The Baffled Qian Renxue

Early the next morning, Xue Qinghe led a group of followers out of the west gate of Heaven Dou City and headed towards the Star Luo Empire along the official road.

After arriving in Star Luo City, Xue Qinghe stayed at the post station for one night. The next morning, he changed into his princely robes and went to the palace with his entourage.

The walls of the Star Luo Imperial Palace are higher and thicker than those of the Heaven Dou City, and are made entirely of gray-black giant rocks. The armor of the imperial guards in front of the gate is engraved with tiger stripes, and they stand straight with sharp eyes.

Xue Qinghe presented the visiting card. The guard took the card, glanced at it, then looked up at Xue Qinghe, his expression clearly showing surprise. He then quickly turned and ran into the palace gate.

After waiting for about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, a middle-aged man who looked like a palace eunuch strode out of the palace gate with a big smile on his face and bowed to Xue Qinghe from afar.

"Your Highness has come from afar; I apologize for not greeting you properly. His Majesty requests that Your Highness enter the palace for a talk."

Xue Qinghe nodded and followed the eunuch through the palace gates, walking deeper into the palace. The palace walls, pillars, and bricks along the way exuded the solemn atmosphere unique to the Star Luo Royal Family. Unlike the exquisite and luxurious Heaven Dou Imperial Palace, it had a rigid sense of oppression. Even the flowers and trees along the roadside were trimmed into neat squares.

The Star Luo Emperor met him in the Imperial Study.

The emperor was older than Xue Qinghe had expected; his hair was already gray, but his figure was still robust. Sitting behind his desk, he resembled an old but still vigorous lion. When he saw Xue Qinghe enter, he raised his eyelids and sized him up.

"Crown Prince Xue Qinghe of the Heaven Dou Crown Prince?" The Star Luo Emperor's voice was deep and resonant.

"Greetings, Your Majesty." Xue Qinghe bowed respectfully, neither servile nor arrogant.

Star Luo Emperor waved his hand, gesturing for him to sit down. The two sides didn't exchange pleasantries for long before quickly getting to the point.

Xue Qinghe explained the Heaven Dou Empire's intentions and proposed several specific methods of cooperation, all of which had been agreed upon with Xue Ye before his departure. After listening, Star Luo Emperor pondered for a while and asked a few more questions, Xue Qinghe answered one by one.

The conversation lasted about half an hour. Finally, Star Luo Emperor slapped his desk and said, "Let's do it this way." He then instructed the eunuchs to prepare the documents, and the cooperation was finalized on the spot.

"The business is over." Star Luo Emperor handed the signed documents to Xue Qinghe, his tone softening. "You've come from afar; a banquet will be held in the palace tonight. Please stay for dinner."

Xue Qinghe did not refuse and agreed.

The banquet was held in the main hall of the Star Luo Imperial Palace, and it was larger than Xue Qinghe had expected. When he entered the hall, there were already many people sitting inside, with more than a dozen tables on both sides, and the tables were full of delicacies and fine wines.

Star Luo Emperor sat in the main seat and beckoned to Xue Qinghe, inviting him to sit at the head of the guest seats.

After Xue Qinghe sat down, he glanced around and suddenly felt that something was wrong.

Apart from Dai Weisi, who sat below Star Luo Emperor, all the other members of the royal family seated in the hall were women.

From concubines to princesses, from the oldest to the youngest, the entire palace was filled with jewels and silks, with women of all shapes and sizes, yet not a single male member of the royal family was present.

Xue Qinghe's hand holding the wine glass froze in mid-air, and the smile on his face froze for a moment.

Dai Weisi, sitting opposite him, noticed his gaze sweeping over and raised his glass in a distant toast, a meaningful smile on his face.

Xue Qinghe put down his wine glass and looked around again.

One, two, three... He roughly counted, and there were at least a dozen women sitting in the hall.

"Your Majesty," Xue Qinghe began cautiously, "The things in the palace..."

The Star Luo Emperor was picking at his food when he heard this. Without even looking up, he casually replied, "They are all my daughters."

Xue Qinghe opened his mouth.

They're both daughters.

In the Heaven Dou Empire, Xue Ye had quite a few sons, but she dealt with only Xue Beng.

On the Star Luo Empire's side, however, the entire palace was filled with princesses, which was very strange.

Xue Qinghe's gaze fell on Dai Weisi, then returned to him.

Dai Weisi is the crown prince, but what about the other princes?

Before he could think it through, the Star Luo Emperor had already put down his chopsticks, smiled at him, and picked up his wine cup.

"Come on, let's drink. Forget about all that nonsense, tonight's a welcome dinner, let's not talk about business."

Xue Qinghe suppressed his doubts, raised his wine glass in return, and took a sip.

After several rounds of drinks, the atmosphere in the hall gradually became more lively.

Several of the older princesses huddled together, talking in hushed tones, occasionally bursting into laughter.

Xue Qinghe held his wine glass, a polite smile on his face, but the tension in his heart was growing ever tighter.

He just counted, and there were at least twelve or thirteen princesses sitting in the hall.

The Star Luo Emperor just said that they were all his daughters, which sounded reasonable, but Xue Qinghe felt that something was not right.

He'd met quite a few of Xue Ye's sons from the Heaven Dou Empire, but why were all the princesses from the Star Luo Empire? Not a single prince!

Dai Weisi is the crown prince, but what about the other princes?

As he was pondering this, a princess dressed in a pale yellow palace gown approached him, holding a wine cup in her hand, and raised it to him with a smile.

"Your Highness, Heaven Dou Crown Prince, I have long admired your name."

Xue Qinghe snapped out of her reverie, raised her cup in return, and said, "Your Highness, you're too kind."

"My name is Dai Yun." The princess sat down beside him, her movements graceful and her voice clear and melodious. "Your Highness, you have traveled a long way. You must be tired from your journey."

"Fortunately, the official road is smooth, and the journey is easy," Xue Qinghe replied politely.

Dai Yun took a sip of wine, his eyes crinkling, and began to inquire about the local customs and culture of Heaven Dou City.

Xue Qinghe chatted casually for a while, and after a few sentences, he couldn't help but ask the question that had been on his mind.

"Your Highness, I just looked around, and it seems the Star Luo Royal Family... has mostly princesses?"

Dai Yun paused for a moment.

"Yes." Dai Yun nodded, her expression quite frank. "Father does indeed have many princesses."

Where is the prince?

Dai Yun did not answer immediately, but swirled the wine glass in her hand twice, as if she was carefully considering her words.

Then she leaned closer and lowered her voice. "Your Highness, I have something to tell you, don't be surprised."

"Please speak, Your Highness."

Actually, I was originally my father's seventh son.

Xue Qinghe's hand froze in mid-air, and he almost dropped the wine glass.

"... What?"

"Really." Dai Yun nodded. "I have several older brothers, just like me, they're all sitting here now."

Xue Qinghe slowly turned his head, his gaze sweeping over the princesses in the hall, dressed in palace attire and adorned with pearls and jade, looking at them one by one.

The girl in the light red dress was playing a drinking game with the person next to her, and her voice was louder than the other girls around her.

The one in the light purple palace dress sat behind the table with her legs crossed, one arm draped over the back of the chair, looking quite dashing.

"Most of them are," Dai Yun said after thinking for a moment.

Xue Qinghe remained silent for a long while.

How did it change?

Dai Yun's expression became subtle.