The banquet was set at the Fufeng Terrace in the Imperial Garden. As the guests took their seats, Fu Yu was guided by a palace attendant to the first table at the head of the banquet. The table was long, seating two people. Fu Yu shifted slightly to the side, pulling her wide skirt closer to avoid encroaching on the neighboring seat.
She thought to herself that the person next to her would likely be another princess or prince. After all, the seats at the head of the banquet were prestigious and generally assigned according to status.
Before long, the attendant led another person over and seated them beside her.
But why was it not another princess or prince sitting beside her, but Qing Yao?
Still, this was even better!
Fu Yu was inwardly thrilled. As the attendant went to attend to other guests, she leaned over to greet Qing Yao: “Senior Sister.”
Qing Yao gave a slight nod in acknowledgment.
Once all the guests were seated, the banquet began. Amidst the melodies of strings and pipes, wine cups clinked, and songs and dances filled the air.
Fu Yu watched the performances absentmindedly for a while and ate two pieces of pastry before turning her gaze back to Qing Yao, who was sipping tea.
Qing Yao sat upright beside her, her gaze fixed on a spot not far away.
“Senior Sister, why are you here three hundred years in the past?” Taking advantage of the surrounding noise to mask their conversation, Fu Yu voiced her confusion.
Qing Yao turned to look at her: “Then why are you here?”
Fu Yu hesitated: “I… I… You probably wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”
Qing Yao said, “Try me.”
Fu Yu lowered her head as if she had done something wrong: “I… I was practicing soul extraction, separating my soul to wander around the sect. But then I accidentally bumped into the jade pendant at your waist.” Fu Yu was quite impressed with her own ability to fabricate and twist the truth, managing to disguise her act of spying so seamlessly.
Qing Yao scoffed: “You? Practicing soul extraction?”
Fu Yu felt the disdain of an expert toward a novice. This technique was usually only attempted by cultivators who had reached the Golden Core stage, daring to separate their souls to explore the world. For a junior disciple like her, who had just built her foundation, to attempt such an advanced technique was like a kindergarten child trying to solve quadratic equations.
Fu Yu forced a dry laugh: “Haha, I know my cultivation level isn’t up to par, but that doesn’t stop me from being eager to learn.”
Qing Yao shook her head with a mix of disappointment and frustration: “If one day you go down the mountain alone to train…” She left the rest of the sentence unfinished.
But Fu Yu, ever quick-witted, completed it for her: “Don’t worry, Sect Leader, I won’t say I’m from the Guiyu Sect. I’ll say I’m from the Cangshan Sect.”
The Guiyu Sect and the Cangshan Sect had always been at odds. Hearing such a devious frame-up, Qing Yao seemed somewhat satisfied and gave a slight nod.
Fu Yu breathed a quiet sigh of relief, having successfully muddled through. She didn’t forget to turn the question back to Qing Yao: “And why did you enter the jade, Senior Sister?”
Qing Yao answered casually and simply: “It’s my jade. I can enter it whenever I want.”
Fu Yu was speechless, but it did seem to make sense.
The two sat together, exchanging words back and forth, appearing quite harmonious. Yet, to others, this harmony seemed strange and unusual.
At first, Fu Yu didn’t notice, but at some point, everyone’s eyes had turned toward them. The looks in their eyes were as if they were witnessing something bizarre and extraordinary.
Good heavens! Snow in summer, scorching heat in winter, ice and fire coexisting in harmony. Qing Yao and Princess Zhao Hua sitting together, what kind of eerie, otherworldly scene was this?
From one of the tables, a noble lady covered her mouth as she whispered to her companion, “See? I told you, those romance novels don’t lie. The protagonists in those angsty, dramatic love stories are always like this: unpredictable, one moment wanting to kill you, the next pulling you into an embrace. Doesn’t the princess remind you of that ‘mad beauty’ we were obsessed with recently? Tsk, tsk, a mad beauty and an aloof fairy. Somehow, this pair of star-crossed lovers is suddenly becoming quite captivating, don’t you think?”
Her companion, arms crossed in her sleeves, replied, “Shipping couples can be niche, but it shouldn’t be downright bizarre.”
The noble lady scoffed, unwilling to continue the conversation. She grabbed a handful of melon seeds and began munching on them while continuing to “ship” the couple with fervent interest.
