"Welcome Regent, Princess and Prince to the capital of our Great Liang Kingdom. Our Emperor is hosting a banquet in the palace, waiting with his ministers for the Regent to enter."
An official from the Ministry of Rites of Daliang spoke respectfully to a middle-aged man with a noble and imposing demeanor who stepped down from a carriage.
The man was Gao Changhong, the regent of the Northern Desert. He was only in his early forties, with a handsome face and tall stature. From a distance, he looked like a man in his thirties.
Following him down were a man and a woman, both around seventeen or eighteen years old, with striking good looks and an air of natural arrogance.
"Although the capital of this Great Liang Kingdom cannot compare to the vastness and grandeur of my Northern Desert, it is still quite prosperous!"
At this moment, the young woman behind the regent glanced at the street in front of him and sighed proudly.
"The women here in Daliang seem petty and stingy. Look at their clothes and the way they walk on the street. They are not as bold and lively as those in the Northern Desert."
Another young man laughed along.
Several officials from the Ministry of Rites looked slightly displeased upon hearing this.
"These must be the princess and the young master, right? You must be too young and inexperienced, so it's inevitable that there will be some misunderstandings."
In the end, it was the Minister of Rites who, with a stern face, smiled faintly.
They were visiting the Northern Desert as a defeated nation, yet they displayed such an arrogant attitude, which displeased the Northern Desert.
"What do you mean? Are you saying we're ignorant?"
Unexpectedly, the woman's face immediately fell, and she adopted an unhappy expression.
"Feifei, don't be rude. I told you not to be impulsive, why can't you learn?"
When Gao Changhong saw that his daughter was about to throw a tantrum again, he put on a cold face and scolded her.
This daughter was spoiled by her mother from a young age, and was arrogant, conceited, and had extremely poor emotional control.
Although she herself looked down on Daliang, she absolutely would not allow her daughter to say such things and offend people.
However, having already spoken about it, he didn't want others to make such a veiled criticism of his daughter.
After reprimanding Gao Yufei, Gao Changhong then gave a fake smile and looked at the officials from the Ministry of Rites.
"Feifei doesn't really know much about Daliang and has some misunderstandings. In the capital of the Northern Desert Kingdom, our houses are all magnificent and tall buildings, so she has never seen so many flat houses."
The officials from the Ministry of Rites were furious upon hearing this, but they had no way to refute it.
In terms of wealth, the Northern Desert is indeed ranked first among all the countries, after all, it is the capital of gold.
The ground beneath that place holds countless riches, which is why not only the imperial palace in the Northern Desert, but also the royal residences of the capital and the private homes of the wealthy are resplendent in gold.
Logically speaking, such a wealthy country should have a strong military, but unfortunately, they have a small population, especially men.
Many soldiers in their country's army are recruited from other impoverished countries at a cost of money.
Originally, they spent a lot of money to train an army in an attempt to unify the countries, and their first target was the Great Liang.
However, although the Great Liang was not as wealthy as them, it had a strong army and many excellent generals, which made it impossible for them to conquer it.
In particular, Crown Prince Xiao Ye later soared like an eagle on the battlefield, leaving them far behind.
In previous years, they had made an alliance with the spies of Daliang and injured Xiao Ye once. They thought that by taking things slowly, they could eventually swallow up Daliang.
But to everyone's surprise, Xiao Ye suddenly recovered, and it turned out that a spy from the Great Liang had also infiltrated their Northern Desert.
They worked together from within and without to inflict heavy damage on the Northern Desert.
Therefore, after several months of deliberation, the Regent decided to personally make a trip to Daliang.
Because of their wealth, even though they were a defeated nation, Emperor Wenjian treated them with great respect.
The officials from the Ministry of Rites could only keep their faces grim and say no more, instead quickly leading them to the Liang Imperial Palace.
*
"Feifei, Junning, why aren't you paying your respects to His Majesty the Emperor of Great Liang?"
Inside the palace.
The courtiers stood in rows on both sides, while Gao Changhong, accompanied by his daughter Gao Yufei and son Gao Junning, stood in the center of the hall.
He did not bow to Emperor Wenjian, but instead had his children bow to him directly.
He believed himself to be the regent of the Northern Desert, holding an extremely high status there, while the Northern Desert emperor was merely a puppet, and he himself enjoyed the emperor's power.
Therefore, in his mind, he was equal to Emperor Wenjian and did not need to perform the rites.
Emperor Wenjian naturally had some objections to Gao Changhong's behavior, but what could he do when Gao Changhong entered with a smile and said:
"Your Majesty, although I am the Regent of the Northern Desert, the affairs of state in the Northern Desert are all in my hands because Your Majesty is young."
Our Emperor has granted me special permission not to kneel before him. Since I am visiting Daliang on behalf of my Emperor of the Northern Desert, I will also refrain from kneeling. I hope you understand.
Since that's what they said, Emperor Wenjian had no choice but to give up, no matter how dissatisfied he was.
Everyone knows that this means telling Emperor Wenjian that he, as regent, is like the emperor of the Northern Desert.
When emperors from two different countries meet, they naturally do not need to kneel before each other.
"Feifei (Junning) greets the Emperor of Great Liang, wishing His Majesty boundless blessings and a life free from worries!"
Gao Yufei and Gao Junning knelt down together and said a few kind words.
"Alright, please get up!"
Seeing their respect, Emperor Wenjian's mood improved slightly. He raised his hand to let them rise and then offered them seats.
Gao Changhong and his entourage brought Emperor Wenjian many valuable gifts, including tens of thousands of taels of gold, as well as other precious jade artifacts, silks, and so on.
Emperor Wenjian was overjoyed, and the banquet was a joyous occasion.
"I am deeply gratified that the Regent has sent so many things to Great Liang. It would be inappropriate for me to accept without giving anything back, so I will also send some things from Great Liang to the Regent!"
Emperor Wenjian laughed.
Reciprocity was essential, so Emperor Wenjian had already prepared return gifts for the regent and his entourage.
But to his surprise, Gao Changhong refused.
Gao Changhong smiled and waved his hand, saying, "Your Majesty, there's no need for a return gift. Our Northern Desert is rich in resources and lacks nothing, except for a small population, especially fewer men."
"I have a daughter who is seventeen years old and still unmarried, simply because I cannot find a suitable man in the Northern Desert. Therefore, I have only one request today: I hope Your Majesty will allow my daughter to choose a worthy husband from among the men of your Great Liang!"
Choosing a husband!
Upon hearing Gao Changhong's words, the ministers in the hall were momentarily shocked, and their gazes involuntarily turned towards Gao Yufei.
Gao Yufei was slender with an oval face and delicate skin, possessing a unique charm compared to the women of Daliang.
Marrying a woman like that would seem like a good thing!
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