At the critical moment, a hand with loose, wrinkled skin on the back gently grasped the arrow that Princess Bhikkhu Yue Qiluo was secretly aiming at Prince Chen Huai'an's head.

When Yue Qiluo turned around, she was shocked to find that the person holding the arrow in her hand was none other than Has, the prime minister of the Uyghur Khanate, who was over seventy years old and had served three dynasties.

Old Haas, with his deep-set eyes and murky pupils, clearly gleamed with wisdom as he firmly shook his head at Yue Qiluo.

Then, he raised his hand and forcefully pressed down on the arrow in Yue Qiluo's hand, along with the Western Region bow.

Yue Qiluo refused to give in, her almond-shaped eyes filled with tears, her gaze stubborn.

Old Has had no choice but to offer some words of advice, saying, "Princess, if killing Chen Huai'an could save the safety of millions of people in the Uyghur Khanate, why would your father and I resort to such a strategy of enduring hardship and biding our time?"

"Moreover, your arrow could not possibly hit Prince Chen Huai'an of Jin below the city."

After a pause, Has explained with a dejected look, "Do you know who those eighteen silver-armored warriors beside Chen Huai'an are?"

Yue Qiluo shook her head blankly.

Has explained, “Those eighteen silver-armored warriors are the renowned Eighteen Riders of Dragon City. Each of them possesses unique skills and is highly skilled in martial arts. They are the personal guards of two generations of Prince Jin.”

"Don't be fooled by their black veils; their eyes, like those of a falcon, have already taken in the entire ancient city of Harabalgas."

"This old minister dares to guarantee that although the princess is brave and skilled at shooting arrows from a hundred paces, once this arrow in her hand is released, it will be cut down by the silver-armored warrior in the blink of an eye."

"This move will not only fail to save the millions of people of the Uyghur Khanate from danger, but will also thoroughly enrage Prince Chen Huai'an and his Longcheng army."

"Give them a reason to massacre the city; the people of Harabalgaz will be slaughtered!"

As he spoke, Prime Minister Has pressed the bow and arrow in Yue Qiluo's hand down again.

"Princess, stop! Do not destroy the peace that your father Khan endured hardship to achieve in a moment of impulsiveness. Moreover, do not let the 300,000 Uyghur people in Harabalgas pay the price for your willfulness and impulsiveness!"

This time, Yue Qiluo finally gave up and angrily put down the Western Region bow in her hand.

He turned around and walked away.

"Princess, wait!"

It was the old prime minister Has who stopped her and reminded her, "Tonight, the mighty Khan will host a banquet in the palace to welcome Prince Chen Huai'an of Jin, who has come from afar, and his generals from Longcheng."

"Go back and dress up. You can dance for His Highness Prince Jin at the banquet and make an introduction."

Upon hearing this, Yue Qiluo could no longer hold back her tears, which streamed down her face.

He threw down his bow and stormed off to the back of the palace.

Eh—

Seeing this, Chancellor Has sighed, shook his head, and muttered to himself, "Who told you to be born into an imperial family? You were born to enjoy wealth and honor, and to be revered by thousands."

"This also means that you are destined to shoulder responsibilities that ordinary people cannot bear!"

"Otherwise, why would the ancients have said that the imperial family is the most ruthless place?"

......

Outside the city, Prince Chen Huai'an of Jin remained calm as he accepted the kneeling obeisance of the people of the Uyghur Khanate capital.

Completely unaware, he had just narrowly escaped death.

Of course, that's an exaggeration.

Leaving aside whether the arrow shot by Princess Yue Qiluo from the city wall could penetrate the layers of protection of the Eighteen Riders of Dragon City.

Even without the Eighteen Riders of Dragon City, it would be unrealistic for Yue Qiluo to shoot Chen Huai'an off his horse with a single arrow.

Unless, of course, Yue Qiluo is holding a sniper rifle.

Otherwise, in the era of cold weapons, with Chen Huai'an's incredible martial prowess, the person who could shoot him off his horse would probably not even be born yet.

"Your Highness Prince Jin, please follow me into the city to visit the ancient city of Harabalgas under Your Highness's rule!"

At this moment, the valiant Khan Moyanchuo took the initiative to invite Chen Huai'an into the city.

Chen Huai'an did not refuse. He immediately ordered, "Mo Yanchuo, you mount your horse and be my guide, introducing me to the customs and culture of this ancient city of Harabalegas!"

