Chapter 1533-1532: The Grand Finale (Thirty-Five) [Requesting Monthly Tickets]
Missions from the Northeastern Kingdoms?
Shen Tang's brows furrowed slightly.
What are they doing here?
Qin Li presented a letter that was not quite a formal formal letter.
Shen Tang opened it without any preparation and spent a full quarter of an hour looking at it.
In this fifteen minutes, I truly experienced what it means to feel like I'm sitting on pins and needles.
Who can understand her pain?
Shen Tang rubbed her temples, tossing aside the ornate and flowery memorial. They'd stretched a thousand words out of a few. If it were just a matter of excessive word count, it wouldn't be unbearable. What she couldn't tolerate was the use of 99% obscure characters and allusions she couldn't understand—and, to her quick calculation, 99% of those allusions were about people and events from their own country. This left Shen Tang completely bewildered: "I'm not going to confront them, so they're deliberately trying to bring me bad luck?"
What were you thinking, coming here to find her unhappy?
Qin Li tried his best to control himself, but the slight upturn at the corners of his mouth betrayed his feelings. The delegation from the northeastern kingdoms had arrived at the newly demarcated border a month ago and submitted this petition. However, their lord was too busy to give a reply, so the delegation urged him to do so.
The officials who hosted the delegation also secretly complained.
The local area was in dire need of reconstruction, and there simply weren't enough people to keep an eye on these few hundred people, not to mention that feeding them was a considerable expense. The matter was reported up the chain of command, eventually reaching Qin Li's attention. Qin Li initially thought Shen Tang was trying to leave the delegation hanging.
After all, this statement is indeed quite torturous.
Qin Li: "Perhaps he wishes to be favored by the Emperor and hopes to become a foreign subject."
To put it bluntly, they want to submit and acknowledge Kang as their suzerain state.
Shen Tang looked at the letter and scoffed, "Dream on."
What vassal state and suzerain state?
To establish vassal states on her territory?
How dare you! Did you even get her permission?
Shen Tang then asked, "How many people did they bring?"
Qin Li said, "A total of seven hundred and twenty-one."
Besides the large number of people, they also brought a considerable amount of rare and precious treasures, and their attitude was quite good. According to the border official who received them, the group appeared to be well-behaved, not loitering around asking questions or attempting bribery; they seemed honest and law-abiding.
This mission was not from a single country.
It was pieced together by the various northeastern kingdoms after discussion.
Out of consideration for the rare and precious treasures, Shen Tang was willing to meet them.
The Ministry of Rites was responsible for the reception and the arrangements, and Qin Li, as the Minister of Rites, naturally had access to firsthand information. It was this information that overturned Qin Li's initial impression of them as "honest and law-abiding"—these people were far from honest. Of the more than seven hundred people in the delegation, a full four hundred were handsome men and beautiful women who were there to present gifts. These men and women were not from humble backgrounds; just by looking at their skin, teeth, and demeanor, it was almost certain they all had respectable origins.
Three pairs of gifts were also sent to Qin Li's household.
Qi Shan: "Three pairs what?"
Qin Li's expression was grim: "Three couples."
To be precise, there were two pairs of teenagers around thirteen or fourteen years old, and a young man and woman in their early twenties. Judging from Qin Li's demanding aesthetic standards, all six of them were of above-average appearance. Qi Shan, instead of sympathizing with Qin Li, said sarcastically, "It seems they are quite considerate, even giving pets in pairs, so they don't need to breed them separately."
Qi Shan knew, of course, that these three couples were not pets.
Instead, they were given away as playthings for the powerful and wealthy to defile.
Qin Li: "You don't need to gloat and laugh at me. You might find a few more gifts at home when you get home."
He even disliked the decadent behavior of the northeastern countries.
"Who dares to send it? Throw them out."
Perhaps due to spending too much time with cats, Qi Shan had picked up many feline habits, developing a strong sense of territory. Unless there were fundamental issues, he generally wouldn't dismiss servants who had served him for years, even if they were older and less agile than younger people. At least he was familiar with them, and Qi Shan wouldn't have to force himself to endure unfamiliar surroundings again. Sending people from the northeastern kingdoms wouldn't work.
Little did they know, they weren't the only ones who received it.
Almost all of Wang Tingwen and his military officers received small gifts.
Not all of them are real people; some are people who cater to their preferences.
Zhai Le laughed until his stomach hurt.
Those whom the delegations privately "catered to" were mostly former officials of the Qu state, while those who were sexually harassed were mostly former officials of the Kang state from the northwest. What does this mean? It means that the delegations from the northeastern states didn't have time to do their homework and could only choose the least problematic option.
Why is it said that giving a gift to a beautiful woman is the least likely to go wrong?
