The next day.
Despite feeling slightly unwell, the envoys from the Northern Cold still requested an audience with the emperor and the empress. They explained their purpose to the emperor: it was none other than a marriage alliance.
The emperor was puzzled as to why this was the case. The envoy said that, as a sign of their sincerity, they would specially return the two cities of Xingzhui and Yelai.
Only then did Ji Feiyu and the emperor understand why they had gone to such great lengths to capture the two cities. It turned out that they were afraid that without some leverage, they would have no chance of forming a marriage alliance with the Great Yong Dynasty.
At this moment, Ji Feiyu and the emperor were sitting in the imperial garden, receiving the two envoys. Hearing this, they exchanged a look. Then Ji Feiyu smiled and said, "So the Northern Cold wants to form a marriage alliance with our Great Yong. If it is for peace, why did they start the war first?"
The bearded man clasped his fists and smiled. He no longer looked as embarrassed as he had the day before. However, there was a hint of shame in his eyes when he talked about this topic. "Ahem, that was the doing of some disobedient rebel troops in the Northern Cold. It was not the intention of the Northern Cold. The real intention of the Northern Cold was to form a marriage alliance with the Great Yong. But before we could discuss it with the Great Yong, the rebel troops took action, catching us off guard. Now that the rebellion in the Northern Cold has been quelled, we will naturally return your cities. So we took this opportunity to discuss the matter of the marriage alliance with your country."
What a glib tongue! Ji Feiyu looked at the bearded man, but accidentally met the narrow phoenix eyes of the man beside him. Ji Feiyu didn't understand why he always stared at her.
On the other side, Yong Yaxuan laughed heartily. "A marriage alliance between the Northern Cold and the Great Yong is indeed a good thing. But the Northern Cold's rude attack has put me in a difficult position. I'm afraid just returning the two cities won't appease the anger of our people in the Great Yong!"
"So what does the emperor mean?" The fair - skinned man finally spoke. His phoenix eyes sparkled when he raised them.
Yong Yaxuan smiled. "At least they should offer compensation and tributes, right?"
The man's eyes suddenly dimmed. He lowered his eyes and looked at the bearded man. The bearded man smiled and said, "The Northern Cold will surely compensate for your country's losses. But it seems unnecessary to offer annual tributes..."
Ji Feiyu smiled. "Could it be that the Northern Cold doesn't even have this bit of sincerity? As everyone knows, the emperor and I don't have any heirs yet. Maybe it's a bit too early to talk about a marriage alliance."
But the fair - skinned man laughed. "Doesn't the emperor have a younger sister?"
Yong Yaxuan's eyes suddenly turned cold. "What does my younger sister have to do with the marriage alliance?"
Seeing this, Ji Feiyu also said, "This younger sister is the apple of the emperor's eye. If the Northern Cold doesn't show some sincerity, it will be difficult to marry her. As for the two cities of Xing and Ye, if you don't want to return them, then the two countries can go to war. The Great Yong will no longer entertain guests. You two may leave!"
Seeing that the emperor and the empress refused to give in, the bearded man finally wavered. He looked at the fair - skinned man for advice, which further confirmed that the fair - skinned man was not an ordinary person.
Seeing this, the fair - skinned man had no choice but to say reluctantly, "In that case, the Northern Cold is willing to pay compensation and offer tributes! So can we finalize the marriage alliance?"
He suddenly looked at Ji Feiyu, with an indescribable look of inquiry in his eyes. Ji Feiyu was provoked by his look and replied, "It can be finalized!"
As soon as she said this, Yong Yaxuan became anxious. "My dear... Ran Wei is in such a situation. How can you let her go for the marriage alliance!"
Ji Feiyu replied, "Your Majesty may not know. It's precisely because of this that she should go out and see the world!"
"Then you go and persuade her. I won't interfere!" After saying that, he glanced at Ji Feiyu and left, seemingly quite dissatisfied with her.
