Special Agent Rebirth: The Omnipotent Goddess of Quick Transmigration
Chapter 664 - 655 Female Veneration: The Great God Above (10) More 2

Chapter 664: 655 Female Veneration: The Great God Above (10) More 2

"Empress Dowager, Your Highness the Crown Princess!" Realizing this, the General immediately led his family to bow reverently to Jun Qing and the Crown Princess.

After Empress Dowager Jun Qing, Shaohua, and Qin Xuanyun, along with others, had entered,

the General’s mother waited until then to ask her daughter in a low voice, "Didn’t you say just yesterday that the line of the Crown Princess..."

"This matter is complicated," the General shook his head and signaled his mother to stay out of it.

Meanwhile, as Jun Qing walked, she glanced toward her daughter.

Given Qin Xuanyun’s current status, there was no need for such obsequiousness.

And then there was Qin Xuanyun’s gaze...

Jun Qing was lost in thought.

Outside the door, Ye Mingxin watched Qin Xuanyun leave with the Empress, her eyes fixed on Shaohua, feeling a sense of betrayal as if she had caught them in the act.

For a second, she even considered confronting Qin Xuanyun immediately.

Qin Youming whispered a few words of comfort to her.

Ye Mingxin took a deep breath, prioritizing the bigger picture over confronting them, yet in her heart, she did not believe Qin Xuanyun truly had feelings for Shaohua. How could she miss the restrained yet intense admiration Qin Xuanyun had for her in the past?

He had even secretly written some verses and had them sent to her on slips of paper.

Moreover, she couldn’t believe that Qin Xuanyun would be so blind as to fancy Shaohua.

Regarding Qin Xuanyun and Wen Jin, Ye Mingxin had no intention of letting either of them off easily.

With this in mind, she gradually calmed down and proceeded inward alongside Qin Youming.

This feeling of frustration wouldn’t last long; the strategies she had submitted to the Imperial Secretary and the Prime Minister should be effective soon...

Ye Mingxin and Qin Youming, having entered, took seats near the middle, as they were not favored in the open.

They could only sit in a less conspicuous place.

The Prime Minister, second only to Qin Xuanyun in court, was seated to the left of the Empress with Qin Xuanyun on the right.

Shaohua sat alone in front of Qin Xuanyun, which clearly displayed the extent of the Empress’s favoritism toward her.

This had already caused discontent among the court officials.

But in reality, the Empress was not favoring either of them; she used Jun Qing as a shield while overtly setting up Shaohua for failure by spoiling her into uselessness.

However, Jun Qing and the Jun Family, focused solely on military strategies, had never delved into these matters.

They didn’t even understand what setting up for failure meant.

Nor did they realize that the Empress had intended to ruin Shaohua and Jun Qing from the start.

Thinking of this, Qin Xuanyun’s gaze slightly lowered.

This time, he had subdued the people from the Barbarian Country.

They were from the Island Country that arrived by ship; in his profound understanding of state governance, Qin Xuanyun did not annihilate them but chose to accept their allegiance to the dynasty, mandating annual tributes.

Today marked the day the people from the Barbarian Country came to the Imperial Capital to display loyalty and offer tribute.

"Lady Ye," whispered Qin Xuanyun while pouring wine for Shaohua as the Empress summoned someone.

Lady Ye.

Lady Ye.

"What a coincidence, National Preceptor, you’re here too," responded Shaohua.

The frown on Qin Xuanyun’s forehead suddenly smoothed out.

His constantly uneasy heart finally settled down, "Hmm."

"How long do you plan to stay in the Imperial Capital this time upon your return?" asked Shaohua.

"About nine months," he responded.

Shaohua expressed surprise, "That long?"

"Not too long, I originally planned to stay for a year," replied Qin Xuanyun impassively.

"Pff..." The General seated behind Qin Xuanyun hadn’t swallowed her sip of wine and immediately spewed it out.

Her mother frowned, "This is the Great Hall, how can you be so impolite?"

The General: "..."

General Qin! What happened to saying that the territory still needed someone to maintain order, and that he wouldn’t stay in the Imperial Capital for more than a month when he was returning to court?!

While they were speaking, the tribute bearers from the Barbarian Country had arrived.

A beautiful, serene sound arose, not from traditional instruments like the guzheng or flute of the female-dominated wangdom, but an instrument never before seen by the people of this kinghood.

The musician was a man dressed in a moon-white robe, his face blooming like a peach blossom with a naturally cold and arrogant demeanor, yet his actions were polite.

He wasn’t as tall as the men of the female-dominated wangdom but was exquisitely handsome.

Together with the mysterious instrument,

many women in the Great Hall fixed their eyes on this exotic prince.

The only exceptions were Shaohua and others who didn’t stare at him; instead, she casually fiddled with her wine cup, looking every bit the reckless prodigal.

Qin Xuanyun had never seen such a Shaohua before; in the past life, she was always restrained and cold, as if nothing could capture her interest, and despite her vast talents, she wouldn’t showcase them publicly like Ye Zhaoyun.

Now, with such a prodigal and arrogant demeanor, she stood unparalleled in beauty.

After the Barbarian Country presented all their treasures, the prince scanned the Palace Banquet, then slightly bowed, "I have long heard that your dynasty is filled with talent, with someone even solving the unfinished game. Today, I seek to learn from such talent."

There’s naturally a competitive spirit between nations.

Even though the Barbarian Country had lost in strength and military might, they lacked no spirit of submission.

The Empress was well aware of this, as contests between nations were commonplace.

"In that case, I’ll just point someone out at random," the Empress smiled briefly, as if casually pointing to someone, her finger landing directly on the Second Princess, "This is the Second Princess of our dynasty, quite ordinary in arts such as music, chess, calligraphy, and painting."

Observing where the Second Princess sat, the prince and others knew she wasn’t favored.

Thus, they had no doubt about the Empress’s words that her arts were quite ordinary.

But the Barbarian Country’s prince and his entourage were infuriated, clearly feeling that the Empress looked down on their countrymen!

The Second Princess herself was somewhat stupified upon seeing the foreign prince challenging her, especially noticing the prince’s disregard for her, reminiscent of how some in the palace had previously regarded her as inferior to Shaohua, which immediately prompted a cold snort.

"Empress Mother, allow me to prepare," bowed the Second Princess.

The Empress nodded.

She then signaled Ni Lan with a look.

Ni Lan immediately sidestepped the crowd and sought out the Second Princess, who had gone to change her clothing.

"Second Princess, the Empress said that there’s no need to hold back, to properly teach those Barbarians who continuously look down on our nation’s culture," said Ni Lan with utmost respect to the Second Princess.

The young man who followed the Second Princess out widened his eyes, having never imagined the Empress’s most favored attendant to be so respectful to the Second Princess while considering the Crown Princess rather average.

No wonder... no wonder he always found it strange that the utterly ignorant Crown Princess was so favored,

while the highly intelligent Second Princess remained virtually unknown.

So that was it!

Ni Lan’s respect for the Second Princess must surely be influenced by the Empress, which meant... that the Second Princess and Lady Qin were indeed the Empress’s most cherished.

Previously, when the boy overheard Shaohua’s words to Jun Yiling about "not sullying his whip," he felt deeply humiliated.

Now, stumbling upon this revelation unexpectedly,

his heart pounded like thunder. If the Second Princess can make a name for herself in this contest, coupled with the impression she had already made on the Prime Minister, what would it matter about the Crown Princess?

He was eager to see, once stripped of the Empress’s favor, how will the utterly useless Crown Princess, sustain her arrogance?!