My wife is an immortal black snake.

so...

"Sir? From now on, could you please keep an eye on my appearance?"

she asked.

"Huh? Ah—is it because the mirror can no longer reflect your face?" Yang Hao was taken aback for a moment, then realized what he meant. He turned around with a smile, then affectionately pinched Monica, the head maid, on the cheek. He carefully examined her appearance and finally nodded affirmatively: "You're as beautiful as ever. It must be quite troublesome if you can't use a mirror, right?"

"Hmm. There have been several times when I haven't known if my outfit was appropriate..."

"That's no problem. Kosic and I can both help you, can't we?"

"...Hmm. But sir... what will happen to Lord Koschche and me if you were to leave here someday?"

"This..."

Yang Hao scratched his head, looked at Monica, and silently placed his palm on his thigh, so that the longer part faced the empty space beside him.

Monica's concerns are perfectly understandable. Even if she becomes the Mirror Girl and gains the ability to instantly appear in any place with a reflective surface, it doesn't mean she can use one version of herself as two.

A more direct analogy is this: if Yang Hao and Koschich were to bathe in separate bathrooms someday in the future, Monica would have to choose one to serve her. Either Yang Hao, who works at Saint-Germain Castle, or Koschich in the Duke's mansion bathroom. In short, while she's capable of many things, there are some things she simply can't do...

That's why she asked that question: she herself couldn't make a choice, and Koschei must also hope that the couple could stay together harmoniously for a long time... Well, that's the gist of it.

If possible, I hope Yang Hao won't leave.

But that's impossible—after all, in order to gain the Emperor's support and for his family to benefit more, Yang Hao would be willing to sacrifice himself and go away for a few days.

At first, Monica and Kosichell understood, but after the Deepsea Hunter bluntly stated his desire to acquire this person today... they started to feel anxious.

So he needs to properly explain his current situation and his contract with the Deepsea Hunters to Monica and Koschche. He just needs to make things clear and provide guarantees. Really.

Just as Yang Hao was thinking this, his face was suddenly cupped in Monica's hands.

what?

He was stunned for a moment, and before he could ask a question, he saw Monica close her eyes and lean closer.

The touch on his lips was warm and smooth. Yang Hao could feel that the girl, who wasn't good at sharing her inner secrets, was now awkwardly and passionately trying to pry open his lips and teeth with her tongue. Her body was a little cold; was it because of her post-ascension physique? Or something else?

He didn't know. After a moment of surprise, he readily accepted the head maid's enthusiasm. He embraced her slender waist and kissed her until she gave up on going any further, at which point he released her.

"Now you can rest assured, right?"

Yang Hao muttered to Monica. Although he knew Koschke must have given Monica permission for her to do this... the actual experience still gave him a strange and intriguing feeling of transgression...

Monica just blushed and smiled at Yang Hao's mutterings. She reached out and hugged Yang Hao tightly before letting go.

"Hmm. I feel a little more at ease now. Perhaps I understand why Lord Kosichä said to be as direct as possible in everything." She smiled, standing up from her chair, indicating that it was time to go back. "But... perhaps I need more in-depth knowledge before I can be completely at ease? Sigh, after all, you really are something. You're the first person I've ever found so troublesome to take care of."

Should I be happy about this?

"Of course. But sir? Don't forget, Lord Koschche is still waiting for you... I hope you'll come out alive tomorrow."

"Ugh..."

Returning to a serious demeanor, Monica playfully squinted her left eye and smiled at him. Yang Hao could only manage a wry smile, silently praying that he could get through the night, as he pulled Monica's hand and stood up.

Chapter 196

On the evening of the 3rd, when Yang Hao returned to his palace, he was met by Lord Koschie, who was sitting with his head resting against the pillows, wearing a nightgown, reading a book, occasionally frowning, and his tail wagging wildly.

He chuckled awkwardly as he placed his cane on the coat rack and hurried to the bathroom to shower. After quickly finishing his shower with Monica's help, he lay down beside Koschche in his pajamas.

...

Then his thigh got tangled in Koschich's tail.

"...So, how is it?" Koschche didn't even turn around to look at him, and Yang Hao could vaguely smell a sourness in his voice. "I trust you, so I'm entrusting you with full responsibility. Now you can tell me the result, right?"

"Of course." Feeling incredibly happy about his wife's trust, Yang Hao picked up the jealous kitten beside him, then held Koschie, who had lived for over a thousand years but was now behaving like a little girl, in his arms and began to explain the Deep Sea Hunter to her.