This brings us to a certain mindset prevalent in our time.
The desire for beauty is universal. If one's parents cannot give them a face that everyone loves, then acquiring beauty that others admire through one's own efforts is also a form of loving beauty. Otherwise, why would money, power, and sex be mentioned together? Unfortunately, Shen Tang is not interested.
The mission also sent her a beautiful woman.
But it wasn't stated explicitly, nor was it a private bribe.
They filled the gift list with a dozen or so top beauties.
Accepting rare treasures is tantamount to accepting these beauties.
Shen Tang was initially willing to give her a friendly look, but upon hearing about the gifts being announced, her expression gradually darkened: "Why are you giving them away?"
The mission was also prepared.
They immediately launched into a torrent of lavish praise. How can such top-tier beauty not be considered a "rare treasure"?
The beauties presented to Shen Tang were all virgins, pure and untouched, including even the most precious, intelligent, and valiant crown prince. Upon hearing of Shen Tang's deeds, he voluntarily removed his finery and offered to serve the emperor in the palace. The most renowned scion of the kingdom, upon hearing the news, was moved to a dream in which he fell in love with the goddess and also volunteered to serve the monarch.
In terms of romantic talent and in terms of physical appearance and natural gifts.
Which of them wouldn't be considered a "rare treasure"?
Shen Tang: "Rare treasures won't grow mouths to eat my food."
Despite the envoy's flowery words, Shen Tang felt that such eagerness was no business—asking her to raise people her family couldn't afford? What was she thinking? She might enjoy raising pets, but not just any human. She would only raise those who volunteered.
She doesn't like things that are given to her by others.
The envoy and the ministers who were not yet familiar with Shen Tang were all dumbfounded.
It took me a long time to fully grasp the true meaning of Shen Tang's words.
"...No, was she always this stingy?" Yu Hai didn't know how to describe his feelings at this moment. He was shocked and a little ashamed, seemingly not expecting his new boss to reach such a new level of stinginess. Throughout history, there have been many people who have not been seduced by beauty, and there are all sorts of reasons for refusing power-for-sex transactions, but none of them have ever said that she has a mouth! She was so stingy that she couldn't even bear to part with a bite of food.
That can't be right, can it?
Qi Shan ignored Yu Hai's private message with the power of words.
Yu Hai relentlessly bombarded him, giving him a headache.
Qi Shan: [Isn't this a virtue?]
Yu Hai: [...There's a reason you're still single.]
If you won't even share a single meal, you deserve to be single!
The courtiers looked with pity at the envoy standing in the hall, his face alternating between red, green, and white. Shen Youli could shamelessly admit to being stingy, but the envoy couldn't very well shamelessly pat his chest and guarantee that the beauties offered to him wouldn't eat her food, and that they could be self-reliant, could he? Just thinking about this scene made them want to die! If they were the envoys, they would wish they could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.
Shen Tang has even more shameless tricks up her sleeve.
She accepted the other gifts but refused to accept the living person.
Regardless of which country's ruler's sons or daughters they were, or which noble family's young men and women they came from, they were all rejected. When the envoys returned to their lodgings, they were horrified to find that every single "gift" they had secretly sent out had been returned, all intact.
This discovery nearly made the messenger faint with anger.
He kept cursing the monks and nuns of Kangguo in his heart.
He never believed anyone could resist the beauties they had carefully selected. If they weren't moved by such beautiful faces and bodies, were they truly a group incapable of sexual relations? Or were they all hypocrites, their hearts already yearning for more, yet they painfully refused for the sake of their reputation?
However, the messenger did not give up.
His real purpose in coming here was not to offend anyone.
Since they are unwilling to accept the beauty, it's fine if they are willing to accept other gifts. As long as there is greed, it means there is still room for negotiation.
The idea of the northeastern kingdoms was to submit and pay tribute.
He even pleaded that the new era name of Kangguo could be used domestically.
This move has also been met with opposition from both civil and military officials within the country.
The pro-war faction felt it was too humiliating, losing both face and substance, while the pro-peace faction felt the sincerity wasn't thorough enough; rather than dragging things out and playing it safe, becoming a vassal state was worse than surrendering outright. The minister who put forward this argument had a family involved in international trade, his business dealings with Qu and other central states, and he was relatively well-informed.
To put it more broadly, Shen Youli and Wu Zhaode were widely recognized for their deep sibling bond, which likely influenced the bloody war between Kang and Gao. Kang directly attacked and destroyed Gao's capital, burning it to the ground and only granting Wu Zhaode the honorary title of Duke of Lu. More recently, the rulers of Kang and Qu were childhood friends; just how deep was their friendship?
They still fought.
This shows that Shen Youli has a huge appetite.
