In the courtyard.
The spring breeze carried a hint of chill, and Xia Chen's heart could not find peace.
The Empress, the most powerful existence in the "Unification" version, commanded awe across the world, subjugating the Eight Wastelands, gathering the fortune of the world, and establishing laws for all eternity!
With the fortune of unification, she built a Divine Temple, and with great ambition, she made a grand vow to the Heavenly Dao, forcibly transforming the Great Wu Dynasty into a Fortune Dynasty ahead of time, with its fortune suppressing everything within its borders.
From then on, those who were not citizens of Great Wu were considered heretics, their cultivation speed slowed, while those holding official positions in Great Wu could, depending on their rank, leverage the dynastic fortune to accelerate their cultivation.
All the heroes of the world were drawn into her net!
"This situation persisted until the 'Spiritual Energy Revival and Fusion of the Myriad Heavens' stage, when the Empress disappeared, the fortune of the Wu Dynasty collapsed, and the unification fell apart, finally freeing the heroes of the world from the suppression of Great Wu's fortune.
But once Pandora's box was opened, there was no turning back. Thereafter, every ruler of a dynasty emulated the Empress, using fortune to suppress their territories, with dynastic fortune becoming a supplement for cultivation. The higher the official rank, the faster the cultivation speed, and the ruler of the dynasty benefited the most..."
Xia Chen carefully recalled the subsequent plot. In his previous life, he had merely treated this world as a game, so he hadn't paid much attention in the early stages, skimming through much of it.
But as the "Fusion of the Myriad Heavens" version unfolded, this world became the main world, and everything became real. The players no longer had immortal bodies, and he realized something was amiss.
"I never heard of the Empress having a fiancé!"
Xia Chen shook his head, trying to deduce the current situation based on the later plot. Unfortunately, in his previous life, he had entered this world at the early stage of the "Unification" version, and no one knew what the Empress, still the Second Princess during the Wen Emperor's period, had experienced.
"No, during the unification period, Marquis Zhendong's Manor still shone brightly, producing countless talents. My younger brother Xia Hao even became a pillar of the empire, the sharpest spear in Great Wu's expansion, achieving great military success.
The Empress, with her great ambition, broke ancestral customs to make my younger brother the Prince Zhendong.
But there were rumors that my younger brother Xia Hao was made a prince not because of his military achievements, but because of a personal relationship with the Empress.
When the Empress was a hidden dragon trapped in the abyss, she was just a step away from marrying Xia Hao!
But in the end, she had a marriage contract with an ordinary son of Marquis Zhendong's Manor, who ultimately died in the coup, and after the Empress ascended the throne, the marriage contract was left unresolved..."
Xia Chen had always thought these were just rumors, believing they were slanders by those with ulterior motives against the Empress and Prince Zhendong.
But now it seemed that perhaps it was all true, that there really was a past between the Empress and Marquis Zhendong's Manor, and that ordinary son of the manor, whose name wasn't even recorded in the annals, was him—Xia Chen.
"Is my existence just a dark history, an unmentionable past that would tarnish the Empress's glorious image, so much so that I can't even have a name?"
Xia Chen laughed self-deprecatingly, but deep in his eyes, the vision of double pupils reappeared, his gaze like the merging of sun and moon, filled with strands of Chaos Qi, with a cold gleam flashing.
"So, my story ends with the coup, no wonder in my previous life I never heard of a legitimate son named Xia Chen in Marquis Zhendong's Manor, or that the dazzling imperial pillar Xia Hao had an elder brother!"
Xia Chen's expression returned to calm, like the still waters of an abyss, without the slightest ripple.
He walked into the house and dressed himself in a splendid robe. Originally, there were some maidservants in the courtyard, but after he turned twelve, the manor withdrew all of them.
It wasn't that the manor bullied him for being young, but because all the manor's sons were treated this way. Before reaching the eighth rank, martial practitioners were most wary of losing their virginity.
But martial practitioners were also full of vigor, and with beautiful maidservants around all day, it was hard to resist temptation, which could affect future prospects.
As soon as Xia Chen stepped out of the courtyard, a beautiful young woman in a green silk dress, about sixteen years old, walked gracefully towards him.
