Chapter 16: I, the Emperor, Forbid Marital Alliances

Chapter 16: I Forbid Marriage Alliances

The other three ladies' maids had clearly heard the news too and told their mistresses.

So basically, if you had silver, you could eat.

That was easy enough, right?

The harem was boring, and with no Empress Dowager cracking the whip, these ladies all came from loaded families—silver was the last thing they were short on.

"Alright, we've eaten our fill. I'll come see you another day, sis. I'm heading out."

Consort Yu, failing to show off, got all huffy and stormed off, with the delicate Consort Qin trailing behind.

Huang Shuyi was bored too, but she had to get back to the storybook her dad had secretly smuggled in for her, so she wasn't sticking around either.

Watching the three of them waddle off after stuffing their faces without a single nice word, Shen Shining rolled her eyes in annoyance again.

"Xiao Lan! Get this table out of here! Bring in a bigger one."

"Yes, Your Highness."

...

In the Hall of Mental Cultivation, General Chang Yuan had just been called in by Yun Ran to talk business.

"Chang Yuan, you haven't eaten yet, right? Eat here first, then we'll talk."

"Your servant thanks Your Majesty for this great honor."

Chang Yuan stepped aside to eat. When he saw the braised pork, his eyes lit up. He took a bite, and his face lit up with emotion—but then it dimmed just as fast.

Yun Ran had sharp eyes. She waved her hand, and Yuan Bao quickly leaned in.

"Is my Grand General okay? Why's he looking so glum?"

Eunuch Yuan pondered for a moment before hesitantly replying,

"Probably because his daughter went off for a marriage alliance today, so he's feeling a bit down."

A marriage alliance?!

Yun Ran was stunned—how the hell hadn't she heard about this?

Seeing the Emperor's face, Eunuch Yuan dutifully explained,

"This marriage alliance was set up back in the Grand Emperor's day. Since Beixiang was basically at the city gates back then, the Grand Emperor had no choice but to agree that when the Beixiang Crown Prince turned sixteen, he'd marry General Chang Yuan's daughter, Chang Chun. And for this, Chang Chun was even given the title Lady of Pingyang."

Yun Ran thought about it and, yeah, she did recall it.

Dan Junlin's dad had only one son and not a single daughter.

Guess his mom was pretty good at her game, 'cause besides him, there were no other kids in the whole palace.

With no princess to spare, they had to use a minister's daughter for the marriage alliance.

"Today's the day of the marriage alliance?"

"Yes, two days ago, the Beixiang envoys already came to pick her up. They should be past Shanhaiguan by now."

"And what about the betrothal gifts?!"

"They were never given, even back in the Grand Emperor's reign. This marriage was forced on us, Your Majesty."

Eunuch Lou didn't dare say it was because Yanchi was weak that they were basically being robbed blind...

This was absolutely outrageous!

In ancient times, women sent off for marriage alliances rarely ended up well, and Beixiang was flat-out robbing them.

But she obviously couldn't just charge in now—first, Yun Ran's army hadn't had any real military training yet, and second, the weapons weren't even developed.

"Yuan Bao, is Beixiang short on cash?"

"Yeah, they're poor too, a bunch of barbarians. But their folks are big and burly with strong cavalry, so we really..."

If they were short on cash, then this was easy.

"Today, bring the diplomatic envoys with me. We're bringing Chang Chun back!"

"Huh? Your Majesty, don't tell me you've taken a fancy to..."

Eunuch Lou didn't dare finish that thought about the General's daughter.

"Bullshit! The women of Yanchi don't marry out! We'll negotiate and pay compensation."

A little silver was nothing to Yun Ran.

Give her two months, and once the weapons and troops were ready, she'd take it back anyway. They were going to swallow up other nations sooner or later—it was just a matter of time.

"So we don't marry out, but what about foreign princesses marrying in?"

Xiao Yuanzi butted in curiously.

Yun Ran gave a mysterious smile,

"What's there to be afraid of with foreign princesses marrying in? We of Yanchi gotta have class—of course we'll take them."

Yuan Bao's mouth twitched.

So we won't give away our princesses and ladies, but if other countries offer up theirs, we'll shamelessly take them.

His Majesty really was a shameless rogue through and through...

"Enough! Tell Chang Yuan to muster thirty thousand troops from the Chang Family Army and come along."

"Yes, yes, right away!"

Eunuch Yuan scurried off to pass along the order.

"Clatter!"

Chang Yuan froze, the spoon slipping from his hand and clattering to the floor.

Two seconds later, his eyes got all red.

"Really? His Majesty really said that?!"

Chang Yuan doted on his daughter—he had two sons, but only one girl.

The marriage alliance was decided by the late emperor, and he couldn't refuse it. He never imagined the emperor would go this far...

Even so, Chang Yuan calmed down and, his heart heavy with pain, knelt before the emperor to dissuade him,

"Your Majesty, I'm endlessly grateful you're willing to save Chang Chun, and I'd die a thousand deaths without a second thought. But Your Majesty, please reconsider. You can't just back out of a marriage alliance; it could easily strain relations between the two nations and spark unrest."

"What are you afraid of? I'm not! In my realm, I won't allow a single Yanchi woman to be sent off for a marriage alliance. Do you have any idea what happens to those women?"

Chang Yuan squeezed his eyes shut, his whole body trembling.

He knew all too well—there were plenty of such cases in neighboring lands, and most of them didn't even end up with their bodies intact...

That was his daughter, after all.

"Your subject..."

Tears streamed down Chang Yuan's aged face. He wished he could lead the Chang Family Army to snatch his daughter back halfway, but he was a subject! He couldn't do something like that.

When the late emperor had issued that decree back then, his wife had sobbed the whole night through,

cursing him for being a general, demanding what good the title of county lady did when her daughter had ended up in such a state...

Yun Ran saw Chang Yuan spacing out, probably lost in some painful memories,

"Enough reminiscing! Round up the troops and come with me. If we wait any longer and they cross the Yumen Pass, we'll never catch up."

Chang Yuan still held back, torn inside,

He couldn't drag the emperor into trouble or abandon the realm for his daughter's sake.

"Enough. If we skip the marriage alliance, it's just a matter of paying compensation. We just seized a household's assets a few days ago, so the treasury isn't exactly empty right now. If you feel bad, just train your troops well and take a few more cities for me. Consider your debt settled. Deal?"

"Your subject would die a thousand deaths without regret!"

By the time Chang Yuan looked up, tears streaming down his weathered face, the emperor was already gone.

"Hurry, Lord Chang. If we're late, we won't make it."

A young eunuch reminded him, and Chang Yuan, thinking of his daughter again, hastily rushed out of the palace in a panic to gather his troops at home.

On Yun Ran's side, Eunuch Yuan also delivered an oral decree to the Court of Diplomatic Affairs,

ordering the diplomatic envoy Li Yuanfang to accompany them on the journey to intercept the bridal escort.

As for Chang Yuan, the moment he left the palace gate, the servant on the carriage outside had not even reacted,

"Master, huh?"

He watched in astonishment as Chang Yuan untied the horse's tack, spurred the horse into a gallop, and raced home.

"Bang!"

The gate was suddenly pushed open, and the servants at the door were nearly knocked flying by Chang Yuan's horse's hooves.

"Chang Qing! Chang Jiu!"

Chang Yuan's eldest son, Chang Qing, and second son, Chang Jiu, heard the servants report that their father had suddenly rushed home and hurried out.

"Father, why did you suddenly return?"

"Quick! Gather 30,000 elite troops. The emperor is taking us to bring Chang Chun back!"