The two people in the private room looked out the window at the bustling street below, their eyes filled with calculation.
"I heard that Emperor Jingcheng acquired a beauty, and was extremely fond of her, bringing her into the palace and immediately making her empress. Now it seems that it is indeed true," the man in purple said calmly.
"Heh, now it seems that's indeed true. Such a beauty, even His Majesty the Emperor of Dongyang would find it hard to refuse." The man in black beside him smiled slightly, tilted his head back, and drank the hot wine in his cup in one gulp.
"It seems His Majesty the Emperor of Beixiang has no interest in this beauty. Fine! Then, once Xijing is defeated and Emperor Jingcheng is trampled under our feet, this beauty will be mine." Yang Mingyue said with a smug smile, his eyes fixed on the beautiful woman below, his greedy expression impossible to conceal.
Liu Xinqi glanced at the Emperor of Dongyang beside him, his heart filled with disdain. As the emperor of a country, he was so vulgar and greedy. He couldn't help but wonder if cooperating with him was the right decision.
Dongyang and Beixiang were evenly matched in strength. Emperor Yang Mingyue of Beixiang was an extremely lustful and selfish ruler, but he was still quite accomplished in politics. Emperor Liu Xinqi of Beixiang was a low-key person who loved his country and its people and was determined to develop and strengthen his nation.
As an absolute superpower, Xijing surpasses the other three nations in every aspect, and the other three nations all border it. Currently, border relations are tense, and war is imminent. It is difficult for any single nation to confront Xijing alone, so they can only seek cooperation.
Liu Xinqi originally wanted to seek cooperation with Emperor Gong Yuhan of Nanling, but he had no interest in politics and was a ruler who wanted to maintain the status quo. According to the situation, he should submit to Xijing.
However, Liu Xinqi was unwilling to submit to another country and become a vassal state oppressed by others, so he had no choice but to cooperate with the ambitious Yang Mingyue.
"We need to be careful. We finally have this opportunity today, and we can't let it slip away like this," Liu Xinqi reminded Yang Mingyue.
"Don't worry, after waiting for so many days, everything is naturally arranged." Yang Mingyue curled the corners of her lips, glanced at Azi, turned around and walked back to the table to sit down and continue drinking.
Liu Xinqi was not as relaxed as him. Success or failure depended on this. Emperor Jingcheng had sent troops to suppress the border today, and the next step was to directly break through his country's gates. He couldn't help but be nervous.
At the market, Di Jingcheng and Azi had almost finished browsing. As they passed the Jing Shi Tea House, a waiter immediately came to greet them. Seeing that the two at the head of the group were dressed in extraordinary clothes and had outstanding appearances, the waiter quickly became alert.
"Please come in, distinguished guests." The waiter smiled and led the guests to a private room on the fourth floor.
"Ah Cheng, isn't this the place where we met last time?" Ah Zi had some recollection of this place.
Emperor Jingcheng affectionately patted her little head: "Yes, this is a famous teahouse in the capital, and the food is the most exquisite and delicious."
Azi nodded and pulled the person upstairs.
Separated only by a wall, Azi sat happily in Di Jingcheng's lap, ordering food. She didn't recognize some of the words, nor did she know what the dishes looked like, so Di Jingcheng patiently explained them to her.
On the other side, two men were still drinking, waiting for their actions that night.
Listening to Di Jingcheng's introduction, Azi's appetite was whetted; she wanted to try everything, but was also worried about wasting food, which troubled her somewhat. Di Jingcheng noticed her thoughts and, seeing her adorable little face, couldn't help but chuckle: "What are you thinking about, Azi? Aren't you going to order?"
"Hmm...that's not the problem. I want to try them all, but I'm afraid I won't be able to finish them and it will be a waste." Azi looked at the dazzling array of dishes and was extremely tempted.
"What's there to worry about? If you can't finish it, just give it to the servants," Di Jingcheng said considerately, trying to ease her worries.
"How can we share our leftovers with others?" Azi said, glaring at him.
Emperor Jingcheng, however, did not take it seriously. Having grown up in the palace, he was used to such practices. The palace servants would usually be grateful and would not feel ashamed, but rather as honored.
However, Azi was different. She had a weaker sense of class. Even though she had been in the palace for nearly a month, she did not give away her leftover food to the palace servants. Instead, she gave away things she had never eaten or used herself.
"I was just joking. If the baby can't finish it, so be it. Qinghe and the others can have a separate table," Di Jingcheng quickly reassured her, assuring her that he would handle it.
"Waiter, bring up all your signature dishes," Di Jingcheng instructed, handing the menu to the waiter.
"Yes, yes, please wait a moment, gentlemen." The waiter hurriedly went to prepare the dishes.
Azi sipped the tea the man fed her listlessly, feeling much more relaxed than in the palace. Today had truly been a pleasant trip. Di Jingcheng, while tending to the little one in his arms and playing with her tiny hands, pondered the message Cheng Yi had sent. The private room was unusually quiet for a moment.
Azi suddenly choked and pushed the teacup away uncomfortably: "What are you doing? You're feeding it up my nose!"
Upon hearing this, Di Jingcheng quickly threw the teacup onto the table, picked up the handkerchief from her arms, and wiped her face: "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry, baby. Did you get burned? Is your nose hurt? Here, let me see!"
Di Jingcheng cupped her face in his hands and stared intently at her cute little nose, examining it closely. Azi found it strange that he was staring at her nostrils so seriously.
"You're so mean! How can you stare at someone's nose like that!" Azi struggled free, stood up angrily, and sat down on a chair next to her.
Di Jingcheng quickly moved his bottom to follow, adopting a fawning posture: "Baby, I'm sorry, I was wrong! Please don't ignore me."
Azi crossed her arms and turned her body to the other side to avoid the man's head getting close.
The man forcefully pulled her back into his arms. Seeing that she still stubbornly refused to speak, he could only continue to coax her gently: "Baby, I was wrong. Don't be angry, it will break my heart if you get sick from being angry! How about you feed me some tea up my nose? That will calm you down?"
Ah Zi remained silent, like an ostrich burying its head in the sand. Humph, this man dared to be distracted when he was with her! He even fed her tea through her nostrils; she couldn't even avoid it in time.
As the man spoke, he became anxious and raised the teacup to pour it into his nose. Azi was so frightened that her eyes widened and her cute little mouth opened slightly. She quickly reached out and snatched the teacup from his hand.
She glared at him angrily and suddenly stood up: "What are you doing?! Are you out of your mind?" This cup of tea wasn't just warm like the one before; it was scalding hot. If it got into her face and nostrils, disfigurement would be the least of her worries.
After yelling angrily, she turned away in frustration, not wanting to say anything more.
At this moment, Di Jingcheng was like a child who had made a mistake, not knowing what to do with his hands. Tears welled up in his eyes; he had upset Azi.
Di Jingcheng carefully reached out and tugged at her small hand hanging by her side: "Baby, I was wrong, please don't ignore me..."
Qinghe, Zheng He, and the others listened to the commotion inside. What was going on? Had they quarreled? It was quite unusual for the Empress to be so angry, considering the Emperor's henpecked nature.
Zheng He shook his head helplessly, shrugged, and said, "This is something we can't get involved in. Your Majesty, you'd better try your best!"
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