Forced to be a concubine? I turned around and married the scumbag's father.

Gu Hua successfully took Zhao Luoxuan to the soup kitchen and then went to the orphanage to visit the orphans.

Overnight, the people learned that the legitimate princess had arrived in Juzhou, causing a sensation throughout the city.

Sweeping away the sorrow and dejection of Mu Junyan's death in battle, they all flocked to the streets to await the princess's arrival.

Wherever the princess and her entourage went, the people followed.

The black-armored guards and the city's defensive army protected the princess very carefully, not allowing any strangers to get close.

Zhao Luoxuan had never experienced the feeling of being loved by the people. Seeing the crowds of people and soldiers in the city kowtowing to her and shouting "Long live the princess!" she was so excited that she trembled and forgot to speak for a moment.

Gu Hua supported her and gently squeezed her arm: "Princess."

Zhao Luoxuan immediately snapped out of her daze and quickly raised her hand, saying, "No need for formalities."

Seeing that no one was willing to get up, Zhao Luoxuan's eyes reddened, and she choked up as she said, "My father, mother and I are all concerned about the people of the Southern Frontier. I was ordered by my father to lead the peace delegation to negotiate with the Dali Kingdom, hoping that there will be no more war in the Southern Frontier and that the country will be peaceful and prosperous."

"Your Highness, please allow me to speak."

A man dressed as a general stepped forward.

Zhao Luoxuan could tell that he was a general of rank, and quickly said, "Please speak, sir."

"The people of Liang in the Southern Frontier do not wish to negotiate peace! Nor do they need a princess for a marriage alliance! Liang is a great nation, while the mere Dali Kingdom has bullied Liang for decades. Now, under the leadership of the Duke of Yong, the Mu family army has already invaded Dali territory. Why should we negotiate peace?"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Luoxuan naturally believed what Gu Hua had told her last night.

She also felt aggrieved.

Why should the victorious nation condescend to send its princess to marry and sue for peace?

Father must have been deceived.

Zhao Luoxuan nodded: "What you say is absolutely right, my lord. That's why I've come to ask everyone: if we don't negotiate peace, is it possible to win the war?"

"of course can."

We must win.

"The people and soldiers of southern Xinjiang are of one mind; all our men have joined the army. If there aren't enough soldiers, our women and children will also step up!"

Everyone was in high spirits, talking one after another, which made Zhao Luoxuan's blood boil.

She turned to look at Gu Hua: "Sister Hua, so what you said was true. Then why should we negotiate peace? Why not just fight?"

Gu Hua held her arm and whispered, "Although the Duke of Yongguo has died in battle, the Mu family army still has other generals leading them, and they have not all withdrawn. Therefore, we cannot let the peace delegation bow down first, otherwise, the blood of our soldiers and civilians will have been shed in vain."

"you're right!"

Zhao Luoxuan looked excitedly at the people and soldiers, but didn't know what to say, so she quickly turned back to look at Gu Hua.

She asked in a low voice, "Sister Hua, what should I do now?"

Gu Hua smiled and said, "The porridge distribution will begin soon. Why don't you come with me, Princess?"

Zhao Luoxuan exclaimed excitedly, "Great! That's wonderful! I've never done anything like this before!"

The group returned to the soup kitchen, where the soup had been cooked and the steamed buns had been made.

Zhao Luoxuan was overjoyed: "I will serve porridge to the people."

"Princess, wait a moment." Gu Hua grabbed her arm.

Zhou Zhilan took out a strap and tied her sleeves, and then tied the straps on for her as well.

The two stood together in front of the porridge pot, one handing out steamed buns and the other ladling out porridge.

The people were so excited that they couldn't bear to drink the porridge served by the princess herself.

"Both the princess and Madam Mu are like fairies descended from heaven."

"The princess's benevolence is a blessing to the people of Liang."

The chants of praise made Zhao Luoxuan blush, and she worked even harder to serve the porridge.

But being of noble birth, her arms soon became so sore she couldn't lift them anymore.

Gu Hua quickly took the spoon and handed it to the others: "Princess, let's share the steamed buns together."

"Okay." Zhao Luoxuan happily followed her and took steamed buns from the steamed bun basket to distribute to everyone.

