MLIAM Chapter 106

Chapter 106: Becoming Empress

Yu Shuli’s body jolted, his eyes blazing with anger, “If you dare touch him, I’ll make sure you suffer a fate worse than death!”

“Already have.” Wanyan Jun curled his lips, “I’m no longer afraid of curses like a fate worse than death. Compared to that, I care more about whether I can spend a night of passion with you.”

Yu Shuli gave Wanyan Jun a complicated look, “You truly aren’t human.”

Wanyan Jun endured his insult and asked again, “So, can you answer me now? This Empress position, will you take it, or won’t you?”

Yu Shuli clenched his teeth tightly, his tongue seeming to taste the metallic tang of blood.

Wanyan Jun grabbed his chin, forcing him to look up and meet his eyes, “Of course you will choose to save him. Every moment you hesitate, he suffers another moment of pain. Wei Yan… is good at enduring. He definitely hasn’t told you anything. Probably, even when he’s turned to pus, he’ll tell you he’s fine…”

“Shut up!” Yu Shuli interrupted him, closing his eyes, his voice trembling, “How can you guarantee you’ll give him the antidote? You hate him so much, you must want him dead, right?”

Wanyan Jun’s fingers caressed his chin, “As long as you’re obedient and agree to be my Empress, I’ll naturally have someone give him the antidote.” He carefully examined Yu Shuli’s face, from his eyes to his nose to his lips, not missing a single detail, “Compared to him dying, I’d much rather see him alive to see his lover with someone else, especially… the love rival he tried so hard to thwart, finally rising to power… Tsk tsk tsk, I can’t wait to see his dark face and watch him go crazy.”

Yu Shuli avoided his touch, his heart filled with mixed feelings under Wanyan Jun’s theatrical gaze.

He knew that Wanyan Jun was not that simple. Such a person was most insidious and cunning. Agreeing to this one thing probably meant that even more vicious schemes awaited him.

And once he entered the game, agreeing to him would not only sever his relationship with Wei Yan, but also completely break his ties with Da Liang.

Bearing the name of a traitor and becoming the Empress of an enemy country… Yu Shuli would never have even considered such a thing in the past.

He would rather die together with Wanyan Jun.

But when he thought of Wei Yan perhaps suffering from the poison at this moment, perhaps already in critical condition because he hadn’t received treatment in time, his heart felt like it was being tightly squeezed by an invisible hand.

“Wanyan Jun, how can I trust you? What if the antidote you give is another poison?”

Wanyan Jun laughed heartily, “But Ji’an, do you have another choice now? If you don’t agree, don’t trust me, the result is that he will definitely die. I’ll tell you the truth, the aftereffects of this poison are much greater than that of the Five Stone Powder. The process of the internal organs gradually dissolving is extremely miserable. Can you bear to watch him slowly die in pain? Not even see his last moments… Such an ending would be too pitiful.”

“Stop talking,” Yu Shuli said, his head lowered.

Seeing his distress, Wanyan Jun softened his tone, “Actually, you don’t have to worry, I want him to live even more than you do. After all, if he dies, how can I take revenge on him? I want to watch him retrace my old path step by step, with no way to turn back, and weep and wail in frustration and despair!”

Yu Shuli was silent for a long time, finally opening his eyes, his voice strained, “Alright, I agree to you.”

Wanyan Jun curled his lips, “Wouldn’t it have been better if you’d agreed earlier?” He reached out to put his arm around Yu Shuli’s waist, “Since that’s the case, tonight we…”

Yu Shuli shook his head, pushing him away, “Don’t touch me, at least let me do some mental preparation.”

Wanyan Jun didn’t press the issue, releasing him considerately, “Alright. Then you should rest well tonight. In a few days, after the etiquette officials have finalized the details, we’ll get married. After all, there’s plenty of time to come, I won’t force you.”

Yu Shuli sneered.

