Seeing Er Gouzi’s round eyes, Jing Hengbo immediately sensed trouble.
Who was in the portrait?
It couldn’t be herself, could it?
Before this thought could finish forming, she saw Er Gouzi flapping his wings and shouting joyfully, “Bo Bo, Bo Bo, Bo that Bo!”
The long queue ahead turned around in unison.
Jing Hengbo quickly grabbed a mask and slapped it on her face. The child hurriedly extended his hand for money. Jing Hengbo pressed a finger to her lips with a “shush” and asked, “How much?”
The child’s eyes rolled, then he loudly declared, “Ten taels of gold!”
“Ten taels is ten taels… ah, gold! Are you robbing me!” Jing Hengbo cursed under her breath and reluctantly paid. Though she still hadn’t figured out exactly why Shang Kingdom was looking for her with her portrait, thinking it over, she had no relationship with Shang Kingdom. They probably weren’t inviting her as an honored guest. Nine times out of ten, this wasn’t good news. She didn’t want to be expelled from Shang Kingdom’s borders in front of dignitaries from all nations—that would be a tremendous loss of face.
The child took the money, stuffed it in his pocket, and ran off shouting, “Soldiers! Come quick! This woman here is suspicious! She bribed me with gold!”
“What the hell!” Jing Hengbo cursed loudly. “Now I finally understand why you’re called Shang Kingdom—Shang for swindling merchants!”
The queue stretched long both front and back. Leaving the queue now would be visible to all eyes, so she had to bite the bullet and watch as that squad of Shang Kingdom soldiers rushed over, followed by a golden-inlaid, jade-decorated, extremely luxurious carriage.
The lead soldier held up the portrait, his gaze burning as he compared. Jing Hengbo regretted that Yi Kingdom’s mask was still in her bundle—no time to take it out and put it on now.
After thinking, she decided that if Shang Kingdom really wanted to expel her, she’d just flash into the checkpoint.
The soldier clutched her portrait and said, “By order of the Crown Prince, we’ve come to welcome the Black Water Queen. Please remove your mask for verification.”
A commotion arose all around. The four words “Black Water Queen” were like a boulder thrown into a calm whirlpool. People before and behind turned to stare at her, their gazes filled with surprise, curiosity, unease, and wariness. Jing Hengbo felt like her mask might be lifted off by these people’s curious stares.
Whispers rose from all sides.
“The Black Water Queen came too?”
“Wasn’t she fighting over territory with Shang Yuan in Dai Mao?”
“No, I heard she disappeared.”
“Which Black Water Queen? The one who seduced the Right State Preceptor, impersonated a queen, got expelled from Di Ge, then seduced Ying Bai and Pei Shu? That promiscuous woman? They say she’s incomparably beautiful—we can finally see her today.”
“Shang Kingdom would invite her? She hasn’t officially ascended the throne yet. With Dai Mao’s situation unstable, would she really come?”
“I heard this woman has a face like spring flowers but a heart like a venomous snake. You should all stay far away from her!”
…
Jing Hengbo sniffed, thinking when did she become so famous?
“What does your Crown Prince want with the Black Water Queen?” Yong Xue beside her suddenly spoke.
The soldier smiled rather ambiguously. “How could we lowly ones know the Crown Prince’s intentions?”
A man in a green high hat nearby suddenly said sourly, “Shang Kingdom’s Crown Prince is famous for loving beauties. He must have heard of the Black Water Queen’s renowned beauty, sent her an invitation, and dispatched people to receive her. This is probably advancing his courtship, right?”
The Shang Kingdom soldier’s eyebrows twitched, seeming angry, then as if remembering something, he didn’t argue. He snorted coldly and said, “Please remove your mask, Miss.”
Jing Hengbo had no choice but to remove the mask and sigh, “I am Jing Hengbo. Please thank your Crown Prince for his kind intentions on my behalf, but I think it’s better not to receive special treatment…”
“Hahahaha!” Sudden loud laughter interrupted her words. Jing Hengbo stared up in shock to see several Shang Kingdom soldiers doubled over with laughter, while the foreign visitors nearby also laughed heartily with ridiculous expressions.
