My Sexy CEO Wife

Chapter 705 - 702 The Only Way to Live

In the quaint, old-fashioned room, Gao Fei and He Hentian were speaking in hushed tones.

Gao Fei nodded, "I've got a grudge against Dongfang Jian, one that can't be resolved, and as for The Tenth Princess Dugu Xiu... I don't even know her. If she's targeting me, it must be because of Dongfang Jian."

"Don't worry, they wouldn't dare mess around with me here," He Hentian said nonchalantly, "How did I do today? Cool, wasn't I?"

"Yeah, super cool," laughed Gao Fei, "Seeing you curse out Dongfang Jian made me so happy."

"Truth be told, I find Dongfang Jian hard to bear too," said He Hentian, "I genuinely despise him. He might look all prim and proper, but he's nothing but a scoundrel and a freeloader. He's just wasting time, emotions, and air. I hope I don't see him again, or it'll be a fight and a scolding every time."

"Ha ha..." Gao Fei grinned, "Dongfang Jian is really unlucky to come across you."

"Stick with me, and you'll never be at a loss," He Hentian boasted while patting Gao Fei's shoulder, "Once I become the emperor, I'll make you Crown Prince. After I move on to the Little Celestial Realm, you'll take over the throne. How's that? I'm good to you, right?"

"... Get lost, I don't want to be the Crown Prince!" Gao Fei glared at He Hentian fiercely. Just imagine, if He Hentian became the emperor and Gao Fei the Crown Prince, what would their relationship be? Outsiders would definitely say Gao Fei was He Hentian's illegitimate son. Such a scenario was absolutely unacceptable.

"Alright, it's getting late, let's rest up. There's a lot to do tomorrow." He Hentian stood up and yawned, "Man, I'm exhausted! I really want to sleep!"

The night passed without incident.

Early the next morning, He Hentian went to the Taiji Hall to find Emperor Dugu Jingtian: "I've thought it over, and I'm willing to be the Crown Prince."

"Good! Great!" Dugu Jingtian burst into laughter, "I knew you'd agree! With you at the helm, the Dugu family will continue to prosper, ha ha ha..."

That afternoon, Dugu Jingtian issued two decrees: first, he appointed He Hentian as Crown Prince, and second, he appointed Gao Fei as Prince of the Eastern Region.

Once the decrees were announced, there was an uproar across the land.

Some were overjoyed, some were despondent, and some were so angry they felt like spitting blood.

The most infuriated were Dongfang Jian and Dugu Xiu.

"Father is really confused, how could he appoint He Hentian as Crown Prince? He Hentian is just a bastard at best, what qualifications does he have to be Crown Prince? I won't accept this! I do not!!!" Dugu Xiu screamed with red eyes.

"I won't accept it either!" Dongfang Jian's fists were clenched, his complexion uglier than ever, "What qualifications does Gao Fei have to be a prince? What qualifications does he have!!!" After all, Dongfang Jian and Gao Fei had started from the same starting line, but now, Gao Fei had suddenly surged ahead of him, and by a wide margin at that. It was utterly infuriating.

"No, I must go to Father and make him rescind the decree!" Ignoring Dongfang Jian's attempts to stop her, Dugu Xiu stormed into the Taiji Hall in a huff.

She entered quickly and came out just as fast.

When Dugu Xiu went in, her face was ashen; when she came out, it was pale as death.

"What happened?" Dongfang Jian asked urgently, "What did Father say?"

"He gave me a tongue-lashing..." Dugu Xiu said sadly, "and then he threw me out..."

"What?"

"It's the first time Father has ever been so harsh with me."

"Did you say something you shouldn't have? Something to anger Father?"

"What did I say? I didn't say anything. I simply questioned why he would make He Hentian Crown Prince... Maybe it was my attitude that made Father unhappy."

"I told you not to come, but you insisted on doing so, now you're paying the price," Dongfang Jian said gravely.

"I feel so terrible..."

"I'm feeling terrible too! But life has to go on... This place is crowded and noisy, it's not convenient to talk here, let's go back and figure things out properly,"

And with that, Dongfang Jian and Dugu Xiu left with despair written all over their faces.

Once the couple returned home, they shut the door and racked their brains for solutions.

"What do we do? What can we possibly do?" Dugu Xiu said in desperation, her voice crackling with urgency: "We've seriously offended He Hentian and Gao Fei, and now that they've risen to power, our good days are numbered."

"Don't panic, we'll think of something," Dongfang Jian consoled her.

"How can I not panic? This is no small matter! One slip and we could be doomed forever," Dugu Xiu said anxiously: "How about... we go and make peace with He Hentian and Gao Fei? If we apologize and say some nice things, they might forgive us, right?"

"Don't be foolish," Dongfang Jian waved his hand dismissively: "Even if we kneel and kowtow, they won't let us off. The enmity is set, no use hoping to resolve it now."

"It's all your fault!" Dugu Xiu accused: "I've only incurred the wrath of He Hentian and Gao Fei because of you! This is all on you!"

"Yes, it's my fault, all my fault," Dongfang Jian was feeling depressed, Dugu Xiu was the kind of woman to shift blame onto him whenever trouble arose, which was really irritating for Dongfang Jian: "What's done is done, instead of complaining, we should hurry up and think of a solution."

"What solution can there be? Apart from awaiting death, what else can we do?" Dugu Xiu raised her voice in frustration.

Dongfang Jian pondered for a moment: "I've heard... after the Emperor passed, Grand Steward Liu Yifei took the throne? Is this true?" Dongfang Jian was well-informed, even privy to such secret matters.

"That should be correct."

"How's your relationship with Liu Yifei?"

"Relationship? It's just so-so, I guess. Liu Yifei is a cultivation fanatic; he spends most of his time in closed-door cultivation and rarely cares about external affairs. Plus, Liu Yifei is a loner and difficult to get along with," Dugu Xiu frowned as she spoke: "No one except my father can command him."

"That won't do, it won't work," Dongfang Jian shook his head: "From now on, you must find a way to ingratiate yourself with Liu Yifei."

"What?"

"Liu Yifei is our only hope now. With his support, we wouldn't need to fear He Hentian and Gao Fei."

"But..."

"What 'but'? It's the only path we can take, our only chance at survival. We must seize it."

"...Fine, I'll give it a try. The main issue is that Liu Yifei is such an odd character, capricious in temperament. It will be hard to win his favor," Dugu Xiu reluctantly conceded.

"There are no difficult tasks for the determined; if we put our hearts into it, we will certainly charm Liu Yifei," Dongfang Jian confidently asserted: "Let's not delay, you should act now."

"Now?"

"Yes, now. Do you understand the principle 'the early bird catches the worm'? If we can think of appeasing Liu Yifei, so can He Hentian and Gao Fei. We must strike first and win him over. Tenth Princess, now is not the time to concern yourself with pride. You must humble yourself, be sincere, and do everything you can to win over Liu Yifei. No matter what he asks for, just agree."

"Alright, I'll go find him now. I hope he isn't in closed-door cultivation today." Urged by Dongfang Jian, Dugu Xiu left her residence to seek out Grand Steward Liu Yifei.