The sudden movement startled Jiang Ling. She frowned and looked at Zhao Liuqing, asking, "Lord Zhao, why do you have such an expression?"
Zhao Liuqing took a few deep breaths, his forehead covered in sweat. He opened his mouth and asked again, "My lady, I'll ask you one more time, are you really fluent in Pahlavi?"
Jiang Ling was somewhat annoyed. She frowned at Zhao Liuqing and said, "Lord Zhao, if you don't trust me, why did you make me the translator? I am very proficient in Pahlavi! I learned Pahlavi from these Persians!"
Zhao Liuqing's face was ashen. He looked at Jiang Ling in despair and kept shaking his head and sighing. In that instant, Jiang Ling felt that Zhao Liuqing seemed to have aged a lot. His once straight back had now slumped down.
"I... alas, to be honest, I actually mistranslated this Pahlavi letter!" Zhao Liuqing pointed to one of the letters and continued, "After reading your translation, I understood. This letter was actually the Persian king expressing goodwill towards our Great Hua Dynasty and hoping to open maritime trade routes with us. But I... and I translated it as the other side using their country's rare jewels to demand that we open maritime trade routes! I even mentioned this to His Majesty!"
"I truly deserve to die! The King of Persia has waited so long, and our Great Hua Dynasty has always treated people with courtesy, but now... never mind! I will go and apologize!" Zhao Liuqing said, hanging his head, and walked towards the door without waiting for Jiang Ling to say anything more.
Seeing Zhao Liuqing's state, Jiang Ling couldn't bear it any longer. She quickly chased after him and said, "Lord Zhao, why don't I go with you to the capital to see the Emperor? With me there, perhaps there's still a chance for this to turn around!"
Zhao Liuqing looked at Jiang Ling in surprise, and Jiang Ling nodded firmly to him.
Zhao Liuqing hesitated for a moment before finally nodding in agreement.
The two immediately headed towards the imperial city.
At that moment, the Emperor was chatting with the Empress Dowager in the Imperial Garden when a eunuch reported that Lord Zhao and Consort Jiang were requesting an audience. The Empress Dowager frowned and thought to herself, "Could it be that Consort Jiang has asked Lord Zhao for help? I underestimated this woman. She knows the Third Prince, and she also knows Zhao Liuqing. Fortunately, this woman is not one of the Emperor's concubines, otherwise there might be another case of the harem interfering in politics!"
Although the Empress Dowager thought so, she was still a little unsure why Jiang Ling had come. However, she was well aware of the principle that the inner palace should not interfere in politics. She coughed lightly and said, "Your Majesty, I am a little tired, so I will go back first!"
The Emperor nodded without saying anything. The Empress Dowager, helped up by a palace maid, silently gave a look to an inconspicuous eunuch beside the Emperor. The eunuch understood and immediately lowered his head.
"Prepare the carriage for the Imperial Study!" the Emperor instructed as the Empress Dowager departed.
After bowing, everyone went to the Imperial Study with the Emperor.
At this moment, Zhao Liuqing appeared very nervous, his whole body covered in cold sweat and trembling slightly. Seeing that no one was around, Jiang Ling softly comforted him, "Lord Zhao! Don't panic, His Majesty is wise and will not blame you!"
Although Jiang Ling said this, she herself was not very confident. It is said that serving a ruler is like serving a tiger, and the imperial family has always been unpredictable.
"His Majesty has arrived!" The eunuch's slightly shrill voice pierced through their thoughts, and Zhao Liuqing and Jiang Ling immediately knelt on the ground and shouted, "Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!"
"Get up! What brings you two to me?" The Emperor asked, sitting on his dragon throne and looking at Jiang Ling and Zhao Liuqing.
Zhao Liuqing trembled and didn't dare to stand up. Instead, he knelt on the ground and kowtowed, saying, "Please forgive this old minister for his crime of committing capital offense!"
After Zhao Liuqing's actions, Jiang Ling, who was about to stand up, was forced to kneel down again.
The Emperor, puzzled, frowned and asked, "My dear minister, your words are too serious. I forgive you!"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Liuqing stood up shakily, followed closely by Jiang Ling.
"This old minister deserves to die! It turns out that I mistranslated the letter from the King of Persia!" Zhao Liuqing said, trembling as he handed over the letter that Jiang Ling had translated.
Upon hearing this, the Emperor frowned and snatched the letter back from Zhao Liuqing's hand. He carefully read the words on it.
"Is all of this true?" The Emperor asked, frowning, after quickly glancing through the document.
"Yes...yes, these were translated by Anren!" After all, in front of the Emperor, Zhao Liuqing dared not make any underhanded moves and could only answer truthfully.
The Emperor's gaze fell on Jiang Ling, who felt an immense, invisible pressure around her. She lowered her head even further, and even felt a slight soreness in her neck.
"Do you understand Pahlavi?" the Emperor asked Jiang Ling.
Jiang Ling felt a chill run down her spine as an imperial aura pressed down on her. This man, above all others, must be the most intelligent and wise man in the Great Hua Dynasty. If she deceived him, the consequences would be unimaginable. Thinking of this, Jiang Ling repeatedly kowtowed and said, "Yes! Yes!"
The Emperor was not surprised by this answer. He squinted at Jiang Ling and continued, "Then tell me, how did you, a country bumpkin, come to know Pahlavi? This language is so bad that even the Imperial Academy can't translate it properly!"
Fortunately, Jiang Ling had made thorough preparations on her way here.
“Your Majesty, this matter begins with my great-aunt. A long time ago, my great-aunt saved a Persian merchant who was assassinated during a transaction and fled to my great-aunt’s village. My kind-hearted great-aunt took her in. Under her care, the Persian merchant gradually recovered. To express his gratitude, he taught us Pahlavi for a long time, which is when I first learned to speak it.” Although Jiang Ling’s words had some flaws, almost everyone on her father’s side was gone, so even if His Majesty wanted to investigate, he would have no way to do so.
The Emperor scrutinized Jiang Ling, stroked his chin, and said sternly, "Consort Jiang, you should know the consequences of deceiving the Emperor!"
Jiang Ling immediately kowtowed, "Your Majesty, everything I said is the truth. You are free to investigate!"
Whether he knew Pahlavi or not was not important to the emperor; all he wanted to do was figure out what these Persian kings had written to him.
"Yes, I will naturally send someone to investigate this matter. Can you guarantee that there won't be any problems with the contents of this letter?" His Majesty continued to inquire.
Jiang Ling breathed a sigh of relief. She guessed that the Emperor's words meant he would no longer investigate the matter. Jiang Ling nodded firmly and said, "Your Majesty, I guarantee with my life that my translation is absolutely without error!"
The Emperor looked at Jiang Ling, and after careful consideration, said, "You may leave now! Minister Zhao, you will remain for the time being!"
Jiang Ling breathed a sigh of relief and quickly left the Imperial Study alone.
"Minister Zhao, you have complete faith in Lady An!" The Emperor's tone turned cold as Jiang Ling left.
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