Chapter 903
"I'm pregnant? I'm really pregnant?!"
Even though she had missed her monthly courses for two months and had mentally prepared herself, Duchess Diphas still felt dazed by the news of her pregnancy. A myriad of emotions swirled within her. First, there was undeniable joy. This was her first pregnancy, meaning the Russo Clan would have an heir. Diphas was a political creature, and she yearned for an heir more than anything. The only reason she hadn't had a child before was that she had not found a suitable partner. Besides, a woman of her status could not bear a child carelessly. Her firstborn, whether a son or a daughter, would be the legitimate heir from birth.
Thus, she couldn't help but hold high hopes for the child in her womb. The child's lineage could be considered perfect. Its father was a descendant of the King of the East and the brother of Princess Helene. To put it boldly, it was a union of Eastern and Western imperial blood. The crux of the matter, however, was who could prove this child's lineage? That wretched Shen Lang had not returned, and where was Princess Helene, who was supposed to attest to his return?
Count Vytin bowed and said.
"My lady, congratulations. Another heaven-sent prodigy is to be born. This child will possess the noblest bloodline in the entire Russo Clan."
Duchess Diphas couldn't help but stroke her belly, imagining what this child would be like once born. In truth, the child would be of mixed heritage—a blend of Eastern and Western blood—and would normally face ostracism and disdain. But the title of Eastern Emperor could offset all disadvantages, and besides, Jiang Li's status was recognized even in the Western world. Wasn't Princess Helene herself of mixed Eastern and Western blood? Though the northern nobles claimed to reject her at every turn, they still had to acknowledge her right of succession, and the entire South regarded her as their supreme sovereign. Such a perfect lineage, yet the problem was that there was no one to verify it.
Duchess Diphas spoke in a clear voice.
"Everything comes at a price. Perhaps this hardship is the cost the Russo Clan must pay for its rebirth. For this child, I will accept it all. What is the attitude of the vassals on Planet Bipa? I have issued several edicts, yet why have they not come for an audience? Why do they still not come to celebrate my true wedding?"
"On that matter, they seem to find it even more difficult to accept than we anticipated, despite our execution of the traitors."
"Do you think they would dare plot another rebellion?"
"They wouldn't dare. Unless a noble of great virtue and prestige takes the lead, those vassals will not truly rebel. However, they will isolate and blockade us."
"Then what of the governors of the southern planets? My edict should have reached them. Why have they made no statement?"
"The governors of the southern planets remain aloof. Though they were originally defeated by us, the southern nobles, they are now watching this entire situation with schadenfreude, their hearts filled with hostility."
"The southern nobles all pledged their loyalty to Princess Helene, and some even surrendered to Queen Medusa. Shen Lang has close ties with them both, so shouldn't they be celebrating my union with him? Why are they so cold?"
"Because they still do not believe. Someone is spreading rumors that this is all a lie, a scheme by this Eastern man, Shen Lang, to inflate his own worth. They say he is nothing but an Eastern gigolo, a pretty boy who lives off women, and that he forged his noble background. They claim that with Princess Helene absent and no one to verify his identity, he is taking the opportunity to elevate his status, boasting that he is her brother when, in fact, the two have no connection at all."
"And what of the situation within the city?"
"The mood is grim. Rumormongers are everywhere, claiming that the Great Emperor Solon is furious, has declared you a traitor to the empire, and will dispatch a grand army to annihilate you. However, because we killed so many last time, no one has dared to openly rebel yet. Still, most trade has ceased, and we are suffering astronomical financial losses daily."
"Are our supplies of food and resources still sufficient?"
"Originally, we had an astronomical amount of food, all thanks to your foresight, my lady. But we consumed too much during the expedition to conquer the Witch Empire. Now, Bigeum City has only enough food to last a little over half a year. The entire Planet Bipa has blockaded and isolated us, so no vassals are delivering supplies. The biggest problem is that with the sea trade blockaded, we cannot purchase goods even if we have the gold."
`Bloody Baron, Dodge Russo, those damnable bastards!`
"Furthermore, we are supplying all the food and resources for Lord Shen Lang's Empress City, which is depleting our reserves even faster."
Diphas asked Vytin.
"How many people and resources has Shen Lang's Empress City taken in the last two months?"
"Thirty thousand people, three hundred thousand sacks of grain, five thousand oxen, three thousand cartloads of iron, millions of pounds of copper, tens of thousands of pounds of gold, hundreds of thousands of pounds of silver, over a hundred thousand bolts of cloth, ten thousand bolts of silk, and countless other supplies."
