Competing for a Prince Consort Through Martial Arts

Without that group of people, the courtyard became much quieter. Only a few sparrows chirped in an old tree in the corner. Yue Qianchou opened his folding fan and waved it lightly, staring expressionlessly at the sparrows hopping around on the branch, truly displaying the demeanor of a detached and aloof sage.

Boss Sang approached quietly and said respectfully, "Please wait a moment, sir. The food and wine will be ready shortly."

Yue Qianchou gave a soft "hmm" and didn't mention the gold. After he left the courtyard, Zhang Peng proactively brought him the Storage Bag. Yue Qianchou casually put it away, acting as if nothing had happened.

He had plenty of Spirit Stone, but not much worldly gold and silver. Since someone had offered him money this time, he could keep it to spend with Furong.

Before long, a waiter from the shop brought over a square table, and after placing it and the chairs in the center of the courtyard, hot food and wine were served one after another, making it an exceptionally lavish meal.

After instructing his staff not to disturb them, Boss Sang invited the three to sit down. He himself had intended to stand aside and keep them company, but Yue Qianchou told him not to stand on ceremony. Boss Sang sat down somewhat nervously, and the four of them sat down around the table.

After taking a few sips, Yue Qianchou said, "Boss Sang... no need to stand, relax, sit down... I want to ask you, has something happened in this Dayang City?"

Boss Sang thought for a moment and said, "Nothing happened. Since the Great Yang Kingdom made peace with the Huaxia Country, the Dayang City has been more stable than ever before. After the conscription of able-bodied men for war was stopped, the people lived and worked in peace and contentment, and nothing major happened." Once he opened up, he was no longer so nervous.

Furong quietly ate her food, only occasionally glancing contentedly at Yue Qianchou. Zhang Peng, on the other hand, was less pretentious, eating as he listened, even using his hands without hesitation, truly treating himself as part of the group. Boss Sang, however, dared not be too presumptuous; he would absolutely not start eating until the gentleman opposite him did.

After picking up a piece of food for Furong with his chopsticks, Yue Qianchou asked in confusion, "That's strange. The distance between the Biyuan Kingdom and Great Yang Kingdom is quite long! The Princess of the Biyuan Kingdom disguised herself as a man and traveled all this way with her guards. Could it be that she came here just for fun?"

"Now that you mention it, sir, I'm reminded of something. I wonder if it's related to this matter," Boss Sang nodded slightly.

"Speak freely," Yue Qianchou said with a smile.

"Three days from now, the beloved daughter of His Majesty the Emperor of Dayang Country, the Third Princess Zhao Chenxiang, will be holding a martial arts contest to choose her husband. During this time, many princes and nobles from various countries have arrived. I wonder if the arrival of the Princess of the Biyuan Kingdom is related to this matter?" Boss Sang said.

"Could this girl be planning to disguise herself as a man and become a prince consort?" Yue Qianchou was taken aback, finding it unlikely himself. This wasn't a movie. He asked again, "Why would Princess of the Great Yang Kingdom need to hold a marriage contest? Does the Emperor of the Great Yang Kingdom not have a good husband for her?"

"This Princess Zhao Chenxiang was an unmarried widow." Boss Sang said with a hint of pride, "Her fiancé was a general, but unfortunately, he was killed by a fierce Chinese general just days before they were to return to get married, during the last battle with China."

Zhang Peng, who was gnawing on a leg of lamb, paused slightly and interjected, "Is the Third Princess's husband named Chu Xiong?"

"Exactly!" Boss Sang said excitedly, tapping the table lightly. "His name is Chu Xiong. That guy is quite a fierce general in the Great Yang Kingdom. Unfortunately, he ran into our Great General's number one fierce general." He lowered his voice to the last sentence, obviously afraid of being overheard by outsiders.

Yue Qianchou looked at Zhang Peng suspiciously and asked, "What? Do you know that Chu Xiong?"

Zhang Peng put down the lamb leg in his hand and chuckled, "Sir, you may not know this, but when we fought against the Great Yang Kingdom, I was the vanguard, and I also fought the last battle. Chu Xiong was also killed by me when we fought each other."

"Oh! Then you'll have to take responsibility for that widow," Yue Qianchou teased, raising his glass. Zhang Peng chuckled, "She's not married into the family yet! As long as she's willing, I'm always ready. I'm not even afraid of her husband, why would I be afraid of her!"

The two men joked around for fun, but Boss Sang was genuinely shocked. "Zhang Peng? Zhang Peng? Ah! I should have known! You're the Great General's top general. General Zhang Peng! But... weren't you executed by the Great General for violating military discipline?"

Zhang Peng glanced at Yue Qianchou, nodded and smiled, "Originally, I was to be beheaded to uphold military discipline, but I happened to run into you, sir, and you saved me from the blade. Boss Sang, just keep this to yourself and don't spread it around."

"No, no, we were heartbroken for so long after hearing the news of the general's beheading. Now that we know the general is still alive... we won't tell anyone, we won't tell anyone," Boss Sang said with delight. It was clear that these spies, who had been sent by the army to the enemy country, still held their homeland and the brave generals in high esteem.

Zhang Peng waved his hand and said, "Please don't call me General. I have been following you for many years and I no longer use that title." Boss Sang readily agreed.

"Zhang Peng, would you like to meet that Princess widow?" Yue Qianchou suddenly asked with a smile. Although Furong had little contact with the outside world, she could still understand what they were saying. At this moment, she was eating vegetables and staring at Zhang Peng without blinking.

