Chapter 97 Wear your shoes, walk your way, so that you can neither find shoes nor walk
When these words were spoken, many civil and military officials gasped.
Some even couldn't help whispering to each other.
"How dare Princess Rui ask the Princess of Yuheng to bet a city?! If that's the case, doesn't Dafeng have to bet a city too?!"
"She can be crazy and mean, but why is she so unreasonable?"
"Yeah, doesn't she know her own level?"
Hearing this, Su Lin, who never argued with officials, said coldly.
"Shut up! His Majesty hasn't expressed his opinion yet, so what right do you have to talk about my daughter? If you dare to talk about my daughter again, don't blame me for not giving you face!"
Upon hearing this, a civil servant stretched his neck to look at Su Lin.
"We have no objection to your daughter and the Princess of Yuheng betting on silver. Even if your daughter loses, we won't feel ashamed, because when they tried to intimidate us just now, your daughter immediately fought back. But since this involves the city, how can it be a trivial matter?"
Su Lin swept his eyes towards the man with sharp knife-like glare, and was about to say, "If my daughter loses the city, this general will take his elder brother and risk his life to take the city back," but King Rui beat him to the punch.
"Do you think you can talk nonsense about my princess?!"
Seeing that Su Lin and Prince Rui both had an attitude of "If she really loses the city, I will lead the army to take it back", all the civil and military officials were extremely anxious: taking over the city would involve bloodshed!
A civil servant mustered up the courage to stand up and look at the emperor.
"Your Majesty, you can't gamble with the city!"
The emperor had been staring at Su Yuyan since she angrily confronted Shangguan Jue: Although she was not following the rules and talking nonsense, she had a firm grasp on the other party with her words and actions.
Moreover, she never plays by the rules, and you can never predict what she will say or do next.
So the emperor did not intend to interfere with Su Yuyan.
The emperor looked at the civil servant who stood up.
"Sit back down and shut up."
Not only the civil and military officials, but even Shangguan Rao was shocked.
"You have quite a big appetite. You want the city right away."
Su Yuyan's language is stimulating.
"Why? Are you unable to become the city lord or are you afraid that you can't defeat this princess? If you can't become the city lord, then send someone who can. For example... King Jing of your Yuheng Kingdom."
"I have heard that Prince Jing's biological mother was a Royal Noble Consort, holding the same rank as a Vice Empress and enjoying great favor. Prince Jing himself is also very capable and well-versed in the six arts of a gentleman. Your father also dotes on him."
"It doesn't matter if you and your brother can't become the masters of the city. Next time you call King Jing here, I will compete with you."
Shangguan Jue could not tolerate King Jing, who was highly relied upon by the Emperor of Yuheng Kingdom, and his mother was also very favored and had cultivated a lot of helpers for him. It can be said that King Jing was Shangguan Jue's number one rival whom he hated.
Now Su Yuyan deliberately mentioned King Jing and praised King Jing in such an occasion. This behavior directly hit Shangguan Jue's lungs and made Shangguan Jue's face extremely ugly.
But some were happy while others were sad. After these words were spoken, our emperor and all the civil and military officials in the court felt relieved again: with just a few words, she provoked conflicts and struggles among the royal family of Yuheng Kingdom.
Su Yuyan's few words not only touched Shangguan Jue's heart, but also made Shangguan Rao furious.
"No matter how favored Prince Jing is, he can't compare to this princess and the crown prince!"
"Isn't it just a city? This princess and my brother can definitely become the masters of Jinyang City."
Su Yuyan pretended to be suspicious.
"Oh (second tone), really? This princess doesn't believe it unless we both sign an agreement."
Looking at her sarcastic eyes, Shangguan Rao didn't think twice.
"Who are you looking down on? If you want to sign the agreement, then sign it. Not only can this princess sign and seal it, but I can also get my brother, the Crown Prince, to sign and seal it as well!"
After he finished speaking, Shangguan Rao turned around and looked at Shangguan Jue.
"Right, my royal brother."
There is only one princess, Shangguan Rao, in the royal family of Yuheng Kingdom, and she is also his biological sister from the same mother. Therefore, Shangguan Jue has loved Shangguan Rao very much since he was a child. It is no exaggeration to say that he is a sister-doting maniac.
Moreover, Su Yuyan was his sister's love rival, so Shangguan Jue specially conducted a detailed background investigation on Su Yuyan. Su Yuyan was switched at birth and raised in the countryside. How could she possibly win over his sister when she had never been exposed to any of the arts?
