Chapter 253 The Art of Emperorship: Checks and Balances!

When Zhou Yunyue was taken away, she cried her heart out.

No one sympathized with her; they just felt she had brought it on herself.

Even with the antidote made from Bansi grass, Princess Kangzhu of the Oirat Mongols showed no improvement. It is said that it would take at least a year and a half to completely eliminate the remaining poison.

Emperor Renxiao was furious after receiving the secret report.

"Zhou Yunyue has some nerve, daring to sabotage the marriage alliance!"

Wang Bao: "Your Majesty, please calm your anger. There may be more to the story!"

Emperor Renxiao's gaze was cold, his eyes filled with the ruthlessness of an emperor. After much deliberation, he said, "From now on, there will be no more Zhou Yunyue in the Great Zhou Dynasty, only the Zhou family. Out of consideration for the last bit of blood ties, I will let her enter Shen Yuanjing's room!"

Wang Bao: "This old servant will immediately send someone to deliver the imperial decree!"

Emperor Renxiao frowned and called the man to a halt.

"Wait, it is the Great Zhou that has wronged the Wei family army. Wei Dongzhu has been appointed as the General Who Destroys the Enemy and will jointly manage the Zhenbei Army with Lanxi!"

"yes!"

The contents of the imperial edict quickly reached Shen Lanxi's hands.

Wei Dongzhu immediately pledged his loyalty: "Your subordinate will always be loyal to the general and will follow your lead without question!"

They were all power-hungry people. Who didn't know that Emperor Renxiao, seemingly encouraging Wei Dong, was actually intentionally letting Wei Dong gradually take away Shen Lanxi's power?

Even as the Great Zhou Dynasty was on the verge of collapse, the emperor still sought to maintain checks and balances.

Shen Lanxi smiled and said, "I understand, and all the soldiers understand too. The reason we have come this far is because of our unity. If anyone turns against us or has ulterior motives, we will not be able to leave Dongchuan!"

This means to give a warning or a reminder.

Che Mingyuan continued to report on the progress of the peace talks.

"The general was right. The three Turkic tribes have indeed fallen out over a single city!"

Shen Lanxi nodded in satisfaction: "That's settled then, let's continue the discussion!"

"yes!"

Afterwards, Shen Lanxi left Shen Yuanjing alone.

"Yuanjing, what are your plans for settling the Zhou family?"

Shen Yuanjing said angrily, "Elder sister, what exactly does His Majesty mean? Just because Zhou Yunyue is his daughter and has royal blood, does he not execute her for such a serious mistake?"

Shen Lanxi warned calmly, "This is His Majesty's will. His Majesty only allowed Zhou Shi to enter your room, but did not specify her status. You should think about it carefully!"

Shen Yuanjing gradually calmed down.

"Since His Majesty no longer recognizes her royal status, then I will have her move out of the Shen residence and find another place to live!"

Shen Lanxi nodded and handed him the imperial edict.

"Go and make the arrangements!"

...

Afterwards, Wei Dongzhu approached Shen Lanxi.

"I will never be instigated by others to be your enemy!" He said each word with the seriousness of a vow.

Shen Lanxi looked at the white jade mille-feuille cake on the table, gently raised her finger, and pushed it towards Wei Dongzhu.

"The north wind is biting cold, let's have some pastries and some hot tea!"

A smile slowly spread across Wei Dongzhu's eyes. He sat down awkwardly, clenched his fist tightly, and then reached for the pastries on the plate.

"tasty!"

Shen Lanxi also picked up a piece, ate it in one bite, and immediately took a sip of hot tea.

This cloyingly sweet taste... I wonder whose handiwork it is!

The northwest wind howled, blowing open the cracks in the windows that were meant for ventilation. The wind, sharp as a knife, swept away all the heat from the room in just a few breaths.

Wei Dongzhu got up to close the window. Snowflakes carried by the wind hit his hands. Looking out the window, he saw that the ground was already covered with a layer of silver.

"It's snowing again!"

