Remarrying Chun Yuan

Chapter 360 Connection

Qin Muyan stared at the letter from the State of Chu in front of her for a long time, pondering deeply.

Fu Yue, the eunuch, said nothing more and quietly left, blending into the ranks of the palace servants to prepare for Prince Chun's funeral.

After some time, another person entered through the door.

"Your Highness, it is time to go and pray for His Highness the Prince."

The speaker was Huang Fan.

Not long after he arrived in the west, Prince Chun left for the capital.

Qin Muyan slowly raised her head and looked at him, "How come you're still alive?"

"I'm glad I didn't die, Your Highness, but I'm doing quite well." Huang Fan said respectfully and calmly. Back in the capital, he had brought down many people in the Third Prince's faction.

Of course, he didn't show any mercy to the Crown Prince's men either, so no one could find any fault with Huang Fan.

"You really are lucky. Your father has been good to you too." Qin Muyan was unaware of the connection between him and Yuan Cuo. She thought that her father had been planning to send Huang Fan to the west because he had long wanted to deal with Prince Chun.

"Your Majesty is the peerless emperor of the Great Qi. Your imperial grace towards me is boundless, and I am extremely grateful. However, we can talk about this later, since I will be with Your Highness for a long time... Your Highness should hurry up and tidy your clothes. It would be best not to delay the time ahead." Huang Fan remained respectful.

Qin Muyan glanced at him sideways, her expression complex.

Unrivaled Emperor?

He had an affair with his younger brother's woman and even had a child with her?

He was at a loss for words to evaluate Emperor Qi Xiao. His heart was in turmoil, but he could only remain silent on the surface.

"I really don't want to see you. You'd better find a way to get back to the capital, or I'll find a reason to kill you here."

Qin Muyan stood up, straightened her clothes, and went out.

Huang Fan followed them away, but then felt a pair of eyes looking at him. He turned around and saw Eunuch Fu Yue kneeling on the ground wiping the coffin of Prince Chun.

His gaze lingered for only a few seconds before he went to do his work...

Seeing Huang Fan leave, Qin Muyan summoned Eunuch Fuyue and said, "I don't want to see this person. Send him back to the capital... Also, I want to see the person mentioned in the letter. And Wei Gongming, I want him to come to the west."

He made three requests, and Fu Yue immediately accepted them and continued with his work.

……

At this time, the delegations from Chu and Yan had already entered the territory of Qi. They would arrive in the capital in four days.

Emperor Qi Xiao listened attentively as his courtiers reported on the progress of the missions. "...Since the missions from both countries entered the country, the Lu family army has dispatched three thousand cavalrymen to follow them. The Court of State Ceremonial has already arranged a reception area right at the gate of the capital."

"Minister Yuan's idea is that if the talks go well, the delegation can be invited to the capital to be received by His Majesty. If the talks do not go well, there is no need for the city to make great preparations to entertain them; they can simply go home."

Emperor Qi Xiao: "..."

Ministers: "..."

Throughout history, none of the seven kingdoms has ever treated an envoy in such a manner.

"Isn't this going a bit too far? If we are criticized for being rude by the State of Chu, wouldn't that just mean another war?"

"Your Majesty, this is absolutely unacceptable. Such arrogance and domineering behavior is not the way our Great Qi treats its guests. This also gives the Yan and Chu states a handle to use against us. I urge Your Majesty to have Minister Yuan rearrange things."

"I second that opinion. This is deliberately provoking war, and it is not the strategy of our Great Qi!"

"Why doesn't Minister Yuan come to court? Such a big matter, yet he doesn't show up in person. Your Majesty, I think it would be more prudent to send a member of the royal family to handle this matter."

……

The officials were all dissatisfied. After all, Yuan Cuo had been causing chaos in the Six Ministries, keeping them up at night, while he had been absent from every morning court session and even sent people from the Court of State Ceremonial to his home to discuss matters. It was utterly absurd!

Wei Tianxuan was already tired of hearing about it.

Yuan Cuo never came, so naturally he was left to listen to the officials' insults and complaints. Originally, he also complained that Yuan Cuo was somewhat arrogant, but now it seems that he was made to take the blame. Otherwise, he would waste his time answering these noisy officials every day and would have no time to do anything serious.

Wei Tianxuan stood with his hands clasped, his mind already wandering far away, and the buzzing in his ears didn't need to register with him at all.

Emperor Qi Xiao had no idea that Yuan Cuo would actually set up such a trap.

Even if he were the emperor of the Great Qi, he wouldn't dare do that!

"Then who do you recommend?" Emperor Qi Xiao finally lost his patience with the clamor and directly asked his ministers to make recommendations.

Everyone looked at the Left and Right Chancellors, who, like Wei Tianxuan, remained silent, as if they had no intention of getting involved in the matter at all.

But the court officials thought about it carefully: the third prince had already gone to the west, and the crown prince was seriously ill.

The other princes are indifferent to worldly affairs, and it seems there is truly no one who can handle this matter on behalf of the Great Qi.

"How about we ask the Duke of Jingguo to intervene?" someone suggested.

“The old Duke has been unwell lately and is not very convenient,” said the Duke of Jing’s son, stepping forward to immediately excuse his father.

"Then why not have the Minister of War take charge, since it involves matters of war..."

"I am no match for Governor-General Chen's bravery and dare not take on this great responsibility." The Minister of War also declined immediately. He did not want to stand out. He had some dealings with the Jiang family army before, but now the Jiang family had been implicated by the Third Prince and had fallen silent. He was not going to be the first to stick his neck out.

The court officials then turned their attention to the Left and Right Chancellors.

But these two people were like two stakes in the imperial court, completely unmoved and making no clues.

After considering all options, there was indeed no more suitable candidate.

The ministers' resentment gradually subsided. Although they were dissatisfied with Yuan Cuo, they indeed had no one more suitable.

In truth, they all hoped that Emperor Qi Xiao would personally receive them, but no one dared to say so. Moreover, Yuan Cuo deliberately put Yan and Chu on the top spot and elevated Emperor Qi Xiao to a high position. They forcibly dragged Emperor Qi Xiao down from his pedestal, which meant that he was indeed not far from death.

"So, no one has any objections?" Emperor Qi Xiao had long been tired of having his time wasted by this group of people.

The ministers remained silent.

Emperor Qi Xiao looked directly at Cheng Hai, who then announced the adjournment of the court.

Upon hearing those two words, Wei Tianxuan immediately turned around and tried to run away, but Cheng Hai stopped him and dragged him directly to the Imperial Study.

"What's going on with Yuan Cuo? Does he really intend to hold the negotiations on the city gate tower?" Although Emperor Qi Xiao had adjourned the court, he was still deeply concerned about the matter.

Wei Tianxuan shrugged. "That's what Minister Yuan told me, and I don't think he was lying."

Emperor Qi Xiao: "..."

"You are all ministers who assist him, didn't you try to persuade him? Even if it were within the city, it would be the same thing. Why give Chu and Yan a show of force right from the start?"

Wei Tianxuan looked up at Emperor Qi Xiao, “Didn’t Your Majesty once give the golden words, instructing us to follow Minister Yuan’s instructions? We do not consider ourselves as wise, resourceful, brave, and courageous as Minister Yuan, who is wise in his foolishness, far-sighted, and intelligent as a man…” He uttered a few words.

Emperor Qi Xiao slammed his hand on the table. "You might as well just say you're not as cunning as him!"