"I might not be as ugly as she is, but with a bit of makeup, I could be just as memorable," Helian Chen said, stroking his face.

Prince Yu was speechless. "If you’re looking for an alternative path, you’d be better off getting to know the young lady of the Xiang family. You might even attract Dean Chen’s attention that way."

"You want me to suck up to her, Uncle?"

"It would be an accomplishment if you could," Prince Yu said after a moment’s thought. "In any case, it’s always good to be on friendly terms. If you could... ah, never mind. She might not even give you the time of day."

"What do you mean by that, Uncle?" ’He was the one who looked down on that pig-head.’

"From now on, you will treat her with respect when you see her. You are representing Nanyuan. If you cause trouble, you will bring shame upon Nanyuan. Understand?"

"I know, I know. I won’t call her that to her face," Helian Chen grumbled.

"You absolutely must get on good terms with her," Prince Yu couldn’t help but repeat.

Even Dean Chen’s outer disciples received preferential treatment throughout the four nations, to say nothing of a Direct Disciple.

Forging a good relationship had countless benefits and no drawbacks. In the future, even if that girl turned out to be useless, her title as the Dean’s Direct Disciple alone would grant her a measure of respect across the four nations.

After all, Dean Chen had taught many people during his travels among the four nations, and a great number of them had since risen to fame and power.

Ye Qianning leaned back inside the carriage. Aside from the incident with the keys at the banquet, the other three nations seemed to be acting normally for the time being.

The messages her little lorikeet brought back were nearly identical every day, reporting only trivial bits of conversation.

Both Xi Yan and East Shu were extremely tight-lipped. It seemed they had long been on guard against eavesdroppers.

Nanyuan’s purpose for visiting Beili was clear: they sought to greatly expand trade. Nanyuan lagged behind the other three nations for two main reasons: its cold climate and its treacherous roads.

Every winter, heavy snows blanketed Nanyuan, making it impossible for most trade caravans to pass through. And while Nanyuan, being coastal, had an abundance of seafood, it wasn’t considered a luxury in the other three nations. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Besides, the other nations also had coastal regions, so there was no need to go to the great trouble of traveling to Nanyuan for it.

Currently, trade caravans mostly bought goods from the other three nations to sell in Nanyuan. On the return journey, they would bring back a few local trinkets to sell.

Nanyuan actually produced quite a few specialty goods. The main obstacle was the roads. If Nanyuan could fund the construction of proper trade routes, it would surely prosper.

A little lorikeet landed on the roof of the carriage, chirping noisily.

Ye Qianning frowned. ’I just finished dealing with one mess. How did Sang Qi and Consort Yuan get dragged into this?’

’Getting involved with them will be tricky. Besides, after my actions in the palace today, Consort Yuan is probably dying to kill me.’

’But if I do nothing, White Spirit’s life will be in danger.’

"Father, can you take me with you to court tomorrow?" Ye Qianning asked suddenly.

"Don’t be ridiculous."

’The imperial court isn’t some playground a child can just visit on a whim.’

"I don’t need to go into the throne room. I can just wait for you far outside the hall."

"You don’t need to worry about me. Debates in the court are inevitable, but the Emperor won’t have my head over this. He has to save face. If word got out that he executes officials for trying to resign, who would ever dare to serve him again?"

There were many times when Xiang Minghou found himself completely disagreeing with the Emperor’s methods.

’The frontier was so much better than the court. At least on the border, he didn’t have to deal with the old Emperor’s temperamental moods every day.’

Ye Qianning rubbed her nose. "It’s not entirely because of you..."

"Hm? Then who is it for? That little rascal, the Eighth Prince?" The first person Xiang Minghou thought of was Sang Zhi.