From CEO to Concubine-Chapter 158: Marital Relations

Chapter 158: Marital Relations

For a second, all that could be heard was the whistling of the wind through the forest behind the clearing. Then, Advisor Daurga let out a light-hearted laugh that lifted some of the animosity that was starting to brew.

"Your Majesty has made his point clear," he said, rising to his feet to present a proper bow towards the dais. "We as representatives of the tribes will remember our position during future treatise discussions." He waved an expansive hand at the spread of food that the servants were waiting nervously on the side to present to the guests. "But if I may suggest, such heavy talk doesn’t suit the start of a glorious hunt. Daurga speaks for the northern entourage and apologises for ruining the atmosphere earlier." He directed a second bow towards the rest of the guests, unheeding the low outraged noise of protest that a livid Prince Yenanda emitted.

Envoy Zhang, upon receiving an unspoken cue from Liu Yao, rose to his feet and accepted the apology with a spiel of gracious pleasantries. Liu Yao raised a hand to indicate that the court musicians, their cold sweat already seeping through their robes, were permitted to continue and Head Eunuch Cao personally stepped away from the foot of the dais, where he had been patiently waiting on Liu Yao from, to direct the flow of servants as they recommenced serving the next course of the banquet.

Able to stoop, able to stand1. Yan Zheyun paid more attention to the overlord’s most trusted advisor. He had a hunch that Advisor Daurga would prove to be a more formidable opponent than Prince Yenanda, though it wouldn’t do to look down on any of the foreign dignitaries for fear of underestimating them.

After a second serving of wine, Advisor Daurga rose to his feet once more and presented yet another impeccable bow towards Liu Yao. "Your Majesty has been our kindest of hosts," he said. "To show our gratitude, my great overlord sends his finest of jewels to adorn Your Majesty’s inner palace and trusts that Your Majesty shall not be disappointed."

His soldiers stepped aside to reveal a pair of slender figures, their eyes green like the most precious of emeralds, their gazes sultry as they basked boldly in the attention. Dark luxuriant curls spilt down their backs and they were very close in appearance to each other apart from the voluptuous curves of the girl, whose suggestive outfits left little to the imagination.

Their attire was risqué enough that the officials and their scandalised muttering did nothing to stop their eyes from travelling straight to her chest. The scumbags, not known for their restraint, were already perking up with indulgent interest, the sixth prince not even bothering to conceal his fascination.

"May Daurga have the utmost pleasure of introducing Suhanala and Haerqi," the overlord’s advisor said with a confident grin. "The great overlord’s youngest son and daughter, his most treasured twins. I believe a boy and a girl born on the same day to the same mother is known to be auspicious in Great Ye...aptly named a dragon and phoenix birth1?"

Frantic whispers rippled through the crowd, reaching even the platform where the ladies of the court sat. Yan Zheyun took in the striking faces of the twins, the expert way they toed the line between coy and eager as they sneaked longing glances up the dais at Liu Yao...at his husband.

It was difficult not to be bitter about it. In modern times, being a third party, a homewrecker of any sort, would be one of the biggest social taboos if word got out. Here, people were blatantly egging Liu Yao on because it was the norm, the expected thing for a rich, powerful man to do. Yan Zheyun trusted Liu Yao, of course—not that he had a lot of say in the matter if that trust were misplaced—but he didn’t have to like it.

The girl—Princess Suhanala, probably—tossed her hair over her shoulder, breasts heaving as she took a deep breath and strutted up to the centre of the platform, a couple of paces from the stairs leading up the dais.

Yan Zheyun had to clamp down on the urge to rush over and cover Liu An’s eyes. There was a lot of fleshy thigh on display as well and he knew that the kids of this era grew up quickly but Liu An was still at an age where Lixin and Liheng had sung along to theme songs of their afternoon cartoons and begged him to join in.

He wanted to protect Liu An’s childhood for as long as he could.

"Great Ye’s Majesty," she said, the rich timbre of her voice melodious, "Suhanala’s great father has gifted us to you." She folded her arms across her chest and bowed in the customary fashion of the north. "When Suhanala first received word that I was to travel to a distant land to be given to a man who would regard me as the child of his enemy, I did not wish to make that journey."

"How dare you!"

The anger from the officials threatened to drown out her words but she remained unfazed as she stared up at him with an earnestness that formed a breathtaking contrast with the natural seductiveness of her features. Behind her, her brother mirrored her actions.

"Great Ye’s Majesty, ever since Suhanala was a little girl, I’d heard stories of the young crown prince that led the charge in battle, our most worthy adversary and the hero of the kingdom on our southern borders." She touched her hand to her heart. "Our gods taught us to love the thrill of a brave fight, to chase after the deer like a hunter, to soar in the clear skies of freedom like an eagle that takes flight over the endless plains. But today, upon laying eyes on you, Suhanala is willing to be conquered."

Fiery passion animated her face as she declared, "The green jewels of Overlord Kulai await to be kept in your treasury, Emperor."

Even the most hardened of ministers, whose prejudices against the northern barbarians were entrenched in decades of strife, found themselves tempted by her alluring invitation. After all, her words were calculated to appeal to men with status, those used to staking claim over others and whose greatest triumph was to flaunt their ownership over young pretty things.

A warm hand reached over to engulf Yan Zheyun’s and it was then that he realised his fists were clenched. He looked over at Liu Yao, whose eyes crinkled at him reassuringly, although his tone remained impassive as he said, "So what?"

