The Beast King sighed and pressed a hand to his forehead, looking at the utterly confused and aggrieved Princess.
He knew his eldest daughter wore her heart on her sleeve. She genuinely hadn’t had the foresight to bring the Bai Xiao Witch Doctor to see him.
Anyone who didn’t know better might have thought Ling Xue was so ambitious she wanted to take his place!
"Enough. When you come to see me tomorrow, remember to invite the Bai Xiao Witch Doctor as well. She is a truly capable Witch Doctor, after all. We of the Beast Country cannot afford to treat her poorly," the Beast King said earnestly.
"Yes, yes, Father, don’t worry. I know how to treat a guest," the Princess said, nodding repeatedly.
The Beast King frowned and asked, "And what’s this about that Si Shuo Divine Servant? I heard that a couple of days ago she returned a male’s Beast Mark, and that male happened to be your second sister’s Beast Husband?"
"I suppose that male let it slip, exposing your second sister’s scandalous affair. She’s been locked up... and now every single day during court sessions, those old geezers are demanding I give them an explanation!"
The Princess pursed her lips. "It was my sister’s fault to begin with. She knew you were walking on eggshells trying to manage our relationship with the great families, yet she still stirred up such a huge mess behind your back."
"It’s as if she was afraid you were sitting too comfortably and decided to stick a sharp rock under your seat."
The Beast King glared at her in exasperation. "That’s enough! What’s done is done. She is your sister, after all. Instead of trying to think of a way to help her, how can you stand there making snide remarks?"
"You’re playing favorites, Father! She’s always coveting one of my Beast Husbands or another one of my subordinates, and she always goes behind my back to get you to ask me for them. If you hadn’t spoiled her so much, would she have ever caused such a huge disaster?"
"I’m asking you one last time, will you help her or not!" the Beast King’s face darkened.
"Father, even if I wanted to help, I can’t," the Princess said, shrinking back slightly.
"It’s simple. Just have that Si Shuo Divine Servant transfer a few Beast Marks to your sister, and this whole matter will be resolved," the Beast King said, laying out his plan. "Hmph. Aren’t those few great families the ones making the most noise? We’ll just turn their most prized young kinsmen into your sister’s Beast Husbands. Let’s see how much they can posture then!"
"And another thing. Si Shuo is living right in your manor. How have you not managed to get Changping and Xu Feng’s Beast Marks for yourself?"
"We still don’t know how this Five Countries exchange will turn out. If those two young men become my sons-in-law, my throne will be that much more secure."
The Princess laughed awkwardly. "Father, it’s not that I don’t want to help my sister. It’s just that the Si Shuo Divine Servant has a peculiar temperament. The moment something displeases her, she downs tools and refuses to work."
"She isn’t lacking for the paltry things we can offer. To this day, I still haven’t figured out what she actually wants."
"Hmph. In that case, bring her with you tomorrow. I refuse to believe there’s anything in this world that can’t be bought with Crystal Stones, land, mansions, shops, or mines!"
"If she can’t be bought, it only means the offer wasn’t high enough," the Beast King said with an air of confidence.
The Princess secretly pursed her lips. ’He won’t give up until he’s hit a brick wall,’ she thought. "I’ll do my best," she said. "But I don’t have that much influence with them. I can’t guarantee I can get those two to come."
"Just tell them you’re to discuss matters concerning the Five Countries exchange, and that they’ll be moving into the palace from now on."
The Beast King made the decision final. The Princess accepted with a pang of regret. She hadn’t managed to reap many benefits for herself before her father swooped in and snatched the opportunity away. She could only hope the two of them would remember her role in the introduction and show her some favor.
Si Shuo and her companions learned almost immediately that the Princess had been summoned to the palace. They could already guess the Beast King’s next move would be to meet with them.
"I wonder what kind of outrageous demands this Beast King is planning to make," Ji Liang sneered.
Zhi Le’s eyes were deep and held a chill. "If we don’t play along, he’s likely to do something desperate. He must be on pins and needles about having powerful people around that he can’t control."
Xu Chi clutched the three Bone Tokens in his hand. "Good. I’ll get to see for myself which three people in that palace used my kin to prolong their own lives!"
Wei Ce smiled. "I hear the Beast King has the highest cultivation in all of Guanping Country—Peak Level 18. I wonder who’s stronger, him or me."
"For Ling Wei to have become the Beast King, he must have some Secret Technique in addition to his cultivation," Gong You said, narrowing his eyes. "The conflict between the great families and the Royal Family has intensified, yet the Beast King can keep them in check for now. The families must be wary of something he possesses."
"’Never intend to harm others, but never let your guard down.’ So many things outside the forest caught us by surprise, and this is the capital of Guanping Country. We have to be extremely careful," Yin Jiang couldn’t help but remind the group.
The higher their cultivation and the fewer their defeats, the easier it was for arrogance and complacency to take root. In the current situation, such emotions could cloud their judgment and invite serious trouble.
Xiao Cheng nodded in agreement. "The Beast King is vicious and cruel. Right now, we’re all just conspicuous targets..."
As he said this, the other beastmen in their household all turned to look at him resentfully.
Si Shuo understood that Xiao Cheng’s flashy entrance into the city was a deliberate attempt to draw attention. With the Bai Xiao Witch Doctor, a man who possessed countless spiritual pills and elixirs, in the picture, she—a Divine Servant who could only transfer Beast Marks two or three times a month without the female’s consent—seemed far less remarkable by comparison.
"The Beast King will take one of two stances toward us: either he’ll try to win us over and use us as his pawns, or he’ll try to destroy us completely. That’s why going to the palace tomorrow is so dangerous." Xiao Cheng rubbed his nose. "Why don’t you stay home, Sis?"
Si Shuo shook her head. "No. If all of you are going to the palace, how could I possibly stay behind and wait anxiously by myself?"
"I’ll face whatever comes with you, for better or worse. Besides, the Beast King won’t dare make a move against us lightly. Our patron is the Beast God, after all!"
They knew their little female was stubborn. Once she said she was going, she would absolutely not change her mind.
The men had no choice but to start discussing their strategy for the following day.
Sure enough, that evening, the Princess arrived at their door in person. Lacking confidence, she relayed the Beast King’s invitation for them to discuss the exchange.
Bai Xiao, Xiao Cheng, Witch Doctor, clung to Si Shuo’s arm and rested his head affectionately on her shoulder. He nodded nonchalantly. "Mm, alright, we understand. We’re sorry to have troubled you to come all this way, Princess."
"After breakfast tomorrow, the two of us will go to the palace with you. We can leave our guards behind, but our Beast Husbands will have to come along, won’t they?"
On the Beast World Continent, a female would only go out alone if she had no choice—if she had no betrothed, father, or brothers. Otherwise, females were always accompanied by at least three to five males.
You could say that mates were essentially bound to one another.
"Of course. However, a female entering the palace is only permitted to bring three males with her," the Princess replied with a nod.
Si Shuo considered this for a moment. There was herself and Bai Xiao, Xiao Cheng, Witch Doctor, plus the other six men in their household, making a total of eight people. The rule seemed tailor-made for them.
Fortunately, they had plenty of resources on hand and didn’t need to scramble to prepare for what was sure to be a treacherous banquet...