The prince is more stable

Chapter 719 Princess's Gift
Zhao Xiaoqian posed a potentially fatal question.

Di Zi couldn't solve it; this question was too difficult, far too difficult...

Di Zi was the one who felt the cold-heartedness and ingratitude of the Song Dynasty emperors, and who was the most suspicious and distrustful of their meritorious officials.

His father, Di Qing, made great contributions to the Song Dynasty, but ultimately did not meet a good end.

Now, the same question and the same choice are placed before Di Zi. After many years, Di Zi finds that he still does not know the right answer.

But Zhao Xiaoqian is different.

He hadn't read many classic texts by sages, nor did he agree with the idea of ​​a ruler-subject relationship.

He only recognizes himself and his family.

So far, Zhao Xu has not done anything too outrageous to him, and Zhao Xiaoqian can continue to tolerate it, just for the sake of their past brotherhood and the unconditional trust they once had for each other.

To reiterate, as long as Zhao Xu is alive, Zhao Xiaoqian will not rebel.

With Zhao Xu dead, it doesn't matter who becomes emperor; Zhao Xiaoqian's loyalty isn't so cheap.

The multiple-choice questions were presented to Zhao Xiaoqian. There was no rush to choose; time would automatically provide the answers.

"Father-in-law, please remember my words. I am not Di Qing, I am Zhao Xiaoqian."

Zhao Xiaoqian finished speaking with a smile, then left with the child in his arms.

Di Zi stared at him blankly, as if he understood Zhao Xiaoqian's meaning.

Then Di Zi gritted his teeth, determined not to repeat his father Di Qing's mistakes.

He needed to return to Xijin Prefecture immediately. He wanted to keep an eye on the military power of the Yanyun garrison for his son-in-law and also see what those thirty-odd generals were planning to do within the Yanyun garrison.

In the backyard of the Prince's mansion, Zhao Xiaoqian was about to take a nap with his son when a servant came to report that the Liao princess had come to visit.

Zhao Xiaoqian was taken aback, then laughed.

It was quite a novel thing that this down-on-her-luck princess would actually take the initiative to visit him.

Carrying her son, Zhao Xiaoqian slowly walked towards the front courtyard. Just as she stepped out of the moon gate, she suddenly stopped. Her babbling son in her arms also quieted down, blinking his clear eyes with a bewildered expression, looking around intently.

Zhao Xiaoqian was overjoyed: "Son, you heard it too, didn't you?"

"For all the pain of persistence of love, for all the hurt of persistence of hate..."

The demonic sound pierced my mind, and I was enveloped in a halo.

She enters with her own background music, a quintessential strong female lead, making the villains want nothing more than to kill her with their swords and eliminate her forever...

And what did Zhao Xiaoqian, the true male protagonist, gain?
All he got was "Qianqian Doesn't Eat Cilantro (Effort Version)," which was self-proclaimed.

Carrying her son, she walked to the front courtyard. Under the ginkgo tree, Yelü Nanxian, dressed in a green robe, had exquisite features. A few strands of hair were blown by the breeze, slightly disheveled and scattered in front of her eyes, adding to her sense of heartbreak.

The two met under a ginkgo tree. It was already autumn, and golden ginkgo leaves drifted down, lying between them. The man was handsome and the woman was beautiful; the scene was like a poem or a painting.

The son in her arms seemed a bit superfluous...

Kneeling and curtsying, Yelü Nanxian performed the traditional Central Plains woman's greeting to Zhao Xiaoqian.

"Greetings, Your Highness the Prince."

Zhao Xiaoqian smiled, then raised an eyebrow: "Here to deliver a gift?"

Yelü Nanxian was taken aback, then sighed.

It's really hard to have a pleasant conversation with this person; their very first sentence is inappropriate.

Yelü Nanxian sighed, "I heard that Your Highness has been blessed with a son, so I have come to offer my congratulations."

As she spoke, Yelü Nanxian turned her head, and a nameless palace maid behind her brought her a food box.

The food box was opened, revealing various pastries inside. The colors of the pastries were a bit strange, and their shapes were also quite distorted.

Zhao Xiaoqian exclaimed in surprise, "Where did you buy these pastries? Tell me the name of the shop, and I'll send someone to smash it up for you. How dare they put such ugly pastries up for sale? They have no shame! In broad daylight, do they think there's no one in the pastry world of our Great Song Dynasty?"

Yelü Nanxian's fair face flushed slightly, a rare occurrence, whether from shame or resentment, it was hard to tell.

The palace maid behind him couldn't bear to watch any longer and stammered, "Your Highness, these pastries were made by my princess herself. Hearing that Your Highness had been blessed with a son, the princess had nothing else to offer as a congratulatory gift, so she got up before dawn this morning and made these pastries..."

Zhao Xiaoqian was stunned for a long time, then his old face flushed, and he laughed heartily.

"Why didn't you say so earlier? Why didn't you say so sooner..." Zhao Xiaoqian muttered awkwardly.

Yelü Nanxian's pretty face was cold, and she snorted expressionlessly.

The scene was a bit awkward. Zhao Xiaoqian stared at the pastries in the food box, trying to salvage the situation.

"The pastries made by Her Highness herself must look delicious. Look, the red is red and the green is green. It's clear that Her Highness put a lot of thought into them."

"And the shape is quite interesting, especially the toad in the middle, it's so lifelike. I don't know why you made a toad to give to me, but I'm sure you have your reasons..."

Yelü Nanxian's beautiful face twitched slightly, and she said coldly, "That's not a toad, it's a little golden rat... According to the Chinese zodiac, this year is the Year of the Rat, and your young master was born in the Year of the Rat."

