Chapter 227 If you want a horse to run but don't want to feed it grass, the horse will kick up its heels!
"Back then, in order to appease foreign powers and not wanting to give up his own daughters, the late emperor found many daughters of minor officials, adopted them as goddaughters, bestowed upon them the title of princess, and sent them to marry foreign rulers under the guise of princesses!"
"There are many similar examples from previous dynasties. Although emperors had many children, they had even more foreign tribes to appease. They also had to win over court officials. How could they possibly send their own daughters abroad for marriage alliances?"
"Think about why I chose you!" There are so many princesses and young women in the capital who are still unmarried, and several more who are not yet married. Why not choose them, but Zhou Yunyue?
She was just a scapegoat who was pushed out!
Zhou Yunyue had already thought of this, but she just refused to accept reality.
“You’re talking nonsense. Marrying a princess for political reasons is a duty that every princess must fulfill.” Zhou Yunyue said this with obvious lack of confidence.
Seeing that she showed no remorse whatsoever, Shen Lanxi shook her head with a stern face.
She's just a figurehead to carry the princess's identity. It wouldn't matter who was the princess sent for a political marriage!
That's all she had to say; good advice is useless against a damned devil!
"Set off!"
No matter how much Zhou Yunyue made a fuss, Shen Lanxi's attitude remained unchanged.
Zhou Yunyue was helped into the carriage by the guards.
"Shen Lanxi, how dare you treat me like this? I am a princess..."
Cao Ziling and the others, their faces dark with anger, confronted Shen Lanxi.
"General Shen, aren't you afraid that if the Emperor finds out about how you treat Princess Wanhe, you'll be punished by having your family's property confiscated and your clan exterminated?"
Shen Yuanjing unfolded the imperial edict: "My lords, please read carefully. The edict states that no one is allowed to delay their journey, but it makes no exception for the princess!"
Xiao Fang: "If the journey is delayed and fighting breaks out in the Northwest, who among you can take responsibility? Will it be Lord Cao, Lord Zheng, or Lord Zhu who bear the blame?"
Of course, no one dares to do that!
Shen Lanxi: "Anyone who has objections to the orders I gave, step forward now!"
With an imperial edict before them, who would dare? They were willing to bet that if any of them dared to step forward, Shen Lanxi's men would definitely accuse them of disobeying the imperial decree!
Cao Ziling and the others, their faces dark, mounted their horses or boarded their carriages.
Traveling day and night, they finally arrived at Xiling five days later.
Xiling is one of the five major cities leading to the northwest. It is very close to the northwest. You can see foreign merchants from outside the region in the city, and there are also many foreign merchants coming and going on the streets. The people here have become used to it!
The imperial court's requests for provisions and supplies were delayed, putting immense pressure on the officials in charge of provisions every day. This time, upon arriving in Xiling, the pressure intensified.
The people of Northwest China are known for their fierce and unruly nature; they're quick to fight at the slightest provocation. The closer a city is to the northwest, the more chaotic it becomes. When the Wei family army was in power, their presence helped maintain order and stability in the northwest. Now that the Wei family army is gone, robberies and armed clashes break out frequently, rendering the local government virtually ineffective!
After reading the message, Shen Lanxi handed out the note so that they could read it one by one.
"Xiling is already divided among several factions, so we won't enter the city; we'll camp outside!"
"yes!"
Xiao Fang and the others immediately went to make arrangements.
A short while later, Shen Yuanjing ran over to report to Shen Lanxi: "Cao Ziling, Zhou Yunyue, and the others are unwilling to obey the arrangements and insist on going into the city to rest!"
Shen Lanxi sneered: "Let them go. How could a trip to the Northwest be without bloodshed?"
"Was it Cao Ziling who started this disturbance?"
Shen Yuanjing: "It's him!"
Shen Lanxi took a deep breath: "If you want to be united, you have to get rid of the troublemakers in the team. Do you understand?"
Shen Yuanjing and the others made their move.
Ban Sicao: "I'll take care of it. This is my specialty. I guarantee he'll disappear perfectly naturally!"
Everyone stared at Ban Sicao, their expressions indescribable!
After Shen Yuanjing returned to the marriage procession, he immediately addressed everyone: "The general said that you are free to go wherever you want, but you must not forget why you are here. If anything goes wrong, you will bear the consequences yourselves!"
Cao Ziling sneered inwardly, thinking that all a woman could do was scare people!
For the past five days, Zhou Yunyue had been absent-minded and distracted. Upon hearing that Cao Ziling wanted to take the marriage alliance delegation into the city to rest, she immediately expressed her support.
After traveling for several days in a row, she really couldn't take it anymore!
If the final outcome is that she must go for a political marriage, then she must enjoy everything she hasn't had the chance to experience in the palace. Otherwise, who knows what the Northwest will be like?
The people at the post station said that the Northwest was extremely short of water, and people could only take a bath twice a year. Their hair was washed only once every few months. Just thinking about that scene made Zhou Yunyue's eyes fill with tears, and she gritted her teeth in resentment.
The marriage procession quickly departed, and Shen Lanxi said to Cheng Zheng beside her, "Writing memorials, I don't need to teach you how, do I?"
Cheng Zheng quickly wrote: "Cao Ziling of the Ministry of Rites insisted on his own way and led the marriage procession into Xiling City. Unexpectedly, they encountered an assassination attempt by foreign tribes, which led to the princess's peril..." He showed this to Shen Lanxi after writing this.
Shen Lanxi reminded her, "Cao Ziling died on the spot." This needs to be included.
Cheng Zheng made a few minor revisions and continued writing furiously.
Not long after the message was sent out by carrier pigeon, she received a reply from the capital.
"Shen Lanxi is hereby granted the authority to procure grain from the Northwest, including the Northwest Army. From now on, all grain supplies can be procured from the Northwest!"
After Shen Yuanjing finished reading, he handed the note to Shen Lanxi.
"Tell me your thoughts," Shen Lanxi said with a deep look in her eyes.
Xiao Fang: "If only Old Liu were here!"
Qian Feng glanced at Xiao Fang: "You're just telling the truth!"
Cheng Zheng wrote: "They want us to collect grain, but what about taxes?"
Shen Lanxi sneered, "The imperial court is really playing a clever game. They take the taxes, but we have to find our own way to get food. Are we really going to ask the people for food?"
Qian Feng frowned and said, "The land in the Northwest is barren. After paying taxes, the people are basically left with nothing. If they encounter bad weather, they will go hungry. If they encounter bad weather, people will starve to death in Northwest Beijing!"
Shen Lanxi: "We definitely can't ask the people for food."
Ban Sicao understood.
"What right to requisition grain? The imperial court is clearly unwilling to provide grain!"
Shen Lanxi: It wasn't easy, I finally understood!
"If you want the horse to run but don't want to feed it, then the horse will only kick up its heels!"
The group all stared at Shen Lanxi, wondering what she meant.
That night, a group of bandits sneaked into Xiling City and headed straight for the residence of the Xiling officials!
The next day, in addition to the assassination of the marriage procession, a large amount of property was stolen from the residence of Xiling officials.
Rumors spread like wildfire.
“Someone saw it was done by outsiders. Shh, keep your voice down. If anyone hears us, we’re all doomed.”
"I reckon the foreign tribes want to sabotage the marriage alliance!"
"Is there even a need to estimate? Anyone with eyes can see it at a glance!"
"Has something happened to the princess?"
"No, I heard that a man surnamed Cao took a knife for the princess."
"The government officials, who are usually nowhere to be seen, are acting like madmen today. This is the third search already."
"How can I not go crazy? I heard the whole house has been robbed!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
