An Author and Protagonist Got a Happy Ending [Transmigration] - Chapter 14

“Imperial Father forbids it!”

It was exactly the reaction one would expect.

Xiao Muyu leaned against the doorframe, gazing up at the horizon where the sky met the distant mountains. Hearing the full-throated roar from inside the room, she felt a lingering sense of trepidation.

The Princess’s decision to have her wait outside was undoubtedly wise. Otherwise, it was hard to say if the fuming Old Emperor wouldn’t have reflexively grabbed the nearest object to hurl at her—or, in a fit of greater rage, ordered her to be dragged out and beheaded.

In certain respects, this father and daughter shared a striking similarity. Furthermore, she was the only daughter the Old Emperor truly loved. Putting herself in his shoes, if her most precious possession were snatched away without warning, even Xiao Muyu wouldn’t be able to stop herself from going a little crazy.

Pulling the Princess in as a backer was definitely the right move.

Even if, technically, the Princess was the one who had landed her in this awkward predicament to begin with. But well, let bygones be bygones.

Xiao Muyu brushed her ear and accidentally bumped into the intricate hair ornaments on her head; she suddenly felt the weight on her shoulders increase. Likely wanting to leave a good impression on the Old Emperor, the Princess had specifically ordered Xiao Muyu to be overhauled from head to toe before they came. Her look was strictly tailored to be “simple yet solemn,” intended to dilute the “frivolous” vibe of her natural beauty.

The results looked good, but to someone who had spent years struggling in the apocalypse, the outfit was nothing but a burden upon a burden.

Life in the royal family is actually quite exhausting.

But compared to her life, this bit of discomfort was naturally not worth mentioning. Xiao Muyu let out a soft sigh, hoping the Princess could successfully coax the Old Emperor. Without knowing about the attempted poisoning, the Old Emperor would absolutely prioritize the Princess in everything. Even if he couldn’t accept it at first, as long as the Princess remained firm, the one to eventually compromise would inevitably be him.

He was a father who loved his daughter deeply—at least, that was the case for the Princess.

Xiao Muyu’s mind drifted. When she finally tuned back in, the last thing she heard from inside was the Old Emperor saying: “…How am I supposed to face your late mother?”

His voice was full of exhaustion and the weariness of age, no different from any other earnest old man.

The Princess pushed open the door at that moment. Her footsteps paused briefly upon hearing those words, and her eyes lifted to meet Xiao Muyu’s.

“…”

Xiao Muyu forced back a half-formed yawn. She had a gut feeling the Princess wasn’t very happy to hear that sentence.

“Your Highness—”

“Follow me in.”

The Princess grabbed Xiao Muyu’s hand and led her straight through the door, heading directly to the Old Emperor’s bedside. Her palm was equally cold—her body temperature was far lower than a normal person’s—but her grip was firm. It wasn’t exactly a comfortable hold, and Xiao Muyu instinctively wanted to break free, but she didn’t succeed before they came to a halt.

The Old Emperor’s critical gaze swept over her. Xiao Muyu’s body went rigid. Although he had been bedridden for a long time, he had been the Emperor for many years, after all. His aura was no act; lying on the bed looking up, he still exerted a sense of condescending pressure.

It was much more uncomfortable than the pressure the Princess gave off.

Xiao Muyu didn’t feel much fear, only a sense of awkwardness from being caught between two people with opposing views. Especially when the Princess spoke again: “I am going to marry her.”

Her tone was as calm as if she were commenting on the nice weather. It was entirely the tone of an announcement, without the slightest hint of seeking permission.

The Old Emperor was choked up: “…”

Seeing him not respond, the Princess pretended to think for a moment and added: “I could also marry into her family.”

Xiao Muyu: ???

The Old Emperor: “ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!”

Aside from the Emperor, Xiao Muyu was also startled. Both looked at the Princess with similar expressions of horror; neither had expected her to say something like that.

“Why not?” the Princess asked, perfectly composed. “We are both women; there is no inherent distinction between husband and wife anyway. If I can take a wife, I can certainly be one.”

The Old Emperor: “…” That is not the issue at all!

The Princess looked at him and asked, “So, what is Imperial Father’s decision?”

Her attitude of speaking only for herself didn’t soften even before the Emperor, but this also proved she had long since made up her mind. No one could easily shake her.

