RWNEFE -Chapter 247 Renamed the Zhenbei Army!

The next day, Shen Yuanhao went to report to Shen Lanxi, dark circles under his eyes.

“General, we got it out of her. Yinxing was working for Empress Qi.”

Shen Lanxi asked, “And what else?” Did the assassination attempts and poisonings on the way to Dongchuan also have the empress’s hand in them?

Shen Yuanhao said regretfully, “No. She didn’t know much either. After Zhou Yunyue was named the princess for the marriage alliance, Yinxing was assigned to stay by her side. She only received her mission before departure—her target was you, Eldest Sister.”

Thinking of the crazed things Yinxing had shouted, Shen Yuanhao wished he really could return them to her tenfold.

Shen Lanxi looked at her brother’s angry face and said bluntly, “Did she say she was ordered by the Empress to ruin my chastity but not to kill me?”

Shen Yuanhao glanced at his eldest sister cautiously, then nodded in silence, adding resentfully, “She got off too easily.” She’d died far too easily.

Shen Lanxi said, “Qi Yingqun has no sons. For all these years she hasn’t taken any prince under her wing. What do you think her purpose is?” The Qi family looked glorious on the surface, but none of their descendants amounted to anything. The signs of decline were already showing.

Was Qi Yingqun planning to let those good-for-nothing brothers or nephews of hers replace her?

It seemed she would need to notify Sixth Senior Sister to dig deeper into this empress.

…

When the new princess for the marriage alliance suddenly died of a severe illness, everyone naturally assumed that the title would revert to Zhou Yunyue.

Zhou Yunyue herself thought so too.

No—if that wretched maid was dead, so be it. She couldn’t let it implicate her.

Zhou Yunyue immediately kicked up a fuss, insisting on seeing Shen Lanxi.

After the guards reported it, they brought her over.

“I heard that Yinxing, that wretched maid, fell gravely ill and died,” Zhou Yunyue said bluntly the moment she arrived.

Shen Lanxi raised an amused brow. “What, you can’t bear to part with your princess title after all?”

Zhou Yunyue had been waiting for that line and hurried to explain, “Who says I can’t bear to part with it? I’ll be a member of the Shen family in the future—your sister-in-law. If you dare push me out to marry for the alliance, you’ll be betraying your own brother!”

Shen Lanxi replied, “So you plan to push the burden of the marriage alliance away again and again, stuffing the princess title onto someone else?”

Zhou Yunyue frowned. Why did Shen Lanxi have to speak so unpleasantly?

What did she mean by “stuffing the princess title onto someone else”? That was a princess’s title—an honor many people would burn incense for lifetimes to obtain.

If she gave that title to someone else, that person ought to kneel and kowtow in gratitude.

Shen Lanxi said, “Why aren’t you saying anything? Don’t want to after all?”

Zhou Yunyue snorted disdainfully. “Who said I don’t want to? I just don’t want to deal with you!”

Shen Lanxi said calmly, “Then let another palace maid by your side take your place as the princess and continue the negotiations.”

Zhou Yunyue hadn’t expected Shen Lanxi to agree so easily. Sure enough—what woman wouldn’t care about her natal family? In the future she would still rely on the Shen family. Shen Lanxi wouldn’t dare offend her own younger brother.

“General, should I feed her some medicine?” Ban Sicao frowned so hard his brows nearly knotted together. “I guarantee she won’t be able to spout nonsense ever again!”

Shen Lanxi looked unconcerned. “Let her make trouble. Either way, she won’t be able to for much longer.”

Ban Sicao still felt Zhou Yunyue was getting off too easily. His eyes turned, and he immediately strode off cheerfully to find Shen Yuanjing.

After all, she would be Shen Yuanjing’s woman in the future. Outsiders couldn’t discipline her—but he certainly could.

…

The second wave of exchange teams arrived. After sending off the third wave of the Zhengbei Army, Shen Lanxi made a bold stroke of the brush and renamed the new army.

“It will be called the Zhenbei Army!”

The three characters “Zhenbei Army” were written on white paper. Shortly, someone would take it away to find embroiderers to stitch it onto the banners.

Some of the people below looked puzzled—they had thought it would be called the Shen Family Army.

Shen Yuanxu and the others were among those puzzled.

They quickly understood. “Zhenbei Army” sounded more resounding than “Shen Family Army,” and besides, their eldest sister probably still harbored resentment toward Zhou Ruyuan.

Zhou Ruyuan held the title Prince of the South—so she named it the Zhenbei Army.

South and north—Eldest Sister clearly meant to challenge Zhou Ruyuan head-on!

They also vaguely felt that Eldest Sister had abandoned Dongchuan, such a solid stronghold, and deliberately come to the unfamiliar northwest, where she had no foundation at all.

She must be trying to see Zhou Ruyuan make a fool of himself.

After all, Zhou Ruyuan had been here nearly three years and achieved nothing. If Eldest Sister made accomplishments here, in the eyes of the world it would mean she was more capable than Zhou Ruyuan.

Eldest Sister just wanted to vent her anger, didn’t she?

No matter how valiant she was, when it came to matters of the heart, she was still a woman after all!

Shen Lanxi had no idea what the Shen family youths were thinking. Even if she did, she would only scoff.

The exchange of troops between the two sides was such a huge affair that news quickly spread throughout the northwest, including to the foreign tribes who eyed Great Zhou like a tiger watching its prey.

“General, we caught six spies just this morning!” Xiao Fang came to report.

Shen Lanxi did not stint her praise. “You have a keen eye.”

Xiao Fang was secretly delighted, and before nightfall he discovered four more.

The handling of these spies was simple and brutal—they were hung on the city walls as a public warning.

After a night of wind and sand, a thick layer of ice and snow covered the ground.

The spies hanging on the walls were frozen stiff. When the wind blew, they knocked against each other with dull thuds.

As the fierce wind howled, it sounded like ghosts wailing—terrifying and chilling.

Even spies lurking not far away dared not lift their heads to look.

“General, Huangtu City is sealed up like an iron barrel—we can’t get our people in. But spies who followed the Great Zhou army have sent back news: every city they reach, they post a recruitment order at the city gates. They should be recruiting troops!”

After hearing his deputy’s report, Abu Khan’s belly rose and fell heavily.

“On the surface, the Great Zhou army wants peace talks with us, but in secret they’re recruiting soldiers and horses, planning to fight our three tribes to the bitter end.”

“General, the internal chaos of the Great Zhou court hasn’t been resolved yet. I think this matter may be suspicious,” the deputy analyzed.

Abu Khan’s eyes flickered. “I will continue the peace talks with Great Zhou. You send more men to observe their recruitment, and also find out whether the Great Zhou court’s internal strife has been resolved!”

“Yes!”

A few days later, the Zhenbei Army received a message from a Turkic envoy.

“Our noble General Abu Khan says that Great Zhou does not take the peace talks seriously, nor does it respect the envoys of the three tribes. You belittle him by sending a woman to negotiate—it is an insult to the warriors of the three tribes! He will join with the envoys of the Tatars and Persia to demand an explanation from Great Zhou!”

Shen Lanxi said, “I warmly welcome their arrival. At the same time, please carry a message to General Abu Khan: when he comes, bring the two thousand dan of grain with him!”

The Turkic envoy, who had been so arrogant moments before, left in utter disgrace.

“Dare to show disrespect to the general—how could I let him walk out of Huangtu City in one piece?” Ban Sicao fumed, about to chase after him.

Shen Lanxi said calmly, “Harsh words are just one tactic in two-sided negotiations—mere tug-of-war.” There was no need to take them to heart. Who couldn’t talk tough?