Diverting the Disaster Eastward

Faced with such an outrageous question, Luo Zhao instinctively wanted to refuse.

Are you kidding? She was the Crown Princess, the future Empress of Great Luo. How could she possibly agree to be a secondary wife?

Her upbringing, the pride etched into her very bones, the weight of her position as Crown Princess on her shoulders.

Every single one of these things forbade her from making such a compromise.

If even half a word of this got out, how would the court officials look at her?

How would the people of the realm look at her?

Would she even be able to keep her position as Crown Princess?

So Luo Zhao's first instinct was to refuse. Her lips parted slightly.

The word "no" was already perched on the tip of her tongue, waiting to slip out.

But just as the words were about to leave her mouth, Luo Zhao hesitated.

No.

Something was wrong.

Her lips remained slightly parted, the word "no" rolling back and forth on her tongue, yet never quite managing to escape.

Luo Zhao's gaze landed on Gu Chengyin's face, carefully studying the man's expression, trying to discern some clue from it.

Why would Gu Chengyin suddenly ask her such a question?

Was he truly asking her to be a secondary wife?

Of course not.

Luo Zhao quickly dismissed that possibility in her mind.

She knew Gu Chengyin too well. Everything he did, every word he spoke, hid at least three layers of meaning beneath the surface.

He never did anything without a reason, and certainly not at such a sensitive moment.

To ask such an absurd question out of the blue, right in front of Lin Qingyan and Gu Xiaoli?

He was diverting the trouble.

Luo Zhao's eyes narrowed slightly as clarity dawned on her.

She had seen the situation clearly just now.

Lin Qingyan and Gu Xiaoli — one at the pinnacle of Golden Core, the other half a step into Nascent Soul.

The two of them stood facing Gu Chengyin with swords drawn and bows bent, neither willing to yield so much as an inch.

Gu Chengyin was caught in the middle. Choosing either one would be a dead end, and not choosing was just as fatal.

That taut string had been pulled to its absolute limit, ready to snap at any moment.

And Gu Chengyin didn't want to face the storm between Lin Qingyan and Gu Xiaoli head-on.

So he suddenly shifted the topic onto her.

Asking whether she'd be willing to be a secondary wife was nothing more than a smokescreen.

Gu Chengyin's real purpose was to use her, as an outsider's intervention, to defuse the tension between Lin Qingyan and Gu Xiaoli, to redirect their attention.

As long as Lin Qingyan and Gu Xiaoli stopped staring each other down—

Even if only for a brief moment—he would have a chance to catch his breath.

Then he could seize the opportunity to bring the situation back under his control.

Nice thinking.

Luo Zhao sneered inwardly.

She still wanted to see that Red Egg flustered and scrambling. Why should she let him off the hook so easily?

Just moments ago, standing to the side, watching Gu Chengyin squeezed between two women, caught in a dilemma—it filled her with immense satisfaction.

This man, who was always so strategic, so calculating, rarely found himself cornered and humiliated.

She hadn't had her fill of it yet.

If he got out of this so effortlessly, wouldn't that be a loss for her?

No.

She couldn't let Gu Chengyin have his way.

Luo Zhao's eyes twinkled as a plan formed in her mind.

She wanted to see what would happen if she didn't follow his script.

What if she didn't refuse, but instead played along with his line of questioning? What would his reaction be?

He wanted to divert the trouble, did he?

Then she'd let that trouble splash right back onto him.

So Luo Zhao let a smile bloom on her face.

The smile came naturally, and left just as naturally, settling perfectly at the corner of her lips.

It carried just the right amount of tenderness, mingled with a hint of subtle shyness.

Her brows curved into two shallow crescents, and as her eyes flickered, there was even a hint of genuine emotion in them.

As if Gu Chengyin hadn't asked "would you be willing to be a secondary wife,"

but rather "would you marry me."

Deep and affectionate.

Those four words described Luo Zhao's expression at this moment perfectly.

"If it's you, Royal Tutor, then... I suppose it's not out of the question."

Luo Zhao's voice was neither too loud nor too soft, her pace neither too fast nor too slow.

Every word seemed dipped in honey—sweet without being cloying, gentle without being seductive.

As she spoke, she tilted her head slightly, revealing a small patch of fair skin on her neck, paired with that bashful, demure look.

Anyone looking at her would believe this princess was answering the question with complete sincerity.

The moment those words left her mouth, both Lin Qingyan and Gu Xiaoli froze.

Gu Xiaoli was still lost in her own tangled mess of thoughts, trying to sort through this complex question.

When she suddenly heard Luo Zhao's words, she was rooted to the spot as if struck by a paralysis spell.

She jerked her head up, her big eyes wide as saucers, filled with disbelief.

What did she just hear?

The princess said she'd be willing to be her brother's secondary wife?

Lin Qingyan's reaction wasn't much better.

She had already retracted the golden lightning crackling at her fingertips and was standing to the side with her arms crossed, waiting to see how Gu Chengyin would clean up this mess.

But before Gu Chengyin could clean up anything, Luo Zhao threw out this statement, completely yanking Lin Qingyan's attention away.

Lin Qingyan looked at Luo Zhao in disbelief, her gaze filled with scrutiny and suspicion.

And doubt as to whether Luo Zhao had been possessed by something.

Her brows furrowed slightly, the corners of her mouth turning downward, her expression like someone looking at a patient suddenly struck with delirium.

Was this even the Luo Zhao they knew?

Who was Luo Zhao?

The Crown Princess of the Great Luo Dynasty. The future Empress.

From the day she was born, her pride was carved into her bones, her nobility dissolved into her blood.

Forget being a secondary wife—if an ordinary noble young lord wanted so much as a single glance from her, he'd have to first weigh whether he was worthy.

Countless talented young men in the capital had been rejected by her. Numerous aristocratic heirs had been politely turned away.

Luo Zhao couldn't even be bothered to give them a second look.

And this woman had just said she'd be willing to be Gu Chengyin's secondary wife?

Had the sun risen from the west today?

Lin Qingyan instinctively looked up at the sky.

The sun hung bright and clear at its peak, neither east nor west.

She lowered her gaze and looked at Luo Zhao again, the suspicion in her eyes not fading in the slightest—only growing stronger.

As for Gu Chengyin, he raised an eyebrow.

His gaze lingered on Luo Zhao's face for a moment, taking in her expression of deep affection, and he understood immediately.

Clearly, Luo Zhao had seen through his intentions.

Not only that, she was trying to turn the tables on him.

Luo Zhao was telling him: You want to divert the trouble? I won't let you.

You want to use me as a shield?

Fine. I'll play along with your words and see how you handle it.

I, the Crown Princess of Great Luo, have just said I'm willing to be your secondary wife. What do you do now?

Do you actually dare to take me as your secondary wife? Or do you retract your own words in front of Lin Qingyan and Gu Xiaoli?

Whichever you choose, this scene will be even more entertaining than before.

Gu Chengyin's mind was as clear as a mirror.

Though a bit surprised, he wasn't flustered.

What surprised him was that Luo Zhao had reacted far more quickly than he'd expected—and far more cleverly, too.