The Old Emperor knew the daughter he had doted on since childhood all too well. He closed his eyes to compose himself. When he spoke again, there was a touch of exhaustion, but also a weak compromise: “…Why are you so obsessed with her specifically?”

As he spoke, he looked at Xiao Muyu, who was playing the role of a wooden statue. Under his biased, critical gaze, he naturally couldn’t see a single merit. Sensitive status, no social grace, no courage, no background, and no ability… Even being too beautiful was a fault—who knew if that face was specifically designed to bewitch people!

Compared to the sons of noble families he used to be so picky about, she had no advantage; in fact, she fell far short of them.

“Every suitor I picked for you in the past—which one of them was inferior to her?” the Emperor asked.

“Every single one,” the Princess replied without hesitation. “They are not her, so they are inferior in every way. They will never even amount to a fraction of her.”

“You…”

The Emperor instinctively wanted to offer a stern reprimand, but as he looked up and met the Princess’s expression, the words died in his throat. Her face rarely showed soft expressions; usually, she was like ice that wouldn’t melt in a thousand years. But now, she displayed an unprecedented level of seriousness and stubbornness.

At this moment, she wasn’t speaking to him as a Princess, but more like a child acting spoiled toward her father.

She was still a young girl, after all. But she had understood the burden on her shoulders from an early age and rarely stepped out of her roles as “Princess” and “Heir.” This kind of softened attitude was a rare sight that hadn’t been seen in years.

She is bowing her head for the sake of that Saintess.

The thought left the Old Emperor feeling conflicted. He naturally wished his daughter would depend on him more, but the thought of nodding his head meant giving his daughter away to someone else—and a useless “vixen” at that.

It was a truly difficult choice.

Xiao Muyu secretly shifted back a little, avoiding the Emperor’s resentful and dissatisfied glare.

The Princess took a step forward, blocking the Emperor’s view of Xiao Muyu. She spoke with added emphasis: “She is to me what Mother was to you. I will not let go, even unto death.”

The Emperor’s eyes flickered.

The Princess did not flinch, silently waiting for her father’s final answer. Consequently, she did not see the complex look the person behind her was giving her.

The Old Emperor had been deeply devoted to the late Empress. Her early death was the regret and pain of his life, and it was after her passing that his health began to fail. Because the Princess was her only daughter, he doted on her and worried for her in a thousand ways; his “bottom line” had unknowingly dropped lower and lower.

The Princess mentioning the Empress now undoubtedly gave the swaying Emperor the final push.

But… was that necessary?

Xiao Muyu fell into a brief state of bewilderment. Even as a pretext to convince the Emperor, there was no need to use the late Empress as a comparison—that was undoubtedly “true love.”

But she and the Princess were not that.

Coming back to it, she still hadn’t solved the original mystery: Why on earth was the Princess so insistent on “marrying” her?

As Xiao Muyu was thinking, she heard the Emperor let out a long sigh.

“…Fine.” The Emperor coughed twice and lay back down, choosing the expected compromise. “As long as you’ve thought it through—though you always have the right to regret it.”

A small smile appeared on the Princess’s lips, her voice certain: “I won’t.”

When she was led back by the Princess, Xiao Muyu still hadn’t quite returned to her senses. Upon returning to the courtyard, Pei Qiuyue was pacing anxiously; she hurried over the moment she saw them.

The Princess stopped and whispered a brief explanation to her. Xiao Muyu, lost in thought, didn’t realize the person in front of her had stopped and walked straight into her back.

“Ouch!”

Xiao Muyu crouched down clutching her nose, her eyes turning red instantly. The other two stopped talking to look at her.

“What were you thinking about?” the Princess asked. “You’ve been in a daze the whole way back.”

I was thinking about why the hell you’re so determined to marry me.

Xiao Muyu opened her mouth, but the words circled her tongue and were swallowed back down. When she spoke, it became something else.

“I was wondering if His Majesty would be angry.”

“Why would he be angry?” the Princess asked, puzzled.

“Because of that comparison…” Xiao Muyu said. “Using someone like me as a parallel… it’s too disrespectful to the late Empress—”

“It wasn’t a pretext.”

“Huh?” Xiao Muyu froze, looking up at the Princess.

The Princess replied matter-of-factly:

“It was the truth.”