Hearing these numbers, Diphas felt her heart tremble. It was as if Shen Lang intended to move the entirety of Bigeum City. Of course, most of the resources he took were goods sold by merchants, which had to be paid for. Since Shen Lang had no money, he took it directly from Duchess Diphas's secret treasury, and the fortune the Russo Clan had amassed over centuries was reduced by a significant fraction in an instant.
Duchess Diphas said with a cold smile.
"Their words were not wrong. The part about Shen Lang being a gigolo who lives off women."
"Then what should we do? Should we continue to provide him with supplies?"
Count Vytin asked. What should they do if Mulan City continued to demand resources?
"Continue to give them. We've already given so much; what's a little more? Since I've already placed my bet on him, I have no choice but to see it through to the end. If the final outcome is victory, won't we earn back ten, even a hundred times our stake? Consider this my investment in Shen Lang. If he succeeds in the future, my unborn son will become a royal prince. To gain the title of prince, it would be worth spending every coin in the Russo Clan's secret vault. In a thousand years, has any other family in the Seilun Dynasty ever become royalty?"
Such a situation could only arise in a world that valued honor to an extreme. To attain a royal title was an ideal that a family would strive for over many generations. It was not like the so-called Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, a state born of peasant rebellion that handed out the title of 'king' so liberally that nearly everyone held it.
"How much has Shen Lang's Empress City developed?"
"After receiving our countless men and materials, it has developed by leaps and bounds, its population swelling to nearly one hundred thousand. They have made great strides in many areas, though they keep much of the process secret from us. However, I hear they have run into their own troubles. Their development has been so rapid that their stockpiles of volcanic ash and saltpeter are now severely lacking. With the sea blockade, their crucial developments are on the verge of halting."
The sea blockade was once again the problem. Despite this string of bad news, Diphas could still endure. In her view, the situation was still within her control, even expected. If Shen Lang truly returned with the Golu Party, not only would the development dilemmas facing Mulan City be resolved, but the crisis in Bigeum City would also naturally be averted.
"Your Grace, I have the utmost faith in Lord Shen Lang. However, the Ruins of the Lost Kingdom are truly too dangerous. Therefore, I am extremely pessimistic about his lordship's current journey."
"My dear mentor, on that point, I disagree with you. He is a villain, and an exceedingly cunning one at that. A man like that can do anything, create any miracle. As his former enemy, I know this all too well."
Just then, Eunuch Taren rushed in, his face grim. Diphas asked him.
"What is it? Has another of our merchant ships been sunk?"
Eunuch Taren delivered the top-secret information.
"No. It is worse, worse, much worse news. Duke Russell has arrived. And he has brought an army of one hundred thousand men."
Hearing this, the color drained from Duchess Diphas's face. The bad news she had heard until now was nothing. This was the truly bad news. In the battle at Queen's City, Duke Russell's defeat at the hands of Queen Medusa led to the failure of the entire campaign. However, he was still the greatest hero of the Third Seilun Empire. At a time when his allegiance was paramount, his arrival with an army was nothing short of a nightmare.
Why had he come? To put his house in order. As mentioned before, during the Second Seilun Empire, the Russo Clan was torn by fierce internal conflict over differing stances. They backed different successors to the throne, and in the end, Duchess Diphas's ancestor emerged victorious. Meanwhile, the ancestor of the Russell line was defeated and forced to leave the Russo Clan. In a distant land, they changed their surname to Russell and struggled from the ground up to establish a new house. But by blood, the Russell and Russo clans were, in fact, one family. Diphas's side was the main branch and Russell's the cadet branch, but because Duke Russell was so powerful, this offshoot family had grown incredibly strong. Especially in the recent war to destroy the Witch Empire, one-third of the territory was conquered by Duke Russell.
Even though the Third Seilun Empire had not yet been formally established, Duke Russell's official post was already decided. Supreme Commander of the Imperial Army and Guardian of the East. He even had the potential to become the future prime minister of the empire. So, in terms of official rank, Duke Russell was higher than Diphas, but he was still of a branch family of the Russo Clan. Now, Duke Russell believed that Diphas had caused a great scandal, dealing a massive blow to the Russo Clan's honor, and that she was unfit to be the Duchess of Russo.
Diphas said angrily.
"Was the friendship I showed him not enough? I set aside our past grievances and supported him with vast resources, which is why his army was able to advance with such unstoppable momentum and be the first to reach Queen's City. What is he trying to do? Is he here to restore order, or does he intend to take my place and seize the crest of the Russo Clan?"