The seductive princess is no longer being pursued; the aloof prime minister is facing a crematorium.

Chapter 259 You and Pei Du are both madmen!
These are Jiang Jinshuang's conditions.

—This is a condition that Jiang Jinshuang has always wanted Wen Fengcang to achieve.

Upon hearing this, Wen Fengcang's eyes widened, and he looked at Jiang Jinshuang with astonishment.

"What nonsense are you spouting!?"

His tone was fierce, as if he would snap her neck at any moment.

Jiang Jinshuang smiled faintly, her eyes carrying a hint of nonchalance, as if what she had just said was merely a matter of bad weather today.

"I say, kill the King of Beihuai, and I will make you the ruler of Beihuai!"

Her eyes were arrogant and defiant, and the smile on her lips grew wider and wider.

She was like the fiercest eagle on the grassland, her gaze towards Wen Fengcang filled with undisguised ambition and malice.

Wen Fengcang frowned deeply, his hands clenched tightly, his knuckles turning white.

"Jiang Jinshuang, you've really gone mad."

Wen Fengcang's tone was cold, but his voice was surprisingly calm.

Jiang Jinshuang casually stroked the teacup beside her, her fingertips tracing the rim of the cup.

"Wen Fengcang, I don't need you to put on a show of fatherly affection in front of me. I only care about the results."

She paused for a moment and then chuckled softly, "You can only choose one: the Northern Huai Emperor's throne or your father's."

Wen Fengcang's tone was stiff and cold: "You're threatening me?"

"What's there to be afraid of?"

Jiang Jinshuang lightly tapped the table with her fingertips, her voice lazy and casual: "Wen Fengcang, you know I'm not afraid of anything."

Wen Fengcang gritted his teeth: "What if I really... fulfill your conditions, and then you go back on your word?"

You see, who can refuse supreme power?
Wen Fengcang had already begun to bow his head.

Jiang Jinshuang smiled lightly, her tone casual: "Of course I might go back on my word, but now, Wen Fengcang, besides me, who else can you rely on?"

Wen Fengcang's expression instantly turned fierce, his eyes wide with rage: "Jiang Jinshuang! Do you believe I'll kill you right now!"

"Wen Fengcang, how many men do you think you have to kill me?" Jiang Jinshuang looked back at him without fear.

Wen Fengcang gritted his teeth: "I can also join forces with my father and fight my way back to Wan Jin!"

"After the last battle, Beihuai was severely weakened. If we were to launch a full-scale war now, it would be like a spent arrow."

"Moreover, given your current relationship with your father, do you think the king of Beihuai will allow you to ascend the throne, or will he assist the prince who was exiled to the capital?"

"Jiang Jinshuang! You're a faithless madman!" Wen Fengcang shouted.

Jiang Jinshuang stood up, leaning on the table, and said casually, "Instead of cursing here, Your Highness, why don't you think about how to cut off your father's head?"

"I still have expectations."

Wen Fengcang said urgently, "I can kill my father! But you must guarantee that you will not hinder my ascension to the throne afterward!"

The purpose is achieved.

Jiang Jinshuang raised an eyebrow slightly, her smile deepening: "Deal."

The furrowed brows finally relaxed, and Wen Fengcang let out a long breath, his tone cold and deep: "Jiang Jinshuang, sometimes I feel that you are even more ruthless and manipulative than the Prince Ruiyang back then."

Jiang Jinshuang blinked innocently: "After all, I grew up by Prince Ruiyang's side. How could I not do something to repay such a privileged position?"

Wen Fengcang took a deep breath and looked at Jiang Jinshuang, already somewhat calmer.

His eyes held a complex emotion, the meaning of which was unclear.

"Jiang Jinshuang, if I become the ruler of Beihuai in the future, would you be willing to go to Beihuai with me?" Upon hearing this, Jiang Jinshuang couldn't help but chuckle: "Go to Beihuai? In what capacity?"

