Can't a princess ascend the throne?

Chapter 285 The Grassland Mission
No one cared about Mu Yanchun's death. On the contrary, many people couldn't help but laugh out loud when they learned of the pain he suffered in his death. They were extremely pleased and even got drunk! The more painful the death of such an inhuman person was, the happier they were. Otherwise, how could they comfort the spirits of their loved ones in heaven?

Because Mu Yanchun implicated too many people and his actions were too heinous, Emperor Jingtai didn't wait for the autumn execution; after clarifying the evidence, he executed him on the same day! The execution ground in the capital was littered with heads, and the autumn chill deepened.

Just as the autumn breeze was blowing, an envoy from the grasslands swaggered into the capital. Prior to this, Jiuque had already heard in the court that this year's winter on the grasslands was unusually harsh. Therefore, the grassland people had specially sent envoys to sue for peace! Suing for peace—this was truly a rare phrase. The Central Plains and the grasslands had been locked in a standoff for so long, each invading the other's territory, neither willing to yield. The last emperor of the previous dynasty was extremely incompetent, indeed sending a letter of pleas for peace to the grasslands. But the grassland people were so resolute; they had never sent anyone to negotiate. After all, they were a nomadic people, capable of easily dispatching large numbers of cavalry to wage war!

This was truly a once-in-a-century event. Upon hearing this, the people of the capital were in an uproar. Good heavens, had they misheard? In this day and age, the nomads of the grasslands would negotiate? Weren't they all just muscle-bound, war-crazed madmen?
Regardless, the arrival of peace talks from the grasslands during this harsh winter is still a good thing. At least if the talks go well, the two sides will avoid armed conflict this winter. Fighting in winter is simply too unbearable. Neither side wants their people to suffer like that.

Regardless of their true thoughts, the officials from Dajing appeared quite natural, which made the grassland delegations that came to negotiate seem less aggressive and arrogant.

The steppe delegation stayed at the post station for three whole days. During those three days, the capital was bustling with activity, and discussions about the steppe delegation were everywhere. The people's faces were filled with proud smiles. After all, this was the first time in nearly a century that the steppes had sued for peace. Didn't this mean that the steppes were afraid of their Great Jing? Sure enough, they said that His Majesty was the best emperor. In just over ten years, the steppes were about to admit defeat.

In those days, whenever you went out and came across a teahouse, the tea was free for everyone to drink. There were also many people discussing the grassland delegation in public places. Speaking of which, the members of this group had been to the capital of Dajing before, but the people of Dajing were always as obedient and docile as lambs, not even daring to look them in the eye. Why had they all changed their nature this time?

Tsk, this isn't enjoyable at all. They originally thought this trip to the capital of Dajing was a lucrative opportunity. After all, everyone from the grasslands knows how prosperous and powerful Dajing is. Even if they didn't see anything else, they thought they'd at least see some young and beautiful women. With their status, surely they could bring a few young and pretty women to keep them company?

But the reality was quite different. If the men lingered on respectable women and girls passing by on the street for even a moment longer, they would be met with angry glares from the surrounding sheep of the Great Jing. They were also angry, but before coming here, the Khan had repeatedly warned them not to cause trouble in the capital, otherwise, if the Khan had a handle against them, wouldn't he refuse to agree to the plan to lend them grain?
Okay, they can't touch respectable women, but they can touch the girls in the red-light district, right? But the truth is, those girls have declared that they would rather die by banging their heads against a roadside stone than serve these grassland barbarians!
Hey! These people from Dajing have really gotten bold!

They wanted to cause trouble, but whenever they did, they were first stopped by the common people in the streets and the patrolling city guards, and then arrested by the people sent by the prefect of the capital, even though, given the relationship between the two countries, they couldn't be punished too severely. But spending a night in jail, being bitten by ants and rats all night, was not pleasant at all. They didn't know why the Ministry of Justice's prison was so filthy.

In short, the steppe delegation behaved very cautiously before entering the palace.

This scene touched many people. Even after the delegation entered the palace for the banquet, many old residents of the capital were still chatting on the streets about the grudges and feuds between the grasslands and the Great Jing. Every now and then, a burst of cheers would erupt from the crowd; this pent-up frustration had been weighing on the hearts of the people of the Central Plains for far too long.

Since ancient times, the Central Plains have been the strongest among the surrounding countries. However, in the last hundred years, the rise of the steppes has led to frequent wars with them. And yet, the last few emperors of the previous dynasty were all incompetent and foolish, managing to exhaust this once-great empire. The last emperor, in particular, almost handed over the fertile and prosperous cities of the Central Plains to others!
Given their repeated defeats, it was truly a source of pride for the steppe delegation to take the initiative to seek peace!

Although Jiu Que had been staying in her residence and rarely venturing out these past few days to avoid danger and for safety reasons, she had undeniably witnessed and felt the joyous atmosphere. Jiu Que couldn't help but feel happy, as this was the result of many people's hard work. She knew from her time in the Northern Frontier that this year would be an unprecedentedly harsh winter, but she hadn't expected winter to arrive so early on the grasslands. However, having lived on those grasslands for so many years, generations of experience had accumulated, and they certainly had their own judgment about the weather. They probably knew this winter would be difficult, which was why they had eagerly sent envoys to sue for peace, likely requesting grain. His Majesty certainly wouldn't do something that would feed the enemy, but to prevent them from becoming desperate, as long as their demands weren't excessive, he would probably send some grain as a token gesture, which wouldn't be a big deal.

There was something that bothered Jiu Que. She hadn't known about it before, since she'd been staying home these past few days and hadn't gone out. It was her children from afar who brought it up. They said that several uncles, aunts, and older sisters she knew on the street were sick.

"Is it serious?"

"Actually, some of the uncles and elders can still walk on their own, but they keep coughing and have a lot of red spots on their bodies, which looks a bit scary."

So that means the illness is contagious? It's true that people catch colds during the autumn and winter seasons, but since this child specifically brought it up, it's definitely not just a simple cold. Jiu Que knew that Yuan Dao and the others had lived in Wuyou Cave for several years, so their life experience was far greater than hers. If it were just a common cold, they wouldn't have gone to the trouble of telling her all about it.

(End of this chapter)