Fearing being killed for his overwhelming merits, the empress decided to marry him.

"Long live my emperor!"

This was the first time Shen Lang had ever experienced how cool it felt to sit on the dragon throne.

He saw all the civil and military officials bowing respectfully to him (Jiang Mengxuan behind him), which gave him a real sense of awe and secretly made him feel very pleased with himself.

"Flat body."

Jiang Mengxuan's voice rang out from the dragon throne shrouded by the beaded curtain, melodious and charming with a hint of majesty.

After the officials rose, Ye Mo was the first to step forward and say, "Your Majesty, the auspicious time has arrived. Shall we begin the selection of husbands?"

Jiang Mengxuan's cool voice rang out again: "Let's begin."

Ye Mo slowly turned around and called out to the outside of the hall: "His Majesty has decreed that the selection ceremony for a son-in-law shall officially begin. All talented young men and women, please enter the hall in an orderly manner."

The sound traveled along with the eunuch all the way to the sun-drenched plaza of the main hall.

Upon hearing the sound, the hundreds of talented individuals who had been kneeling in the square immediately and orderly entered the Taiji Hall.

Watching the promising young man enter the main hall, Shen Lang couldn't help but whisper to Jiang Shangxian beside him, "I say, why does the Empress need to go through all this trouble?"

What kind of ridiculous process is this? Why not just accept them all? At least none of these people are ugly, right?

Jiang Shangxian turned to the side and replied, "You don't know anything. Royal marriages are not as easy as you think."

The primary consideration must be self-interest; personal preferences can only be considered when one truly holds power.

"Then being an emperor must be quite frustrating. I thought you could just pick any concubines you wanted."

"What are you thinking? That's impossible. What Her Majesty needs right now is a husband who can help her consolidate her power, not just someone who's good-looking."

Take me, for example. Such a handsome and dashing man, yet I was forced to marry a shrew under the arrangement of my elder brother (the late emperor).

Of course, you mustn't tell anyone this, otherwise if I end up in a miserable state, you won't benefit either. We brothers can just look after each other.

"I understand. It seems your Empress has it tough too."

"That's right, brother. Why don't you try standing up there? Actually, I have high hopes for you, after all, you're quite capable."

This is exactly the kind of talent His Majesty needs right now. If you step up there, I dare say you will definitely be selected.

If he has a prince or princess in the future, won't he also become the retired emperor? Hehehe, I'll think about it.

"Are you dreaming? I'd rather give up a peaceful life and watch other people's faces every day. The kind of entertainment this would create is terrifying."

The two spoke softly, but Jiang Mengxuan heard every single word.

She glanced at Shen Lang's retreating figure, a hint of suspicion flashing in her exquisite eyes.

At this moment, Ye Mo spoke again: "Your Majesty, all the candidates have arrived. May we begin the first procedure?"

"Well, let's get started."

Jiang Mengxuan responded softly.

Then, a group of palace maids orderly distributed a sheet of clean white Xuan paper to each of the participating men.

Then, several eunuchs took the cinnabar and cinnabar brushes and applied a bean-sized dot of cinnabar to each of their arms or wrists.

Upon seeing the Shouyang Sand, Shen Lang remembered the one that had been accidentally applied to his wrist during his playful interaction with Jiang Shangxian, and instinctively wanted to wipe it off.

However, upon closer inspection, it became clear that the cinnabar had become one with the skin and could not be wiped off.

"I wipe."

Shen Lang immediately panicked. What the hell was going on?

Upon seeing this, Jiang Shangxian immediately laughed: "Don't bother. Once the 'Guardian Yang Sand' is applied, unless you get close to women, you'll never be able to remove it for the rest of your life."

Upon hearing this, Shen Lang was about to lose his temper.

He would rather be seen as a ladybug than be laughed at as an inexperienced virgin; he simply couldn't bear the shame.

"Is there no other way to erase it?"

"As far as I know, there really isn't."

Upon hearing this, Shen Lang nodded: "Alright, after I leave the palace, I'll go to a brothel to get rid of this thing."

Jiang Shangxian immediately glared at him and said, "You wish! Once this 'Guardian Yang Sand' is applied, no brothel will serve you. Forget about it."

"What do you mean?"

"Because this is His Majesty's grace, representing an honor bestowed by the royal family. How dare those worldly women defile what may be His Majesty's man?"

"Didn't you lose the election? Is this still not acceptable?"