"Your subject, Mo Yanchuo, will obey Your Majesty's command!"

As they were speaking, servants from the Uyghur Khanate brought up the mount of the valiant Khan Moyanchuo—a pure white Ferghana horse, a fine steed from the Western Regions.

The latter skillfully mounted his horse and led Prince Chen Huai'an of Jin and the generals and troops of Longcheng into the city.

It is worth mentioning that when Mo Yanchuo rode into the city, he deliberately kept a distance of half a horse's head from Chen Huai'an, fully displaying the demeanor of a subject.

Soon, Prince Chen Huai'an of Jin, accompanied by the Iron Pagoda of Longcheng, entered the ancient city of Harabalegas, which has a history of over a hundred years.

This is a typical city in the Western Regions style, with its architectural style influenced by ancient Central Asian and European palace architecture.

The outer perimeter of the city is mainly composed of markets, workshops, temples, and residences.

The main urban area was where the Khan's family and upper-class nobles of the Uyghur Khanate lived and held political discussions.

Unlike the distribution of city buildings in the Central Plains, the moat of the ancient city of Harabalegas did not surround the city.

Rather, it lies between the outer city and the inner city.

This moat, which is about five or six zhang wide, can also be seen as the dividing line between residential houses and the royal palace, and between commoners and nobles.

Separated by a river, two worlds.

Once inside the inner city, magnificent and resplendent European-style palace buildings are everywhere, and the view is filled with extravagance and luxury.

Along the way, the valiant Khan Moyanchuo diligently served as the Prince of Jin's guide, providing Chen Huai'an with a detailed introduction to everything in the city.

After entering the royal palace, a tour is inevitable.

In the evening, they dined at the royal palace.

During the banquet, fine wines and delicacies were served, and beautiful, hot exotic dancers performed and sang to entertain the guests.

This time, Chen Huai'an finally saw authentic Western Region belly dance.

The song and dance performance before us was worlds apart from the entertainment arranged by the Uyghur envoy Ahmad yesterday.

I have no idea what that guy Ahmaiti is up to.

After several rounds of drinks and five courses of food,

With a heavy heart, Mo Yanchuo finally leaned close to Chen Huai'an's ear and whispered, "Your Highness, my daughter, my daughter is Princess Bika, Yue Qiluo;"

"Upon hearing the news of Your Highness Prince Jin's arrival from afar, I specially prepared a dance for you and wish to perform it for you. I wonder what Your Highness's opinion is?"

oh?

Chen Huai'an raised an eyebrow and said with a smile, "Since Princess Pijia has such good intentions, then I naturally cannot refuse the princess's kindness!"

"Let Princess Bhikkhu in!"

ah?

Mo Yanchuo was somewhat surprised to hear Chen Huai'an say that.

He thought to himself, "Didn't Aihamati say that the Prince of Jin was not interested in women and preferred men?"

However, now is not the time to explore this issue.

Mo Yanchuo had no choice but to bite the bullet and have Princess Yue Qiluo of Bijia enter the palace to perform a dance.

"Announce Princess Bhikga, come to the palace to perform a dance for the Prince of Jin!"

As the announcement from the palace servants rang out, Princess Yueqiluo of Bika, dressed in a bright yellow Uyghur gown, gracefully entered from outside the palace.

As soon as she entered, the vast palace fell into complete silence.

All eyes were unconsciously drawn to Yue Qiluo.

Even the valiant general Pang Xianchu, who was known for his aversion to women, couldn't help but take a few more glances.

Then, he subconsciously slapped himself.

He muttered to himself, "Pang Xianchu, Pang Xianchu, what are you thinking? She might just be the future Princess Consort of Jin!"

As he looked away, he didn't forget to tug at Fan Wuji beside him, making the boy turn his head to the side as well.

Sitting in the center of the palace, Chen Huai'an, having lived two lives, was used to seeing all kinds of beautiful women.

But when he first saw Princess Bhikkhu Yue Qiluo, he couldn't help but be amazed by her beauty.

She secretly sighed: This most beautiful princess of the thirty-six kingdoms of the Western Regions truly lives up to her reputation!

Of course, if Chen Huai'an knew that today on the walls of Harabalegas, the most beautiful princess Yue Qiluo had secretly glanced at his head with a bow and arrow.

Perhaps, the first impression of Yue Qiluo should also include "a rose with thorns".

And, as Zhang Wuji's mother once said: The more beautiful a woman is, the more dangerous she is!