Chapter 373 Celebration
After several months, the young lady who had tricked her and then run away has transformed into Princess Chang Le of Qi, and the future empress of the new emperor of Qi!
Good, very good!
When she woke up that day, she learned that Miss Ye, whom she considered a friend, had only used her to get away, and she was so angry that she smashed a set of dishes.
Then, Xuan Yuanze flew into a rage and took it out on the entire Nangong family. She herself was forced to humiliatingly copy that damned, outdated book, and every day someone would come to confiscate it for inspection. For the proud and arrogant Nangong Nian, this was a great disgrace!
She vowed to make Xuan Yuanze pay the price, and also to make that Ye girl who had tricked her pay the price.
Unexpectedly, after assisting Ren Shun, who later became Xuanyuan Shun, to the throne, she learned that the girl Ye was actually from the State of Qi, and of a high status. She had been abducted to the State of Yue by the Xuanyuan brothers.
Nangong Nian gave a perfectly timed smile, bowed to Qi Yuxuan, and said, "This humble subject greets Princess Chang Le."
Qi Yuxuan was wondering why a woman was the envoy. Could it be that the Yue Kingdom had already allowed women to hold official positions?
She nodded to Nangong Nian: "Your Excellency, there is no need for such formalities."
Although the Yue Kingdom's strength was not what it used to be, the formalities still had to be observed.
After exchanging greetings, Qi Yuxuan went straight to Qi Jun's side and asked him with her eyes what had happened.
Since ascending the throne, Qi Jun has been busy with many matters concerning the court and the harem, and he often needs Qi Yuxuan to come to the palace to help with government affairs. So these days they are almost always together, and they can understand each other with just a glance.
However, Qi Jun only gave her a reassuring look, and then gently took her hand.
Qi Yuxuan was startled and instinctively reached for her hand. There were outsiders present, and although they were engaged, they couldn't be so rude...
Thinking this, her fingers felt as if they were bound by iron chains, completely unable to move. Her ears were burning, and she felt a little annoyed.
Qi Jun stared at Nangong Nian, his tone not very friendly: "Lord Nangong, what brings Yue Kingdom here to see you?"
Nangong Nian kept saying she would only speak after seeing Princess Chang Le, but now that she's here, shouldn't she tell the whole story?
Nangong Nian's gaze swept over their clasped hands, a subtle, enigmatic smile curving his lips: "Emperor Qi's words are naturally on behalf of our new ruler, congratulating Emperor Qi on his ascension to the throne! However..."
She abruptly changed the subject, pulling a scroll of black silk with gold trim from her sleeve: "Emperor Qi should not have forgotten this marriage proposal he personally sent to Yue, right?"
"It was agreed at the time that Princess Chang Le would marry into the Yue Kingdom in order to forge a lasting friendship between the two countries. Now that the Qi Kingdom has broken the agreement, it has aroused the anger of the people of both countries. I wonder if the Qi Kingdom intends to settle this score?"
Qi Yuxuan's pupils contracted slightly. At this time, the internal troubles of Yue Kingdom had not yet been quelled, and it had recently been defeated by Qi. The two countries had not yet discussed how to cede territory and pay reparations. How dare Yue Kingdom be so shameless?
She spoke first: "Lord Nangong, is that right?"
"The Yue Kingdom has repeatedly invaded the borders of our Qi Kingdom, and then colluded with the remnants of King Duan of Qi. We haven't even had time to settle old scores with the Yue Kingdom, yet Lord Nangong dares to use the marriage alliance as a pretext?"
"The Qi army does not tolerate idlers, and the Yue Kingdom must have already learned that lesson. The reason we did not attack the Yue capital in one fell swoop is to spare the people the suffering of war and displacement. If Lord Nangong still cannot recognize the situation of the Yue Kingdom, the iron cavalry of Qi will not hesitate to crush the Nangong family first."
These words struck Nangong Nian so hard that her face turned both red and white. "You!"
She quickly calmed her breathing and looked at Qi Jun: "Emperor Qi, since when has your Qi Kingdom been ruled by a mere princess? I am here on behalf of the Yue Kingdom, and my original intention was to celebrate. Discussing other matters was just a side matter. Is this how the Qi Kingdom treats its guests?"
"Absurd!" Qi Jun slammed his hand on the table and stood up. The morning light slanted into the hall, making the jade beads on Qi Jun's crown shine brightly.
The young emperor stepped forward slowly:
"The mere Southern Yue was nothing more than a hawk and hound lying at the feet of the Great Qi in the past. In the last hundred years, the Wu Clan has become increasingly powerful, which has fueled your arrogance and made you forget what your ancestors looked like."
“Princess Chang Le is my Empress, and her will is my will. If Lord Nangong’s trip is not for celebration but for provocation, then he should immediately return and tell Xuan Yuan Shun that if he wants Qi to give an explanation for this marriage alliance, he should come to the gates of Qi’s capital and kneel down to demand it.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Nangong Nian clenched his back teeth.
Little did she know that the new emperor of Qi would be so adamant. She had initially intended to give him a way out, saying that Princess Chang Le's words did not represent Qi's true intentions, but she never expected the emperor to directly support Princess Chang Le, saying that her words represented his own...
These two are truly unpredictable!
Nangong Nian remained silent for a while before gritting his teeth and lowering his head, saying, "It was I who spoke rudely and failed to express myself clearly. I had absolutely no intention of offending the princess or the State of Qi."
"I have come here not only to sincerely celebrate Emperor Qi's ascension to the throne, but also to congratulate Emperor Qi and the Princess on their wedding. This is a congratulatory edict from His Majesty of Yue. I urge Emperor Qi and the Princess to take a look."
Qi Yuxuan and Qi Jun exchanged a glance, both seeing a hint of doubt in each other's eyes.
A celebratory edict? I've never heard of such a thing before.
What kind of trouble is the new ruler of Yue up to now?
Seeing Qi Jun nod, Sun Miao stepped forward and took the document. In order to avoid the paper getting damp or burned, the documents between the two countries were written on silk. He first checked the silk to make sure there was no poison or hidden weapon on it before handing it over to Qi Jun.
The silk scroll was thin and contained only a few words, yet it caused Qi Jun and Qi Yuxuan to furrow their brows deeply.
According to the new ruler of Yue, since Qi did not want to send a princess for a marriage alliance, Yue would send some beauties to the Qi emperor's harem to consolidate the friendship between the two countries. This envoy, Lord Nangong Nian, was one of them.
Upon seeing this, the two looked up at Nangong Nian.
Unexpectedly, Nangong Nian remained calm, as if she had no idea what was written in the silk scroll, displaying a businesslike and even somewhat impatient expression.
Qi Yuxuan: "Lord Nangong, is it something that Emperor Yue and your Nangong family agreed upon in this edict?"
Nangong Nian was filled with doubt. What did those words mean?
She looked at Qi Yuxuan: "Princess Chang Le, sending a beauty to Emperor Qi is also a way for Yue Kingdom to show goodwill and for the sake of peace between the two countries. Is the princess getting jealous?"
Qi Yuxuan's suspicions were confirmed: "Whether I feel jealous or not is not important, I'm just curious, does Lord Nangong know that he is also one of these beauties?"
"What did you say?!" Nangong Nian was shocked.
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