Princess Suhanala faltered. Yan Zheyun had to bring his wine cup up to his lips to conceal his amusement at how taken aback she was by Liu Yao’s uncharitable response. But what he didn’t know was that his hidden smile, half-concealed, was light and sweet like the return of spring. The attention that had been trained upon the twins shifted back onto him, with many an official thinking quietly to themselves, ah, at the end of the day, the homegrown flower is still the most beautiful of all.

If Yan Zheyun could read their thoughts, he would have been left speechless with the hypocrisy. Not two days ago, these very same ministers were the ones writing memorials to Liu Yao talking about how his beauty was bringing the kingdom to ruin.

Perhaps sensing that Liu Yao was not as smitten as he ought to be when presented with a pair of ravishing beauties, Advisor Daurga stepped up promptly to take over. "Your Majesty," he said, with more respect in his tone now than he had before. "Great Ye and our tribes have been neighbours since time immemorial. Though we have had our ups and downs, I am reminded constantly of a saying of Great Ye’s that I find very meaningful; when the lips die, the teeth shall be cold1."

The flintiness in Liu Yao’s gaze was like early frost creeping over the verdant woods. It spread a chill over the guests of the banquet and Yan Zheyun observed how Advisor Daurga hesitated for a fraction of a second before pushing on bravely in the face of Liu Yao’s blatant disagreement.

"Your Majesty, just as how Great Ye faces threats from all sides, our tribes have had to contend with other hostile forces on the plains, not to mention the tests thrown our way by our formidable gods of nature. Should we ease the tensions between—"

He was interrupted by Liu Yao’s quiet, scoffing laughter. It wasn’t boisterous by any means, just the slight shaking of Liu Yao’s shoulders and a mouth curved upwards into a mirthless smile.

"Ease the tensions?" he said softly, dangerously. The backs of his ministers straightened up by default just by hearing this change in his tone. "Advisor Daurga is so commendably well-versed with the idioms of Great Ye, let this sovereign teach you another local saying; how can one tolerate another snoring by one’s bedside1? Year after year, your tribes encroach upon the northern borders of Great Ye, plundering our villages and terrorising this sovereign’s people. After all the suffering you’ve inflicted, you dare speak to me of easing the tension?"

"When winter arrives, our tribes have no choice but to raid to survive, but Your Majesty—"

"Over a century of breaking the trade links our merchants have established with yours to raze our border towns to the ground and you’re talking to me about choice? Did all the fathers and sons who died protecting Great Ye’s civilians from your relentless assaults have any choice? How about the wives and daughters you ravished whenever you conducted a raid or the children who starved to death because there were no more adults in the villages to tend to the meagre fields?" Liu Yao’s eyes were hard as agates by now, his anger radiating off of him so viciously that Yan Zheyun could feel the fine hairs on the nape of his neck raising. Like a small animal that learnt to detect danger, he could sense that Liu Yao was incensed.

Before Advisor Daurga could say anything more, Liu Yao raised a hand to stop him.

"Enough," he said firmly. "This sovereign has no intention of relying on marital relations to cement diplomatic ties." He gestured in the direction of the platform where the women sat. "Ever since the founding of the Ye Dynasty, no princess or nobleman’s daughter has had to carry the fate of the kingdom on her shoulders whilst being sent to a foreign land, never to see her family and friends again. For as long as this sovereign sits on this throne, none of them will." He gazed down imperiously at the envoy entourage, the ice coating his tone brooking no argument. "Likewise, this sovereign would not be so cruel as to rob a young woman of her right to live amidst her people just to lock her up in the inner palace to grow old alone."

Yan Zheyun lowered his lashes. Liu Yao’s words, both explicit and implicit, were moving. He knew that more than one lady listening to the emperor’s speech, starting with Lady Zhao, would be touched by his regard for their freedom. This respect for those in weaker positions in society, such as women, male concubines, the lower classes and the impoverished, was not easy to come by in this day and age.

But some others might not understand what Liu Yao was getting at.

Princess Suhanala’s eyes flickered over to Yan Zheyun, studying, scrutinising his features like she was trying to unlock the secrets to his success just by watching.

"One would never guess that the fearsome crown prince general, Great Ye’s Majesty, is a romantic at heart," she said, her admiration a blazing fire in the depths of her eyes. "The beauty you hold so dearly is like a tranquil spring, so different from my own, and yet Suhanala is reluctant to admit defeat just like that." She straightened her back and looked Yan Zheyun square in the eye as she declared her battle. "In the north, we believe in fighting to pursue the object of our affections. Today, Suhanala would like to see just what the beloved of Great Ye’s Majesty is capable of." 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

She placed a hand on the gauzy silk wrap that framed her delicate hips and unravelled it with a practised twirl, twisting it about her hands until it came to life with her touch like a slithering serpent, elegant and deadly with its movements.

Yan Zheyun blinked as he felt all eyes turn to him, even Liu Yao’s, which twinkled with a sudden spark of amusement that alleviated some of the suffocating terseness in the air.

Wait...what? Was he really expected to fight for...for Liu Yao’s hand?

A household saying that means to be unable to tolerate another encroaching on one’s territory. An idiom that describes two interdependent things; to share a common fate. An idiom that means to be adaptable to circumstances and ready to give and take. (2) A auspicious way of describing a set of twins of different genders. Traditionally, dragon and phoenix twins were considered lucky whereas twins of the same gender were considered misfortune. I couldn’t really find out much information as to why but as for two boy twins, it might have something to do with inheritance issues in big influential families (since both boys would have the exact same status in the family, having come from the same mother and born so closely together in time that one couldn’t be said to be older than the other, making passing on titles complicated).