Chapter 136 Why is this guy still so stubborn?!

"My mind is made up, say no more!" The Earth Emperor yanked back his robe from Yunshang's grasp, turned abruptly, and left with a flick of his sleeve. At the doorway, he suddenly stopped and said coldly, "If you dare any further unruly behavior, execute without mercy!"

Feeling as though they had fallen into an icy abyss, the kneeling Consort Zhen and Yunshang shivered uncontrollably, their legs growing so weak that they collapsed onto the floor.

After pouring so many years of effort into this, it had all fallen through at the last hurdle. The hatred, the resentment... yet what more could be done? Yuyun was in his hands.

After a long while, Consort Zhen slowly regained her senses, struggling to stand up and help Yunshang to her feet.

"Child, man proposes, heaven disposes. Perhaps all of this is heaven's will, so do not grieve too much. I have heard that the new emperor of the Jin Kingdom is exceptionally handsome, with an extraordinary bearing, both literate and martial—a rare and fine monarch. Perhaps you will grow to love him.

With Yunshang's beauty and wit, becoming empress should be effortless. Do try to look on the bright side," Consort Zhen comforted her earnestly.

Yunshang let out a bitter laugh, saying helplessly, "Is there any room for choice now? Although Consort Mother speaks so glowingly, it is not as if I have not heard that the new emperor is cold, arrogant, and domineering, treating women as mere playthings—a completely heartless man. Whether I can truly conquer him remains entirely unknown. Empress? Heh, I fear it will not be so easy."

"Silly child, his ruthlessness may simply be because he has not yet met someone he fancies. My Yunshang is of such peerless beauty, which man could lay eyes upon you and not love you? You must have more confidence, you hear?" Consort Zhen affectionately stroked Yunshang's long hair, her eyes filled with profound reluctance.

Ten days. In just ten days, she would be parted from Yunshang. From then on, she would likely spend the rest of her days aging in solitude deep within this palace...

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"Hey, hurry in! It's time to eat!" Jin'er hugged a large, circular food box and shouted at Heling Feng, who was sitting outside soaking up the sun.

"What do you mean 'hey, hey, hey'? This Crown Prince has a name," Heling Feng said with a touch of gloom as he stood up and walked back into the room.

"I know. Heling Feng, right? But calling you that doesn't roll off the tongue very well," Jin'er said as she placed the food box on the table.

"Why do I feel like it rolls off your tongue just fine?" Heling Feng chuckled as he stepped into the room. "On the contrary, it sounds grating to my ears. No one has ever addressed me this way. Imperial Father always calls me Lingfeng, while everyone else naturally calls me Crown Prince or Your Highness."

"You find it grating? Good! From now on, I'll just call you Heling Feng, haha!" She discovered that she thoroughly enjoyed building her own happiness upon his suffering.

"You really are determined to go against me, aren't you?" Heling Feng curled his lips helplessly, walking forward to ask, "Why didn't they send the food over today? You actually had to go pick it up yourself?"

Jin'er smiled mysteriously and said, "Go close the door, and draw all the window curtains too."

Heling Feng froze, bewildered. "Why close the doors and windows in broad daylight?"

"Aiya, why so many useless words? Just go do as you're told!" Jin'er said impatiently.

Heling Feng furrowed his brow, then turned to shut the doors and windows, muttering under his breath as he walked, "You're the fierce one. If anyone else acted like this, I'd have them dragged out and beheaded immediately!"

"What did you say?" A chilling voice drifted from behind. Heling Feng felt a chill run down his spine, and he quickly forced a silly smile. "Nothing, hehe."

After shutting the door and pulling down the window curtains, Heling Feng turned around only to find that candlelight was already flickering in the dim room. There were two slender red candles, and... they were actually stuck onto a circular, two-layered large flatbread. It was the first time he had ever seen such a large flatbread, and it seemed to have some fruits embedded in it—though they looked cooked?

"Come over here. This is a birthday cake, I made it with my own hands. People back in my hometown usually eat cake on their birthdays. But I've never made one before, so I just winged it based on feeling, and the people in the kitchen helped a bit too. It looks like it barely passes muster." Jin'er giggled and stuck out her tongue. The fiery red candlelight reflected on her lovely smiling face, making her so breathtaking that one could not help but be moved.

Heling Feng felt as though his body was no longer under his own control, walking straight toward her in a trance.

"Both candles have two characters carved on them—one says 'nineteen', and the other 'sixteen', representing your and my current ages respectively. Come, put your hands together like this, close your eyes, and make a wish." With that, Jin'er closed her eyes, the corners of her lips curving into a lovely arc.

What wish should she make? Well, there's always a chance every year, so this year's wish will go to Moyan. May Moyan be happy every day, steadily rule as his emperor, and live in everlasting happiness hereafter.

At the very end of her thought, Jin'er's heart inexplicably ached a little. In truth, she missed him so terribly, especially in the deep stillness of night...

