The real heiress is a fortune teller; her divinations are worth a fortune, and the whole internet is

Wow, the Xiao family really does possess the secret to immortality!

I thought it was a rumor, but it turns out it's true?

No wonder so many people wanted to steal it.

[The celestial maiden is a friend bestowed upon the Heavenly Palace by a deity. Who is this deity? Why would they give such a powerful gift to the founding emperor?]

Yes, it's the same as the elixir of immortality from the Queen Mother of the West.

The leader gripped his sleeves tightly, his eyes blazing with fanaticism, and accidentally bumped into a bookshelf.

"Who?!"

Upon hearing the sound, the celestial maiden put away the silk scroll and chased after her, only to find nothing there, except that the window that should have been closed was now open.

Was anyone there just now?

The window is open. Are they eavesdropping?

The things could not be left here. The celestial maiden put the silk book into her sleeve, hid the jade pendant, and immediately left the library.

That person must be from the palace. It's too dangerous to leave these things in the palace; we need to find a new place to hide them.

Having failed to finish reading the silk scroll during the day in the library, the Heavenly Maiden took out the scroll again and read the remaining half while Xiao Chen was still reviewing memorials.

The divine gift of this secret treasure is actually meant to command us to guard the evil god beneath the earth. The Heavenly Palace, the capital of the realm, suppresses an ancient and malevolent god. The sealed land is protected by a barrier, preventing outsiders from entering. There are two entrances, one located on Jade Mountain and the other on Xiao Mountain. Celestial maidens and members of the Xiao clan can enter, but others cannot pass through the barrier.

The Xiao clan members should strictly follow their ancestral teachings, defend the capital to the death, and prevent the evil spirit from breaking the seal and harming the human world, so as not to fail the grace of the gods.

So, what's sealed beneath the capital city is an ancient evil god.

[No wonder our ancestor chose this place as his capital, and personally guarded the seal. He was quite loyal.]

[This can be considered a fitting reward for the divine assistance bestowed upon the Xiao family.]

Family, I have a bold idea.

【explain.】

Could the destruction of Tianque be related to this ancient evil god? Perhaps the seal was broken.

Friend, I think you're absolutely right.

The seal's exit is located at Jade Mountain, guarded by the Celestial Maidens. No one except the Celestial Maidens and the Emperor can enter. Who broke the seal?

I bet a bag of spicy strips that it was that scoundrel Sima Chong.

I bet the problems with the new generals Xiao Chen supports usually stem from internal issues.

Doesn't anyone think Nan Sheng from Yushan could also be a possibility? I'm betting on her.

Isn't this suspicion completely unreasonable?

You don't understand; often, the truth lies hidden in the most unlikely outcome.

"His Majesty."

Xiao Fengzi's voice came from outside the hall; Xiao Chen had returned.

The celestial maiden quickly folded the silk scroll into a smaller size and stuffed it, along with the key and jade pendant, into the small hidden compartment where the key was concealed.

Just as he finished doing all this and covered himself with the blankets, Xiao Chen came in.

"The servants said you went to the library today. Were you compiling the 'Biographies of the Xiao Clan'?" Xiao Chen sat on the edge of the bed and asked softly. "Knowing your temperament, you would definitely be working through the night. Why are you back so early? Did you run into someone?"

The celestial maiden lay on the bed, her expression slightly changing. "I just feel too tired and want to rest early."

"It was my fault," Xiao Chen smiled knowingly, lowered his head and said softly, "I was reckless last night."

The celestial maiden closed her eyes, speechless and choked with emotion.

You know you're reckless.

"Then can you not come tonight?"

"I will be gentler."

[Brother, if I don't tell you, you'll ask again; if I tell you, you won't change anything. What's the point of asking?]

[You've had such a delicious celestial maiden eat bite after bite, you're so lucky! (gritting teeth)]

That scoundrel has absolutely no chivalry towards women.

My lord, what happened to you? You've been chewed by a dog!

[Your Majesty must be paired with Your Majesty—I'm not a good person, just a CP fan]

The celestial maiden disregarded etiquette and glared at him fiercely.

Xiao Chen burst into laughter; this was the first time in half a year that he had laughed so happily.

As long as he sees the Heavenly Maiden, all the troubles outside are nothing to Xiao Chen; all he needs to do is stay by her side.

Xiao Chen bent down and pulled the person into his arms. "Go to sleep early. I won't bother you today. We have to get up early tomorrow."

What is Xiao Chen going to do tomorrow, which is a day off?

The celestial maiden closed her eyes and tried to sort out the tangled mess in her mind.

If Sima Chong knew about the seal, then his previous decision to send Yin Cheng to guard the imperial tomb would make sense.

Yes, the Sima family and the Xiao family have known each other for a long time, so they must have known about it.

Sima Chong assigned Yin Cheng to guard the imperial tombs in order to control one of the exits.

Does he want to release the evil spirit? Or did he make some kind of deal with the evil spirit?

No, even if they controlled the exit, why was Sima Chong able to enter the underground seal?

He is not a member of the Xiao family.

She has to go back to Yushan.

Xiao Chen wasn't lying when he said he'd get up early; he pulled Tian Nu out of bed early in the morning. "A Wu, get up quickly, we still have things to do today."

"What is it?" The celestial maiden asked sleepily, wishing she could just collapse right there.

Xiao Chen picked the person up with one hand, but his words left no room for argument: "Sleep after you finish this."

The celestial maiden was taken away by several palace maids who helped her dress up.

An hour later, the celestial maiden was dumbfounded when she saw the phoenix robe she was wearing.

She looked down at the phoenix robe, then up at Xiao Chen, and finally managed to choke out, "Xiao Chen, are you crazy?!"

"Your Majesty, please forgive me!"

The palace maids all knelt down to beg for forgiveness. It was none of their business, but the emperor would not be offended if the celestial maiden addressed him by his name. However, it was hard to guarantee that the emperor would not take his anger out on them.

Xiao Chenyi looked at her as if it were the most natural thing in the world, and smiled with satisfaction. "It suits you very well. It was worth the effort I put into ordering the Clothing Bureau to rush the production."

"Today is an auspicious day. Awu is with me. Let the painter paint our portraits."

Xiao Chen led her to the Imperial Garden, where the dragon throne had already been set up, but there was only one.

The celestial maiden's bottom had barely touched the dragon throne when she jumped up, shouting, "Are you crazy? How can I be in this painting with you? Where is this painting supposed to be placed?"

Xiao Chen held the person tightly in his arms and gestured to the painters that they could begin painting.

"Ah Wu is really good at joking. She can be put in many places, such as the Shouhuang Palace, or—the Xiaoshan Imperial Mausoleum," Xiao Chen deliberately paused.

How could her portrait be placed inside the Xiaoshan Imperial Mausoleum?

In the imperial mausoleum, the only image that can be placed alongside the emperor's is that of the empress; Xiao Chen intends to force her into marriage.

The entire court would never agree to such a thing—a celestial maiden marrying the emperor is utterly absurd.

"Your Majesty, please look a little over here," the painter reminded her.

These elderly painters were quite receptive; they remained unfazed even by such a shocking scene.

I wonder what it will look like when drawn? Will it be completely unrecognizable from the original?

[This is a court painter; don't use your hobby to challenge his entire family, okay?]

During the hours that the netizens chatted, the artists submitted their works one after another, and Xiao Chen and the Heavenly Maiden changed their clothes several times.

"Excellent, reward me."

Xiao Chen picked up one of the portraits, his expression gentle and kind.

Red Flame came closer to take a look.