Chapter 21: Persuasion

The old woman's eyes went wide, yet Pei Su continued speaking.

"I do not say this out of arrogance — I, Jiumu, will one day inherit the position of head of the Pei Clan. Should the Pei Clan become the rulers of all under heaven, then the Young Lord's consort would become the Crown Prince's consort, and then Empress. The children she bears would be Crown Princes, destined to one day sit upon the throne."

Pei Su never stated it outright, yet every word pointed directly to it.

He stopped just short of saying it plainly: if Jiang Suining became his consort, then the future emperor would carry the blood of the Jiang Clan — would that not be a restoration of their dynasty in another form?

The old woman could scarcely believe it. This Heir of the Northern Marquis standing before her actually dared to speak such words — he actually wanted to draw the Jiang Clan of the former dynasty onto the Pei Clan's warship?

After all, when the Xia Dynasty fell, the Pei Clan may not have been the primary cause, but they had certainly been one of the hidden forces behind it. Was he not afraid the Jiang Clan would stab them in the back?

Was this truly the recklessness of youth, or did the Pei Clan genuinely have the confidence to back it up?!

Overthrowing a dynasty and becoming the rulers of all under heaven — in this young lord's mouth, it sounded as simple as child's play…

The ancient noble houses of the Imperial Capital were already pushed to the extreme of their discontent by the Pei faction and the Empress conspiring to hollow out imperial authority. Would they simply stand by and watch the Pei Clan ascend the throne?

And then there was the Chen King of the North, watching with hungry eyes from the north. The moment the Pei Clan dared to usurp the throne, King Chen would be the first to march his armies southward.

There were also the jianghu sects — though they ordinarily kept out of court affairs, if the Pei Clan dared to violate the natural order of dynastic succession and seize power by force, they would inevitably raise the banner of righteous resistance.

Even the demons and monsters of the monster world would emerge to stir up chaos whenever a dynasty changed hands, muddying the waters.

Most critically of all, there was the imperial Li Clan. Though the Son of Heaven was absent, their deep reserves remained intact. Most telling was that the supreme royal aura of the realm still surged powerfully — a clear sign that the dynasty's mandate was far from exhausted, with no sign of imminent collapse.

With obstacle upon obstacle like these, even the Pei Clan's thousand-year foundation could face annihilation if they made a single misstep. What would be the point?

Was it truly so humiliating to simply remain the foremost noble house under heaven?

And yet — one had to admit — if they succeeded, then the Jiang Clan would truly have reclaimed their throne in a different form…

For a moment, the old woman stared at this young man of barely twenty years, her expression shifting through a dozen emotions.

"The Pei Clan… to have you participate in schemes of such world-shaking magnitude at so young an age — truly, heroes emerge from the young…"

Pei Su neither confirmed nor denied it. The meaning of that letter was clear: Pei Su had already been admitted into the innermost circle of his clan's most critical plans.

His grandfather Pei Zhao held court at the Imperial Capital, watching the shifts of the realm; his father Pei Jun guarded the frontier, commanding a hundred thousand troops. Countless pairs of eyes across the world were fixed on those two, making it obvious that neither could move about freely.

As for himself — though his name was known throughout the realm, he was still only a junior member of the clan. The contempt of those old figures was, in fact, a perfect opportunity, giving Pei Su ample freedom to do far more.

Drawing in the Jiang Clan was, for now, nothing more than painting a pie in the air with words. Eliminating the Jiang Clan's hostility, keeping the one with the Heavenly Cloud Glazed Heart by his side — that was all that was needed for the moment.

"Since Her Highness is willing to remain by the Heir of the Northern Marquis's side, let us leave it at that for now. As for what comes after, we can discuss it when the time comes — there will be no shortage of opportunities."

Pei Su furrowed his brow, feigning deliberation for a moment, then nodded his agreement.

With this, the Jiang Clan had made a temporary concession, sparing Pei Su from enduring their constant hostility. Though the Jiang Clan's power had waned, they were still the imperial house of a former dynasty — far from as simple as they appeared in Butterfly Dream Valley. They surely had their own hidden reserves.

"However, I must still offer the Young Lord one word of caution," the old woman said, her expression suddenly turning grave. "Her Highness's Glazed Heart has yet to awaken. To pluck it now would bring harm and no benefit."

She had laid it bare directly — Jiang Suining's Heavenly Cloud Glazed Heart — and warned Pei Su not to be impatient.

