Chapter 434 The Moon Kingdom's envoy provoks!

"My lord, please stay."

Shen Lanxi was stopped at the door.

“The princess caught a chill and is feeling unwell. She took some calming medicine and has already gone to sleep!” Shen Lanxi said, looking at the old woman who had stopped her.

"If Mother is truly unwell, we may summon the imperial physician!"

The maidservant bowed her head respectfully and said, "Of course, we dare not be careless with the princess's health!"

Shen Lanxi called out, "Thank you for your concern today, Mother!"

The maid glanced into the room, and seeing no one answer, she straightened her outstretched arms a little more.

"Mother, Lanxi takes her leave!"

As Shen Lanxi walked, she thought about her mother's origins. Her mother was an orphan who was found by the Empress Dowager when she was an infant, as the Empress Dowager was leaving the palace to offer incense. Her mother was raised by the Empress Dowager's side. Because of her attentive service, she saved the Empress Dowager's life and was granted the imperial surname and the title of Princess.

The late Crown Prince was a few years older than his mother, so his mother must have grown up with him.

Several subtle thoughts popped into her mind. When she saw Emperor Renxiao meeting with her mother in secret, she wondered what was going on between them.

What if it's the exact opposite?

...

"Lanxi, you're back." Wei Dongzhu asked with concern when he saw Shen Lanxi's serious expression.

"Yes, I'm fine, don't worry!" Shen Lanxi reassured her.

Wei Dongzhu's eyes were filled with concern, but he had no idea what had happened and could only worry anxiously.

"Lanxi, no matter what happens, I'll be by your side!" That was the only promise he could make.

Shen Lanxi: "Wei Dongzhu, you're the only one left in the Wei family now. If you..."

Wei Dongzhu interrupted Shen Lanxi: "You don't need to say anything. No matter what, I will wait for you!"

Shen Lanxi: "What if we keep waiting and it never comes?"

Wei Dongzhu: "You gave me this life, so I'm returning it to you!"

Shen Lanxi slowly raised a smile: "Okay!"

Ever since Shen Lanxi left that day, Zhou Rulin had been feeling uneasy, and on the second day of his marriage, he began a thorough investigation of everyone in the Prince's Mansion.

He actually found quite a few flaws.

Later, he told Emperor Renxiao about it.

"Father, will Shen Lanxi misunderstand me?"

Emperor Renxiao shook his head: "She is not a fool. If something happens during your wedding, it will not do you any good."

Zhou Rulin asked cautiously, "Father, isn't the power you've given Shen Lanxi a bit too much?"

Emperor Renxiao smiled and said, "She has no real power. At most, she has a big name."

Zhou Rulin thought about it and realized it was true.

Although Shen Lanxi now commands the Imperial Guard and the Capital Guard, the Imperial Guard is the emperor's personal guard and is directly under the emperor's command.

With her father's men among the Imperial Guards, Shen Lanxi's life was only seemingly glamorous.

If things really get serious, Shen Lanxi is just a paper tiger with a showy facade.

"Father is indeed wise!"

After leaving the palace, Zhou Rulin went to make arrangements for leaving the capital and soon departed the city.

~

Emperor Renxiao's birthday banquet was a cause for celebration throughout the Great Zhou Dynasty.

Those who came to pay tribute and offer birthday greetings arrived in succession seven days in advance.

Zhou Ruyuan personally oversaw the inspection and was responsible for receiving envoys from all directions.

The envoys from all directions had heard of the Great Zhou War God before, and today they were finally able to meet him. They all praised Zhou Ruyuan as being rare in heaven and unparalleled on earth!

Zhou Ruyuan quickly became famous and became the object of envoys from all directions to visit and befriend him!

Compared to Zhou Ruyuan, Shen Lanxi, who was also an envoy, seemed rather lonely.

"Why should we be received by a woman?" the Yue Kingdom envoy whispered.

"Perhaps the Great Zhou Dynasty had examples of women serving as officials without our knowledge."

"Women have neither talent nor the ability to be generals, so how can they be officials?"

