The envoy from the Chu Kingdom had already entered the border of the Qin State, and according to the scouts, it was less than three days’ journey to Jinyang.
anwhile, the Idle King was committed to saring Qin Zhen’s reputation, and there were even so who began to question the Empress’s ability to judge character, constantly spreading rumors that a woman was unfit for such a grand task, causing great turmoil within the Qin State in a short period of ti.
By this ti, Yan Li’an had already successfully arrived in the Zhao Kingdom.
Commandery Princess Zhao Ming, not yet thirty, was a gaunt man who had been indulged in wine and won for years, lacking any regal aura.
When he t Yan Li’an, he was still holding a i Ji in his arms.
His face was marked with displeasure.
"Did the Qin State dispatch only you?" Zhao Ming scorned the handso young man before him, "Ever since that girl Qin Wu beca Empress, the fortunes of the Qin State have been declining. Go back; I won’t be pledging allegiance to the Qin State."
With that, he was about to have Yan Li’an pushed out.
Yan Li’an had a tall figure, a face as fine as jade, particularly those narrow, phoenix eyes that revealed a debonair charm.
The i Ji could not take her eyes off Yan Li’an since she saw him.
At that mont, seeing Zhao Ming about to drive Yan Li’an away, she quickly spoke up, "Your Majesty, he is after all an envoy from the Qin State. If you expel him without letting him speak, it would look bad if the Qin Empress heard about it."
Her words were effective; Zhao Ming extended his hand and touched her upturned nose, "You’re right, you little clever thing. I almost gave Qin Wu a handle to use against ." He looked up at Yan Li’an, "I give you a chance to speak."
Yan Li’an, from start to finish, remained neither servile nor overbearing.
"I have seen King Zhao." He gave a slight nod, refusing to kneel.
Upon seeing this, King Zhao’s eyebrows furrowed, and he was vaguely angry.
"The aning of King Zhao, your ssenger will faithfully relay to Her Majesty the Empress. With this, farewell." And with those words, he was ready to turn around.
King Zhao’s anger could not subside all at once.
What was this?
Since when had any kingdom’s envoy behaved like this?!
Had Qin Wu taken the wrong dicine, letting such a person be an envoy?
He had not been deaf to the rumors; the Qin State intended to coax both Zhao and Song Kingdoms into confronting Dawei and the Chu Kingdom together.
He naturally had also prepared so argunts.
But now, he didn’t even need to speak them.
Mysteriously... he felt sowhat choked up.
"Stop!" Zhao Ming’s face turned cold, and he pushed the i Ji out of his embrace, "Leave."
i Ji, looking at Yan Li’an, lingered with reluctance but could not defy Zhao Ming’s command and had no choice but to leave unwillingly.
"Does King Zhao have any other matters?" Yan Li’an’s expression was very cold.
It was this very coldness that infuriated King Zhao deeply.
"What is your attitude!" King Zhao swept a goblet off the table onto the floor in frustration.
Hearing the angry sound behind her, i Ji quickened her pace and left the grand hall.
Yan Li’an looked at the goblet on the ground, still remaining very calm, "Why is King Zhao angry?" he seed genuinely unable to understand King Zhao’s anger.
King Zhao: "I—" He opened his mouth to speak but suddenly choked.
What was he to say?
That he felt Yan Li’an’s deanor was too cold, making him feel neglected?
"I, at least, am the monarch of Zhao Kingdom. You, as an envoy from Qin, show such lack of propriety—aren’t you afraid I might order your head chopped off?" King Zhao eventually found a shred of his royal authority.
Upon hearing that, a flash of sharpness passed through Yan Li’an’s eyes.
"In battle, envoys should not be killed. I believe that with the wisdom of the King of Zhao, he would surely not lead the people of Zhao towards destruction."
"In Qin State, courtesy precedes force. This ti, upon learning the intentions of the King of Zhao, I imdiately reported back to the Empress. The King of Zhao still has ti to reorganize his troops, probably over a month’s ti."
