Shipin Dalizheng

Chapter 377 Substitution

Rong Tang's heart skipped a beat. A few days ago, he had read some information about Western Kunlun and learned that the people of Western Kunlun worshipped the goddess Sarna. A Western Region goddess couldn't possibly look like a Dai Yue woman, so it could only be...

Without hesitation, he took Tang Tiantian's hand and apologized to Crown Prince Yu Li together, "Your Highness, this is my wife. I'm sorry for disturbing her. Someone, go and catch the person who pushed the princess and make amends to the Crown Prince."

Tang Tiantian was still a little confused, but she didn't forget to point fingers, "It was Wei Ranran who pushed me."

Wei Ranran had already escaped, but the monk can run away but the temple cannot. Rong Tang led people to chase after him. Because Prince Yuli was among the people disturbed, even Minister Wei could not stop him from capturing him.

Minister Wei roared, "Rong Tang, if you dare to take my daughter away, I will never be reconciled with you."

Wei Ranran cried and complained, "It's all your fault. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have become a concubine. Since my life is ruined, Tang Tiantian can't have an easy life either. She should go with the dowry."

Rong Tang's face was icy. "Miss Wei, there's a reason for everything. It was your father who first forced His Majesty to marry off his daughter, so I resorted to a trick to silence him. I originally wanted to keep you all safe, so none of you would have to marry. Since you have such evil intentions, don't blame me for not leaving you a way out. You framed the princess in public and disturbed the prince of a friendly country. His Majesty won't agree unless you give the envoys an explanation."

He kidnapped Wei Ranran, and Old Madam Wei and Madam Wei cried and begged Minister Wei to find a solution. Minister Wei, a die-hard fan of Prince Rui, had no choice but to ask Prince Rui for help.

Rong Tang thought that after kidnapping Wei Ranran to apologize, the matter was almost over. Unexpectedly, news came from the palace that Prince Yuli had recommended three princesses for marriage and specifically nominated Tang Tiantian.

This stirred up a hornet's nest, and the three princesses escaped silently. The queen immediately expressed her position, saying that the princesses should not be treated lightly. Yu Li personally rejected the princesses and said that he would never have the chance to propose marriage again, otherwise he would be treated as an offender of the majesty of the upper country.

As for whether Tang Tiantian would marry a foreign prince, she didn't care. Anyway, Rong Tang promised her to save the princess, so he had done it. Whether he could save his fiancée depended on his own ability.

This matter caused quite a stir in the palace. Some of the ministers who got the news first and whose daughters were chosen as dowries ran to the palace to beg for their daughters' names to be crossed out, because Tang Tiantian's status was not high enough and she should not have a concubine from a high-ranking family as a dowry.

When Rong Tang hurried to the Qinzheng Palace, the whole palace was still arguing. Everyone said that His Majesty was reluctant to marry the princess, and now Prince Yuli had chosen Tang Tiantian himself, getting the best of both worlds.

No one considered whether Tang Tiantian or Rong Tang were willing.

Emperor Xuanning clenched his hands tightly. Prince Yuli personally proposed to Tang Tiantian, which seemed to be a great joy to others, but in his opinion, it was no easier than marrying a princess.

These idiots in the hall, don't they even think about who Tang Tiantian belongs to before they dare to make a promise to her?

As the emperor, he couldn't even make any promises to anyone else. How could he face Rong Tang if he wanted to marry his minister's wife to a foreign prince?

When Rong Tang was walking in the corridor, he had already heard Xiao Ji say that Prince Yuli came to propose marriage, but the emperor did not agree. Now many ministers were forcing the emperor to agree, so he asked him to go up and block it.

As soon as Rong Tang entered the palace, he could still hear the officials' discussions and requests to get rid of his daughter.

"His Majesty."

Rong Tang bowed and said loudly, "No matter who the marriage is, she will eventually be crowned a princess and married off to West Kunlun. Therefore, no one on the dowry list can be changed. On the contrary, we must add a group of dowries to show the solemnity. All the adults present, please include every legitimate daughter of every family."

There was a loud buzzing and cursing.

"Rong Tang, are you crazy? A small foreign country came to ask for marriage, and we can just marry any one to him. Do we have to sacrifice all the legitimate daughters of the civil and military officials in the court?"

