With a warehouse full of supplies, I stood alone as king in this chaotic world, gun in hand.

"Ru Ning, so you want Jianggang Prefecture because you want to split from the Western Yan Kingdom?" Emperor Mingde felt that she dared to think of anything.

"Think what you want." Nangong Wu didn't care what they thought. "I've told you before, what happens to the Western Yan Kingdom in the future is none of my business. My three children and I will no longer accept your charity."

As for Jianggang Prefecture, it is what I deserve. You have no choice but to give it to me, whether you want to or not.

She didn't want to announce it so soon, but with the emergence of Bei Chenyan, who wanted to take over her territory, she had no choice but to say it ahead of time.

Upon hearing this, the expressions of the envoys from various countries changed, and their eyes flashed with hidden glints.

If Nangong Wu were to break away from the Western Yan Kingdom, the格局 (geju, a concept encompassing the overall situation, circumstances, and overall balance) of the world would change.

Bei Chenyan was also surprised. He thought she just wanted to find a secluded paradise and live a peaceful life with her children.

"Then I, the Crown Prince, would like to offer my congratulations to Princess Runing on her independence. Once the new capital is completed, I will go to Jianggang Prefecture to celebrate."

"Congratulations, Princess Runing! We will definitely come to Jianggang Prefecture to offer our congratulations on that day!"

Envoys from five countries, including the Prince of Ji of the Eastern Jin Dynasty and the Third Prince of the Northern Di Kingdom, all offered their congratulations to Nangong Wu.

Emperor Mingde has not yet agreed, but they all know that Nangong Wu is not afraid of him at all.

"From this day forward, Nangong Wu and her three children are no longer citizens of the Western Yan Kingdom, and I am no longer the Princess of Runing whom anyone has given me. My two children are no longer the Prince of Qi and Princess Jinyu."

"From now on, when you see me again, please call me Miss Nangong," Nangong Wu announced in the hall.

Nan Qicheng thought that bestowing the title of a princess was some kind of great act of charity, but she was determined to discard it like a worn-out shoe and trample his face under her feet.

Emperor Mingde's face was so gloomy it could drip water.

"Huo Jing, was this your idea?" He turned his attention to Huo Jing.

"Your Majesty, Wuwu is already in her twenties. What she wants to do is her own business, and I will not interfere." Huo Jing's voice was neither cold nor warm.

"But what Wuwu said is right. She has done a lot for the court in recent years. Jianggang Prefecture is what she deserves. From now on, she will not need anyone's charity."

Emperor Mingde was furious when he saw that the man dared to speak to him like that.

But with envoys from all six countries watching, he couldn't lose his temper.

"Xi'er, come here, we're leaving the palace to go back!" Nangong Wu gestured for her daughter to come over.

Nangong Xi looked at her father and felt a little reluctant to part with him.

"Go ahead! We'll meet again soon." Bei Chenyan urged her to hurry.

Nangong Xi walked towards Nangong Wu, turning back to look at him every three steps.

"Father, brother, I'll take the children and leave the palace first!" Nangong Wu said to Huo Jing, and took the hands of Nangong Jue and Nangong Xi.

As usual, Nangong Yu took Xi'er's hand, and the four of them walked out of the main hall.

As she reached the entrance of the main hall, she suddenly stopped and said another sentence:

"Nan Qi Chengkun, don't think that just because I've broken away from the Western Yan Kingdom, you can squander the life-saving silver in the national treasury. If I find out you've touched any money you shouldn't have, I'll make sure you lose your head. I mean what I say."

The affairs of the national treasury are no longer her concern, but she had just said that he was not allowed to touch the national treasury's money, so she would definitely have the princeling officials pay for it.

"You..." Nan Qichengkun was so angry that he gritted his teeth after being repeatedly humiliated and provoked by her, but he had to suppress his urge to curse because the envoys of the six countries were present.

