What could Ning Chen possibly be up to?

All he wanted was peace under Heaven, the common people living in peace and working contentedly, and good health for his family and friends.

He was, after all, a man with the whole world in his heart.

As for himself, his wants were very simple. Just money and good looks, three meals a day, plus three wives and four concubines—twenty-five women to live a shameless life with... Er, three wives makes twenty-one, plus four concubines, twenty-five women exactly. (TL Note: 妻 "wife" (qī) sounds exactly like 七 "seven" (qī), so Ning Chen reads "three wives" as "three sevens"—twenty-one, straight off the multiplication table.)

Ning Chen considered himself a mathematical genius.

Tantai Qingyue's cool eyes stayed fixed on Ning Chen and his thoroughly lecherous grin, and her suspicion hardened. He had to be up to something.

"You truly will not go back to the Great Xuan and take the throne?"

Ning Chen snapped out of it and narrowed his eyes at her. "What, you want me to go back to the Great Xuan and be emperor?

Say the word and we'll set off for the Great Xuan right now. I'll be emperor, and I'll make you Junior Consort Pee-Often, or maybe Consort Coffee. How does that sound?" (TL Note: A pair of puns on consort ranks. 尿嬪 niàopín sounds like 尿頻, "frequent urination," and 咖妃 kāfēi sounds like 咖啡, "coffee.")

Tantai Qingyue rolled her eyes. She was used to Ning Chen's nonsense by now.

Her expression turned serious. "Then I will ask it another way. May Xiliang attack the Great Xuan or not?"

Ning Chen shrugged. "Little Tanzi, I'm the city lord of Xuanwu City, not the emperor of Xiliang. Whether it can attack, whether it wants to attack, that's not my call!"

Tantai Qingyue was about to say more when the Ninth Princess called out, "Ning Chen, which one should I pick?"

The Ninth Princess was holding several boxes of rouge and powder, torn over which to choose.

Ning Chen turned and smiled. "Heaven made you too beautiful to hide. Any rouge…