Forensic Imperial Concubine

In the middle of the dinner, the atmosphere suddenly became more tensed. Lucas moved his chair closer to Zack and asked,
"Zack, did I say something wrong?"
"Your Majesty, aren't you hungry?" Zack asked while he stretched out his hand, picked up a chicken leg, and forcibly placed it
into Lucas' mouth. After that, he continued, "Eat more and talk less. Or, do you want to go back to the Imperial Palace to have
dinner?"
Desperately shaking his head, Lucas felt quite confused. He didn't think that there was anything wrong with his question, so he
wondered why everyone else was reacting as if he said something unforgivable.
"We won't stay in the imperial capital for long. We might actually go to the Wonder Kingdom. After making a diagnosis and
possibly curing Wendy, we'll probably go," Matthew slowly said after being silent for quite a while.
"You're going to leave again?" Zack asked, very much surprised to hear this news. He always felt like as time went by, Harper
went farther and farther away from him. It felt as if they were no longer in the same world. Even though she was sitting right in
front of him at that moment, he still felt like she was a thousand worlds away.
Raising her head to look at Zack, Harper said, "We have to take a trip to the Wonder Kingdom because there's something that I
have to do there. But we won't leave before we have settled everything in the imperial capital."
Despite what she said, it still made Zack's heart jump for a second. According to what she said, it could mean that she was going
to leave the Bright Dynasty, not for a short period of time, but for long, or perhaps, she would never come back.
"Will you come back?" Zack couldn't help but ask while staring at Harper with subtle intensity. He knew that he was just a feeble
scholar who couldn't be around her all the time. But he was willing to stay in the Bright Dynasty's imperial capital just to wait for
her, if she were to come back.
"Yes, I will. I just have a lot of things to do. But my home is still here, so of course I'll come back," Harper firmly said.
Upon hearing that, Zack heaved a sigh of relief. He was glad to hear how much the Bright Dynasty meant to her and more
importantly, that he could see her again. Although he didn't know what she was going to do outside of the Bright Dynasty, he
thought that it was enough to know that eventually, she was going back to the imperial capital.
"Young master!" All of a sudden, the door was pushed open and a young man rushed in. "Young master, something happened!
Lady Caroline is about to give birth to her baby. The Lord and Lady are on the way to the Kong Clan's mansion. They told me
here to inform you of this news."

"Caroline is about to give birth?" Zack asked for confirmation, a little baffled about the sudden news. At the same time, he stood
up, prepared to leave at any second. Following him, Harper stood up as well. "I'll go with you," she said.
"Okay."
The two of them quickly left, while Matthew and Lucas remained to their seats, without moving. Neither of them said a word.
Lucas didn't know what to say, while Matthew didn't even consider whether or not he should speak at all.
It was not until all the dishes became cold that Lucas asked in a low voice, "Uncle Matthew, are you really going to leave the
Bright Dynasty?"
"Probably," Matthew plainly replied.
"Where are you going?" Lucas didn't know why but he felt somewhat alarmed when he heard Matthew say that he would leave
the Bright Dynasty as soon as he arrived. Matthew was the protector for the Bright Dynasty, as his Black Flag Army was
invincible. If he left, the military power of the Bright Dynasty would be greatly decreased.
"I don't know yet," Matthew replied while he looked away in the distance.
"Does that mean you won't leave in the near future, Uncle Matthew?" Lucas asked, breathing a sigh of relief. He had just
ascended the throne, becoming the emperor of the Bright Dynasty. So his position was not yet stable. If Matthew left the Bright
Dynasty during this time, Lucas would encounter a lot of problems moving forward.
"Yes." Matthew placed down his chopsticks since he had lost his appetite. Earlier, he had thought of going with Harper and Zack,
but he had given up on the idea. That was because it was improper for him, an outsider and a male, to be present when a
woman was in labor.
Lucas put down his chopsticks as well. He asked, "Will Aunt Harper leave with you?"
"Of course. But before we leave, I will help you clear every obstacle that you currently have or might have. In exchange, you
have to protect Harper's brother and sister all the time," Matthew answered while playing the ring around his thumb.
"Alexander and Gianna?" Lucas asked in surprise. With Allen's protection, Gianna was certainly safe and in good hands.
Alexander was the sworn son of Pearce who cherished his child very much. It seemed like Harper had made arrangements for
her brother and sister a long time ago. Lucas then wondered if Harper had been planning on leaving since then.

"It's about the Qin Clan!" Lucas immediately uttered his realization. "Have you found out anything about them?"
"Harper and I will probably have to go back to where the Qin Clan started. Anyway, it's getting late. You should go back to the
Imperial Palace. Some immediate matters require your attention. For example, you don't have an empress yet. All the courtiers
must have been thinking about that position. If you're interested in someone, you should marry her as soon as possible,"
Matthew said, changing the topic of conversation.
Lucas blinked a few times. "Uncle Matthew, I..."
"As an emperor, you have great responsibilities to take care of. I'm sure you understand that even though the crown is on your
head right now, the imperial harem involves a lot of politics. But if you're capable enough to impress all the courtiers, the vacancy
of the imperial harem will not matter. However, you don't have such capabilities and status yet." He didn't mean to deliberately
offend Lucas. On the contrary, he was simply telling him a fact that it wouldn't be easy for him to abolish the imperial harem.
"Uncle Matthew, I won't give up. I don't want the woman I love to live every single day of her life under so many conflicts and
conspiracies. I want to be like you, Uncle Matthew. I want to find someone who I can truly love and spend the rest of my life
with," Lucas sincerely stated.
For the first time, Matthew looked at Lucas with eyes full of admiration. "You have a good principle."
"That's all because you set a good example for me, Uncle Matthew. Speaking of which, I've been meaning to ask you. How did
you acquire such wisdom and intellect?" Lucas said while raising his eyebrows.