My stepsister tried to steal the prince's hand in marriage, but little did she know I had been

Chapter 191 Negotiation

This move was risky, but also very profitable.

This was the emperor's first thought.

The current Northern Di king is eyeing the Great Li with covetous intent. Although the Northern Di are much weaker than the Great Li, their frequent incursions have always caused great suffering to the people on the border.

But Yelü Dan's daughter was different.

She's a smart woman; she knows how to conserve her energy.

With Yelü Dan as the King of the Northern Di, the border will be safe and secure for the next ten years.

The emperor's mind had already tipped. He glanced at Xie Jinghan out of the corner of his eye, and seeing that Xie Jinghan remained unmoved, he finally sighed, "I'm too old to manage these matters anymore."

"Since you already have a plan in mind, then proceed according to your plan." The emperor said this to Xie Jinghan. "I have only one request: put yourself first in everything!"

At this point, the emperor patted Xie Jinghan on the shoulder and turned to leave with the empress.

General Chu stood aside, having heard the whole story clearly, and a hint of worry appeared in his eyes.

"Yaoyao." He stood beside Wen Shuyao and asked in a low voice, "Are you and she... injured?"

The person General Chu was referring to was Yelü Dan.

He had heard of Yelü Dan, the princess of the Northern Di, when he was on the border.

Knowing that Yelü Dan was ruthless and resourceful, and was one of the very few intelligent people in the Northern Di, they realized that Yelü Dan was a capable and resourceful individual.

He was always worried that Wen Shuyao would suffer losses when dealing with Yelü Dan.

Wen Shuyao glanced at Yelü Dan out of the corner of her eye, then affectionately took General Chu's hand: "Don't worry, I didn't suffer any loss."

“Although Yelü Dan is favored and capable, she is a woman, and the Northern Di King will never willingly hand over the throne to her.” Wen Shuyao lowered her voice. “Therefore, her cooperation with us is imperative.”

“Her previous cooperation with Prince Xin had failed, and Prince Xin tried to kill her to incite conflict between the two countries.” Meeting the still worried gaze of the old general of Chu, she explained, “But if she cooperates with us, she can not only get 200,000 taels of silver, but also possibly… seize the throne of the Northern Di. Why not?”

"Don't worry about it." Wen Shuyao hugged his arm and shook it. "Your granddaughter is very clever!"

Upon hearing this, General Chu rubbed his furrowed brow and sighed deeply, "I know you're intelligent, but..."

As he finished speaking, that thought came to mind.

"Yaoyao, why don't you leave the capital to avoid the storm?" General Chu said in a low voice. "Jiangnan is a nice place. How about I have your maternal grandmother accompany you to Jiangnan to relax?"

He left the capital with Xie Jinghan to create the illusion that the capital was poorly defended, and the defenses in the capital would not be as strict as before. In this way, Wen Shuyao's identity would make her the target of everyone's attacks.

General Chu was extremely worried and was already thinking hard about how to help Wen Shuyao avoid this turmoil.

To everyone's surprise, Wen Shuyao waved her hand and said, "Don't forget, I am currently a criminal."

Wen Shuyao lowered her voice: "If I leave, Prince Xin will definitely become suspicious."

Upon hearing this, General Chu was furious: "If it weren't for him... you wouldn't have suffered this undeserved calamity!"

The more satisfied he was with Xie Jinghan before, the more he now despises him.

He never imagined that his beloved granddaughter would be involved in these troubles, especially since Prince Xin was treacherous and unpredictable, and Wen Shuyao was in the same capital as him, which posed a great risk.

General Chu was filled with worry, and he would glare at Xie Jinghan every now and then.

"Let me think about it carefully," General Chu said softly, rubbing his temples. "I need to think about how to protect you."

Before Wen Shuyao could speak, he gently pressed down on her shoulder: "Shuyao, your grandmother and I... our only regret is that we couldn't protect your mother."

“If we had left more people behind back then, and if we had cared for her more, she wouldn’t have been harmed by that despicable couple.” General Chu lowered his voice at this moment. “This time, we will never repeat the same mistake.”

Wen Shuyao wanted to politely refuse, but the words stuck in her throat. When her mother died, the most heartbroken people were none other than General Chu and his wife.

Their mother was the apple of their eye. They were heartbroken at the time. Upon receiving news of her death, they rushed back from the border. However, at that time, she was of low status and could only watch helplessly as her mother was buried by the Duke of Wen.

They raised their mother for over ten years, but they didn't even get to see her one last time.

This incident has likely become a nightmare for them.

Wen Shuyao paused for a moment, then nodded: "I've already thought about this, so you can rest assured."

Under General Chu's suspicious gaze, Wen Shuyao whispered, "Before the prince leaves the capital, he will request an imperial decree from His Majesty to allow me to stay at home and reflect on my mistakes."

"Having made such a grave mistake, I naturally cannot stay at the Prince Jing's residence," Wen Shuyao explained. "I will stay at Quanshui Manor for a while."

"Quanshui Village is located outside the city, at the foot of Yanshan Mountain."

"If anything unforeseen happens, I will lead my men to escape into the Yanshan Mountains. The Yanshan Mountains are so vast, how could Prince Xin's men possibly be distracted to look for me?"

Wen Shuyao's few words greatly soothed General Chu's anxious heart.

After a moment of silence, General Chu said, "Then I will leave a few of my personal guards behind..."

"No!" Wen Shuyao quickly shook her head. "These personal guards can play a big role when necessary. Wouldn't it be a waste of their talents to leave them to me?"

"Don't worry, with so many guards at Prince Jing's residence, they will definitely protect me."

The grandfather and grandson were whispering to each other, and it was hard for the emperor to ignore them.

The emperor waved his hand and said, "Minister Chu, rest assured, I will send shadow guards to protect Yao Yao."

"Why don't you, Your Majesty, also stay at Quanshui Manor for a few days..." He hesitated for a moment.

The Empress said helplessly, "It's understandable that Yaoyao can go to Quanshui Manor to reflect on her mistakes, but if I go, Prince Xin will definitely become suspicious."

What kind of logic is it for the Empress to stay in the inner palace and reflect on her mistakes behind closed doors?

Seeing that this plan was not working, the emperor frowned and began to think of other solutions.

The Empress spoke up: "Your Majesty, even if you don't trust me, you shouldn't distrust Jing Han."

"Has Jing Han disappointed you all these years?" The Empress looked at the Emperor and said in a low voice, "Jing Han is meticulous in his calculations. The mere Prince Xin will only be his defeated opponent."

"Besides, Jing Han set a trap to lure him into a coup. By the time he does, Jing Han and General Chu might already be back with their troops," the Empress reassured softly. "You don't need to worry too much."

Even so, the emperor still frowned and gave Xie Jinghan several pointers.

By the time the discussions ended, the sun had already set.

Under the cover of the guards of the Prince's Palace, Yelü Dan boarded Wen Shuyao's carriage and left the palace with the Jing Prince's entourage.