Shen Xining knew very well that she could not avoid this round. The emperor was not trying to embarrass her, but to embarrass the empress and the prince, and to establish his authority, to tell the civil and military officials that he was not dead yet, and was still a king whose words were final and could not be questioned. It was probably because the thieves in the border areas had been rampant recently, and the civil and military officials had been petitioning the emperor to marry a princess as soon as possible and sign a friendly treaty between the two countries, which made him very annoyed.
At this time, in another corner, the prince was drinking the wine in his hand. The spicy taste passed through his throat. His eyes dimmed, and the eunuch beside him asked in a low voice.
"Your Highness, aren't we going to rescue the future Crown Princess?"
Oh.
"Whether she is the Crown Princess is still unknown. Shen Xining is a rebellious person who doesn't obey discipline. She has met me several times but has not yet kowtowed. Let her temper down so that she can be more effective when she enters the palace in the future. And that old guy didn't mean to embarrass her. He just wanted to embarrass me and my mother in public. Little did he know that he really didn't have many days left. If that's the case, why should I rush forward to get scolded?"
After saying this, he leaned back against the rockery contentedly, watching the show leisurely.
A melodious flute sound came from somewhere in the room, interrupting the silence. Shen Xining was slightly startled, and saw Xie Zhaoan stepping in. The man's face was still pale, his lips were red and his teeth were white, and his black hair moved slightly with his movements, inexplicably lustful, but his fingers were slender, and they were pressed against the flute holes, like a fairy whetstone. Shen Xining was a little stunned. How could he...
The man's fingertips moved slightly, and the tone of the flute changed slightly, with a hint in the tone. Now was a good time to move with the music.
Yes, if Shen Xining was the only one dancing, no matter how fascinating her dance was, it would still bring shame to the aristocratic family. But if there was a man, and a royal man, it would be completely different.
Although I am unwilling, this is the way the world is.
Shen Xining stood up, her soft waist dancing to the sound of the flute, her arms flexible and pliable, the hairpin on her head swaying slightly with her movements, her long sleeves fluttering up and down, her upturned eyes full of charm, everyone around her couldn't help but stare in amazement.
But suddenly, the sound of the flute paused slightly, and he changed the tune again, on purpose!
Shen Xining didn't react for a moment, and her left foot tripped over her right foot, almost falling down. She gritted her teeth, prepared to bend down, complete a difficult move, and then stand up again, but her waist was gently lifted up by the jade flute. Although it was gentle, she could feel the internal force. Shen Xining stood up easily and continued to dance.
Everyone around them thought that this was a design by the two of them and they all applauded.
When the dance was over, the woman's nose was covered with sweat, and in the sunlight, the pores on her face seemed to be visible. The man stood beside her, gently stroked her chest with the flute, and saluted. The two of them were a beautiful sight just standing there.
"He is a prince, but he doesn't read books or discuss philosophy all day. He looks like a vagrant!"
But the emperor looked at Xie Zhaoan with resentment in his eyes. Xie Zhaoan coughed and his face became paler. The broken hair on his temples covered his small face, making it look even more feminine. The emperor sighed and seemed to have given up on Xie Zhaoan's idleness.
"Since you are not feeling well, you don't need to come to this occasion today."
The emperor turned his head and looked at Shen Xining, full of praise.
"You are really Ning An's daughter. Your dancing skills are not inferior to your mother's!"
Shen Xining was surprised that the emperor seemed to pay special attention to his mother.
The emperor sighed again and looked at the people around him with a turbid gaze that was filled with a strong sense of oppression.
"If my dynasty were full of women like you, I wouldn't have to worry so much. Today, we received another war report from the border, saying that the bandits from the border have invaded again. They have been repeatedly banned and their massive attacks have become more and more serious. It seems that they are about to annex my borderland! My dynasty is the Celestial Empire. When the late emperor was alive, we even achieved the feat of recovering twelve border cities in succession. Now, how can I face the late emperor in the future!?"
Everyone fell silent, no one dared to offend him at this time.
The emperor pointed at Shen Xining.
"Xining, when your mother was alive, she always loved discussing political affairs, and every time she talked about it, she could always unravel the mystery, making men like me feel ashamed. Today, why don't you come and talk about it? If so, what's wrong with marriage?"
The queen's face changed drastically and she stood up.
"Your Majesty, it is time to take the medicine. Let me take care of you and let you rest. You are not in good health now, so don't work too hard."
The emperor stared at Shen Xining and everyone else, his eyes full of disappointment.
This country and these people all just want the power in their hands. Everyone only thinks about their own little piece of land. No one has really thought about the future of this country.
Shen Xining stood up, his tone firm.
"Xining believes that marriage is inappropriate."
The Queen stared at her, her tone fierce and warning.
"Miss Shen, women should not discuss politics. Don't think that everyone can act as recklessly as your mother!"
"But you can say it!"
Shen Xining straightened her back. Her back felt a little weak, but her mind was unusually clear. Countless pairs of eyes were staring at her, watching what she would say.
"I am a humble and ignorant person, I am just expressing my thoughts out of a patriotic heart. If there are any inappropriate remarks or inappropriate words, I hope Your Majesty will not worry about them!"
"I think that the dispute between Xijiang and our dynasty has lasted for hundreds of years. The so-called marriage is just a delaying tactic and an insult to our dynasty. Our dynasty has no shortage of brave and skilled warriors. It would be better to gather the manpower, material resources and financial resources of the world to attack first and attack three cities in a row to deter Xijiang. Then, we can propose a trade treaty to promote exchanges between the two countries through free trade. On the one hand, both sides can achieve peace, and on the other hand, it can stabilize our dynasty's border economy. Why not do it!"
"Good! Good! Good!"
The emperor stood up slowly and walked with difficulty. The eunuch beside him wanted to help him, but he waved his hand to indicate that it was not necessary. He slowly walked down the steps, helped Shen Xining up, and laughed towards the sky, but he could only laugh twice and started coughing again.
"Good! As expected of Ning An's daughter, as expected of the Shen family's daughter, she has quite the demeanor of a noble family!"
He looked around, and wherever he could see, he saw people kneeling. They were all civil and military officials, who usually wore official uniforms, but now they were all prostrated on the ground, looking extremely miserable. No one dared to look up.
"Listen! This is the style of our great country! The Xijiang River is not even as big as a county in our dynasty, but it is full of vulgar people. They have forced our great country into such a cowardly state. Wouldn't it make me infamous forever? Come on! Pass it on, tell General Jiang Wei to select a day to organize the army and set off to the border. The whole country should mobilize supplies to support this battle!"