Princess Li Sisi of Western Xia had a melon-shaped face and fair, delicate skin, and she looked nothing like a Western Xia person. In fact, the mother of the Western Xia Emperor, Li Ganshun, was a Han Chinese woman, so the princess naturally had Han Chinese ancestry.
Their eyes met, and Li Sisi stared blankly at Zhao Huan: "Are you the Emperor of the Song Dynasty?"
Zhao Huan replied blankly: "Maybe I am."
One asked a strange question, the other gave an interesting answer, they smiled at each other and instantly became familiar with each other.
Li Sisi laughed and said, "I thought you were a short, fat girl with a flat nose."
Zhao Huan was a little mad: "Who told you that?"
"Everyone in the palace says that you Southern Dynasty people are ugly, short, with flat noses and small eyes."
"People from the palace?" Zhao Huan then remembered that she was referring to the Xixia Imperial Palace. Zhao Huan looked at himself and said, "I can't say I'm handsome, but if I dress well, I should have a bright future."
Li Sisi didn't understand what he said, but it seemed that the emperor in front of her was not as bad as the legend said, and she finally felt relieved.
Zhao Huan secretly wiped his sweat. Cao Dongsheng, that bastard, had done so much harm. This princess didn't look like Feng Jie at all. Although she wasn't as pretty as Nangong Lian'er, she was still a beauty.
"Princess, what are you doing out there with all these swords and guns?"
Li Sisi curled her lips and said, "What we Xixia people admire most is heroes. I want to see if you dare to come in."
Zhao Huan smiled and said, "What if I don't dare?"
"If you don't dare, I will return to Xixia tomorrow and tell my father that the Emperor of Song is a coward."
Zhao Huan laughed out loud. He found that this Xixia princess was quite cute.
Little did he know that Xixia was a martial nation. Princess Sisi had trained a troop of maids. Li Ganshun ordered his daughter to marry into the Song dynasty, but Li Sisi refused. Firstly, like Zhao Huan, she feared her daughter's ugliness, and secondly, she feared being bullied in the Song dynasty.
So the princess came up with an idea and brought her maids with her when she married. If she was bullied by the Song Dynasty, these maids would fight him back.
Fortunately, Zhao Huan was a free and easy-going person who was very close to all his concubines. Otherwise, if he had offended this Xixia princess, it would have caused chaos.
"Princess, are you hungry? How about I ask the imperial kitchen to prepare some wine and food so that we can have a drink together?" Zhao Huan made small talk, trying to shorten the distance between him and the princess.
After all, this wasn't like the other concubines, who, upon meeting Zhao Huan, became as obedient as quails, only knowing how to serve him respectfully. For example, Tang Wan'er, whether she had any feelings for Zhao Huan or not was hard to say, as she believed deep down that her duty was to serve the emperor.
This princess is different. She's been raised high and mighty, pampered, and in high places since she was little. You must get close to her and gain her trust before you can proceed to the next step—creating a child.
Li Sisi also had this idea: "Thank you, Your Majesty."
After a while, the imperial kitchen brought in some side dishes and a pot of wine.
Zhao Huan sent the maids and others away and picked up the wine pot himself: "Today there is no emperor or princess here, only husband and wife. Come, sir, let me pour wine for my wife."
Li Sisi felt so sweet after hearing these words. She smiled and raised her wine glass to let Zhao Huan fill it up: "My dear husband, I offer you a toast!"
Zhao Huan smiled and clinked glasses with her: "Good wine!"
This is the real purpose of Zhao Huan, who only wanted to spend his wedding night. He and Li Sisi frequently toasted each other, chatting about the customs and practices of their respective palaces.
The night was deep, the wine jug was empty. Zhao Huan, slightly tipsy, went straight to the point: "Princess, it's getting late, let's go to bed.
The princess didn't know whether she was really drunk or pretending to be drunk to hide her inner desire, and she looked at Zhao Huan with seductive eyes.
