Allure of a Country Maiden
Chapter 756 - 754

Chapter 756: 754

On the eighteenth day of August, with the last remnants of summer’s heat fading, the Qianjiang Pier was teeming with onlookers enjoying the lively atmosphere.

However, for safety reasons, the soldiers kept the common folk at a distance of a hundred meters.

Shangguan Xuanyi, Xiao’er and Di Shaowei ascended the review stand together. Seeing a woman among those reviewing the troops, some soldiers, generals, and local officials frowned slightly.

Wasn’t this a serious military drill and not a play? Bringing a woman on stage to watch was a mark of disrespect to the soldiers, wasn’t it?

Officials, including the Governor-General of Jiangnan, General Xuanwei, numerous other generals and civil servants and the Magistrate of Hang County, immediately bowed in respect upon their arrival.

When they learned of Xiao’er’s status as Consort Rui, some lower-ranking officials felt that Prince Rui was being too frivolous. Although Princess Rui may be noble, even the Empress rarely appeared at such occasions. This was a very important review of the navy! How could he bring a woman to watch?

If he wanted to win a woman’s favor, buying her a few sets of clothing or jewelry would do. What on earth was a woman doing in a man’s world?

These officials, with their lower ranks, were not fully aware of the inner workings of higher society, nor did they appreciate Xiao’er’s great contributions. Well, calling them ’great contributions’ might be an exaggeration; it was more accurate to say ’significant contributions’. As such, their confusion was understandable.

The Governor-General of Jiangnan, though, had heard much about Princess Rui and her actions. Therefore, he dared not show any signs of disrespect.

He Gaopeng, the Governor-General’s son, and his sister, He Lanzhi, also attended. However, unlike Xiao’er, He Lanzhi did not dare to openly wear women’s clothing. Instead, she was dressed as a soldier.

The siblings were positioned near the pier, giving them a good view of the parade. Seeing Xiao’er and Shangguan Xuanyi, they were both shocked, especially when they heard how their father referred to the pair.

He Gaopeng quickly lowered his head, afraid that they would notice him.

Prince Rui and Consort Rui!

At the time, he had felt their imposing presence and assumed they must either be wealthy or noble. They certainly didn’t seem like ordinary people. Still, he could never have guessed that their status would be quite so astonishing!

As for Princess Rui, although she had been accused of being a woman of ill repute by Zhang Jiang, he never saw her as such. But he never imagined her to be of such high status.

He Gaopeng admired Xiao’er’s calm and composed confidence under the scrutiny of the crowd, so different from her admittedly stunning appearance. Even if he had to face a scene like this or the unfriendly gaze of many people, he would not be able to remain as unaffected by honor or disgrace as she was.

Prince Rui was indeed fortunate to have married such an exceptionally beautiful and gracious wife, He Gaopeng thought.

He Lanzhi stole a glance at Shangguan Xuanyi out of the corner of her eye. Undeterred by the scrutiny, he calmly held that woman’s hand, a sight that stirred unfamiliar feelings in He Lanzhi. What was so special about this woman besides her good looks? Why was she the recipient of such favor from a royal son? He Lanzhi was baffled.

At that moment, a breeze blew in from the sea, and Shangguan Xuanyi draped a thin cloak hanging on his arm over Xiao’er.

"I’m not cold," Xiao’er shook her head.

"Wear it. It’ll keep you warm," Shangguan Xuanyi insisted.

With a pout, Xiao’er voiced her discontent. "Are you making me wear this just because you don’t want to hold it?"

Shangguan Xuanyi chuckled, "So you figured it out?"

Xiao’er shot him a glance and Shangguan Xuanyi laughed softly in response.

The interaction between the two completely shattered the worldviews of the people watching them.

Master He had heard of the Sixth Prince’s doting on his wife, but he was surprised to see the prince showing public affection without caring about others’ strange glances.

He Lanzhi was not sure how to describe her feelings. She was envious that such a highly ranked person would show so much respect and care for a woman like Xiao’er. This envy was now reflected in her gaze as she looked at Xiao’er with a mix of admiration, jealousy, and resentment.

Just as Xiao’er was about to turn her head to look at the neatly arranged warships on the sea, her gaze passed over two familiar figures. Why were they here? She kept her gaze on the two of them for a second, then moved on.

"Prince Rui, please, " said General Xuanwu, the commander of the review, gesturing them forward.

An inspection of the navy involved not just observing military exercises, but also the warships and equipment.

Shangguan Xuanyi nodded and, hand in hand with Xiao’er, stepped forward.

Xiao’er felt a thrill of anticipation and excitement. China’s navy and ships were world leaders in ancient times. To see firsthand the leading civilization of the time was incredibly enticing to her, even as a half-stranger to the ancient world.

Moreover, Xiao’er and Shangguan Xuanyi had spent the previous evening in their separate space, studying a wealth of information on shipbuilding, naval navigation, naval weapons, naval military ideas and so on, which had piqued her interest.

General Di had spent years commanding the navy near the southern border. As Di Shaowei was now also a general, he was fully acquainted with all this. Seeing Xiao’er’s interest, he began to give her an introduction.

"Our warships are divided by their purpose: there are assault warships, attack warships, light warships, heavy warships, reconnaissance ships, and main battle ships."

"These are the assault ships..." Di Shaowei began explaining each ship to her, indicating their respective uses as he went along.

Enthralled, Xiao’er listened with eagerness.

"This is the main battle ship, a tower ship. The entire ship stands more than ten meters tall, with four levels of turrets, capable of carrying over a thousand soldiers."

After examining the warships, they moved on to check the equipment on board, starting with the weapons. For long-range attacks, they used bows and arrows, rockets, fireballs, and cannons. For close combat, they wielded long pikes and spears, and when boarding for melee combat, they used short swords. Besides these, there were also flags and trumpets for directing the troops, and tools like the compass.

Di Shaowei was thorough with his explanations, and Xiao’er listened attentively.

The officials and generals trailing behind them almost wanted to roll their eyes!

He was being rather detailed in his explanations to a woman. He was just a step away from telling her how to build a ship and how these weapons were to be used!

Naturally, they thought, what use was there for this level of detail? She was not going to fight, nor did she need to. Importantly, they doubted if she could even comprehend it all.

"What do you think? Are we equipped well enough?" Di Shaowei asked, once he had finished the tour.

"There’s plenty of room for improvement," Xiao’er nodded.

At her remark, someone finally laughed out loud, but the icy stare from Shangguan Xuanyi made him quickly stifle his mirth and resume a serious expression.

Without turning around, Di Shaowei could guess what those people were thinking!

Well, he thought, let them underestimate her. He had not explained how the ships were built or how the weapons were used, because he believed that when it came to building ships and using these weapons, in the whole world, no one could match her prowess!

Their underestimation drove him to a silent rebuke.

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