Chapter 74 Intimacy on the couch can't compare to the sweetness of a beautiful woman
Xue Ji's mouth gaped open, wondering if she had misheard. This Shen Shuqing, actually trying to curry favor in public like this?
Although he also wanted to sit on His Highness's bed, wasn't this a bit too obvious? Xueji was both envious and a little masculine.
"Very well, then I will come to see you tonight."
Yuan Yan didn't think there was anything wrong with it. After marrying Yi'er, she had indeed not visited Chen Lianzhou's room for many days in a row, which was a bit of a neglect.
When Shen Lianzhou saw that Yuan Yan had agreed, a smile appeared in his eyes. Thinking that Yuan Yan would come that night, he had already begun to consider what clothes to have prepared.
...
As night fell, Yuan Yan lay half-reclined on the couch, resting with his eyes closed.
Shen Lianzhou skillfully peeled the grapes, carefully removing the outer skin without leaving a single sliver, until the flesh became translucent and glistening before feeding it to Yuan Yan.
"Your Highness, these grapes were presented as a gift by the steward of the Shen family. What do you think of the taste?"
These grapes are round and plump, each one sweet. They were just picked and delivered by fast horse from Xuanhua. It would be strange if they weren't delicious.
Yuan Yan knew that Shen Lianzhou treated her with great care and consideration.
She was never particular about food, clothing, or daily necessities, and was considered quite frugal among the princesses. There were many things that the royal palace might not provide.
But with Shen Lianzhou, Yuan Yan always enjoyed the best. Although she didn't say it, she always appreciated it in her heart.
[Host, Shen Lianzhou really cares about you.] The system couldn't help but sigh as it looked at its host, who was enjoying himself.
"That's natural."
Yuan Yan didn't speak. Shen Lianzhou thought she was asleep and whispered, "Your Highness?"
“How could grapes peeled by Lianzhou himself not be sweet?” Yuan Yan opened his eyes and looked at him, chuckling softly.
Shen Lianzhou held a grape with her slender fingers, her jade-white fingertips stained with a few purple watermarks, making her fingers appear even whiter. For a moment, it was hard to tell whether the grape was more translucent or the beauty's fingertips were more radiant.
Yuan Yan's gaze fell upon it, his eyes deepening for a moment.
Chen Lianzhou was slightly taken aback by her gaze, thinking that there was something in her hand, and followed Yuan Yan's gaze downwards.
“Zhou’er, eat too.” Yuan Yan helped up Shen Lianzhou’s hand, fed him the grape, and then bent down.
"Hmm..." Shen Lianzhou murmured softly.
Under Yuan Yan's teasing, his clothes were opened without him noticing, revealing his slender neck and smooth skin. His eyes gradually became hazy, filled with Yuan Yan's reflection.
The juice of the grapes flowed in her mouth, and in a different way, it was swallowed by the beauty.
...
The following day, Yuan Yan led Xue Lang and others to the Ruijian Camp's encampment on the outskirts of the capital.
After verifying the seal and entering the military camp, Xue Lang saw that no one greeted him and immediately said, "Your Highness, this humble servant will send someone in to inform you."
Yuan Yan raised his hand to stop her, "No rush, let's go inside and take a walk first."
Upon hearing the soldiers' shouts, Yuan Yan immediately headed towards the direction from which the sound came.
On the open ground, a group of soldiers were drilling.
"Keep your eyes straight ahead, and your arm will feel like it's being cut with a knife!"
The leading officer, with his back to Yuan Yan, was rigorously training his soldiers.
"Who is this person?" Yuan Yan asked the soldier who accompanied them in.
"Your Highness, this is General Yuan, the commander of our Ruijian Battalion," the soldier said.
Yuan Yan: "I see that the other soldiers haven't come out yet. Why are these people starting to train so early?"
"Lord Yuan is quite strict with his subordinates, requiring them to get up early for training, which always starts at this time," the soldier said.
"And where is your Lady Miao, the General of Zhonglang?" Yuan Yan asked.
The "Lord Miao" that Yuan Yan mentioned is the same person the Ministry of War official mentioned yesterday as a disciple of the Third Prince, and also Yuan Yan's nominal deputy general, Miao Quanbo.
"Lord Miao... Lord Miao was on duty and returned to his residence yesterday, so he may be a little late returning today." The soldier seemed hesitant when mentioning this man, and stammered.
In other words, this Lady Miao did not arrive at the military camp on time. Knowing full well that she was to enter the camp today, she was still late.
Yuan Yan instantly understood what the soldier dared not say directly, and sneered inwardly.
[Host, that Miao something is now your subordinate. Regardless, you should have greeted the King of Qin in advance. This behavior is intentional, isn't it?]
"Like master, like slave. It seems this fool is just like Yuan Xiao, hoping to use this to give me a hard time," Yuan Yan said calmly.
The soldier seemed to sense Yuan Yan's displeasure and became more careful with his words.
Next, Yuan Yan had a soldier lead her on a tour of the military camp. Along the way, guided by Yuan Yan, the soldier talked about many things in the camp, mentioning the General Yuan several times.
Yuan Yan sensed that the soldier seemed to greatly admire Yuan Shi, so he asked her, "According to you, your Lord Yuan is dutiful and has made many contributions to the army, so why is he still only a low-ranking general?"
Instead, it was Miao Quanbo, who was inferior to her in every way, who became the Zhonglang General.
"This..." The soldier hesitated, but under Xue Lang's urging, he finally spoke.
Through her explanation, Yuan Yan and the system learned the inside story.
