Fearing being killed for his overwhelming merits, the empress decided to marry him.

"Ha ha ha ha……"

Wanyan Lie smiled contentedly upon seeing this scene.

He glanced casually at Shen Lang, wanting to see how the expression on the face of this omnipotent Duke of Zhenguo would change.

Unexpectedly, all they saw was Shen Lang holding a sheep bone in his hand, watching the sheep-leading ceremony with great interest, showing no sign of discomfort whatsoever.

This made Wanyan Lie's expression somewhat unnatural: why could he be so calm? Even a veteran general like Murong Ba of Yan, who had witnessed the sheep-leading ceremony, would inevitably be moved.

At this moment, Jin soldiers put one rope after another around the necks of Zhao Zhen's family.

"Oooooooo-"

At this moment, the atmosphere inside the tent reached its peak, and everyone couldn't help but shout.

In this enthusiastic atmosphere, Jin warriors led Zhao Zhen and his men by ropes, making them crawl inside the tent and take them to each table so that everyone could appreciate their humiliating state.

Emperor Zhao Zhen was in tears, at a loss for what to do, and could only let these barbarians humiliate and amuse themselves.

Her daughter, Zhao Wan, was so ashamed that she could only bury her head in the sheepskin.

Unfortunately, he was quickly dragged out by the barbaric warriors and forced to face the ridicule of these foreign barbarians.

When Zhao Wan saw her precious body, more valuable than gold, being scrutinized and lingered over by these barbarians, her psychological defenses crumbled instantly.

Now, Zhao Zhen and his entourage look just like a flock of sheep.

They looked like sheep, dogs, or some other animal.

It is the only thing that doesn't seem like a human being.

Lingchi (death by a thousand cuts) is arguably the most cruel and severe form of punishment that can be inflicted on the body.

Each cut not only severed the prisoner's flesh and blood, but also slowly eroded their life.

However, in comparison, the harm caused by the sheep-leading ritual is more concentrated on the spiritual level. It inflicts severe psychological trauma on the victim in an extremely cruel and unique way, and is a devastating blow to a person's spiritual world.

When a person who values ​​dignity is subjected to the sheep-leading ceremony, he will be stripped naked and driven forward like livestock.

The cold and disdainful gazes of the people around him were like sharp swords, mercilessly piercing his soul.

Laughter and insults rose and fell, as if trying to crush his dignity completely.

At this point, the victim is no longer a human being, but an animal devoid of dignity, subject to manipulation and humiliation.

This treatment, which reduced them from human beings to livestock, caused their deeply held beliefs, morals, and self-worth to collapse instantly.

All their former pride and self-esteem vanished in this moment, replaced by endless humiliation and despair.

In summary, although slow slicing can cause immense physical pain.

However, the ritual of leading a sheep can strike at a person's core psyche, leaving an indelible mark of pain that makes it difficult for them to escape this dark and terrifying memory for the rest of their lives.

For women in particular, the shock of the sheep-leading ceremony is even greater than the loss of life itself.

As the light in Zhao Wan and the other women's eyes gradually faded and turned into emptiness and numbness, Shen Lang understood that these people were completely ruined, and even if they lived, they would never be able to escape the shadow of this spiritual state.

Until Zhao Wan was numbly led to Shen Lang's table, her numb face was covered with clear tears, but no human emotions could be seen mixed in with them.

Her instincts made her keep shaking her head at Shen Lang, signaling him not to look.

"Hahaha."

Wanyan Lie smiled, cut off a piece of mutton, looked at Shen Lang and asked, "Duke Zhenguo, what do you think of this sheep-leading ceremony?"

It's a pity that today's sheep-leading ceremony was too brief. We'll have to bring Zhao Ji's entire family here tomorrow.

I, the King, intend to hold a lavish feast in the capital city, where all the princes and princesses of the Song royal family will be dressed in sheepskins to attract distinguished guests.

"Duke Zhenguo, what are your thoughts on this?"

Upon hearing this, Shen Lang smiled noncommittally and did not respond to Wan Yanlie's words.

Wanyan Lie's expression changed: "What does the Duke of Zhenguo mean by this?"

Then, looking at the "sheep" in front of him, he suddenly realized what it meant.

