CHAPTER 827: CHAPTER 675: A MOTHER’S HEART, A SON’S BOND

Ji Feng went to the residence of the Loulan Envoy without any courtesy, barging straight through the main gate.

The Loulan guards surrounded him menacingly.

Ji Feng’s face showed not a hint of fear.

It was past midnight, and the envoys had already retired early.

The leader was a Guard General.

He looked at Ji Feng warily, "Who dares trespass into the official residence? Do you know who resides here?"

Ji Feng, maintaining his composure, said, "I wish to see the Loulan Queen."

The General sneered, "Do you think someone like you could see the Queen?"

"Let him in."

From inside the side room came Ayimulan’s voice, commanding respect without anger.

The General immediately responded, "Yes, Princess Consort!"

He glared at Ji Feng, then stepped aside to make way for him.

Ayimulan’s female envoy came out and asked Ji Feng, "May I ask, young hero, why do you seek an audience with the Queen?"

Ji Feng handed her a letter effortlessly, and forcefully conveyed Emperor Liang’s message.

"Farewell."

He flicked his sleeves and left.

The General waited until he vanished into the darkness before asking Ayimulan in the side room, "Princess Consort, shall we...?"

"It’s not necessary."

Ayimulan replied.

The General silently bowed and returned to his night watch duties.

Early the next morning, the Loulan envoys came to greet Ayimulan and found the letter of challenge sent by Emperor Liang to Loulan. They also learned that the previous night’s action had failed.

At a critical moment, it was Emperor Liang who unexpectedly saved the old lady.

Mo Ye asked, "When exactly did Emperor Liang enter the Capital City? There was no prior rumor."

Yu Chenglou sighed, "This is a bit tricky. We rely on our envoy status, assuming the court wouldn’t openly make things difficult for us. But the Emperor of Liang doesn’t belong to the Great Zhou Court. As long as he doesn’t go too far, the Great Zhou Emperor has no authority to interfere."

He paused and asked, "Doesn’t this count as the Emperor of Liang sneaking into the Great Zhou?"

Mo Ye coldly said, "With the Great Zhou and Liang Country’s relationship, do you think the Great Zhou’s Emperor and Supreme Emperor will hold him accountable?"

Yu Chenglou shrugged, "That’s also true."

Mo Ye looked at the calligraphy on the table with little concern, "It’s just a letter of challenge.

Yu Chenglou tapped his fingers on the letter, "Don’t underestimate this battle letter. It’s personally written by Emperor Liang. If they accept it, they might disrupt the original plan; if they don’t, Emperor Liang will wage war on Loulan."

"Let them go to war then. Are we afraid? By uniting the forces of the ten Western Regions countries, perhaps we can give them a fight!"

The speaker was Du Nu.

He limped into the room, leaning on a cane.

After being beaten by Meng Lang to a pulp, losing face completely, the first thing he wanted to do upon waking was to kill that kid.

Unfortunately, his martial arts were no longer enough to support his revenge.

For this reason, his hatred only grew.

Mo Yi said, "The ten Western Regions countries have long been harmonious only in appearance. No one can guarantee whether some King might stab us in the back."

With the Loulan King gravely ill, leaving the kingdom leaderless, each vassal state was already restless. Engaging in a war with Liang Country now would see many people eager to use Liang’s forces to eliminate their rivals.

He added, "Let’s not forget the purpose of our visit to the Great Zhou."

At this, the group fell silent.

The room was engulfed in an eerie silence.

Du Nu waved his arm, gesturing with his cane, "But not accepting the battle letter makes us seem afraid of him!"

Mo Yi glanced at him, "Can you even fight? You probably wouldn’t withstand even a single move now."

Du Nu, infuriated, "Mo, who do you think you’re underestimating?!"

Mo Yi coldly said, "A cripple shouldn’t be bossing people around here."

Yu Chenglou tried to smooth things over, "Alright, alright, stop arguing. Let’s all say less. The most urgent matter now is Emperor Liang’s battle letter."

Mo Ye said, "The letter doesn’t specify what kind of fight, only mentions a meeting at Weiyang Building three days later... What’s Weiyang Building?"

Yu Chenglou laughed, "An inconspicuous little tavern."

Mo Ye puzzled, "If it’s insignificant, why arrange the meeting there?"

Yu Chenglou shrugged, "You’d have to ask Emperor Liang for that."

Ayimulan softly spoke, "Three days later, we shall meet on time."

Everyone’s expressions changed slightly.

Mo Yi frowned, "Princess Consort, shall I go to meet them first?"

Ayimulan said, "No need, I’ll go with you."

Mo Yi said, "That’s the Martial Emperor."

His caution was not without reason.

The Martial Emperor was neither a young emperor with undeveloped wings nor a Supreme Emperor with gentle means. He was decisive and ruthless, not someone to be easily deceived.

Ayimulan, like an eagle unafraid of storms in the prairie, calmly and composedly said, "I shall go to meet that legendary Martial Emperor."

The crowd felt her strong presence, their uneasy hearts slowly settling.

Indeed, so what if the opponent was the Martial Emperor?

Their Princess Consort was Ayimulan, a legend not seen in a hundred years across the ten Western Regions countries.

-

After spending a night at the Governor Mansion, Emperor Liang accompanied by Lu Yuan went to the Imperial Palace the next day to have a conversation with the Supreme Emperor.

The Supreme Emperor, in his youth, had been helped by the old King Qin and always remained grateful. Knowing that Emperor Liang had secretly entered the Capital City, he was not angry.

After all, what Emperor Liang did was justifiable.

"I didn’t expect that the old lady is your mother."

The Supreme Emperor was full of emotion.

Letting Lu Yuan go to Liang Country to acknowledge a false relative, it turned out not only Emperor Liang as a grandfather was real, but the old lady as a great grandmother was real too.

What luck that boy has?

Emperor Liang was also grateful for the Supreme Emperor’s years of care for the old lady.

The two had an engaging chat, inevitably discussing the situation in Loulan.

The Supreme Emperor looked troubled.

Emperor Liang said, "I understand your predicament. Three days later, when I face Loulan, just be a bystander, Great Zhou."

The Supreme Emperor smiled slightly, "Then I shall respect your decision."

Lu Yuan curled his lips.

Old fox.

Emperor Liang didn’t stay long in the Imperial Palace because—for no other reason—the old lady was looking for him.

Emperor Liang hurried back to the Governor Mansion.

The old lady was pacing anxiously, "Son...son..."

"Mother!"

Emperor Liang rushed forward in two steps.

The old lady’s panic disappeared instantly upon seeing him.

She took his hand and gently asked, "Yun’er, where have you been? When I woke up and couldn’t find you, I got worried."

Emperor Liang softly said, "I went..."

"To buy storybooks for Great Grandmother!"

Lu Yuan interrupted Emperor Liang, magically producing two storybooks.

Emperor Liang looked bewildered.

His mother reads this?!

Luo Shan didn’t mention it!

The old lady took the storybooks, overjoyed, "Yun’er is so thoughtful!"

Emperor Liang coughed lightly, subtly saying, "As long as you like them."

The old lady asked, "Yun’er, do you read them?"

"I don’t read."

What a joke, he, the dignified Martial Emperor, reviews court memorials and reads Champion Scholar articles. How could he read these romantic, melodramatic street market storybooks?

...

Evening.

Emperor Liang buried himself in a sea of books, engrossed and flipping through pages quickly, a small hill of storybooks piled beside him!