Jiang Muchen, thirty years old, was the only son of the current Heavenly Emperor.
Although he did not mind ceding the Dragon Throne to his Little Uncle, Xie Jianyu the Crown Prince, he was still the renowned and respected master of Shuiran Palace, the highest rank person in the lion clan, a proficient swordsman and staff wielder at the sa ti, and the Fire Guardian of the Heavenly Realm.
Tales of Jiang Muchen’s many accomplishnts since young age followed him wherever he went, akin to fragrant flowers blooming from his steps.
The very Jiang Muchen stood in front of Qifeng Palace’s gate today to pick up his date.
Judging from his sour face, one might think that he was there to pick a fight.
One needed to ntion that Qin Yani was by no ans an ugly oga. Neither was he possessed of any unfavorable traits that deterred any alpha from courting him.
His one and only flaw was the fact that he was not Xie Jianyu.
"Shuiran Palace Master, good day," Qin Yani bowed slightly in deference.
Behind him, his anxious parents sweated a lot like death row prisoners.
Such was always the case when a prominent alpha called upon them.
A blessing, yes, because who would not want to welco the son of the Heavenly Emperor into the family?
But it was a curse as well, because if they failed to impress Jiang Muchen, heaven knew what the Heavenly Emperor might do to them!
"Good day."
Jiang Muchen offered Qin Yani his hand. The oga, blushing slightly, placed his hand on top of Jiang Muchen’s.
"I shall bring him back as soon as possible," Jiang Muchen told Qin Yani’s long-suffering parents.
That sounded both reassuring and unreasonable at the sa ti.
Reassuring because which parents did not rejoice at the thought of receiving their son back as soon as possible, preferably in one piece?
Unreasonable because why did it sound like they were not going on a date but Jiang Muchen was dragging Qin Yani to the Golden Dragon Palace for a thorough hearing, possibly one involving a lot of torture thods...?
Goodness, was it all a ruse to kidnap Qin Yani to Golden Dragon Palace’s dungeon?
What offense had Qifeng Palace committed again???
Before Qin Yani’s parents changed their mind about allowing their son to leave with Jiang Muchen, they already left. Only a tiny black dot remained in the sky for so ti before it disappeared for good.
For once, Jiang Muchen did not ride his spiritual lion and opted to travel with a cloud carriage instead.
He leaned at one side while Qin Yani sat with a rigid back on the other side.
The oga pressed his lips together in concern.
Should he say sothing?
Should he not?
Should he wait?
His parents told him that most alphas did not like chatty ogas.
Very few chatty ogas earned themselves a fortuitous union with a high-ranking alpha.
One of them was the current Longjing Palace Mistress, Lady Song.
Upon hearing that Qin Yani might just marry into the lion clan and beca its next Shuiran Palace Mistress, Lady Song was quick to offer so valuable advice and assistance, such as :
"There is no need to worry about not getting pregnant soon enough. Look at my son. His techniques in bed are so awful, but he still managed to impregnate his wife twice and sire three cute children!"
"It is important to keep your alpha distressed and destabilized at all tis, because alert alphas are easier to wrap around your fingers."
"Particularly when you want to gauge your alpha’s affection for you, you should select the perfect ti to swoon and faint. Always pick a spot with a lot of cushions or soft surface. So alphas are stupid enough that they fail to catch ogas... This was a hard-learned lesson, Yani..."
"So..."
Qin Yani’s soul almost flew out of his body when Jiang Muchen suddenly spoke up.
He whipped his head in Jiang Muchen’s direction, trying his best to hide the trepidation in his eyes.
"Y-yes, Your Highness?"
Jiang Muchen flicked his eyes and stared at Qin Yani.
"Do you like lions?"
"... Eh?"
Three hours later, Xie Jianshen personally made his appearance at Shuiran Palace.
His son was happily playing with the lions at the lions’ enclosure.
"Oh, Mother," he said with a smile when the Heavenly Emperor approached. "Fancy seeing you here."
Xie Jianshen grabbed the whip in Jiang Muchen’s hand and swiftly proceeded to smack the hell out of his son.
"Ouch! Ouch, Mother! What the hell???" Jiang Muchen had to shield his head from the leather whip.
"You still have the guts to ask!" Xie Jianshen howled. "How dared you make Qin Yani walk through the lions’ enclosure???"
Jiang Muchen pursed his lips.
"If he’s to beco the next Shuiran Palace Mistress, I expect him to be at ease with the lions. I was simply assessing his suitability for the role."
Xie Jianshen’s eyes bulged from fury.
"And that is the only thod you can think of???"
Jiang Muchen shrugged.
"Little Uncle would have perford splendidly."
Xie Jianshen exploded like a grenade.
"He is a bird! A freaking phoenix! A lion can catch him mid-air and rip him into shreds in a blink of an eye! Your Little Uncle is a dragon! The strongest swordsman across the Heavenly Realm!"
Xie Jianshen slapped a hand against his face and sighed heavily.
"Muchen, I know that you idolize your Little Uncle, but you share his blood and he’s married. If you continue asuring other prospective partners against him, you will never find a suitable partner for yourself."
Jiang Muchen grunted. It sounded like he couldn’t care less.
Xie Jianshen’s eyes narrowed into slits.
"Since you are so capable," the oga’s voice went a pitch lower, sounding rather ominous and overflowing with threat. "I am going to send you out on a critical mission."
Any mission was better than another date with an oga.
Jiang Muchen whipped up a bright smile on his face.
"What is it?"
"You will oversee the election of the new Wuyang Palace Master."
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Author’s note :
After that one disastrous date, Qin Yani refused to leave Qifeng Palace for a whole month.
And from then on, whenever he saw Jiang Muchen, he would shriek and run away.
Lady Song : I said, swoon and faint! Not shriek! Oh, youngsters these days never listen to the elders! ( ಠ︵ಠ )
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