"Bizhu!"
Xia Chen recognized this woman.
"Third Young Master, the Master and Madam are calling for you."
Bizhu stopped in front of Xia Chen and bowed respectfully, not acting arrogantly like in TV dramas, looking down on this somewhat invisible young master in the manor.
"I understand!"
Xia Chen nodded and followed behind Bizhu, watching her graceful and undulating figure, feeling his blood surge, struggling to control himself. He quickly averted his gaze, having just broken through, his vigor was at its peak.
Bizhu, a maidservant by the side of the Xia family's matriarch, Cui Mengrou, who planned to assign Bizhu to Xia Chen's courtyard to take care of his daily life once he broke through to the eighth rank.
Xia Chen distracted himself by sorting out the relationships within the manor. The manor had a 600-year heritage, and currently, there were only three main branches.
The old Marquis Zhendong, Xia Chutian, though 86 years old, was still full of vigor, but now he no longer managed family or state affairs, focusing on closed-door cultivation, hoping to reach a higher realm.
The old marquis had three sons: the eldest, Xia Qia, whom Bizhu referred to as the Master; the second, Xia Yuan, Xia Chen's biological father, known as the Second Master in the manor; and the third, Xia Han.
Currently, the one managing the manor was the eldest master, Marquis Anwu, Xia Qia.
***
Xia Chen followed Bizhu through the winding outer courtyard and arrived at a hall.
As soon as he entered, he saw a stern-looking middle-aged man sitting in the main seat, and beside him, a woman in her thirties, well-maintained, with a noble and elegant demeanor.
"Uncle, Aunt!"
Xia Chen respectfully greeted them upon entering the hall.
"Little Chen, we're all family, no need for such formalities!"
Xia Qia smiled and motioned for Xia Chen to rise, and the beautiful lady beside him also spoke.
"Chen'er, it's been a while since you came to my courtyard for a meal. Have you become distant because you heard your mother is coming back?"
Cui Mengrou teased Xia Chen, her eyes full of charm, exuding the grace of a mature woman.
Cui Mengrou, the matriarch of the Xia family, had cared for Xia Chen since he was young, treating him as her own child...
To read the uncut version, go to [p𝘢wread.com].
"Aunt, I've been focused on practicing martial arts lately, so I've been neglectful!"
Xia Chen smiled as he approached and sat beside Cui Mengrou, feeling a warmth in his heart. Although his biological mother had been indifferent to him for years, pouring all her love into his younger brother, his uncle and aunt had treated him well, never looking down on him for his natural handicap. He had grown up in the manor without much grievance, thanks to the care of Xia Qia and Cui Mengrou.
Hearing Xia Chen say he was diligently practicing martial arts, Xia Qia and Cui Mengrou's expressions darkened, both sighing inwardly.
A natural handicap could practice martial arts, but it was difficult to achieve much in this lifetime. Even with a hundred times the effort of ordinary people, the gains were still minimal.
Xia Qia and Cui Mengrou asked Xia Chen if he needed anything else, and the three of them chatted warmly, like a family.
"Your father has made great contributions in the Eastern Wasteland, and the emperor has granted a marriage, betrothing the Second Princess to you. Are you aware of this? What do you think about it?"
After the pleasantries, Xia Qia got to the point.
"I just found out!" Xia Chen nodded, his eyes serious.
"Is there any room for negotiation on this matter?"
Xia Chen didn't want to marry a princess. To outsiders, marrying a princess was a great honor, but for the manor or Xia Chen himself, it was merely icing on the cake, and could even be somewhat restrictive.
Especially since that person was the future Empress, he definitely couldn't marry her!
***
["When the Emperor was young, his martial talent was lacking, so his parents were not very close to him. His parents went to war and did not return home for fourteen years, with letters rarely arriving, leaving the Emperor feeling quite neglected.
At the age of four, the Emperor lived alone within the clan, but fortunately, his uncle and aunt treated him as their own child, nurturing him with great care until he grew up."]
—The Xia Chronicles, Volume 1, Taizu Emperor's Annals
Proofreader & Editor: Peter Pan