After Yang Hao's explanation, although Koschke's expression was still terrible, she eventually accepted Yang Hao's plan.

"That's fine too. You stay at home, and we'll have an extra army and additional colonies to control—it'll be tough on you though. You'll also have to deal with the Emperor's mess. Sigh, I know the situation with the Emperor is indeed that bad—but I never thought she would gamble everything on you."

"Perhaps it's because there are some things that only I can do?"

"...Perhaps. If His Majesty the Emperor wishes to purge all the incompetents, courtiers, and traitors from the Imperial Council...only you can do it, right? Only your puppet stage can do it, you know?" Kossie shrank back, snuggling into Yang Hao's arms and rubbing her bottom against his sensitive little thing before sighing. "But then you'd have to be in Saint-Germain Castle, at least for a few days, to complete your 'event'—sigh, it's all so troublesome...I wish..."

"You want both?"

"Why don't we just make you emperor?" She rolled over and lay on top of Yang Hao, her tempting tail somehow already inside his pants, disarming his manhood.

Yang Hao knew that in this situation, persuasion was futile, and begging for mercy wouldn't necessarily save his life. He simply enjoyed the pleasure his wife brought him, rubbing her ear while muttering:

"Become an emperor? Sigh... But Kosichek, we haven't even managed to secure our own territory yet! And if I became emperor, I wouldn't have time to deal with my immortality issues..."

"After you helped Monica ascend to immortality, did you gain an extra 20 years of lifespan?"

"Yes. But where am I going to find so many immortal beings to serve as sacrifices? Although we have quite a few loyal people..."

"That's true. Sigh, putting too much on your shoulders will also stifle your rest and leisure time..."

"Although I don't think it's a big deal for me to rest less, Kosic, you're the one who's taking up all my rest time, okay?"

"Heh? Say it again?"

"...I was wrong!"

Koschke, the thousand-year-old black snake, a mature woman, a woman who is never full, is like willow catkins. From afar, she looks light and lovely, but when the drought comes, you realize that she not only makes your nose itchy, but is also the culprit who will bring trouble upon yourself.

Yang Hao was now burning with rage. He embraced his wife affectionately and unbuttoned her nightgown.

Just as the couple were getting along well and preparing for the next step, Koschche frowned and stopped just before kissing Yang Hao.

"Honey, although I don't really want to say anything, but the taste on your lips... is that Monica?"

"Eh—yes, that's right..."

"Sigh, it's not that I didn't give her permission, but then again, it's really unpleasant to smell other than me on my most precious treasure."

She frowned, muttering, "Then I'll just let you smell like me all over," and forcefully kissed Yang Hao's lips, pinning him to the bed, amidst his increasingly desperate gaze.

......

Although Koschitch's [Valiant] stat is significantly lower due to her current physical condition, the problem is... that doesn't mean Yang Hao can withstand her pressure, does it?

He realized that the "Valiant" stat might only be a comprehensive reflection of certain aspects. Just like Yang Hao himself and Koschie, even with a combat power of only five, he was still completely overwhelmed by her—did this stat also take into account things like experience and special skills?

He wasn't quite sure; all he knew was that, in a daze, dawn broke the next day without him even noticing.

He opened his eyes in a daze, and under the stimulation of the lingering dreamlike pleasure, he realized that it was already 4 a.m.

As Koschie had said, she had left Yang Hao covered in her scent. And it wasn't just the scent; some fur that had "accidentally" fallen from her tail had also clung to his entire body.

He felt completely drained; even trying to get out of bed only brought him a feeling of oppression and exhaustion. He looked down to see what was choking him, making it hard to breathe, only to discover that the one doing that, with his head resting on his chest, was the sleeping Koschche.

"...Speaking of which, Monica didn't seem to come to clean up for us..." Yang Hao muttered to himself, puzzled. Usually, Monica would come to clean up afterward...why didn't she come this time? "But then again, it's really too late now...oh well, I should go to sleep early...otherwise we won't be able to discuss things tomorrow morning..."

He muttered to himself, gently shifting his wife's position and covering her, who was still naked and sticky, with the blanket. Then he lay down in a more comfortable position, closed his eyes, and let the abyss of depravity drag his consciousness down.

...What Yang Hao didn't notice was that Monica wasn't actually absent.

She was in this space, but not in the material world; she was in a mirror world. She had witnessed the couple's sexual activity all night. She sat in the corner of the room, her face flushed as she looked directly at her wet genitals and the sticky fluid on her hands.

