Chapter 12
Dishang Huai's father eventually still passed away, around the same time as stated in the novel, shortly after National Day.
The difference was that, in the original story, his father died from a fit of rage due to a sudden heart attack caused by the princess bringing envoys to their house to demand the annulment of the engagement. This time, he passed away peacefully because of his illness.
Before he died, he reminded Dishang Huai once again, " "Even if the princess values you now, you must become strong. Only by becoming strong can you achieve everything you desire and protect those you care about.”
At the end of the day, this world has its own logic. Although the engagement scandal accelerated Dishang Po's death, his demise was ultimately due to his illness. Therefore, even though Ding Sheng's presence delayed the annulment, it couldn't change his fate.
Dishang Huai took leave from his job, and a female colleague temporarily took over his duties at the library.
When Ding Sheng went to his house to see him, Dishang Huai was calmly sorting through his father’s belongings. He said he was fine and that his father had passed away peacefully.
Ding Sheng sat quietly with him, but by evening, a guard came looking for him, summoning him back to the palace.
The Emperor and Empress wanted to see him.
His insistence on having Dishang Huai as his escort at the National Day ceremony had gotten him into big trouble.
The Emperor and Empress were adamant that he should end the engagement.
"You," His Majesty the Emperor said, "go break off the engagement immediately."
Ding Sheng replied firmly, "Nope!"
His mother, the Empress, tried to reason with him through both feelings and logic, "Goodness, Kris, you are the future Emperor, the heir to the empire. You can’t be so wilful! Our nation will never accept a man as its Empress!"
This magical world was extremely vast, with five continents, countless islands, and expansive seas, each with its own customs. The Olay Empire was traditional and conservative, evident in its laws against female inheritance and same-sex unions.
Ding Sheng: "Wait! Why am I the heir? What about Stuart?"
The Empress sighed, disappointed by his reaction. "Wake up, Child, your brother is not human!"
Ding Sheng: "…"
So here's what happened.
When Kris was born and her great grandfather was still alive, the Olay Empire accidentally provoked the most powerful and mysterious Lich Alliance on the Lance continent. Too lazy to destroy the empire and be caught in unnecessary trouble, the Lich Alliance cursed the royal family. Knowing the royal family greatly valued its heirs and held conservative views, they cursed the royal family so that all princes would die young, and only princesses would survive.
The news of this curse caused panic among the populace, and the neighbouring countries such as the Huicheng Empire took advantage of the chaos and wanted to invade the Olay Empire. Amid this turmoil, the empress gave birth to a little prince.
However, the High Priest told the Emperor and Empress that the curse was very powerful. To ensure the prince's survival, they had to raise him as a girl, give him a girl’s name, and present him as a princess to the world. In the meantime, the country also needed a prince to calm the people and maintain the stability of the nation.
This incident alarmed the guardian beast of the Olay Empire. After being informed of the issue, the guardian beast voluntarily became the son of the Empress, posing as the twin brother of the supposed princess, who was actually the young prince. The plan was to reveal the truth when the prince turned twenty and the curse was lifted, supporting him to ascend the throne.
This guardian beast was Kris’s brother, Stuart.
The Emperor remained calm but exuded an air of authority as he commanded, "Kris, you’re not really a girl. Stop being so wilful."
Ding Sheng was bewildered. He has never understood whether the old Emperor was sexist against girls or boys. Was being wilful and unreasonable labels exclusively tagged to women? Well, he's not a girl, but he's still going to be wilful and unreasonable, and throw tantrums.
He turned away defiantly. "Either way, I’m not breaking off the engagement."
You're still concerned about things like an heir or the royal family's reputation? If I were to annul my engagement, based on the plot progression of the novel, even my brother, who isn’t human, would be slain by the ruthless protagonist.
Unable to reach an agreement, both parties left on bad terms.
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Thank yous!! (˶‾᷄ ⁻̫ ‾᷅˵)
I hope you enjoyed this chapter and have a great day!!
You can support me by sending some love in the comments or through the button below
peace lilies~