Rest Easy, Protagonist. I’ll Take Care of Your Wives and Concubines - Chapter 2:

Chapter 2: The Empress of the Great Liang Nation

The servant waiting outside froze for a moment, then hurried to prepare a horse.

Wang Hai cast one last glance at Xiao Liyue, who lay asleep on the bed, before pushing open the door and stepping outside.

The morning sunlight stung his eyes. He narrowed them and strode through the covered walkway toward the front gate.

By the time he emerged from his residence, the servant had brought his horse around. It was a magnificent black steed with a glossy mane and long, slender legs, a royal horse bestowed upon him by the empress herself. Its name was Black Cloud Treading Snow.

Wang Hai swung smoothly into the saddle and flicked the reins. Hooves clattered against the road as he rode straight toward the royal palace.

The streets of Tianque City were already bustling. Vendors had set up their stalls along the roadside, calling out over steaming buns and freshly baked flatbreads.

Pedestrians hurried aside as Wang Hai galloped past. Some recognized his horse and began whispering.

“Isn’t that the Marquis of Loyalty and Righteousness? Why is he rushing to the palace so early?”

“Have you heard? The Xiao family was wiped out last night. More than a hundred people, their blood flowing in rivers!”

“The marquis led the raid himself?”

“Of course. I heard he even took the Xiao family’s eldest daughter back to his residence…”

“Tsk. What terrible luck must have haunted that family for generations…”

Wang Hai ignored them.

His horse thundered along the royal avenue and through Chengtian Gate. At the palace entrance, he dismounted and tossed the reins to one of the royal guards.

“My lord.” The guard captain cupped his fists in greeting. “Her Majesty has yet to attend morning court. Have you come to…”

“I have an urgent matter to discuss with Her Majesty. I must see her immediately.” Wang Hai’s tone left no room for argument.

The captain looked troubled. “But Her Majesty instructed us not to admit anyone before morning court…”

“Just announce my arrival.” Wang Hai patted his shoulder with a warm smile that never reached his eyes. “If Her Majesty takes offense, I’ll take responsibility.”

The captain gritted his teeth, turned, and hurried toward the inner palace.

Wang Hai stood outside the gates with his hands clasped behind his back, gazing at the towering Taihe Hall in the distance.

Its glazed roof tiles gleamed in the morning light. Sweeping eaves and intricate brackets spread like the wings of a giant bird, overlooking the thousand-year-old capital.

He remembered how the original novel had described the Great Liang royal palace as resplendent and majestic. Only now, seeing it for himself, did he realize how inadequate those words had been.

This palace complex was more than ten times as magnificent as any building he had seen in his previous life.

And its mistress was even more unfathomable.

Empress Di Kongming.

A formidable figure whom Xiao Fan had only defeated much later in the original novel.

Wang Hai’s plan was simple. He would cling tightly to her protection.

However powerful Xiao Fan might be, he was still only at the 9th stage Grandmaster Realm. The current Di Kongming could crush him with a single finger.

“My lord, Her Majesty will see you.” The captain returned at a breathless run, interrupting his thoughts.

Wang Hai straightened his clothes and entered the palace.

He passed through three successive gates, skirted the royal gardens, and hurried along the covered walkway toward the inner palace. Every maid and eunuch he encountered stepped aside and bowed.

Without looking around, he walked straight into Zichen Hall.

Sandalwood incense curled through the air, and candles illuminated the chamber.

Empress Di Kongming reclined on a phoenix couch, her long black hair cascading down like a waterfall. She wore only a gauzy robe as thin as a cicada’s wing, through which her snow-white skin was faintly visible.

Resting her cheek on one hand, she regarded him with slightly upturned phoenix eyes. A faint, enigmatic smile played on her lips.

“Little Haizi, what brings you rushing to see me so early?”

Wang Hai was speechless.

That nickname really did make him sound like a eunuch.

He had protested countless times, only for the empress to silence him with the same response, “Because it pleases me.”

Right now, however, he had no time to argue.

He dropped to his knees with a thud, his kneecaps striking the jade floor. “Your Majesty! You must save me!”

Di Kongming raised an eyebrow, apparently surprised by his reaction. “Oh? Who wants to kill you?”

“Xiao Fan!” Wang Hai lifted his head, his eyes reddening and his voice trembling. “Xiao Yuan’s son! He wants to kill me!”

Di Kongming frowned slightly. “Xiao Yuan? If I remember correctly… he was the traitorous official who colluded with Beimang?”

“Yes, exactly!” Wang Hai nodded frantically. “That’s him! Acting on Your Majesty’s secret decree, I raided the Xiao household. Of its 137 members, only Xiao Liyue remains… I was merely following your orders, Your Majesty! But now Xiao Fan has returned. An expert from overseas took him as a disciple when he was a child, and he has already reached the 9th stage Grandmaster Realm. He’s certain to come after me to avenge his family!”

Di Kongming fell silent for a moment, then chuckled softly. Looking down at him, she regarded him with amusement. “Well, killing you would certainly be easy for him.”

Wang Hai had no response.

