Chapter 131

Chapter 131: A Sudden Upheaval at the Wedding Banquet On the day of the wedding banquet, the officials of the Ye Kingdom gathered in the imperial palace. They hurried there one after another to congratulate Chu Chaoci on taking a new Empress. Since Ling Jiayue had come from Dayi, this union between two kingdoms was especially grand. Ling Jiayue was still dressing when the bridal attendants brought out brightly colored rouge and prepared to apply it to her face. Ling Jiayue stopped them and said, “I have never liked such vivid colors. All of you may withdraw. There is no need to apply makeup for me. I can do it myself.” The bridal attendants had never encountered a bride like this before, and they exchanged bewildered glances. Ling Jiayue’s tone darkened. “What? Can I no longer give you orders? Even if I am not yet the Empress of the Ye Kingdom, I am still a general of Dayi. Has no one been listening to me anymore?” The bridal attendants lowered their heads and hurriedly pleaded for forgiveness. “This servant would never dare. Please pardon us. We shall withdraw at once.” After saying this, they all retreated. Ling Jiayue removed the bright red wedding robe she was wearing and changed into mourning clothes. Without applying any makeup, she murmured to herself, “Father, Older Brother, and my brothers of the Liuhuo Army—I am going to avenge you.” At that moment, Cheese Lord knocked on the door. “Master, are you there?” “I am. Come in,” Ling Jiayue replied. Cheese Lord opened the door and entered, bowing to her. “Master, I have something to report.” “Go ahead. What is it?” “I have already contacted Lu Sheng and the others, and the soldiers at the banquet have been deployed as well. Everything is ready. We are only waiting for Chu Chaoci now,” Cheese Lord said. “You have done well. Go and continue making the arrangements. The closer we get to the crucial moment, the more vigilant we must remain. Whether this succeeds or fails will be decided today. We must succeed—failure is not an option.” Ling Jiayue’s gaze was resolute. Seeing Ling Jiayue dressed in mourning clothes without a trace of makeup, Cheese Lord naturally understood how important this matter was to her. He assured her, “Master, please rest easy. I will see this through and will not allow anything to go wrong at the critical moment.” “I trust you to handle things. Go. I will make my preparations and then head to the banquet as well.” Cheese Lord rose and left to make the necessary arrangements. Ling Jiayue put the bright red wedding robe over her plain white mourning clothes, then sat quietly in the room, waiting for the appointed time. Before long, Mu Yuheng arrived. “Yue’er, we should be going to the banquet. The wedding banquet is about to begin.” Ling Jiayue rose abruptly. “All right. Let’s go.” Mu Yuheng placed the bridal veil over Ling Jiayue’s head and supported her as they made their way to the banquet. Looking at the beautiful woman beside him, he could not help saying, “Yue’er, I truly wish you could marry me like this.” With the bridal veil over her head, Ling Jiayue replied, “There is no hurry. We can discuss that after we deal with Chu Chaoci. Let’s go to the banquet first.” Mu Yuheng supported Ling Jiayue as they walked step by step toward the wedding banquet. There, Chu Chaoci stood in a wedding robe, quietly waiting for Ling Jiayue’s arrival. After a long while, she finally appeared, and he looked exceptionally pleased. Chu Chaoci took the initiative to grasp Ling Jiayue’s hand and led her toward the center of the banquet. Thus, Chu Chaoci and Ling Jiayue arrived at the center of the banquet. Both wore wedding robes, making them look like a perfect match. Chu Chaoci signaled to the master of ceremonies that the wedding could begin, and the master of ceremonies immediately took charge of the rites. The master of ceremonies announced loudly, “May the newlyweds pay their respects to Heaven and Earth!” Chu Chaoci bowed as instructed, but Ling Jiayue remained utterly motionless, like a statue. The master of ceremonies quietly reminded her, “Empress, it is time to pay your respects to Heaven and Earth.” Upon hearing this, Ling Jiayue suddenly tore off her bridal veil. Beneath it, she wore no makeup