Have the people from Jiangnan arrived in the capital?
It was a rare sight; the emperor held court.
This was perhaps the first time the emperor had attended court in more than half a year. Since the incident at the Dragon Palace in Jiangnan, the emperor had only attended court once, when he formally announced the construction of the temple.
It's called a temple, but everyone knows it's Ghost Temple. Many powerful families know what kind of things are enshrined in that Ghost Temple. The emperor's reason is to counter Jiangnan, but what's the difference between this and inviting trouble? Jiangnan may only threaten the royal power, but this Ghost Temple, if it grows too powerful, will likely pose more than just a threat to the royal power.
"Your Majesty," the Nine Ministers were still the nine First Rank sorcerers in white robes, but they had all been replaced. For example, the head of the Nine Ministry of Personnel who was now speaking was Chen Baifeng, but now it was Chen Baiye, the Laosan of the Chen Household, who was in charge.
Those around him were slightly surprised to see Chen Baiye stepping forward.
Since Chen Baifeng, the head of the Chen Household family, led a large number of Chen Household family members to South Sea City, there has been no intention of returning. The Chen Household in the capital has not officially moved away, but in reality, many people know that the Chen Household has long been deserted, with only a few elderly people remaining there symbolically.
Take Chen Baiye, for example. Among the five brothers of the Chen Household family patriarch, Chen Baiye was the least talented. He barely reached the First Rank even at over seventy years old. Before that, he was an elder in charge of external affairs for the Chen Household. This time, the Chen Household family moved away, leaving only the Laosan's family to manage the Chen Household family's affairs. The imperial court continued to conscript members of the Chen Household family to serve as officials in the Ministry of Personnel, and Chen Baiye reluctantly accepted the position.
Regardless of seniority and ability, how could he possibly have gotten this position?
These days, one should be keeping a low profile, but surprisingly, they still dare to show their heads.
"General Chu Tianhe has sent a letter, predicting that the Jiangnan delegation will arrive in the capital today. According to General Chu's letter, the Jiangnan delegation will consist of only twenty people, and Chen Qing himself is coming!"
These words caused a brief silence in the entire court. Whether they were high-ranking officials, diviners, or military generals, they all exchanged bewildered glances. This Chen Qing... he really dared to come?
The capital is now incredibly strange, with many powerful families secretly fleeing. The emperor of the Xiao Household is completely different from his former humble and respectful demeanor; he has clearly pledged allegiance to some strange force and is even colluding with the Southern Barbarians. His former ambition to supremacy over humanity and rule the Central Plains has vanished without a trace since the empress's death.
Under these circumstances, the heads and direct descendants of all the major families dared not let them into the city, fearing they would be kidnapped and threatened. How dare Chen Qing come in person?
Just for a woman? Just for a face?
"Good!" The emperor clapped his hands and laughed. His originally cold and handsome face now had a ghostly and sinister look. His laughter didn't seem like a human laugh. Even in broad daylight, it made people feel inexplicably uneasy.
"Not bad, not bad. Back then, that kid dared to stand in front of me and negotiate. I knew he was a promising young man. A promising young man wouldn't remain indifferent in the face of such a situation. Not bad, he's quite the man."
Many officials silently lowered their heads, clearly not in the mood to discuss the court's actions.
"Let Wutu Gu in!"
"Announcement: His Highness Wutu Gu, the Second Prince of the Wutu Kingdom!!"
As the eunuch's booming voice proclaimed the emperor's arrival, the palace guards raised their booming voices and shouted outwards in waves. Everyone silently watched outside the palace. This was the emperor's first court session in six months, and he had Wutu Gu waiting outside so early. It seemed the rumors of collusion between the Xiao Household and Wutu Gu were true.
About fifteen minutes later, an even more powerful voice rang out from outside the hall. " Wutu Gu of the Wutu Kingdom requests an audience with Your Majesty!!"
The sound was like the thunder of drums on a battlefield, heavy and muffled, yet it made people's hearts go numb. Not to mention the civil officials in the court, even military generals who had experienced many great battles frowned at this moment, feeling their blood and qi surging.
This second prince of the Wutu Kingdom is no ordinary man!
Soon, everyone noticed this entity that had been at the center of public opinion recently.
The nine-foot-tall man was dressed in the black martial arts uniform favored by warriors from the Central Plains. His imposing figure was very obvious, his facial features were sharp and angular, and his temperament was cold and hard. To be honest, if it weren't for his triangular eyes and hooked nose, which made him look somewhat fierce, his appearance would not be bad at all. It would not be an exaggeration to say that he was handsome.
Wearing Central Plains clothing, he would hardly look like a Southern Barbarians barbarian, unless you count the strange-looking bone chain around his waist.
