Chapter 452 Local Customs and Traditions

"That's the consistent story they've been telling us!"

The official explanation had already been prepared. In order to avoid damaging the reputation of the Marquis's mansion, Gu Jin even had all the servants memorize it, just in case they couldn't answer any questions.

But upon hearing Mingyu's reply, Gu Shuyan couldn't help but rub her temples.

"This Sun Ruojun is truly a troublesome opponent."

Gu Shuyan hadn't felt this sense of crisis in a long time; the feeling of things being completely out of her control made her feel vaguely uneasy.

Sun Ruoyun came to my door today and said so much nonsense. It's impossible that she really came to build a good relationship with me. So what is her purpose in coming to the Marquis's residence?

Gu Shuyan couldn't understand, so her brows furrowed even more. Seeing this, Mingyu knew she must have said something wrong, so she quickly knelt down and said, "Miss, it was all my carelessness. Please punish me."

Gu Shuyan hadn't shown this expression in a long time. Although Mingyu didn't know exactly where she had gone wrong, since the matter was caused by her, she should be the one punished.

"This is not your fault; you have done a very good job."

Gu Shuyan quickly asked Yufei to help her up. It is undeniable that Mingyu had done a good job. However, when someone is caught off guard by someone who is not prepared, even if you are careful, you cannot deal with someone as intelligent as Sun Ruoyun.

Seeing that Gu Shuyan didn't seem to blame her, Mingyu felt a pang of guilt, but she still didn't know what she had done wrong.

"Miss, I don't know where I went wrong?"

Mingyu asked cautiously. Seeing that everyone was looking at her with puzzled eyes, Gu Shuyan had no choice but to explain, "What you did was not actually wrong, but because that answer had already been thought through a thousand times in your mind, the moment you blurted it out, you had already made a mistake in front of Sun Ruoyun."

"No way!" Yu Fei looked surprised. Just because she spoke a little too quickly, Sun Ruoyun was able to guess something?

Yufei thought that perhaps Gu Shuyan was worrying unnecessarily.

Gu Shuyan naturally hoped that she was overthinking things, but her opponent was Sun Ruoyun, which made her think more.

"Forget it, there's no point in talking about it now. I doubt she'll come again."

The two have already completely fallen out today. If it were her, she would never visit again. Most importantly, Gu Shuyan had a feeling that Sun Ruoyun had achieved her goal.

The eighth day of the fourth lunar month is an auspicious day, suitable for travel.

The capital was in an uproar early in the morning. The procession of the Fifth Prince and the Ministry of Rites officials welcoming the Wei envoy was almost as grand as the emperor's procession.

Along the roadside, the people of the capital looked at the Wei envoy with great curiosity and began to discuss it among themselves.

"Why would the State of Wei come to our Great Zhou out of the blue? And even send their crown prince. Are they here to cause trouble?"

"The Wei Kingdom is currently stronger than our Great Zhou. They might just be trying to give us a hard time."

"That's not necessarily true. Although the Wei Kingdom is powerful, is our Great Zhou weak? If a war really breaks out, would we be afraid of them?"

The crowd held differing opinions, but all were speculating about Wei's intentions.

"Look, isn't that the Crown Prince of Wei who's on this mission? He's so handsome!"

"Yes, his looks are almost comparable to the Third Prince! I didn't expect the men of Wei to be so handsome."

Some people discussed the purpose of Wei's mission to Zhou, while others discussed the appearance of Wei's crown prince.

However, none of this had any impact on the Crown Prince of Wei.

"Your Highness, what are your thoughts on our country's customs and culture as you travel to the capital?"

As the person in charge of personally receiving the other party, the Fifth Prince naturally couldn't let the atmosphere become awkward, so he found a topic to talk about.

After hearing this, the Crown Prince of Wei simply glanced at him silently and said, "Nothing special, just that they are poorer than our Wei Kingdom overall."

The words of the Crown Prince of Wei were truly displeasing. No matter what, the Great Zhou was rich in resources. Wasn't this reply a slap in the face to the Great Zhou?

"Your Highness has not seen the wealth of our Great Zhou. Take tea for example, even the State of Wei has to buy it from Great Zhou."

Although Lu Yuanbin still had a smile on his face, it was obvious that the words of the Crown Prince of Wei had displeased him.

"It's just some tea leaves, how much can it be worth? The people of Wei live a life of luxury, while the people of Great Zhou are not even as well off as those of Wei."

The Crown Prince of Wei spoke with an air of pride and arrogance, his gaze sweeping over the crowd on either side of him as he did so, his disdain undisguised.

"Is Your Highness's statement somewhat biased? As far as I know, although the State of Wei is wealthy, there are still many impoverished people. Coupled with years of exploitation, many people are starving. In comparison, the people of our Great Zhou are generally well-fed and clothed. Aren't they living more comfortably than those in Wei?"

As the saying goes, people are emotional beings. Although Minister Liu of the Ministry of Rites is Lu Youming's uncle and stands on the opposite side of Lu Yuanbin, they still unite against those who slander the Great Zhou.

Upon hearing this, the Crown Prince of Wei unconsciously glanced at Minister Liu's face. Although he couldn't discern Minister Liu's rank, his long-standing habit of keeping a low profile allowed the Crown Prince to immediately tell that this was a cautious and prudent person.

"The strong prey on the weak; that's the way of survival." The Crown Prince of Wei spoke with a hint of a smile, completely disregarding Minister Liu.

"It is true that the law of the jungle prevails, but it allows people to live and work in peace and contentment, which is what officials should do. If even food and clothing become a problem, it is hard to guarantee that the people will not harbor resentment."

The speaker was an official from the Ministry of Rites, who was usually not very noticeable and therefore rarely attracted attention.

After hearing this, everyone couldn't help but look at the official standing a little further back. Facing the scrutiny of the crowd, the official showed no sign of guilt, and even when he met the gaze of the Crown Prince of Wei, he showed no fear.

When the Crown Prince of Wei was refuted, he was not angry at all. Instead, he showed a meaningful smile.

Interesting, interesting! The court of the Great Zhou Dynasty is quite intriguing!

"Speaking of which, my younger sister came with me to the Great Zhou this time. She really likes the local customs and culture of the Great Zhou."

Although the Crown Prince did not say it explicitly, since he mentioned that the other party had brought a princess and that the princess liked the customs and culture of the Great Zhou, wasn't this a clear indication that they wanted to arrange a marriage alliance?

"Oh? May I ask which princess from Wei accompanied the Crown Prince this time?"

Upon hearing that the other party intended to arrange a marriage alliance, Lu Yuanbin's eyes lit up, and he immediately began to hatch his own scheme.