The Emperor gritted his teeth, swallowed his anger, and then smiled as he spoke:
"Hehe, Qi State is truly thoughtful. Is there anyone here who can tame this South China tiger? Whoever tames it will be richly rewarded by me."
There was complete silence around them; no one answered.
When the emperor saw that no one stood up, he was put in an awkward position, and his face darkened instantly.
"What? Can't our great Xia Kingdom even tame a tiger?"
The emperor glared angrily at his ministers below, furious. "A bunch of useless bastards!"
The Emperor looked directly at Li Xiaochen, gesturing for him to go up and give it a try.
Li Xiaochen pretended not to see it, picked up the wine glass on the table and took a sip, showing no respect to the emperor and leaving the emperor feeling suffocated.
That brat, now that I need you, you're acting like a coward! Humph! I'll just do as you please.
"Would the Regent like to give it a try?"
The Emperor has begun calling roll!
"Your Majesty, I caught a cold a few days ago and I'm still feeling weak. I'm afraid I won't be able to play!"
Li Xiaochen simply gave up and even pretended to cough a few times.
The emperor was so angry he gritted his teeth.
[He caught a cold after only a few days? His body is so weak? No wonder Li Xiaochen always faced life-or-death situations when he was injured in the story! Tsk tsk tsk! Turns out he's not very good at it!]
Lin Yuxin looked at Li Xiaochen curiously, as if she finally knew the truth, but little did she know how much her words directly broke his defenses!
Zhao Hanyue's face stiffened. How could this girl say anything? She's so outspoken!
The three Lin brothers coughed and spit water, trying to cover it up. They looked at each other, their eyes flashing with embarrassment. For the first time, they felt that hearing their sister's true feelings was a bad thing.
The Emperor and Empress both twitched at the corners of their mouths. The Emperor even gave Li Xiaochen a few meaningful glances. No wonder this brat is so old and still not married, turns out he's impotent!
Annoyance flashed in Li Xiaochen's eyes as he glared at Lin Yuxin. This brat dared to say he wasn't good enough? He'd put it on record for now and settle the score later.
"Ahem! Alright! Since the Regent is unwell, then forget it. Who else among you will give it a try?"
The Emperor coughed lightly, then let Li Xiaochen off the hook, and addressed the crowd.
In the end, no one dared to step forward.
"Ha! What? Your Xia Kingdom doesn't even have tiger tamers?"
Upon seeing this, the Third Prince Qu Shubai asked a question, his smug look impossible to conceal.
Princess Chenfu remained silent. She had been watching Li Xiaochen the whole time, and she clearly saw him glare at Lin Yuxin earlier.
She followed the gaze and saw that besides Lin Yuxin, there was also the wife of the Minister of Works, Madam Xu, and her daughter, Xu Xiaoxiao, sitting next to Lin Yuxin!
However, Xu Xiaoxiao is three years younger than Lin Yuxin, and is only eleven years old now.
Princess Chenfu finally looked at Lin Yuxin, because Lin Yuxin was the most beautiful among them, and she had a feeling that this woman would be a threat.
So, without waiting for the Emperor to speak, she stepped forward, curtsied, and softly said:
"Your Majesty, since no men from your country are willing to come up, why not invite the women to try? Every woman in our Qi Kingdom can tame a tiger; they are no less capable than men."
"I, the princess, will not bully your Xia Kingdom. Find a woman to compete with me. If she wins, I will offer her those five cities with both hands. If she loses, then you must let your regent marry into our Qi Kingdom."
As soon as Princess Chenfu finished speaking, a commotion broke out below, with various discussions arising.
"What exactly is Princess Chenfu trying to do? Send a woman up to train a tiger? Isn't that just sending her to her death?"
"Exactly, Qi's intentions are crystal clear!"
"The Emperor wouldn't agree to this, would he? This is utterly absurd!"
The emperor's expression also darkened. It was disheartening that the nation's reputation had to be contested by a woman!
The State of Qi is truly arrogant and disdainful of others!
The Empress was also furious, but with so many officials present, she, as the Empress of the country, could not lose her composure. She could clearly sense that the Emperor was also extremely angry, so she reached out and took his hand to comfort him.
The Emperor sensed the Empress's comfort, took a deep breath, and his gaze towards the princess turned colder. He asked:
"Since Princess Chenfu has made this request, she must already have someone in mind. I wonder which young lady Princess Chenfu has taken a fancy to and would like to compete with?"
Princess Chenfu smiled and looked in Lin Yuxin's direction.
[Oh no, I have a bad feeling about this. Could this woman have a crush on me?]
As expected, Princess Chenfu spoke up:
"I wonder whose daughter this is? I find her quite pleasing to the eye. I wonder if she dares to come forward and compete with me?"
[Sure enough, this woman has her eye on me, but I haven't done anything wrong, have I? I didn't offend her, did I?]
Lin Yuxin was completely baffled, but the enemy had already reached the doorstep, and she couldn't surrender without a fight.
She was about to get up when her mother, quick as a flash, saw Zhao Hanyue rise, walk to the front, kneel down, and say:
"Your Majesty, my daughter has only recently been found. She used to live in the countryside and has no idea how to train tigers! Please, Your Majesty, have mercy!"
My maternal grandfather, the Grand General Who Protects the Nation, also rose and knelt down:
"Your Majesty, I beg Your Majesty to have mercy. Yuxin is just a woman, how could she possibly train a tiger? Wouldn't that be putting her to death?"
Even Lin Yuxin's three older brothers stood up and knelt down, begging the emperor to show leniency.
Lin Yuxin felt a warmth in her heart as she looked at them, but it wasn't time for her to back down. Since this princess had chosen her, she must have her eye on her, and she would definitely try to cause trouble for her. She was aware of that.
So she slowly got up.
[Since you insisted on competing, don't cry later!]
Lin Yuxin smiled and gracefully walked to the front of the hall.
The Emperor and Empress stared intently at Lin Yuxin, and at the same time, they both realized that she was the one who had been speaking earlier!
Lin Yuxin bowed to the Emperor and said:
"Your subject, Lin Yuxin, daughter of the Minister's household, pays her respects to Your Majesty."
"No need for formalities!"
The Emperor looked at the mysterious woman before him with curiosity. Was she the one who had been talking the whole time? She seemed to know a lot.
"Your Majesty, I have a request that I cannot make."
Lin Yuxin spoke respectfully.
"you say."
"Since Princess Chenfu of Qi wishes to compete with me today, may I decide the stakes myself?"
Lin Yuxin slowly revealed her purpose.
[That's right, the bet is this: I'll make the State of Qi bleed profusely today!! Let's see if they dare to provoke us again!]
A smile flickered in the Emperor's eyes. This girl is quite patriotic! But can she really do it?
After a moment's thought, the emperor finally agreed.
"Alright, I grant your permission. You decide the stakes for today's bet!"
Having received confirmation, Lin Yuxin looked at Princess Chenfu and spoke calmly:
“Princess Chenfu, you asked my daughter to compete, and she has agreed, but the stakes need to be changed.”
How do I change the bet?
Jun Chenxi spoke casually, not believing that the woman in front of her could defeat her.
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