The second prince of the Wutu Kingdom doesn't have a good reputation, especially because of the bone chain around his waist. It's said that whenever he encounters a worthy opponent, he will remove their head after defeating them and use the hardest bone at the back of their skull to make this willow-leaf shaped bone chain. And now, quite a few famous people are associated with this bone chain.
He was a famous general, king, and prince in the Three Kingdoms of the Southern Barbarians. It is said that one of them was his father, the former number one warrior of the Wutu Kingdom, King Wutu Xionglie!
"What a fine man!" The emperor looked at the nine-foot-tall giant with an admiring expression. "I have long heard that the Wutu Kingdom has produced an unparalleled warrior, invincible among the Southern Barbarians barbarians. Now that I have seen him, he is indeed extraordinary, deserving of the legendary title. Bring him some wine!"
Soon, a eunuch brought out a pot of exquisitely fragrant wine made of sandalwood.
As soon as the wine was served, Wutu Gu and the others' eyes lit up. After taking the wine, Wutu Gu glanced at it and said with a smile, "This wine is blood red in color and has a strong aroma. It must be the Jiangnan Blood Ginseng Wine that has recently become popular in the Central Plains?"
"Ah, indeed, the fine wines of Jiangnan." The emperor laughed, "There are quite a few fine wines popular in Jiangnan these days. It is said that there are hundreds of kinds of excellent wines like Blood Ginseng Wine. Even I am drooling just hearing about them."
"Your Majesty possesses the entire world, and Jiangnan is Your Majesty's royal land. What fine wine cannot be given priority to the royal family? It seems that Jiangnan doesn't quite understand the rules." Wutu Gu grinned, took a whiff of the wine's aroma, and a hint of intoxication appeared on his face. "Such fine wine, how can it be without the company of beauties? I urge Your Majesty to let Princess Mingxue come out for a meeting. If she could accompany you in a dance, that would be even better."
"Presumptuous!!"
Before the emperor could speak, a deep, angry shout interrupted him.
"The princess of the Great Jin Dynasty, what a noble status she holds! Entertaining and dancing for us? These barbarians from beyond the borders, how rude and impolite!"
Wutu Gu looked over and saw that the one who had shouted was an old man. The old man was burly and stood upright in his armor. His aura was as heavy as a mountain, clearly indicating that he was a strong person.
"May I ask who this gentleman is?"
"This is the Duke of Ning," the emperor on the throne introduced in a gentle tone.
"Oh, so it's that famous Prince of the Maritime Kingdom." Wutugu grinned and said, "I've heard of you. You personally led the East Sea Navy to break through the alliance of the twenty island nations of the East Sea, and ordered the drowning of 700,000 allied troops. You are Chu Xingba, the Yama of the Waters, aren't you, senior?"
" Southern Barbarians brat, you've heard of my name?" the old man chuckled.
"It's quite a trophy." Wutu Gu nodded slightly.
"Oh?" The old man's smile turned sinister. "How about we try? See if we can tie my skull to your waist too?"
Wutu Gu smiled and said, "Senior is too kind. From now on, I am the son-in-law of the royal family. In your Central Plains terms, I am a member of the imperial family. If it weren't for your rebellion, I wouldn't have had this opportunity, would I? As for having the princess dance, it's very normal in our land. No matter how noble a woman is, she is meant to serve an even more noble man. My wife, what's wrong with having her dance for entertainment?"
"Ha!" Chu Xingba. He never liked to argue, so he decided to personally slap the barbarian twice to let him know what he could and couldn't say.
But just as things were about to reach this point, the emperor, who had seemed to have been watching the show from the sidelines, finally spoke, "Enough."
As he spoke, he looked at Wutu Gu: " Mingxue may not necessarily be your wife."
"Does Your Majesty intend to renege on your promise?" Wutu Gu looked at the emperor, his eyes turning cold. This action ignited the fury of many military generals.
"It's not that I'm backing out, but rather that something unexpected happened." The Emperor was surprisingly patient. "You've also heard that my Princess Mingxue was originally betrothed to Prince Qin, Chen Qing. Over the years, Chen Qing hasn't made a move, and I see that he doesn't seem to have any intention of marrying the princess. So, I wanted to find a hero for my daughter, and both I and the Empress Dowager are very satisfied with you."
"What does Your Majesty mean?"
"I never expected that Chen Qing would come in person. I originally thought he had no intention of marrying the princess, but I never expected him to come to the capital for this matter. Now that this has turned out to be a misunderstanding, you two both have the imperial decree of betrothal from me. What do you think?"
"That's really interesting," Wutu Gu laughed. "Does it mean the King of Qin wants to steal my woman?"
The court officials looked at each other in bewilderment. Although the emperor's statement was utterly absurd, the fact that the other party had come to such a conclusion was quite remarkable.
"Why don't we invite Her Highness the Princess to come in person and tell her her thoughts?" Wutu Gu suggested with a smile.
"Very well!" The emperor nodded readily. "Summon Mingxue to the palace!"