淫欲的代价

A week after Cao Luomei was driven out of the Cao family, Cao Feng became a fool. The news tore through the ranks of the nobles like a tornado. No one knew how it happened.

It was said that he suddenly woke up and did nothing but stare blankly. All kinds of physicians were called in, but nothing was found. They all claimed it was natural. At this point, the Cao family had deteriorated to the point of no return.

Although the Cao family still had the second young master, he was only eleven. The nobles and ministers alike were skeptical. They doubted if the young boy was ready to take on the burden of the title of left prime minister.

Most likely than not, that title would have to move away from the Cao family.

Cao Xiwang rushed over to Cao Yuemei\'s courtyard happily. This was the first time in almost two months that his sister had called him!

When he got there, Cao Yuemei was seated on a bench under a shade of trees with tea and pastries laid out before her. She looked so graceful, Cao Xiwang happily called out. "Big sis!"

Cao Yuemei looked at the boy with a frown. "Watch your manners, you shall become the left prime minister and family head soon, you can\'t be caught acting like a vagrant. We can\'t have people looking down on us."

Cao Xiwang frowned. "What if I don\'t want to?"

Cao Yuemei glared at him. "You have no choice! You shall accept the title and attend court and be a proper nobleman."

"We might have the Cao family blood but we both have no close ties to this family, especially me. My name isn\'t even on the family register! The Cao family was merely a breeding ground for us."Cao Xiwang pointed out.

"Shut up!" Cao Yuemei heaved and stood up. "We have been in the shadows for too long, now is our turn to be in the limelight, you will not ruin this for me!"

Cao Xiwang refused to budge. "If I should accept that title and the fact that I\'m not on the family register gets out, I could lose my life for deceiving the emperor!"

"It doesn\'t matter." She held his arm tightly and dragged him forward. "We could forge it. Yu Ming would be emperor soon so it wouldn\'t matter after then."

Cao Xiwang shifted uncomfortably in her hands, her nails were digging to his skin. What had gotten into his sister? He stared into her eyes and stated, "You\'re delusional."

SLAP!

Cao Yuemei gave him a heavy backhand. "Don\'t tempt me, you would do as I say or else..."

Cao Xiwang held his burning cheek and stared at his sister with fear in his eyes. What just happened? His sister had never hit him before. He directly turned around and ran away.

Cao Xiwang was finally drafted to accept the title in six months. Cao Yuemei wanted to begin her search of Cao Luomei but before that could happen, the emperor was suddenly poisoned.

The culprit was one of the least favoured consorts. She had coated Ba Yan\'s robes with the poison and used her to indirectly kill the emperor. The consort was punished by death by a thousand cuts alongside all her accomplices.

The dragon throne couldn\'t be empty for too long so preparations began for Yu Ming\'s coronation. The two other princes were peaceful and choose to be kings of vassal states instead of fighting for the throne. On the issue of an empress, the crown prince picked Cao Yuemei and everyone was stunned.

The ministers tried to dissuade the crown prince as the Cao family was coated in scandals but nothing could change his mind. They had no choice but to swallow their dissatisfactions.

Now that Cao Yuemei was to be empress, she pushed Cao Luomei to the back of her mind and focused on being under the envious gazes of many.

She loved this feeling very much.

Two weeks after the wedding slash coronation, general Shang handed in his token of authority and moved into the imperial palace, Jiang He followed after. This was, of course, done in secret.

The Shang family had tried to keep Shang Wu from leaving but he had told them he was tired of life at the battlefield, he was the second son anyways and he wanted to wander around the world. The said world being the imperial palace, in between Cao Yuemei\'s legs.

A month after they all began living together, Cao Yuemei decided to continue her search but suddenly, for the life of her, she couldn\'t remember what exactly Cao Luomei had done to piss her off so much.

She thoughts so hard right from their memories from childhood, but she could not figure it out so she just attributed it to the fact that Cao Long loved Cao Luomei the most.

Looking at the men around her, she scoffed, Cao Long might love Cao Luomei the most but she, Cao Yuemei, was the true winner in life. They were both probably holed up in a remote area living in hardship.

