The princess was ordained by Heaven.

Chapter 130 The Secrets of Flattery

Zheng Jin retorted expressionlessly, "Yuan Jia, do I look like an idiot?"

"Really, really, you can ask them if you don't believe me."

The assassins understood immediately and quickly began to pledge their loyalty: "Yes, yes, Princess Yuanjia is right. We are impressed by the princess and will definitely abandon evil and do good from now on."

Zheng Jin listened without any change in expression.

Zheng Xun slightly pursed her lips: "Ahem, anyway, your sister is all about reasoning with people. Don't you believe in my personal charm, sister?"

【How can I explain this? If I said I beat them into submission, would you believe me?】

[Am I supposed to tell you that the system has upgraded its protection mechanism, and I can now remove anyone who has malicious intent towards me with a single click?]

My dear sister, no matter how many times you ask, this is the only answer I can give. So, please be understanding and don't ask anymore, okay?

Zheng Jin: ...

She resisted the urge to facepalm and said with a straight face, "I believe you, but are you sure they've really changed? What if they hurt you again?"

Zheng Xun probed, "You mean..."

"Let's just solve it."

Zheng Xun: !

[My goodness, they're still right in front of us! Aren't you afraid they'll mutiny...?]

She looked at Nie Zhao.

Nie Zhao didn't think Zheng Jin's words were wrong at all; in fact, he nodded in agreement, his smile as warm as the March sun.

Okay, so there's really nothing between these two?

Haha, if she believed that, then she'd be delusional and have a lump in her head.

Meanwhile, the usually obedient assassins behind Zheng Xun were on the verge of losing their composure.

Here we go again!

Okay, okay, I understand. The royal family is a breeding ground for devils.

They have such a hard life!

We've just escaped one tiger's den only to fall into another!

Believe it or not, they might burst into tears in a fit of anger!

Zheng Jin certainly heard Zheng Xun's thoughts, but now that they were here, they had no choice.

Knowing that her sister was going into danger, she couldn't have been unprepared, so a trap had already been set up around the area.

Of course, she did all this secretly, without even telling Nie Zhao.

"Second sister, we won't kill the surrendered soldiers..."

[My dear sister, if I kill them all, who will help me spread this news?]

[I will also leverage their propaganda system's capabilities. Once everyone knows I'm not to be trifled with, there will be far fewer troubles in the future. Once everyone knows I'm the darling of the Great Yong Dynasty, I can do anything in the Great Yong Dynasty without any obstacles!]

Zheng Jin's eyebrows twitched slightly, and a helpless yet tolerant smile appeared on her lips: "Alright then, whatever you say, but on the condition that they can't hurt you or do anything wrong. Otherwise, even if you let them go, I won't."

Zheng Xun nodded obediently.

[Hehe, as expected of my sister, so powerful and domineering!]

I love you, I love you so much!

Zheng Jin, who never blinked when talking about killing, was somewhat embarrassed by these two heartfelt words.

She coughed lightly: "What are your plans for them?"

Zheng Xun pondered for a moment: "You should all be more self-aware and tell your superiors everything you've done. They will then deal with it accordingly. Remember, make a big fuss about it."

A quick-witted assassin bowed and scraped, saying, "Princess, although there are many people here today, they are all small fry. If you need, I can give you the list of all the participants!"

Zheng Xun checked the system and found that his crime was not serious, so he nodded approvingly: "Not bad, you have good judgment. Tell your superior to treat you leniently and say that it was me who said it."

The man was overjoyed. He knelt down firmly on the ground, hugged her horse's legs, and expressed his gratitude with tears streaming down his face.

The horse he was holding got impatient and raised its hoof to kick him, but he was quite agile and nimbly dodged the hoof, continuing to "flatter" the horse.

Zheng Xun considered himself indifferent, but he was still a little embarrassed by the praise.

Although she was embarrassed, she didn't tell them to stop.

This person is quite eloquent; they're a good listener and talker.

Seeing that Zheng Xun was listening happily and attentively, the man didn't dare to stop. He racked his brains and said all sorts of nice things until his mouth was dry and he had used up almost all the words he knew. Only then did Zheng Xun tell him to stop.

"Alright, alright, that's enough. Go back now."

The man breathed a sigh of relief, quickly got up, and bowed and scraped as he retreated back into the ranks of the assassins.

One of his friends said jealously, "You're quite the smooth talker, huh? What kind of skill is it to be good at talking?"

"Why don't you go and talk to them?"

"Hmph! Do you think I care?"

"Then you'd better not care. I have a book on flattery..."

His friend immediately slapped himself: "Good brother, we've been through thick and thin together. What I just said was all nonsense. I didn't mean anything by it, I was just jealous. Don't take it to heart, brother. Can you give me a copy of that secret manual too?"

A weak voice rang out from among the assassins: "Could I have a copy? I'll buy it with silver..."

"I also want!"

"I also……"

The sycophantic master grinned: "No need for money, I'll give it to you when we get back. You can copy it yourselves, just... if the princess praises you, remember to say a few good words about me."

"no problem!"

“It’s packaged!”

Zheng Xun, who had witnessed everything, glanced at him and asked, "What's your name?"

The assassin who had just been flattering him was stunned for a moment, then quickly said, "I am Gao Dapeng!"