Emperor Mingde watched her retreating figure, his lungs pounding with rage. He felt as if she had trampled his imperial dignity into the mud, yet he was utterly helpless against her.

"Bring on the song and dance!" Emperor Mingde ordered the song and dance performance to ease the tension.

Given what has happened today, none of the princelings can maintain the facade of harmony anymore.

Emperor Mingde, Empress Su, and Nan Qichengkun, needless to say, were so angry they wanted to tear Nangong Wu to pieces.

The princeling officials were even more grief-stricken, as if they had lost their parents.

With 1.5 million taels of silver at stake, they'll have to tighten their belts from now on. The money they've worked so hard to amass over the years is now going to be lost. How can they feel good about that?

There were also envoys from six other states who came to seek peace with the Western Yan Kingdom, all because they feared Nangong Wu's weapons.

Now that Nangong Wu has broken ties with the Western Yan Kingdom and has even declared that she will no longer care about the fate of the Western Yan Kingdom, they no longer need to fear the Western Yan Kingdom.

After another dance, once the dancers had all left, Emperor Mingde looked at his princes and the princesses they had brought, intending to continue discussing the marriage alliance.

Before he could speak, Bei Chenyan stood up and cupped his hands in greeting to Emperor Mingde.

"Your Majesty, I have other matters to attend to, so I will be leaving the palace now! As for the 1.5 million taels of silver, I will only give you two days to raise it; otherwise, we will have no choice but to take your crown prince with us!"

Without waiting for Emperor Mingde's reply, he turned and left.

Seeing that he had left, the other envoys from the five countries, along with their entourage, also stood up.

The Third Prince said, "Your Majesty of Western Yan, we shall also take our leave now."

"Your Majesty, we also have matters to attend to, so we will take our leave as well!" Prince Ji bowed to Emperor Mingde and then departed.

Emperor Mingde did not say a word, and all the envoys from the six countries left without anyone mentioning the marriage alliance again.

The remaining ministers of the Western Yan Kingdom looked at each other, and then shook their heads.

Prime Minister Yu stood up. "Your Majesty, the Crown Prince of Nanqi has only given us two days. I will go out of the palace to raise funds."

Nangong Wu left a message: they dared not touch the national treasury's silver and could only raise the money themselves; otherwise, given Nangong Wu's temperament, she might really have beheaded the crown prince.

"This humble subject will also take his leave!"

All the princeling officials left first.

Before the birthday banquet was even halfway over, almost everyone had left, even though Emperor Mingde was still alive.

"Your Majesty, this humble subject will also take his leave!"

Huo Jing and Nangong Xiao exchanged a glance and then bid farewell to Emperor Mingde.

"Your Majesty, this humble subject takes his leave."

Finally, only Emperor Mingde, Nanqi Chengkun, and the concubines of the harem remained in the empty hall.

The concubines and the two princesses dared not utter a sound, and after taking their leave, they also withdrew.

The seventh prince, Nangong Hong, did not attend the banquet at the palace, citing his poor health.

"Father, that bitch Nangong Wu is too arrogant. Relying on her weapon, she doesn't even respect you," Nan Qichengkun cursed.

"It's all your fault!" Emperor Mingde pointed his finger at his nose and angrily rebuked him, "You knew perfectly well that the jade Buddha belonged to Longhua Temple, yet you still dared to bring it up in the hall to show off! You were simply courting death!"

"Father, I did not have someone steal that jade Buddha. It was those people who brought the jade Buddha to me, and I took a chance," Nan Qi Chengkun said.

"If you do something like this again, even I can't protect you." Emperor Mingde looked at him with a face full of disappointment and frustration.

"Your Majesty, please calm down," Empress Su quickly advised.

"The crown prince of Nanqi Kingdom clearly came prepared. He probably had his eye on those bandits long ago. Even if the crown prince doesn't bring the goods up, the Nanqi Kingdom envoys won't let it go. They just want to extort money from us."