LEGEND OF THE GOLDEN TIGRESS 225 Getting Punished

" Meili was weird in the coming days and I thought it was because she was tired and I tried to spend more time with her. But what she asked of me made my scalp go numb but she insisted...", he looked straight at Xing and she was intrigued,

"She asked me to let our son be raised outside the palace as a commoner and not as a Prince. 'He must never know he is our son', she said, 'Do not get him involved in the affairs of the palace'. I didn't understand why she said that but she made me promise. She told me she just wanted him to be free of all the obligations of the throne and to have a carefree life, enjoying the moment. She knew of the stress I was in each day trying for the welfare of the people and she didn't want that for our son. But I didn't believe that and turns out it was because of Old Rong's words. She didn't want our son to be hunted by the G.o.ds and wanted to hide him with the commoners so that he won't be targeted by the G.o.ds as he won't be influential enough to change anything outside the palace.

I followed her wish even though I didn't agree with her and sent my son with a spell hiding his imperial bloodline to the Zhong household as their adopted son"

"Just like that?", Xing interrupted. Just because she asked, he sent his son away? Isn't this too.... ?

"But she made me promise! And I didn't know it was old Rong's meddling back then", the Tians.h.i.+ Emperor didn't find it odd. She carried him for ten months, went through severe pain to bring him to this world safe and if she wants him to be raised outside, shouldn't I listen to her? But if I knew it was old Rong who put that idea in her head, I'd have never let that happen.

But Xing could not understand it. Would men listen to their wives to this extent? And did the Oldman find out about this adopted son of the Zhong family that he was actually the Tians.h.i.+ Emperor's son? Is that why he was sent to his grave early?

" Our son grew up fine in the Zhong household. Old Rong thought that by sending my son away he'd be recognised by the G.o.ds and eliminated. But my spell worked and he wasn't recognised as my son, so he let the G.o.ds knew by other means. Also he made sure the G.o.ds knew that I was protecting a traitor of theirs. He had planned to eliminate the entire Lu family for accommodating a criminal of the heavens. Old Rong's intentions were always to eliminate the humans with the blood of G.o.d as he considered that an abomination.

Apparently he had crazy ideals that G.o.ddesses should not hold power and just be used as a tool for procreation. He didn't like humans having autonomy to rule their own realm and had this ridiculous notion that they should be below the G.o.ds obeying and wors.h.i.+pping them. Those were the way of the Heavens back then and when the Heavenly Emperor decided to change that he got the other great G.o.ds with him and rebelled that led to the war between the G.o.ds five centuries back. These things were only revealed to me later than that. Letting him take over any realm would only cause the oppression of people in that realm and that should be avoided at any cost.... ", he looked at her with solemn expression for a moment and continued,

" So when the truth was out, We were summoned by the G.o.ds and every G.o.d was angry that I cheated the G.o.ds and only the G.o.d of Wind looked disappointed and I felt guilty to even look at him.. He was saddened by the thought that I actually believed my son's life would be in danger because of the G.o.ds, especially by him and went to a traitor for help ... It was too painful when I realised that I thought wrong of him and actually trusted a manipulative tyrant"

The Tians.h.i.+ Emperor took a deep breath and Xing got him some water to drink.

" I was too depressed to be clear about what happened then, but my wife's life was taken then and there as her life should have been ended early and my punishment was about to be decided and I didn't even had the will to beg for grace.

Seeing her dying right in front of me... I just wanted to follow her... I didn't think of anything else... But it was the G.o.d of Wind who meted my punishment as 'You wanted to protect your wife and son and broke the rules of the heavens and altered the flow of fate. So you will live to see the death of your nine generations. And as far as Old Rong is concerned, you will kill him somehow'.... That was the punishment given to me ", he paused.

" Fei Lian actually saved your son... Did you realise that? Rather than killing your son and get on with it, he actually made sure you'd have at least nine generations of children although it is cruel to make you watch them die... Who knows, may be he thought nine generations is a lot of time and something could be changed during that. But too bad each generation only had a single daughter before they died! ", Xing spoke her mind.

Is that why he tried to help her, the tenth generation, change fate? One little thing that could alter everything... Her changing the fate of Chenglie.... Isn't that the beginning of everything? Did he allow Chenglie's protection to make sure the Tians.h.i.+ Emperor's bloodline would not end? But... Xing snorted, here I am... I cannot have a child! What a pity! In the end fate cannot be changed! All the efforts Tians.h.i.+ Emperor put to protect his bloodline... It all ends with me! Because I was stupid... Because of s.h.i.+hong... No, because of Old Rong... What a ironic circle of fate!

"I didn't think of it like that", the Tians.h.i.+ Emperor's voice broke Xing's thoughts. "When I returned, I grieved for my wife and at that time Old Rong pretended to be caring for me and that irked me. I decided to outsmart the smart Old Rong and trap him. I had promised Old Rong my protection and had promised that I won't kill him over my mother's grave so I couldnot kill him as the G.o.ds wanted me to so I made an elaborate plan to trap him and also to save my future generations "