The seating of Grand Princess Zhaorong and Ning Ke, the Minister of the Secretariat, was directly opposite that of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess.
Although the Grand Princess was already over fifty, she remained dignified and elegant, with traces of the heroic spirit she had once possessed when she rode across battlefields.
Ning Ke’s temples were slightly graying, and his expression was gentle. Yet the authority he had accumulated over the years as the head of the imperial government and the highest-ranking official among the court still made people instinctively reluctant to meet his gaze.
The two of them looked at their granddaughter, who remained lively and charming even after marrying, and exchanged a smile, their hearts much more at ease.
“Don’t worry,” Ning Ke said softly. “That child A-Yan values Yuanyuan more than his own life.”
Yan was Xie Yanzhao’s courtesy name.
Grand Princess Zhaorong gave a soft snort.
“That is what he should do. I have only one precious granddaughter. If he fails to take good care of her, I will hold him accountable.”
Just as they were speaking, the prolonged announcement of an official from the Court of State Ceremonies pierced through the music in the hall.
“Announce the envoys of the various kingdoms!”
Foreign envoys entered the hall in succession.
The first to enter were the envoys of Xiqi. The leading envoy was burly, with hawk-like eyes and deep-set features. He wore a snow-white fur robe, with a wolf-head emblem embroidered in gold thread on his shoulder.
“Honorable Emperor of the Celestial Dynasty,” Turunda said, pressing his right hand against his chest. His voice was as loud as a bell.
“My king swears upon the eternal snow atop the Kunlun Mountains and offers one hundred Ferghana horses and ten chests of jade marrow, wishing Your Majesty a life as long as the heavens and blessings that endure forever!”
Emperor Chonghe smiled and nodded.
“The King of Xiqi has been thoughtful. Give them seats.”
Immediately afterward came the delegation jointly sent by the various kingdoms of Nanyang.
The lands of Nanyang were fragmented into numerous countries, the largest of which was Yuanxia.
They had dark brown complexions and wore gorgeous, elaborate garments decorated with pearls and coral. Their tribute consisted of entire chests of ambergris, rhinoceros horns, and ivory, as well as a red coral tree displayed beneath a glass cover.
The coral was shaped like a phoenix spreading its wings. Under the candlelight, it shimmered brilliantly, drawing a wave of soft exclamations from the hall.
“May Your Majesty’s empire be as vast and boundless as the South Sea, and may your blessings and longevity shine eternally like precious treasures.”
The envoy’s official speech carried a heavy accent, but his etiquette was impeccable.
The atmosphere in the hall grew increasingly lively.
At this moment, Princess Dangyu Tuoya of Yuanxia gracefully rose from her seat and walked to the center of the hall, where she gave an elegant bow.
“Your Majesty, this foreign subject wishes to offer a Yuanxia dance to add to the festivities of Your Majesty’s birthday banquet. May Your Majesty enjoy boundless longevity.”
Emperor Chonghe stroked his beard with a smile.
“Granted.”
The music changed.
Dangyu Tuoya began to dance to the melody.
She wore a colorful traditional Yuanxia costume, the hem of her skirt adorned with silver bells. As she spun, the bells rang crisply, and her exotic beauty was refreshing to behold.
The golden bracelets around her wrists chimed against one another. Her waist was as supple as a willow, and as her eyes shifted alluringly, she intentionally or perhaps unintentionally cast glances toward the Crown Prince’s seat.
When the dance ended, applause filled the hall.
Emperor Chonghe was delighted.
“The princess’s dance is captivating. Reward her with a bowl of South Sea pearls and ten bolts of cloud brocade.”
The Yuanxia prince, Dangyu Chaoge, curled his lips in satisfaction.
At least this younger sister of his was somewhat useful.
He looked toward the Great Zhao Crown Prince, Xie Yanzhao, seated diagonally ahead to the right, his gaze deep and unreadable.
Xie Yanzhao hadn’t even watched the dance.
He merely lifted his wine cup with an indifferent expression, completely unmoved by her performance.
He gave his sister a subtle look.
Dangyu Tuoya immediately spoke.
Her voice was clear and melodious.
“Your Majesty, I have long heard that the Crown Princess of your noble kingdom possesses the beauty of a ‘pearl.’ I wonder if I might have the honor today of asking the Crown Princess to display her talents, so that we may broaden our horizons?”
The moment these words were spoken, the entire hall fell silent.
The satisfied smile on Yuanxia Prince Dangyu Chaoge’s face froze. He keenly sensed that something was wrong with the atmosphere.
Beside the imperial throne, Grand Princess Zhaorong gently set down her wine cup. The porcelain striking the table produced a crisp sound.
Ning Ke’s expression remained gentle, but his gaze had grown noticeably colder.
