Having many children brings many blessings; the struggle for power begins with marriage.

Chapter 265 Go early and return early

Hearing Wang Maoxue's words, Lu Chen smiled faintly, took a sip of wine, and then said, "It's not that the Northern Kingdom is strong; it's just that King Tianqi underestimated us, and our Northern Kingdom army won by sheer luck."

Wang Maoxue said, "The Northern King is too modest. The Tianqi King's tribe is a main branch tribe that split off from the barbarian royal court. Their soldiers are very powerful in combat, and the Tianqi King himself is already a Grandmaster. It's just that we are lucky that we can't defeat the Tianqi King and his 400,000-strong army."

Lu Chen smiled and then said, "Emperor Yue sent you all to the Northern Kingdom, surely not just to aid the Northern Kingdom, but for other purposes as well."

Wang Maoxue said, "The Northern King's guess is correct. Our Empress wants Dayue to establish diplomatic relations with the Northern Kingdom, but we don't know if the Northern King is willing."

Lu Chen said, "Establishing diplomatic relations? The Northern Kingdom is just a small vassal state under the Great Xia Dynasty. It is not qualified to establish diplomatic relations with a dynasty."

Wang Maoxue said, "The Northern Kingdom has at least two Grandmasters, and with its powerful military, it can no longer be measured by the standards of a vassal state. In the eyes of our Empress, the Northern Kingdom is already an independent dynasty."

Upon hearing this, Lu Chen smiled and said, "I didn't expect Emperor Yue to think so highly of the Northern Kingdom."

Lu Chen immediately saw through the Dayue Dynasty's intentions. If they wanted the Northern Kingdom to establish diplomatic relations with the Dayue Dynasty, wouldn't that mean the Northern Kingdom would become independent? This was clearly an attempt to instigate a civil war between the Northern Kingdom and the Great Xia Dynasty so that the Dayue Dynasty could reap the benefits.

That definitely won't work.

Lu Chen then said, "I am grateful that the Empress thinks highly of the Northern Kingdom, but the Northern Kingdom is a vassal state of the Great Xia Dynasty and it is impossible for it to establish diplomatic relations with the Great Yue Dynasty."

Upon hearing this, Wang Maoxue was taken aback. It seemed that the Northern King had already seen through their intentions.

However, to be fair, the Northern King must have been incredibly intelligent to have developed the Northern Kingdom to its current state in such a short time.

It's quite normal that they were found out.

However, Wang Maoxue did not intend to give up so easily. He continued, "King of the North, if I may be so bold as to say something unpleasant, even if you are now loyal to the Great Xia Dynasty, the Great Xia Dynasty and your father may not truly believe in you."

"You now have an army of 200,000 men, and you have not only defeated the barbarians of the North and brought the North under your control, but you have also crushed the Tianqi King's 400,000-strong army and killed the Tianqi King, a Grandmaster. Under these circumstances, it is hard for anyone not to believe that you have other intentions."

"If you can establish diplomatic relations with the Dayue Dynasty in advance, and if the Great Xia Dynasty dares to send troops against the Northern Kingdom, our Dayue will definitely take the initiative to help you. This would be a good thing for you, don't you think?"

Hearing Wang Maoxue's words, Lu Chen smiled slightly. If it were any other vassal king, he might actually be persuaded by Wang Maoxue, but he was different. He had his own ideas and his own future plans.

As the son of the Xia Emperor, he would certainly not rebel on his own initiative unless the Xia Emperor forced him to rebel. It was not the time to start a rebellion yet. The Northern Kingdom still needed to develop for a period of time. At present, the Northern Kingdom relied on imports for its food, and its population was not large and it was still relatively fragile. It could not withstand any turmoil at this time.

Lu Chen then said, "You're right. Indeed, my father may not trust me, but whether he trusts me or not is not important. As long as I act with a clear conscience, that's enough."

"As for whether the imperial court will send troops to attack the Northern Kingdom, that's a matter for the future. Right now, the turmoil among the aristocratic families of the Great Xia Dynasty has not yet subsided, and the imperial court has no time to care about what's happening in the Northern Kingdom."

"The Northern King appreciates the Emperor's kindness."

Seeing that Lu Chen refused again, Wang Maoxue knew that the Northern King would most likely not agree to them establishing diplomatic relations. This Northern King was not stupid; he probably planned to continue accumulating strength.

Just when Wang Maoxue thought their mission to the Northern Kingdom was going to end in failure, Murong Xue'er spoke up, saying, "The Northern King is indeed a loyal and righteous man."

