Capítulo 1154: Chapter 1148: Marriage Alliance Seeing her daughter’s anxious expression, Ye Yingnan quickly patted her daughter’s hand: “Don’t worry, your mother is not so easy to deal with. If my daughter is to marry, naturally, she should marry the most outstanding man in their Imperial Family! But if it really can’t be done… you can’t blame your mother! This is all for our family’s survival!” Seeing her daughter bite her lower lip, Ye Yingnan continued, “There are advantages to a husband with crippled legs… in the future, he will be at your mercy!” “Mother…” Ye Yingnan’s daughter grasped her mother’s hand, glanced at her anxious but unassertive father standing nearby, then walked aside with her mother, whispering, “Mother, I have an idea…” “Go on…” Ye Yingnan nodded. “Mother, you’ve always said that a woman going through pregnancy and childbirth is like stepping into the gates of hell. You said… if I could marry the Emperor of Zhou’s younger brother, and this Emperor of Zhou couldn’t safely deliver a child, if it truly resulted in two lives lost, Mother… who do you think the throne of Zhou would fall to?” Ye Yingnan’s daughter whispered to her mother, knowing that her grandmother had many of these silent and unnoticed methods. Otherwise, while her grandmother was alive, it would have been impossible for her to remain unshaken in a low position in the Ye family, allowing her grandfather to believe she was virtuous and gentle, always honored and favored. Ye Yingnan was startled, turning her eyes to her daughter, still looking like a young girl, and unexpectedly let out a low laugh: “I didn’t realize you had such ambition!” She hurriedly took on a frightened look, stepped back a little, and saluted her mother, saying, “Daughter is just expressing it for Mother’s consideration, for the lives of our family of four and for future glory. If Mother thinks it’s impractical, just consider it nonsense from your daughter.” “Madam, the people who came to invite us have been waiting outside for half a day!” The Governor timidly urged. Ye Yingnan patted her daughter’s hand, tidied her clothes, took on a lofty air, looked askance at her husband, and said, “Let’s go!” This is, after all, the Governor’s Mansion, the home of the Governor’s wife, who believes herself to be a key figure in aiding Bai Qingyan in capturing Yecheng Pass. Even before Bai Qingyan arrived, she had already seated herself at the main seat, adjusting her sleeves. The Governor wanted his wife to get up but didn’t dare be too forceful, only standing beside her, tugging at her sleeve, whispering, “Get up quickly! The Emperor will be here soon, even if we have a method, being so rude, what if we’re dragged out and executed!” Ye Yingnan glared at her cowardly husband: “Look at your lack of ambition, we’re in our own home! And besides… she isn’t here yet, is she?” As soon as she finished speaking, Bai Qingyan and Xiao Ruohai had already arrived at the front hall. The Governor, ignoring his fear of his wife, pulled her up and stepped forward to salute: “Greetings, Your Majesty!” Ye Yingnan also smiled and bowed to Bai Qingyan: “Greetings, Your Majesty, please take the seat of honor!” Latest content published on N0veI.Fiɾe.net Bai Qingyan glanced at the courteous Governor, then at Ye Yingnan, and sat in the main seat: “I heard the Governor’s wife is the sister of Ye Shouguan, the general defending Yecheng Pass?” “Indeed…” Ye Yingnan replied with a smile and continued, “I have a way to help Your Majesty capture Yecheng Pass.” After Ye Yingnan finished speaking, she pursed her lips and smiled faintly, seemingly waiting for Bai Qingyan to inquire further. But Bai Qingyan merely glanced at her, took the hot tea that Wei Zhong offered, and gently blew on the tea, as if uninterested in asking more. Ye Yingnan clenched her palm, and after smiling, she stepped forward to salute again, saying, “I can share the method of capturing Yecheng Pass with Your Majesty, but… I only hope Your Majesty will grant me a favor.” “It seems the favor the Governor’s wife seeks is not a small one.” Bai Qingyan’s voice was indifferent. Ye Yingnan glanced at her husband, who immediately stepped forward, saluted respectfully, and said to Bai Qingyan, “Your Majesty, you are unaware that my wife is the biological sister of Ye Shouguan, the general defending Yecheng Pass. What she seeks is significantly related to capturing Yecheng Pass, which is easy to defend and hard to attack. With a granary inside, even if the city remains closed, Yecheng Pass can hold out for months!” “My daughter addresses Ye Shouguan as uncle…” The Governor glanced furtively at Bai Qingyan, lowered his gaze, and continued, “If Your Majesty could grant a favor, allowing my daughter to marry Your Majesty’s younger brother, our families would be in-laws. Then my wife could take our daughter back to Yecheng Pass to persuade Ye Shouguan to surrender.” “Do you think the marriages of my brothers in the Bai family are something anyone can aspire to?” Bai Qingyan stirred the tea leaves in her clear tea with a gentle voice, yet when she raised her eyes, they were chilling like the icicles hanging in the corridor. The Governor was so frightened that his knees weakened, and he knelt directly. Bai Qingyan squinted slightly: “Moreover, I’ve heard that in the past, General Ye favored a concubine and expelled his wife, and Ye Shouguan and your lady wife’s relationship can be said to be deep as enemies. Persuading Ye Shouguan to surrender? It seems… you take me for a fool!” The Governor hurriedly kowtowed and anxiously said, “Your Majesty, I dare not deceive you! If Ye Shouguan refuses, given her identity, my wife has her own network within the Ye family and can certainly incite these people to open the city gates of Yecheng Pass, allowing the Zhou army to enter!” Upon hearing this, Ye Yingnan also quickly stepped forward to salute: “Your Majesty, the Ye family has been defending Yecheng Pass for generations. While my father was still alive, he favored this daughter the most, even worrying that I might be bullied or avenged by Ye Shouguan upon his passing and left me some connections so that if Ye Shouguan dared to avenge, I could protect myself! I swear to God… there is no falsehood in my words, or my entire clan shall suffer the most horrible deaths, my son dying without descendants, my daughter reduced to a prostitute, never to be reborn!” Bai Qingyan adjusted her posture, leaning back in her chair, coldly observing this Xiliang woman daring to swear to God. The people of Xiliang worship God, so to swear on God is credible, especially when she swears such a curse on her children. Moreover, the Governor’s wife’s statement that General Ye left her connections is credible too. As a favored concubine during her mother’s lifetime, they naturally would have cultivated networks, thus holding on to some connections is plausible. However, even so, the Bai family would never trade their offspring’s marriages for convenience, yet this Governor’s wife’s suggestion indeed gave Bai Qingyan a new idea. “The Governor and his wife clapping their lips together are all ready to have a Bai family son exchange marriage for benefit.” Bai Qingyan said, holding her teacup, fingers gently brushing its rim.