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"I'll treasure the experience," he replied dryly. The atmosphere relaxed further, the last traces of imperial formality dissolving completely. The music continued, the tea steamed, and for a moment, Lie Fan allowed himself to simply exist, not as emperor, not as conqueror, but as a man among those he loved.
Then he set the cup down. "It's good that you're all here," he said, his tone shifting, not heavy, but serious enough to be noticed.
Almost instantly, everything stopped.
Diao Chan's hands stilled. Lu Lingqi straightened. Cai Wenji and Zhen Ji let the final notes fade into silence. Ying Yue turned fully toward him, her expression attentive.
"What is it, Husband?" Ying Yue asked softly.
Lie Fan looked at each of them in turn, committing their expressions to memory before speaking. "In three days," he said, "I will leave Xiapi. I will go to Hongnong."
The words settled slowly, like snow.
"I will personally lead the Imperial Army," he continued evenly, "and bring an end to Cao Cao and the State of Wei."
For a brief moment, the room was utterly silent.
Surprise flickered across their faces, not shock, but something deeper. A recognition of inevitability mixed with concern.
After becoming emperor, Lie Fan had changed. Not in spirit, but in responsibility. He had led from the front less often, entrusting campaigns to capable generals while he governed, consolidated, and built. It was a necessary evolution.
And yet…
He was still Lie Fan.
The man who had once charged through enemy lines with a halberd in hand. The man who had replaced Lu Bu as the terror of the battlefield, the one soldiers whispered about with equal parts awe and fear. The man whose legend had only grown after Lu Bu's death, defending his family, his army, and his honor against impossible odds.
So while the announcement struck them deeply, it did not feel wrong.
"This will not be a short campaign," Lie Fan added. "Cao Cao will not fall easily. It may take months. Perhaps even a year."
Zhen Ji was the first to speak, her voice calm. "We expected this… eventually."
Cai Wenji nodded slowly. "This war is different."
"So you're finally going back to the front," Lu Lingqi said, eyes brightening despite herself.
Ying Yue's gaze remained steady. "You've already decided."
Lie Fan nodded. "I have."
He smiled then, softer. "I will be safe. I'll bring the Yellow Ghost Bodyguards. The elite. And you all know my strength."
That much was undeniable.
Lu Lingqi rose to her feet abruptly, fists clenched with excitement. "Then I'll go with you."
The room stilled again.
"I've recovered," she continued quickly. "I'm stronger than ever. Since giving birth, I've been itching to ride out again. Let me accompany you. Just like before."
Lie Fan turned toward her, his expression immediately gentler. He studied her expression,ndefiant, earnest, and burning with the familiar fire that had always defined her.
"No," he said, shaking his head.
Lu Lingqi stiffened. "Why?"
"It's not that I doubt your strength," he said calmly. "Or your skill. And it's certainly not that I dislike you going to war."
He leaned forward slightly, meeting her gaze directly.
"This will be different," he continued. "This will be bloodier than any campaign before. Cao Cao is not like the others. If he knows one of my wives is with me, he will target you relentlessly. He will use you against me if he can. I will not give him that leverage."
Lu Lingqi's mouth opened, then closed. She looked away, clearly frustrated.
"I won't risk you," Lie Fan said quietly. "Not like that."
Lu Lingqi's expression wavered.
She looked away, pouting openly now. "You're overprotective."
"Yes," Lie Fan said without hesitation. "And I will remain so."
She grumbled under her breath, but the tension slowly drained from her posture. "…I understand," she muttered finally. "I don't like it. But I understand."
Lie Fan smiled and reached out, squeezing her hand. "Thank you."
Diao Chan spoke next, her voice softer than usual. "Is it truly necessary for you to go personally?"
Lie Fan nodded without hesitation.
"Yes," he said. "This is personal."
He leaned back, eyes distant for a moment. "Cao Cao and I… we were sworn rivals. Since the beginning. I don't want him to escape. I don't want someone else to end him while I sit behind walls. Because I won't risk him slipping away, rebuilding, poisoning the future from the shadows."
