"The martial world is full of dangers," Li Yang chuckled with a fake smile. "I also want to see the young master, but if we delay any longer, the Consort's head will be so green it can outrun horses!"
These were not words to be spoken lightly. As soon as Li Yang said them, a hush fell over the surroundings. Even the dark guards, who were not particularly familiar with Lu Qing Wan, wore expressions of terror.
Li Qing was also startled and quickly pulled Li Yang further away from the door. He then lowered his voice and whispered, "Do you know what you're saying? You know the temperaments of the Prince and Consort, are these words one can casually utter?"
Li Yang was both angry and anxious. "Of course I know the Prince and Consort's temperaments, but look for yourself. Is this something I can conceal just because I don't want to say it?"
A thick stack of papers landed in Li Qing's hands. He browsed through them suspiciously, and the more he read, the more his expression soured. By the time he finished reading the content on the last page, his expression could no longer be described as merely sour.
He calmly collected the papers, his face ashen, and asked, "Has all the intelligence been verified?"
"Once the date for the enthronement ceremony is set, Southern Qi, the Tujue, and even the Qin and Xirong, along with other small, unorganized tribes, will come to offer congratulations. According to the latest intelligence from our brothers, most of these envoys are bringing more than one woman of various appearances. They say it's a gift to congratulate the Prince on his enthronement, but in reality, they want to stuff people into the Prince's harem. Even though the Prince has repeatedly issued pronouncements, no one actually believes the Prince is willing to forgo a harem for the Consort."
Li Qing's face was grim. "Who else has seen this intelligence?"
"Only Li Jin. After he saw it, he personally led people to find this woman who claims to be carrying the Prince's child. He asked me to deliver this intelligence to the Prince and Consort."
Indeed, the intelligence brought by Li Yang not only informed them that various countries would use the guise of congratulations during the enthronement ceremony to stuff people into Si Feng Wu's harem. It also told them that a woman claimed to be pregnant with Si Feng Wu's child and was inquiring about Si Feng Wu's whereabouts. The woman had not yet appeared, but the news of Si Feng Wu having an illegitimate child was already spreading like wildfire, known to everyone.
Upon hearing this, Li Qing said without hesitation, "You stay here and serve the Prince and Consort diligently with Li Su. I will go help Li Jin find this mysterious woman. I want to see what kind of woman can conceive the Prince's child from afar. If she is so capable, the Tujue should invite her to the grasslands and worship her."
As Li Qing finished speaking, he strode away aggressively. Li Yang and the guards, however, felt an inappropriate urge to laugh. The Tujue were a sparsely populated land. Every time they invaded the Central Plains, they not only plundered food and wealth but also abducted many women to help them procreate. Naturally, the Central Plains countries would not allow the Tujue to act with impunity on their territory, and the women abducted by the Tujue were far from enough to meet their procreation needs. If there truly were a miraculous woman capable of conceiving from afar, as described by Li Qing, the Tujue would probably be unable to resist worshipping her as a goddess.
It was indeed a joke worth laughing at, but thinking about the context of this joke, Li Yang couldn't laugh. Seeing that he hadn't moved for a long time, a guard cautiously asked him, "Aren't you going to report to the Prince and Consort? Such important intelligence, it wouldn't be good to delay."
The intelligence brought by Li Yang, on the surface, seemed like someone was trying to sow discord between Si Feng Wu and Lu Qing Wan. However, considering their identities, this intelligence was of utmost importance. If it were not handled properly in advance, Si Feng Wu and Lu Qing Wan would be in a predicament during the enthronement ceremony.
Although Li Yang was usually boisterous and seemed a bit foolish, he had been by Si Feng Wu's side for so many years, and his intelligence was certainly online. Hearing this, he glanced in the direction of the room where Si Feng Wu and Lu Qing Wan were staying and said coldly, "Have someone prepare a meal. I will report after the Prince and Consort have finished eating, so as not to spoil their appetite and make them lose their desire to eat due to anger."
The guard acknowledged and left. Li Yang then stood by the door with his sword, no longer rushing to annoy Lu Qing Wan. He patiently waited for Lu Qing Wan and Si Feng Wu to finish their meal before presenting the information.
As expected, Lu Qing Wan and Si Feng Wu were not entirely pleased, but they did not fly into a rage. Lu Qing Wan still wore a smile. "The Princess of Tujue, the beauties of Southern Qi, and even those insignificant small tribes like Xirong, Beiqi, and Nanyue are sending beauties. Here's also a beauty who is pregnant, asking for no wealth or status, only for the Prince to accept the child in her womb. Such virtue, the Prince has an abundance of romantic fortune, doesn't he?"
Lu Qing Wan's smile was radiant, but Si Feng Wu couldn't laugh. "Don't make fun of me. We both know that the abundance of romantic fortune belongs to the position of the founding monarch of Tian Feng, not me. As for that child, it's even more of a phantom."
As he spoke, his eyes suddenly became extremely strange. He then held Lu Qing Wan's hand and said, "Ah Wan, if I don't become Emperor, what will you do?"
"Do you even need to ask? Naturally, I'd find someone to take the blame, and then go back to Tian Xuan City to be my mountain bandit king!" Lu Qing Wan was so excited that she almost dragged Si Feng Wu away.
Si Feng Wu was still probing cautiously. "If you can't be Empress, you don't care?"
Lu Qing Wan chuckled. "Do you think I need to care about the title of Empress?" With her current strength, how many emperors of dynasties could not compare to her freedom and ease? Empress, if the person who was about to become Emperor were not Si Feng Wu, Lu Qing Wan would find it beneath her.
Si Feng Wu, however, said something astonishing. "Since you don't mind who becomes the ruler, why don't we play a bigger game this time?"
Lu Qing Wan eyed him warily. "What mischief are you up to now?"
Si Feng Wu pulled her closer and whispered something in her ear, successfully leaving Lu Qing Wan stunned for a long time. It was only after Si Feng Wu had finished speaking that she regained her senses and, in an interrogative tone, asked, "Tell me honestly, have you been planning this all along?"
Si Feng Wu rubbed his nose. "Well, those people from Qin, seeing that I and the elder brother are siblings, have always wanted to use this relationship to make Tian Feng a vassal state of Qin for free. We've refused so many times, yet they haven't stopped. I was thinking, if the ruler of Tian Feng were to change their surname, would that make them shut up?"
Lu Qing Wan sneered coldly. "Is it purely for that reason?"
Seeing that the conversation could still proceed, Si Feng Wu quickly added, "The world is accustomed to men having three wives and four concubines, and even more accustomed to rulers having harems. As long as I am Emperor, they will never give up the idea of stuffing people into my harem. But if you were to be Emperor, it would be different. You, a woman, ascend the throne. The ingrained thinking of those old conservatives would not allow them to stuff people into your harem. And with you as Emperor and me as the Emperor's Consort, they would not dare risk offending you by stuffing people to me. Wouldn't that be a solution for all time?"