Chapter 1722

Behind a harmonious facade lies a grave crisis; Hu Xiaotian publicly announces the founding of the Gold Jade Alliance, and the hardest to accept is Qiqi. Although Hu Xiaotian's power has grown, he has accepted Dakang's investiture, meaning all his territories and authority outwardly belong to Dakang, yet he now bypasses Dakang altogether—this is intolerable.

Qiqi's patience was surprisingly good today; she did not lose her temper. When everyone was offering congratulations, she proactively walked over to Long Xi Yue. Though her heart was filled with jealousy and hatred, she could not deny Long Xi Yue's beauty, which was becoming increasingly lovely compared to her memory of her.

Long Xi Yue watched Qiqi approach, her heart inexplicably nervous. The little girl who used to call her 'auntie' nonstop had now blossomed into a young lady. Qiqi was tall and slim, originally a bit taller than Long Xi Yue, but today their heights were about the same, making Qiqi wonder if Long Xi Yue had grown taller over the years. In fact, the real secret was the crystal shoes hidden beneath Long Xi Yue's wedding dress—custom-made high heels ordered by Hu Xiaotian especially for her.

Qiqi smiled and said, 'Congratulations, wishing you a hundred years of harmony and growing old together!' At least on the surface she appeared quite magnanimous.

Hu Xiaotian chuckled, daring to assert that Qiqi's words were not sincere.

Long Xi Yue smiled gently and said, 'Thank you!' She handed the bouquet to Qiqi, saying, 'It is said that whoever receives the bride's bouquet will have good luck; this flower is for you.' She only knew this because Hu Xiaotian had told her.

Qiqi glanced indifferently at the bouquet and said, 'I don't care for other people's things.'

Upon hearing this, Hu Xiaotian flared up instantly, thinking, 'This little brat finally can't hold back and wants to cause a scene?'

Long Xi Yue smiled and said, 'Don't misunderstand; I only hope you can soon find your own feelings.'

Qiqi gazed at Long Xi Yue; to her, that sounded like the greatest mockery, and she said half-smiling, 'I don't know how I should address you.'

Long Xi Yue said, 'You can call me as you did before; if you don't mind, you can still call me aunt.'

Qiqi's heart jolted; she had not expected the formerly gentle and weak Long Xi Yue to become so composed, not yielding an inch in their conversation, and her remark just now amounted to an admission of her identity to Qiqi's face.

Qiqi smiled and nodded, then turned to Hu Xiaotian and said, 'King of Zhenhai, what do you think?'

Hu Xiaotian laughed and said, 'As the saying goes, the wife follows the husband; whatever Xi Yue says is fine. If you call her aunt, we'll become even closer kin, and I dare to become the princess's uncle-in-law.'

A flash of cold light appeared in Qiqi's beautiful eyes; if not for the public setting, she would have loved to rush forward and bite off that detestable nose, then gouge out his annoying eyes. Her anger flashed and vanished, her expression remained calm as usual, and she smiled, saying, 'Today is your wedding day; I don't mind whatever is said.' She then said to Long Xi Yue, 'Bride, may I have a private word with your groom?'

Long Xi Yue smiled and said, 'Sure!' Then Wei Sa walked over, but it was actually Old Lady Xu who wanted to see Long Xi Yue; she told Hu Xiaotian something and then turned and left.

Qiqi and Hu Xiaotian stood side by side, their gazes fixed on the rippling swimming pool, and Qiqi said, 'After all this time, you still love putting on a show.'

Hu Xiaotian smiled and said, 'Life itself is a play; you finish your act, and I make my entrance.'

Qiqi sighed and said, 'What I admire most about you is that you never hide your shamelessness!'

Hu Xiaotian said, 'In this world, the more vile and shameless a person is, the easier it is to live a long life; you and I have both endured many misfortunes, and the reason we have survived to now is not because we are tough, but because we are……' He didn't finish, as he encountered Qiqi's intensely resentful gaze.

Qiqi coldly said, 'Don't think that occupying a palm-sized area gives you the right to challenge me! If you anger me……'

'Getting angry harms the body; at your young age, you must never be angry all day, or you'll easily grow old, your beauty will fade, and when that day comes, you'll regret it too late.'

Qiqi chuckled and said, 'I never regret!' Though her words were tough, her heart inevitably felt uneasy; if she had no regrets, why would she pardon all of Hu Xiaotian's crimes and enfeoff him as king? But now Qiqi regretted again—she had repaid evil with kindness, yet this scoundrel repaid kindness with enmity, using this very method to take revenge on her. Qiqi said, 'Did you painstakingly arrange all this just to make me embarrassed?'

Hu Xiaotian shook his head and said, 'You underestimate me and overestimate your own importance. I arranged this wedding not for the world to see, nor to embarrass you, but to make Xi Yue happy and to let everyone know that I, Hu Xiaotian, can bring happiness to the woman I love. Whoever dares to harm my woman, I will make them regret ever coming into this world!'

