Marrying the Crown Prince

"what for?"

"I had the imperial physician examine her body, and he said that her heart and lungs were already damaged," Zhou Zhou replied. "Even if she survives, I'm afraid she won't live long."

"Furthermore, she said she hoped to cooperate with us."

"Oh?"

"She wants to use us to overthrow the Western Qin royal family."

It's not scary to be someone who doesn't live long but is full of hatred; what's scary is that this person is also courageous and resourceful.

“She is a princess of a country, and it is her duty to protect the people of her own land,” Li Ziyan said, but he had a different opinion. “Releasing a tiger back into the mountains is ultimately too risky.”

Zhou Zhou fell silent, after all, Li Ziyan's words were not entirely without reason.

Therefore, she did not insist on her own idea.

In Zhou Zhou's view, if Zhang Siwu really had the ability, then going back alive would be a test for her; as for silently poisoning Zhang Sicheng, that would be her pledge of allegiance.

In any case, the matter was settled, and there was no point in keeping Zhang Sicheng and Zhang Siwu locked up any longer, so the next day, the two of them were packed up and thrown back to the post station.

Peace talks between the two countries continued, with the ministers of the Court of State Ceremonial resuming discussions with the envoys from Western Qin on the details.

The specific details of their discussion are unknown, but Zhou Zhou was aware that they had fought several times.

Indeed, the focus of the verbal battle between the two countries is not on the words, but on the battle itself.

In the first round of discussions on the details, the group from the Court of State Ceremonial lost.

There was nothing they could do; the Court of State Ceremonial was entirely composed of civil officials, while the envoys from the Western Qin Kingdom were a group of civil officials mixed with four or five military officers.

As a result, everyone in the Court of State Ceremonial went to court the next day with huge panda eyes.

When the two countries met for the second time to discuss the details, the Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies specially borrowed people from the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of War, and even invited Zuo Jin to come along.

The Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies said that Zuo Jin was fair-skinned and had a weak and unassuming appearance, looking much like a civil official, and could be used to deceive those bastards of Western Qin.

Therefore, the second brawl ended with the Western Qin envoys wailing all over the ground.

The third time, Li Ziyan couldn't stand it anymore and sent troops over, so the two groups finally began to talk calmly.

The conversation included, but was not limited to, criticizing the other person's parents, and incidentally bringing up distant relatives.

In general, if Zhang Sicheng hadn't been ill, there would have been more room for negotiation on the details.

That's right, Zhang Siwu has made her move.

Whether it was due to a change in environment or his indulgence in alcohol and women, Zhang Sicheng's old ailment relapsed.

He was vomiting and had a fever. The imperial physician brought by the Western Qin Kingdom examined him and said that it might be due to acclimatization issues.

Of course, they suspected that the people of Chen Kingdom had poisoned their food.

In order to leave this troublesome place with the prince and princess as soon as possible, the envoys of the Western Qin Kingdom made great concessions in terms of gold and silver.

They redeemed their prince and princess with 200,000 taels of silver and 100,000 bolts of silk.

Of course, it was impossible to hand over so many things on the spot, so the envoy wrote a letter, stamped it with seal after seal, and sent it back to the Western Qin Kingdom by fast horse.

The Western Qin Kingdom responded quickly, and not only did they bring a reply, but they also brought half of the wealth.

They said that if half of the goods were delivered first, the Chen Kingdom would release the people; the other half of the goods would be traded at the border when their prince and princess arrived to pay their respects.

This would be good for both parties, so Li Ziyan agreed.

After seeing off the people from the Western Qin Kingdom, Li Ziyan began to calculate the accounts—specifically, the Dowager Consort Shu.

When the late emperor passed away, Consort Shu was already imprisoned, and had been locked up for a full year.

In that year, her son, formerly the Ninth Prince Li Ziqiong, was now the Prince of Huishuo.

It's quite a coincidence that after Li Ziyan ascended the throne, his brothers and sisters had not yet been granted titles due to the war, but now it's time to do so.

Let's return to the story of Consort Shu.

As the saying goes, the victor is king and the loser is villain. Li Ziyan had no interest in meeting the Dowager Consort Shu, so he simply issued an imperial decree, and Changyi personally took the gifts and went there.

The palace servants opened the incredibly heavy palace door, and a bright, dazzling ray of light shone through the doorway.

The sudden burst of bright light made Consort Shu raise her hand.

She squinted slightly, as if trying to see the person in front of her clearly through the light.

Upon recognizing the person, Consort Shu was taken aback, somewhat surprised. "It's you? Where is your master?"

She didn't believe that Li Ziyan didn't want to know something!

Changyi bowed and greeted Consort Shu, saying, "This servant greets Consort Shu. May Your Majesty enjoy boundless blessings and peace."

"Hmph," Consort Shu scoffed, her face full of mockery, "It's kind of you to be so polite to a prisoner like me."

She didn't say "rise," so Changyi remained bowed, her tone respectful, but her words were like a knife, piercing the other's heart: "Your Highness, the Emperor has sent me to see you off on your journey."

After saying that, Chang Yi clapped his hands, and his apprentice appeared carrying a tray.

Changyi turned to the side and showed the three items to Consort Shu, saying, "His Majesty said that you may choose one of these three items."

The three items were a dagger, a white silk ribbon, and a cup of poisoned wine.

Consort Shu slowly rose and walked to Changyi.

When Chang saw her coming over, he looked up and smiled, "Your Highness, please."

Unexpectedly, Consort Shu raised her hand and knocked the tray containing the items to the ground.

The sound was both the shattering of a wine glass and the thud of a dagger falling to the ground.

The sound echoed through the silent palace.

"I want to see your master. Go and summon him!" The Imperial Concubine's voice was calm but tinged with resentment.

Chang Yi's smile and respectful demeanor vanished.

He said in a deep voice, "Consort Shu, what difference does it make whether I see him or not? Besides, the Emperor will not come to see you anyway."

Of course, most importantly, if I can't even handle such a small matter myself and have to go back to the Emperor, then I'll only get a good scolding.

Consort Shu raised her eyes, her gaze filled with hostility. "Doesn't he want to know how many spies are in this harem?"

Chang Yi remained calm, a faint smile playing on his lips.

He said softly, "These matters need not be of concern to Your Highness."

Chang Yi's voice was as calm as still water, as if nothing in this world could disturb his peace of mind.

After saying this, he bowed slightly to show his respect for the Dowager Consort.

Having done these things, Changyi's apprentice prepared the three items again.

This time, Changyi didn't ask Consort Shu again, but said to himself, "Since the Consort is unwilling to choose, then this servant will choose for her."

Having said that, he waved his hand, and several eunuchs stepped forward...

Soon the commotion subsided, and there was not a sound in the hall; it was so quiet that it seemed as if time had stopped flowing.

"Godfather is dead."

"Yes, let's go back and report."