"You're from the Taiping Guard? Go back and receive your punishment, then perform your duties properly. Once my princess residence is repaired, you'll report to the princess residence."

Gao Dapeng: !

Father! Mother!

Who says there's no such thing as a free lunch?!

Princess Yuanjia, how wonderful! You have such a discerning eye!

He said he would definitely be successful in the future!

He was overjoyed, but he didn't forget to kowtow and express his gratitude.

The others were practically dying of jealousy, but Gao Dapeng cheerfully said a few words, and the others were completely charmed by him, like obedient little puppies.

A crisis was thus quietly resolved.

Only after the group had gone far away did Zheng Xun exclaim, "What a talented person!"

Xiang Chen suddenly felt a sense of crisis!

He discovered that with that system around, he had almost no use for his skills, not to mention that the princess herself was already very strong.

If he wants to occupy a small place in the princess's heart, he must have outstanding talents.

He glanced at Zhicheng, who remained as steady as a mountain, and the thought flashed through his mind again—was it feasible for him to be castrated now?

It doesn't seem like it's impossible!

He has an older brother and a younger brother, and he lacks everything except a son. If he could be castrated, he could stay by the princess's side and at least become a familiar face to her.

He didn't have any grand ambitions. He just wanted to find a powerful patron so that everyone in the family could benefit from his success.

He moved closer to Zhicheng ingratiatingly: "Brother..."

Zhicheng: ...

Unsolicited kindness is always suspicious, so he remained vigilant and asked calmly, "What's wrong?"

"Do you think it's too late for me to have my penis castrated now?"

Zhicheng: ?

What trauma did this child suffer?

After hearing his concerns, he looked at Xiang Chen with pity, as if he were looking at a fool: "Please don't!"

Xiang Chen said, moved, "I know you mean well, brother, and didn't want to see me get stabbed, but..."

"You've got it wrong. I mean, even if you were castrated, you still couldn't compete with me. I've blocked that path. You'll have to find another way."

Why choose to be his competitor?

He Zhicheng is the princess's chief eunuch. If he wants to compete with him, what makes Xiang Chen stand out? Is it his sincerity?

Xiang Chen wiped away his tears of emotion: "I misjudged you!"

Zhicheng suppressed a laugh and said, "Actually, you can think about your strengths and what the princess lacks. There aren't many people around the princess right now, so you should seize the opportunity!"

Xiang Chen was easily coaxed and was moved to tears: "Good brother! From now on, you will always be my brother!"

Zhicheng smiled slightly.

Good brother?

The premise is that you don't argue with him.

What does the princess lack? Xiang Chen, the naive and innocent girl, fell into deep thought.

On the other side, Zheng Xun was still sitting on his horse.

Zheng Jin asked in confusion, "Yuan Jia? Why haven't you dismounted yet?"

Zheng Xun: "Oh...right away."

[My dear sister, please don't mind me. Right now, you're facing a very vulnerable little girl who's on her period.]

Zheng Jin: ...

"Are you a little cold? Look at you, your lips are even turning a bit purple from the cold."

Zheng Jin took off his cloak and handed it to her.

Zheng Xun: Is that true?

Her hands were clearly sweaty from the heat.

But my sister said it was true, and at that moment, the cloak was a lifesaver.

Zheng Xun put on the cloak and nimbly dismounted.

The old woman was instructed to remove the saddle and take the game away to process it.

Upon seeing the tiger, Zheng Jin was so surprised that she praised Zheng Xun several times.

Nie Zhao looked at the intact tiger skin and couldn't help but nod in admiration: "Your sister's martial arts are really good. I'm afraid I'm not even her match."

Zheng Jin proudly raised her head: "Of course! Besides, you overestimate yourself. You can't even beat my sister with one finger!"

"Oh! Is that so? I don't believe it. Next time I'll hunt down an even bigger tiger for you, and you'll see who's stronger."

"You hit it first, then we'll talk."

When Zheng Xun returned after changing his clothes and saw this scene, he silently retreated.

She was a perceptive younger sister, and of course she shouldn't disturb her older sister and future brother-in-law's time together.

Zheng Jin is a good person, and Nie Zhao is a good person too. Two good people who care about each other will become even better people together.

Moreover, Nie Zhao is about to leave, and Zheng Jin is usually busy and doesn't have many opportunities to leave the palace, so they don't have much time to spend together.

Never mind, I'll talk to Father Emperor next time and ask him to let Zheng Jin go out of the palace for a stroll.

Sigh, she's a good person too. If Nie Zhao knew, he'd probably erect a monument to her good deeds.

……

That evening, the two sisters enjoyed a relaxing soak in the hot springs. Zheng Xun slept soundly, while Zheng Jin and Nie Zhao drank all night.

Fortunately, both of them are still young and in good spirits.

After a night of contemplation, Xiang Chen finally found his way out.

He decided to follow in his ancestors' footsteps and become a chef.

Zhicheng never expected that after thinking about it all night, he would come up with such a result: becoming a guard and following the princess on her adventures might lead to him becoming a high-ranking official in the future, but becoming a cook?

It's not that he looks down on cooks, but does the princess lack cooks? There are so many cooks in the imperial kitchen, the princess can choose any she wants, does Xiang Chen really have the ability to outshine them?

But Xiang Chen was full of confidence. Given the princess's attitude towards food, he might actually be able to make a name for himself.