Although his sister was arrogant and domineering, she had learned everything from the best teachers in Yuheng Kingdom since she was young. It was impossible for Su Yuyan, a fool who grew up in the countryside, to win over such a talented sister.
Thinking of this, Shangguan Jue nodded slightly.
"My sister and I can be the lords of Jinyang City."
Hearing her brother say this, Shangguan Rao looked proud.
"My Yuheng Kingdom offers Jinyang City as a bet. Which city will you Dafeng offer as a bet?"
Su Yuyan curved her lips and smiled.
"I am only the daughter-in-law of the Dafeng royal family. How can I be the master of a city?"
"However, although I cannot be the master of the city, I am rich, so my bet is 20,000 taels of gold."
Shangguan Rao, feeling that he had been tricked, was furious.
"You can't be the master of the city, but you want me to bet the city right away?!"
Su Yuyan glanced at her.
"You were the ones who first brought up the unequal treaties. I'm just learning and applying what I'm doing now."
"Anyway, there's no city. You can compete or not. It just so happens that this princess doesn't really want to compete with you."
As soon as these words came out, the emperor who had been observing her covered his face and almost laughed out loud.
You know how to piss people off.
All the civil and military officials present in our country: "......!"
Is it possible to do this?! You really took learning and applying to the extreme!
Shangguan Rao was hysterical.
"You only offered 20,000 taels of gold, yet you asked me to bet the city! Do you realize that this is both unethical and excessive?"
Su Yuyan was calm and composed.
"I don't know, because I don't have back pain when I talk while standing."
"As for what you call excessive, I don't think so either! Because I learned it completely from you guys."
"You can propose such unequal conditions, why can't I? I'm just wearing your shoes and walking your path, making it so that you can't find your shoes and can't walk. Why are you so angry?"
Shangguan Rao's defense was broken in an instant.
“You, you, you!”
"What are you talking about? Are you going to compete or not? If not, then leave."
Shangguan Rao stroked his chest which was aching from anger: I want to see where a fool who grew up in the countryside like you gets all your confidence from!
"You can bet 20,000 taels of gold, but you have to play three matches with this princess, best two out of three!"
"And the competition items are determined by this princess!"
Su Yuyan was not panicked at all.
"Come on."
Shangguan Rao thought for a while and then spoke.
"Then we'll race horses, paint, and make incense."
Su Yuyan was confident.
"Little horse racing, painting, and incense making, just take it easy."
"Since we've agreed on the bet, let's sign the agreement and then compete in incense making."
Seeing her confident, Shangguan Rao sneered inwardly: "My father is the emperor of horses, and our Yuheng Kingdom attaches great importance to horseback riding and archery. You country bumpkin, prepare to embarrass yourself by spinning in circles during the horse race!"
After signing the agreement and both parties signed and sealed it, they entered the competition phase.
Su Yuyan looked at Shangguan Rao.
"You first."
Shangguan Rao asked the palace maids for seventeen kinds of spices, and then ordered her trusted maid to bring out her three favorite spices.
After all the spices were ready, Shangguan Rao began to mix them.
She first took the golden saffron and twisted it lightly between her fingertips, then placed it in the exquisite incense burner.
Then she poured in a few drops of ambergris, and the mysterious and alluring scent of ambergris instantly filled the air.
Then she added spices like cinnamon, cloves, and musk deer glands...
Shangguan Rao is very skilled in using spices, and she controls the amount of each spice just right.
As the spices continued to mix, her expression became more focused.
She knew very well that there was no room for failure in this competition.
Finally, after careful blending, she perfectly combined twenty spices to create her favorite 'Heavenly Fragrance'.
When Shangguan Rao lit the prepared incense, a rich aroma instantly filled the entire room. The aroma was lingering, with the sweetness of fruit, the seductiveness of flowers, and the wildness of animals, like a luxurious spice feast.
Shangguan Rao raised his head proudly and looked at Su Yuyan, his eyes full of provocation.
"It's your turn."
Su Yuyan ordered the palace servants to prepare the materials.
Two quarters of an hour later, Shangguan Rao raised an eyebrow and looked at the few ingredients on the table:
A piece of agarwood lay quietly on an ice-patterned porcelain plate, a white porcelain vase contained red plum blossoms that a palace maid had just picked from outside, a dish of soil, and spring water in a green jade cup.
"That's all?" Her words were filled with sarcasm. "I'm afraid you can't even do the most basic incense-setting."
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