Cultivating Immortality, Starting from Childhood Sweethearts-Chapter 466 - You Will Surely Like It.

“...”

When Xu Ming heard Emperor Wu’s words, he was completely stunned.

For a moment, he even wondered if he had misheard.

Did the emperor just say... equal wives?

OMG, this emperor is a genius...

He actually came up with the idea of pingqi—equal wives.

It made sense, though. No matter whom he married—Wu Yanhan or Tang Ningzhi—there would be dissatisfaction from one side.

If he married Yanhan, then it would be difficult to explain things to the Chu Kingdom.

After all, Chu was an equal rival in strength to Wu, and they were offering their eldest princess in marriage—an arrangement that was essentially a political alliance.

Rejecting this marriage would be no different from breaking off an engagement.

But if he married Tang Ningzhi instead, then it would be impossible to justify it to Wu.

How could he not marry his own country’s princess but instead take a foreign princess as his wife?

What would the people of Wu think?

Especially since, in recent times, countless huaben—storybooks and plays—had been spreading throughout the country, all portraying Xu Ming and Wu Yanhan as the protagonists of a grand romance, ultimately ending up together.

These stories were wildly popular among Wu’s scholars and noblewomen alike.

Normally, anything involving the royal family would be strictly controlled, but the authorities had done nothing to suppress these stories.

That alone was proof that the court had tacitly acknowledged the marriage between Xu Ming and Yanhan.

Clearly, Wu held high expectations for this union.

But if they were pingqi, then there would be no such issues.

Both princesses would hold equal status, leaving neither Wu nor Chu any grounds for objection.

And if Chu still had a problem with it, Wu could simply respond:

“My daughter holds the same status as yours. What’s the issue?

Do you mean to say that your daughter is more noble than mine?”

With this move, the dilemma was thrown back at Chu.

Would they be willing to let their princess be an equal wife alongside Wu’s princess?

If they were, then fine—send her over.

If they weren’t, then they could withdraw the proposal and pretend this never happened.

In fact, Chu would likely have to offer some compensation for backing out.

After all, if Wu had already agreed and then Chu suddenly changed its mind, they couldn’t just walk away without offering something in return.

Xu Ming had to admit—this was a brilliant strategy.

Under normal circumstances, any other kingdom might outright refuse.

But the problem was... this was Chu.

A kingdom that had already gone so far as to send its princess as a political offering.

There was a real possibility that they would actually accept.

And to be honest, if they did agree, Xu Ming wouldn’t even be surprised.

“Your Majesty, I believe this decision should not be made so hastily. Besides, leaving everything else aside, I doubt that either the Princess of Chu or Yanhan would agree to this.”

Xu Ming tactfully declined.

And he felt his reasoning was completely valid—he was genuinely considering the feelings of the two women involved.

Even if he was willing to marry both of them, what if they refused to be equal wives?

Moreover, Xu Ming had no intention of marrying anyone at this moment.

And he definitely did not want to marry someone he didn’t even know.

Yes, the Princess of Chu was undoubtedly beautiful, but beauty alone couldn’t override every other concern.

Right now, all he wanted was to take responsibility for Yanhan.

But even that wasn’t something he was ready for just yet.

If he married Yanhan now, it wouldn’t be taking responsibility—it would be irresponsible.

After all, he still had to venture into the Southern Demon Kingdoms.

He had to go to the Northern Wastelands.

All of these were incredibly dangerous endeavors.

Xu Ming couldn’t help but feel that he might very well meet his end on one of these journeys.

To be honest, whether heading to Northern Wastelands or the Southern Demon Kingdoms, Xu Ming didn’t think he would survive to return.

What he truly hoped for was to handle all of these matters first, and then marry Wu Yanhan.

Of course, before marrying Wu Yanhan, he also needed to settle things with Qing Wan.

However, Emperor Wu had given him a good idea.

That was to simply not designate a zhengqi (primary wife).

If there was no primary wife, then they would all be considered equal wives.

So, right now, marrying Yanhan was impossible, and with the addition of Tang Ningzhi, it seemed even more impossible.

If he married either one of them, he would truly be trapped.

Hearing Xu Ming’s words, Emperor Wu was well aware that Xu Ming was rejecting him.

But this time, Emperor Wu wouldn’t let him reject so easily.

This wasn’t just a matter of a royal marriage, as before; this time it involved state affairs.

If handled poorly, the already fragile relationship between the two countries could very well explode.

“I’ll go and talk to Yanhan and the princess of Chu. Don’t worry about that,” said Emperor Wu. “But if this works out, Xu Ming, you’d better be prepared.”

As he spoke, Emperor Wu patted Xu Ming on the shoulder. “To be able to marry two princesses—among the top ten human kingdoms, you would be the first.”

Xu Ming’s brows twitched.

“...”

Xu Ming really didn’t want to be the first.

But Emperor Wu had already made up his mind, and it seemed there was no way to refuse anymore.

However, Xu Ming wasn’t worried.

Yanhan and the princess of Chu would definitely not agree to this.

In Xu Ming’s eyes, both Yanhan and the princess of Chu shared a common trait—they were both very proud.

Of course, they had the strength to back up that pride.

“Alright, you’ve had a hard time these past few days. You can go now and wait for the imperial edict,” Emperor Wu said, dismissing Xu Ming with a wave, making it clear that there was no room for negotiation.

After leaving the palace, Xu Ming sighed, feeling rather helpless.

Walking through the streets of the imperial city, he decided to stop by a teahouse to have some tea.

He entered a teahouse he had heard about before.

Whenever Xu Ming was back in Wu Du (Wu Capital) with some free time, he would often go listen to storytelling. Though the locations varied, he always enjoyed a good tale.

This particular teahouse was known for its skilled storyteller, Mr. Chen, and every time he performed, the place would be packed.

Of course, Xu Ming’s visit wasn’t just to listen to the stories.

As he entered the teahouse, a waiter quickly greeted him. “Young master, please come right in! Would you like to go upstairs or sit here?”

“Upstairs. I’ve heard that Mr. Chen’s storytelling is quite good. I’d like to hear it.”

Xu Ming replied.

“Oh, sir, you really do have good taste! Our Mr. Chen is a master at storytelling, definitely one of the best in Wu Du. Many people don’t know that, though—they just think the big teahouses have the best storytellers.”

The waiter said proudly, clearly admiring Mr. Chen’s talent.

“Come, come, please head upstairs. Mr. Chen’s performance is about to begin, and today’s story will surely be to your liking.”

Foll𝑜w current novℯls on fre𝒆web(n)ovel.co(m)