Chapter 417 Majestic and Domineering

"Are you out of your mind? My parents won't let you go, no matter how many times you tell them. Why would they deliberately hide from you?"

Sanya pulled Wei Ye along.

"Then what about them..." Wei Ye wanted to ask, why was the emperor and empress hiding from them in broad daylight?

Sanya grunted, "They're a married couple. What are they doing when it's inconvenient for them to be seen by others? Use your brain to think about it."

Wei Ye blushed immediately. "Then what are we here to do today?"

Sanya said, "I originally brought you here to show my filial piety, but it seems I won't be able to now."

"Let's go back too..."

He whispered the last sentence close to Wei Ye's ear.

Wei Ye's face flushed red to the roots of his neck, and his ears felt like they were on fire. "You... how come you're not shy at all?"

“What’s there to be ashamed of? Men have physiological needs, and women naturally do too. Why is it that when men say the same things, it’s not shameful, but when women say them, it’s shameful and they can’t be seen in public?” Sanya laughed.

Wei Ye looked at her for a while and said, "You're right, I won't make this mistake again."

"That's right. Think about it, the only child you and I have is a son. If we had a daughter, we would have been spoiled by our families since she was little. But after she grows up and marries into another family, she would have to be a good wife and mother, suffer hardship and exhaustion, sleep at midnight and get up at dawn, and still have to endure being scolded, even beaten. Would you feel good about that?"

Upon hearing this, Wei Ye's fists hardened. "If any fool dares to bully my daughter, I'll crush his bones."

Sanya nodded. "That's right, that's what my mother thinks too."

Wei Ye:......

"Hahaha."

Sanya laughed a few times and left the palace gate.

At this time, many people entered the city gate.

A short man with a strange tone stared intently at the women walking on the street and said, "The women of Xia Kingdom are truly beautiful. They leave a fragrant trail as they walk by, unlike the women from our country, who always have a strange smell."

"Didn't our envoys say that the women of your Xia Dynasty were very reserved and rarely left their homes? How come it doesn't seem to be the case?"

Zheng Qingshan said, "There's a post station ahead. You can stay here tonight."

Chu Xiujie has already handed this person over to him; once he arrives in the capital, he will be in charge.

The shorter man from before was displeased. "What does he mean by that? Why didn't he respond to me?"

Another person spoke up, "Maybe they didn't understand."

The group of over eighty people looked at the small building and laughed, "What a nice place, truly a nice place. Your country has gone to great lengths to accommodate us."

Zheng Qingshan smiled slightly, led the people inside, and then had his men surround the small building.

After Zheng Qingshan left, these Jin people communicated in their own language.

"Lord Bian, our ships are equipped with the most advanced firearms. They can't stop us at all, so why should we be so polite to them?"

“We came here to see the emperor of their Xia Kingdom. It’s obvious that Zheng Qingshan was just giving us the runaround and didn’t tell us when we would see the emperor.”

The border leader said, "We're new here, so it's best to get a clear picture of the situation first."

On this trip, he discovered that the people of Xia were different from those of more than ten years ago, and that the emperor had changed three times.

"Hmph, you're being too cautious! It's just a Xia Kingdom, a weak land, nothing to fear from our powerful firepower."

These words were presented verbatim in Lin Anyuan's study.

Even the people of the Jin Kingdom could understand the language of the Xia Dynasty, and there were even people from the capital city who had been to the Jin Kingdom.

Ye Wan laughed after reading it.

With over eighty people in the district, that's quite a lot of confidence.

The topic came up again at the morning court session the next day.

Upon hearing that Zheng Qingshan had arranged for the Jin people to stay in a small teahouse, some senior officials were unhappy.

Zheng Qingshan did this on Ye Wan's orders.

"Your Majesty, these are guests who have come from afar. Our great nation should show hospitality. Your actions are rather narrow-minded."

These words were almost an open accusation against Ye Wan, implying that she, a woman, did not know how to treat guests.

Ye Wan said, "Since Lord Qi is so hospitable, why not send everyone to your home and treat them as honored guests, with your whole family accompanying them? What do you say?"

"Your Majesty, you..." Lord Qi cursed in exasperation.

"I'm just stating the facts. They're just foreigners from another country. It's already an act of hospitality from my Xia Kingdom to provide them with good food and drink and let them stay in a small teahouse. Do you expect me to give them the palace to live in?" Ye Wan said expressionlessly.

She had even more vicious things to say, but she was afraid that Lord Qi, being so old, wouldn't be able to handle them.

These people in the Censorate are really short-tempered; it wouldn't be good if they got so angry they died.

Sanya shouted, "Your Majesty the Empress is so powerful and mighty! These barbarians should be wiped out and become part of our Xia Dynasty's territory!"

Someone nearby scoffed, "A bunch of brutes who only know how to fight. They could have resolved things peacefully, but instead they've turned it into a bloody mess. Isn't it the ordinary people who suffer?"

Since the start of the court session, Lin Anyuan's first words were, "Let Lord Qi handle the Jin Kingdom's intentions."

"Your subject obeys the decree."

Lord Qi thought to himself that the Emperor was the one who knew how to handle things. The Empress was all talk and no action; she was the kind of person who would offend someone right away.

Lin Anyuan smiled at Lord Qi, thinking to himself that he would have his moment of reckoning later.

Lord Qi was brimming with energy, and even the Emperor smiled at him, which showed that the Emperor valued him.

...

...

Ten days later, there was another grand court assembly.

The defeated Hu people's royal court on the grasslands sent a letter of request, wanting to marry the Xia Kingdom's princess.

Lin Anyuan's expression darkened after reading it. "There are no princesses of marriageable age in the court. All the princesses are already married."

Old Chen spoke up, "Your Majesty, there are precedents in history of bestowing the title of princess upon noble ladies for marriage alliances."

Before Lin Anyuan could speak, Ye Wan couldn't hold back any longer.

"Are you kidding me? If you want a marriage alliance, then let them send their daughters. If they don't have daughters, then send their sons. They lost the war and still dare to ask to marry a noblewoman from our dynasty, a princess. We're supposed to give them a dowry and pay them extra? What kind of logic is that?"

Upon hearing this, the court officials who had originally intended to marry the princess immediately realized what was going on.

That's right. Why should they want to marry our noblewoman after losing the fight?

Not only do they want a noblewoman, but they also want this and that. Keep dreaming.

Those who followed Lin Anyuan supported Ye Wan, saying, "Your Majesty is right. If you want to make a marriage alliance, you should show sincerity. Why do you just come here to take advantage of us for no reason? Do you think we're fools?"

After getting off at Chaoye Bend, he cursed, "These people have finally come to their senses. It wasn't for nothing that I wasted all my energy cursing them. I really don't know what they were thinking before. Were they out of their minds?"

Annie Murong Yuanzhou came in from outside, "Sister-in-law, don't be angry. I caught a big carp today. I asked the kitchen to cook it for our family."

Ye Wan looked at him and beckoned him over, "Since you caught it yourself, I'll cook it for you, okay?"

Just as Murong Yuanzhou was about to agree, Lin Anyuan's eunuch, Jixiang, arrived in a hurry.

"Your Majesty, something has happened."