It wasn’t just the audience below who were invested in the pairing, even the Emperor and Empress seated at the head of the hall cast affectionate glances toward Fu Yu and Qing Yao. After a moment, they exchanged knowing looks.
The Emperor remarked, “The sun must have risen from the west today.”
The Empress nodded, “Indeed. Zhao Hua is finally showing a hint of her true feelings. That Scholar Li from before was far too wooden, but Qing Yao…”
The Emperor raised an eyebrow, “Qing Yao barely even smiles, isn’t that just as dull?”
The Empress chided him, “What do you know? That’s called an ethereal, transcendent aura. The key is that she’s beautiful, I’ve always thought highly of Qing Yao.”
The Emperor chuckled, “Do you think I don’t know? You’ve always been one to judge by appearances. If I had been even slightly less handsome back in the day, you probably would’ve refused the position of Empress and eloped with that dashing childhood friend of yours, your handsome cousin.”
The Empress glared at him, “Why bring me into this? Tired of living? Be careful, or I’ll make the mighty dragon shrink to the size of a worm right here in front of everyone.”
The Emperor shrank back but tried to hide it by picking up his wine cup and taking a deliberate sip.
When Fu Yu realized that everyone was watching them, it suddenly dawned on her, she had once again strayed from Princess Zhao Hua’s established character.
But then it occurred to her: this was the Realm of Fusheng, where everything and everyone was an illusion, like a dream.
With that thought, she grew bolder. Since it was all fake, she had no reason to care about anyone except Qing Yao.
So, she turned to Qing Yao and asked, “Senior Sister, when are you planning to return?”
Qing Yao replied, “I’m not sure. What about you?”
Fu Yu sighed dejectedly, “Hey, when you leave, could you take me with you? I can’t get out on my own.”
Qing Yao glanced at her, “Why not?”
Just as Fu Yu was about to explain her encounter with the Jade Spirit, her throat suddenly felt as if it were being squeezed. She broke into a fit of coughing, unable to utter a single word.
At that moment, a voice echoed in her ear: “You cannot tell her.” Fu Yu recognized it as the Jade Spirit’s voice. “If she knows, she will become guarded, and you will fail in planting the seed of love.”
Fu Yu had no choice but to abandon the idea.
Seeing her cough so violently, Qing Yao handed her a cup of water. Fu Yu took it and gulped it down.
After a while, she finally calmed down. Noticing that Qing Yao was still waiting for an answer, she mumbled evasively, “I’ve tried everything, but no matter what spell I use, I can’t get out. I keep teleporting around, but I’m still stuck within the Fusheng Realm. There’s just no way.”
Qing Yao nodded thoughtfully, “Alright, I understand. When it’s time to leave, we’ll go together.”
“Mm-hmm, I’ll wait for you, Senior Sister,” Fu Yu said obediently.
“Also,” Qing Yao added, “your magic conflicts with the energy of this realm. If used improperly, it could destabilize the realm’s power, and you would suffer the backlash.”
Fu Yu felt a flicker of worry. “Then what about before…”
“It’s fine. The simple spells you used earlier weren’t enough to destabilize the minor realm. Just remember to be cautious from now on.”
…
As the two sat there chatting back and forth, they remained unaware that the Empress seated at the head of the table had already mentally selected their wedding attire, while the Emperor had mentally stamped his seal on the marriage decree in his mind.
Truth be told, they had always been fond of Qing Yao, she was beautiful, sensible, talented, and most importantly, came from an aristocratic family known for its integrity. In the past, when Zhao Hua acted immaturely and constantly picked fights with her, they secretly thought the two bickered like a quarrelsome yet destined couple, though admittedly, it was mainly Zhao Hua causing the commotion.
Since they were already like a bickering pair, why not resolve it sooner rather than let it fester?
Thus, after the banquet concluded, Fu Yu was summoned to the Empress’s chambers.
The Empress cut straight to the point: “How about having Qing Yao marry you?”
Having been an academic underachiever in her modern life who barely scraped into college, Fu Yu was unfamiliar with the term “marrying into royalty.” Her first interpretation was… “mount.”
Have Qing Yao mount me?
Fu Yu’s face paled in horror. What was wrong with this Empress? How could she discuss such matters with her daughter without even censoring her language?