Chapter 436 Procrastination

Once the imperial edict was issued, everyone knew that Mo Sixuan had entered the capital.

Upon hearing this, most of the unsuspecting people were overjoyed. They guessed that since the enemy monarch had taken the initiative to come as a guest, he must intend to negotiate peace with our country, and that war between the two countries would not easily break out again.

This is truly a dream come true for ordinary people.

However, the officials in the court knew that things were not so simple. After learning of this news, they successively requested an audience with the emperor to discuss the affairs of the Blue Feather Kingdom.

However, Wen Zhiming avoided meeting him, claiming that he was discussing state affairs with Mo Sixuan and that they could discuss anything after the banquet the next day.

This inevitably made the officials wonder: the emperor and Mo Sixuan were discussing state affairs together, could it be that there was really hope for an alliance between the two countries?

However, Lanyu Kingdom is notorious for breaking its promises, and the newly enthroned emperor, Mo Sixuan, has a long-standing grudge against the emperor.

Even if the two countries can truly form an alliance this time, they will have to be constantly wary of Blue Feather Kingdom breaking its promises.

The following day, a grand banquet was indeed held in the palace. Singing and dancing were set up in the open space, and the tables were filled with the special delicacies of the Golden Moon Kingdom, creating a lively and festive atmosphere.

Wen Zhiming and Meng Lingge disliked extravagance and waste. The last time the palace had such a grand banquet was more than half a year ago when they celebrated the Empress Dowager's birthday.

The officials, who were already feeling uneasy, were now even more unsure whether to be happy or worried upon seeing this lively scene.

Seeing the Emperor and Mo Sixuan raising their cups together and chatting happily, everyone could only force a smile and find topics to toast each other.

If they hadn't already spent more than three years with Wen Zhiming and knew that their emperor wasn't a good-for-nothing, they would have suspected that Wen Zhiming had been deceived by Mo Sixuan.

After several rounds of drinks, Wen Zhiming raised his hand to signal everyone to be quiet and said in a gentle voice.

"My beloved ministers, this is the new ruler of Lanyu Kingdom. The two kingdoms of Jinyue and Lanyu are connected by mountains and rivers and live in harmony. The new ruler of Lanyu Kingdom has come from afar and is a rare honored guest of Jinyue. My beloved ministers, please join me in paying our respects to the new ruler of Lanyu Kingdom!"

The emperor gave the order, and all the officials had no choice but to cup their hands in greeting and raise their cups in unison.

Mo Sixuan smiled knowingly.

He had long guessed that Wen Zhiming's grand gesture was to prepare for peace talks between the two countries. He wanted to appease him and then discuss the peace talks with him so that he would have no choice but to agree.

No matter how skilled Wen Zhiming is in martial arts, in order to prevent further war, we must not only refrain from killing him, but also treat him with courtesy.

His feud with Wen Zhiming was irreconcilable, but now he was outnumbered and the situation was unfavorable. He had no choice but to deal with it for now and wait until he returned to his country to lead his troops to attack Jin Yue Kingdom before he could settle things with Wen Zhiming.

Thinking this, he stood up, holding his wine glass, and said with a smile.

"Thank you all for your kind hospitality, and I cannot refuse your kind invitation. Now, I would like to take this opportunity to toast His Majesty and all the gentlemen present. May the lands of the Golden Moon and Blue Feather nations be forever in harmony, and may the sun and moon shine together. Let us drink together, everyone!"

To avoid war, Wen Zhiming feigned goodwill towards him, and he could certainly respond in kind to make Wen Zhiming lower his guard.

Everyone raised their glasses at the same time and drank them down in one gulp.

Wen Zhiming waved for everyone to sit down again, and smiled at Mo Sixuan.

"The Golden Moon Kingdom is vast and rich in resources. The beauty of the capital alone is enough to keep you entertained for half a month. I have selected several young civil officials and ordered them to take you to enjoy the scenery of the Golden Moon Kingdom's capital in the next few days, so that you will not regret your trip."