Upon hearing Murong Xue'er speak, Wang Maoxue quickly added, "I forgot to introduce you to the Northern King. This lady beside me is Murong Xue'er, the personal lady-in-waiting of our Empress."

Hearing this, Lu Chen's gaze fell on Murong Xue'er once again. He smiled slightly and then said, "As expected of the Empress's personal lady-in-waiting, she not only possesses unparalleled beauty but also extraordinary temperament."

Murong Xue'er smiled slightly and then said, "Thank you for your praise, Prince of the North."

At this point, Murong Xue'er suggested, "Since the Northern King is worried that establishing diplomatic relations between the two countries will bring trouble to the Northern Kingdom, why don't the two countries sign a trade cooperation agreement to strengthen their commercial and trade exchanges?"

"During my time in the Northern Kingdom, I discovered that its commerce and trade are very prosperous, which is enough to show that Your Majesty is a person who values ​​commerce and trade."

"It just so happens that our Empress also values ​​commerce. I saw a lot of food made from flour on the streets of Yancheng, which proves that the people of the Northern Kingdom and the Dayue Dynasty have the same eating habits. And our Dayue is rich in wheat, and the people of our Dayue Dynasty like some of the goods from the Northern Kingdom. In that case, why don't we strengthen trade relations? It would be a good thing for both the Northern Kingdom and Dayue."

Hearing Murong Xue'er's words, Lu Chen was taken aback. This woman's observation was indeed very keen.

They even know the local eating habits of Yancheng.

Since Lu Chen had Tingyulou purchase large quantities of wheat in the Dayue Dynasty, he has promoted the method of making steamed buns and dumplings. Although the traditional staple food in the North is still rice, shops in Yancheng are already selling steamed buns and dumplings, and the people of Yancheng have become accustomed to eating them.

To avoid the Dayue Dynasty discovering that Tingyulou was the intelligence agency of the Northern Prince's Mansion, Tingyulou always went through many more procedures when purchasing wheat from the Dayue Dynasty. Moreover, when Tingyulou transported the wheat out of the Dayue Dynasty, the Dayue Dynasty would collect a large amount of customs duties.

If a trade cooperation agreement can be signed with the Dayue Dynasty, the Northern Kingdom will be able to purchase wheat directly from the Dayue Dynasty in the name of the Northern Royal Palace, and will be able to reduce tariffs as much as possible, or even reduce them to zero. This will greatly help alleviate the food shortage problem in the Northern Kingdom.

It has to be said that Murong Xue'er found a very good angle to approach him, and Lu Chen was indeed tempted.

Currently, the cultivation of coarse grains such as corn, potatoes, and sweet potatoes in the north is being promoted continuously, but it will be impossible to fully promote them and completely alleviate the food problem in the north without several years of cultivation.

Food security will remain a major problem for the northern country for the next few years.

Lu Chen thought to himself, "This Murong Xue'er truly lives up to her title of 'Inner Palace Prime Minister,' she has grasped the lifeline of the Northern Kingdom in one fell swoop."

Lu Chen then said with a smile, "Miss Murong, I do indeed value the commercial trade of the Northern Kingdom. Your suggestion is quite good, but I don't know if your delegation can represent Emperor Yue."

Wang Maoxue then spoke up, saying, "Please rest assured, Your Highness, Miss Murong came representing Her Majesty the Empress. Her Majesty the Empress said that every word Miss Murong speaks after arriving in the Northern Kingdom represents her will."

Lu Chen said with a smile, "It seems that Emperor Yue values ​​Miss Murong very much."

"A trade cooperation agreement is indeed possible, but the terms still need to be negotiated. Today is a luncheon to entertain our guests, so it's not appropriate to discuss this matter. We'll discuss the specific terms of the trade cooperation agreement tomorrow."

Seeing that Lu Chen agreed, the members of the delegation breathed a sigh of relief. Although they had not established diplomatic relations, if the two sides could sign a trade cooperation agreement, it would be no different from establishing diplomatic relations.

Their mission to the northern country was not in vain.

Afterwards, everyone enjoyed the food and watched the song and dance performances. During this time, Lu Chen inquired about some things about the Dayue Dynasty from the delegation members. Of course, he only asked about trivial matters and it was just casual conversation.

After the luncheon, the delegation members returned to their inn, while the officials from the Northern Kingdom remained in the council hall to discuss the signing of a trade cooperation agreement with the Dayue Dynasty.

Lu Chen is a business-minded person. For him, if he could open up the market in Dayue, sell some of the goods made in the North to Dayue, and reduce a lot of tariffs, he would definitely be happy.

