Rebirth of a Lost Nation: Princess, Please Respect Yourself

Empress Dowager Jiang and Jiang Lige took their seats, and the hunting officially began. Jiang Lige fell asleep repeatedly after hearing a series of numbers, and only woke up when the results were announced.

"The leader of the hunt, the prince of Zhao Palace, Ning Yunxiao."

Ning Yunxiao narrowly won by killing one more prey than Ning Luyang.

Emperor Sheng Ling seemed quite satisfied with the result, and announced the prize with a smile.

The emperor's promise, such a precious prize, was like a bolt from the blue, surprising everyone and causing them to talk about it.

However, the main character Ning Yunxiao was very calm. He stood straight in a black suit, his eyes fixed calmly on Jiang Lige who was standing beside Empress Dowager Jiang.

Jiang Lige grabbed Song Yue's hand and smiled happily, almost jumping up from his chair.

"He won! He won!"

But what Ning Yunxiao didn't know was that Jiang Lige was not happy about his victory, but about having one more rabbit, which meant that her two rabbits played a big role!

Ning Yunxiao's action was not noticeable and no one noticed. Emperor Sheng Ling stroked his beard with a smile.

"Have you thought about what you want, Yun Xiao?"

"Your Majesty, Yun Xiao has made up his mind."

Ning Yunxiao bowed respectfully. "A few days ago, I was passing through the outskirts of Beijing and discovered that many refugees who had fled to the capital had been expelled, including many of the elderly, the weak, and the disabled. Your Majesty is merciful, so I would like to make this bold request. I hope Your Majesty can find a way for them to survive."

"How ridiculous!" Emperor Sheng Ling flew into a rage upon hearing this. "Where is the commander of the West City Military Command?"

The Five Cities Military Command was under the Ministry of War, while the West City Military Command was responsible for guarding the city gates leading into the capital from the outskirts of the city. The commander of the West City Military Command, Wang Tan, was the cousin of Princess Wang of Zhao.

After Emperor Sheng Ling finished speaking, he saw a thin official tremblingly step forward and kneel down.

"Your Majesty, I, Wang Tan, Commander of the West City Military Command, apologize to His Majesty. Your Majesty, we understand that those refugees are starving. If they were all brought to the capital, it would breed unruly behavior. The Five Cities Military Command is responsible for the capital's security and must make plans for the people there!"

"Since you know they are all starving, why don't you report it?"

This explanation only made Emperor Sheng Ling even angrier.

"Since I am Shengling, I should treat all common people equally. Could it be that people from the capital are superior to refugees?"

Wang Tan knew he was guilty, so how could he dare to argue?

He could only kowtow repeatedly to confess his guilt, hoping that Emperor Sheng Ling would reduce his punishment in view of his active confession.

Although Emperor Sheng Ling was angry, he also knew that it was inappropriate to allow all the refugees into the capital, so he demoted Wang Tan by one rank and fined him half a year's salary before letting him go.

Then, he turned around and asked Ning Yunxiao.

"Then according to Yun Xiaozhi, how should this matter be handled?"

"The capital's household registration system has fixed quotas. It's truly inappropriate for refugees to enter the capital without any documentation or legal basis. Isn't the area near Yuezhou, near the capital, a perfect location for building a canal? In my humble opinion, it's better to teach a man how to fish than to give him fish. If Your Majesty allows the refugees to work for the Ministry of Works on the canal construction, wouldn't that kill two birds with one stone?"

"Good good!"

Emperor Sheng Ling applauded three times in a row, obviously very satisfied with Ning Yunxiao's solution.

Although Jiang Lige had never understood the politics of the court, he knew that Ning Yunxiao's method was a good one. It not only solved the refugees' food and clothing problems, but also saved disaster relief funds for the court and raised manpower for the construction of the canal.

Of course, the most important thing is that Ning Yunxiao took advantage of this incident to catch Princess Zhao's family off guard.

Wang Tan was already over forty years old, and it would take him at least another five or six years to regain the first-rank official rank he had been demoted to.

After all this, Wang Tan might never be able to get an official title above the fourth rank in his lifetime. I think he must be so angry that he would vomit blood.

Killing two birds with one stone, no wonder Empress Dowager Jiang also praised Ning Yunxiao as "an extraordinary person".

Having resolved a major issue, Emperor Sheng Ling was in a very good mood.

The noble ladies of the capital city showed off their skills and said a lot of auspicious words, but their purpose was to show off in front of others. If they were praised, it would be easier to choose a son-in-law in the future.

Jiang Lige was watching the show while stuffing cakes and fruits into her mouth, and was happily joking with Empress Dowager Jiang when she heard someone mention her from below.

It turned out that after a noble lady performed, she was compared to her in a "low-key" way.

"Thank you for the compliments, Your Majesty. However, my dance is merely ordinary, and naturally cannot compare to your sisters'. I have heard that Nanchu and Shengling share similar customs, also having the Spring Hunting ceremony to pray for blessings. On this day, they also perform sacrificial dances to pray for a smooth year. I wonder if we will be lucky enough to witness this today?"

"Oh? Is that true? Would the two Princesses of Nanchu be willing to dance this song?"

Jiang Lige rolled his eyes in a very rude manner. It was really a case of "the pot comes from the sky while you are still sitting at home".

Nanchu does have a sacrificial dance for the spring hunt, so there is nothing wrong with dancing it, but now that it has been singled out, it is like a girl in a brothel being called out, and it is simply too embarrassing.

But if you don't jump, people will specifically mention "praying for a smooth year". It doesn't matter if it offends the queen, but being accused of ignoring Sheng Ling's national destiny is fatal.

This person is clearly making things difficult for himself!

Everyone present knew this, so the banquet hall was silent.

Empress Dowager Jiang was extremely angry, but she could not show any anger due to her status.

Jiang Chuchu was busy pretending to be a coward, with Jiang Lige, a "firecracker" who could ignite at any time, rushing ahead, so she had no chance to embarrass herself.

Therefore, everyone's eyes fell on Jiang Lige, most of them waiting to see him make a fool of himself.

Jiang Lige took in everyone's expressions, but did not directly question the other party's ill intentions as usual. Instead, he stepped forward with a sweet smile and slowly bowed.

"Shengling and Nanchu have enjoyed friendly relations for hundreds of years, and their relationship has grown stronger over time. Li Ge is both a Nanchu princess and the future daughter-in-law of Shengling, so I have already consulted the Queen Mother on this matter. I would like to celebrate Shengling's prosperity according to Nanchu customs."

These words expressed sincerity without losing the character of Nanchu, which was just right.

After saying this, Jiang Lige nodded slightly to Empress Dowager Jiang. The rest of the words were not suitable for her, a junior.

"Yes, I wanted to give everyone a surprise, but I didn't expect that the Queen and I would have the same idea."

Empress Dowager Jiang immediately received Jiang Lige's hint, smiled, nodded and said.

"The preparations for the Nanchu Sacrifice Dance are quite complicated and we are busy with them right now. Please just wait."

The implication is that Empress Xiao ruined the prepared surprise, which is very much like the case of "the emperor is not anxious, but the eunuch is."

Empress Xiao blushed upon hearing this, but she did not dare to refute Empress Dowager Jiang in front of Emperor Sheng Ling. She could only smile and praise Jiang Lige for being "sensible".

Although Jiang Lige disdains to be the "sensible" person, the situation is beyond his control and he can only be forced to perform the dance with Jiang Chuchu.

Empress Dowager Jiang intended to give them more time to review their dancing skills, so the Nanchu sacrificial dance naturally became the finale of the noble ladies' performances.