Zhao Xiaoqian's eyes widened in astonishment, his pupils dilating rapidly.

He looked down in disbelief at the toad lying in the food box, then looked up at Yelü Nanxian. Although he didn't say a word, his shocked gaze was extremely insulting.

Yelü Nanxian gritted her teeth, her bulging chest heaving rapidly, she was about to explode with anger.

After a long while, Zhao Xiaoqian took a deep breath, constantly reassuring himself. Calm down, calm down... It's at least someone's kind intention; speak politely and don't offend them too much.

Forcing a smile, Zhao Xiaoqian said, "Upon closer inspection, it really is a little golden mouse. Your Highness is so skillful; you're truly amazing..."

Although it was meant to be kind, Yelü Nanxian became even angrier for some reason and reached out to snatch the food box back.

"I'm not seeing you off!"

Zhao Xiaoqian, holding his son in one arm and carrying the food box in the other, quickly dodged backward: "How presumptuous of you! How can you take back something that has been given away? I'll send an official to your residence later to teach you the manners of the Great Song Dynasty."

The food box was handed to a servant, and Zhao Xiaoqian whispered, "Find a place to bury it. No one is allowed to eat it. If anyone dies from eating it, the government will not be responsible."

"Zhao Xiaoqian!" Yelü Nanxian finally couldn't hold back his anger and flew into a rage.

Zhao Xiaoqian reacted quickly, immediately offering up his son and shoving him into Yelü Nanxian's arms.

"Take a look and see if my son is handsome."

Suddenly, a soft, cuddly little thing appeared in Yelü Nanxian's arms, and she instantly lost her temper. She held the child helplessly, not daring to move her hands or feet, as if she had been frozen in place.

Zhao Xiaoqian maliciously speculated that even if he lifted her skirt now, she would definitely not dare to move.

"Relax, being too cautious will only make him uncomfortable," Zhao Xiaoqian said gently.

A mist rose in Yelü Nanxian's beautiful eyes; at this moment, it was unclear whether his tenderness was directed towards her or his child.

That was a tenderness she had never seen before.

Composing herself, Yelü Nanxian looked down at the child in her arms. He was small and soft, blinking his big, innocent eyes at her with a wide grin, a trickle of drool running down his cheek. He looked incredibly cute.

Yelü Nanxian's heart melted instantly, and her expression softened considerably, as if it were a woman's innate maternal instinct. Her arms relaxed and she held him more loosely, even teasing the child's chubby little chin.

The child laughed even harder, and Yelü Nanxian couldn't help but giggle as well.

The smile of the white moonlight is so devastating. In that instant, time seemed to stand still, and only her pure and innocent smile was frozen in time, just like the cover of a memoir of a deceased wife.

Zhao Xiaoqian turned his face away, not daring to look anymore.

If I keep looking, I might not be able to resist taking her by force. It doesn't matter if I win her heart or not; what matters is getting her body...

Men are just so wicked; there's no such thing as love at first sight, it's all lust at first sight.

"Is it fun?" Zhao Xiaoqian asked, leaning close to her ear.

Yelü Nanxian was so captivated by the child's adorable smile that she nodded unconsciously, "Fun!"

"Would you like to have one yourself?"

"miss you!"

"Do you need my help? I'm a very helpful person and I would never refuse..."

Yelü Nanxian snapped back to her senses, her pretty face instantly turning cold and broken. She shoved the child back into his arms, ignored his presence, and walked straight to the backyard.

"I'm going to pay my respects to the Princess Consort. Please go ahead, Your Highness."

Zhao Xiaoqian squinted as he watched Yelü Nanxian's hurried departure, a slight smile creeping onto his lips.

This woman looks aloof, but she's actually just a young girl.

He looked down at his son, and the two locked eyes. The son grinned and smiled happily.

Zhao Xiaoqian smiled and said softly, "Sang Biao, it's time to give you a proper name. Wait a few more days."

…………

Yan Yun Xi Jin Prefecture, the military camp outside the city.

The Song and Liao dynasties ceased hostilities, but the armies of both countries remained stationed not far from the border.

Although the alliance has been formed, it is clear that both sides remain deeply wary and do not trust each other's character.

In contrast to the Liao border troops' high alert, the Song army camp was quite relaxed.

After several major victories in the past two years, the morale of the Song army is completely different. The once invincible Liao cavalry has been repeatedly crushed by the Song army. Their reputation for invincibility has long since disappeared, and now mentioning the word "invincible" carries a sarcastic tone.

Despite the relaxed atmosphere, something unusual has been going on within the Song army these past few days.

More than thirty generals sent by the Privy Council of Bianjing have joined the army, each commanding a thousand soldiers.

When an army has developed its own character traits, the so-called "military spirit," it is often difficult for outsiders to integrate. They either have to use their power to forcibly change the army's spirit or change their own personality to integrate into the group.

Zhong Cheng and more than 30 other generals have clearly made their choice.

These people started causing trouble as soon as they took office.

They stopped discussing tactical concepts with their soldiers and stopped insisting on shooting drills. Instead, they repeatedly preached loyalty to the emperor to their soldiers, advocating that they should be willing to die for the Song Dynasty and reminding them that they were the army of the Song Dynasty, not the private army of any one person or family...

Clearly, Zhong Cheng and his group no longer concealed their intentions and began to openly sow discord within the army.

At first, the lower-ranking soldiers listened respectfully to their commanders' brainwashing, but such talk only once or twice was enough. They talked about it every day, all the time, as if they wanted to hypnotize the soldiers and transform them into human killing machines loyal only to the Song emperor.

Gradually, the soldiers at the lower ranks began to feel resentful.

His Highness the Prince never did this when he was in the army; this feels very wrong.

(End of this chapter)