...... ......

At 8:30 a.m. on June 4, when the Kosiché couple returned to the palace for their second meeting with His Majesty the Emperor to finalize all the details, His Majesty made new demands and offered corresponding compensation.

Faced with her new demands and corresponding compensation, Yang Hao's first reaction was, "Are you fucking kidding me? The things we discussed the day before yesterday are now just a piece of waste paper!" His second reaction was, "Are you really planning to do that?!"

This wasn't surprising, as Kosicchi, who was listening in, and the newly joined Monica were both completely bewildered. Seeing their varied expressions, His Majesty the Emperor, with a rare look of anxiety, explained:

"It seems that your previous public announcement—I mean, the public declaration of war against Duke Nikolai—has had a significant impact on the Imperial Council. Although I personally hoped that the Imperial Council, despite being full of clowns and jesters, would at least still have a human heart, it seems that's no longer the case."

"So, Your Majesty, you mean...?"

"The economic crisis has completely ruined things, because if we don't first eliminate all the rebels in Parliament, then all your policies will be like water without a source—ultimately becoming either dried-up sand or a stagnant pool." His Majesty emphasized the word "rebels." "Therefore, we need to settle things as soon as possible today—this is not what I hoped for, but given how things have changed, this is the only way I can do it."

...

In short, it was the open declaration of war by the Duchy of Kosiché against the Duchy of Nikolai that seemed to have provoked the cannibalistic faction of the Sherlock Holmes—more precisely, a portion of its radical faction. In their eyes, the Duke of Kosiché had undoubtedly discovered their little secret, so they had to eliminate the Duchy of Kosiché completely by any means necessary.

The problem was that they acted far too recklessly; even His Majesty the Emperor thought they must have lost their minds from cannibalism—but that was precisely the problem. Their recklessness stemmed from the fact that His Majesty the Emperor simply couldn't remove the spies they had planted within the Imperial Council.

According to the intelligence provided by His Majesty the Emperor, there are currently about 600 seats in the Imperial Council of the Ursus Empire—based on importance, all members with voting rights are included.

Of these, 120 members of parliament were willing to unconditionally support His Majesty the Emperor.

Of the remaining 480 or so councilors, more than 200 were neutral and beyond His Majesty's control. They were opposition parties, fence-sitters, and opportunists who sided with whichever side was in power—these 200 neutral councilors represented a diverse range of nobles and merchants, and even some generals and scholars. His Majesty could not ignore their opinions, or it might cause serious problems.

And so, there are still 280 councilors—all spies from the Sherlock Holmes nightclub. They bared their fangs last night, fully supporting Duke Nikolai's "self-defense" bill. But it's fortunate that they did; otherwise, it would have taken the Imperial Guard a considerable amount of time to uncover these deeply entrenched, even in some sense, maggots who had been influenced by His Majesty's new arrival.

These 280 members of parliament represent a segment of the nobility, merchants, and even personnel from certain administrative structures, generals, and the middle class. Their influence is deeply entrenched, their interests are like a spider web, and they have even taken advantage of this economic crisis to amass considerable wealth for themselves.

They have influenced almost half the empire—in other words, if Yang Hao were to implement his economic policies without eliminating these members of parliament, he would face constant assassination attempts, leaving him no time to even take a dump.

For this reason, His Majesty the Emperor called them "traitors." Although they haven't betrayed us yet, who knows when they might? He wouldn't tolerate any possibility of betrayal, so His Majesty the Emperor hoped Yang Hao could eliminate them all before they caused "significant losses."

"And executing them all will also benefit your upcoming civil war," Her Majesty Catherine murmured solemnly, snapping her fingers to signal her guards to bring her a intelligence report. "The actual area controlled by the Sherlock Holmes nightclub is definitely smaller than the combined territories of these councilors—in other words, the more councilors you eliminate, the more territory I can reclaim. The less territory they actually control, the weaker their fighting power will be in the upcoming civil war."

“But the problem is, Your Majesty, wouldn’t you benefit the most from doing this?” Yang Hao frowned, glanced back at Kosiché, and after finding that she had no objections, asked, “And I need to confirm one thing—Your Majesty, are you certain that what follows will turn into a civil war, rather than a war between dukes?”

The civil war of the Ursus Empire, the war between dukes—these two terms carry different weights.

The former implies that even the emperor has to take sides in the battle, while the latter suggests it's merely a private conflict that two dukes could easily resolve. Their importance is not equal, and more importantly...

