He Lan Tianxia

"The Empress Dowager has arrived." The commotion had already alerted the Empress Dowager. She alighted from her imperial carriage, walked to the Emperor's side, and said sternly, "You may step back now. I will handle this matter." With that, she walked directly toward her grandson, Murong Junlan.

Murong Junlan always respected his grandmother, so he quickly stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Lan'er greets the Empress Dowager."

"Lan'er, are you not planning to let me into the manor?" The Empress Dowager saw through Murong Junlan's thoughts, but how could she talk to her if she wasn't allowed in? It wouldn't solve the problem at all.

"Lan'er wouldn't dare. I'm just afraid that if Lan'er leaves, Father's Imperial Guards will take advantage of the situation and sneak in," Murong Junlan said, expressing her concern.

"Insolence!" She turned to look at the Emperor. "With me here, who dares to make a move?"

"Lan'er respectfully welcomes the Empress Dowager." Murong Junlan was relieved. Murong Junlan stepped forward to help the Empress Dowager into the mansion, leaving the Emperor outside, sulking alone.

"Lan'er, who exactly is this woman?" The Empress Dowager took a sip of tea and couldn't wait to get to the point.

"Reporting to the Empress Dowager, it is Lan'er's Princess Consort Yan'er," Murong Junlan said solemnly.

"How dare you! My grandson, Lan'er, has never been married, so how could he have a princess consort?" The Empress Dowager was furious. "Are you blinded by something?"

"Grandmother, please calm down. Lan'er is perfectly normal. Next month is Grandmother's sixtieth birthday, and Lan'er will always keep it in mind."

"Oh?"

"Last month, the Empress Dowager bestowed two fiery red rabbits upon Lan'er, and Lan'er is very fond of them."

"The two fiery red hares were a gift from a wise man; I'm glad you're happy. As for that wise man, I don't know his name. He only said that a fine horse is given to someone with a destined fate, so there's no need to mention it." The Empress Dowager paused. "Come here and let me see you." The Empress Dowager scrutinized Murong Junlan for a while. "It seems you are indeed my grandson."

"That is."

"Tell Grandmother, where did that woman come from?"

"Reporting to the Empress Dowager, the Princess Consort came from the Cliff of Broken Hearts."

"The Cliff of Broken Hearts?" The Empress Dowager pondered for a moment. "Then may I see the Princess Consort?" The Empress Dowager proceeded cautiously, her words carrying little weight.

"Forgive my boldness, Lan'er, but the Princess Consort is still recovering from the shock. Once she has recovered, Lan'er will take her to the palace to pay respects to the Empress Dowager." Murong Junlan thought to herself that coming out now would be like sending a lamb to the slaughter.

"Very well, I'll head back now." The Empress Dowager took a couple of steps, then turned back. "I hope you won't disappoint me."

"Lan'er heeds the teachings of her Imperial Grandmother. Lan'er respectfully sees off her Imperial Grandmother."

After seeing off his grandmother, Murong Junlan returned to his chambers. He suddenly noticed that there were more maids visiting his room than usual, and their expressions were particularly interesting, immediately arousing his suspicion. Reaching the bedroom door, he suddenly caught a faint scent of a woman, and Murong Junlan immediately became alert. Murong Junlan usually disliked maids serving him and would dismiss them all before going to bed. Who was so bold as to remain in his room today? Murong Junlan darted to the small-leaf sandalwood bed and, sure enough, saw a person lying inside. With a swift movement, his sword, which had been hanging on the wall, was in his hand. He suddenly lifted the bed curtains, the tip of the sword pointing directly at the woman on the bed.

"Who goes there? How dare you sleep in my bed?"

The woman in bed was having a sweet dream when she was startled awake. Damn it, you ruined my perfect dream! What's going on? Why are you pointing a sword at me? This sudden shock is too much for my heart.

"Your Highness, what's going on?" The woman looked completely bewildered.

"Tell me the truth quickly, and I'll spare your life."

Here we go again! How can you be so fickle? I've heard men are fickle creatures, but isn't this a bit too fast? People are already unhappy when they're woken up from a deep sleep, especially when they're having a sweet dream. So the woman was furious. She yelled, "Who wants to sleep in your bed? If you hadn't carried me back, my legs would be too weak to move. I don't want this lousy bed of yours. It smells like a man, and I don't even know if you've ever washed the sheets. You've dirtied all my clothes. I wonder if you even have any laundry detergent here?"

"I brought you back?" Murong Junlan said sternly, his sword still pointing at the woman, his eyes radiating a dangerous aura that threatened to kill. "Witch, don't spout nonsense in front of me. Everyone knows that I, Murong Junlan, am a gentleman."

"What gentleman? Bah! I am clearly your queen, you have admitted it and even saved me from the execution ground, so why do you want to kill me now? You Chen Shimei, you bastard, you heartless bastard, you made me go through all this trouble to travel from the 21st century to continue our past relationship, but I didn't even get to sit down as a queen before you killed me. If I had known that you, Murong Junlan, were so heartless, I would have preferred to travel somewhere else and be a dog."

"Did I rescue you from the execution ground?" Murong Junlan tried hard to think, but couldn't come up with a solution.

"Do you have amnesia? If you don't believe me, go out and ask the guards or maids yourself."

"Someone come here." Murong Junlan indeed summoned the guards. "Is this the woman I rescued from the execution ground and brought back to my bedchamber?" Upon hearing this, the guards looked at the woman, then at the prince, and suddenly knelt down on the ground, not daring to speak.

"Speak frankly," Murong Junlan said domineeringly. He suddenly pointed his sword at the guard and said, "If you dare to utter a single lie, I will not let you leave this door."

The guard was so frightened he didn't dare breathe. What could he say? If he didn't tell the truth, he'd be dead sooner or later if the prince summoned another guard for questioning. Desperate, the guard recounted the whole story: the prince had rescued the woman from the execution ground, claiming she was a princess, that she was under house arrest by the emperor's guards, and that the Empress Dowager had visited the palace—he went on to explain everything. To avoid being killed in a fit of anger, he emphasized that everyone in the prince's residence knew about it. Sure enough, the prince summoned a few more guards, questioned them, and then sent them all away. Only after leaving the palace did the guard realize he had wet his pants.