After the Alluring Beauty Was Forced into a Political Marriage - Chapter 4

Upon hearing his words, the youth curled his lips into an ambiguous smirk. He studied Shen Lianzhi for a long moment before announcing loudly, “I am the Left Tuqi King of the Great Xia Kingdom, Siqin Bari.”

Lianzhi froze in a daze before finally snapping back to reality. “What? What?!”

He turned his head and happened to meet Siqin Bari’s gaze. Shen Lianzhi’s heart skipped a beat as he realized the truth. It made sense now.

Great Xia and the Kingdom of Zhou had been engaged in constant conflict for years, yet the two nations remained closely linked. Over time, most of the nobility of Great Xia had learned the Han language; most could speak and recognize it, though they could not write it.

Shen Lianzhi had never cared much for the affairs of the steppes in the past, but he was a prince after all and could not remain entirely ignorant. He had heard whispers of many matters regarding Great Xia.

The Chanyu appointed a Left and Right Tuqi King to govern the eastern and western parts of the steppes. In Great Xia, the left side was the position of honor; therefore, the Left Tuqi King was equivalent to the crown prince of Great Xia.

As for this Siqin Bari, he was reportedly the most beloved third son of the Great Chanyu, Suhe. He had been titled the Left Tuqi King at only seventeen years old, a clear sign of the immense expectations placed upon him.

Lianzhi’s heart sank. He looked down at his wedding robes. Was this not a blatant confession?

He had fled a marriage only to run into a pack of wolves and get caught red-handed.

Lianzhi had initially felt lucky to have saved his life, but looking at the situation now, he feared that something even more terrifying awaited him.

His hair stood on end. He did not dare look at Siqin Bari again and could only lower his head, trembling.

“I have been ordered by my father to welcome the future Khatun of Great Xia back to the Chanyu’s court.” At that moment, the previously silent Siqin Bari spoke. He looked down at Shen Lianzhi, his eyes narrowing slightly. “You are Princess Huining of the Zhou Kingdom?”

Shen Lianzhi gave a timid nod.

Siqin Bari pursed his lips. His cold, piercing gaze moved from Shen Lianzhi’s face down to his long, slender, white neck. He let out a light sneer. “It turns out Princess Huining is a man?”

His voice was neither loud nor heavy, but to Shen Lianzhi, it felt like a stone had struck his head. He raised a hand to touch his face. He no longer felt the smooth, oily powder, but rather bare, clean skin.

Disaster had struck. The blood in Lianzhi’s veins turned cold once more. He had been splashed with wolf blood and had only thought of wiping away the filth; he had not realized that the face powder had been wiped away as well!

Although Shen Lianzhi possessed an extra part and was quite slender, he still appeared as a man from the outside. No one would mistake his gender.

To play the role of the female Shen Huining, he had to wear women’s clothing and apply powder to his face. Xiao Anzi, fearing he would be exposed, had reapplied white powder to his face every day.

Shen Lianzhi knew this was not a long-term solution. Even if he fooled them at first, he would be exposed on the wedding night. However, the Emperor had instructed him that if he could not avoid it, he must insist that he was the “Fourth Princess” rather than a prince.

Furthermore, Shen Lianzhi had shared the same thought as the Emperor; both assumed the Chanyu, who was over sixty, likely lacked the energy for bedroom activities. Perhaps sleeping with a quilt between them would be enough to get by.

Shen Lianzhi felt he was truly unlucky. Not only had his escape failed, but his secret had been revealed prematurely.

With Siqin Bari acting so sarcastically, Shen Lianzhi had no idea what would happen to him. His heart was filled with unease, and he could not say a single word.

Xiao Anzi turned to look at him, then glanced at the Left Tuqi King, whose expression was dark and unreadable. Realizing they could no longer hide it, he had no choice but to tell the truth. “The Left Tuqi King may not know. On the eve of the peace marriage, Princess Huining unfortunately contracted a malignant illness and passed away.”

Siqin Bari glanced sideways, his dark, slightly greenish eyes, resembling those of a wild wolf, staring at him unblinkingly. “She died? What a convenient coincidence.”

Though he was young, his presence was overwhelming. Even though Xiao Anzi was desperate to protect his master, he was terrified by that cold, dark gaze.

He forced himself to stay calm and gave a heavy nod. “I would not dare deceive the Left Tuqi King. Princess Huining truly died of illness.”

Siqin Bari narrowed his eyes and stared at him for a long while before shifting his gaze back. “The princess died, so you sent a man instead. Your Emperor of Zhou certainly shows great sincerity.”

His voice grew deep, and his words were blunt. Xiao Anzi shook his head and added, “To answer the Left Tuqi King, His Highness is a bit different from ordinary men.”

Siqin Bari let out a mocking “Ha” and shot a contemptuous look at the shivering Lianzhi. “Different? How different can he be?”

“Is he a hermaphrodite or something?!”

The speaker was careless, but the listener was sensitive. Siqin Bari spoke without hesitation, but his words felt like a knife to Shen Lianzhi’s heart.

Lianzhi had always considered this a defect. This dirty flaw was something shameful, a scar that would never heal, and the source of all his pain.

Normally, he refused to even mention it, doing everything to avoid the topic. But this little barbarian had just shouted it out loud.

How was this different from reopening his wound and rubbing salt in it?

Anger overcame his fear. Shen Lianzhi snapped his head up and glared at him with hatred. Meeting such a gaze, Siqin Bari was momentarily stunned.

He had only made a casual remark. However, after he spoke, the two people opposite him had fallen into a strange silence, and the prince’s face had changed completely.