Most officials in the Northern Kingdom also agreed to sign a trade cooperation agreement with Dayue. Now they would encounter many problems in purchasing grain from Daxia. Although they had signed some treaties with the vassal kings within Daxia when they received the refugees, allowing them to purchase grain from the vassal kings' fiefdoms at low prices, some of the fiefdoms began to regret it as time went by.

This included the Qi Kingdom, which was closest to the Northern Kingdom. The King of Qi once sent an envoy to the Northern Kingdom to complain that he could no longer control the powerful families within Qi Kingdom. Those families regretted selling grain to the Northern Kingdom at low prices, so they broke the contract directly, and the price of grain, which was originally a few coins, rose to several tens of coins again.

This is all under the condition that the Northern Kingdom has not fallen out with the Great Xia Dynasty. Once the conflict between the Great Xia Dynasty and the Northern Kingdom becomes public and is brought to the forefront, the Northern Kingdom will definitely no longer be able to purchase grain from the Great Xia territory.

Aside from the Great Xia Dynasty, the only other country bordering the Northern Kingdom is the Great Yue Dynasty. Even when purchasing grain from other dynasties, the Northern Kingdom basically has to go through the Great Yue Dynasty. Now, maintaining good relations with Great Yue is only beneficial to the Northern Kingdom, and there are no disadvantages.

Lu Chen spent the entire afternoon in the council hall discussing the terms of the trade cooperation agreement with officials from the Northern Kingdom. They didn't disperse until evening.

As the sun set, Lu Chen returned to the inner courtyard. After having a simple meal in the main hall, he went directly to Yunrong Courtyard.

Chen Wanrong is about to leave the Northern Prince's Mansion, and Lu Chen plans to have sex with her a few more times before she leaves and returns to Xuan Yue Palace.

As soon as Lu Chen arrived at Yunrong Courtyard, he saw the pure and beautiful Fairy Chen sitting in the pavilion, gently plucking the strings of her zither and playing a moving melody. At the same time, the beautiful Lin Wanyun was also sitting next to Chen Wanrong.

Upon seeing Lu Chen enter Yunrong Courtyard, Chen Wanrong's fingers stopped, and the music ceased.

Lu Chen said with a smile, "Why did you stop playing? Keep playing, I love listening to it."

Upon hearing Lu Chen's words, Chen Wanrong's delicate hands plucked the strings of the zither once more, and the music echoed through the courtyard once more.

Lu Chen then sat down slowly behind Chen Wanrong and put his arm around her slender waist.

Seeing this, Lin Wanyun blushed slightly. What was this little rascal doing? Didn't he see Rongrong playing the piano? He was sitting behind her and touching her inappropriately. How could Rongrong play the piano?

At this moment, Chen Wanrong was still unaffected, and her zither music remained melodious. However, not long after, Lu Chen's claws began to wander, and a blush appeared on Chen Wanrong's usually icy face.

After a short while, Chen Wanrong couldn't bear it any longer. Her fingers suddenly swept across the guqin, and the music produced a shaky sound that was very unpleasant to the ears.

Chen Wanrong then turned to look at Lu Chen, her expression a mixture of coldness and shame, and said, "What are you doing?"

Lu Chen smiled and said, "I'm sorry, your piano playing was so beautiful that I couldn't help myself for a moment."

Hearing this, Lin Wanyun snorted coldly. What do you mean by saying the music was so beautiful that he couldn't help himself? This little rascal just wanted to cause trouble.

Lin Wanyun then said, "Chen'er, Xuan Yue Palace sent people today. The elders asked when the Palace Master can return."

At this point, Lin Wanyun looked at Lu Chen's handsome face, wanting to see his reaction. She wasn't sure if Lu Chen would let Chen Wanrong leave the Northern Prince's Mansion.

Hearing this, Lu Chen was taken aback for a moment, then said, "So fast?"

At this point, Lu Chen rested his head on Chen Wanrong's shoulder and said, "If you want to go back, go back to Xuan Yue Palace first thing tomorrow morning. The sooner you go, the sooner you come back. I'll wait for you to come back and have my baby."

Lin Wanyun was slightly surprised to see that Lu Chen had agreed. She thought that Lu Chen would not let people go so easily, but he agreed right away.

Just as Chen Wanrong was about to say thank you, Lu Chen hugged her slender waist tightly, held her head with one hand, and then kissed her directly.

"Mmm..."

Chen Wanrong immediately began to struggle slightly. If it were just the two of them alone, she wouldn't care what Lu Chen did to her, but now Lin Wanyun was watching, and this guy actually did this to her.

When Lu Chen suddenly kissed Chen Wanrong, Lin Wanyun, who was standing to the side, was also stunned.

This little rascal actually did this to Chen Wanrong right in front of her!

