The luncheon was very lavish, and the emperor was in a good mood. Although the empress had just scolded him, he did not take it to heart and kept toasting Zhao Xian and Li Xue.
Just as they were enjoying their meal, someone suddenly came to report something.
"Your Majesty, the Crown Prince requests an audience."
The emperor was delighted upon hearing this and said, "Summon the Crown Prince to an audience."
A short while later, the Crown Prince came over and immediately knelt down upon seeing the Emperor and Empress.
"Your subject pays respects to the Emperor and Empress Dowager."
"My son, you must have had a long and tiring journey on your official business in the western region. Please sit down and have a meal with us."
"Your subject obeys the decree."
After the prince finished speaking, he sat down at the dining table.
At this point, the emperor began to introduce Zhao Xian and Li Xue to the crown prince. Upon seeing that the two came from the Great Northern Dynasty and were of noble status, the crown prince immediately stood up and bowed to them.
Zhao Xian and Li Xue quickly stood up to return the greeting, after all, the other party was the Crown Prince of the current dynasty.
Zhao Xian and Li Xue looked the Crown Prince over and saw that he was over forty years old, with dark skin and wrinkles on his forehead. It seemed that he was not happy being the Crown Prince.
The moment the Crown Prince's eyes met Li Xue's, he was visibly startled, but then regained his composure.
While eating, the crown prince kept his head down and remained silent, seemingly preoccupied with something.
Seeing this, the emperor asked:
"My son, what happened on your journey to the west? Tell your father quickly."
"Your Majesty, the main purpose of my journey to the west was to conduct a covert investigation into the Peng family's businesses. I discovered that their businesses spanned various industries, causing great harm to the common people."
"Could you explain in more detail?" The emperor's expression began to turn serious.
“The Peng family is too ambitious. They have claimed many mountains and lakes in the western region as their own. People have to pay them money when they gather firewood in the mountains or fish in the lakes.”
"With such outrageous behavior, do they even respect the imperial court?"
"That's not the worst part. During the few days of our westward journey, my trusted confidants told me that the Peng family had purchased a large amount of ironware and was manufacturing weapons. Their intention was very clear: they wanted to rebel and establish themselves as kings."
"That's true."
"This is absolutely true. In the Kingdom of Jindian, the Peng family and the Xie family are the same. They are both ambitious and want to become kings and hegemons."
Neither family wanted to offend the imperial court. They hoped the other would become an enemy of the court and wage a major war, resulting in mutual destruction, so that they could take the opportunity to grow stronger and eventually unify the country.
But neither side is stupid; they are both waiting for the right opportunity. Judging from the current situation, the Peng family may be losing patience and has already taken action.
"Have all the treasures taken out this time been sold?" the emperor asked.
"They've sold everything. The buyers are Persians, and they're very generous. If our dynasty had a few rare treasures, we could raise enough funds for the military, and the court would no longer have to be beholden to these two powerful families."
Sun Heng stood behind Zhao Xian and Li Xue, and quietly translated the conversation between the emperor and the crown prince.
Zhao Xian listened quietly and quickly understood what was going on.
It seems the emperor is not content with the status quo. The situation in the Golden Kingdom is still under his control. He has been emperor for decades, and that has not been for nothing.
From their conversation, it's clear they are secretly building up the royal family's power. The emperor's fondness for antiques and rare treasures may just be a facade.
The royal family has been engaged in the jewelry and antique business to raise military funds. Once the time is right, they will target the Xie and Peng families.
The Peng family also noticed the royal family's movements and was already making preparations in case of unforeseen circumstances.
On the surface, the Kingdom of Golden Dian appears to be very peaceful, but in reality, it is fraught with crises and undercurrents.
But none of this has much to do with me. I came all this way to find someone. As long as I find Li Ru and bring him back to the Great Northern Dynasty, my mission will be complete.
As for trading with the Golden Kingdom, that's another matter entirely. Establishing stable trade relations with the Golden Kingdom is not something that can be done overnight.
Soon after, the luncheon ended, and the Empress very politely invited Li Xue to the inner palace for tea and a chat.
Li Xue was naturally delighted, as this would allow her to learn about Princess Ruxue and perhaps even find clues about Li Ru.
Seeing the Empress leave with Li Xue, the Emperor invited Zhao Xian to the Imperial Study to continue discussing trade between the two countries.
In the Empress's palace, the Empress and Li Xue sat side by side. From the Empress's eyes, one could see that she was full of affection for Li Xue.
The Empress held Li Xue's hand and spoke to her for a long time, but Li Xue didn't understand a word and couldn't help but feel a little anxious.
The Empress quickly realized what was happening, smiled awkwardly, and then had a female official brought in to translate for them.
The Empress was an elderly woman. At first, she was quite careful with her words when talking to Li Xue, and did not say everything. However, as the conversation unfolded, the Empress became very talkative and began to tell about the princess.
This was exactly what Li Xue wanted to hear. Since the Empress's words needed to be translated, Li Xue listened with extra care.
The Empress told her that she had a daughter named Ruan Ruxue. Ten years ago, Princess Ruxue was not yet twenty years old and looked very much like the Princess. So whenever she saw the Princess, she was reminded of Ruxue.
Counting the time, it has been seven or eight years since I last saw my daughter.
Upon hearing this, Li Xue's heart skipped a beat, and she felt utterly disappointed. Could it be that Princess Ruxue was no longer alive?
If that's the case, then I won't be able to find my brother in the palace. It seems I've come here full of confidence, but it's all been for nothing.
Although extremely disappointed, Li Xue remained calm and continued to listen to the Empress speak.
When Princess Ruxue was sixteen, princes and grandsons of kings from neighboring countries came to Jindian Kingdom to propose marriage, but the princess refused them all. She did not want to go to other countries and only wanted to stay in Jindian Kingdom.
Ru Xue is of noble birth; if she were to marry a man from her own country, he would at least be a prince or nobleman.
During that time, the royal family and civil and military officials introduced her to many people, but Princess Ruxue did not take a liking to any of them. As a result, the princess turned eighteen.
At that time, the royal family was still quite powerful. Although the two major powers were quite strong, they were still very wary of the royal family and dared not act recklessly.
At that time, the production and processing of oriole fruit was the main source of income for the Kingdom of Jindian. The imperial court attached great importance to this and frequently sent people to inspect the planting and processing of oriole fruit.
As a member of the royal family, Princess Ruxue frequently traveled to various places to inspect the oriole plantations.
Ten years ago, Princess Ruxue brought back a young man from somewhere. It was said that he had great skills, was handsome and strong, and had a talented appearance. But unexpectedly, he turned out to be a fool.
When the empress got to this point, Li Xue's heart began to pound. The story she had heard about the princess and the fool in the village that night was actually true.
Li Xue was extremely excited. Needless to say, this fool must be her brother, Li Ru.
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