The return trip from the Tian Empire was supposed to be a victory lap of silence. I had planned to spend the entire journey curled up in the corner of the carriage, pretending to be a very expensive piece of luggage. But the universe—or more specifically, the news-cycle of the Divine Realm—had other plans.
By the time our carriage crossed the Lu border, the "Prince Consort" news had traveled faster than a Spirit Severing expert on high-grade stimulants. The "Neon-Pink Monster" was now officially linked to the "Heaven-Born Prodigy" of the Rank 1 Empire.
"I told you," Lingshu said, clicking her tongue as she looked through a stack of urgent jade transmissions. "You can't just poke a princess's cheek and expect to walk away a free man, Xian-er. The market has spoken. Your 'value' has increased by 400% overnight. We're getting marriage proposals from empires I didn't even know had maps."
"It was a poke of friendship!" I protested, hugging my silk pillow tighter. "She wanted to know if I was soft! It was a scientific inquiry!"
"In the Tian Empire, a scientific inquiry from the Princess is basically a pre-nuptial agreement," Lu Tianhao laughed from the front seat. He looked back at me, his eyes twinkling with mischief. "But don't get too comfortable with the idea of a Tian wedding. We just got word... the Han Empire is currently mobilized."
I blinked. "Mobilized? Like... war?"
"Worse," my father's voice came from outside the carriage, sounding strangely strained. "Diplomatic marriage enforcement. Emperor Han Ruizong has personally crossed our border with a convoy of three thousand alchemy-guarded carriages. He's claiming we broke the 'Prenatal Pact'."
I felt a cold sweat drip down my back. The Han Empire was our closest ally—the peaceful, herb-growing healers who kept the Lu Empire's medicine cabinets full. But as any corporate shark knows, the most dangerous person in the room isn't the one with the loudest gun; it's the one who provides your supply chain.
When we finally pulled into the Luòtiān Imperial Plaza, it looked less like a palace and more like a high-end flower show. Thousands of Spirit-Lily petals were being scattered by Han maidens, and the scent of expensive medicinal herbs was so thick it was probably curing the common cold for everyone within a five-mile radius.
Standing at the center of the plaza was a man who looked like he had been carved out of calm jade: Emperor Han Ruizong. Beside him stood his Empress, and behind them, a veiled palanquin that radiated a Qi so pure it made my Origin Dao Body shiver.
"Lu Tian!" the Han Emperor shouted, though his "shout" sounded like a gentle breeze. "You old fox! You go to a summit for a week and suddenly your son is the property of the Tian? Did you forget our agreement? The contract signed in the blood of our ancestors—and a very expensive bottle of wine?"
My father hopped down from his horse, looking sheepish. "Ruizong! It was a misunderstanding! The girl just liked his ducks!"
"I don't care if she liked his liver!" the Han Emperor retorted, pointing toward the palanquin. "My youngest, Han Tianyin, has been training in the Void-Silence Realm since she was three specifically to be the perfect match for your 'Dullard' son. We kept her a secret from the Tian so she wouldn't be snatched up, and now you're giving the position of First Wife to a Tian girl who just met him at a party?"
"First Wife?" I whispered, my voice cracking. "I'm five! I haven't even learned how to tie my own shoes yet!"
"You'll learn," Han Ruizong said, his gaze landing on me with the weight of a mountain. "And you'll learn with my daughter. Tian Lingyue can be the Second Wife if the Tian are so insistent—we aren't suicidal enough to fight the Rank 1 Empire for total exclusivity—but the 'First' position belongs to the Han!"