"With the princess's peerless beauty, that does make things rather difficult for me…"

The old woman's eyes snapped wide open, and her face flushed crimson with sudden fury.

"Ha! I jest, I jest. Can you not trust this Young Lord's character?"

Pei Su laughed as he turned and walked back.

When he returned to the ruined temple, Zhao Lan — who had been collapsed on the ground — had apparently come to at some point and was now sitting blankly on the ground, eyes vacant and hollow.

Inside the ruined temple, Elder Wu and Banxia were still setting up the Array Formation.

Outside, the old woman had pulled Jiang Suining aside and was murmuring something to her in a low voice, the two of them occasionally glancing over at Pei Su.

Pei Su walked straight into the ruined temple. Banxia came to his side and whispered:

"Just now, after Zhao Lan woke and found only Miss Jiang nearby, he did indeed whisper and plead with her to let him go."

"Oh? And then?"

"Then Miss Jiang just frowned and refused to look at him — like this…"

As she spoke, Banxia tried to imitate it, twisting her expression and tilting her body to the side.

Seeing that Pei Su didn't respond, Banxia let out a small giggle:

"Your Highness, stop testing Miss Jiang. I can see she has a pure and kind heart — but she's not the sort to lose sight of where she stands or act without thinking of the consequences. Though she has her reservations about Your Highness's methods, she would never be foolish enough to go against you and make you angry."

"Oh? You're speaking up for her like that?" Pei Su said with a teasing smile. "Aren't you afraid she'll compete with you for the position of Young Lord's consort?"

The moment those words left his mouth, Banxia immediately spun around, lowering her head, her voice stuttering with nerves:

"Your Highness… please don't tease me. I… I am only Your Highness's handmaid, and I always will be…"

Pei Su didn't press further. He walked to the center of the ruined temple, where the Array Formation had already taken shape.

Elder Wu said nothing. He walked out of the ruined temple and dragged the trembling, cowering Zhao Lan inside.

"Pei Su, what exactly are you trying to do?!"

Zhao Lan caught sight of the black-robed elder's eyes — eyes like those of a dead man — and felt a chill shudder through him to his core.

"If you want to kill me, then kill me! Are you trying to torture me?!"

"I want to ask you some things. But I expect you won't tell the truth, so I'll use a small technique. Don't take offense."

Pei Su said it calmly.

Elder Wu had no such patience. He let out a cold snort, his gaze indifferent.

"Begin!"

The Array Formation on the ground began to flicker with dark, mysterious light. Zhao Lan struggled for a moment, then went completely limp and unconscious.

* * *

"Granny Ling, it's all right. I… I can stay by the Heir of the Northern Marquis's side. I can feel that he still respects me…"

"Your Highness!"

Granny Ling gripped Jiang Suining's hands tightly, her face full of guilt. She probed carefully:

"If — and I only say if — Pei Su were to ask you to become his consort…"

Jiang Suining's entire body went rigid.

"Could you accept it?"

"If… if it could protect Granny Ling, protect the Jiang Clan… then I…"

Jiang Suining's voice caught slightly in her throat.

"Let's not talk about this, let's not talk about this…"

Granny Ling quickly waved her hand.

Jiang Suining composed herself well, quickly wiping her face and smiling again. Her gaze drifted toward the darkness inside the ruined temple.

"Granny Ling, what are they doing in there?"

Jiang Suining could sense that Pei Su and the others seemed to be deliberately keeping her in the dark.

A Soul-Searching Array Formation!

Granny Ling was naturally knowledgeable enough to recognize it. By rights, such a sinister and wicked Array Formation seemed rather at odds with words like "the world's most brilliant talent" or "the righteous path of the court."

But she was not surprised. She had long known that the world was not simply black and white — that position always outweighed right and wrong.

And the Pei Clan, with its ancient heritage stretching back over a thousand years, was hardly a clan of true virtue and goodness.

"Your Highness, this Pei Su — young in years yet deep in thought, he is a man of an overlord's bearing, yet not a wicked or evil person. Staying by his side, you would have the chance to learn something of how to navigate this world — and that is precisely… what you lack."

Jiang Suining had been born and raised in Butterfly Dream Valley, rarely exposed to the outside world, her heart pure and untouched. Yet in this world, it was precisely people like Pei Su who lived the most freely and comfortably.

If it were possible, Granny Ling would rather Jiang Suining develop a shrewder mind than remain naive and ignorant of the ways of the world.