"The people who receive envoys from other countries are all men, but the ones who receive us are women. Is this a sign of disrespect towards our Yue Kingdom?"

The Yue Kingdom envoy stood outside the post station, refusing to come in.

Shen Lanxi stood at the entrance of the post station, smiling as she watched the unreasonable envoy.

The exchange of tributes and envoys between the two countries was not merely for celebration, but also an opportunity to strengthen diplomatic relations and discuss trade routes and markets.

Compared to the Great Zhou, the Moon Kingdom was merely a tiny country, but in recent years it had become wealthy by producing pepper and several other high-yield crops.

Che Mingyuan whispered to Shen Lanxi, "The Great Zhou has been at war for years and has also suffered from disasters. We have purchased a large amount of grain from the Yue Kingdom and have treated them better. As a result, the Yue Kingdom has become arrogant and domineering, and has nothing to fear."

Shen Lanxi smiled as she looked at the arrogant and domineering envoy from the Moon Kingdom and said, "No wonder they assigned the Moon Kingdom to us for reception."

Che Mingyuan said in a deep voice, holding his breath, "The people from the Ministry of Rites don't want to offend the Yue Kingdom, nor do they want to be humiliated, so they threw such a tough nut to crack at us."

When the officials from the Ministry of Rites saw that Shen Lanxi wasn't going over, they came over and urged her to hurry up.

"Lord Protector, the envoy from the Moon Kingdom is waiting outside."

The officials from the Ministry of Rites never mentioned asking them to go and greet the guests, but their words implied that they were urging the guests to hurry out and welcome them.

"We still need to purchase a large amount of grain from Yue Kingdom this year and send it to the front line. We can't afford to delay!" I hope Shen Lanxi can understand which is more important.

Don't be petty when dealing with other countries!

Che Mingyuan's face darkened with anger: "Why didn't they come forward when they arrived? Instead, we were made to greet them?"

"Lord Li, you are boosting the arrogance of others while diminishing your own prestige!"

Li Zongyou was not going to accept such a serious charge.

"What are you saying? So you are a guest. Our Great Zhou has a grand style, and it is only proper to greet you outside. There is nothing wrong with what Lord Che said, that it diminishes our prestige. Lord Che, please be careful with your words!" Li Zongyou's last sentence was a warning.

Shen Lanxi: "Friendly guests, we, the Great Zhou, welcome you with open arms. Unfriendly guests, we, the Great Zhou, will beat you out with sticks."

Li Zongyou was somewhat embarrassed. In any case, he had already spoken on the orders of his superiors. If Shen Lanxi did not listen and angered Shichen, cutting off the supply route, and the emperor blamed her, she would have to bear the consequences!

Che Mingyuan felt indignant seeing Li Zongyou's obvious schadenfreude.

“My lord, it is indeed inappropriate to leave the Yue Kingdom’s envoys waiting outside the post station!” Although Che Mingyuan was unhappy, he still put the overall situation first and offered a few words of advice.

Shen Lanxi walked out the door with a smile and stopped five steps away from the Yue Kingdom envoy.

"The Great Zhou Protector General Shen Lanxi has come to welcome the envoy from the Moon Kingdom."

The youngest man among the Yue Kingdom envoys stepped forward.

"The third prince of the Yue Kingdom, Yue Chuhe, was sent as an envoy to the Great Zhou Kingdom."

Shen Lanxi did not miss the flippant and nonchalant attitude in Yue Chuhe's eyes.

"The Third Prince and the envoys from the Moon Kingdom have had a long journey. I have already ordered that rooms be arranged for the envoys to rest."

An official nearby had already extended his hand in a gesture of invitation, ready to lead the way.

Yue Chuhe wasn't in a hurry to go in. Instead, he looked at Shen Lanxi with great interest, his eyes filled with undisguised lust.

"Lord Shen, is it? This prince is very curious, how did you, so young and so handsome, rise to the high position of Duke of Protectorate?"

After Yue Chuhe finished speaking, a burst of disdainful laughter came from the delegation behind him, as if they were already certain that Shen Lanxi had ascended to her high position through her beauty.