Previously, the position of Zhonglang General was vacant, and Miao Quanbo and Yuan Shi competed for the position. Logically speaking, Yuan Shi should have had the advantage in terms of both seniority and ability, but in the end, Miao Quanbo became the Zhonglang General.
Judging from what the soldier said, it seemed that Yuan Shi came from a humble background, while Miao Quanbo was a daughter of a wealthy family and was very close to the Third Princess. So, the position of Zhonglang General naturally fell to her in the end.
"Your Highness, shall I send someone to summon this Miao Quanbo?"
Xue Lang frowned after hearing this. She was also from the military and had climbed up the ranks step by step through military merit. She had the utmost contempt for people like Miao Quanbo.
What's more, this person is now deliberately treating His Highness poorly, which Xue Lang finds even more intolerable.
However, Yuan Yan disagreed, saying, "No need. Don't send anyone to call him. I want to see when this Lord Miao will arrive today."
Yuan Shi had just learned that the King of Qin had entered the military camp, and hurriedly came to pay his respects.
"This humble general, Yuan Shi, pays his respects to Your Highness, the Prince of Qin." Yuan Shi bowed respectfully.
Yuan Yan didn't say much to her and directly ordered, "Go and gather all the soldiers here."
Yuan Shi did as instructed.
Soon, all the soldiers stood outside in complete silence.
Yuan Yan's gaze swept over the people below.
"I have taken over the Ruijian Battalion by order of His Majesty. I have heard that it is full of the army's elite troops, and I would like to see your abilities."
As they spoke, a group of guards brought over many large boxes. The iron boxes were heavy and seemed to be filled with something. It took two strong women to lift them.
“These boxes are full of weapons and are quite heavy. I would like to have you have a relay race to see which team can transport the boxes from here to the river first.”
On his first day in office, the King of Qin put forward such a test, which immediately aroused the competitive spirit of the warriors in the army.
"I wonder if you are confident of victory?" Yuan Yan said loudly.
"Yes!" some soldiers shouted in response.
Just as the atmosphere was set and Yuan Yan was about to order someone to begin, Miao Quanbo finally arrived late, appearing in the military camp with several personal guards.
"Miao Quanbo, the general of Zhonglang, has come to pay his respects to the King of Qin."
Miao Quanbo swaggered into the military camp in front of so many people, his expression unchanged. He seemed completely unperturbed by his lateness.
She bowed to Yuan Yan, interrupting the drill that was about to begin.
Yuan Yan squinted at Miao Quanbo. This man didn't perform the full ceremony when he saw the princess. Even in the military camp, such behavior was extremely rude.
But she said nothing, only calmly saying, "Lord Miao, please prepare to begin."
[Host, why aren't you punishing her? This isn't like you!] The system was puzzled.
The sun must have risen in the west today.
The host, who is usually vengeful, didn't immediately teach this person a lesson?
When Miao Quanbo saw that the King of Qin did not mention a word about her lateness, she became even more pleased, thinking that the King of Qin was afraid of her power in the army and dared not do anything.
So she exchanged a few perfunctory pleasantries and went inside with her personal guards.
With a command given, all the soldiers present paired up and began carrying boxes and trudging along.
As a general, Yuan Shi could have opted out of the exercise, but she personally joined the drill and competed alongside her soldiers.
Miao Quanbo watched from the side and felt that Yuan Shi was trying to curry favor with the King of Qin by mingling with the lowly soldiers.
Such behavior is utterly disgraceful and incredibly foolish.
Miao Quanbo thought to himself, a look of disdain on his face.
Yuan Yan stood on the command platform, looking out at the soldiers. She noticed that most of them were very cooperative and eager to make a good impression on her, the new general.
However, some soldiers were taking advantage of the situation. While the others were sweating profusely, these soldiers remained relaxed, not bothering to move the boxes or deliberately slowing down their movements, completely disregarding the exercise.
"Who are these people?" Yuan Yan asked the captain beside him.
The captain truthfully replied, "Those are all Lord Miao's soldiers."
Yuan Yan understood and remained silent.
When the exercise ended, her first words surprised the soldiers.
"Men, drag these people away and beat them with military sticks."
Yuan Yan looked at the soldiers who were deliberately not cooperating and gave the order in a cold voice.
Upon hearing this, the guards of the Prince's Palace immediately went to arrest the person without saying a word.
"Wait!"
Miao Quanbo was surprised that she would suddenly launch an attack at this moment, and that she would target all his own people. He immediately jumped out and asked, "Why is Your Highness punishing the soldiers in the camp without cause?"
“Lord Miao is questioning me.” Yuan Yan stared at her, his eyes sharp.
"I dare not. I just feel that these soldiers have not done anything wrong, and Your Highness's sudden punishment of them is rather inappropriate." Miao Quanbo felt a lump in his throat from her gaze and forcefully retorted.
"You have reminded me that the current punishment is indeed unfair, as I have overlooked one person... If we are to punish someone, we should punish Lord Miao first."
She slightly twitched her lips and raised her voice, catching Miao Quanbo's astonished expression.
"Xue Dianjun, you personally remove Lord Miao's seal."
Upon hearing this, Yuan Shi and the other generals all showed expressions of surprise.
"Yes." Xue Lang accepted the order. Without the slightest hesitation, he took action, forcibly restraining Miao Quanbo and removing the seals binding her.
"Stop!" Miao Quanbo hadn't expected Yuan Yan to actually dare. Having her body twisted and pinned down by Xue Lang, a skilled soldier, in just a few moves, she felt utterly humiliated and her face flushed with anger.
"King Qin, you are insulting the officials of the court!"
Miao Quanbo became furious, convinced that Yuan Yan was deliberately targeting her because of Yuan Xiao.
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