Upon hearing this, the King of Zhao’s face darkened imdiately. "Are you threatening ?! Shaless Qin Wu, how dare you send soone to humiliate ! This is absolutely outrageous."
"This is not humiliation, it’s the truth," Yan Li’an raised his voice to correct. "In these turbulent tis, small kingdoms like Zhao and Song must rely on other nations to avoid the fate of destruction. Otherwise, all that awaits you is a change of dynasty."
"I could surrender to Dawei or Chu Kingdom, why should I choose your Qin State?!" The King of Zhao struggled to swallow the calm deanor of the young man before him.
After hearing this, Yan Li’an smirked. "The King of Zhao has choices, but Dawei and Chu Kingdom are arrogant and not as approachable as our Empress. Moreover, they won’t grant the King of Zhao the right to autonomously control his territory, would they?"
Upon hearing this, the King of Zhao slightly narrowed his eyes. "So Qin Wu would agree?"
"That’s why the Empress sent here; as long as the King of Zhao is willing to surrender, Qin State is naturally prepared to offer sincerity, granting full territorial control. Then you will still control your territory, and Qin State will not make too many changes to it or to you," said Yan Li’an, and with these words, the King was swayed.
For a minor king with modest abilities who could not lead his country to greatness and whose inherited legacy wasn’t robust, he was forced to bow and scrape to more powerful nations even in tis of peace, always terrified that these powers might swallow his kingdom. Although a king, he lived more like a subordinate.
Therefore, he had long harbored the idea of relying on a greater power, but that cursed Crown Prince of Dawei had always refused to accept him.
Thus, he and old Song had been dragging their heels up until now, when chaos finally erupted, guns blazing everywhere.
Dawei was still unwilling to accept them.
The King of Zhao’s eyes darted around, a glint in them.
"If the King of Zhao is willing to persuade the neighboring Song Kingdom, our Empress has even more generous conditions for the King of Zhao," Yan Li’an struck while the iron was hot.
"I need to think this over. Since it’s already late today, why doesn’t the envoy stay overnight? Tomorrow I will discuss this with my ministers and then give the envoy an answer," said the King of Zhao, no longer possessing his initial resistance.
For a king who was lazy and just wanted to cling to his current glory and riches, Yan Li’an’s generous conditions were too good to resist.
Having full control over his territory and being loosely managed by Qin State.
Isn’t this like leaning on a mighty tree?!
Still, the King of Zhao needed to consult with his ministers to avoid falling into any trap set by Qin Wu.
After more than thirty years, the King of Zhao didn’t believe such good fortune could co his way.
Yan Li’an settled in.
He had just also handed over the task of persuading the King of Song to the King of Zhao.
He felt that giving a little sweetener for the King of Zhao to convince the King of Song would be more effective than wearing himself out with travel and talk, thus allowing him to return to Qin State faster, back to his family.
Evening.
After freshening up, Yan Li’an noticed a figure passing by the window.
He squinted his eyes, intrigued, yet pretended to be startled, "Who is it!"
"It’s ," ca a soft, llow voice from outside the door.
Yan Li’an walked over and opened the door.
There stood i Ji, who had been with the King of Zhao earlier, looking at him with affectionate eyes, dressed even more revealingly than during the day.
Seeing Yan Li’an open the door, i Ji’s gaze grew even hotter.
"The envoy is still awake at this late hour."
Yan Li’an smirked devilishly. "Isn’t your majesty also awake?"
"The moon tonight is seductive, and I cannot sleep. Could the envoy be feeling the sa?" i Ji stepped into the room, and Yan Li’an didn’t stop her but stepped aside to let her in.
i Ji turned and shut the door, then turned back, her face flushed. She looked at Yan Li’an with enticing eyes and a soul-stirring voice: "Envoy, you haven’t yet answered my question."
"Is it this enticing night that keeps your Excellency awake?"
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