Li Chi swept his gaze across the entire hall with a smile, taking in the sight of so many foreigners — it was his first time seeing this many gathered together.
To be precise, it was his first time seeing so many foreigners come calling as guests. Those encountered on the battlefield were a different matter entirely.
Although these foreigners all looked rather similar, a few of them still caught Li Chi’s attention.
One was a woman with a head full of red hair. Even seated, her curvaceous figure was unmistakably evident.
Another was a woman with brown hair. While her figure was somewhat less striking than the red-haired woman’s, she was taller and wilder in appearance.
There was also a woman with golden hair — hair so brilliantly yellow it looked as though it had been gilded, her skin so fair it seemed almost luminous.
After looking them over, Li Chi couldn’t help but feel quietly impressed with himself. Of all the attractive people in the room, he had spotted every single one of them at a glance.
These three women were not even seated at the same table; they were arranged in a triangular formation surrounding the table where Li Chi sat.
And so Li Chi thought… perhaps he ought to restrain himself a little. Turning his head in circles to stare like this made him look as though he had never seen the world.
Xiahou Zuo, sitting beside Li Chi, couldn’t help letting out a soft cough or two, as if trying to remind him — look if you must, but don’t stare so fixedly.
Li Chi turned his head and lowered his voice close to Xiahou Zuo’s ear: “Which one do you think could fight?”
Xiahou Zuo instinctively replied, “The red-haired one’s bigger.”
“Pfft!”
Li Chi shot him a sideways glance. “We’re talking about who *looks* like they could fight — not which one is bigger.”
Xiahou Zuo coughed twice more, though it was clearly neither from guilt nor embarrassment.
He lowered his voice and explained with great seriousness: “I was answering exactly what Your Majesty asked. The bigger one is the better fighter — chest muscles aren’t developed for nothing, after all.”
Li Chi paused for a moment, then couldn’t help nodding. “A well-reasoned analysis. A deeply insightful understanding.”
Xiahou Zuo replied modestly: “I’ve commanded troops for many years, so reading people is a skill built up through long experience. Whether someone can fight — I’d know the moment I gave them a feel.”
Li Chi said: “If you give them a ‘feel,’ they’ll hit you — and then you’ll know whether they can fight?”
Xiahou Zuo: “Your Majesty, please, we’re in a formal setting. Show some dignity.”
Li Chi shot him another sideways glance.
Prime Minister Xu Ji looked around and saw that most of the guests had arrived and the atmosphere was about right, so he asked Li Chi whether he would like to say a few words.
Li Chi gestured for Xu Ji to speak instead. Having the Prime Minister of Great Ning offer the first toast to the envoys of the Western Regions was no slight to them.
In fact, according to the prepared protocol, the first toast was to be offered by Vice Minister of Rites Jia Ruan, the second by Minister of Rites Gui Yuanshu, and only the third by Xu Ji.
Li Chi’s own toast was to come last — depending on how things went. If negotiations proceeded well, Li Chi as host would offer a toast. If they did not go well, the Emperor of Great Ning would likely not be offering one at all.
But Li Chi clearly had no desire to waste that much time, so he skipped straight past Jia Ruan and Gui Yuanshu and had Xu Ji offer the toast directly.
Xu Ji felt the Emperor simply wanted to cut through the formalities, but as he rose to his feet, it suddenly occurred to him that the Emperor’s decision to skip over Gui Yuanshu and Jia Ruan likely had another reason entirely.
After all, those two had directly come to blows with the Westerners outside Chang’an’s gates not long ago. Having them offer the toast now would look like an apology.
Even Xu Ji himself felt — a fight was a fight, and there was no question of apologizing for it. How much more so for Li Chi?
And so Xu Ji rose and offered the toast in his capacity as Prime Minister of Great Ning. The envoys and attendants from the various Western Regions nations all immediately stood to their feet.
Li Chi glanced at Xiahou Zuo. “Bet one tael?”
Xiahou Zuo nodded. “You’re on.”
The moment Xu Ji rose to offer the toast, all the Westerners rose as well, and in that instant the figures of the three Western women were fully on display.
Li Chi looked all three of them over, then fished a tael of silver from the small pouch at his waist and handed it to Xiahou Zuo.
Xiahou Zuo pocketed it cheerfully — money earned by one’s own abilities, always a pleasure to receive.
Li Chi said: “You really do have a sharp eye. The red one is still biggest.”
Xu Ji was right beside the two of them, in the middle of his speech, when the Emperor and the General’s conversation drifted to his ears and he actually stumbled over his words.
Only then did he realize he had been overthinking it. Li Chi had asked him to offer the toast for one simple reason: so all the Westerners would stand up.
Only once they were all standing could the Emperor and the General get a proper look…
Xu Ji thought to himself: if this ever made it into the history books, the Emperor would come across as a thoroughly foolish ruler, and the General as a thoroughly corrupt official.
Having lost a tael of silver just like that, Li Chi was clearly unwilling to let it go, so he lowered his voice: “One more bet?”
Xiahou Zuo smiled. “Your Majesty, bring it on. Am I supposed to be afraid? Name your terms.”
Li Chi said: “These three women — when things kick off shortly, how many of them are assassins? Which ones are, and which aren’t?”
Xiahou Zuo thought for a moment. “All three.”
Li Chi said: “I’m betting the golden-haired one isn’t.”
Xiahou Zuo: “Shall we make the stakes a bit higher?”
Li Chi: “Higher? You’re the Commander of the Imperial Guards. Since you’ve proposed it, how could I refuse? Two taels it is.”
Xiahou Zuo: “……”
Li Chi saw his reaction and couldn’t help snorting. “Still want to go bigger?”
