385 Firm
Palace
With a large and fast stride, Nanglong Soujin soon arrived at the palace. He made his way towards the hall without any of the guards stopping him. They all made way for him as they felt shivers whenever Nanglong Soujin went past them. Somehow, they could feel the coldness from the other party emanated when he walked close to them.
The general was angry.
The servants and guards were all praying that their new emperor hadn't created trouble again like he did in the past. If he did make Soujin angry, they wouldn't know what would become of him.
"Prince Soujin has arrived," the eunuch announced Soujin's arrival.
Yan quickly straightened his position on his chair and didn't dare to look straight towards Soujin. He knew that the other party must be angry, but he didn't have any choice right now. If he didn't comply with Princess Meng's demand, there would be a possibility that the trade would fail. At that time, he wouldn't know who he could ask consolation from.
Nanglong Soujin's eyes watched the other party with a cold gaze. His face was calm and there was not even a single ripple in his expression, but those who were close with him would know when he was angry, he would give a cold vibe, a very freezing cold aura.
This time, Tang Xuan can detect the silent intent from Soujin. He smiled wryly inside his heart and braced himself.
"Prince Soujin, we from the Gu Yue Kingdom needed someone from the Long Kingdom to represent this kingdom to our people," he said politely.
Nanglong Soujin glanced at the other party from the corner of his eyes. He knew that the other party was only saying that to clear out the problem right away. However, he didn't feel like doing as they wish.
"Are you saying that the people we had sent over the years are not enough, Tang Xuan?"
Tang Xuan smiled, "For this scale of trade, we need someone from higher rank since this trade can be considered as big and important."
"Are you saying that you want me as the prince of the Long Kingdom to go to the Gu Yue Kingdom and represent the trade?" Nanglong Soujin's eyes narrowed into a glint. He was sure that the moment they approached Yan about this matter, they already knew that he was the only one who could represent the kingdom.
Xiao Meng opened her mouth to answer, but with a slight movement from Tang Xuan she closed them again. She could faintly feel the cold atmosphere ever since Soujin stepped into the hall, so she knew that this might not end well if she slipped up.
"Who to send is all your decision," Tang Xuan answered, "We just demand someone from higher rank because it would be more respectful."
"More respectful," Soujin's eyes moved to Xiao Meng for a split second before returning back to Tang Xuan. His tone was clearly mocking, but his expression was still the same.
"Unfortunately, I can't grant your wish, Tang Xuan," Nanglong Soujin answered right away, "My wife is expecting and it won't be long before my child born, so I won't leave this kingdom."
"I believe there should be other people you could send at this time," Tang Xuan smiled.
Nanglong Soujin shrugged slightly, "You should have known that there is no one who has similar ranks with me available right now."
"Don't you know you will put the entire trade into danger should you refuse to send anyone?" Tang Xuan arched his eyebrows.
"If you have to, just cancel it," Soujin said ruthlessly, clearly not giving any room for discussion. "If you want someone from high rank to come to the Gu Yue Kingdom, there are none right now, so you shouldn't put up your hope into it."
From his chair, Yan almost toppled down. From the moment Soujin refused to go, he knew that the other party would never agree to go at any condition. Why did he tell the other party in the first place? With this, he fell into despair from thinking the profit he would lose because of Soujin's rejection. Right now, he was lamenting the large amount of money that would be lost.
Hearing how firm Soujin on this matter, Tang Xuan knew that he would never be able to convince the other party otherwise. He should have known that persuading the other party would be fruitless other than making him angry.
Xiao Meng decided to speak up, "Does Your Highness mean you won't go before your child born?"
Nanglong Soujin frowned. His word could indeed be interpreted that way, but in all honestly, he didn't want to leave Jun Hua's side anymore. After that long separation because of war, he had longed to stay with her for a long time. Now that he got it, he won't let it go easily.
"Princess Hua will be fine after the childbirth," Yan said. The other party was someone who has many accomplishments on the battlefield, there was simply no way a short separation would endanger her in any way.
Soujin also knew that. He stared at Yan for a second before nodding his head, "It's possible if it's after that, but I'm sure that you don't want to wait that long."
Xiao Meng smiled, "It's indeed more dangerous to go after delaying for so long, but if it's what needed, I could wait."
Yan stared at Xiao Meng speechlessly. Just a moment before, she was adamant to go back as soon as possible because of the water current. Now, she said that she could wait for Soujin's child to be born. Why your attitude towards me and him were so different?
Shu watched his master's mood changed drastically. In his mind, he knew that no matter what kind of girl Yan pursued, there was simply no chance for him to actually get them. After all, with that kind of attitude, they would never consider him in their heart.
Nanglong Soujin's eyes locked into the woman eyes for a moment before he nodded his head and stared at Tang Xuan, "I will go if it's later. You should take care of yourself better. There is also a chance that the rebels finish even earlier, so I'm not the one who should go."
Tang Xuan nodded his head, "I understand, thank you for your understanding, Prince Soujin."
"You better learn to be patient," Nanglong Soujin said nonchalantly and turned his body around before stiding out from the hall once again.
It was only after Soujin had left did Tang Xuan looked towards Xiao Meng, "Since the matter has finished, do you want to return back, Princess Xiao Meng?"
Xiao Meng peered towards the depressed Yan and shook her head, "Let me accompany the emperor for a while first. You can stay aside for now, Tang Xuan."
"I understand," Tang Xuan nodded his head and waved his hand. Steward Du walked to his side hastily and beckoned the other party to follow him.
On the side, Shu watched as these people did their work. His eyes followed after his master who seemed to suddenly gain a new life after he heard the princess was going to accompany him. The new emperor's thoughts were (not) surprisingly easy to guess.
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