Chapter 366 Setting Off for Xixi
"If you were to go and marry into the enemy because of my words and lose your life, Mother will definitely kill me! Even if Mother doesn't kill me, I will blame myself for the rest of my life."
"Please stop overthinking! It's all my fault! It's all my fault!"
Seeing this scene before her, Min Qiaoshi suddenly realized that Li Sanqi had become so resourceful without her noticing!
One can imagine that even if the Fifth Prince were to surpass the Crown Prince and the Third Prince to ascend the throne one day, he would likely still be unable to escape the fate of being controlled by Li Sanqi.
Min Qiao shook off the jumbled thoughts in her mind. It was too early to think about these things now; she should focus on dealing with the immediate issues first.
After the King of Chu repeatedly apologized, Li Sanqi finally forgave him, albeit reluctantly.
The siblings reconciled.
The marriage of Min Pan'er to Princess Xihe in place of Li Sanqi was thus decided.
The King of Chu stood up and bowed deeply to Madam Min Qiao, saying sincerely, "I'll leave Min Pan'er to the Dowager Madam."
Min Qiao nodded in agreement: "Your Majesty is too kind."
"Now that it's decided that Min Pan'er will go for the marriage alliance, is the Seventh Princess going to stay in Huizhou? Or should I send someone to secretly escort the princess back to the capital?"
Li Sanqi was undecided for a moment, so he looked at the King of Chu.
The King of Chu hesitated for a moment, then suggested, "How about I separate a group of people from the wedding procession to escort you back to the capital?"
Li Sanqi shook his head. "I can't go back."
"Everyone knows that I have gone to marry a foreign ruler. If I return to the capital now and my whereabouts are discovered, I am afraid it will ruin my father's military plans."
“The princess is right,” Madam Min Qiao agreed. “If the seventh princess doesn’t mind, why don’t you stay in Huizhou? My house may not be as nice as the palace, but it’s still a place to live.”
"I will leave my head maid, A-Shuang, behind. After we leave, if the Seventh Princess needs anything, she can simply ask A-Shuang."
"What does the princess think?"
Li Sanqi was still hesitating, but the King of Chu had already nodded and said, "I think it's a good idea. I'll come back to pick up Seventh Sister and we'll go back to the capital together after I return from Xixi."
Just when Madam Min thought the matter was settled, Li Sanqi's expression turned serious, and he firmly shook his head, saying, "I want to go to Xixi with you."
Before Min Qiaoshi and the King of Chu could object, she continued, "Moreover, I must go with you!"
“If Min Pan’er’s fake princess identity is exposed after she arrives in Xi’an, and I am not in Xi’an, I’m afraid Father’s military plan will fail before it even begins.”
"It might even backfire and give people something to talk about."
“But if I go with her, even if Min Pan’er’s identity is discovered, with me there, we can find a way to save her in time.”
The King of Chu objected, saying, "Wouldn't that put you in danger?"
With a solemn expression of heroic sacrifice, Li Sanqi said, "My life or death is not important, but I must not let my father's plan be ruined because of me."
"Seventh Sister!" The King of Chu couldn't bear it and wanted to persuade her again, but Li Sanqi raised her hand to interrupt him.
Li Sanqi smiled at the King of Chu and said in a light tone, "Fifth Brother, don't worry, I'm only talking about the worst-case scenario. Let's be careful. I'll teach Min Pan'er some royal etiquette along the way, and we should be able to get by."
"We'll come back together after Min Pan'er marries the Crown Prince of Xi'an in my place."
"Wouldn't that ensure absolute safety?"
"Besides, Fifth Brother and the Old Madam have both left, leaving me alone in Huizhou City isn't safe. I might as well go with you."
"At that time, I will pretend to be the old lady's personal maid and follow her around at all times. Is that alright?"
Seeing that Li Sanqi had thought everything through, the King of Chu thought for a moment and then agreed.
The two then looked at Madam Min Qiao.