“Look, look, there are such shameless people,” one soldier pointed at her, laughing to his companions. “With such a face, she dares claim to be the Black Water Queen!”
Nobles from all nations smiled and shook their heads. Someone laughed, “If the Black Water Queen had such a face, then the State Preceptor must be blind.”
Jing Hengbo wanted to curse violently—you’re the blind one, your whole family is blind! Just a few days ago, Gong Yin was praising how good I looked.
She anxiously touched her face. Ever since discovering loose skin and fine lines on her face, she hadn’t dared look in mirrors, afraid that seeing her aging appearance would make her collapse. She was determined to find medicine first, then admire her beautiful self again. So she wasn’t clear about her current skin condition.
Moreover, when Gong Yin, Yelu Qi and others first saw her, they were only slightly surprised, but afterward showed no impropriety—not even their expressions changed. This gave her the illusion that her skin condition wasn’t serious.
This touch nearly made her scream. Why did the skin on her face seem even rougher? Why were even the corners of her eyes starting to droop? Could that drug have a continuing effect?
“My face…” She touched her face and asked Yong Xue in a daze. Yong Xue pursed her lips and said, “Don’t believe them, my lady. It’s actually not bad.”
But finally, in Yong Xue’s eyes, she saw herself.
Not Jing Hengbo aged ten years, but someone who looked completely different. She hadn’t expected that sagging and aging skin would cause such earth-shaking changes to a person’s features and temperament.
Had Gong Yin and the others been facing such a face all along?
She was stunned, not noticing the soldiers walking away with mocking laughter, nor hearing the ridicule and sighs from all around.
“My lady,” Yong Xue whispered in her ear, “this is temporary. Once we get the Purple Lan Vine, you can be more beautiful than before.”
She had just mustered up confidence when she heard discussions from other people in the queue.
“I heard this year’s Zhaiying Grand Assembly will start half a month early, so guests from the six kingdoms and eight tribes are all rushing here, which is why the roads are blocked.”
“Half a month early? Won’t that be too early for the Purple Lan Vine to mature?”
“That’s right, they’re not selling Purple Lan Vine anymore. This year Purple Lan Vine, Heaven Beans, and Emerald Crystal Grass won’t be sold externally anymore. Supposedly Shang Kingdom’s Crown Prince wants to use them to court a Ji Kingdom princess.”
“Court which Ji Kingdom princess? There are so many Ji Kingdom princesses!”
“Court the one most likely to become Ji Kingdom’s Crown Prince. Don’t you know that Ji Kingdom’s Queen is seriously ill and the princesses are competing for position? So many Ji Kingdom princesses came to Shang Kingdom this time. Shang Kingdom’s Crown Prince wants to use these top-grade medicines to marry the most powerful Ji Kingdom princess, and the Ji Kingdom princesses want to obtain these top-grade medicines to present to the Queen, increasing their chances of becoming Crown Prince. Both sides have their needs, so now Shang Kingdom’s Crown Prince is quite popular among the Ji Kingdom princesses.”
“In other words, Shang Kingdom won’t release Purple Lan Vine, and the Ji Kingdom princesses won’t allow Purple Lan Vine and such to fall into others’ hands? So we all have no chance?”
“Of course not. Whether to sell things is Shang Kingdom’s decision. You’re on the landlord’s territory wanting to grab something the landlord has great use for—is that possible? Besides, there are Ji Kingdom princesses interfering. Their camel-sheep fierce beasts can fight lions and tigers with amazing speed, and can subdue all mounts. Ordinary cavalry and warriors are no match at all. We’ve traveled far to foreign lands—better not cause trouble. Besides, Shang Kingdom has plenty of other good things.”
“Exactly. Being on foreign soil, it’s better to be restrained.”
Jing Hengbo’s heart sank slightly. Things seemed to be developing in an increasingly unfavorable direction.
Suddenly there was another commotion ahead. Another squad of Shang Kingdom soldiers galloped over. This batch of soldiers looked more formidable than the previous one, with brighter armor and Shang Kingdom royal banners behind them—clearly the royal army directly under Shang Kingdom’s Great King.
