On the way to the Golden Palace, Eunuch Fu briefly explained the situation there to Hong Xiaoduo.
That's right. The foreign delegation probably sensed something was wrong, so they didn't wait for the emperor's summons and requested an audience right after lunch.
"Those officials guessed that it was because they didn't gain any advantage during the morning's talks, but they felt that the only thing they could get out of trouble with was opium, which we stopped halfway through, so they couldn't sit still."
"If we really stop taking their opium, they'll probably make a scene." Grandpa Fu looked at Hong Xiaoduo and couldn't help but become more talkative.
Logically speaking, it shouldn't be appropriate for a eunuch like him to discuss such matters of state, but for some reason, he just wanted to chat with Hong Xiaoduo about it.
"Making a fuss won't do any good. We can't just give in and keep buying things that are harmful just because we're afraid they'll cause trouble! I think we've been too lenient with them in the past and spoiled them," Hong Xiaoduo replied dismissively.
As they were talking, they arrived outside the Golden Palace. As usual, Eunuch Fu announced from outside that the translator Hong had arrived, and the eunuch inside immediately responded and announced it.
Upon entering the main hall, Hong Xiaoduo sensed a tense atmosphere.
Inside the hall, the foreign delegation stood on the left, their faces stern.
The ministers from Fengliang Kingdom also did not look too good.
Hong Xiaoduo led Kaiyang to first greet the emperor directly in front of them, and then stood on the right side.
Minister Cao quickly told Hong Xiaoduo what had just happened. It turned out that while she was waiting for her to arrive, the foreign delegation protested, accusing Fengliang Kingdom of disrespecting them and stopping the negotiations abruptly.
It was indeed a bit impolite to stop the negotiations so abruptly, so the people from Fengliang Kingdom felt a little guilty. Some of them complained in a low voice that it was all Hong Xiaoduo's fault for not handling things well. She was originally in the right, but now she was being used against her.
However, Minister Cao did not dare to tell Hong Xiaoduo this.
For some reason, Minister Cao felt that while offending the foreign delegation was a big problem, angering this girl would have even more serious consequences.
"Your Majesty, shall I now perform freely, or do you have some ideas?" Hong Xiaoduo asked the man directly in front of her after hearing Minister Cao's words.
The ministers standing on her side were speechless. Listen to this! Is this even proper? How can anyone speak to the Emperor like that?
"Go ahead and improvise"? Things have already been messed up. Shouldn't you be thinking about how to make amends? Even if opium is a bad thing, you should at least think about how to phrase it so as not to damage diplomatic relations between the two countries, right?
On the foreign mission's side, the interpreter also translated Hong Xiaoduo's words to his own people.
Upon hearing this, the members of the delegation were equally surprised. After looking at Hong Xiaoduo in disbelief, they all turned their gaze to the person on the dragon throne.
Both sides were waiting for the response from the person on the dragon throne. Surely they wouldn't really let this girl do whatever she wanted! This was no child's play!
Under the gaze of the crowd, the emperor on the dragon throne felt as if he were being roasted over a fire.
He was conflicted at this moment. It was as if two voices were arguing in his mind. One was saying, "Don't let this girl run wild. This is a matter of national importance!"
Another person said, "Let her do whatever she wants."
The emperor gestured to Hong Xiaoduo, "You come here."
Good heavens, the two countries on either side actually believe her?
Hong Xiaoduo had just sensed the emperor's dilemma. She had already decided that if the emperor couldn't withstand the pressure and wanted to compromise, she would take Kaiyang and leave, too lazy to deal with these trivial matters, and let him do whatever he wanted.
At worst, we can go back and carefully instruct the seven children to never touch opium.
Unexpectedly, the emperor actually believed her. Well, it wasn't for nothing that she had just spoken well of him to the empress.
With the emperor's permission, Hong Xiaoduo turned to Kaiyang and said, "Translate what I said later." After speaking, she stepped forward, put her hands behind her back, and looked at the foreign delegation, asking in English, "I just heard that you have a lot of opinions?"
The foreign mission's envoy has now confirmed that the reason for the loss in these negotiations was because of this female interpreter.
So, she unleashed her anger on Hong Xiaoduo, saying things like, "You don't respect them! Do you still want opium? You're not sincere!"
Hong Xiaoduo listened to the other person talk on and on with an extremely calm expression, without getting annoyed or impatient at all, until the other person shut up.
Kaiyang not only translated what Hong Xiaoduo said to the delegation, but also translated the accusations they had just made.
The officials from the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Rites glanced at their emperor and thought to themselves, "I hope your mood is as calm as it appears on your face."
At this moment, Hong Xiaoduo spoke up: "Isn't it my turn to speak? You also mentioned the word 'respect,' but respect is mutual. When the delegation arrived, my Fengliang Kingdom treated them with courtesy, but what about your country? Does respect mean we can arbitrarily raise our prices?"
Your behavior is unethical. Is this what you call friendly trade and exchange? I think you're just robbers trying to extort money from us.
They even threatened to ask, "Do you still want opium?" At this point, Hong Xiaoduo suddenly remembered something and turned to look at the emperor: "That stuff, do we still want it?"
So, you actually know to ask me first!
I think you just don't want to take responsibility!
The emperor sat upright and said, "Since opium does more harm than good, we might as well get rid of it."
"Your Majesty is wise, a blessing to the people of Fengliang Kingdom." Hong Xiaoduo rarely flattered anyone, no, she flattered the emperor!
Then, Hong Xiaoduo faced the delegation again and saw that their interpreter had already translated her and the emperor's words.
"Did you hear that? Our Emperor discovered the harm that opium does to people's bodies, so we don't need it this year, and we don't plan to need it in the future either. You can keep it for yourselves." Hong Xiaoduo said this with great relief and in a very good mood.
Mainly, the emperor of Fengliang Kingdom is really quite good; he's someone who listens to advice.
After learning about the harm that opium can cause to the human body, I didn't hesitate or overthink it and decided not to buy it anymore.
So, Hong Xiaoduo decided to go back and have a chat with Lord Wei.
The other delegation immediately flew into a rage upon hearing this, loudly questioning that opium was a valuable commodity, used by their own citizens, and that they would not have sold it to Fengliang Kingdom for any price, no matter how high, if it weren't for the sake of friendly relations between the two countries. They added that there were plenty of other countries that wanted that valuable commodity.
They even questioned where he had heard that opium was harmful to people, and asked if he knew what the opium plant looked like or how it was extracted, and why he was just spouting nonsense.
If you think it's too expensive and you're unwilling to spend the money, just say so. Don't use such a despicable excuse.
After listening to Kaiyang's translation, the Emperor and Lord Cao both looked at Hong Xiaoduo. How should they respond? Surely she hadn't seen what that thing looked like before it was refined?
You shouldn't talk about things you haven't seen; otherwise, you'll just make yourself a laughingstock...
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