"Unless His Majesty confirms the choice of the imperial son-in-law at his wedding, this protective stigma will remain on his body for the rest of his life."

Shen Lang was completely dumbfounded; he never expected there to be such a complicated relationship involved.

However, after observing the location of the yang sac on his wrist, he realized that it could be easily covered by pulling up his sleeve, so he didn't need to worry too much about letting anyone discover this "shameful" secret.

"Forget it, I hope your empress gets married soon and stops causing trouble. I now deeply regret coming to watch this show."

"That's hard to say. Our imperial niece has very high standards. To be honest, she might not be able to find one of these men she likes. You should just wait and see."

After speaking, Jiang Shangxian twisted his fat body and walked to his throne, leaving Shen Lang behind to continue his duty as a bodyguard.

Jiang Mengxuan heard every single word of their conversation.

"This Shen Lang..."

She shook her head almost imperceptibly.

Just then, the soft chimes of bronze bells rang out from the main hall.

Each sound means that someone has been eliminated.

Shen Lang clearly saw that the cinnabar on the arms of some young masters gradually began to dissolve after a cup of tea, eventually peeling off onto the clean white Xuan paper, leaving a red dot.

More than 80% of the men present were eliminated in this round.

Seeing their dejected appearances, Shen Lang felt a deep disdain: "Tch, I thought they were all so innocent."

They're a bunch of hypocrites, acting like sheep but actually a pack of wild dogs. Disgusting.

Upon hearing this, Ye Mo couldn't help but turn around and glance at Shen Lang.

"This Shen Lang is indeed a handsome man, but unfortunately he is too ignorant of etiquette."

Little did they know that while Ye Mo was observing Shen Lang, Shen Lang was also observing Ye Mo.

"That old fox is cunning. You can tell at a glance that he's not a good person. No wonder he can keep everyone in the court under his thumb."

Both harbored their own secrets and tried to guess each other's thoughts.

"No, I don't accept it!"

Suddenly, a cry of surprise broke the silence of the hall.

Suddenly, a young man with rosy lips and white teeth jumped out of the crowd, his emotions running high, as the protective talisman on his wrist slipped off.

Ignoring the eunuchs' attempts to stop him, he scrambled and crawled towards the dragon steps where Jiang Mengxuan was.

"Your Majesty, please have mercy and give me another chance. I had an affair with someone unintentionally without realizing it; it was truly not intentional."

Your Majesty, you cannot abandon a loyal man who loves you so deeply because of this! I have truly sacrificed so much for this day, Your Majesty!

Please give me another chance. I will definitely cherish Your Majesty with all my heart. Your Majesty…

The boy was completely obsessed, pushing aside the eunuchs who tried to stop him, and rushed straight toward the throne.

Ye Mo and Jiang Shangxian were both shocked at almost the same time: "Stop him quickly, don't disturb His Majesty!"

The boy, ignoring everything, continued running and shouting, "Your Majesty, I really didn't mean to!"

I have talent and knowledge, I can help you, I am useful, really useful, please…

"Be careful, Your Majesty!"

Upon seeing this, Mu Changge and Shu Yingwen also got up to stop the boy.

Just as the boy was about to step onto the dragon steps, a melodious wind chime rang out throughout the hall.

The next moment, an iron arm wrapped around his neck.

"Trying to ruin my livelihood? Maybe in your next life."

boom--

Shen Lang executed a beautiful one-handed over-the-shoulder throw, knocking the boy to the ground.

Before he could get up, Shen Lang grabbed his right arm again.

Click...

"what--"

With a quick twist and grab, Shen Lang dislocated the boy's arm, causing him to let out a piercing scream of pain.

After subduing the boy, the guards present swarmed forward and completely restrained him.

After everything was properly handled, Ye Mo was the first to bow to Jiang Mengxuan and say, "Your Majesty, it is all my fault for failing in my duty and causing Your Majesty to be frightened."

He bowed, and everyone present knelt down in the main hall.

Mu Changge and Shu Yingwen also knelt on either side of Ye Mo, their eyes filled with worry.

Jiang Mengxuan remained unusually calm in response, her beautiful eyes constantly scanning Shen Lang through the beaded curtain.

Seemingly sensing the emperor's imposing presence, Shen Lang had no choice but to pinch his nose, bow, and clasp his hands in a salute to Jiang Mengxuan, awaiting instructions.