Several people seated at the highest positions slightly turned their heads. Their indifferent gazes swept over the Yuanxia princess standing in the middle of the hall, as though they were looking at a child who did not understand the seriousness of her actions.
Amid this strange silence, Xie Yanzhao spoke.
His voice was not loud, but it clearly carried to every corner of the hall.
“You want to see my Crown Princess perform?”
Xie Yanzhao slowly raised his eyes. His gaze was like an icy blade, stabbing directly at Dangyu Tuoya.
“Are you worthy?”
Three words.
Each one struck like a hammer.
Dangyu Tuoya and Dangyu Chaoge were both stunned.
Ever since Emperor Chengyuan overthrew the previous dynasty and established Great Zhao, the Central Plains had grown increasingly powerful. In recent years, its rise had been even more rapid.
But even so, they had never expected the Crown Prince to be so utterly merciless with his words.
Grand Princess Zhaorong let out a soft laugh.
“In our Great Zhao, the Crown Princess is a woman of priceless status and the future Empress. She is not some performer or entertainer for others to admire and amuse themselves with.”
Her words sounded light, yet every one of them cut deeply.
With a single sentence, she elevated Shen Tinghe’s status while simultaneously mocking the Yuanxia princess.
She was making it perfectly clear, both openly and implicitly, that the Crown Princess of Great Zhao was not someone a princess from a small kingdom had any right to offend.
Dangyu Tuoya lowered her head as she stood in the center of the hall, her expression calm, as though she were completely detached from the situation.
She didn’t care about these humiliations.
As long as she completed the task her elder brother had given her, that was enough. At least then, their mother would have an easier time in the royal palace.
But Dangyu Chaoge’s expression had darkened.
He hadn’t expected things to develop this way.
His original plan had been to create an opportunity for his sister to approach the Crown Princess, preferably so that she might catch the attention of the Great Zhao Crown Prince.
He took a deep breath and was about to smooth things over when Emperor Chonghe spoke first from the imperial throne.
The emperor’s voice remained gentle.
“The customs of the two countries are different. The princess merely misspoke; it is of no consequence. Give them seats and resume the music.”
With that casual sentence, the disturbance was brushed aside.
The music began again, and the dancers returned to the hall.
Grand Princess Zhaorong gently shook her head and whispered to her husband,
“No wonder my imperial brother was reluctant to leave back then. His Majesty’s temperament is simply too benevolent.”
As an emperor, one must employ both kindness and authority.
One must know when to be merciful and when to be ruthless even allowing ruthlessness to outweigh mercy.
The Yuanxia people had spoken improperly. At the very least, they should have been made to offer an apology before receiving forgiveness.
Yet without the other side saying even a single conciliatory word, His Majesty had already given them a way out.
If he continued governing this way for a long time, it would inevitably cause the surrounding smaller kingdoms to develop a sense of contempt.
Ning Ke patted his wife’s hand, his gaze settling on the Crown Prince.
“There’s no need to worry. We have the Crown Prince.”
He would become an even greater ruler than the late Emperor.
Ning Ke did not say the latter sentence aloud, but husband and wife understood each other’s thoughts without needing to speak.
Meanwhile, Shen Tinghe, who was at the center of the incident, looked as though she were completely uninvolved.
Taking advantage of the fact that Xie Yanzhao’s attention had been diverted, she quickly picked up her wine cup and drained it in one gulp.
By the time Xie Yanzhao noticed, the wine had already gone down her throat.
“Yuanyuan.”
Xie Yanzhao frowned.
Shen Tinghe blinked, the corners of her lips curling into a triumphant smile.
“It’s already in my stomach. There’s nothing Brother can do about it now.”
Under the table, she mischievously scratched the palm of his hand.
Xie Yanzhao retaliated by lightly pinching her fingertips.
“Ouch” Shen Tinghe let out a soft, coquettish cry. Her voice was sweet and delicate, audible only to him.
“I haven’t even used any strength, and you’re already crying that it hurts.”
Xie Yanzhao chuckled softly, though his fingertips immediately loosened their grip.
“Yuanyuan, you’re becoming more and more spoiled.”
If they weren’t surrounded by so many eyes at this moment, he truly wanted to pull her into his arms and properly “teach her a lesson.”
She probably had no idea just how alluring she looked right now, with her eyes shimmering and her cheeks slightly flushed.
Xie Yanzhao shifted his arm and drew her a little closer to his side.
It was a possessive gesture, unmistakable and domineering, as though he were announcing to everyone present:
This was his Crown Princess.
No one else should even entertain the thought of coveting her.
The banquet continued, with the sounds of silk and bamboo instruments flowing endlessly and wine cups passing back and forth.
But after what had happened, everyone understood one thing clearly:
The Crown Princess of the Eastern Palace was the one thing His Highness absolutely could not tolerate anyone touching.