Chapter 286: Chapter 207: Maid Bai He, People from the Demon Country, A Marriage Proposal to Marry In, The Entire Court in an Uproar

It could be said that as long as Emperor Yong’an remained on the throne, Great Yan would never fall!

The Imperial Palace and the Three Academies were teeming with masters. With the support of the Three Religions and a million of Great Yan’s elite soldiers on standby, it was impossible to lose to the Demon Country, even if it meant mobilizing the full might of the nation!

Yuan Xuangang took out an imperial edict and began to read the orders aloud:

"Wang He’fu, Minister of War, hear my command."

"I now command you to intensify war preparations. Muster the troops and march from the Capital to reinforce the ten major passes of the Northern Great Wall. Defend the Capital and implement a curfew."

"The Ministry of Revenue is to allocate funds and grain for immediate dispatch to the northern border. Fully activate the second line of defense and begin preparations for the third. With the help of the towns and the intervention of the Tributors from the major Sects, we will be sufficient to handle any situation."

"The Ministry of Justice shall strictly manage domestic security. Do not allow Demon Fiend spies to infiltrate the States and Counties and learn of Great Yan’s troop movements."

"The Advisory Platform Bureau shall monitor all discourse. No rumors are to appear in the Imperial Capital, nor in any of Great Yan’s various states."

"Regardless of whether someone is orchestrating this from the shadows, I want everyone in the world to know the consequences of offending my Great Yan."

Yuan Xuangang wasted no time, directly issuing the various decrees. No matter the circumstances, sending provisions first was undoubtedly the right move. Fully activating Great Yan’s various lines of defense should pose no problem.

"Furthermore, regarding the matter of installing the Crown Prince of Great Yan, is there still no news from the Imperial Palace?"

The Chief Minister’s question left many of the ministers feeling rather strange.

"There is news, but nothing has been finalized."

"According to sources in the palace, Prince Huai’an has already refused three times."

"What? Does Prince Huai’an truly see himself as some Ancient Sage King? This position of Crown Prince... does he even want it or not?"

The officials of the Three Provinces and Six Ministries, the Three Academies and Three Departments, were all perplexed. They could not understand why Lu Mingyuan was being so stubborn.

Xu Changqing, the Vice Mountain Master of the Thunder Pool Daoist Academy, stood waiting at the side of the great hall, a wry smile playing on his lips.

’A hedonistic good-for-nothing like him could create Lu and Wang’s Heart Learning?’

’Do you believe it? I certainly don’t.’

"Silence!"

Wang He’fu roared.

The Imperial Court immediately fell silent.

Only then did everyone remember that the current Vice Chief Minister was Prince Huai’an’s maternal grandfather, and thus the future Imperial Father-in-Law. He was not someone to offend.

"If there is nothing else, let’s adjourn the court for today." Seeing that things had settled, Yuan Xuangang said with a wave of his hand.

"Report!"

At that moment, a letter was brought into the Imperial Court by a member of the Great Yan Imperial Guard.

"Reporting, Your Excellencies! An urgent letter has arrived from the Demon Country’s envoy!"

"Bring it forward."

Soon, Yuan Xuangang took the envelope, tore it open, and his expression changed slightly after reading its contents.

"Your Excellency?"

Wang He’fu looked at Yuan Xuangang curiously.

Yuan Xuangang put down the letter and said gravely, "The Demon Country has sent an envoy. They say they wish to see the Emperor of Great Yan to discuss a marriage alliance."

"A marriage alliance?"

"What do they mean?"

The assembled ministers couldn’t make heads or tails of it.

Yuan Xuangang explained, "The Great Nether Empress states that some of her people disobeyed military orders, slaughtering a Great Yan village and massacring a city, which led to an armed conflict with the Cultivators on the Great Yan border."

"The transgressors have all been captured."

"Moreover, the main culprit who beheaded the Great Yan Soldiers has been stripped of his duties by the Great Nether Empress and publicly executed. The Demon Country claims it does not wish for war either, but that Great Yan had gone too far by violating their territory first."

"All the main culprits will be escorted to the Capital. They hope for friendly relations between our two nations."

In the Imperial Court, the civil and military ministers looked at each other in dismay.

’Is this really how the Demon Country acts?’

’Since when did they become so polite? Are they afraid of Great Yan getting serious?’

’What is the meaning of this?’ 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

They had no idea what the Demon Country was planning.

Yuan Xuangang clearly wasn’t finished. His tone grew heavy as he said, "However, all of this comes with one condition."

"The Sixth Prince of Great Yan, Lu Mingyuan, must marry into the Holy Netherworld’s imperial family to seal a marriage alliance between our two nations!"

The moment he said this, the entire court was in an uproar.

"What?!"

"Marry into their family?!"

Many of the more astute ministers, however, understood the Great Nether Empress’s true intentions.

"I understand! The Great Nether Empress is trying to humiliate Great Yan!"

"Lu Mingyuan is the future Crown Prince of Great Yan! The Great Nether Empress actually dares to use such a method to humiliate us!"

"Exactly! For a marriage alliance, it could be anyone! With so many Princes, why single out the candidate for Crown Prince? This is clearly a premeditated scheme!"

A Censor from the Advisory Platform Bureau nearly spat out a mouthful of old blood, wailing to the heavens:

"A monumental humiliation!"

"This is a truly monumental humiliation!"

"When has our Great Yan ever suffered such an indignity!"

Since its founding, Great Yan had never used marriage alliances, let alone ceded territory or paid indemnities. It had always regarded itself as a Celestial Empire.

Throughout history, there has never been an Empress who demanded another nation’s Crown Prince marry into her family. Emperors taking Princesses as brides, on the other hand, was common.

Anyone with eyes could see this was meant to humiliate Great Yan!

The marriage was a pretense; the humiliation was the real goal!

It was trampling Great Yan’s face and dignity into the dust!

At the same time, however, a small minority of the officials had a different idea.

’If the Sixth Prince marrying into their family could secure the retreat of the Demon Country’s army, it would actually be a very profitable exchange.’

’Not only would it save on military expenses, but it would also conserve a great deal of manpower and resources.’

But at this critical juncture, no one dared to voice this opinion.

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