He looked at them again, his gaze sharp with intent. "And because the men under him, his generals, his advisors, I want them alive. I want to look them in the eye when they kneel. I want them to serve Hengyuan willingly, not out of fear. Their loyalty won't be won through proclamations. It will be won face to face."
Cai Wenji nodded slowly. "You've always valued talent above all."
"Because ambition doesn't end with unification," Lie Fan replied. "You all know that."
They did.
His dreams stretched far beyond the Central Plains. Beyond borders drawn by tradition and fear. An empire that reached outward, not inward. One that carried its strength, its culture, its order to places yet untouched.
Men like Cao Cao had gathered rare talent. Lie Fan intended to claim it.
One by one, his wives nodded in understanding.
The tension eased.
Then Lie Fan's expression shifted.
A familiar, dangerous glint appeared in his eyes.
"Well," he said lightly, "since all of you are here…"
Five pairs of eyes turned toward him.
"…why don't you serve me together," he continued, a slow, lewd smirk spreading across his face, "like that one time in the past?"
For half a second, no one moved.
Then—
Ying Yue's ears turned red.
Diao Chan looked away, cheeks burning.
Cai Wenji covered her mouth, flustered but smiling.
Zhen Ji lowered her gaze, composure cracking just enough to betray her embarrassment.
Lu Lingqi blinked… then laughed softly, shaking her head.
"You're impossible," she said.
Lie Fan only grinned wider.
One by one, shy nods followed.
The fire in the brazier crackled softly, casting warm shadows across silk cushions and the low lacquered table still scattered with teacups. No one spoke for a long moment, but the shift was palpable, like the quiet before a summer storm turning into the storm itself.
Ying Yue was the first to move. She rose gracefully from her seat, the sleeves of her pale blue robe whispering against her wrists, and crossed the short distance to where Lie Fan sat at the center of the arrangement.
Her fingers brushed his cheek as she leaned down, pressing a soft, lingering kiss to his lips. It wasn't rushed, it was tender, almost reverent, the way a wife greets her husband after too long apart. "If this is how you wish to spend the night before you leave us for months," she murmured against his mouth, "then we will give you something worth remembering."
Lie Fan's hand slid to the small of her back, pulling her gently onto his lap. She settled there naturally, her body warm and familiar against his, while the others watched with a mixture of fondness and growing heat in their eyes.
Diao Chan stood next, her movements fluid and deliberate, the way a dancer approaches the stage. She knelt behind him on the wide cushion, her hands coming to rest on his shoulders.
Fingers worked slowly, kneading the tension from muscles that carried the weight of an empire, while her lips brushed the nape of his neck, light kisses that made him exhale slowly. "You've carried so much alone," she whispered, voice like silk. "Tonight, let us carry you."
Cai Wenji and Zhen Ji exchanged a quiet glance, then rose together. Cai Wenji's cheeks were still flushed from his earlier suggestion, but there was a gentle determination in her eyes as she moved to his left side. Zhen Ji took the right, her usual composure softened by affection.
They worked in quiet harmony, hands slipping beneath the folds of his outer robe, easing it from his shoulders until it pooled around his waist. Their touches were careful, almost worshipful, tracing the lines of old scars, the broad strength of his chest, as if reacquainting themselves with a body they feared might soon ride into danger.
Lu Lingqi, ever the boldest, didn't wait for invitation. She crawled forward on her knees, a playful glint in her eyes despite the earlier frustration. "You think you can just announce you're leaving and then demand this?"
She teased, but her voice was husky, betraying how much she wanted it too. She settled between his legs, hands sliding up his thighs, pushing the remaining fabric aside until he was bare beneath their gazes.
Her palm cupped him gently at first, then with growing confidence, stroking slowly as she watched his face. "Good thing I love you enough to forgive the timing."
