Originally, when Agares spoke those words, although he was drunk, his credibility was quite high. Yet twenty years had passed, and other than looking a bit pale, the Star Demon God Vassago was completely fine, showing no signs that his time was running out.
Yun Xi stopped paying attention to the matter, dismissing it as mere drunken nonsense from Agares.
It was a well-known secret that after casting the Life Prophecy, the Star Demon God had only twenty years left to live.
Yun Xi sighed softly. "How can one tolerate another snoring beside their bed!"
"With the imperial succession at stake, the Majesty's words to you may very well have been a test."
"Husband, you ought to remain vigilant in your heart."
Agares waved his hand dismissively and said, "Yun Xi, you don't understand Big Brother. He simply has no way of handling our little niece, which is why he asked me to send you to sound out her thoughts. You're both women, so you have more common topics."
*More common topics!* Hearing those words, Yun Xi was both exasperated and amused.
Today, right after morning court, Agares had acted all secretive, dismissing all the attending demons and setting up an isolation array. He had made her think there was some major crisis to discuss, only for it to be asking her to find out Bai Yue's thoughts on the position of Crown Prince.
At the time, Yun Xi had given her husband a deep look, thinking he had developed grand ambitions to support a crown prince who would seize the throne from the Demon God Emperor.
Now she understood. After all that fuss, it boiled down to such a ridiculous reason: because they were both women, they had more common topics.
"Today, I am exhausted. You can tidy up and go sleep on the sofa; I don't want to see you right now." Yun Xi rubbed the space between her eyebrows and turned to leave. She needed a good soak in a bath to relax.
Agares stood there in utter bewilderment, gazing at Yun Xi's retreating back and scratching his head, completely unable to figure out why he had suddenly been banished to the sofa.
"I didn't say anything wrong, did I? How did I manage to piss my wife off?"
"Oh well! When I go see Big Brother tomorrow, I'll ask Third Brother and Big Brother how on earth a man is supposed to appease an angry wife!"
Two cobblers with their wits combined could equal Zhuge Liang, but when it came to matters of the heart, one of them was an eternal bachelor and the other had only been in love once. Choosing Vassago and Fengxiu as romance advisors—Agares's choice could only be described as guaranteed to stir up chaos without a shred of helpfulness.
Sure enough, the next day, Agares recounted the previous day's events to his eldest and third brothers.
After discussing it, the two of them reached a conclusion: girls had those few days every month, and it was completely normal for them to be in a bad mood.
If Bai Yue knew about this theory, she would undoubtedly scoff, laughing so hard her stomach hurt.
In truth, what truly angered Yun Xi was that she had treated the matter as an affair of the utmost importance. She had believed Agares intended to support the Crown Prince and Crown Princess, viewing the betrothal between Yue Ye and A Bao as the first move, and probing Bai Yue's attitude toward the succession as the next step.
Four months later, Bai Yue's due date was near, and Fengxiu was on pins and needles, plagued by an ominous premonition.
"Pregnancy and childbirth are exceptionally dangerous for women, especially when carrying a child bearing the bloodline of the Heaven-Defying Demon Dragon Clan. Yue'er must not be allowed to suffer any accidents."
"Big Brother, what you say is true; the bloodline of the Heaven-Defying Demon Dragon royal family is indeed overbearing, but you're overlooking one thing: Niece Yue'er is herself of the Heaven-Defying Demon Clan's royal bloodline!"
"She is fundamentally different from the concubines in your palace. Their bodies cannot withstand the royal bloodline's overbearing nature, but that doesn't mean Niece Yue'er is the same." Seeing Fengxiu summon them at the crack of dawn just to ensure his niece's smooth delivery, Agares felt his eldest brother was simply being overly anxious and jumping at shadows.
"Big Brother, if you truly cannot set your mind at ease, you can use your heart's blood to forge a heart-protecting pill and have your niece take it before labor. Then there will be no room for error." Vassago's mind suddenly flashed with inspiration, and he came up with a brilliant idea.
Fengxiu's eyes lit up. He had actually forgotten about the Heaven-Defying Demon Dragon royal family's heart-protecting pill. It was a miraculous medicine for saving lives, capable of replenishing the vitality and primordial blood consumed during childbirth. However, its medicinal potency was far too fierce; without a sufficiently powerful bloodline of one's own to neutralize it, the medicine would only worsen the situation and cause severe side effects.
Yet Bai Yue's bloodline, though unawakened and currently dormant, was more than enough to neutralize the potency.
If the Demon race's chief alchemist were to find out that the heart's blood used to refine a heart-protecting pill for the Crown Princess belonged to the Majesty himself, he would likely panic so much he would blow up cauldron after cauldron during the refining process.
All was ready except for the east wind. On a dark and windy night, inside Yue Palace.
Bai Yue lay on the bed, feeling a rush of dampness below, and realized her water had broken.
The maidservants responded with calm composure to Bai Yue's labor—the result of practicing this routine thousands of times, all to ensure that the Crown Princess, deeply favored by the Majesty, could give birth smoothly.
Luoniang stood outside the delivery room, pacing anxiously back and forth. She prayed to the Heavenly Dao, genuinely hoping that both Bai Yue and the child would survive safely.
"Ah—"
"Ah—"
Rounds of heart-wrenching screams echoed from the delivery room, twisting Luoniang's heart into a tangled knot.
"It's already been an hour; why hasn't the child been born yet?" Fengxiu had originally been waiting outside the door. Behind him sat A Bao on the threshold, silently staring at the doorway, his eyes filled with dread and terror.
"Father, will Older Sister end up like Mother? Wet Nurse said that when Mother gave birth to me, she screamed just as miserably!"
A Bao's innocent words precisely struck the chord of Fengxiu's deepest worries and fears at that moment.
Unable to stand by and watch his daughter suffer in silence, Fengxiu pushed open the door and stepped into the room. He froze slightly when he caught sight of Luoniang.
This appeared to be Leng Xiao's biological mother; he had forgotten what she was called.
"How is Yue'er? Why hasn't she given birth after such a long time?" Fengxiu asked, his brow furrowed.
Luoniang dropped to her knees in a bow, softly explaining, "Your Majesty, even a smooth childbirth requires two hours for a woman. It has only been one hour."
From the breaking of the water and the fetal movements to the delivery of the child, it was a protracted process.
Hearing those screams, however, Fengxiu felt as though his heart were being torn to shreds. Ignoring Luoniang's dissuasion, he insisted on forcing his way into the delivery room.
In truth, though it was merely a barrier of a door, in Fengxiu's perception, he could see Bai Yue lying on the bed looking frail and on the verge of collapse. Even though she had taken the heart-protecting pill, the child within was still draining Bai Yue's vital essence, which was why she had grown so weak.
"Your Majesty, the delivery room is unclean; you cannot go in!" The maidservants kowtowed desperately to block his path.
"The one lying in there is my own biological daughter, the Crown Princess of the Demon race, and the first heir to the Demon throne. Why can't I go in? If anything happens to her, which of you can bear the responsibility?" Fengxiu swept a cold gaze over the maidservants kneeling on the ground, as well as Luoniang.
Beneath that chilling gaze, every demon felt a chill run down their spine. Accustomed to serving the concubines of the inner palace, they had subconsciously formed a fixed mindset that men were forbidden to enter the delivery room.