Since the road was built, it only takes about two hours to travel from Ye City Academy to Xindu City at full gallop on horseback.
Shen Yu whipped his horse all the way. The horse's hooves kicked up a cloud of dust on the official road. The farmers in the fields on both sides looked up, saw his figure, and then stopped their work and whispered to each other.
"Today, I've seen several gentlemen rushing back to Xindu City from other places. Now even Second Young Master Shen is back. It seems that the rumor in the city is true!"
"What rumor?"
"Don't you know yet? I heard that someone from the southern court has come, saying that they want to propose marriage to the Divine Lady!"
"What?!"
"How dare he! That's the Divine Lady! Has he eaten the heart of a bear and the gall of a leopard?"
"Exactly. He has no idea of his own limitations!"
Meanwhile, there were also quite a few people gathered at the city gate.
Aunt Zhao, the pancake vendor, threw her apron aside, stood in front of her stall with her hands on her hips, and raised her voice three degrees higher than usual.
"That young emperor from the south who hasn't even grown his hair yet wants to marry our Divine Lady? Pah! Is he worthy?"
Old Man Zhou, the straw - sandal weaver next door, slapped the stool leg with the sole of a straw sandal, blew his beard and stared angrily: "What emperor? In our Zhenbei Prefecture, the Divine Lady is heaven! If those dog officials from the Yong Dynasty dare to step into Xindu City, I'll be the first to beat them with the sole of my shoe and teach them a lesson!"
Several young men rolled up their sleeves, showing their strong muscles, and shouted in chorus.
"Let him come! Let him come! One mouthful of spit from each of us can drown them. They still dare to dream of marrying the Divine Lady. Do they really think we, the believers of the Divine Lady, are dead?"
"Right, right. We can't let those scoundrels offend the Divine Lady. We must teach them a lesson!"
"Don't worry. Miss Pei and others must be discussing this matter. Just wait for the official notice from the prefectural government!"
"In my opinion, we should have sent troops to attack the imperial city of the Yong Dynasty long ago and pull that useless emperor off his throne!"
"Yes. This earthly kingdom belongs to the Divine Lady. The Yong Dynasty has occupied the Divine Lady's territory and still dares to come to our north to offend the Divine Lady. They are really insolent. We should help the Divine Lady take back the south and scare them!"
"Now it's hard to enter the military camp. I wonder if we can bring our own rations and follow the Zhenbei Army to attack the Yong Dynasty to vent our anger for the Divine Lady!"
As soon as Shen Yu's horse reached the city gate, the next second, he heard the deafening noise.
He dismounted and led the reins through the crowd.
Aunt Zhao spotted Shen Yu coming at a glance. She immediately shouted at the top of her voice: "Look, everyone! It's Second Young Master Shen!"
"Second Young Master Shen, please tell us what to do. We mustn't let those people enter the city and desecrate our Xindu City and insult the Divine Lady!"
Shen Yu raised his hand and pressed down.
The noise in the crowd gradually subsided. Hundreds of pairs of eyes all fell on him at once.
"Everyone, please calm down," Shen Yu said. His voice was not very loud, but every word was clear. "As believers of the Divine Lady, we will never just sit by and watch someone offend the Divine Lady."
His eyes swept across the angry faces. "If the emperor of the Yong Dynasty dares to come, the Zhenbei Army will step in and make them pay the price for their blasphemy. Everyone should go about their business as usual. If we act on impulse and cause some trouble, we'll only give those with ulterior motives a chance to take advantage."
After he finished speaking, the crowd was silent for a moment.
Aunt Zhao put down her hands on her hips and murmured, "What Second Young Master Shen said makes sense, but I'm still so angry!"
Shen Yu handed the reins to Shen Da, who had followed him. "I know that the villagers love the Divine Lady, but since this matter involves the Divine Lady, we can't be hasty. After we discuss and come up with a result, the prefectural government will issue a notice. Everyone, please disperse. Don't block the city gate and hinder the traffic."
Although the villagers were reluctant, Shen Yu still had some influence in Xindu City. They stood there, whispered a few words, and finally dispersed in twos and threes.
After the city gate returned to normal, Shen Yu turned around and strode towards the prefectural government in the center of the city.
When he stepped through the gate, the round table in the main hall of the government was already full of people. At a rough glance, there were both men and women, some wearing the robes of civil officials and some still in armor.
Everyone looked solemn.
Pei Wanning handed the secret letter in her hand to Shen Yu as he walked over. "Second Young Master Shen, take a look at this."
Without saying much, Shen Yu took the secret letter and scanned the contents on the paper. "Guo Rong is simply stupid. The Divine Lady is the incarnation of a true god. How can a mere mortal dare to dream of marrying the Divine Lady?"
"This is clearly a blasphemy against the Divine Lady!"
"If the Divine Lady gets angry because of this, this brainless fool, Guo Rong, deserves to die a thousand times!"
The educated people couldn't come up with any harsh words when scolding. As for the military officers beside them, they were not well - educated. Their mouths were as poisonous as snakes.
"These bastards. We've been too kind to them, which is why they're getting more and more insolent!"
"What kind of person is that young emperor from the south? He's not even qualified to carry the Divine Lady's shoes!"
"Anyway, no matter what you say, I'm going to teach those scoundrels a lesson. If I don't beat them to their knees, crying for mercy, I'll have no face to see the Divine Lady!"
Seeing that everyone was about to roll up their sleeves and rush out of the prefectural government to fight, Pei Wanning had to stand up and soothe their emotions. "Don't act on impulse. We need to discuss this matter carefully, lest we make things worse."
Shen Jue, who had been silent all this time, spoke up. "Miss Pei, just give us a definite answer. Are we going to send troops or not?"
His lips were pursed, and his face was extremely ugly.
Pei Wanning looked at Shen Jue, and her expression paused for a moment. "Even if we send troops, General Shen, you're not suitable to lead the army."
"Why can't I lead the army?"
Shen Jue immediately showed dissatisfaction. "Does Miss Pei think that my ability is not enough to pacify the south, help the Divine Lady unite the thirteen states of the world, and eliminate all the villains?"
Compared with Shen Jue, whose emotions were a bit out of control, Pei Wanning was much calmer. She said in an official tone, "General Shen, it's not that I'm deliberately targeting you. It's just that this time, not only the envoys but also the young emperor of the Yong Dynasty himself are coming to Zhenbei Prefecture."
"Well, that's even better. I'll just take his dog's life." Shen Jue's voice was as cold as frost and snow in the coldest winter months.
Pei Wanning's expression was inscrutable. "General Shen, the envoy who came to Zhenbei Prefecture with the young emperor is your father, Marquis Ningyuan. I've heard for a long time that Marquis Ningyuan is always loyal to the emperor and patriotic. If Marquis Ningyuan protects the young emperor with his life, what will you do?"
"What did you say?"
Shen Jue could hardly believe his ears.