Rong Tang said coldly, "You all know that this is just a small foreign country. If there are problems, they should be dealt with by men. Why do you repeatedly push a daughter away in exchange for peace? Have I, Rong Tang, been against the marriage from the beginning? You refused to listen and forced Your Majesty to marry the princess. Well, those who agree to marry the princess must also give their own daughters as dowry."

Wei Shangshu angrily scolded: "Now you don't need to marry the princess, just marry Princess Changping..."

"That's my fiancée! You guys, do you have any sense of propriety or shame? You forced the princess to marry you before, thinking she hadn't made up her mind. Princess Changping was already engaged, and when someone came asking for her, you just kicked her out to avoid humiliating the emperor's prestige. You're so shameless as to want to send her away like this. I'm ashamed for you. You shameless bastards, you're so shameless as to hold the position of Minister of Rites. Did you agree to it just because someone fell in love with your mother?!"

Minister Wei's face turned pale from being scolded. "You... this is a matter of state, you can't act recklessly. If you don't agree to Prince Yuli, Great Yue will not be able to eat salt. Will you be responsible?"

Rong Tang continued to point at him and curse, "If I'm not responsible, then is it you? I've already exchanged half of the salt and put it in the Ministry of Revenue's warehouse, and I'm trying to find a way to exchange the other half. In just half a day, Wei Shangshu, you instigated your own daughter to frame the princess, and then forced the princess to marry her when she was already engaged. You have neither shame nor integrity, and you are unjustly occupying a high position. With an old man like you in the court, the whole of Dai Yue will lose its courage. Your Majesty, a coward like Wei Shangshu is bound to be a coward in a war, either running away or betraying the country. You are not worthy of being the Minister of Rites."

Minister Wei rolled his eyes, fell backwards, and fainted with a loud bang.

Someone beside him pointed at Rong Tang and scolded him, "You insulted Shangguan..."

"And you. Don't think I don't know that you've been accepting bribes from the West Kunlun caravan for years, embezzling a lot of salt every year and selling it privately. You've also taken a lot of bribes this year, haven't you? Anyway, let me put it this way: no matter who goes to marry, everyone present has a share. Each family must send one daughter to accompany her as a concubine. Those who don't want their daughters to suffer, shut up."

He pointed his fingers one by one, and the powerful aura made many mouths close tightly.

In the end, only a weak accusation remained, "Your Majesty, Minister Rong roared in the court. Please punish him."

The current Emperor Xuan Ning can punish Rong Tang. As long as he is captured and forced to marry Tang Tiantian, it seems that all these troubles can be solved.

But think about it, is Rong Tang just Rong Tang? He has the influence of Rongjia Village and the eight surrounding villages. He has 500 veterans from Fuxinzhuang, 3,000 new soldiers, dozens of low-ranking officers under his command, two national medical experts, and a unique figure in the martial arts world, the astonishingly talented guest official Xiao Poyun.

Besides, was Tang Tiantian so easily forced into marriage? The Sima family controlled the most advanced industrial and weaponry technology in Dai Viet, and Tang Fuyun was a craftsman of Dai Viet national treasure level. Even if tens of thousands of heavily armored troops were to come in exchange, Emperor Xuanning would not be willing to trade him for such talent.

It sounds slow, but it only takes one second to think about it, and Emperor Xuan Ning knows who is lighter and who is heavier.

"Indeed, no matter who goes to marry, a dowry is essential. If you do not want your daughter to suffer along, then you should cooperate with Lord Rong to obtain the other half of the salt and the annual salt trade contract. I only care about the interests of the subjects of Dai Viet. As for whether a marriage is necessary, it depends on your abilities."

His words were very clear. As long as the salt could be obtained and the marriage could be avoided, he would be happy to see it happen.

Seeing that all the ministers lowered their heads and dared not say a word, Emperor Xuanning slowly opened his mouth and said, "Just now, I seem to have heard that someone accepted bribes and smuggled salt?"

With a "bang" sound, another person fell down.

Rong Tang clenched his fist and looked around with a warning look, as if to intimidate everyone, telling them to behave themselves, otherwise no one would have an easy life.

However, Rong Tang also knew that Emperor Xuanning's bottom line was to get the salt, not just for this year, but also to guarantee it for many years to come.

"Goddess Sarna!"