I've announced that I'm destined to have many children, and my father has bestowed upon me

Jixia Academy, Shuanghua Palace.

This is the secluded retreat of the saintess Liu Ruoshuang, usually shrouded in mist and quiet, like a fairyland.

But today, the fairyland is no more.

"Holy Maiden, please reconsider! You must not marry into this family!"

"A mere dynasty, a notorious and useless prince—what right does he have to marry you, especially as a concubine! This is an utter disgrace!"

"We implore the Dean to intervene and reject this absurd imperial decree!"

"Fight! Fight! Fight! What is there for the Jixia Academy to fear in a battle!"

Outside Shuanghua Palace, there was a huge crowd.

Countless disciples dressed in academy robes surrounded the place, their young faces filled with anger and resentment.

They regarded the saintess as the pride of the academy, as the bright moon in the sky, and could not tolerate her being defiled by a peasant from a mortal dynasty!

The crowd was in a frenzy, their shouts reaching the heavens, almost lifting the roof off Shuanghua Palace.

Inside the quiet chamber deep within the palace, Liu Ruoshuang, whom countless people were concerned about, remained seated cross-legged.

She wore a simple white dress, her black hair cascaded down her back, and her beauty was unparalleled. A faint Taoist aura emanated from her, shutting out all the noise and clamor of the outside world.

She was cultivating herself, her mind as still as water, as if everything outside was irrelevant to her.

"Bang!"

The door to the quiet room was suddenly pushed open with tremendous force.

A fiery red figure rushed in, bringing with it a fragrant breeze and a bellyful of anger.

"Ruoshuang! How...how can you still keep practicing?!"

The visitor was Bai Xiao, Liu Ruoshuang's close friend.

Seeing Liu Ruoshuang's expressionless face, she stamped her feet in frustration.

"The whole place is in an uproar! All the fellow disciples in the academy are practically ready to go to war with the Great Zhou Dynasty for you, and you, the one in question, are acting like nothing's wrong!"

Liu Ruoshuang slowly opened her eyes, which were clear and cold without any impurities. She simply glanced indifferently at the sulking Bai Xiao.

She shook her head slightly and uttered a few words.

"I am the Holy Maiden of the Academy."

Bai Xiao was taken aback by this seemingly random statement, and then became even angrier.

"That's right! You are the Holy Maiden of the Academy! The future successor, a chosen one of heaven! So you absolutely cannot marry that useless prince as a concubine!"

"I have enjoyed the academy's top-notch resources for ten years. Now that the academy is in trouble, I naturally want to do my part for its safety."

Liu Ruoshuang's tone was calm and even, as if she were stating a very simple fact.

"Exerting effort? Is this what you call exerting effort?"

Bai Xiao was almost laughing in exasperation. She rushed up to Liu Ruoshuang and lowered her voice, but her anxiety was still palpable.

"This is clearly a political marriage! You're just a sacrifice! They're treating you like merchandise, sending you out to appease the emperor's anger! This isn't fair!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Ruoshuang shook her head again.

A complex emotion, barely perceptible to others, surfaced on that aloof and stunningly beautiful face.

"There's no such thing as fairness or unfairness. The Jixia Academy is independent of the dynasty, attracting talents from all over the world, yet it is not subject to any imperial control, which is a major taboo."

"In the past, the Great Zhou royal family was weak and the monarchs of successive dynasties were mediocre, so they could tolerate the increasing prosperity of the academy and even have to rely on us."

"But things are different now."

Liu Ruoshuang stood up, walked to the window, and looked out at her fellow disciples who were indignant on her behalf through the hazy window curtain.

"The academy factions in the court have become increasingly rampant, and the Great Zhou Emperor is clearly not a man without ambition. This conflict was only a matter of time."

"I'm marrying him simply to make this day more respectable for everyone."

Bai Xiao listened blankly. She couldn't understand these intricate court politics, nor did she want to.

All she knew was that her best friend was about to be pushed into a fire pit!

"I don't care! Are we just going to let it go like this? To protect the academy, you're willing to sacrifice your entire life's happiness?"

Her eyes welled up with tears.

"Besides, hasn't the old dean already broken through to the Dragon Transformation Realm? That's a Dragon Transformation Realm expert!"

"Even if we refuse this imperial decree of marriage, what can the Emperor of Great Zhou do? Does he really dare to mobilize a large army and march on our Jixia Academy?"

"He's really capable."

Liu Ruoshuang's resolute answer shattered all of Bai Xiao's fantasies.

She turned around and looked at her friend intently.

"He not only has the ability, but also the right reasons, and he has the moral high ground."

"It's those senior brothers in the imperial court who went too far."

"They always thought it was an honor to be a graduate of the academy, interfered in the affairs of the world, and even tried to manipulate the princes to seize the throne and support the monarch they preferred to ascend to the throne."

Liu Ruoshuang's words became sharp.

"They forgot that the moment they stepped into the imperial court and became officials of the Great Zhou, they were no longer free and undisciplined students."

"Those in positions of power should fulfill their duties. They should be dedicated to serving the people of that land and the monarch above them."

"But what about them? They're still thinking about the interests of the academy, the factional struggles, and the power in their hands."

"Ultimately, this is a problem with our academy's training system, and it is also the inevitable disaster that will arise from the academy's independence from the dynasty."

These words left Bai Xiao completely stunned.

She never imagined that the problem actually stemmed from the academy itself.

But she still refused to give up, clinging to the last glimmer of hope.

"Even if... even if everything you're saying is right, what good will it do you if you marry him?"

"The Great Zhou Emperor's ambitions won't disappear just because of you. This only postpones the conflict; it's a band-aid solution!"

"right."

Liu Ruoshuang readily admitted it.

"I'm just trying to treat the symptoms."

She walked up to Bai Xiao and gently patted her shoulder.

"The old dean had long seen the problems within the academy, but they were deeply entrenched and difficult to change, and it would take time to do so."

"The time I gained by marrying him is enough for him to resolve everything."

Liu Ruoshuang's gaze was distant, as if she could see through the palace walls and see the future of the Jixia Academy.

"The academy needs to be reformed; it needs a top-down transformation."

"We also need to tell all the younger students that the purpose of their years of hard study and academic achievements is not to be high above others and give orders about the world."

"It's not so much to stoop down and serve all living beings!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the entire quiet room fell silent.

Bai Xiao stared blankly at Liu Ruoshuang, at her face that, though incredibly young, seemed to bear an immense burden.

She suddenly understood.

This is not a sacrifice.

This is a high-stakes gamble, a gamble that risks the lifelong happiness of the Holy Maiden in exchange for a glimmer of hope for the entire Jixia Academy!

A wave of immense sadness and helplessness washed over Bai Xiao. She opened her mouth, her throat dry, and it took her a long time to manage to squeeze out a few words.

"And what about you?"

Liu Ruoshuang remained calm.

"I'll marry him!"

"Marriage is a matter of worldly custom!"