Chapter 267 - 267 Frustration
267 Frustration
Shao Zhan smiled mysteriously.
His smile was silent, but under everyone’s deliberate gaze, it was very conspicuous.
When the Western Region envoy sensed this smile, he hesitated. “Is he happy or unhappy?”
He stole a glance at the person in front of him. What did that faint smile mean?
Then, he turned to look at the empty seat beside the emperor and his heart gradually calmed down. It was said that the emperor and empress were loving. After giving birth to the crown prince, they promised to stay by each other’s side for the rest of their lives. From the looks of it, the rumors were not completely true. Otherwise, why was there no sign of the empress at such a big banquet?
Although the current emperor had only ascended the throne for less than a year, his methods were impressive. Having the famous General Jiang as his right-hand man, his strength was unfathomable, so other countries could only play up to him.
As long as they were under the wings of the Shao Kingdom, they would not have to worry. This time, they had to ensure that the emperor was on their side.
He glanced at the woman beside him. The woman had also received his signal. She nodded and smiled.
Her eyes seemed to be sparkling as she stared at the man on the throne. It was a pity that Shao Zhan did not even look at her. He seemed to have completely lost interest in her.
The beauty was displeased. As the number one beauty in the Western Region, she always received praises wherever she went. This man is really unappreciative. So what if he was the emperor? There were countless noble ministers who had fallen under her spell, let alone him, who was just a budding new emperor.
Being used to flattery, the Western Region beauty subconsciously revealed a trace of arrogance on her face. Shao Zhan’s gaze suddenly fell upon her and caught that expression.
The beauty’s heart skipped a beat. She quickly looked down at the ground, her heart pounding like a horse. Those eyes were really scary.
Shao Zhan retracted his gaze and felt extremely disgusted. The Western Region really didn’t know what was good for them. How dare they send something like this to the Shao Kingdom!
The envoy from the Western Region was still unaware of Shao Zhan’s thoughts. He was still thinking about how to help this woman successfully eliminate the empress and become the new head of the harem.
Shao Zhan was well aware of his intentions. A trace of coldness flashed across his eyes. If she was a kind woman, he wouldn’t mind putting on a show with her. However, the envoy had recklessly tried to stuff such a woman into his arms. This man must be tired of living.
“This woman’s name is Saina. She’s in her twenties. She’s good at zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting. She can also dance very well. In order to see the emperor, she had spent a month preparing a dance to congratulate the Shao Kingdom on its prosperity and peace.”
The envoy from the Western Region said the words that he had prepared beforehand. Then, he gently pushed the frozen woman beside him and glared at her in dissatisfaction. “What a disappointment!”
The woman came back to her senses and suppressed the fear in her heart. She bowed with trembling hands. Then, the envoy from the Western Region retreated, leaving an empty space for her.
The Western Region beauty’s hands were sore from keeping them raised, but there was still no music. However, she still remembered the look in the emperor’s eyes just now, and so she did not dare to act rashly for the time being. She could only endure the soreness in her arms and wait for the music to start.
At this moment, the musicians in the hall received the emperor’s permission to start playing.
As soon as the music sounded, everyone heaved a sigh of relief.
The envoy from the Western Region was also feeling a little puzzled. He sat nervously in his seat.
The reputation of the top beauty in the Western Region was not for nothing. She was beautiful and had a good figure. Her dance moves were very beautiful and alluring.
Although she was afraid of Shao Zhan, once she started dancing, she became completely immersed in her dance moves.
Her every move was in sync with the rhythm. As she jumped and spun, she easily got the attention of all the men in the hall. All of them couldn’t move their eyes away from her. There were even some men from other tribes that were more liberal in their ways. From the Shao Kingdom’s point of view, those men were from a barbaric country. At this moment, they were muttering indecent words in low voices. It was obvious that they were exchanging lewd remarks.
The frustration that the Western beauty had felt from Shao Zhan was completely removed by the other men. She knew it. No man could resist her charms.
The more happy she got, the more seductive her dance moves became. Some of the civil servants and ministers of the Shao Kingdom kept commenting that the dance was indecent, but the look in their eyes was very honest. They kept stealing glances at her with flushed faces.
The beauty noticed their gazes and got more confident. Armed with her new-found confidence, she couldn’t help but give an evil smile. She looked at the person on the throne with a charming gaze—the seductive look in her eyes was unmistakable.
Now that all the men present were drawn by her dance moves, it was only a matter of time before she won over Shao Zhan. “Which man doesn’t like beauties? He is just pretending.”
As she spun across the room, she got closer to Shao Zhan. If not for the other party’s cold expression, she would have approached him long ago. If she couldn’t get close, there were other ways.
She spun and jumped, winked at him from time to time, and lifted her dress to reveal her thighs to him.
Unfortunately, despite her efforts, the man on the throne ignored her. The men below the stage were all fired up, but the emperor did not look at her. It seemed like the wine on the table was more deserving of his attention.
The beauty from the Western Region was passionately unleashing her charms. She was very sure that every single man, except Shao Zhan, was looking at her.
At the thought of this, the beauty seemed to have noticed something. The mockery in her eyes was immediately replaced by shock. Suddenly, she stopped in her tracks, but she immediately covered it up with her exquisite dance steps.
However, the frustration in her eyes deepened.
Just now, she was still thinking confidently that there was only one person in the hall who did not look at her. Unexpectedly, the man sitting below the throne was not paying any attention to her either.
At this moment, it felt like her worldview had been trampled on. Cracks have appeared in The conceit and arrogance in her heart. A rare thought popped into her mind. She wasn’t as perfect as she thought she was.
Jiang Danhe was sipping his tea attentively. He had no idea what was going on in the hall, nor did he know that his indifference could change a person.
Jiang Danhe took a sip of tea and his eyes suddenly lit up. “Yes! This tea is delicious! I’ll bring some with me later.”
The Western Region beauty used her last bit of strength to complete the dance.
It was just a dance, but she had never felt so tired before. Seduction was the last thing on her mind now. At this moment, she wished to escape from this place and return to that place where she was loved.
The envoy from the Western Region had been observing Shao Zhan’s expression. When he realized that the other party did not even look at the beauty, his heart sank. Had he miscalculated this time?
While feeling uneasy, he was still thinking of a way out. When the beauty stopped, he immediately stood up. “Your Majesty…”
Before he could finish his words, Shao Zhan waved his hand and dismissed him.
The envoy did not understand his intentions and could only follow the instructions in a daze. He returned to his seat with the beauty.
In order to ease the atmosphere, Eunuch Su asked Shao Zhan for further instructions. After getting his approval, he announced the official start of the song and dance performance.
As soon as he finished speaking, the musicians started playing. The palace maids lined up in a row and entered the hall, displaying the unique gentleness of the women of the Shao Nation.
Everyone was intoxicated by the beautiful setting. Fine wine, delicious food, beautiful women, all of them were mesmerizing.
However, only the two people from the Western Region waited in fear until the end of the banquet.
It was only when they arrived at their residence that they gradually came back to their senses. At this moment, the two of them felt like they had survived a disaster.
For some reason, they felt like they had plucked a tiger’s beard but they managed to return safe and sound. In any case, it was a very strange experience.
What they didn’t know was that Shao Zhan didn’t deal with them because they were insignificant in his eyes. However, it was unknown if the Western Region was included as part of the emperor’s agenda.