Watching for a long time from the side, Heling Feng finally mimicked Jin'er's posture and began to make his wish.

By this time, Jin'er had opened her eyes after making her wish, forcing herself to shake off that wave of longing.

Stop thinking about it. If you can pick something up, you must also know how to put it down. Today is her birthday after all, so she should be happy. Besides, wasn't there someone sharing the exact same birthday keeping her company? Thinking of this, Jin'er took a deep breath and finally cast aside that inexplicable sorrow.

Turning her head with a smile toward Heling Feng, who wore an expression of intense devotion amidst the hazy candlelight, Jin'er suddenly realized he seemed even more handsome than before. The quiet look he wore at this moment was truly as lovely as a character stepping out of a comic book.

"Will a wish made this way actually come true?" Heling Feng opened his eyes and asked with a thoroughly earnest expression.

Looking into his pure, clear eyes that resembled those of an innocent child, Jin'er simply couldn't bear to let him down. Smiling, she replied, "It will come true."

"That's wonderful!" A brilliant light of joy burst forth from Heling Feng's eyes, revealing just how deeply he yearned for that wish to be fulfilled.

"Alright, now let's blow out the candles together." Bending slightly forward with her cherry lips drawing closer, Jin'er saw that Heling Feng was also prepared, and continued, "I'll count to three and we'll blow together. One, two..."

The candles went out on cue.

After adjusting to the sudden darkness, Jin'er reached out to pull out the candles, channeled her fire spirit and flicked her fingertip, instantly igniting the nearby oil lamp.

"Fire-attribute spirit power is truly wonderful, quite practical too," Heling Feng couldn't help laughing.

"Haha, I think so too. When camping in the wild, there's no need to carry fire starters or flints at all," Jin'er said with a smile. "Alright, time to cut the cake. Oh no, I forgot to bring a knife over."

"I have a dagger." Heling Feng produced an exquisite dagger, but after opening it, realized the blade was too far short. A flash of inspiration crossed his mind; he turned, strode swiftly back into the inner chamber, and with a "swish" drew a treasured sword.

Seeing him emerge with a sword, Jin'er burst out laughing. "I'm just trying to cut a cake, what on earth are you bringing that thing out for? Isn't that a bit over the top?! Haha!"

"There are no other knives in the room, and I don't want such a wonderful birthday feast to be interrupted." Heling Feng walked up with a smile, poured tea over the sword blade to rinse it, and then used a clean soft cloth from the food box to wipe the blade dry. "Don't worry, my treasured sword has never killed anyone."

"Even if it has killed people, I'm not afraid," Jin'er tilted her head and smiled, gazing at him unblinkingly. She suddenly realized that even when wiping a sword, he possessed such nobility and elegance. It seemed he only lost all his poise when he was bickering with her.

Heling Feng raised his eyes with a helpless smile and lowered his head to continue wiping.

"All set." He handed the wiped sword to Jin'er.

Accepting the treasured sword from his hand, Jin'er couldn't help giggling again. With this sword in hand, she really did feel a strong impulse to "hack" the cake. However, this thing that didn't look particularly appetizing had cost her half a day's labor; she couldn't let an impulse ruin it.

Suppressing her laughter, Jin'er raised the sword and cautiously sliced down. Surprisingly enough, the sharp treasured sword actually worked rather well, hehe.

After dividing the cake into eight small pieces, Jin'er returned the sword to Heling Feng, retrieved two plates and spoons from the food box, and carefully transferred the little cake portions onto the plates with a spoon.

"Alright, we can finally eat." Jin'er handed one plate to Heling Feng, unable to help licking her lips as she anticipated the long-awaited wonderful taste.

Holding the plate, Heling Feng looked left and right at the grayish-yellow substance resting upon the pristine white plate, and swallowed hard against his will. Make no mistake, this was by no means a salivary response to delicious food, but rather... a rather ominous premonition.

"What's with that expression? I spent half a day working hard to make this! I've never stepped into a kitchen to cook before." As soon as these words left her mouth, Heling Feng's expression turned even grimmer. *Never stepped into a kitchen...*

"It's not that. Although I've never cooked before, I'm very talented at learning things, and I even consulted the kitchen chef," Jin'er explained with a guilty conscience, refusing to show weakness on the surface, before finally issuing a tyrannical command: "You must finish eating it all! This is my birthday gift to you."

"You... made this for me?" Upon hearing that it was a birthday gift intended for him, the hesitation in Heling Feng's eyes vanished instantly, replaced instead by a wave of delight.

"Of course," Jin'er lifted her chin.

"Very well, I'll eat it." Heling Feng offered Jin'er a lovely smile, picked up the spoon on the plate, and prepared to scoop a mouthful into his mouth. However, he found that pressing the spoon down required quite a bit of effort; it felt nothing like the soft and tender texture he had observed when she was cutting it.

Applying a bit more force, he used the spoon like a knife, cut off a corner, popped it into his mouth, and began to chew—whereupon his movements abruptly stopped.