When Qingcao brought the letter, Su Wan'er only felt that the envelope was quite extraordinary. But upon careful thought, it seemed that this was the kind of envelope Long Xiaojiu used.
"Your Majesty, a letter from Southern Border."
Sure enough, it was in the style of envelopes from Southern Border.
Qingcao would never rashly peek at the contents of the letter, so Su Wan'er quickly opened it herself.
It was actually a letter from Ghost Lady, who had returned to Southern Border just a few days ago!
Ghost Lady had clearly reformed herself that day and stayed in Southern Border to become an ally in the future. Moreover, she had always obeyed Long Xiaojiu. Why would she send a letter to Su Wan'er?
To the Queen of the Jin Kingdom again. This humble slave is deeply grateful for the Queen's grace in releasing me back to my country. I have nothing to repay.
But today's matter concerns the safety of both Southern Border and the Jin Kingdom. I earnestly beg the Queen to handle it with the utmost caution.
The content of the letter really shocked Su Wan'er. She didn't know what to do.
Although the Jin Kingdom and Southern Border have always been hostile to each other, there have been more years of peace than war during their long - standing border relationship. This time, Southern Border is actually planning a large - scale military attack on the border of the Jin Kingdom. Their intention is to capture five cities on the border and seize one - third of the Jin Kingdom's territory.
Moreover, the reason is not a long - premeditated plot by Southern Border, but a coup in Southern Border!
In the past, the four major families in Southern Border took turns to hold power, with the Long family being the most powerful.
But now, it is the Yuwen family, famous for their witchcraft and not one of the four major families, that holds power.
Almost every child in the Yuwen family, especially the girls, is used to serve and train with poisonous insects every year, becoming insect slaves.
They are so crazy that they train with poisonous insects day and night just to become the fifth major family in Southern Border. Now they have finally broken through the defenses established during the Long family's rule. They have even controlled the elders of the Long family, including Long Xiaojiu's uncle.
One of the reasons the Yuwen family used to persuade the people to rise up was that they wanted to capture five cities in the Jin Kingdom to use as bases for grazing and farming in the future. Now that the Yuwen family has taken power in just a dozen days, are they really going to fulfill their promise and launch a war against the Jin Kingdom?
Moreover, Southern Border is a country ruled based on traditional civilization. Although the Yuwen family has successfully overthrown the Long family, the Saintess is still an important bargaining chip.
The Yuwen family has many girls who have lived with poisonous insects for years. They have a large number of poisonous insects on them and are very skilled in using bone - related techniques. Maybe they are all extremely cruel.
Surprisingly, the Yuwen family has chosen Yuwen Shan, the youngest daughter of Elder Yuwen, as the next Saintess. And of course, they now want to capture Long Xiaojiu and make her admit her guilt and pass on the position of Saintess to Yuwen Shan.
Now Southern Border is in complete chaos. Xiaojiu has been hiding in the Jin Kingdom, and her uncle and the Bone Division can't find her. Naturally, she has no idea what's going on.
But the Yuwen family may send people to the capital to capture Xiaojiu. It doesn't matter if she is passed on as the Saintess, but after the passing - on, the former Saintess will surely be a threat to the current Saintess. Won't Xiaojiu be in danger of losing her life?
"What are you going to do?" Si Junlin's sudden words startled Su Wan'er.
When did he stand beside her? Had he also read the content of this letter?
"I... How about we bring Xiaojiu into the palace? As you can see, the Yuwen family will definitely try to capture her. It will be safer in the palace."
Su Wan'er knew that outsiders were not allowed to live in the palace of the Jin Kingdom casually, let alone a Saintess from Southern Border. So at this moment, she was almost pleading. She was really worried about Xiaojiu. This child had been treated as a Saintess since childhood and had suffered so much. Now that she had finally escaped, there was such a disaster.
"No." Si Junlin refused without hesitation as expected.
"I know you think Xiaojiu is a Saintess and may pose a threat to the safety of the palace. But it's okay. I can live with her. I just want to ensure her safety. We can even put her under house arrest! In the future, she will never learn the secrets of this imperial city."
All Su Wan'er could think about now was that since the Yuwen family had successfully seized power, they would surely take the position of Saintess. Long Xiaojiu might be in danger soon.
"I don't distrust you. The imperial palace of the Jin Kingdom is big enough not to be afraid of a Saintess living in it. But have you thought about it? If she moves in, it will be an interference in the internal affairs of Southern Border." Si Junlin easily pointed out the key issue.
"What internal affairs? The Yuwen family usurped power. It was the Long family's turn to be in power. They actually usurped the throne. Can't I protect Xiaojiu?" Su Wan'er was very angry at this moment. Ghost Lady had no real power, so this letter was probably just sent by an ordinary courier. By the time the letter arrived, there was already enough time for the Yuwen family to send people to the capital to capture Xiaojiu.
"But now the Yuwen family is in power.
And do you think Long Xiaojiu escaped from her uncle's control for no reason? Do you think she would rather hide in the Jin Kingdom than go back for no reason? Although the Long family is powerful, in Southern Border, the Yuwen family has already won the hearts of the people. Even though they used extremely cruel means, they won the hearts of the people by using the cities of our country as an excuse. Now the replacement of the Saintess is also the will of the people. If you keep the former Saintess in the palace, isn't this an interference in internal affairs?"
Obviously, things were not as simple as they seemed.
"So what should we do now?" As soon as she asked this question, Su Wan'er suddenly froze. She had always been a very assertive person and had always had her own plans and strategies when doing things. But now she was actually asking Si Junlin what to do?
"Don't be afraid. I will send people to take Xiaojiu to a small town in the southwest. As long as we keep in touch by letter and send personal guards to ensure her safety, I think the Yuwen family won't be able to do anything to the Jin Kingdom."
"Send Xiaojiu away again?"
After much hesitation, Si Junlin said to Su Wan'er, "You need to think clearly. I know you will definitely protect Long Xiaojiu. But this will only speed up the Yuwen family and Southern Border's decision to launch a war against the Jin Kingdom. In their original plan, they would take the position of Saintess after seizing power and then start the war. But now you are blocking them from taking the position of Saintess. Isn't this clearly provoking them to come and attack?"
In fact, Su Wan'er wasn't sure what kind of feelings she had for Long Xiaojiu. She seemed like her little sister and also like her own child.
Si Junlin's arrangement couldn't be said to be the best, but it was the best way they could think of at the moment to ensure Long Xiaojiu's safety.
"But I really don't want to send Xiaojiu away. It's so hard for her to come back." This was the first time Su Wan'er had experienced such reluctance. When she got married into the palace, she didn't feel it was a separation because her father and brother were out fighting in the war. But Long Xiaojiu was different. This child seemed to have decided that the Emperor Uncle was her reliance.
The court had been in a complete mess these days.
Southern Border had repeatedly provoked border conflicts. Although they were just small - scale harassments that didn't pose a real threat to the towns, they were actually a cover for the continuous mobilization of Southern Border's troops.
The military generals staying in the capital were deeply worried. They either submitted memorials or directly spoke up in the court.
The military strength of the Jin Kingdom was now being demonstrated. More and more generals were being transferred to places near the Southern Border for easy deployment.