"Princess Chen, do you have anything else to say?" Qi Zonghao stopped writing and looked up at Yang Mengchen.
Yang Mengchen reminded, "The Second Prince must spell out in the contract that all Xiliang Army troops stationed in the five cities must unconditionally withdraw within two months after the competition ends, without delay, or they will all be considered spies!
Moreover, the Xiliang Army must not harm the citizens of the five cities, nor damage any property; those who commit violence will be dealt with according to Dong Chu law, and Xiliang will compensate for all damages at a hundredfold the price!
Second Prince, rest assured, the people of Dong Chu are very kind and would not wrongly accuse the innocent!"
Despite Qi Zonghao’s expertise in disguising civility and grace, he was so enraged at this moment that his chest heaved with fury, veins on his hand holding the brush bulged, almost crushing the brush in his grip.
"Second Prince’s word is as good as gold; surely you’re not thinking of reneging?" Seeing Qi Zonghao not making a move to write, Yang Mengchen raised an eyebrow with a meaningful look.
Long YiXuan echoed the sentiment, "A true man’s promise is as firm as steel, could it be that the Second Prince wishes to act dishonorably?"
"Jiujiu, rest assured, with the testimony of people from our countries, even if he wants to deny it, he won’t be able to!" Meng Jinghui added fiercely.
Xiahou Muyang and Wu Zhenglie nodded in agreement, silently offering condolences to Qi Zonghao. Who else to provoke but Princess Chen? Qi Zonghao was truly foolish.
Qi Zonghao, who aspired to dominate the world, naturally wouldn’t leave this leverage behind, so he swallowed the bitter taste in his throat and forced himself to write down the contract. After finishing, he tried to give it to Yang Mengchen personally, but Sun Chuanmao swiftly took the contract and handed it to her.
Yang Mengchen took it and examined it carefully; it was indeed as she had said, word for word. She then instructed Sun Chuanmao to give it back to Qi Zonghao, "I must trouble the Second Prince to sign his name and affix his private seal and thumbprint."
Qi Zonghao did so accordingly.
Sun Chuanmao took back the contract, and Yang Mengchen gestured for him to present it to the Emperor, "Father Emperor, please keep the contract safe and make sure it does not get stolen. If there is nothing else, your daughter-in-law will take her leave now, hoping to cram in the last two days and make some use of it at the time."
"Go on then, remember to take good care of yourself and don’t overexert," the Emperor repeatedly exhorted Yang Mengchen. Whether or not the five cities could be recaptured, just Jiujiu’s effort alone made him very happy and deeply gratified.
After making a formal bow, Yang Mengchen and Long Xuanmo left arm in arm.
Meng Jingqi and the others subsequently took their leave.
Qi Zonghao, along with Qi Qiuxin and his country’s judges, also left. The judges, observing his dark countenance, sighed in silence, but dared not speak a word.
The Second Prince might seem gentle and modest on the surface, but he was actually ruthless and merciless; should anyone dare to disobey his command, death would be the only outcome.
"Old Hai, how truly learned is Jiujiu?"
Once Jinluan Hall was left with only the people of Dong Chu, Prince Ning couldn’t help but ask Old Hai.
Old Hai’s reputation was known throughout the land, which is why the Emperor had specially invited him back to serve as a judge for this event. Since Old Hai had spent such a long time at the Yang family, this prompted Prince Ning’s question.
Shaking his head softly, Old Hai wore a serious expression, but within he thought of hurrying back to place bets on Princess Chen’s victory at the gambling hall. Though he usually paid little heed to money, the thought of winning a large sum of silver in just a few days—a sum that would cover Duke of Zhongguo Mansion’s yearly expenses—filled him with glee.
Apart from Grand Prince, Prince Ning and the others were in a dilemma, wondering whether Princess Chen could truly win first place in all five categories.
Prince Duan and Prince Jing secretly hoped that Princess Chen would lose the competition. As for whether Dong Chu would lose face, they wouldn’t suffer any loss - it was preferable to them than to see Chen Prince Mansion overly triumphant.
At this moment, the Emperor had no mind to care about the ministers’ concerns. After asking a few opinions, he replaced the original candidate from Hanlin Academy with Yang Mengchen, and the other two chosen were Old Hai’s granddaughter Hai Ruofeng and Grand Scholar Su’s granddaughter Su Manru. He instructed Sun Chuanmao to issue an imperial edict informing the entire land, and provided Qin Sile with a consolation reward. Then, waving his hand, he dismissed them and hurriedly departed with the contract to Cining Palace.
"What has excited my son so?" the Empress Dowager turned to look at the Emperor.
The Empress looked equally puzzled, for she had not seen the Emperor this agitated since the day she agreed to marry him—it seemed like a tremendously joyful event was at hand.
With a wave to dismiss the Palace Attendants, the Emperor, unable to wait, trembled as he handed the contract to the Empress Dowager.
After carefully reading the contract, the Empress Dowager asked in astonishment, "My son, what... what is this all about?"
The Emperor detailed the events to the Empress Dowager and the Empress. Despite his ability to maintain composure under immense pressure, his emotions had yet to settle even by that moment.
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