"Duke Zhenguo, the sheep-leading ceremony of our Great Jin Dynasty is only performed on prisoners of war from enemy countries. Men who perform the sheep-leading ceremony are generally sentenced to be exiled as slaves."

As for the women, they should naturally be washed clean and served to our distinguished guest. If the Duke of Zhenguo has any interest in this sheep, I, the King, will make the arrangements."

Shen Lang chuckled lightly: "I think Your Majesty may have misunderstood. Today, your country's sheep-leading ceremony was truly eye-opening. However, I have a question in my mind, and I hope Your Majesty can tell me the truth."

Wanyan Lie: "If you have any questions, please feel free to ask, Duke Zhenguo."

Shen Lang instantly wiped the smile off his face, tossed aside the sheep bone in his hand, and stared intently at Wanyan Lie:

"I'd like to know, in Your Majesty's heart, is there a fantasy of one day draping this sheepskin over the Duke and His Majesty?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the entire noisy tent fell silent instantly, with only the faint sobs of the women performing the sheep-leading ceremony echoing in the air.

Wanyan Lie never expected Shen Lang to suddenly ask such a tricky question.

Meeting those sharp, cold eyes, Wanyan Lie felt an uncontrollable fear rise in his heart.

"Haha, the Duke of Zhenguo is quite the joker."

After a long silence, Wanyan Lie broke it with a smile.

"There is no enmity between the Jin Kingdom and the Chu Kingdom, so how could I, Your Majesty, dare to think such a thing? Duke Zhenguo is really overthinking it."

Upon hearing this, Shen Lang laughed out loud: "Of course I know Your Majesty wouldn't think that way. Actually, when I was observing your country's sheep-leading ceremony just now..."

The Duke of Chu was also pondering this, wondering which of the two punishments—the wooden donkey punishment and the other—was more cruel.

This was a blatant warning, telling the Jurchens that their childish intimidation tactics were old news to them, and that if they dared to covet the Chu state, they should be prepared for annihilation.

Wanyan Lie naturally sensed the obvious threat in Shen Lang's tone.

However, he dared not treat Shen Lang the same way he treated the Song Kingdom.

Regardless of Shen Lang's strength, if the State of Chu were to launch a military campaign against the State of Jin, the State of Jin would face a combined attack from the Song, Jin, and the Far East Taiji Kingdom.

This situation was something that neither Wanyan Lie nor the Jin state wanted to see, nor could they possibly afford.

"Your Excellency Zhenguo is overthinking this. Inviting you to observe this sheep-leading ceremony today is absolutely not intended to provoke your country in the slightest."

Rather, he wanted to show the true colors of the Zhao Song imperial family to the Duke of Zhenguo. Zhao Zhen had previously promised to build roads for the Jin dynasty to facilitate the transport of grain.

Unexpectedly, in that year he not only failed to repair a single mile of road, but also secretly colluded with rebels in various places, hindering the transport of grain supplies for our Jin Kingdom.

I am not a heartless man. I have reminded him many times that as long as he repairs the road according to my orders and stops colluding with rebels and bandits,

We decided not to pursue his past actions any further, but who would have thought that Zhao Zhen had actually bribed some of our army's generals?

They intend to take advantage of my army's absence to launch a rebellion in the capital.

Such behavior would be unforgivable to anyone in my position, right?

Therefore, I, the King, have intentionally chosen to present this sheep-leading gift today when the Duke of Zhenguo arrives.

The purpose was to make the Duke of Zhenguo understand what kind of people the Song royal family were.”

Wanyan Lie explained the reason for holding the sheep-leading ceremony to Shen Lang in a serious and detailed manner, and repeatedly assured that there was absolutely no intention to provoke the State of Chu.

This attitude can be described as extremely humble.

The Jin dynasty's upper echelons were not stupid; the Chu state was not like the Song state, and they were extremely warlike.

Once the State of Chu is angered, no one can predict what methods Chu will use to launch a frenzied retaliation.

But after listening, Shen Lang blurted out, "I understand what Your Majesty means. You want my Chu Kingdom to abandon its alliance with the Song Kingdom and instead ally with your Jin Kingdom, is that right?"