Long Tianque led his mighty army back in triumph, and the people of the capital lined the streets to welcome him, their cheers resounding through the sky.
After settling the troops, Long Tianque went straight to the palace to meet the emperor.
After reporting the battlefield situation, Long Tianque carefully took out a letter from his pocket and handed it to Xuanming.
Xuanming took the letter, slowly unfolded it, and stared at the densely written words, but remained silent.
Long Tianque stood quietly in the center of the imperial study, his head slightly lowered, without saying or making any move. The entire room was filled with a suffocating atmosphere of silence.
After a long while, Xuanming suddenly swung his arm and threw the letter in his hand hard onto the table with a crisp "thud".
Immediately afterwards, he snorted coldly, the sound like a thunderclap in Long Tianque's ears, causing him, who was already feeling somewhat guilty, to involuntarily lower his head even further.
Just then, Xuanming shouted loudly, "Help!"
The eunuch waiting outside immediately responded and entered, bowing his head to await the decree. "Bring a chair and grant General Long a seat."
Xuanming issued the order expressionlessly.
Soon, an exquisite sandalwood chair was moved into the imperial study and placed not far from the desk.
"Come and sit down. The chessboard is ready. Today, you will play a game of chess with me. We will have dinner in the palace later." Xuanming said, getting up from his desk and walking steadily towards the chessboard placed by the window.
Long Tianque hesitated for a moment, then raised his head, walked quickly to the chessboard, expressed his gratitude according to etiquette, and carefully sat down.
Having just settled down, Long Tianque could no longer suppress his doubts and asked, "Your Majesty, do you... no longer blame this humble subject?"
As soon as the words left his mouth, he regretted his rashness, but it was too late to take them back.
Xuanming did not answer his question directly, but instead reached out and picked up a white chess piece, gently placing it on the chessboard.
Then, he looked up at Long Tianque and asked in return, "Blame you? What should I blame you for? The one who should be blamed is Mo Beichen. This guy has already returned to the capital, but he didn't even say hello to me. It's obviously done on purpose. He must still be holding a grudge about when I invited him to the wedding banquet."
Long Tianque was about to open his mouth to explain when Xuan Ming interrupted him mercilessly: "Alright, alright, stop mentioning that guy, he's such a killjoy! Let's talk about you instead." Xuan Ming said with a look of disgust.
However, this did not make Long Tianque angry or embarrassed; instead, it made him burst into laughter.
After all, they were best friends who grew up together and had gone through thick and thin together since childhood.
They know each other's personalities and temperaments very well.
Therefore, when Long Tianque heard Xuan Ming speak in this tone, he instantly understood the true meaning behind the other party's words.
Today, the once fearsome Ghost Continent and Void Continent have vanished without a trace, and they can no longer pose any real threat to the Sumeru Continent.
As for the Xuancang Continent and the Shengqiong Continent, for some reason, the Xuancang Continent has always stood on the side of the Xumi Continent from the beginning. The Shengqiong Continent also became friendly with the Xumi Continent because of the assistance of the Xumi King in this great war. Now, the first and second continents have established a deep friendship with the Xumi Continent, which is of great benefit to the Xumi Continent.
As for the third continent—the Continent of Kings—it has always been known for its love of peace and never initiates war. When it heard that the Continent of Sumeru had been attacked by other continents, it generously sent a large amount of precious supplies.
Although this move may seem somewhat like a mere formality, it at least demonstrates that they have no intention of making enemies of the Sumeru Continent.
Looking at the Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth Continents, they maintained a neutral stance throughout.
When they learned that our two continents had a close relationship with the Sumeru Continent, they all abandoned any ill intentions they might have had.
However, the situation on the Netherworld Continent was slightly more complicated.
Back then, when the Ghost Continent and the Void Continent suddenly launched an attack on the Sumeru Continent, the Underworld Continent actually got involved and contributed its own strength.
What's even more troublesome is that, to this day, the sixth prince of the Netherworld Continent remains detained in the hands of the Sumeru Continent. This matter is truly a headache, as it involves a sensitive issue between the two continents.
"But in my opinion, the Sumeru Continent is powerful and wise, and it will surely be able to handle this thorny problem properly."
Long Tianque sat leisurely in front of the chessboard, holding a white piece in one hand and tapping the table lightly with the other, while methodically explaining the current situation of the ten continents to Xuanming.
In particular, the attitudes and actions taken by other continents towards the Sumeru Continent are explained in great detail.
Xuanming listened quietly, and when Long Tianque finished speaking, he suddenly raised his head, stared at the other party with piercing eyes, and said coldly, "General Long is quite imposing, daring to even speculate on what I am thinking."
Upon hearing this, Long Tianque was slightly taken aback, then burst into a hearty laugh: "Oh, Your Majesty, you flatter me. I am but a rough man with courage but no strategy. How could I possibly have the ability to fathom Your Majesty's intentions? These thoughts are merely my humble opinions based on my limited knowledge. I dare to speak them to Your Majesty in the hope of receiving your guidance and correction."
However, Xuanming was not buying it. He raised his eyebrows slightly and asked with a half-smile, "I did not ask about the Sumeru Continent at first. Not only did I not ask, but I also specifically said that I did not want to talk about it. But General Long took the initiative to bring it up. Is General Long being two-faced?"
Long Tianque shook his head helplessly, sighed deeply, and slowly put the chess piece he was holding back into the chess box. He complained with a bitter face, "Your Majesty, there's no point in saying that. You know very well that I am not very talented and have limited knowledge, yet you always use words to belittle me. It's really going too far."
Upon hearing this, Xuanming curled his lips and said, "Nonsense. Your knowledge is not much different from mine, and your chess skills are even more superb. If you hadn't chosen to go to the frontier, you would be sitting in the position of prime minister now."
Long Tianque picked up the chess piece again and began to think about where to place it next. "Later, when I grew up, I liked to reclaim the territory and protect the peace of my Xuancang Continent. We agreed that you would take care of the internal affairs and I would take care of the external affairs. Don't go back on your word."
"You're just being reckless."
"That's only because Your Majesty is giving me face."
"Oh, so you've learned how to flatter?"
"No, no, Your Majesty, please give me a definite answer on what to do with the Underworld Continent."
"Didn't you already guess what I meant? Why are you asking me?"
"Tch, after all, you're the one who made this emperor."
"Why don't you try being the emperor?"
"Thank you, but I firmly refuse. I don't understand that kind of flowery language."
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