Madam Min smiled. They had already made their decision, so what could she say? Of course, she could only nod.
Moreover, she also felt that Li Sanqi's words made sense.
And so, the matter was settled.
The two went to the accommodations arranged for them by Madam Min Qiao, while Madam Min Qiao went to Min Pan'er's accommodations in person.
The matter of having Min Pan'er replace Li Sanqi still needs to be discussed by her personally.
Just as Min Qiaoshi had predicted, after her initial shock, Min Pan'er agreed almost without resistance.
With everything prepared, the wedding procession set off from the Qiao residence at dawn the next day, exiting through the west gate to join the main force twenty miles outside the city, and headed towards Xixi.
The wedding procession was enormous.
Cavalry led the way, while troops guarded the rear.
Min Qiaoshi and Min Pan'er's carriages were protected in the middle of the caravan, and behind their carriages were the vehicles transporting the dowry.
Meanwhile, the King of Chu and Lao Qiao and his companions rode horses to guard the carriages of Min Qiao and Min Pan'er.
Min Pan'er is now Princess Xihe, so her carriage is extremely luxurious, and the space inside is naturally very spacious. The people below have even thoughtfully modified her carriage into a semi-sitting, semi-reclining configuration.
After the group had traveled fifty li, Min Pan'er got tired of sitting and prepared to lie down on the soft mattress next to her to sleep.
"What happened??" The old woodcutter who was guarding the side was the first to jump onto the carriage shaft.
Before he could rush into the carriage, he heard Min Pan'er reply from inside: "It's nothing, it's nothing. I just didn't sit properly and bumped my head. It's nothing serious."
The old woodcutter glanced at the carriage with suspicion, but ultimately did not rush in. He turned back onto his horse.
He thought for a moment, then pulled on the reins, walked to Madam Min's carriage, knocked on the carriage, and whispered, "Madam, there seems to be movement in Princess Xihe's carriage."
Wen Xiu pushed open the car window, and Min Qiao Shi turned her head to look out, "What's going on?"
The old woodcutter recounted what had just happened and awaited instructions.
Madam Min thought for a moment, then looked at the sky. “It’s getting late. Let’s find a place ahead to stop and rest for a while, and everyone can have something to eat.”
"Yes." The old woodcutter accepted the order and went to relay the message.
Min Qiaoshi, however, began to have some doubts.
Meanwhile, in Min Pan'er's carriage, Jiang Hongling was looking at Min Pan'er with a puzzled expression.
"Isn't this Princess Xihe's carriage? What are you doing here?"
"And what's with your outfit?"
"W-w-w-...is that a dragon pattern on these clothes? You, you, you...what is this...?"
The more Jiang Hongling looked at Min Pan'er, the more she felt something was wrong. In the end, she didn't even dare to speak.
Min Pan'er gave a wry smile, not mentioning her own affairs, but instead asked Jiang Hongling, "Why are you hiding here?"
Jiang Hongling pouted and said aggrievedly, "It's all because of the old lady. She promised to take me with her to Xixi. But at the last minute, she actually wanted someone to drug me and leave me in Huizhou."
"Can I agree to that?"
"So, I guess I'll just have to play along and sneak onto the bus?"
Min Pan'er was speechless, helpless, and saddened.
Those who don't want to go are forced to. Those who could have avoided going are begging to go.
Seeing that Min Pan'er didn't speak, Jiang Hongling looked Min Pan'er up and down again, and even tugged at her clothes before saying with an incredulous expression, "Why do I feel like you look like a princess in this outfit?"
Min Pan'er's expression turned solemn. With a wave of her sleeve, she said coldly, "I am the princess. I am Princess Xihe, who is going to Xihe for a marriage alliance."
"What, what did you say?!" Jiang Hongling stared at Min Pan'er, speechless.
Min Pan'er looked at Jiang Hongling seriously, "If you want to live, you'd better remember this."
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