Wanyan Jun took a step to leave, but at the door, he suddenly turned around and looked back, “You don’t have much time to convince yourself. Although it’s said the poison will take effect in seven days, Wei Yan’s health isn’t good to begin with. It’s uncertain whether he can last five days. Negotiations and sending the medicine back and forth will also take time. Given their cautious nature over there, they’ll probably have someone test the medicine. If the time is delayed, don’t blame me…”

Yu Shuli waved his hand impatiently, “I know, get out of here. As long as you’re ready, it’s no problem when I get married.”

Wanyan Jun smiled, not knowing which of Yu Shuli’s words had pleased him. His voice also softened, “Alright, then everything will be according to the Empress’s wishes.”

After Wanyan Jun left, Yu Shuli finally staggered to his feet from the bed.

The color of his face was extremely poor. After standing up and looking around, he finally found a small knife in the room.

Almost without hesitation, he raised the knife and was about to stab himself when there was a sudden knock at the door.

Yu Shuli frowned, suppressing his annoyance, and got up to open the door, “You’re back again…”

His voice stopped abruptly.

The person knocking on the door was actually his second sister, Yu Miaomiao.

Yu Shuli sized up Yu Miaomiao, noting that although she was thin and emaciated, she didn’t seem to have any external injuries.

At this moment, she was holding a bowl of steaming medicine, looking at him with pursed lips, “Ji… An, I was sent by the Xizhao Emperor to bring you medicine.”

“You seem to be doing well,” Yu Shuli said with a mocking smile.

Yu Miaomiao’s face turned pale, “What happened back then… I was wrong… I also realized it, I left you a letter… I…”

“Stop pretending!” Yu Shuli glared at her, “Why didn’t you realize it sooner, why didn’t you realize it later? Why did you have to ruin my wedding banquet with Wei Yan? You only realized it after being captured by Wanyan Jun! Do you think I don’t know you’re just trying to save your own life by asking me to rescue you?”

“Ji’an… After Wanyan Jun took me to Xizhao, he threw me into the military camp as a prostitute in order to help you take revenge on me. I suffered all kinds of abuse in the military camp. They… really aren’t human…” Tears streamed down her face, her eyes filled with sorrow, “Now… I’m also reaping the consequences of my own actions… I’m very sorry… Only now, after all this time, do I realize how wrong I was back then.”

Yu Shuli sneered, “You’re only realizing your mistake now because you want me to take you back to Da Liang, right?”

Tears flowed down Yu Miaomiao’s cheeks, her hands trembling, “Ji’an… I’m still your second sister… You can’t just stand by and watch me die!”

“Stand by and watch you die?” Yu Shuli pointed to himself, “Look at my own situation. I’m already struggling to save myself, how can I save you?”

Yu Miaomiao held the bowl of medicine in her hands, wiping her tears on the fabric of her shoulder, “I brought medicine! You’ll be fine after drinking it.”

She went past Yu Shuli and into the room, placing the bowl of medicine on the table, smiling slightly, “I specially brewed this. It’s best to drink it while it’s hot.”

Yu Shuli coldly watched her take care of him with such eagerness. “Do you know what poison I’ve been infected with? You’ve brought medicine, aren’t you afraid of poisoning me to death?”

Yu Miaomiao looked wronged and was about to cry again.

Yu Shuli asked impatiently, “Where did you get the medicine?”

Yu Miaomiao wrung her hands blankly, “It’s… the Xizhao Emperor gave it to me… He said you were poisoned, this is the antidote…”

“He said it is, so it is? You don’t even know what kind of medicine it is, and you dare bring it in front of me, aren’t you afraid of poisoning me to death?” Yu Shuli glanced at her, and was just about to tell her to get lost, but when he saw her looking at him timidly and shrinking back, he couldn’t bring himself to be so cruel.

But Yu Miaomiao took the initiative to kneel down in a panic. She was crying, her voice sounding fearful and flustered, “Ji’an… please don’t send me away… Let me stay and take care of you… If you send me away, I’ll have to go back to the military camp, I can’t bear those days anymore. I know the Xizhao Emperor likes you, likes you very much. He’ll definitely listen to what you say. Help me, save me, please? I beg you…”

Yu Shuli’s eyes showed some pity, “Second sister, you don’t have to be afraid of me. After all, I’m not a beast. I won’t knowingly let you suffer in the military camp and send you back there.”