Those royal army soldiers also held portraits, comparing them one by one. Er Gouzi flew over to peek again, and at one glance, his eyes widened in shock again.
Jing Hengbo thought, damn it, it can’t be me again, can it?
Sure enough, Lord Dog started flapping his wings and excitedly shouting, “Bo Bo, it’s you, it’s you, it’s still you!”
Jing Hengbo’s vision went black.
That squad of royal army indeed rushed over. The lead person held a portrait fluttering in the wind, vaguely depicting her face.
Jing Hengbo noticed that this time there was no luxurious carriage. The soldiers were fully armed with swords and even archers, their expressions serious—completely prepared for battle.
“This lady! BIU!” The leader pointed his spear tip at her. “Please remove your mask. BIU!”
Jing Hengbo had already put her mask back on. Now holding her breath, she asked, “Why should I?”
“By order of the Great King, BIU, please have the Black Water Queen turn back and return to her country immediately. BIU.” The general said sternly, “Shang Kingdom has no intention of inviting the Black Water Queen to participate in the Zhaiying Grand Assembly. BIUBIU. All invitations issued by the Crown Prince cannot receive the Great King’s approval. To avoid misunderstandings, we are here to escort the Queen back. BIUBIU.”
People around chuckled—clearly, the son secretly issued invitations to court a beauty, but the father was completely unwilling to invite her. One group came to receive, one group came to drive away, making a big joke in front of all nations and tribes at this checkpoint. They’d heard that Shang Kingdom’s Crown Prince wasn’t well-liked by the old king, so he was determined to marry into powerful foreign tribes. Now it seemed absolutely true—he was given no face at all.
The Black Water Queen was also pitiful. She hadn’t even arrived yet but was already played like this. If word got out, it would be a laughingstock.
Listening, Jing Hengbo chuckled and lifted her mask, saying, “Actually, I really am the Black Water Queen…”
“Ah BIU! Please don’t joke around BIU,” the general looked at her face and immediately changed color, hurriedly dismounting and bowing. “Please forgive our discourtesy. The Great King said that all invited guests except the Black Water Queen are honored guests of our Shang Kingdom BIUBIU. That was a misunderstanding just now, please be magnanimous BIUBIUBIU…”
Jing Hengbo discovered that when Shang Kingdom people got excited, their BIUBIU became overwhelming and imposing. She quickly backed away, repeatedly waving her hands, “No need for courtesy, no need for courtesy. I was just joking with you.”
“May I ask who you are…”
“Jade Queen Yu Ming.” Jing Hengbo showed her invitation.
Everyone made “oh” sounds, looking quite relieved. They’d all heard about the Jade Queen’s face—her skin condition was quite poor. Seeing her now, it was indeed so.
The general quickly bowed again and apologized once more. To show his regret, he specifically had the lower-ranking queues around make way, letting Jing Hengbo’s convoy go to the front with the royal processions.
Jing Hengbo smiled and agreed, fleeing to her carriage like an escape. She had someone quickly buy the best protective masks while chuckling—laugh once, glance at Shang Kingdom’s flag; laugh once, glance at Shang Kingdom’s flag.
The royal army squad was still waiting outside the checkpoint to intercept the “Black Water Queen’s” convoy when the general suddenly rubbed his arm, feeling a bit cold.
A deputy beside him sighed, “Ah, BIUBIU, this really is a thankless task. Sir, if we really encounter the Black Water Queen and drive her back, won’t she be furious? What if this causes disputes between our two countries?”
“What’s to fear BIUBIU,” the general said. “With Jade and Yi Kingdoms in between, how could Dai Mao send troops to attack? This is Shang Kingdom territory—Shang Kingdom makes the rules.”
“Sir, they say to befriend distant states and attack nearby ones. Wouldn’t it be good to maintain relations with the Dai Mao Queen? Why must the Great King offend her?”
