Princess Whitworth's unruly demeanor, in the past, would have been praised as a proud and spirited princess.
Now, the Mongolian royals are gritting their teeth, practically spitting out their anger and calling her a stupid woman.
The emotions of her fellow clansmen were outwardly expressed, and even Princess Whitt, who was usually the one to have the final say, was affected and became uncomfortable.
Princess Whitworth stubbornly refused to back down.
Judging from her appearance, if it weren't for the fact that the person speaking was Yinreng, she could have continued to be aggressive and arrogant for dozens of more times.
The prince of the Chahar tribe, unable to bear the sight any longer, pleaded for his life: "Your Majesty, there are indeed few dancers in Mongolia, and they are not as skilled as those in the capital. If Your Majesty does not mind, how about I perform a dance for you all? Speaking of which, when I was young, I was the best singer and dancer on the grasslands."
The Prince of Chahar volunteered, and Emperor Kangxi granted his request.
The other followers of the Chahar tribe borrowed Mongolian musical instruments from the musicians and stepped forward to accompany the Chahar prince.
Few Mongolians are unable to dance and sing. Their dances may not be as refined as those of the royal family, but they possess a unique boldness and unrestrained spirit, and are extremely captivating.
As Kangxi's expression gradually softened, the seats on the Mongolian side were no longer oppressively quiet.
Those present were all royalty and nobles. Since Prince Chahar danced on the spot, they laughed heartily and volunteered to dance for Emperor Kangxi as well.
Most Mongolian princes are broad-shouldered and stout, with thick beards. Dozens of burly men singing and dancing wildly can be quite an eyesore if you look closely.
Tong Wanyan turned to Yinreng and said, "Was Princess Hui Te used as a pawn?"
"She looks smart, but she's actually a fool. Is Xiao Yan still angry? I'll teach her a lesson for you," Yinreng said.
Tong Wanyan shook her head: "I'm not that petty. Things should be done the way they should be, and national affairs come first."
Emperor Kangxi sat beside her, quietly pricking up his ears to listen to Tong Wanyan's reply, and smiled with satisfaction.
As expected of his cousin, she knows what's good for her!
The Mongolian princes, unaware of the situation, assumed that Kangxi's smile indicated his satisfaction with their dance performance.
It's a fine banquet; it's impossible to keep the princes dancing all the time—that would be too disrespectful to them.
After a short while, Kangxi, judging by the time, told them to return to their seats.
Throughout the entire event, only Princess Whitworth and her restless retinue remained seated.
She couldn't swallow her pride; after all, she had been a king and tyrant in Mongolia for so long that she couldn't bring herself to submit and had to cling to her pitiful pride.
Because of the kinship between Galdan and the Khoshut Queen, Emperor Kangxi had long been dissatisfied with the Khoshut tribe.
After today's events, Kangxi mentally crossed out the Huite tribe, and could only wait for time to wipe out the Huite queen's power and replace the Huite tribe with a new king.
Everyone deliberately forgot what had happened before, chatting and laughing, and exchanging toasts.
Princess Whitworth, for reasons unknown, decided to pull another stunt after one failed attempt, determined to challenge Tong Wanyan.
"Your Majesty, I would like to invite the Crown Prince's Consort to a horsemanship contest. I heard that yesterday the Consort rode her horse across the grasslands and seemed quite skilled in riding and archery. I was wrong just now. If the Consort can win the horsemanship contest against me, I am willing to give her a thousand cattle and sheep, and a chest of gold and silver jewelry," said Princess Huite, rising from her seat.
The Chahar prince was utterly enraged by this brainless woman: "Are you kidding me? What is the status of the Crown Prince's concubine? How noble is she? Why would she want to compete with you in horsemanship? You ride horses and hunt every day on the grasslands for survival. The Crown Prince's concubine is not Mongolian; she doesn't need to do that. You're comparing what you rely on for survival with what the Crown Prince's concubine considers a hobby. Aren't you just trying to rip her off?"
"Your Majesty, I was momentarily excited. Please forgive me." After saying this, Prince Chahar bowed to Emperor Kangxi.
Princess Huit was determined to challenge Tong Wanyan, ignoring the angry shouts from Prince Chahar. Both were tribal leaders; she wasn't afraid of Chahar.
"Your Majesty, are you willing to grant my request? Or does the Crown Prince's concubine admit that she is no match for me and is willing to concede defeat?" Princess Huite asked stubbornly.
Besides Prince Chahar, other princes successively stopped Princess Huitt.
"Your Highness, you've gone too far."
"Your Highness, today is a banquet for the Emperor and the princes. Why bring up a competition at such a fine banquet?"
“That’s right, that’s right. If the Princess really wants to see how well the Crown Prince’s concubine is at horseback riding, she can have a competition after the banquet. We can’t ruin such a good banquet.”
Apart from Prince Chahar standing up to rebuke Princess Huit, the others only talked the talk, and some even secretly fanned the flames, causing Princess Huit, who had initially been somewhat hesitant, to stand tall again and look at Tong Wanyan.
Tong Wanyan slowly sipped the Mongolian milk tea. It tasted good, but she preferred the modified version made in the palace.
"My lord, did I forget to check the almanac before going out today? Princess Huit is staring at me intently. Look at her eyes, she looks like she wants to tear a piece of flesh off me." Tong Wanyan remained unmoved by the atmosphere on the Mongolian side.
Want to see her get emotional and argue with them? That's impossible.
"Princess Huit has grown up on horseback since childhood and is said to have personally participated in numerous battles, making her a veritable goddess of war on the grasslands. I grew up in the capital and can't compare to the Princess who spends so much time with horses. However, my cousin was the one who killed Galdan, and he taught me all my martial arts and horsemanship. Since the Princess has taken the initiative to request a spar, I shouldn't diminish my cousin's reputation," Tong Wanyan said gently with a smile.
Her words, though seemingly gentle, contained a barbed implication that seemed to ignite Princess Whitworth's inner turmoil, making her furious.
At this moment, Kangxi said, "My daughter-in-law is young, but she has a very high ambition. Since Princess Huite wants to compete with this child, I am not the kind of person who raises his children to only know how to be safe. After the banquet, I will personally be the referee for you."
"Yuanbao'er, I'll lend you my imperial horse for a ride today. Have fun!" Emperor Kangxi said affectionately to Tong Wanyan.
Kangxi's attitude suddenly reminded the Mongol side of something.
This concubine of the Crown Prince was not only someone the Crown Prince loved, but also Kangxi's own cousin.
Emperor Kangxi's favoritism towards the Tong family was known not only to the Manchus and Han Chinese, but also to the Mongols.
Prince Chahar was sweating profusely. He nervously took out a handkerchief and wiped the sweat from his cheeks.
Thank goodness, he was on the side of the Qing Dynasty and didn't echo their sentiments.
Otherwise, he really would have been killed by that woman, Princess Whit.
This year's grain harvest in Mongolia is mediocre, and he is also thinking of asking the Qing Dynasty for help and reducing the tribute.
Tong Wanyan had indeed long coveted Emperor Kangxi's imperial horse.
While in the palace, she had to consider Yinreng and dared not ask Kangxi for a chance to try riding a horse. Besides, the area in the palace where horses could run was so small that even a good horse wouldn't be a very comfortable ride.
"Thank you, Father Emperor." Tong Wanyan beamed with joy, not at all worried about competing with Princess Hui Te.
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