Three months down the line, Cao Xiwang suddenly disappeared from the Cao mansion, leaving Cao Feng, who was under the care of various servants. Cao Yuemei was pissed, she had been keeping him under arrest but he still managed to escape.

The idiot did not know what was good for him so she left him go. The reason she wanted him to be the left prime minister was because of the glory it would bring her.

Now she was the empress, mother of the nation. Superior to many, subordinate to just one. She didn\'t need the glory a mere prime minister title, that her brother would hold, could give her.

Two years down the line, Cao Yuemei had her first child... And then the problems began. Somehow, the news had gotten out that the empress was the one with an harem instead of the emperor.

This news shook the entire nation to its core. They all knew the emperor did not have a harem and this was because he claimed to love his empress dearly but what was this about the empress having a harem?

It turned out a servant in the palace had been uncomfortable with this fact and had run away from the palace, spreading the news as she did. Yu Ming\'s subordinates captured and skinned her alive but it was too late.

People were aware that the emperor was sharing his empress with the former general of the Northern frontier and a formerly wandering genius doctor.

The Shang family was shocked, the ministers were livid. They submitted petitions upon petitions to the emperor. The dragon blood was absolutely sacred, with three men how would they know who fathered the imperial descendant?

How could they let a child with unknown origins descend the throne? That would be like spitting in the faces of their ancestors!

The Shang family tried their best to reach out to Shang Wu but they did not succeed so they had no choice but to turn away from him before the Shang family continued to suffer because of him.

The people were in turmoil and they began to curse at the empress in anger. What Cao Yuemei disdained the most in her life was being shamed. How could she stand this?

And so she took out her anger on Yu Ming. For months, she deprived him of entering her chambers whilst she indulged herself with the two other men. He loved and pampered her so he wouldn\'t do anything, she was fearless.

In the third month, Yu Ming finally snapped. It was time to confront Cao Yuemei. He was a man too, how could he stand this? He summoned her to the great hall.

When the surrounding guards saw Cao Yuemei coming, they all kowtowed. "Your highness."

Cao Yuemei waved at them smugly and proceeded to enter the hall. When the guards saw this, they all moved to a far distance where they wouldn\'t be able to hear what\'s going on. Even the secret guards moved away.

This was a rule from the emperor when all of them had been unfortunate enough to listen in on the empress\'s lovemaking with all three men in the great hall. It wasn\'t their fault, they were just doing their jobs.

Yu Ming was seated on his high chair. At thirty, the man had the imposing aura of the emperor. He was quite well maintained and dashing too.

Cao Yuemei merely nodded at him. "You called for me."

Yu Ming observed his empress, at nineteen and after their first child, who was currently nine months old, she was a fully bloomed flower, a sight to behold and thoroughly captivating. He was quite displeased that she had been refusing him for months.

"I did." He stepped down from the high chair and walked over to her. "Yuemei~, when will your tantrum end? I have needs too."

Cao Yuemei raised her chin and looked the other way. "When people stop cursing at me and the child we all had together."

Yu Ming sighed and stroked her face. "The little prince is my child too. It was my mistake that the news got out, forgive me alright? I would find a way to end it soon."

Cao Yuemei stepped back and sneered. "When you end this you can be permitted into my chamber." She had spent the last four years being pampered and indulged by them so she had grown arrogant. Saying whatever she wanted whenever.

Yu Ming\'s jaw ticked. "Yuemei, you can\'t keep doing this to me. Do you know how painful it is to be alone while you have fun with them every night? It isn\'t fair to me!"

Cao Yuemei rolled her eyes. "It\'s not like you do much anyways. You spend all your time attending court and draining yourself that when you do come to my chambers, you barely last long. You\'re not like the other two who are young and vibrant. I think your age is catching up with you."

Yu Ming\'s eyes and nostrils flared. How could she?! The comfortable life that three of them lived at come at his expense. He made sure to work extra hard so that their secret would remain hidden but this was what he was repaid with?

No matter what, he was a man too, how could she insult his manliness and call him old like that?! Before he could think through his actions;

SLAP!