If His Majesty the Emperor truly approves of the Civil War, then the Duchy of Kosice will have an unprecedented opportunity—an opportunity to develop through the Civil War.

“Yes, this will be a civil war—I expect it to officially begin in about two years, because if the plan is correct, in two years, you, me, and Duke Kosiché should have completed the necessary evidence to capture them, convict them, and execute them.” She nodded. “Although we could avoid that—but to avoid those nobles seeking international aid from Victoria, or Yan, or even Kazimir, we should define this as suppressing a rebellion rather than arbitrarily executing nobles.”

"In other words, nominal reasons and a sense of righteousness? We have all of those, we just lack evidence."

“This evidence is the most crucial—and we don’t need to rush into dealing with those traitors. During this time, you can expand your army. Once the Imperial Army recovers from the economic crisis, it can provide you with substantial assistance, can’t it?”

So after all that back and forth... it all comes back to the contract.

Yang Hong glanced at the clock on the wall; it was almost 9 a.m.

Chapter 197

5pm sharp.

The Duchy of Kosiché officially confirmed all the details with His Majesty the Emperor – including administrative measures for the economic crisis, people's livelihood, educational and technological reforms, handling the rebellious members of the Imperial Diet, and all matters concerning His Majesty the Emperor regarding the Duchy of Kosiché. Everything was settled.

Let's talk about them one by one.

First and foremost, regarding the fundamental issue of dealing with the "traitor to the Imperial Council," His Majesty the Emperor granted Yang Hao unprecedented authority since the founding of the Ursus Empire. Simply put, after Yang Hao officially took office and, under the Emperor's instructions, established himself in the Imperial Council, he had the power to execute Imperial Council members at any time, and this power did not require him to "produce evidence."

On one hand, Her Majesty the Emperor knew that the councilors from the Sherlock Holmes nightclub wouldn't leave them any obvious evidence, allowing their people to gather and organize it bit by bit. Moreover, the process of gathering evidence would inevitably alert those traitors, so she simply went all in, believing it was better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free, and granted Yang Hao this authority.

On the other hand... once Yang Hao officially began executing the traitors, there was no need to present any evidence—because once he started, the traitors would get wind of it. At that point, it would simply be a matter of who died first and who died later. His Majesty the Emperor believed that at that point, whether or not evidence existed was no longer important. What mattered was that those traitors had to die.

Therefore, in conclusion, Yang Hao wielded immense power: he could arbitrarily execute any councilor who was a traitor, and during this time, he could also execute some councilors he deemed potentially traitorous. The Imperial Guards wouldn't question his choices much; his only task was to prepare a new list for His Majesty the Emperor after executing all the traitors—and the only point to note during the executions was to make it appear as if it were an accident.

Um..

“This is not difficult at all. I’ve heard that the buildings around the Imperial Council are very suitable for arson.” Yang Hao explained this to His Majesty the Emperor with a smile, and even the imperial guards behind the Emperor were subconsciously stunned by the man’s bold idea.

The heart of the empire, one of its most central locations, was set on fire, and even the firefighters couldn't get there in time... Everyone understands there's something wrong here, but without evidence, it's all reasonable and no one can pinpoint what the problem is.

The question is, how will we replace so many councilors who die at once? Before the Imperial Guards could even come up with an answer, His Majesty the Emperor smiled and said, "The few who survive will remain, and we will basically not replace them in the future."

Her deeper meaning was clear to everyone present—she intended to establish a dictatorship. Of course, this was inseparable from Yang Hao's help, so in a sense, the matter of the Imperial Council's traitors had to be resolved...

The problem is solved now—theoretically, it's solved. As for the actual solution? Let's see on-site.

Then came the second thing: after dealing with the traitor, the ensuing civil war.

A civil war—this will determine whether the entire Ursus Empire descends into cannibalistic madness or imperial dictatorship. According to Her Majesty the Emperor, two-fifths of the empire will side with her, one-fifth will be fence-sitters, and two-fifths will be cannibals. But the problem is—

"You know, right? The economic crisis has not only drained the Imperial Army's pay, but also caused rebellions to break out in various noble territories. Not to mention, since Columbia insulted Ursus, their spies and troublemakers have been operating freely within our country."

"...Um, the Colombian?"

“That’s right. What’s wrong? Mr. Yang Hao, are you trying to say that those people followed you here? Based on my understanding, it shouldn’t be that simple.”

"Haha, that can't be... Let's get back to the point, Your Majesty."

I'm so sorry, Your Majesty.

Those Colombians might have actually come because of me...