Did she have to be so cruelly blunt?

“Your Majesty…” His voice took on a tearful quaver. “I have served you with unwavering loyalty all these years. How many families have I brought down? How many of your enemies have I eliminated? Even if my achievements count for nothing, surely my hard work deserves some consideration! You can’t simply watch someone cut off my head!”

His performance drew a faint smile from Di Kongming. “Enough, enough. Get up. What kind of spectacle are you making, kneeling there?”

She raised a hand slightly, and a gentle force lifted him from the floor.

Once he had steadied himself, Wang Hai scrubbed his face haphazardly with his sleeve, wiping away both tears and mucus.

Di Kongming lifted her teacup and took a sip. “A mere junior at the 9th stage Grandmaster Realm has frightened you this badly?”

Wang Hai smiled bitterly.

He was far more than an ordinary cultivator at the 9th stage Grandmaster Realm.

He was a protagonist at the 9th stage Grandmaster Realm, complete with plot armor.

Killing stronger opponents was as easy for him as eating and drinking. With fortune on his side, even the heavens would help him.

“There is something you don’t know, Your Majesty. Xiao Fan is blessed with tremendous fortune. His master bestowed upon him a Heaven-grade treasure called the Black Abyss Sword. It is said to possess boundless power, and it has already developed a sword spirit capable of protecting its master on its own!”

Di Kongming set down her cup. At last, her expression shifted. “A Heaven-grade treasure?”

“Yes!” Wang Hai nodded firmly. “The information I obtained is absolutely reliable! Moreover, he cultivates a Heaven-grade technique, the Pure Yang Primordial Unity Art. It is supremely forceful, brimming with Yang energy, and overwhelmingly powerful!”

Di Kongming fell silent, her phoenix eyes narrowing.

A Heaven-grade treasure. A Heaven-grade cultivation technique. A disciple of an expert from overseas.

Individually, none of these things was especially remarkable to her. Taken together, however, they suggested something worth considering.

“You mean Xiao Fan’s master is at least in the Celestial Realm?”

“At least the Celestial Realm!” Wang Hai’s reply was unwavering. “I suspect he may even be in the Nirvana Realm!”

A sharp gleam flashed through Di Kongming’s eyes.

The Nirvana Realm.

Even she had to be wary of someone at that level.

As far as the public knew, she was the only Nirvana Realm cultivator in the entire Great Liang Nation.

If Xiao Fan’s master truly was in the Nirvana Realm, the situation would be somewhat troublesome.

Still, that was all it would be. Troublesome.

The Great Liang Nation had stood for a thousand years. Its foundations ran deep. One or two Nirvana Realm cultivators would not be enough to shake it.

Di Kongming rose, her gauzy robe fluttering to reveal a slender stretch of pale calf. “Very well. I understand.”

Hope surged through Wang Hai. “Will you intervene, Your Majesty?”

She glanced at him. “A junior at the 9th stage Grandmaster Realm hardly warrants my personal attention.”

His heart sank.

“However,” she continued, “I can station Phoenix Guards at your residence. With them there, a cultivator at the 9th stage Grandmaster Realm won’t be able to touch you. Even someone half a step from the Celestial Realm would be powerless to harm a hair on your head.”

The Phoenix Guards!

Wang Hai’s eyes lit up.

They were the empress’s personal guards, thirty-six in total. Even the weakest among them had reached the peak of the Origin Spirit Realm, while their commander was a Divine Core Realm cultivator!

In the original novel, just five or six Phoenix Guards had brought Xiao Fan to the brink of death several times.

With them stationed at his residence, Xiao Fan would be courting death if he attempted a nighttime intrusion!

“Thank you, Your Majesty! Thank you!”

Wang Hai started to kneel again, but a sharp glare from Di Kongming stopped him.

“Stop kneeling. The sight gives me a headache.”

She clapped her hands, and a woman in silver armor entered.

Tall and stern-faced, she wore her long hair in a high ponytail. A hard, deadly air lingered about her, the unmistakable presence of a veteran who had survived countless battles.

“Your Majesty.” The woman dropped to one knee and cupped her fists in greeting.

“Qing Yuan, take four Phoenix Guards and stay at the marquis’s residence for a few days. He has encountered a little trouble. See that he remains safe.”

Qing Yuan glanced at Wang Hai, a trace of contempt flashing through her eyes. Nevertheless, she answered respectfully, “As you command.”

Wang Hai could not have cared less about that flicker of disdain. He beamed at her. “Thank you, Commander Qing Yuan! Thank you, Your Majesty!”

Di Kongming waved a hand. “Enough. You may leave. Don’t delay my morning preparations.”

After withdrawing from Zichen Hall, Wang Hai released a long breath.

He had secured the empress’s support. With Phoenix Guards protecting his residence, a direct assault by Xiao Fan would be all but impossible.

He looked toward the horizon. Morning light had completely driven away the darkness, and Tianque City was waking beneath the rising sun. Cooking smoke rose from homes across the capital.

“Come on, Xiao Fan.” A smile curved Wang Hai’s lips. “I’ll be waiting for you at my residence.”