Lie Fan groaned softly at her touch, head tipping back against Diao Chan's shoulder. Ying Yue shifted in his lap, turning to straddle him properly, her robes parting just enough for him to feel the heat of her through thin silk. She kissed him again, deeper this time, while her hips rolled in a slow, deliberate grind that drew a low sound from his throat.
The women moved around him like a tide, never competing, only complementing. Zhen Ji leaned in to kiss the corner of his mouth while Ying Yue occupied his lips fully. Cai Wenji's gentle fingers traced patterns across his chest, pausing to circle a nipple until he shivered. Diao Chan continued her slow massage down his back, lips trailing along his ear, whispering soft encouragements that made warmth pool low in his belly.
When Ying Yue finally rose just enough to guide him inside her, it was with a shared breath, hers catching as she sank down slowly, his rumbling deep in his chest. She stayed still for a moment, simply holding him, forehead pressed to his as they adjusted to the intimacy they'd missed in the chaos of court life. Then she began to move, unhurried, savoring every inch, every shared gasp.
Lu Lingqi didn't stay idle. Her mouth replaced her hand, warm and eager, tasting him where Ying Yue lifted slightly on each rise. The dual sensation made Lie Fan's fingers tighten on Ying Yue's hips, guiding her rhythm even as his breath fractured.
One by one, they took their turns with himz never rushed, never mechanical. Diao Chan came next, turning in his arms so her back pressed to his chest, guiding him into her from behind while Cai Wenji knelt in front to kiss her gently on the neck and shoulders, offering comfort and affection rather than joining in other ways.
Zhen Ji waited patiently, stroking his hair, whispering how proud she was of him, how much she would miss this closeness.
When Zhen Ji finally straddled him, facing him fully, her usual elegance gave way to something raw and beautiful. She moved with deliberate grace, eyes locked on his, hands framed his face as if memorizing every line. "Come back to us," she whispered between kisses. "Promise me."
"I always do," he answered, voice rough with emotion and pleasure.
Cai Wenji was the last to take him fully, shy at first but growing bolder under his gentle encouragement. She lay back among the cushions with him above her, their joining slow and tender, her fingers threading through his hair as she held his gaze.
The others surrounded them in a loose circle, Ying Yue stroking his back, Lu Lingqi kissing his shoulder, Diao Chan and Zhen Ji holding Cai Wenji's hands, offering quiet reassurance, shared warmth, a sense of family even in this most intimate act.
They brought him to release more than once that night, each climax drawn out with loving patience rather than frantic need. And when he returned the favor, using hands and mouth to bring each of them trembling over the edge in turn, they accepted it with soft cries and clinging embraces, bodies pressed close to his in the aftermath.
Eventually, they all collapsed together in a tangle of limbs and silk, breathless and sated. Lie Fan lay at the center, one arm around Ying Yue, another pulling Lu Lingqi close, the others curled against his sides or resting heads on his chest. The room smelled of sweat and jasmine and spent passion, the fire burning low.
No one spoke for a long while. There was no need. The silence was comfortable, filled with the steady rhythm of breathing and occasional soft laughter when someone shifted and elicited a ticklish gasp.
Finally, Lie Fan pressed a kiss to Ying Yue's temple, then Lu Lingqi's forehead, then reached to touch each of the others in turn.
"Thank you," he said quietly. "For this. For everything."
Lu Lingqi huffed a small laugh against his chest. "Just don't make a habit of using war announcements as foreplay."
He chuckled, the sound rumbling through all of them. "No promises." And in the warm quiet that followed, with the women he loved surrounding him completely, Lie Fan allowed himself one night of perfect peace before the storm of war called him away once more.
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Name: Lie Fan
Title: Founding Emperor Of Hengyuan Dynasty
Age: 35 (202 AD)
Level: 16
Next Level: 462,000
Renown: 2325
Cultivation: Yin Yang Separation (level 9)
SP: 1,121,700
ATTRIBUTE POINTS
STR: 966 (+20)
VIT: 623 (+20)
AGI: 623 (+10)
INT: 667
CHR: 98
WIS: 549
WILL: 432
ATR Points: 0