Mo Sixuan's face showed interest.

"Then I thank Your Majesty in advance."

He was worried about not being familiar with the terrain of the capital. If he could spend these few days getting to know the capital thoroughly, he would be able to achieve twice the result with half the effort when he led his troops to attack.

The banquet was harmonious, and even the previously cautious officials seemed to have a more genuine smile on their faces.

Although they didn't think highly of Mo Sixuan, they believed in their own emperor.

Since the Emperor is so friendly to Mo Sixuan, it proves that the Emperor knows what to do with Mo Sixuan. It is estimated that the peace treaty will be discussed after the banquet. This is indeed a rare good thing for the court and the people.

A grand feast, each person with their own agenda, yet on the surface, both host and guests enjoyed themselves immensely and left satisfied.

From that day on, Wen Zhiming indeed sent several young civil officials every day to take Mo Sixuan on sightseeing trips.

At first, Mo Sixuan was very cooperative in order to familiarize himself with the city's layout, but after a few days, he found that he was always traveling by carriage and enjoying the scenery, so he had no time to figure out the city's routes.

Moreover, although he was accompanied by civil officials who did not know martial arts, he was accompanied by many armed guards and secret bodyguards who followed him secretly, making it impossible for him to find a chance to escape.

Unable to gain any benefits and unable to leave, Mo Sixuan gradually lost interest. However, the civil officials were very good at flattering him and were extremely attentive. Since he was currently under their control and could not make too much of a scene, he cooperated for several more days.

Before long, ten days had passed.

Mo Sixuan grew increasingly anxious.

He suspected that Wen Zhiming was deliberately wasting his time, knowing that he couldn't stay in Jin Yue Kingdom for long, and wanted to wait until he couldn't stand it anymore and took the initiative to propose peace talks, so that Wen Zhiming could gain an advantageous position and make unreasonable demands.

Given the current situation, with the peace talks between the two countries still unresolved, Wen Zhiming will not let him leave easily.

In any case, he never intended to truly befriend the Golden Moon Kingdom. No matter what conditions Wen Zhiming proposed, he would not fulfill them. Rather than wasting time here, he might as well go along with Wen Zhiming's wishes, take the initiative to propose peace talks, and gain the trust of the Golden Moon Kingdom's ruler and ministers as soon as possible before returning to his country.

Thinking of this, Mo Sixuan resolutely addressed the civil officials who had urged him to go sightseeing.

"I have come to the Kingdom of Golden Moon for the sake of peace between our two countries. I have troubled you for several days and cannot delay any longer. Please tell your emperor that I wish to see him so that we may discuss the peace talks today. Once this matter is settled, I will return to my country to attend to state affairs."

"This matter is not urgent. Since you have come all this way, His Majesty has repeatedly instructed that we must do our best to be hospitable to you. The peace talks can wait a few more days."

"Yes, you must be tired of sightseeing these past few days. Starting today, we're going to take you to try the delicacies of our Golden Moon Kingdom. We guarantee you won't eat the same thing twice in three days."

"Yes, we in Golden Moon are a land of propriety and righteousness. We must do our best in treating guests. We cannot let the people of Blue Feather Kingdom or other countries feel that we have neglected the ruler of our neighboring country."

Gu Yan needs time to go to Lan Yu Kingdom to help Mo Si Yan, and Mo Si Xuan cannot die at the hands of the Jin Yue Kingdom people. Therefore, what Wen Zhi Mo needs to do now is to stall Mo Si Xuan as much as possible and let everyone know that the two are getting along well and that the Jin Yue Kingdom has no intention of killing Mo Si Xuan.

Several civil officials had long been instructed by Wen Zhiming to delay Mo Sixuan for as long as possible. Therefore, when Mo Sixuan mentioned peace talks, their expressions did not change, and they continued to urge Mo Sixuan to continue having fun.

The more they acted this way, the less Mo Sixuan wanted to travel and the more he insisted on seeing Wen Zhiming.