Conquering the Emperor

Chapter 173: Birthday Trouble

“Rin...I appreciate your concern, but this is my job...” Ren said calmly.

“Can’t you just send someone else?” I asked hopefully.

“This is my job and I intend to fulfill my role and responsibilities. I won’t shrink back and send someone else in my place,” Ren said before he gave me a pointed look.

“Ren...” I whispered his name, not knowing how to convince him otherwise.

“You do your job, Rin...and I’ll do mine,” Ren said firmly.

“When are you leaving?” I asked.

“In a few days...” Ren replied without hesitation. freēwēbnovel.com

My head felt light, and I was certain that I was about to faint. I closed my eyes and concentrated on breathing. The situation had gotten much worse than I could ever imagine. Firstly, there’s a war...again. Secondly, the war was at my hometown. To be precise, it was between my hometown and the empire. On top of all of that, Ren is going to war...

There’s got to be a way that I can stop Ren from going to war. If that was not an option, then I will have to resort to my own back up plan. While I was determined to put my own plan into action, I had no idea at that time that even more trouble would be added to our already troublesome lives.

...

“A celebration? Now of all times?” Ren asked shock. It was clear that he thought that it wasn’t a good idea.

“It’s the dowagers empress’s birthday. The celebration is held every year so why are you so shocked?” the emperor replied sternly.

“There’s a war going on and our soldiers need our support,” Ren stated.

“The celebration is just one evening. You’re the crown prince so you must attend,” the emperor replied.

“What about the war?” Ren demanded to know.

“Send some generals first. Listen, even after the gala, I don’t want you out there on the battlefield. You’re the crown prince. How many times do I have to tell you this?! Just stay here in the palace walls,” the emperor said loud and clear.

“When we go to war, we send many of our men out there and many won’t make it back. I’m not going to hide behind these walls while my men go out there and fight...” Ren said through gritted teeth.

Without waiting for his father’s response, Ren turned on his heels and began walking away. The emperor watched his son with an astonished look on his face.

“Ren!” the emperor called his eldest son’s name loudly.

“I will attend the gala as required. Excuse me, Father,” Ren said without turning to look at his father.

...

After learning that Ren was preparing to go to war, I had been restless and unable to focus on anything at all. Although I knew that Ren would probably tell me before he would leave, I still felt uneasy whenever he wasn’t around. Truthfully, I was scared that he would leave without telling me anything. That did happen before the last time he went to war. Things are different between us now and he cares a lot more for me than before...but still...

I sat in my bedroom as I combed my hair absentmindedly. Honestly, I didn’t know why I was combing my hair. It didn’t need any attention, but I found the simple repeated action of running the comb through my long hair relaxing. It helped me stay sane. Ren would be spending the night with me tonight and I couldn’t wait to see him.

“Rin...” I heard Ren calling my name.

“Ren. I’m so happy to see you,” I said the moment I laid eyes on him.

I got up and approached him before he pulled me into a firm hug. I hugged him back instinctively as I buried my face into his warm chest and breathed in his scent. I felt so lucky that he was here with me. I wished that he wouldn’t have to leave...

“Have you had dinner?” I asked.

It was already past dinner time, so I supposed that he had eaten already but I wanted to check regardless.

“Yes, I have...” Ren replied.

“Then...some tea?” I offered.

Ren just smiled as he sat down at the table while I prepared some tea for him. When I served him tea, I could tell that he was deep in thought. I sat down next to him at the table and waited patiently for him to tell me what was on his mind. We sipped tea silently for a while as we enjoyed the peace of just being close to each other.

“There’s a celebration coming up that you will have to attend with me,” Ren said, breaking the silence.

“Oh...what sort of celebration?” I asked excitedly.

It wasn’t often that Ren would invite me to a celebration. Most of the time Ren was involved in meetings and work that were all serious and without any form of entertainment.

“I wished it was something for you to get excited over. Unfortunately, it’s the dowager empress’s birthday celebration...” Ren said before grinning at me.

“The dowager empress...” I whispered.

“The dowager empress is basically, my grandmother. She’s the highest-ranking woman in the entire empire. Even higher than the Empress because she is the Emperor’s mother,” Ren explained.

“So, this celebration is for your grandmother’s birthday?” I asked to check if I was understanding this correctly.

“Correct. It’s supposed to be a celebration, but honestly, it’s a gala where we spend our time dealing with her selfish demands. The Dowager Empress is a very demanding woman...” Ren said followed by a large sigh.

“Is there something that I should do or be careful of?” I asked.

“To be honest, plenty. She’ll definitely ask about our heir too...” Ren said, sounding tired.

“Oh...” I muttered.

“My grandmother is very strict on traditions and the line of succession is always at the top of her mind. It’s like she lives and breathes for it. Luckily, that means that she cares for me deeply in her own way because I am next in line to the throne. Unfortunately, that also means that she’s super strict on me and very demanding when it comes to me producing children...” Ren explained. ƒгeeweɓn૦vel.com

“I see...” I said and I could already imagine the situation.

--To be continued...