Shen Lanxi: "I didn't expect the Northwest to be this cold!" Although the previous snowfall wasn't as thick as the one in Dongchuan, the ground was still frozen solid. The recent freezing temperatures have even frozen Qinglong Lake.

Wei Dongzhu: "The Northwest has four distinct seasons; things will be better after spring."

Shen Lanxi finished the pastries in her hand, and Wei Dongzhu prepared to take his leave.

"It's late, get some rest!" Wei Dongzhu said gently.

Shen Lanxi nodded: "You too!"

When Shen Yuanhao went to keep watch at night, he happened to see Wei Dongzhu coming out of his older sister's courtyard.

It's so late, haven't they finished discussing business yet?

Before the spring, the three Turkic tribes agreed to a marriage alliance between the Turks and the Great Zhou.

This time, it was Hiroshi Abe who came alone to talk to Mingyuan Che.

"Our sixth prince of the Great Turkic Khaganate is naturally brave and intelligent, and is perfectly suited to marry your princess of the Great Zhou!"

Che Mingyuan said with a faint smile, "I wonder if the Sixth Prince of the Turks has arrived here? Would you two gentlemen like to meet him beforehand?"

Hiroshi Abe swept his gaze with utter contempt. "What do you mean, 'see'? That good-for-nothing sixth prince?"

"The Sixth Prince is busy with official duties and will not have time until the wedding day!"

Che Mingyuan: "Our Great Zhou is willing to offer Huangtu City as dowry. I wonder if the Turks are ready with betrothal gifts?"

Abe Hiroshi's anger rose, and his eyes flashed as he said, "Of course, the dowry is two thousand dan of grain. This is what I agreed upon with your previous minister who was sent to arrange the marriage."

Che Mingyuan smiled faintly and nodded slowly.

"Since we've already discussed it, let's leave it at that!"

When Abe Hiroshi heard Che Mingyuan's concession, his anger vanished instantly. He felt even more contempt for Che Mingyuan and even more disdain for Da Zhou.

"You need to clear Huangtucheng as soon as possible!"

Che Mingyuan: "Give us two months!"

That long?

Hiroshi Abe said with a dark face, "I'll give you a maximum of one month."

Che Mingyuan bargained: "Huangtucheng is full of elderly people and children, so it will take at least fifty days."

Hiroshi Abe: "Forty days, at most forty days."

Che Mingyuan hesitated for a moment and said, "General, that's a city. Your Turks took my Great Zhou territory and city without losing a single soldier. I still have to persuade the generals and the people in the city. You know, not everyone is a peace advocate like me, and they are not as flexible in their dealings as I am!"

Hiroshi Abe was persuaded by Akihiro Kuruma's statement that he could "not lose a single soldier".

"Fifty days, at most fifty days. If it's even one day longer, don't blame my Great Turkic army for besieging the city!"

Che Mingyuan: "Of course, after all, we are marrying His Majesty's most beloved daughter. The princess's dowry alone will take some time to prepare!"

Abe Hiroshi was overjoyed to hear this, thinking it best to bring more good things to their Great Turkic Khaganate!

...

"General, are we really going to hand over Huangtu City?" Xiao Fang couldn't understand.

Shen Lanxi glanced at him and said, "There are only a few people in the city, what's the point of guarding it?"

Xiao Fang raised his voice: "That's my Great Zhou territory!"

Qian Feng: "My Great Zhou has too much territory!" Actually, he didn't agree with it in his heart.

If they back down, wouldn't that make the Turks think they are afraid?

What will their soldiers think? What will the people of the Northwest think?

Wei Dongzhu also disagreed, as his upbringing was similar to what Qian Feng had said.

They would rather die fighting at the city gates than let foreign tribes set foot on the territory of the Great Zhou.

Cheng Zheng wrote: "Listen to the general!" The general's decisions have never been wrong so far, there must be a deeper meaning behind them!

Wei Dongzhu felt annoyed; he had actually questioned her decision earlier. He should have trusted her.

"Does the general have a plan?"