This left Lin Wanyun at a loss. Should she go up and pull Lu Chen away, this scoundrel, or should she quietly leave the pavilion and let them continue their lovey-dovey moments inside?

Lu Chen didn't care at all whether Lin Wanyun was beside him. He continued to do as he pleased. After kissing Chen Wanrong for a while, Chen Wanrong stopped struggling and cooperated with Lu Chen.

Seeing this scene, Lin Wanyun's face turned bright red, her ears burning red. She could no longer bear it, so she got up and quickly left the pavilion alone.

After Lin Wanyun left, Lu Chen's lips slowly parted from Chen Wanrong's red lips. Lu Chen stroked Chen Wanrong's beautiful jade cheek, his eyes fixed on her charming eyes, and said with a smile, "My wife, you will be leaving the Northern Prince's Mansion tomorrow. I don't know when you will be able to return. You must serve your husband well tonight."

Hearing this, Chen Wanrong softly hummed in agreement. Seeing the beauty blushing, Lu Chen could no longer restrain himself. He picked her up in a princess carry, then kicked off with his legs and easily jumped to the door of Chen Wanrong's boudoir. He then pushed the door open and placed Chen Wanrong on the bed.

Chen Wanrong stopped struggling and let Lu Chen, this bad man, do whatever he wanted.

A short while later.

The next room.

Hearing the sounds coming from the next room, Lin Wanyun sighed softly and muttered to herself, "I wonder what will happen in the future."

Chen Wanrong is, after all, the Palace Master of Xuan Yue Palace and a disciple of the Venerable One. If she were to have Lu Chen's child, and the Venerable One found out, both Lu Chen and Chen Wanrong would likely be punished.

Although Lu Chen may have a powerful force behind him, or a very powerful master, his backing may not be as strong as that of the Venerable of Xuan Yue Palace.

As far as Lin Wanyun knows, the most powerful person in this world is the Venerable One of Xuan Yue Palace. If that Venerable One were to lose his temper, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Lu Chen was too impulsive and couldn't control his body at all. Although Chen Wanrong was beautiful, she was not a woman he could touch.

Lu Chen bullied her, but she was just a protector of Xuan Yue Palace at most. Even if she had a child with Lu Chen, she would at most be expelled from Xuan Yue Palace.

Chen Wanrong was different; her status was far too prestigious.

What will happen if Chen Wanrong has a child by then?

"Sigh... I hope Rongrong's master won't come out of seclusion so soon."

Now Lin Wanyun can only hope that the Venerable One's seclusion goes smoothly and that there won't be any problems with his cultivation. If he encounters problems and comes out of seclusion early, then he will definitely find out about Chen Wanrong's loss of virginity, and that will be troublesome.

Lu Chen stayed in Chen Wanrong's room all night and didn't sleep a wink. With such a fairy by his side, how could he possibly fall asleep?

Chen Wanrong is leaving today, so naturally he wants to make sure his wife has her fill of pleasure before anything else.

In the early morning, sunlight streamed in through the window and shone brightly on the bed.

Seeing the blinding sunlight shining on Chen Wanrong's snow-white skin, Lu Chen sighed. He gently stroked Chen Wanrong's smooth and delicate skin, which was as smooth as jade. This fairy was about to leave him for a while, but he still hadn't gotten her to have his child.

It seems we can only wait until she comes back.

I'm really reluctant to part with it.

Chen Wanrong slowly stood up, looked into Lu Chen's deep eyes, and said, "I should go."

Lu Chen smiled slightly, all traces of reluctance vanishing from his face, and then said, "Come back soon."

Chen Wanrong said no more, only gave a soft "hmm", then got up and began to get dressed.

Lu Chen sat on the bed watching her get dressed.

After Chen Wanrong finished dressing and tied her messy hair back into a bun, she turned her head and looked into Lu Chen's eyes again.

For some reason, her gaze suddenly became unable to leave Lu Chen's body. For a moment, her body seemed to be frozen, and she seemed very unwilling to leave the bad man in front of her.

Seeing Chen Wanrong staring at him, Lu Chen smiled and asked, "What's wrong? Are you reluctant to part with your husband?"

Chen Wanrong's face was cold, and she did not speak.

Lu Chen seemed to understand something, got out of bed, walked to Chen Wanrong, put his arm around her waist, and kissed her red lips.

The two kissed deeply for fifteen minutes. After their lips parted, Chen Wanrong finally spoke, saying, "I'll be back soon."

Lu Chen smiled faintly and whispered in her ear, "I'll wait for you."

After saying this, Chen Wanrong turned and left the room.

(End of this chapter)