Obviously, both of them were aware of the national interests involved in the marriage alliance. They just didn't want to be the bad guys.
Ji Feiyu walked slowly towards the Qiwu Palace, lost in thought. But on the way, she met Concubine Ru, who was dressed up gorgeously. There were also palace servants carrying food boxes behind her.
As soon as Concubine Ru saw Ji Feiyu, she immediately smiled brightly. "Oh, Your Majesty the Empress's foot is healed already? It's really a blessing from heaven..."
Ji Feiyu could tell that she meant something else, but she didn't care. She just smiled faintly. "It was just a sprain. It's nothing serious."
But Concubine Ru exaggeratedly exclaimed, "A sprained foot is not a trivial matter! Last time, Concubine Zhen accidentally sprained her foot and it took her one or two months to recover. Is Your Majesty the Empress not as precious as Concubine Zhen?"
Ji Feiyu immediately understood that she was trying to sow discord and at the same time, belittle her background. Ji Feiyu didn't argue with her. Instead, she put her arm around Concubine Ru and said, "It's rare to meet you, sister. Why don't you go with me to the imperial garden to enjoy the snow scenery?"
Seeing Ji Feiyu suddenly being so affectionate towards her, Concubine Ru quickly declined. "Oh, what a pity. I also want to accompany you, sister. But I'm going to send some snacks to the emperor now."
Hearing this, Ji Feiyu stopped pretending to be affectionate. She had to show the dignity of the main empress. "The emperor is very busy. I just came from the emperor. He is discussing matters with the envoys and said that he doesn't want to be disturbed by anyone. It may not be appropriate for you to go there now, Concubine Ru."
Hearing this, Concubine Ru raised her willow eyebrows and immediately smiled. "Then I'll accompany Your Majesty the Empress to the imperial garden to enjoy the snow scenery."
Ji Feiyu nodded. Then, supported by Concubine Ru, they walked towards the imperial garden with their respective maids.
As soon as they entered the imperial garden, they saw a vast expanse of white snow covering the palace walls and pavilions. Except for the stone - paved paths where the snow had been swept away by the palace servants, the rest of the ground was covered with soft snow. There were still some evergreen trees in the imperial garden, which were now covered in a soft white coat, presenting a unique scenery. The pond under the winding corridor was covered with a thin layer of ice, and colorful carp could still be seen swimming under the ice.
Concubine Ru was not interested in the scenery on this trip. Taking the opportunity, she whispered beside Ji Feiyu, "I really don't know if the envoys from the Northern Cold are stupid or deliberately provoking us. They even dared to ask Your Majesty the Empress to dance. Fortunately, Your Majesty is smart and had a good countermeasure. You neither damaged the prestige of our Great Yong nor gave a good lesson to those two barbarians from the foreign lands. It made us sisters very happy to watch."
Ji Feiyu was looking at the beautiful scenery in the garden and didn't answer. Hearing this, she pointed at the fish in the pond and said, "Let's go over there and take a look."
Hearing this, Concubine Ru quickly supported her and walked over.
Ji Feiyu said, "Look at the fish at the bottom of the pond, Concubine Ru. It seems that they have survived this cold winter. But they are just lucky to be raised in this deep palace. If they were in the wild, with food shortages and difficult living conditions, this thin layer of ice would not be able to stop the claws of the hunters. Maybe you've never seen how fish are caught under the ice in winter, have you?"
Hearing this, Concubine Ru felt a sudden chill in her heart. She knew that Ji Feiyu was using this opportunity to warn her, so she stopped talking.
After all these years in the palace, Ji Feiyu must have had some means to control these concubines. But she couldn't remember exactly which year she had completely subdued them, nor when they had started causing trouble again...
Seeing that Concubine Ru had restrained herself, Ji Feiyu walked out of the winding corridor arrogantly with her. But unexpectedly, not long after they walked out, they met the imperial carriage of the empress dowager.