Qin Ye looked at Shang Yunlan with a mocking expression. He had overestimated this Duke. In the end, what mattered most to him was power, not his sister.
There's no need to worry about the Tiger Tally anymore. Emperor Chen gave it to He Yang when she left, so there's no fear that Shang Yunlan will get her hands on it. He Yang is just a young woman, and she can't do much with the Tiger Tally anyway. After all, the Shang army recognizes the Tiger Tally, bloodline, and strength.
Thinking this, Qin Ye swallowed the advice that was about to come out. What could he say if the Duke was determined to court death?
After a while, Shang Yunlan said in a trembling voice, "Your humble servant... obeys the decree."
Afterwards, he excused himself somewhat awkwardly, his back view hurried, seemingly ashamed of his actions in sacrificing his sister for power.
Emperor Chen didn't think so much. His walnut-sized brain couldn't read the three parts dishevelment, three parts panic, and four parts shame in Shang Yunlan's expression. He only knew that he could become an immortal.
Shang Yunlan boarded the carriage with a dazed expression, and then a confident smile appeared on her face.
The highest level of acting is when a scene is performed for two people, and neither of them suspects anything.
Upon hearing Shang Yunlan's account of the incident, Shang Shaoyan clapped his hands in a show of respect, saying, "Brother, you truly are brother! You hit the mark with a single strike!"
Shang Yunlan raised her chin: "Of course, don't you know who I am?"
Shang Shaoyan smiled and said, "With my plan added tomorrow, this matter will be foolproof."
Shang Yunlan joked, "You're going to the Northwest, and I'm afraid you won't be back for a year or two. I don't care, but can your sweetheart handle it?"
The smile on Shang Shaoyan's face disappeared, and then he said somewhat reluctantly, "Then we'll just have to have a long-distance relationship."
Shang Yunlan pondered for a moment, then nodded in satisfaction: "Okay, long-distance relationships are fine too, we can each do our own thing."
Shang Shaoyan: "..."
Her lips twitched: "If anyone wants to do their own thing, I can do it, but if he dares to, well..."
Shang Yunlan: "..."
...
The next day arrived quickly. Shang Shaoyan put on the attire befitting a county princess and then entered the palace.
Consort Zhao and Emperor Chen were having lunch together at Zhaoyang Palace when they heard that Shang Shaoyan had arrived, and their eyes lit up.
Consort Zhao was chosen because of her "in-laws," while Emperor Chen was chosen because of his "immortality."
After Shang Shaoyan entered, she bowed deeply and then presented the prepared gift with both hands: "This is a poem I wrote. I don't have anything of value to offer, so I can only express my gratitude with this."
Neither Consort Zhao nor Emperor Chen cared about the gift. They exchanged a few pleasantries, and then Emperor Chen patted Consort Zhao's hand: "My dear consort, would you please go to the small kitchen and get me some pastries?"
Consort Zhao knew that Emperor Chen should discuss important matters with her and speak less. After thinking it over several times, she felt that it should be related to Shu Prefecture, which was a political matter, and it was not appropriate for her to be in the conversation. So she curtsied and took her leave.
Shang Shaoyan feigned ignorance and looked at Emperor Chen: "Your Majesty, what is this...?"
Emperor Chen hadn't seen Shang Shaoyan for seven or eight years, and just now, he was already awestruck by her beauty—Shang Aiqing's sister was simply too beautiful. Now, hearing her gentle and sweet words, his heart fluttered even more.
He felt a stirring in his heart, but then he remembered that this woman had kept several male lovers, and he couldn't help but feel that she wasn't "clean" enough and didn't deserve to be touched by him.
Shang Shaoyan could easily see what Emperor Chen was thinking.
She felt disgusted and thought that one day she would castrate Emperor Chen, this thing who thought with his lower body, but she still had a smile on her face: "If Your Majesty doesn't speak soon, be careful, the Imperial Concubine will be back soon."
Emperor Chen, urged by Shang Shaoyan, did not feel offended. Beauties always have certain privileges: "It is like this, yesterday your brother came to the palace to discuss state affairs with me. He happened to hear that you had met an immortal in Shu Prefecture. Is this true?"
Shang Shaoyan paused, seemingly unable to recall: "Your Majesty is referring to...?"
Seeing this, Emperor Chen couldn't help but think that the brother and sister were a bit slow-witted. However, there was an advantage to being slow-witted. He felt relatively at ease leaving this matter to them, so he kindly reminded them: "The Chronicle of Mortals Ascending to Immortality".
Shang Shaoyan slapped his forehead and laughed: "So that's what it is. He is indeed a person with an otherworldly air, and he looks handsome. It's just that I'm not really interested in immortals or Taoism. It gives me a headache, and I can't remember much about him."
Upon hearing this, Emperor Chen felt a surge of excitement, but managed to suppress it. He cleared his throat and said in a pretentious manner, "I have always felt that our Southern Chen lacks a national advisor. If we invite him to the palace, then our Southern Chen will have the protection of an immortal, and will surely last for thousands of generations."
Shang Shaoyan looked at Emperor Chen with "admiration," her eyes widening slightly: "Your Majesty is right! I didn't even think of that at the time, otherwise I would have definitely brought the Immortal Master back!"
She was slightly annoyed, but her adoring gaze did please Emperor Chen. Her eyes sparkled, making Emperor Chen's heart itch.
He thought for a moment, then smiled: "It's not too late to bring him back now. Heyang, I want to send you to the Northwest to find that immortal master. Once this is accomplished, I will make you my concubine. What do you say?"
Shang Shaoyan: "..."
You fucking idiot.
But now things are much easier to handle.
She was already cursing Emperor Chen to the bone in her heart, but a hint of coquettishness appeared on her face, tinged with shyness: "Your Majesty, please don't joke with me."
Seeing her like this, Emperor Chen felt even more aroused and quickly said, "How could I joke about such a beauty as you?"
Shang Shaoyan feigned shyness and stamped her foot: "Oh dear, I must not say anything more to Your Majesty! This humble woman, this humble woman, shall take her leave now!"
Before leaving, she added, "Your Majesty, I will depart for the Northwest after my birthday. When I return, I will personally choose my title!"
So men are all inherently shameless. Seeing her spoiled and arrogant, Emperor Chen didn't feel offended at all; on the contrary, he was pleased: "Whatever you say!"
Shang Shaoyan: "..."
Fuck you, you idiot X2.
Shang Shaoyan left Zhaoyang Palace and then pretended to be lost, successfully encountering the Northern Zhou envoy.
Shang Shaoyan skipped along, "accidentally" bumping into the envoy, who gave a perfunctory bow and said, "I'm sorry to have disturbed Your Highness."
Shang Shaoyan tilted his head and laughed, "I'm not some empress, I'm the Princess of Heyang County."
She bet five cents that Qiao Xiuyu had definitely mentioned her to the Crown Prince and Empress of Northern Zhou. Part of the reason this envoy came to Southern Chen was certainly to see her.
The envoy was indeed taken aback for a moment, then looked at Shang Shaoyan with a slightly scrutinizing gaze: "Princess Heyang?"
Shang Shaoyan smiled and said, "Yes, judging from your expression, you've heard of me before?"
The envoy shuddered and quickly lowered his head: "No."
Shang Shaoyan lowered his head slightly and said somewhat forlornly, "I thought Qilang had told you about me."
She paused, then smiled somewhat reluctantly, "But I'm going to the Northwest soon, and I won't be back for a while..."
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