Prince and His Fool

While Wu Wuqing was busy murdering his sons, a mother was scheming against hers. The venerable Empress Tao aka Wu Yange's mother was a gorgeous woman born in a peasant family but because of her grandfather's association with Wu Chen, Hepeng's first emperor, she was brought to the emperor's palace as a concubine.

Thinking she would have a luxurious life in the palace, she soon found out the hard way that all that glitters is not gold. Her background followed her into the harem and hence she was mistreated, not any better than a servant. Because of her beauty and cunning nature, she eventually found her way into the emperor's sheets which in turn led her winning the grand prize. She gave birth to the only direct descendant of emperor Qiangda with a gift.

This alone earned her the title and thus began a cycle of using Wu Yange to reap more benefits. She managed to get her own city Nuwang and didn't need to stay in the same city as the emperor. With which she could do whatever she pleases with no need to worry about the old farts in the capital. The man who supported her initiative the most was Zhao Huang, the retired Prime Minister, who had a major influence on Emperor Qiangda at that time.

Now Zhao Huang had appeared out of thin air like a poltergeist wailing in his misfortune at the empress' feet. "Your Majesty, everything I mentioned is true. Everything I own was burnt to ashes, please grant me justice," he pled with her, his entire family kneeling before the empress.

Empress Tao didn't seem interested in the slightest, Zhao Huang was a constant pain in the ass. She regretted having dealt with him in the first. "So what if that unruly son of mine burnt down your mansion? What does that have to do with me?" she asked as a servant filed her nails.

"Your Highness you have the final say, please make him honour the engagement as promised. This is the least he can do after purposefully making us homeless all for that coquettish servant who even strangled my daughter. Look, loo-," he said crawling towards Zhao Lee to show off the strangulation marks but the Empress cut him off.

"What servant?" she howled while thinking, 'That bastard broke off the engagement making me seem spineless to outsiders now he dares prance around with some unknown hoe,' tightly clenching her fist till her fingertips turned pale.

"A man seduced him, Your Majesty. He even burnt down my house because of him even after the man strangled my daughter," he explained pointing at Zhao Lee's neck.

Empress Tao flipped the table when she heard her son had got himself involved with a slut worse of all a man. She desperately wanted to get her hands on that seducer and tear him limb from limb. The empress had already lost her favourite son and was left with the disobedient one. She blamed god for gifting powers to the wrong twin.

'Running off at fifteen all in the name of saving the world that was before he broke it off with such a lovely girl I had picked for him. It's always constant disrespect, I have to deal with him and bring him back in line. He isn't a child anymore, who can just throw a fiery tantrum and expect to get away with it," she thought as a flush of anger crept up her neck and into her face leaving a bad taste in her mouth.

Fuming, she hauled a porcelain cup onto the floor breaking into a million pieces. The servants fervently fanned her to calm nerves and so she drew in a deep breath relaxing with an exhale. Zhao Huang was pleased with the empress' reaction, he was finally getting what he wanted. The man could almost taste sweet victory.

"To catch a bear, you need to set a trap. Leave it to me, I will bring him back in line," she said and stood up leaving the hall.

***

Rong Zian woke up feeling awful, he was getting tired of these constant knockouts that lasted for days. Everything in his body ached as struggled to sit up. The last thing he remembered was, 'Fuck I killed Wu Yinyou! The soldiers! Fuck! How about Wu Yange?' he thought panic-stricken. In a frenzy, he misstepped and came crashing down on the floor. "Ah, Fuck! Why do bad shit always happen to me," he wept while struggling to get up from the floor.

The room he was currently in was unfamiliar with a simple design not low class, not rich either. He quickly got out of the room with speed like a racehorse and frantically searched all the other rooms. With each second he didn't see Wu Yange the pain is his heart escalated, it felt as though it was being torn apart and his mind on a verge of lunacy.

He finally bumped into a servant who was sweeping the grounds and didn't hesitate to ask him. The man was kind enough to lead him straight to where Wu Yange was lying down unconscious. Seeing the man he loved lying still on the bed as though lifeless Rong Zian just wanted to cry. He knelt down beside him and placed his hand on his hair while stroking Wu Yange's forehead with his thumb.

"You have to wake, I want to tell you that I love you. But you have to be awake to hear it," he whispered in his ear hoping Wu Yange would hear him and wake up.

In distress, Rong Zian couldn't control the tears flowing down his cheeks. Watching the only person who ever loved him lying down helpless was too much for Rong Zian. He had missed out on a lot of things in his life but Wu Yange made up for it, he made up for all the loveless years in his life and he wanted him awake so he could tell him want he truly meant to him.

While wallowing in his pain stroking Wu Yange's hand, he heard a familiar voice speaking to him. He looked around looking for Guang but she wasn't there though her voice was as clear as day. "Ah-Zian! Come over here and stop wailing like it's a fuckin' funeral," said Guang calling out to him.

Rong Zian wiped away the tears and sincerely hoped she wouldn't say any juvenile thing because he really wasn't in the mood. "You better not say stupid shit. I'm really not in the mood,"

"Aiyo such a temper. Just come over," she replied feeling wronged. She was calling him to ease his mind, it was hard for her seeing him wallowing in self-pity as though the apocalypse was upon them.

Rong Zian got into bed with Wu Yange and lay his head on the unconscious man's chest before closing his eyes. He was instantly dragged into Guang's space with the familiar fluffy cloud enveloping the whole of him in comfort. He sat up from the bed of clouds and faced her direction. To his surprise, she was in her adult form at the right age for someone who was his mother. The goddess was actually dressed like a regular housewife with an apron tied around her waist. The table was filled with all kinds of sweet things from muffins to chocolate-coated strawberries tantalising his taste buds. Showing she knew her son too well, she had a bottle of crispy dry white wine in an ice bucket waiting for him.

She poured out a glass and said, "Here this will cheer you up. I made all this for you," feeling extremely proud of herself for thinking of this.

"I can't, I have to go back and take care of Yan Yan," he said one foot at the door.

Guang's brows creased with an ugly expression, "I am being fuckin' nice to you and all you thinking is Yan Yan this, Yan Yan that. He will be fine damn it, he will be awake in two days. It's not like he's dying!" exploded Guang before chugging down the entire glass in one go.

Rong Zian's jaw dropped at her words only focusing on the important part, he was so happy to hear that Wu Yange would be awake in two days. 'Fuck! My mother is awesome,' he thought diving in to hug Guang who was stupefied. Rong Zian was embracing her so tight laughing in excitement as though he had won the lottery.