The high priest regained his human form and uttered a hoarse voice, "Really? Are you willing to go with me to see His Majesty? Why is that?"
"...Well, if you really want to ask, the Temple and I are sworn enemies, and Beixia and the Temple don't get along either. Having a common enemy naturally makes us allies, right?"
"Both sides should lay out their bargaining chips before we can move on to the next step. Let's stop testing the waters. It's too troublesome to go back and forth. Why don't I just be direct and straightforward?"
Jiang Sheng spoke directly. He didn't like beating around the bush, and he wasn't after a deal. Instead of testing the waters, it would be better for both sides to speak openly.
The high priest looked at him deeply. It was the first time he met such a direct person. It really... felt novel.
"Let's go and find my brother. He's good at business talks, but I'm not. What if he gets tricked?"
“……!!”
This person has good abilities, but unfortunately he has a big mouth. Sometimes his frankness is a little too uncomfortable.
A hoarse voice sounded: "Okay, I'll listen to you."
Jiang Ling was soundly asleep when she was awakened by a knock on the door.
Jiang Sheng's voice came from outside the door: "Brother, please open the door. I have something to tell you."
"...Yes, I'll be right there."
After opening the door and looking at the two people standing at the door, Jiang Ling just raised an eyebrow, quickly returned to normal, and whispered: "Come in and wait a moment, I'll change my clothes and go with you."
"Okay, brother, I'm hungry. Do you have any food here?"
Jiang Ling took out an oil-paper bag from somewhere and said softly, "Try the braised pig's head and pig's trotters. They taste great when they're cold."
Jiang Sheng smiled brightly: "Brother still understands me the best."
"I don't know what to call you."
"High Priest..."
"Well, there's no rush for the High Priest to sit down and eat something."
After a while, the three of them headed towards a palace.
The empress looked at the three people who came in and glanced at the high priest meaningfully. It seemed that they had failed. The Jiang family was really interesting, much more interesting than the Emperor Da Gan.
The corners of his mouth curled slightly, revealing his imperial majesty: "A distinguished guest has arrived. Why don't you quickly offer him a seat and let him taste the Yunwu Tea in my palace. This tea is not available in the Central Plains."
"Well, thank you, Your Majesty."
Jiang Ling took a sip calmly, his eyes slightly lighting up. He usually enjoyed a sip of tea, but he didn't expect that this cloud of mist tasted even sweeter than the tea given by the emperor.
"The first taste is bitter, and the aftertaste is sweet and refreshing."
The high priest stood quietly aside, lowered his head and whispered, "Your Majesty, someone from the Jiang family said they wanted to talk to you, so I brought them here."
"Oh, so that saves me from having to look for someone alone."
"I am somewhat interested in the alliance between the two countries, but as for the bargaining chips, I don't trust the Emperor of Da Gan. If it is to negotiate an alliance with the Jiang family, then I am somewhat interested."
Jiang Sheng sat quietly without saying a word. He was a bit naive. It would be troublesome if he said the wrong thing when discussing the alliance, so it would be better to leave it to his brother.
Jiang Ling slowly put down the teacup, raised his head and looked over with a smile on his face: "Your Majesty, it is naturally possible for you to talk to the Jiang family. After all, the future of the great cause will belong to the Jiang family."
"Oh, the Major General means that you want to...rebel."
"Why not? Being demoted for being loyal to the emperor won't end well. Rather than handing the lives of our entire family over to a tyrant, we might as well take the risk ourselves. The worst possible outcome is death."
The empress laughed heartily upon hearing this, staring at him with scorching eyes: "Well, well, the Jiang family is indeed much more interesting. Emperor Gan will regret treating you like this in the future."
"Well, what bargaining chips do you have for an alliance?"
"I am a straightforward person and don't like beating around the bush. It would be best if we could form an alliance today. But if not a single word of what I said or saw can be spread, otherwise..."
Jiang Ling said calmly, "Of course, it's the same for both sides. Our bargaining chip is weapons, weapons that can kill the Venerable, but it's not convenient to take them out in the palace."
The Empress asked in surprise, "Weapon, crescent moon sword, or bow and crossbow?"
"Landmines, explosive packs, cannons..."
After these words were spoken, the empress fell silent. She had never heard of this thing and didn't know how powerful it was. If it could really kill the Venerable, then the bargaining chip given by the Jiang family could indeed be used to form an alliance.
"Then tomorrow I'll have the High Priest separate the Third Prince and take a look at the weapon the Major General mentioned somewhere else. Does it require a large area?"
Jiang Ling hummed, "It's best to go in the mountains. The noise is so loud that no one can hear it. That's naturally the best place to go. Especially since the cannon is so powerful that it can blow up an entire mountaintop."
The empress's eyes widened slightly. Blowing up a mountain, what a powerful force that was. Even the Venerable didn't have the ability to do that.
"What about your brother? What kind of ability is it, telekinesis or something else?"
"Telekinesis control, blockade, killing without being seen."
"Can't store things?"
"cannot."
Jiang Ling answered calmly that he naturally couldn't tell anyone about his brother's space, so it would be best to use telekinesis as an excuse. As long as he didn't take anything out of the space, no one would doubt it.
The empress nodded, but didn't say anything for a while, not knowing whether she was disappointed or in deep thought.
After a while, he spoke: "I want to ask why you are making enemies with the Temple. Normally, it is normal for the Central Plains to be at war with other countries, and it is not right to make such a big enemy with the Temple."
"Your Majesty, have you heard about the Pingcheng Plague?"
Jiang Ling said slowly, "That was the work of the Temple. They colluded with the Xiongnu to poison them and interfered with the war between Dagan and the Xiongnu. How can this not be considered a mortal feud?"
"The Temple wants all the Central Plains nations to submit, and the Jiang family is a stumbling block to them. They attacked Pingcheng just to destroy the Jiang family, so why not give it a try?"
The Empress saw the murderous intent in his eyes and chuckled softly, "Very good, the alliance will be basically finalized tomorrow after we look at the weapons."
"It's my fault tonight. I shouldn't have tried to test Master Jiang."
Jiang Sheng shook his head and said calmly: "It's nothing. Even if His Majesty doesn't look for us, we will still look for His Majesty."
The two sides talked for a while, and the empress ordered someone to send them back and leave the palace early the next morning.
After the people left and the door closed, Fang Ruo frowned and asked worriedly, "Your Majesty, do you think they are telling the truth? Is that weapon really that powerful?"
"I always feel that they are hiding something."
The Empress took a sip of tea, the corners of her mouth curled up slightly with a hint of smile, and a strange light flashed in her eyes: "It's normal to keep it secret. When we first discuss an alliance, we will hold back."
"Well, I think the biggest secret lies with Jiang Sheng. As long as we capture him, everything else won't be a problem."
"There's a saying in the Central Plains: if someone saves your life, you must repay them with your own body. If the weapon we find tomorrow is truly formidable, we can seal the alliance and let Yue Li and Jiang Sheng marry."
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