613: Auction of three major counties

Actually, in a strict sense, it doesn't matter who is the Emperor of the Nine Star Empire now.

Because the Empress is presiding, whoever sits on the throne is a true emperor in name and fact, because they have the incomparably powerful Empress suppressing everything behind them.

To put it bluntly.

Whoever becomes the Emperor now is merely the Empress's spokesperson.

As for Li Qingyue's relatively simple-minded nature, it's just because she hasn't seen much of the world, not that she's actually stupid; once she encounters more things and matures, she naturally won't be like this anymore.

Li Qingyue looked at Su Chen with more approval, a smile lingering on her face, but her expression soon became extremely serious.

"However... our Imperial Family has rules set by Mother. If I am a princess, you must be stronger than me to marry me—meaning you have to defeat me. If I become the ruler, then you must pass the Imperial Family's trial; otherwise, you cannot be my man."

Oh?

Su Chen's eyebrows twitched slightly. The Imperial Family had such a rule?

Li Qingyue spoke with a thoughtful expression: "In terms of strength, you've likely hidden your cultivation. You're definitely not just at the Profound Immortal Realm; you're certainly stronger than me."

"But if it's the Imperial Family's trial, you might be in trouble. By the way... what exactly is your Realm?"

As she spoke, she looked at Su Chen with curiosity, her eyes full of a desire for knowledge.

Su Chen immediately smiled: "Want to know? Sure, give me a kiss and I'll tell you."

Li Qingyue's cheeks instantly flushed. She spat in mock disdain and turned her head away. Although the two had already been intimate, looking back, Li Qingyue would certainly not admit she had been the proactive one at the time.

It must have been Su Chen who forced her.

Humph!

Su Chen looked full of regret: "Then you won't be able to know my strength. This is your only chance; there won't be another one later."

Li Qingyue remained silent, only turning her head and huffing again.

Su Chen didn't push. He smiled and asked again: "Does the Empress also have a man?"

After asking this, he felt a bit foolish.

The Empress has children, so how could she not have a man? Did she do it all on her own? That wasn't very realistic.

Li Qingyue shook her head, indicating there was none.

Hmm?

Su Chen's eyes widened. No man? Then were they all adopted?

Li Qingyue seemed to know what Su Chen wanted to ask, so she quickly explained: "Don't let your imagination run wild. Mother is incredibly powerful, the strongest person in the Nine Star Empire. Her standards are naturally very high, and she doesn't think much of any man."

"As for us, we all came from Mother's womb. At her Realm, it's not difficult to condense the power of heaven and earth into a fetus. Our true forms are the power of heaven and earth, using Mother's flesh and blood to take human form. Essentially, we are all her children."

Su Chen nodded. He had heard of this method before.

Back when he couldn't have children, he had thought about trying this trick.

But the key point of this method is that the child isn't his, but the woman's. Since the power of heaven and earth didn't come from him, and the child is connected to the Mother's flesh and blood, sharing her Bloodline, it's completely different for the man.

So he had given up on it later.

"Is your Imperial Family's trial very difficult?"

Li Qingyue nodded solemnly: "Very difficult. The biggest test is strength. At the very least, one needs to be at the Immortal Lord Realm to have a chance of passing; otherwise, it's absolutely impossible."

After all, as the ruler of a country, it wouldn't do if her man was too weak.

Needing to be at the Immortal Lord Realm just to have a chance—it seemed the difficulty of this trial was indeed quite high.

Li Qingyue spoke again: "But this is the first time I've heard Auntie give someone such a high evaluation. You should have the means, right?"

Her tone was full of doubt. Su Chen did give her the feeling of hiding his cultivation, but to say he had the strength of an Immortal Lord was indeed a bit difficult to believe.

Li Qingyue was somewhat skeptical.

Su Chen clicked his tongue. He glanced at Li Qingyue and then said with a smile: "Won't we know when the time comes? If I really can't do it, wouldn't you have an excuse to leave me and find a more powerful man?"

Li Qingyue suddenly got a bit angry. She glared at Su Chen and then snapped: "What kind of person do you take me for? We... we've already done that. How could I just switch to another man?"

After saying that, she ignored Su Chen and left, clearly a bit upset by his flippant words.

"I'll send someone to pick you up later."

Leaving only that sentence, Li Qingyue's figure vanished into the crowd.

Su Chen chuckled. This Li Qingyue was actually a bit of a tsundere.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

The auction for the Three Great Prefectures was decided by the Empress. The purpose was to see the strength of the various princes and princesses. She had a total of eleven offspring—eight sons and three daughters. Seven of them were participating in this auction.

Five were princes, and only two were princesses.

The auction took place within the Imperial Palace. Outsiders knew nothing of it; only those within the Imperial Family were aware.

Financial power can sometimes represent many things, and from this point, one could see the background and methods of these people.

Since the Empress announced her intention to select a new Majesty, the princes and princesses had already begun secretly recruiting people. This was the time to demonstrate their capabilities.

"Oh, isn't this Seventh Sister?"

Suddenly, someone looked toward the person at the hall entrance, their expression full of surprise.

"What, is Seventh Sister also interested in the jurisdiction of these Three Great Prefectures?"

Li Qingyue walked into the room calmly. Su Chen was beside her, but he didn't show his original appearance. Instead, he wore a mask to hide his face, making it impossible to tell who he was.

No one paid him much mind because it wasn't just Li Qingyue; everyone present had brought someone, and everyone was disguised.

For them, if they could help the person they supported take the Three Great Prefectures, their chances of seizing the throne would be greatly increased.

However, because the situation was currently undecided, no one was willing to confirm their identity, so they masked their faces.

Another reason was that they were unwilling to expose their trump cards just yet.

Li Qingyue looked up. The speaker was the Third Prince.

"If you all can come, why can't I?"

Li Qingyue said very calmly.

The Third Prince smiled contemptuously and then said again: "Seventh Sister, don't forget that the Nine Star Merchant Association is not allowed to interfere in internal affairs."

The Nine Star Merchant Association directly supplied the Imperial Treasury and was forbidden from interfering in any internal politics; otherwise, it would be treated as a serious crime.

It seemed Li Qingyue only had Li Ruoxin's support, right?

But since Li Ruoxin was in charge of the Nine Star Merchant Association, even if she supported her, it would mostly be in words. If she actually supported Li Qingyue and they found out, it wouldn't be so easy to get away with.

Li Qingyue said coldly: "I'll have to trouble Third Brother to worry about that himself."