Chapter 464: Overwhelmed

Eternal Peace

The Fanyang incident made Eternal Peace lose all face; he summoned the Prince of Upper Party Commandery and the Prince of Clear River back to the capital. As a result, the Prince of Upper Party Commandery feigned illness and refused to come no matter what, while the Prince of Clear River only sent his eldest son born of a concubine to the capital to go through the motions.

Given this dismissive attitude, how could Baili Jin swallow this anger!

However, he is now caught between a rock and a hard place; even the fact that he raised the banner and rebelled is not yet clear, and the court will certainly not support him in causing more trouble. No matter how he weighs it, he must first swallow this anger.

Baili Jin felt uneasy, so he ultimately granted the title of Heir of Clear River to the eldest son of the Prince of Clear River who had entered the capital. This move could only vent his spite, merely to disgust the Prince of Clear River.

Later, when Baili Jin heard that the Great King had appeared in the Combined Prefecture to inspect the drought situation, his angry heart could not calm down at all, and thus assassins were sent out again.

This time, he clung to a slim hope, thinking that with the Great King away from home, assassination would surely be much easier than at the main base in the Wing Prefecture.

Who would have thought that this wait would result in complete silence.

He knew; it was probably another failure. If any survivors remained, they should have already returned to Eternal Peace.

He never expected those assassins to survive this long this time; they've only just been wiped out. The Great King had been delayed for a long time in Model Yang, and the assassins had also spent a long time gathering news of the Great King in the Combined Prefecture and Wing Prefecture.

After the assassination failed, Baili Jin had no choice but to heed Minister Wang's advice: first pacify the strongest force, Baili Jing, and conserve strength to deal with the several rebels in the south.

If he simply lowered his head, it would be fine; this guy, like the Wang clan, takes the aristocracy too seriously, and also takes the Langya Wang clan too seriously, which led to the absurdity of bestowing marriage on the Fifth Princess.

The uncle and nephew even felt that for the Wang clan's lineal grandson to marry the Fifth Princess would be nothing short of the best possible destination for her. After all, her maternal family is the Wei clan, an obscure minor aristocracy, incomparable to the mighty Langya Wang clan. The Great King and Zhu Ti both got this wrong; people truly believe that if the Wang clan's lineal grandson is willing to marry, the Fifth Princess will certainly do so.

After all, royal authority may change, but the aristocratic families do not fall.

This is Minister Wang's confidence.

Baili Jin directly issued the imperial edict for marriage; what if the Great King throws it back at him and scolds him? But this matter is led by Minister Wang; they first created a stir in Eternal Peace, thinking that even if Baili Jing's affection for the Fifth Princess cannot outweigh his ambition, this could still undermine the other side's popular support in the Great Jin.

Baili Jing's reputation in Eternal Peace is not bad; this is another thorn in Baili Jin's heart.

Once the matter had fully spread and everyone knew it, seeing the populace's fervent support, the Grand Minister of Works only then agreed to send Princess Shang's edict to the Wing Prefecture. As a result, not a single member of the delegation that transmitted the edict that night was spared; they were all hung up in a row outside the gates of Eternal Peace, and then collided head‑on with the early‑morning townsfolk entering the city.

As for Baili Jin's anger, needless to say.

Moreover, the City Gate Colonel urgently reported that the envoy delegation of the Three Xianbei Tribes had suddenly arrived in Eternal Peace and was already outside the walls.

The Establishing Regulations Palace was in an uproar.

Since it is an envoy delegation, it must be received; the bald‑headed Xianbei prince leading the so‑called 'false envoy delegation' entered the Grand Scholars Pavilion, and newspapers from the Northern Border also began to circulate on the streets.

The Three Xianbei Tribes wished to eternally cease hostilities with the Great Jin and bind the imperial family through marriage.

What a good thing!

Now disasters continue unabated, the Great Jin is surrounded by enemies, and even the people of Eternal Peace no longer feel the superiority of the Celestial Dynasty. Peace in the north with fewer foes is something the populace would love to see.

Baili Jin had not yet seen the envoy delegation, but the news that the one‑armed 'Old Prince' wanted to marry the Elder Princess had already spread throughout Eternal Peace.

This time, the perceptive ones finally caught a whiff of something different.

Baili Jin was frazzled; the Empress Dowager and the Elder Princess came to him three times a day in tears.

"Old Third, this is too vicious… Your Majesty, you really won't agree, will you? I've heard that Xianbei man is over thirty and has only one arm; he's a savage northern barbarian. If you agree, Fenyang will be ruined for life—she is your only sister!"

"I have my own plans, Empress Dowager, rest assured."

"What is there to worry about? I already said I would marry Fenyang back to the Langya clan, yet you and your uncle refuse to listen!"

As for this sister, Baili Jin had indeed long had plans; marrying her back to the Wang clan would be a waste, he intended to match her with the Zhang clan of Dark Paulownia. Having Fenyang marry into the Zhang clan that guards the southern frontier borders would be far more meaningful than marrying her back to her natal family, which is already a spent force—at least from his perspective.

"The sister and Wang Yu are not a good match."

Fenyang, who had been weeping bitterly behind the Empress Dowager, suddenly cried out even louder, "What do you mean, Imperial Brother? Is Baili Shu and Wang Yu a suitable match or not?!"

Baili Jin was overwhelmed.

Moreover, his marriage edict had not yet left Eternal Peace, yet the news of the Xianbei marriage alliance with the Elder Princess spread like wildfire; everyone in Eternal Peace knew of it, and public opinion grew even hotter under the push of information‑gathering specialists.

"Baili Jing!"

Alright, having the pits they themselves dug earlier as a foundation, if he now refuses, it will become Baili Jin not letting the populace live peaceful lives.

Baili Jin and the Grand Minister of Works never expected the Northern Border to react so quickly; for a moment they were overwhelmed and unable to cope.

The Establishing Regulations Palace soon replaced another batch of porcelain… "How many spies have they been raising in Eternal Peace!"

"Not only that. The news is spreading too fast; Youzhou's reaction is also unimaginably swift."

"Hah, our people haven't even left Eternal Peace, and Youzhou has already sent over Xianbei individuals!"

……

Wei Shen also asked the Great King, "What if Baili Jin grits his teeth and agrees? Would you really have the Fifth Princess marry into the Wang household?"

The Great King exclaimed in shock: "That's a must! Aren't imperial princesses forbidden to leave the palace before marriage? Once the Fifth Princess in the palace marries out, I'll still have a chance to see her more often, not necessarily!"

Wei Shen: ……

What are you saying, that Baili Jin has nothing to do with provoking the Great King?!