Harem Daily Life

In the Imperial Study, Ningyuan Hou and the Minister of War accompanied Kang Mowan to deliver the peace agreement. He Linzhang took a look and saw no problem, so he signaled Eunuch Zhang to affix his seal.

"Your Majesty, Ningdu City will belong to the Great Zhou in the future, but I hope that what Your Majesty promised me will be realized as soon as possible." There were two copies of the peace agreement. Kang Mowan took the copy for Xia Kingdom and did not forget to remind He Linzhang.

He Linzhang's brows relaxed, and he smiled, "Of course. I will soon issue a decree to exempt Ningdu City from taxes for three years, open up border trade, and grant the Second Prince a special pass. From now on, the Second Prince can bring in any trade goods with him."

Kang Mowan clasped his fists in thanks and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty. May the Great Zhou and the Xia Kingdom work together for everlasting prosperity."

The peace talks between the two countries were successfully resolved. He Linzhang was in a good mood and hosted a banquet in the Qinzheng Hall to entertain Kang Mowan. Ningyuan Hou and the Minister of War were present, and Tao Yanyan was also invited to attend.

This time, he was able to put Princess Kang Ning aside and establish a direct relationship with Kang Mowan, which would have long-term significance for the future cooperation between Da Zhou and Xia Kingdom and the stability of the relationship between the two countries.

Kang Mowan had been thinking about Empress Tao's music ever since he had heard her play. Feeling happy today, he said on a whim, "I greatly admire Empress Tao's zither skills. I wonder if I could have the pleasure of hearing her play again today?"

He Linzhang was stunned, a little dissatisfied. He looked at Tao Yanyan, who smiled and said, "Why not? Mingyue, go get the pipa. I'm in a good mood today, so I'll play a piece for you all."

He Linzhang wanted to refuse but couldn't, so he had to hide the expression in his eyes and eat in silence.

The pipa was brought over quickly. Tao Yanyan thought for a while and played a piece of "Blue and White Porcelain". The melodious sound of the pipa was intoxicating. Kang Mowan was fascinated by it, his eyes full of admiration, and he couldn't help clapping his hands in praise.

Marquis Ningyuan and the Minister of War also put down their bowls and chopsticks and immersed themselves in this wonderful music.

Although He Linzhang felt a little jealous, he had to admit that Tao Yanyan's skills were superb and added a lot of color to the banquet.

When the song ended, everyone was still immersed in the lingering sound. Kang Mowan was the first to stand up and said respectfully, "Your Majesty's qin playing is truly exceptional, and the music you played is truly a rare gem. I am truly fortunate to be able to hear it again today."

Tao Yanyan smiled and returned the compliment, "Second Prince, you are too kind. When it comes to music theory, you are still better."

He Linzhang watched the two interacting, his jealousy growing stronger. He deliberately cleared his throat and said, "Today's peace talks have been concluded successfully. Let's all drink this toast." He then raised his glass. Everyone followed suit, and the atmosphere became lively again.

Tao Yanyan picked up her wine glass and pretended to drink, but He Linzhang took the wine from her and said, "You can't hold your liquor well. Let me drink it for you."

Kang Mowan looked at the loving relationship between the Emperor and Empress of the Great Zhou Dynasty and silently averted his eyes. Suddenly, he felt that the wine in his glass had turned a little sour. He only lamented that he had met her too late. It was really like "I regret not meeting her before she got married."

But as the prince of Xia Kingdom, he was well aware of the heavy responsibility on his shoulders, so the momentary sadness quickly passed, he adjusted his mood and played the role of a partner well.

At this moment, a young eunuch suddenly ran in from outside the palace and said hurriedly, "Your Majesty, Princess Kangning of Xia Kingdom is making a scene outside the palace and wants to see Your Majesty."

He Linzhang's expression instantly darkened. He looked at Kang Mowan and said disdainfully, "Second Prince, your methods are not good enough. How can you not even keep an eye on one person?"

Kang Mowan showed a trace of shame on his face: "Your Majesty, please forgive me for making a fool of myself! Why don't I go out and take her away so as not to spoil your Majesty's fun?"

It was supposed to be a good day for the two countries to sign a peace agreement, but I didn't expect that people would come to make trouble before the celebration table was even cleared away. It was really a headache.

"It's okay. Go and invite Princess Xia in." He Linzhang wanted to see what Princess Kang Ning would do next now that the contract was signed.

Princess Kang Ning and Shang Yuanzhou were brought up. Kang Ning pointed at Kang Mowan and cursed, "You traitor to the Xia Kingdom! You have no right to sign any documents on behalf of the Xia Kingdom! Void! The peace agreement is void! I must re-sign it!"

Kang Mowan sneered, "The eldest princess is sick and confused. She actually ran to the Emperor of the Great Zhou and said nonsense. I have long told you that you should seek medical treatment, but you refused to see a doctor. I am the prince. What is wrong with me negotiating peace on behalf of the Xia Kingdom? It is you, a sick and confused person with a confused mind, who is not capable of representing the Xia Kingdom."

After saying that, Kang Mowan glanced at Shang Yuanzhou and said, "Mr. Shang, you should try to persuade the princess. The peace agreement has been signed. If you continue to make trouble, you will only become a laughing stock."

Shang Yuanzhou's eyes were red as he stared at the Second Prince. "We've lost Ningdu City, lost a whole city. How will the Second Prince explain this to the Emperor when he returns?"

He felt so sad. He could have gained more benefits from this city. But the Second Prince didn't give him time and signed the agreement hastily, causing all his plans to go to waste.

Kang Mowan smiled and said, "It was you who instigated my father to provoke the Great Zhou, it was you who dragged the Xia Kingdom into war, and it was you who caused the occupation of Ningdu City. I am just trying to end the war as soon as possible and bring peace to the Xia Kingdom. What's wrong with that? Besides, opening up trade to the Great Zhou will bring wealth to the Xia Kingdom. Isn't that a good thing? My father will definitely understand my painstaking efforts and will not blame me."

Seeing Kang Mowan's stubbornness, Kang Ning turned to He Linzhang and said, "When I came here, the King of Xia repeatedly made it clear that only I could sign the agreement on behalf of Xia. Anything Kang Mowan signed would be invalid! Your Majesty, please tear up the agreement, discuss the terms with me, and sign it again. Otherwise, if it's not recognized by our King, it will be meaningless."

He Linzhang looked at her like she was an idiot. "The seals of both countries have been sealed. There's no possibility of breaking the agreement. Unless, Princess, you don't want the Great Zhou to withdraw its troops. You want the Great Zhou to continue advancing and capture other cities of the Xia Kingdom."

The eldest princess looked at He Linzhang in disbelief, too angry to speak: "You...you..."

He is so stubborn, and his ability to irritate people is just like his father!

Seeing that nothing could be changed and no one believed her, Princess Kangning was so angry that she fainted.

"Princess, Princess? What's wrong with you? Call the imperial physician quickly, call the imperial physician quickly!" Shang Yuanzhou stepped forward and hugged her, exclaiming anxiously.

Tao Yanyan cleared out a side hall and asked the imperial physician to treat Princess Kangning, but the results of the treatment were not very good.

After coming out, Imperial Physician Liu bowed to the Emperor and Empress before addressing Kang Mowan and Shang Yuanzhou, "I wonder if Princess Kangning has a habit of taking elixirs regularly? Her internal organs have been damaged, and this time, because of her anger, all the problems were exposed."