The Empress’ Livestream

“Father, you mean my little sister…?” Jiang Pengji looked down to avoid hurting Liu She’s pride.

“That’s the story of my generation. I’ll tell you everything when it comes to an end.” Liu She stroked her hair and said softly, “I don’t want the dirty tricks to leave a mark in your heart.”

“So you agreed to let my sister marry Wuma Jun in order to avenge my mother?” asked Jiang Pengji. She then pondered, If that was the case, the little sister must have a special background.

“Yes, and this is crucial.” Suddenly, Liu She smiled coldly, his eyes as dark as a freezing lake. “My plan was to do it some years later, but since Wuma Jun has asked for it himself, I have no objection. I wonder how that person would react! The price must be paid for hurting Gu Min!”

Jiang Pengji asked, “Who’s that?”

Liu She avoided answering her and only said, “I told you I don’t want to get you involved. I know what your ambition should be. You have a much greater goal than I do. Let me take care of the revenge part while you fight for the land.”

“But…” She suspected that Liu She was hiding some critical facts from her.

“If you really want to do something for your mother, promise me one thing.” His body inclined and he whispered the words like an oath. “You must be the one who wins the throne. Don’t let anyone else to take what should belong to you.”

His words touched Jiang Pengji’s heart. Liu She had never talked about it so blatantly, despite their last visit to Master Liaochen.

She asked in an equally low voice, “Will the one who hurt my mother be competing with me?”

Liu She did not know much about it and thus could not give a clear answer. All he could say was, “I don’t know, but nothing will go wrong as long as you become the Emperor. No matter what that person thinks, you will certainly win. But remember—what I’ve said tonight must be kept a secret. Don’t mention a word of it, even in your dreams.”

Looking at the solemn man, Jiang Pengji was influenced to treat the topic more seriously.

Liu She added ironically, “That’s merely a woman who gets what she wants by entertaining men. How can she be compared to you?”

A woman? Jiang Pengji’s eyes widened a little. She thought they had been talking about a man.

Liu She stopped talking about the subject. His daughter was too clever. The more he spoke, the more clues she would find about his past, and he did not want to reveal it at the moment. She was not strong enough to bear the weight of the story, and he would protect her until she became a powerful player of the game.

He could wait; he had already waited for years. All his efforts would be worth it as long as he could see that woman’s corpse before he died.

“So your sister will get married,” he said with cruelty.

Jiang Pengji was not so caring as to speak for the mysterious sister. “But didn’t you say that Wuma Jun wants to marry Jingxian? Will he marry both?”

Liu She replied, “That’s his own business. Neither your ‘sister’ nor the daughter of the Wei’s will be his concubine, so he must pick his wife. If he marries your ‘sister’ without canceling the agreement with the Wei’s, I don’t think he would be able to walk out of Hejian.”

No house would tolerate an engaged man holding a marriage agreement with their legitimate daughter.

“Still, are the Wei’s fine with this? My tie with Jingxian ended, and then Wuma Jun changed his mind because of my ‘sister.’ Although he’s never made his intentions clear, a lot of people expect that he will propose to Jingxian in the near future.”

Liu She was surprised by her consideration. She never seemed to care about such matters.

“That’s no big deal. The Wei’s have never admitted the engagement either. They can just say the others are mistaken.” He hinted, “Besides, have you forgotten that they have found another ideal match for her? It’s a youngster from a similarly eminent background who is much more promising.”

“You mean Feng Jin?” She could only think of her friend.

“He’s the second langjun from the Feng’s, and his father is Dongqing’s Secretary Chief. On the contrary, Wuma Jun is the most unpopular prince in royalty, and he is, in fact, a somehow upsetting choice for the esteemed Wei’s.”

Jiang Pengji had not expected such a dramatic change. “Can this happen?”

“Why not?” Liu She assured her. “Marriage is about two families, and appropriate matches are always welcomed.”

“…”

“The only problem is your friendship with Feng Jin. He may not like your past with Wei Jingxian.”

No one would be happy about marrying the ex-fiancée of his friend. Although Feng Jin understood that nothing had happened between them, Liu She supposed he would be unhappy about it in some ways. What if Liu Xi visited Feng Jin in the future and met his wife? Wouldn’t Feng Jin be cautious about Liu Xi?

All Jiang Pengji could think was, Bullsh*t. In a time when being gay was significantly less common, what would people think about her and Wei Jingxian?

Liu She did not know that Feng Jin had long ago learned about Jiang Pengji’s gender. His worries may have taken place between other friends in a similar situation, but not between Feng Jin and her.

Thus, Jiang Pengji said, “Oh, don’t worry. Huaiyu is different.”

Her concern was Wei Jingxian’s feelings. If the two were going to get married, she had to keep a safe distance from Feng Jin to avoid any misunderstandings. But at the moment, everything was still uncertain.

Liu She agreed. “Feng Huaiyu is impressive, indeed!”

Unfortunately, his family background meant that he would eventually become Jiang Pengji’s rival––unless he could watch her compete for the throne without getting in her way.