Jiang Duo and the others watched from afar, their faces extremely grim.

"Lord Jiang, what should we do? Judging from the princess's attitude, she doesn't want to go for the marriage alliance?"

"Lord Jiang, if the princess doesn't leave soon, the time may have passed."

Some of the accompanying officials sensed something was wrong and were very worried: "But didn't you see that the people and soldiers all support the princess and oppose the peace treaty through marriage?"

"Yes, what if we insist and it really incites public anger?"

"Your Majesty, I also think this is inappropriate. Perhaps we should send it back to the capital by express courier and ask Your Majesty for a decision?"

Jiang Duo glared at them fiercely: "We are all here by imperial decree. If we encounter any problems, we will ask the emperor for a judgment. This round trip will take at least a month, delaying the peace negotiations. Who of you can bear the responsibility?"

Everyone fell silent, not daring to speak again.

"Let's go, take the princess away."

Jiang Duo, along with five or six officials and about thirty Tianwu soldiers, squeezed through.

Jiang Duo bowed and said, "Princess, it's getting late, we should set off."

Before Zhao Luoxuan could speak, he waved his hand and said, "You, protect the princess as she gets into the carriage."

Several Tianwu soldiers suddenly surrounded Zhao Luoxuan.

It startled her, and she quickly hid behind Gu Hua.

"I will not go. I will follow the will of the people and resolutely refuse to negotiate peace!"

Zhou Zhilan and Donghua drew their daggers and stood guard on either side of them.

Gu Hua hugged Zhao Luoxuan and shouted, "Protect the princess!"

Akabane and his men also surrounded them, isolating the Tenwu Army outside.

The local people were outraged. A group of them surrounded the soldiers, and three or five of them lifted each one up and threw them out of the crowd.

The bustling crowd, like a relay baton, rolled people over each other's heads.

Immediately afterwards, someone stealthily rushed towards Jiang Duo and his group.

Screams erupted as several officials were hoisted up and rolled around like wheels, with countless hands reaching out to tumble them through the air. Soon, they were all thrown out of the crowd.

Zhao Duo and his comrades had lost their official hats somewhere, and their official robes were torn. They were all thrown heavily to the ground, looking utterly disheveled.

But they didn't know who was joining them, and besides, they were outnumbered and didn't dare to actually fight.

Zhao Duo was furious, but they couldn't squeeze into the crowd at all.

Zhao Luoxuan stood on tiptoe to look at them with their disheveled hair and laughed heartily.

Suddenly, Gu Hua saw a familiar figure flash by.

Crimson Flame?

Gu Hua quickly looked at Chi Yu and asked in a low voice, "I saw Chi Yan. Is there any news?"

Akabane craned his neck to look and, sure enough, saw Akane standing with her arms crossed in a corner of the crowd.

The two exchanged a coded message with hand gestures, then nodded, and the crimson flames quickly disappeared.

Gu Hua couldn't understand their gestures, so she quickly asked, "How is it?"

"We caught him!" Akabane exclaimed excitedly.

Gu Hua's eyes widened, and she lowered her voice: "Gotcha..."

She mouthed the word "king".

Akabane smiled and nodded.

Gu Hua immediately felt relieved.

In this way, Mu Junyan is safe.

Sigh, I wonder when he will be able to come back to life.

"What's wrong?" Zhao Luoxuan asked anxiously, seeing their secretive behavior.

Gu Hua pulled her back and whispered in her ear, "Princess, the King of Dali has been captured. You don't need to go through the marriage alliance."

"Really? Really? Is it true?"

Zhao Luoxuan was so excited she almost cried.

"Really." Gu Hua's bright smile gave her endless courage.

Throughout the journey, Zhao Luoxuan mustered her courage and tried her best to maintain the demeanor of a legitimate princess, not wanting to embarrass her mother and her elder brother, the Crown Prince.

Her brother, the Crown Prince, promised her that he would personally bring her back once the opportunity arose.

But she knew that princesses sent to marry foreign rulers throughout history never had the chance to return to the capital.

I heard that the King of Dali is over forty years old, about the same age as my father.

But she's only fifteen.

She was actually very afraid of marriage alliances.

She never expected Gu Hua to save her. When she returned to the capital, she would definitely inform her father and reward Gu Hua handsomely.