"Including the transaction of the Poseidon Stone?"

The white-haired little girl laughed and said, "I'm truly impressed by you, little boy."

Some things really need to be connected to fully understand them – what seemed like a blow to the economy of the imperial capital at the time was actually a weakening of the Papacy's influence.

If they can't resist joining this farce, this outcome will be inevitable—the Vatican may not suffer any economic losses, but it may suffer in terms of public sentiment.

Because the Papacy's followers are already a large group, and countless others suffered heavy losses in the Poseidon Stone incident.

Then it's inevitable that some people will think about this question: since this is not a good thing, why would the Vatican, which they have always believed in, also get involved?

If someone suffers a severe loss because they purchased Neptune Stone products from the Vatican, their faith will naturally be further shaken, causing them to waver.

In such a situation, the impact on the Vatican is far more significant than it appears. It's like a towering ancient tree that may seem lush and verdant, but in reality, its interior has been hollowed out by insects.

Thinking about it this way, the other party's desire to cooperate with Xu Shi might also be an attempt to shift the blame onto him. We were also deceived by despicable outsiders, and we're just as miserable as you are.

Therefore, it is impossible to truly stand with them, not even to feign compliance... We have finally created such a perfect environment, how can we change the whole plan for a little bit of petty gain?

On the contrary, the royal family is much more suitable in comparison—since they have already agreed to help them fill the deficit, the money cannot be wasted; they must get the royal family's support in return.

With the endorsement of the royal family and financial subsidies, the promotion of Protestantism will surely be smoother than ever before.

This is a win-win situation in a sense... Xu Shi had already explained the pros and cons to the Little Empress, and of course, she would not let go of such a good opportunity and agreed immediately.

So, those who keep saying that Mr. Xu is not doing his job properly should apologize right now!

You think locking Dongfang Xiao in the one-on-one arena was just to train her? Not at all! (Shouting)

"You still haven't submitted to me?"

Xu Shi feigned surprise and asked, "Is there something wrong with me, or with you?"

"Okay, okay, bad dad is the best."

Xia Ke'an quickly nodded, "Just to satisfy your vanity, really..."

"But there's a problem."

"Um?"

"I'm not very good at acting, what should I do if I can't get that saintly feeling out of it?"

That's enough.

Xu Shi braided her hair into a plait. "I believe what Wuyou said, but what you said makes no sense."

That's for sure. If she hadn't been wearing heavy armor those previous times, given Xia Xiaomao's personality—she blushes even before telling a lie—she would have been exposed countless times already...

"Really, believe me."

The old lady, having gotten the better deal, still tried to play innocent, saying, "I need to put on a good show later, I need to act like I'm trying to get information out of you but I can't... otherwise how am I going to deal with your silly apprentice?"

"Yeah?"

Xu Shi's expression gradually became playful, and his hand movements came to an abrupt halt.

"OK."

The white-haired loli leaned against him, unaware of the change in his expression.

She was still enjoying the human cushion she hadn't experienced in a long time, "Let me think about how to do this, my head hurts..."

"Don't rush into developing feelings."

Xu Shi shrugged helplessly, patted her to signal her to turn around, and said, "I have a question I haven't asked you yet."

"oh?"

Xia Ke'an didn't react for a moment, then obediently turned around, "What's wrong?"

"Come on, look into my eyes first."

Xu Shi, however, was not in a hurry, and his tone became more serious.

"What, what are you doing..."

The older woman finally realized something was wrong, but still couldn't figure out what the other person was referring to, so she reluctantly met his gaze.

"We're not doing anything, but it makes it seem more formal."

Xu Shi chuckled lightly, "After all, I've been holding this question in for a long time, so it has to be done with some ceremony."

"That feels about right now... Come on, tell me, how long are you going to keep the fact that you can turn back from me a secret?"

...

...

...

silence.

A long silence followed.

The air seemed to freeze for a while before the old lady realized what the man in front of her was saying.

Her first instinct was to run away, but unfortunately, her escape route was blocked. In that position, Xu Shi only needed to give her a light hug, and she would have no way to break free.

but.

"How...how did you know?!"

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(End of this chapter)