“So what if we offend her? She’s just a woman, a woman who rose to power through men BIUBIU. But I heard the Great King refuses her because the Grand Priest can’t read her destiny, but says she carries evil influences harmful to rulers. Don’t you know that all nations and tribes don’t really welcome this Queen now? Since she left Di Ge, how many people has she ruined? Xiang Kingdom’s Female Prime Minister completely failed, Huangjin Tribe suffered great damage, Zhanyu Tribe’s Zhan Xin lost tremendously, Dai Mao became a powder keg, Shen Tie Royal Palace was destroyed… who dares associate with her anymore?”
“Truly an inauspicious woman BIUBIU!”
“BIUBIU, we can’t manage royal affairs. Stand guard properly and drive people away!”
…
Jing Hengbo’s convoy was now at the very front of the queue. Royalty had royal treatment—she would enter Shang Kingdom as the Jade Queen and be welcomed into the Huitong Hall specially built for receiving foreign guests of equal status. She would also be invited to the highest-level sales meetings and palace banquets.
The frontmost processions had colorful flags and banners. You could see Huangjin Tribe’s golden, glittering carriage wheels. Jin Zhaolong’s complexion was much paler than before—perhaps the more renowned Pei Shu became, the paler his face grew.
Zhanyu Tribe’s banner bore flying feather totems. Zhan Xin’s eyes held ghostly flames settling in their depths. He was also watching the road, waiting for the Black Water Queen’s appearance. Once she was expelled by Shang Kingdom, he planned to follow and give her a good “reception.” He and Jin Zhaolong had already reached consensus on this point.
Shen Tie soldiers’ black iron blades had no reflection but were among the sharpest blades in the world. Tie Xingze had just recently ascended the throne and wasn’t in the procession—supposedly arriving later.
Luoyun Tribe’s guards moved with light steps. Everyone wore white robes that would look like a group of ghosts at night. Supposedly everyone in that tribe wore white hemp clothes with extremely pale skin, loved lighting red lanterns, and at night with ghostly fires flickering and phantom lights dotting the landscape, it looked just like a ghost city.
Fushui Tribe was also a “sound race,” with similarities to the “BIUBIUBIU” nation of Shang Kingdom. People from that country, affected by the “Void Swamp” they inhabited, had bodies full of gas. When they opened their mouths, they made various bubbling sounds and “gurgling” noises from their throats. The abundant gas in their bodies also forced them to keep their mouths open most of the time. When their large groups approached, just the sound would make people feel like a volcano was boiling and about to erupt, or a group of frogs were singing, or a large group of snoring cats were approaching. When you saw the people, you’d feel like a group of cannibalistic beasts were approaching—you could see countless gaping mouths and dark throats with various enlarged tonsils, making people’s vision go black and mood collapse.
But Jing Hengbo soon discovered there was no maximum collapse, only more collapse, because Fushui Tribe’s royalty seemed somewhat dissatisfied with this gurgling state, or perhaps unwilling to gurgle like common people. Through tireless adjustment, they had now switched to “uh” sounds. So when an elderly Fushui royal conversed with Jing Hengbo, one sentence of ten words contained thirty “uhs,” making Jing Hengbo involuntarily sway along with the “uh” rhythm. From far away it looked like she was doing hip-hop dance. After finally finishing the enthusiastic conversation with the old royal, she found herself hiccupping too.
Liuli Tribe having lots of glass was one thing, but more wonderfully, that place’s “Glass Swamp” also affected people’s skin. At first glance it looked normal, but from different angles, those people’s skin showed glass-like shimmering luster, making it impossible to see their faces clearly. Supposedly Liuli royalty combined this with a special martial art to make their entire skin semi-transparent, sometimes using people’s visual errors to achieve “invisibility” effects. When groups of Liuli Tribe people walked over, everyone felt the figures before their eyes were illusory and shimmering. They couldn’t help closing their eyes, and when they reopened them, the people had vanished.
Meng Kingdom’s procession was uniformly tall and short green hats, blocking everyone’s view. From far away it looked like a neat field of lettuce, with the tallest hats seeming to poke through the sky. To escape the enthusiastic hiccupping royalty, Jing Hengbo hid behind Meng Kingdom’s tall hats and immediately felt very secure.
