No one came to toast, and no one came to make a fuss in the bridal chamber. Li Xiang was already sitting in the inner room, listening to the noisy scene outside. Li Xiang thought that someone else was getting married today.
"Your Highness, it's good that you've adapted. Lord Cui and his men can handle everything. After all, we are the suzerain state. We are exercising the rights of the suzerain state. If Your Highness feels bored, I can get some books. When the time comes, Your Highness can go see the bride."
It's not time yet, so Li Xiang can only wait in the front room. The door is closed and no one outside can get in. Everyone has turned their attention to the guests who are having dinner. This is also a good place for socializing. So if there is no way to contact Li Xiang, then we can just contact each other.
Li Xiang now deeply realized that this might be the benefit of the great powers. If the Tang Dynasty was not so powerful, the marriage between the two countries would definitely be equal. Even if one country was slightly weaker, this situation would not have happened. The officials from the Ministry of Rites and the Nanzhao officials discussed for several days before finally completing all the procedures. The Nanzhao officials had no objection to such procedures, which meant that this was very normal.
"You must take people to thoroughly investigate the group of people who came as dowry from the palace. Check their families thoroughly. If you can take them away together, do so as much as possible. Don't leave anything out."
Li Xiang was naturally not in the mood to read now. After all, there was such a beautiful girl waiting for him. If he could continue reading, he would be like Liu Xiahui who could remain calm even when a beautiful woman sat on his lap. Li Xiang knew very well that he did not have that ability, but he could not be idle during this period of time. He had to finish what he had to do.
Qian Ping had a smile on his face just now, but when he heard Li Xiang talking about this, Qian Ping knew that Li Xiang was talking about serious matters. The smile on his face immediately faded, and he took out a notebook from the side, which recorded all the dowry people of Princess Yongning.
"There are quite a few people accompanying the king. There are over a hundred people sent by the king and queen alone, plus the queen mother and other members of the royal family. The total number is about four hundred. We have already started to investigate, first those around the princess, then those outside the princess. If we take away all their family members, the total number will be around three to four thousand. However, we will do this secretly, and it will be completed in a month at most after Your Highness returns to Chang'an City."
Qian Ping also knew that this was a serious matter. We didn't know whether the people brought by the princess were human or ghosts. They could not be allowed to serve Li Xiang before a clear investigation. If some of them had ill intentions and directly drew their weapons, Li Xiang's safety would be in trouble.
When Li Xiang heard that there were so many people as dowry, he immediately felt a headache. When Cheng Luan came over, there were not so many people as dowry, but Qian Ping and others were still busy for nearly half a month. Although Cheng Yaojin was his ally, it did not mean that no one would make a fuss about this matter, so everything that should and should not be investigated had to be thoroughly investigated. Cheng Yaojin also expressed his understanding of this. After all, it was a matter of personal safety, and all the rich people did the same.
"After returning to the capital, try to place them all in farms outside the city. I don't think they'll have any objections. If there are any who are truly useful, leave them alone for at least six months. Send someone to keep a close eye on them. As for those around the princess, it's best to send them all to the Eastern Palace. Of course, we must thoroughly investigate them, and let the people below do some hard work."
Although she is in Nanzhao now, the princess is still a child after all. After arriving in Chang'an City, she must be homesick. It would be best if she had a few people around her. Li Xiang can consider so much, which is much better than many aristocratic teenagers of this era.
"Your Highness is so considerate of the Princess. I'm sure it will become a legend in the future. I will instruct my subordinates to expedite the investigation and make sure it is thoroughly investigated within the next few days."
Qian Ping said confidently that with such a group of capable subordinates, no matter what they were investigating, they could achieve twice the result with half the effort. The number of people around the princess had already been determined. If they were recent additions, they would definitely not be allowed to stay around. As for the original people, they basically had clean backgrounds. Taking all their relatives away would not be difficult for Qian Ping.
Whether he wanted to take people away directly or secretly, he could do it, and there would be no obstruction from Nanzhao. As long as he kept an eye on these people, even if one or two of them had ulterior motives, their family members would be under control and they would not dare to act recklessly. Who would not want the lives of their entire family?
What's more, with the capabilities of Li Xiang's men, if they really did something else, they would be discovered within two days. The people around Li Xiang, whether they were guards or palace maids, were all capable. Otherwise, how could they stay by Li Xiang's side?
"Your Highness, the Prince of Nanzhao Zhennan has come with a group of princes and sons to congratulate you."
Just when Li Xiang and Qian Ping were discussing things, the young eunuch outside suddenly reported that there was actually no such item in the established procedure. However, as the Prince of Zhennan of Nanzhao and the person to escort the bride this time, Li Xiang could not remain silent, so Li Xiang could not escape this time.
Moreover, the Prince of Zhennan planned the time very accurately. Li Xiang must have nothing else to do during this period. If he wanted to consummate his marriage with the princess, he had to wait until some time in the afternoon. Therefore, Li Xiang had to stay here in the Guest House during this period. The Prince of Zhennan was ordered to supervise the construction of the Guest House, so he naturally knew where Li Xiang was.
"Let them in."
Since they couldn't hide, they were let in. Four young eunuchs opened the two doors, and the Prince of Zhennan came in one after another with a group of princes and sons. They had all drunk quite a bit of wine, but there was no change on the Prince of Zhennan's face. It was obvious that this guy didn't drink at all.
"I pay my respects to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty."
Everyone paid their respects with great ceremony. They had already drunk quite a bit, but who knew that the Prince of Zhennan would gather them together and ask them to come and pay their respects to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince? Many people still didn't understand what was going on. When was this procedure added?