She wanted complete possession, not just a nominal foreign vassal.
To use an implausible analogy, someone who sets their sights on a person (or country) will bring them into their home; they don't bother keeping a mistress (or vassal state). In a way, she's quite devoted and affectionate. The reason the person surnamed Shen hasn't attacked yet is simply because they're too busy right now.
There are two voices within the pro-peace faction.
One reason is that since the enemy is determined to attack anyway, and they can't win, surrendering quickly would save them from another beating. Another reason is that after Qu surrendered, its former officials received extremely generous treatment, with N+1 salary subsidies that were very tempting.
If you invest now, you might get the same treatment. But if you get beaten up later, you'll get nothing—since the general trend of the world is irreversible, you might as well go with it. Morally, this can also help the northeastern countries get a lot of compensation and secure more resources for the northeastern regions.
The pro-war faction naturally looked down on such a cowardly viewpoint.
They do have arguments to support their views.
Like oil being cooked over a raging fire, or flowers being adorned with vibrant colors.
How long could Kangguo's prosperity last?
If we just wait a little longer, we'll naturally wait until Kangguo (Kangguo) develops major internal problems, and they'll collapse on their own. If the other countries hastily surrender, and then immediately disintegrate, the few surviving countries in the northeast will truly become a laughing stock for a century.
The two factions are pulling each other along.
Ultimately, the king chose C over A.
By expressing submission as a vassal state, the greatest loss for them would be merely paying annual tribute and submitting memorials. Once Kangguo chose to accept them, they could peacefully wait for Kangguo to run into problems on its own. If Kangguo remained without incident, it wouldn't matter.
The relationship between vassal states and suzerain states has always been characterized by generous exchanges despite limited resources.
The gifts given in return were often several times the value of the tribute.
If a poor relative gives a rich relative some local specialties, can the rich relative reciprocate with something of equal value that's also worthless? Naturally, the rich relative will want to demonstrate their wealth and show off their status to the poor relative. No matter how you look at it, option "C" isn't a bad choice.
It can be used for both offense and defense.
It balanced the core interests of both the pro-war and pro-peace factions.
The envoy of the mission was also a confidant of the king, and he believed these words.
To ensure success, rare and precious treasures were essential, and handsome men and beautiful women were also necessary. This brings us to the tradition of intermarriage and political alliances among the northeastern kingdoms, a method they used to maintain relative stability. While other places were locked in fierce battles, regional regime changes were relatively less drastic; it was usually just a matter of relatives taking power, without any complete annihilation.
The messenger cursed all night long.
The next day, he still shamelessly requested an audience.
He repeatedly expressed his desire to become subordinate.
Shen Tang rested her chin on her hand and said, "You have a lot of energy."
The envoy's heart skipped a beat. He wondered what Shen Tang meant by this. Was she praising his boundless energy because she was interested in his body?
He responded cautiously, offering humble compliments.
"Don't think about these irrelevant things. What I mean is that you scolded me all night last night and didn't sleep a wink, but you still came to see me and said these things the next day full of energy. I feel that you have it tough too."
The messenger's face instantly turned ashen.
His knees buckled and he knelt down, the impact making the stone bricks tremble.
He hadn't expected Shen Tang to be so suspicious, having planted spies everywhere at the delegation's lodgings, and he had fallen into her trap!
Shen Tang: "..."
She said quietly, "If you're cursing me in your heart, don't mention my name."
The name she uses now is her real name.
Not to mention the beings here, even beings from other worlds, large and small, as long as they know of her existence and call her name correctly, she can hear them if she so desires.
Shen Tang considered herself not suspicious, even rather carefree. Why would she have time to send someone to eavesdrop under someone's bed? And where would so many idle people come from to do such a pointless thing? She told the truth, but no one believed her.
The messenger trembled violently and desperately begged for forgiveness.
Other officials: "..."
Shouldn't they make a statement?
It would have been better not to know, but now that we know, we can't just do nothing; after all, a subject should die for his lord's honor. However, using this excuse to kill the envoy and his entire delegation is also unacceptable, as it would inevitably leave a reputation for tyranny for posterity.
"Put these people in jail and lock them up."
Fortunately, the Lord made the decision for them.
Shen Tang then ordered his men to detain the remaining hostages, not to release them, and also informed the other states: "You have caused me to behave improperly in the palace and have shown disrespect, which has displeased me. The ministers have decided to take action against you at an opportune time."
To put it simply, wash your neck and wait to die.
We will not accept surrender; we must fight.
When she has time, she can choose an auspicious day.
She has already informed everyone. As for whether you decide to fight bravely to the death or obediently surrender, that's up to you.
|ω`)
Shen Tang: In this way, we can save on N+1 salary compensation.
(End of this chapter)
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