Zhang Peng was a little dazed. After a long pause, he hesitated and said, "Sir, do you want me to compete for the title of imperial son-in-law through a martial arts contest?"

Boss Sang gasped. Killing someone's fiancé during a battle between two countries, and then invading the enemy country to marry their fiancée... After regaining his senses, he advised, "Sir, I'm afraid this won't do. The Princess of the Great Yang Kingdom is, after all, Princess. This martial arts competition to select a consort requires people of high status. Ordinary people probably don't have the qualifications to register."

"That's easy. I'll go find those people from the Biyuan Kingdom and ask them for a superior identity from the Biyuan Kingdom. It's just a matter of registering! It shouldn't be a difficult task," Yue Qianchou with a faint smile.

Zhang Peng asked blankly, "Sir, do you really want me to go?" He couldn't understand why we should get involved in worldly affairs.

"What? Are you scared?" Yue Qianchou laughed.

"Uh... With you here, sir, what am I afraid of?" Zhang Peng wiped his greasy mouth and grinned, "It's just that it's a bit too exciting."

"Hehe! Alright, it's settled then. After I finish eating, I'll go find the people from the Biyuan Kingdom." Yue Qianchou smiled as he poured the wine in his cup into his mouth.

"Sir, um..." Zhang Peng said hesitantly, "What if I really am chosen as the prince consort? Do I really have to become the prince consort of the Great Yang Kingdom?"

"Are you stupid! We're just going to join in the fun. If you don't like the Princess, just find a chance to let your opponent defeat you. Isn't this a martial arts contest to find a husband?" Yue Qianchou paused and said, "Of course, if you like the Princess and want to try your luck in Princess bed, I won't object."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Peng and Boss Sang exchanged a knowing glance and smiled at each other. Furong, with food still in her mouth, swallowed hard and asked curiously, "Is the Princess's bed comfortable?"

"Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!" Three sounds rang out simultaneously. The three men, who had just raised their glasses and had wine in their mouths, all spat it out upon hearing this.

Yue Qianchou coughed twice. Awkwardly, he said, "I don't know either. If you want to try, I'll take you sometime." Furong smiled, her expression showing some eagerness.

Yue Qianchou quickly served her some food and shut her up to prevent her from saying anything frightening. His decision to have Zhang Peng run for the imperial son-in-law wasn't without purpose.

The Huaxia Cultivation World has always had a sense of isolation, basically not interacting with the Cultivation World of other countries, and knowing very little about the affairs of Cultivation World of other countries, almost nothing at all.

He desperately needs to find a way in the Cultivation World here. He wants to gather information, and ideally, open a path. It seems the Cultivation World of various countries here have close ties with royalty. Sending Zhang Peng to participate in the martial arts competition to choose a consort is a perfect opportunity, given the current uncertainty, to establish connections with the Cultivation World of various nations...

The western suburbs of Dayang City are home to the embassies of various countries that have diplomatic relations with the Great Yang Kingdom. The embassy of the Biyuan Kingdom is naturally located here, a rather large and imposing mansion. In fact, the embassies of various countries are all built with extraordinary grandeur, their purpose being nothing more than to showcase their nation's strength.

The dozen or so guards stationed in front of the Biyuan Kingdom's embassy suddenly noticed a disheveled man rushing towards them. They were about to brandish their weapons and shout to stop him when they saw the group of people behind him. They immediately stepped aside, letting the disheveled man run inside, wailing loudly, followed by the group of people.

The person wailing loudly was none other than Wen Qing, who had suffered a great humiliation. He ran inside, startling the servants and passing officials who were at a loss for what to do.

Wen Qing barged into the main hall with the doors wide open. Upon seeing a middle-aged man sitting imposingly on the throne, talking to someone, she immediately burst into tears, crying out, "Uncle Wang, Uncle Wang, I've been bullied! You have to stand up for me... Waaah!" She cried her heart out.

The group of people in the hall were startled by the disheveled man, and were all taken aback when they heard who it was. The imposing middle-aged man stood up abruptly, looked at Wen Qing's disheveled appearance, and said with a dark expression, "What exactly happened?"

The group of people also stood up with grim faces. The Princess of the dignified Biyuan Kingdom had been bullied; this was intolerable, especially in a foreign land—it was a disgrace to the nation.

With her hair disheveled, Wen Qing wiped away her tears, turned around, pointed to Wen Bai outside, and cried, "Ask him."

As soon as the dozen or so guards arrived at the main hall entrance, they immediately dispersed to both sides; the inside was not a place they could enter casually. Wen Bai walked straight in and cupped his hands to the man above him, who returned the gesture, saying, "Brother Wen Bai, what exactly happened? With you by my side, how could Qing'er be bullied? How am I supposed to explain this to my brother, the Emperor?"

"Your Highness, let's not talk about this anymore." Wen Bai walked up to him and whispered in his ear, "The Princess just offended someone we can't afford to offend."

"What a joke!" The prince slammed his hand on the table beside him and sneered, "There are few in the world who dare to bully the royal family of the Biyuan Kingdom."

"Your Highness, please calm down." Wen Bai shook his head and smiled bitterly, then said softly again, "This time, the Princess has offended none other than Mr. Nongzhu from the South Sea Purple Bamboo Forest. We are lucky to have survived."

"Wh... what? It's... it's him?" The prince was immediately stunned, staring at the weeping Wen Qing, his expression unreadable...

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