“My queen,” he said.

Jiang Jinshuang's smile deepened: "Your Highness, I will be married tomorrow."

“The people of Beihuai never care about these things,” Wen Fengcang said slowly, then chuckled, “Jiang Jinshuang, you are more interesting than I imagined.”

The throne of Beihuai might be uninteresting.

If she were by his side, his remaining life would likely be more vibrant.

Jiang Jinshuang smiled faintly, tilting her head slightly: "Wen Fengcang, I called you 'good dog,' and you actually wag your tail at me?"

Wen Fengcang pursed his lips slightly, his gaze darting away.

His skin was very fair, and even the slightest touch of color would make his face appear rosy.

A blush spread from her cheeks to the tips of her ears. Wen Fengcang lowered his brows and said, "You are unlike any other woman I have ever met."

If Jiang Jinshuang didn't know Wen Fengcang's personality, she would have thought he was some shameless lecher who only knew how to talk sweet nothings!

Jiang Jinshuang didn't care about these things, and just smiled and said, "Uncle Wang once told me that I am a person who can't stay idle and doesn't want to be confined to one corner. Beihuai is very big, but Wenfengcang is vast and the world is wide."

She said, "Wen Fengcang, the world is vast."

Upon hearing this, Wen Fengcang chuckled softly, paused for a moment, and then slowly said, "If... if I were not the Prince of Beihuai, nor would I become the King of Beihuai, would you be willing—"

“I don’t want to,” Jiang Jinshuang interrupted before Wen Fengcang could finish speaking, “Wen Fengcang, my love or lack thereof is not determined by your status or identity.”

“If I truly love you, even if you were a beggar or a cripple, let alone the prince of Beihuai, I would still stand shoulder to shoulder with you.”

If you don't love someone, you don't love them. It has nothing to do with their status or their position.

The emotions Jiang Jinshuang could offer were purer and more passionate than any of those.

Wen Fengcang was slightly taken aback after hearing this, but after a long while he said, "So, you love that Pei Du?"

“I loved him,” Jiang Jinshuang smiled apologetically. “I don’t really understand what love is. I just gave him what I thought was ‘love.’ Perhaps to others, that wouldn’t be considered love?”

Such intense pursuit and undisguised favoritism might only feel like pressure to others.

So Jiang Jinshuang felt that she might not understand love very well.

She was simply imitating the couples in the storybooks, imitating Uncle Wang's care for her, and imposing it on others.

Wen Fengcang chuckled lightly: "You and Pei Du are like two madmen."

Jiang Jinshuang raised her eyebrows slightly: "What does it have to do with him?"

Wen Fengcang said calmly, "Do you know what happened when my father sent troops to invade the border of Beihuai? Emperor Wan Jin sent Pei Du to guard it. What did he do?"

Jiang Jinshuang remained silent, waiting for him to continue.

"I only learned about this later from a soldier who survived that war."

He paused for a moment, then said, "At that time, Beihuai was at its peak. The best course of action for Wan Jin's army was to first evacuate the civilians from Baiyujing, extend the battle line, and then devise a counterattack. This would have a high chance of success and fewer casualties."

“But when Pei Du came, he told Wan Jin’s army that he would not withdraw from Baiyujing, nor would he allow Beihuai’s army to set foot in Baiyujing.”

"At that time, the situation was urgent. Many of Pei Du's soldiers did not trust him, who was leading troops for the first time, and intended to disobey orders and lead the people to evacuate Baiyujing first."

"But on that day, Pei Du stood alone on horseback, dressed in both civil and military attire, before the city gate of Baiyujing."

"He doesn't seem to know much about swordsmanship; I wonder who he learned it from."

"He stood in front of the gates of Baiyujing City, saying that even if he was alone, he would not allow anyone to step into Baiyujing."

"And then?" Jiang Jinshuang's voice was a little tense, but her expression remained nonchalant.