Qiqi's heart trembled for no reason; Hu Xiaotian's words were spoken with decisive conviction yet also full of persuasive power, and she simultaneously realized he was likely warning her. Her long black lashes fluttered, and she whispered, 'Golden Jade Alliance! As the King of Zhenhai of Dakang, shouldn't this matter go through the court?'

Hu Xiaotian smiled and said, 'If Your Highness is dissatisfied, you can simply take back the title of King of Zhenhai; for me, this hat is uncomfortable to wear. The original intention of forming the Golden Jade Alliance was certainly not to target Dakang, nor any particular side, but because we refuse to accept the fate of being swallowed by the great powers, we joined forces to survive; with any of our strengths, you probably wouldn't even notice.'

Qiqi said, 'You're not me; how could you know my thoughts?'

Hu Xiaotian said, 'Your Highness is an extremely intelligent young lady.'

Qiqi's delicate brows furrowed slightly; hearing Hu Xiaotian call her a young lady stirred a hundred feelings in her heart. Since their breakup, no one had regarded her as a young lady anymore, and she had become increasingly lonely, even Quan De'an's concern could not replace that. Only after she took action against Hu Xiaotian did she realize she had not become happier because of it. Qiqi said, 'Do you not understand what respect is at all?'

Hu Xiaotian said, 'You misunderstand; I am not disrespecting you, but because in my eyes you have always been a child who hasn't grown up.'

Qiqi glared at Hu Xiaotian.

Hu Xiaotian said, 'Hong Beimo, Ren Tianqing, Mu Rongzhan, Quan De'an—none of the people around you are easy to deal with. You think you can control them? In fact, they merely want to use you; if you couldn't decipher the secret of the Blue Skull, they would probably have killed you long ago.'

Qiqi bit her lower lip; it seemed Hu Xiaotian knew more than she had anticipated.

Hu Xiaotian, however, stopped speaking at this moment, smiled, and said, 'I'm going to greet the guests; excuse me!'

Xue Lingjun seized the moment to approach Qiqi's side, smiling and saying, 'Isn't this the Yongyang Princess? After not seeing you for a while, you've become even more beautiful and charming.' Her voice suddenly dropped, and she whispered, 'Even the bride has been outshone by you.'

Qiqi smiled narrowly at Xue Lingjun; this Da Yong elder princess truly never missed an opportunity, provoking her at such a time to create conflict, though she had to admit, the point of entry was quite accurate.

Xue Lingjun sighed again and said, 'I really can't understand why Hu Xiaotian would make such a choice.'

Qiqi said, 'Are you referring to his wedding today or to the Golden Jade Alliance?'

Xue Lingjun smiled meaningfully and said, 'Both, but I have one thing I don't understand: why hasn't Dakang joined the Golden Jade Alliance, and why does Hu Xiaotian, as the King of Zhenhai of Dakang, openly ally with a foreign state beyond the court's authority? This is truly puzzling.'

Qiqi said, 'With the elder princess's extraordinary wisdom, can't you figure out the reason?'

Xue Lingjun shook her head, showing a rather puzzled expression.

Qiqi said, 'What a pity to be wise all one's life yet muddled for a moment; without my approval, do you think Hu Xiaotian would dare to do such a reckless thing?'

Xue Lingjun's heart gave a start; she secretly thought, Could I have been mistaken? Does Qiqi already know? Impossible—there had been no hint of it before. If she knew, why hadn't Dakang initiated the Golden Jade Alliance? This girl surely is just trying to save face, saying such things to puff herself up. She chuckled and said, 'Ah, I see; however, Hu Xiaotian's boldness has always been great. Your Highness, don't you find the bride's appearance very familiar?'

Qiqi said, 'It doesn't seem particularly special.'

Xue Lingjun said, 'Her name is Long Xi Yue; I remember that Princess Anping's personal name was exactly this, right?'

Qiqi said, 'You mean Princess Anping from back then didn't die?'

Xue Lingjun nodded.

Qiqi chuckled and said, 'I finally understand the true meaning of a long-tongued woman today.'

Upon hearing Qiqi mercilessly insult her, Xue Lingjun's smile instantly faded, and she said, 'I was just kindly reminding you; if you don't listen, forget it—why must you utter hurtful words?'

Qiqi said, 'History is not lacking in figures whose eloquence could withstand ten million troops. Elder Princess, you are highly talented, and I know you wholeheartedly consider the state and society of Da Yong. What do you want to say? What do you want to prove? Prove that Princess Anping didn't die? That would mean you've gratuitously given Da Yong a Dongliang Jun. My aunt clearly met with incident in your Da Yong territory back then; you failed to protect her, and this matter was settled long ago. Do you still want to overturn your late ruler's earlier decision?'

Although Xue Lingjun had intentionally stirred things up, she did not grasp the depth Qiqi implied; hearing Qiqi say this, she suddenly realized how foolish she was—no matter what, Qiqi and Hu Xiaotian still shared common interests, and moreover this girl clearly still had lingering feelings for him. By meddling in gossip here, she had only lowered herself. She said sheepishly, 'It's hard to be a good person; Your Highness, do as you see fit!'

'Sending the first update, begging for the guaranteed monthly ticket! (To be continued... ^_^)'