows every family's situation inside and out. How could she possibly be fooled?

[That said, Xin'er is seventeen now. Her parents want to keep her for a couple more years, but they can't keep putting it off indefinitely.]

Chu Liuzheng decided to talk to his younger sister tomorrow to see what that girl was thinking.

If you don't want to get married, there's no rush. But if you do want to get married, you should start looking for someone while you're of marriageable age and get engaged within the next couple of years. If you delay any longer, all the eligible young men will be taken. You can't just settle for someone unattractive, can you?

(End of this chapter)