Defeat My Political Rival in One Week

[A new emperor who is both brilliant and a devoted wife-follower x an unlucky, storybook-loving fallen emperor]

Song Mingxi thinks he's had rotten luck to end up emperor.

His elderly father, the late emperor, had lost his wits and mistaken his older brothers for rebels, killing them all. Left with only him, a good-for-nothing who spent his days collecting storybooks, the ministers shoved him onto the throne, citing bloodline and status.

Then, in the first year of his reign, before he could even get comfortable on the throne, Yizhou rebelled. Wang Yan led the rebel army north, meeting no resistance along the way. The people welcomed him, and he was imposing, valiant, sturdy, and handsome.

By the second year, an army of 800,000 was standing at his palace gates.

Song Mingxi figured at least 700,000 of them were just there to watch the show.

Song Mingxi thought it over. So they were rebelling. At least they weren't foreigners.

Song Mingxi looked it up, and apparently fallen emperors were supposed to spend the night weeping in their consorts' arms. But he had no one in his harem, so he could only cling to his personal eunuch, who'd been thrown into this situation just like him, and bawl.

So when Wang Yan entered, he saw Song Mingxi kneeling on the ground with red eyes, peeking at him from a distance. But once Wang Yan came close, the little emperor buried his head in the floor.

Song Mingxi lowered his head, then suddenly felt a shadow fall over him.

When he looked up, the new emperor loomed over him like a mountain.

Good heavens, a military man with a pretty-boy face.

Wang Yan was a famous handsome young man for miles around. If years of military training hadn't left him tanned black, he could easily have played the fair-faced scholar in a storybook.

Still, he couldn't compare to the plump, pampered little emperor.

The little emperor raised his brows and glanced at him. Seeing that he seemed easy to talk to, he began making deals.

The former officials need to be given positions.

Fine.

The palace attendants should be allowed to stay.

All right.

The imperial relatives should be made nobles.

Granted.

And give me some money every month.

...Fine.

Song Mingxi thought that was everything, so he waved Wang Yan away. But just as Wang Yan was leaving, he realized something was wrong, hurriedly knelt down, and fawningly saw His Majesty off.

Now that they'd agreed on the terms, settled on a price, and arranged positions for the former officials, Song Mingxi figured it was time for him to get out. Early the next morning, he slung his packed bundle over his shoulder, ready to hurry off to his fief.

He opened the door and fell silent.

Two rows of Imperial Guards.

What, did this fallen emperor have to die or something?

Since he couldn't leave, Song Mingxi decided to stay. But he couldn't live in his old bedchamber. With a grand sweep of his hand, the new emperor bestowed the Fengyi Palace on him.

But Song Mingxi's kindness went unrewarded. Every day, after acting like a submissive grandson in court, he'd come back and join his little eunuch in being utterly dependent on each other, scheming together, talking nonsense, embellishing stories, and making things up.

Today, Wang Yan couldn't get it up. Tomorrow, the new emperor would come too quickly. Little did they know every word was being passed along to Zichen Palace.

That night, Song Mingxi experienced the new emperor's virility firsthand. The next day's court session was canceled outright.

After a month of nightly passion, Song Mingxi felt like throwing up whenever he saw Wang Yan. The imperial physician took his pulse and exclaimed with delight:

"Your Majesty, the consort is with child!"

Song Mingxi: "What the hell are you talking about?"

Seeing Wang Yan grin like an idiot, Song Mingxi had a sudden inspiration and began negotiating again:

If the child takes your surname, can we keep the dynasty's name?

No.

Then the child takes mine.

No.

Could you show your father-in-law some respect?

Wang Yan: "If you want to see your father tonight, you can call out for him as much as you like."

When the prince was finally born, Song Mingxi's first words to the baby in the swaddling clothes were:

"Son, do you know you're a championship-level crown prince?"

"Purebred, too."

Theme: What goes around comes around, when the time is right.