Yu Miaomiao’s eyes lit up with joy, but she heard Yu Shuli continue, “But you schemed against Wei Yan, schemed against me, and helped the Crown Prince for so many years, putting me and Wei Yan in a dangerous position. If either of us had taken a wrong step, the person bearing the consequences like you today would be me and Wei Yan. So, apart from our familial relationship, I loathe you to the extreme.”

Yu Miaomiao’s face turned pale. “Ji… An…”

“You can stay in the palace, but don’t wander around in front of me in the future. You live your life well, and I’ll live mine. Whether you can leave the palace alive depends on your own ability.” Yu Shuli turned to look at her, his expression indifferent, “But if you try to please Wanyan Jun in this way again, whether it’s by fawning over him, wanting to show him your value, or still acting in bad faith, cooperating with him to use medicine to control me, I’ll handle all your previous crimes together.”

After hearing this, Yu Miaomiao pursed her lips and cried red-eyed for a while, pleading for a long time.

Seeing that Yu Shuli was truly standing by indifferently, she wiped away her tears and ran away in a dejected manner.

After she left, Yu Shuli looked at the medicine on the table, and raised his hand to splash it directly into the corner of the wall.

He went to bed fully clothed, and was about to fall asleep when he realized that his cheeks were involuntarily starting to turn red, and his breathing was becoming uncontrollably heavy.

The Five Stone Powder had finally relapsed again.

And he was being tormented in a somewhat unbearable way, trying hard to calm down, but his mind couldn’t help but think of the way Wei Yan had helped him back in the plum blossom forest.

He took out the knife, flipping it impatiently in his hand.

The injuries on his back had been treated by someone Wanyan Jun had found, so Yu Shuli didn’t have to reopen old wounds.

After a moment, he stabbed the knife hard into his left forearm.

The stimulation of the injury and blood loss finally made him feel a little better.

Yu Shuli took advantage of this relief and slowly fell asleep.

*

Chen Li led people into the Imperial Palace, exited through the secret passage, and after searching everywhere, finally located Yu Shuli’s palace.

Late at night, he sneaked out of the secret passage and gently knocked at the exit of the passage.

Yu Shuli was already restless and his sleep was shallow, so he woke up instantly upon hearing the sound.

He didn’t light any candles. Following the moonlight, he went to the spot where the sound came from, frowned, and lifted the rug on the floor.

Under the moonlight, he could vaguely see a stone brick shaking slightly, revealing a few cracks in the ground.

Yu Shuli stood beside it with a sleeve dagger in his hand, waiting with bated breath.

Before long, the stone brick was lifted, and a sneaky face peeked out from inside.

The blade suddenly swung to the side, startling the person climbing out of the secret passage. He hurriedly dodged the fierce attack in a panic.

After seeing who it was, the person breathed a sigh of relief and whispered a few times, “Don’t, don’t, don’t! Yu Shuli! Spare me! It’s me! It’s Chen Li!”

Yu Shuli was shocked, pinched his face, and examined it carefully. “It really is you? Chen Li!” He put down the knife, his voice filled with joy, “How did you find your way in here?!”

Chen Li flung off his hand, rubbed his face, sighed, and collapsed on the ground, “You scared me to death! Were you trying to peel off my skin?”

“I was just being careful in case you were an imposter,” Yu Shuli said sheepishly, helping him up, “You were knocking on the stone slab on the ground without saying a word. I didn’t know what was going on, so of course I had to attack you.”

“I came to save you!” Chen Li glared at him, “You ungrateful wretch.”

He looked around, “It’s amazing. The Xizhao Emperor didn’t even send anyone to monitor you. You can live alone in such a nice house. It seems he’s treating you well.” He patted Yu Shuli, “If this goes on, with all the debauchery and extravagance… tsk tsk tsk… You should hurry and leave with me. I’m afraid you’ll become too comfortable here. While it’s still late at night and no one’s watching, let’s go back through the secret passage and head back to the camp. We definitely won’t encounter any pursuers.”

Yu Shuli’s body stiffened, his smile faded instantly, and his voice became strained, “I… can’t leave yet.”