At that moment, Siqin Bari had already sensed something was wrong. Now, seeing the undisguised fury in Shen Lianzhi’s eyes, what was there left to misunderstand?

“No way.” Siqin Bari’s sword-like brows furrowed. “I actually guessed right?”

Shen Lianzhi was still fuming. He turned his head away, his lips pressed tight in silence.

Seeing that Shen Lianzhi was ignoring him, Siqin Bari’s expression darkened slightly.

He was the young Left Tuqi King, the chosen son of the heavens on the steppes. He was used to being superior. Even if he knew the man before him might be his father’s future Khatun, he showed no respect. He simply said coldly, “Speak.”

Shen Lianzhi was truly trembling with rage. You already know the answer in your heart, so why must you force me to admit it?

His soaring anger gave him a bit of courage. Shen Lianzhi stiffened his neck, closed his eyes, and shouted, “So what if I am!”

His shout was surprisingly loud. Siqin Bari was startled by the outburst. The seventeen-year-old youth also had a short temper. With a dark face, he said, “My father asked to marry a princess of Zhou, not someone of dubious origin like you!”

Lianzhi wanted to tear his mouth apart. Who are you calling of dubious origin? He, Shen Lianzhi, was a legitimate prince of Zhou, recorded in the Imperial Genealogy!

You little brat, if you do not know how to speak, then do not. No one would take you for a mute.

Lianzhi did not know where he got the nerve to talk back. With a grim face, he said, “Left Tuqi King, what is the meaning of your words?”

“My father is sincerely seeking to establish good relations between our two nations. That is why, after my sister Princess Huining passed away, he sent me for the peace marriage. I am the Fourth Prince of Great Zhou! The Emperor appointed Prince An!”

He was so blinded by anger that he completely forgot the Emperor’s instructions, calling himself a prince and a titled royal as if he did not value his life.

“If you do not believe me, you can verify it with the envoys!” The Imperial Genealogy carried by the Minister of Rites stated it clearly.

“Calling me someone of dubious origin is far too rude,” Shen Lianzhi said.

Siqin Bari paused, then looked at him with a half-smile. “Is that so?”

“Even if the Emperor of Zhou is sincere, what about you?” he asked. “What were you doing out here last night, hm?”

“As a prince sent for a peace marriage, you dared to flee the wedding. You have quite the nerve.”

“Do you know what happens to those who run away according to the rules of our steppes?” Siqin Bari’s voice suddenly dropped, sounding like the whisper of a demon. “They are stripped of their clothes, locked in a sheep pen, and turned into the lowest form of slave.”

He watched with satisfaction as Shen Lianzhi began to shiver at those few words. A slight smirk touched his lips, and then he added maliciously, “But you are truly stupid beyond measure. If you wanted to run, you should have done it sooner. You waited until you were inside Great Xia territory to cause such a mess.”

He had hit every one of Lianzhi’s insecurities, leaving him both angry and terrified. Fleeing the marriage was an undeniable fact, and fleeing so late was something he deeply regretted.

He had hesitated throughout the journey, and many good opportunities had been lost due to his indecisiveness. In the end, he had chosen the worst possible time. Lianzhi truly regretted it until his intestines turned green.

Siqin Bari glanced at Lianzhi’s pale face and snorted again. “I do not care if you are a prince or a titled royal. In short, my father wants to marry a princess. As for those words, you had better save your strength to say them in front of my father!”

With that, he turned abruptly, the hem of his robe cutting a sharp arc through the air.

Siqin Bari whistled with two fingers in his mouth. The golden eagle that had flown away returned and landed on his shoulder once more.

He turned his head, his deep eyes staring straight at Shen Lianzhi until the latter’s spine felt numb.

Lianzhi shifted slightly to the side. Seeing that he was frightened, Siqin Bari whispered, “If my father forgives you and is willing to keep you, then so be it. But if he does not…”

He did not finish the sentence, instead casting a nonchalant glance at a wolf head on the ground, now mostly covered by snow.

The wolf head was frozen stiff, its severed neck matted with dark, dried blood. Pale bone was vaguely visible, and the fur was frozen hard. Those eerie green wolf eyes were still open, dark and hollow, as if the creature had died with its eyes open in resentment.

Shen Lianzhi’s teeth chattered. He suddenly heard a metallic clink beside his ear and could not help but turn to look.

He saw the little brat holding an unsheathed crescent-shaped scimitar. As the hunting wind swept past, the cold steel rang. The blade, thin as a piece of paper, seemed to still have traces of dark red blood on it.

“That will be your end,” Siqin Bari said.

“This blade is very fast, so it should not cause you much suffering. But your father, who dared to deceive people, likely will not be so lucky.” He watched as Shen Lianzhi’s face turned deathly pale and then grinned, revealing a row of sharp, white teeth.

Siqin Bari actually had two pointed canine teeth. With his fierce gaze, he looked exactly like a wild beast staring at its prey. Shen Lianzhi hopelessly lost the confrontation.

He gave a startled cry and hid behind Xiao Anzi to escape Siqin Bari’s gaze, which made his scalp tingle with fear.

Shen Lianzhi shook like a sieve, and bright tears actually began to well up in the corners of his eyes.

Siqin Bari had originally intended to scare him, but he had not expected the man to be so cowardly. He suddenly found it quite boring and let out a scoff. “Sending a man is one thing, but to send such a coward.”

He stopped talking to Lianzhi and took several long strides forward. After a while, he turned his head slightly and gave Lianzhi a grim smile.

His voice reached Lianzhi’s ears over the sound of the wind. “Hey, follow me! Come with me to the Chanyu’s court to see my father.”

“And then, we will decide whether or not to use this blade to cut off your head.”

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