Zhao Huan's heartbeat quickened as he threw himself at her. As expected of a fierce Dangxiang, Zhao Huan went from being the active one to being the passive one in the second half of the night. That night, Zhao Huan felt like he was the one who lost his virginity.
Wang Zongchu returned triumphantly after suppressing the rebellion in Shandong. Zhao Huan praised him highly in the Purple Palace, not mentioning even promotions and honors.
Wang Zongchu bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I would like to introduce a man to you. His surname is Pan, and he is the leader of the rebels."
Zhao Huan frowned and said, "Didn't I tell you that the ringleaders of the rebellion will not be pardoned?"
"Your Majesty, this man is different from the other rebels. He enjoys sharing hardships with his soldiers and disciplines them. The rebellion has grown stronger because of him. But now that he has surrendered, it would be a pity to abandon such a talent."
Zhao Huan was interested in the talent that Wang Zongchu valued so highly: "Ask Chief Pan to come to see me!"
Cao Dongsheng shouted at the top of his voice: "Ask Chief Pan to see us!"
Crazy Pan walked into the hall with a heroic and proud manner, bowed and saluted: "Long live the emperor, long live the emperor!"
"I heard that you are the leader of the rebels. Why did you surrender to the Song Dynasty?"
Crazy Pan bowed and said, "I was driven to despair by the Magistrate of Nalai County, Anbei, and therefore rebelled. In Dengzhou, General Wang enlightened me, and I learned that Your Majesty had conquered Yanyun and reduced corvée labor, making him a truly sage ruler. I admire Your Majesty's grace, and therefore I am willing to submit to Your Majesty and swear allegiance to him until death!"
In fact, Crazy Pan would never say these words. These were all taught to him by Wang Zongchu on the road.
Zhao Huan was delighted. This flattery was quite skillful. "What's your name?"
Crazy Pan said, "My last name is Pan, I don't have a given name. Everyone in the village calls me Crazy Pan."
Zhao Huan almost choked. What a ridiculous name! "Since your last name is Pan, I'll give you a name. How about calling you Pan Bufeng? Tomorrow I'm going hunting in the western suburbs. You can come with me."
Crazy Pan looked at Wang Zongchu woodenly. Wang Zongchu whispered, "Why don't you thank me now?"
Pan Bufeng then said loudly: "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace. I finally have a name today."
A surrendered rebel was not worth Zhao Huan's attention. He said to his ministers: "I hereby announce an appointment. I will remove Meng Gu Rao from his position as Minister of Revenue and promote him to the position of Prefect of Kaifeng, a first-rank official."
Meng Gu Rao stood up and did not thank the emperor: "Your Majesty, why did you let me be the prefect of Kaifeng? The treasury is empty, and the Ministry of Revenue has many things that need my attention. I am busy."
Zhao Huan said coldly, "Meng Gurao, and all of you ministers. Don't think that just because I trust you and I have favored you, you can disrespect the emperor! I allowed you to go to Kaifeng Prefecture to be free from my will, but don't think that the Ministry of Revenue will be finished without you, Meng Gurao!"
Meng Gu Rao knelt hurriedly and said, "I acknowledge my guilt and will take up my post immediately."
Li Gang, Chen Guoting and others also lowered their heads. The emperor had changed. He became more and more majestic and more and more frightening.
Zhao Huan nodded gently and said, "Meng Gurao has been promoted to the position of Kaifeng Prefecture Governor. The position of Minister of Revenue is vacant. I would like to appoint Xiangzhou Governor Duan Xiaorong as Minister of Revenue."
As soon as these words came out, the ministers murmured, "Duan Xiaorong was just the governor of Xiangzhou. He was promoted to the position of Minister of Revenue in the capital. I think he must have some extraordinary qualities that attracted the emperor's attention."
Li Gang and his men were not surprised at all. The emperor often acted in unexpected ways. Back then, he had ordered people to search for Yue Fei in Shanxi, but now Yue Fei had become the barrier of the northwest, and the Yue Family Army had defended the northwest even more firmly.
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