whatsoever and had none of a bride’s festive appearance. She then removed the wedding robe covering her mourning clothes, revealing the white garments beneath. Chu Chaoci and all the princes, nobles, and ministers were completely stunned by her actions. Chu Chaoci said furiously, “Empress, today is the joyous day of our wedding. Why are you behaving like this? You agreed to marry me, so you must constantly conduct yourself as an Empress should. Today, your reckless actions have brought shame upon the dignity of the Ye Kingdom. Even I cannot forgive you for this.” Ling Jiayue merely let out a cold laugh. “Chu Chaoci, today is a special day, but it is not a joyous one. Have you truly forgotten who I am? Can you face the dead of the Ling family and the soldiers of the Liuhuo Army with a clear conscience? Have their spirits never come looking for you at night? Today, we shall properly settle the debts of the past!” Seeing Ling Jiayue dredge up old grievances, Chu Chaoci said, “Ling Jiayue, the past need not be brought up again. By marrying you today, I have already chosen not to hold your former transgressions against you. I hope you will recognize the situation and refrain from doing something so humiliating. Today, if you obediently go through with the marriage, I will pretend this never happened.” As he spoke, Chu Chaoci moved toward Ling Jiayue, attempting to restrain her. At that moment, Mu Yuheng appeared and stepped in front of her. “Sovereign of Ye Kingdom, since General Ling has matters to settle with you, why not let her finish speaking?” he said. Seeing that he could not touch Ling Jiayue for the moment, Chu Chaoci cast a glance at Grand General Murong. Murong Xi nodded and went to mobilize the troops. Cheese Lord witnessed everything and likewise went to mobilize the soldiers, detaining Murong Xi so that Chu Chaoci would have no reinforcements. Chu Chaoci knew nothing of this. He still believed that Murong Xi would certainly bring the soldiers back, and merely stood there watching Ling Jiayue. Dressed in mourning clothes, Ling Jiayue recounted Chu Chaoci’s many crimes to the assembled officials, including how he had killed the loyal Ling Family Army in the past. Only after hearing Ling Jiayue’s words did the Ye Kingdom’s officials realize that the former Empress had returned. They also learned that Chu Chaoci was, in fact, such a cold and heartless ruler. The officials became enraged, and the former ministers whom Ling Jiayue had contacted in advance began shouting, “Chu Chaoci is a venomous, treacherous man! Make Chu Chaoci abdicate the throne!” Seeing that he could no longer control the situation, Chu Chaoci grew anxious. He continued waiting for Murong Xi to return with the soldiers and capture Ling Jiayue and the others. At that moment, Cheese Lord brought in Murong Xi, bound tightly from head to toe, and threw him down in front of Chu Chaoci. With a mocking smile, he asked, “Sovereign of Ye Kingdom, are you looking for him?” Seeing Murong Xi bound like a dumpling and realizing that the officials no longer obeyed him, Chu Chaoci understood that the tide had turned. He had no cards left to play. In despair, he said, “Ling Jiayue, you have already ruined my reputation and left me disgraced. Are you still unwilling to let me go?” “Chu Chaoci, if you had been willing to spare the Ling family and the Liuhuo Army back then, I would not have gone this far today. You brought all of this upon yourself. I will have someone cut out your tongue, blind one of your eyes, and cripple the tendons in your hands and feet. You can spend the rest of your life living like that.” Ling Jiayue paused, then continued in a gentle, quiet voice, “Of course, when you are hungry, someone will feed you. When you are thirsty, someone will give you water. From this day forward, you will be the Retired Emperor of the Ye Kingdom. You can watch carefully as the Ye Kingdom flourishes and grows stronger in my hands.” “You are ruthless!” Chu Chaoci spat viciously. Ling Jiayue smiled radiantly and had Cheese Lord take Chu Chaoci away. After calming the officials, Ling Jiayue ordered the banquet to continue. There was only one reason for this: she wanted everyone to know that Ling Jiayue had returned.