Ji Kingdom’s camel-sheep procession was like a white cloud, floating over like a cloud and floating away like a cloud. The camel-sheep looked quite adorable, but the Ji Kingdom women’s gazes were sharp. They sat astride their camel-sheep with legs spread wide, maintaining heavy weapons while chewing a fruit-like highland specialty called “Sweet Seven.” This had good chewiness, first bitter then sweet with lingering fragrance, helping women resist highland cold and sun exposure. The only drawback was the slightly red juice—chewing too much would stain teeth red, making them all look like man-eating tigresses when they opened their mouths.
Yu Kingdom’s exaggerated giant carriages inlaid with countless gems and big enough to kill horses rumbled across the ground with ruts deep enough for a child to sleep in, but could hold at most two people inside. When people emerged from the carriages, you felt like a mountain was pressing down overhead. When Yu Kingdom’s entire procession appeared, everyone felt there wasn’t enough air—almost all Yu Kingdom royalty were fat.
Jing Hengbo couldn’t help chuckling, thinking why wasn’t Yelu Qi fat at all? Oh my, the Yelu family was a major Yu Kingdom clan—should she help him marry a fat princess?
Xiang Kingdom’s procession no longer had the arrogant swagger from Fei Luo’s governing days, appearing very low-key. Carriage curtains hung low so you couldn’t see who was inside, but wherever they passed, lingering fragrance remained, making people yearn. Jing Hengbo missed He Wan a bit, wondering if the new Female Regent had time to come personally and who was accompanying her.
The royal processions were also troublesome, only finishing checkpoint passage after noon. Jing Hengbo and others were received into Huitong Hall. Shang Kingdom’s Huitong Hall was very large, with each tribe occupying a separate courtyard. Shang Kingdom put great thought into arrangements, placing tribes with grudges far apart from each other.
As soon as Jing Hengbo arrived, she had guards spread news of the Jade Tribe Queen’s arrival in Shang Kingdom. She believed if Yelu Qi had reached Shang Kingdom, he would definitely understand who this Jade Queen really was and would come meet her.
She herself appeared on Huitong Hall’s rooftops, eavesdropping on all the royalty below.
Huangjin Tribe and Zhanyu Tribe leaders were drinking wine, talking intimately with arms around shoulders.
“You and I joining forces, ambushing outside Shang Kingdom’s city gates—we must keep the Black Water Queen at this border!”
Luoyun Tribe was quietly silent, with white shadows drifting back and forth but no one speaking.
Xiang Kingdom: “I wonder if the Black Water Queen will come? I really miss her.”
Fushui Tribe: “Uh, this time we, uh, still need to, uh, compete for Purple Lan Vine, uh. I heard this thing, uh, combined with several medicines, uh, can cure, uh, our uh…”
Yu Kingdom: “The Yelu family asked us for aid, saying they might have discovered a family traitor and want our help. Let’s see what benefits the Yelu family offers us before acting.”
Meng Kingdom: “I heard Yi Kingdom has been unstable recently, with Jade King’s army passing through and Black Water Queen’s forces passing through. We should be careful. It doesn’t matter how much we obtain—we shouldn’t let those few inauspicious women ruin our luck.”
Liuli Tribe: “I heard that Black Water Queen has strange abilities? Too bad she’s not coming. If she came, we could capture her for research to see if she could help us.”
Under Ji Kingdom’s eaves, there were many voices—several Ji Kingdom princesses had come.
One said: “Find out who that man in the carriage was that day.”
One said: “I heard Shang Kingdom’s Crown Prince sent people to receive the Black Water Queen but was overruled by the Great King? Seems the Crown Prince’s status isn’t great—we need to reassess our attitude toward him.”
One said: “Go investigate what the Black Water Queen actually looks like to make the Crown Prince so interested.”
One said: “They’re all fools. Either put effort into the Crown Prince or want nothing at all. What is one Shang Kingdom Crown Prince? Can he decide the overall situation of my Ji Kingdom’s throne? Listen to me! Purple Lan Vine and the other three great treasure medicines must be obtained—I want to present them to the Right State Preceptor and propose marriage to him!”