The Revival of the Vampire Empress! - Chapter 31: Pandora’s Box

The betrothal gift is two million bucks, not a single cent less. Jiang Yu is already eighteen years old and can get married now. Send the money to my card, and this matter is settled!" Jiang Yu looked at her mother, who was talking non-stop on the negotiation table. She watched as her mother named her price as she sold Jiang Yu. Jiang Yu could not believe it. Eighteen years ago, they brought the wrong baby home from the hospital, and Jiang Yu, the real daughter of a wealthy family, ended up in an orphanage until a year ago. Jiang Ran, the fake daughter of the Jiang family, grew up with a silver spoon in her mouth. With superior resources since she was young, she was more outstanding than Jiang Yu in every aspect and became the pride of the Jiang family. Jiang Yu, who wandered most of her time in the outside world, was nothing but a country bumpkin who made her mother a laughing stock in the socialite circle. However, Jiang Yu had no idea how great her mother's hatred for her was. On the day she turned eighteen, her mother 'sold' her with a named price. Jiang Yu said, "If you want to marry your daughter to someone else, it should be Jiang Ran. I'm your real daughter. You're the one who mistakenly brought Jiang Ran home!" Her mother replied, "Shut up. I wish I hadn't given birth to you. You've brought nothing but shame to me!" Jiang Ran said, "Big Sis, everything Mom does is for your own good. Don't blame Mom." Her mother said, "I'm convinced she's nothing but a debt collector who's come to me to collect her debts! Either you give me two million bucks, or you get married obediently!" Jiang Yu left home in despair. By a freak combination of factors, she found herself accidentally marrying a Mr. CEO. From then on, the thirty-year-old man pampered his eighteen-year-old wife to the heavens. The little girl said, "Mister, someone bullied your wife!" The man, "Which incompetent fool is so blind that he dares to bully you?"

Ethan was betrayed, he was broken, left crippled by those he trusted most: Zachary and Ivy, the people who ruined his life. Stripped of everything, Ethan crawled through three grueling years in the abandoned depths of despair, desperate to regain what he lost.Until one final act of defiance opened the door to something greater.When Ethan completed a hidden quest, fate granted him a miraculous reward: a second chance.He awakens years in the past, on the eve of a revolution: the launch of Ethereal, the world's first fully immersive VR game and humanity’s obsession. Armed with memories of four years in Ethereal, he’s no longer the helpless pawn who lost everything.This time, Ethan knows every secret, every hidden quest, every exploit to climb back to the top. But when he steps into the game, the system unveils a shocking twist: a divine bloodline, legendary abilities, and a class no one believed could dominate.Ethan vows to rise once more, but this time, he knows where the paths of glory begin, where betrayal lurks, and where to find legendary treasures that will crown him king in this brutal new world.The stakes are higher than ever. Factions are forming, alliances are shattering, and the clock ticks toward an event that will rewrite reality itself.The weak will perish, and the strong will thrive.They betrayed him once.They won’t live to do it again.

He is Xi Liang’s legendary emperor: a decisive and ruthless king; a man of supreme wisdom; a cunning strategist.

According to legend, he once conferred the love meant for the three thousand concubines in his harem onto one woman, while the world watched in envy.

According to legend, he once executed a hundred people for her, turning the palace into a purgatory overnight.

According to legend, he ultimately sentenced that same woman to death by execution…

A conspiracy that swept through the country resulted in her tragic end. This lifetime seems to be a repeat of her past life. Can she escape the clutches of fate to attain true love in this life? In both lives, she was the Emperor’s wife, but is that ruthless man really her true love mandated by Heaven?

Did she really die, just like that?

In the end, beyond the veil of lies and mysteries, who exactly was she? Was she a woman that he truly loved, or was she merely a chess piece to be used in his political machinations?

The stories passed onto later generations remain fraught with conflicting opinions.

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