Xiahou Zuo: “Three taels per person — nine taels in total. Playing small doesn’t befit Your Majesty’s stature.”
Li Chi said: “The number of people who still think that highly of me isn’t many anymore… Good brother, I’ll stake everything I have on this.”
Xiahou Zuo: “……”
What followed grew somewhat tedious — Xu Ji presided over detailed discussions on the specifics of trade.
Then came the statements from the Western envoys, along with the conditions they wished to put forward.
Li Chi listened with half an ear, occasionally leaning over to exchange a few words with Xiahou Zuo.
In the eyes of the Western delegates, the Emperor of Great Ning was conferring with his senior ministers about the details of the trade arrangements.
Who could have guessed that the Emperor of Great Ning and the Commander of the Imperial Guards were still talking about their bet of nine taels of silver?
And about installment payments, no less.
Li Chi’s position was this: there was currently less than nine taels of silver on his person altogether, and if he lost the bet, he would need to pay Xiahou Zuo in installments.
Xiahou Zuo’s position was this: installments were fine, but the Emperor had to put it in writing.
Li Chi replied: if that’s how you want to play it, I’ll just be shameless about it — if I lose and owe you, I’ll have Yili go back to her parents’ home and tell them the Emperor’s household can barely keep the pot boiling, and that things are dire enough to need her family’s help.
After hearing this, Xiahou Zuo decided that installments were quite acceptable after all, and that a written note wasn’t strictly necessary either.
They were still talking when Xu Ji’s portion wrapped up and he sat back down.
Li Chi and Xiahou Zuo straightened up in their seats, because according to the protocol, this was the moment when the lead delegates from each nation were to come forward one by one to toast the Emperor of Great Ning.
The Prince of Jialou Nation, Mu Yan Mu Di, had just moved to rise when the Prince of Little Moon Lion Nation, Dong Qian Yuan, leapt to his feet with such sudden force that even the head of the Imperial Guard, Ye Xiao Qian, was startled and instinctively reached for the hilt of his sword.
Dong Qian Yuan raised his cup toward Li Chi and declared: “Your Majesty, this subject is Dong Qian Yuan, lead delegate of Little Moon Lion Nation, offering a toast to Your Majesty.”
Before he had even finished speaking, Mu Yan Mu Di was already on his feet: “Your Majesty, this subject is Mu Yan Mu Di, lead delegate of Jialou Nation, offering a toast to Your Majesty.”
Dong Qian Yuan looked at Mu Yan Mu Di. “I stood up first. Do you not understand the concept of order?”
Mu Yan Mu Di replied: “You forgot to pour any wine into your cup. What standing do you have to toast His Majesty?”
Dong Qian Yuan looked down — and only then realized it was true. His cup was indeed empty.
Before the banquet, Man Lai Ya Man had instructed him that he could not be outpaced by the Jialou delegation. By the order of precedence, whichever nation’s representative stood first to offer a toast to the Emperor of Great Ning would signal that their nation was the foremost power of the Western Regions.
Dong Qian Yuan’s mind was simple, and all he had retained from Man Lai Ya Man’s instructions was to be first. He had forgotten entirely about pouring the wine.
Li Chi couldn’t help smiling. “No matter, no matter. The two of you may drink with me together.”
This gave Dong Qian Yuan a way to save face. Even with his limited wits, he caught on quickly enough.
He seized the moment: “Your Majesty, this subject was just now overly hasty and alarmed Your Majesty — to atone, this subject should first drink a penalty cup. Moreover, the wine this subject wishes to offer Your Majesty is a supreme vintage brought from Little Moon Lion Nation from ten thousand li away.”
He turned to look behind him.
Man Lai Ya Man immediately looked toward the Black Warrior, Gan Luo.
Gan Luo rose at once. He finally understood the full scope of Man Lai Ya Man’s plan.
The scheme was to poison the Emperor of Great Ning. According to Man Lai Ya Man’s account, the wine to be used was the fine vintage brought by the Jialou delegation.
But now that Dong Qian Yuan had mentioned wine first, it laid the groundwork for what the Jialou side was about to do.
Gan Luo hurriedly picked up the wine jar beside him and stepped quickly to Dong Qian Yuan’s side, pouring a cup into Dong Qian Yuan’s empty bowl.
As he did so, Gan Luo thought that Dong Qian Yuan’s simplicity was not without its uses — the task Man Lai Ya Man had assigned him had been executed perfectly.
Feigning forgetfulness about the wine, drawing out the business of toasting with the nation’s finest vintage — every detail had been accounted for.
Seeing his bowl now full, Dong Qian Yuan raised it and declared: “Your Majesty, this subject was just now impertinent — this subject will first drink a penalty cup.”
With that, he raised the bowl and drained it in one go.
Watching this, Mu Yan Mu Di said nothing. But the deputy delegate of Jialou Nation — a great general named Sama — rose to his feet.
“Your Majesty, Jialou Nation cannot be outdone by these people from Little Moon Lion. We too have brought fine wine for Your Majesty — likewise carried from Jialou Nation across ten thousand li.”
Mu Yan Mu Di’s expression visibly shifted. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but seemed to be torn and suppressed the impulse for the moment.
Sama carried a wine jar over, stepped to Mu Yan Mu Di’s side, and said: “Your Highness, have you perhaps forgotten that we too brought a supreme vintage?”
Mu Yan Mu Di nodded. “Indeed, I had forgotten.”
Sama said: “The Prince of Little Moon Lion just said he had offended the imperial dignity and was drinking a penalty cup — we should not fall behind in propriety either. Your Highness should also drink a penalty cup.”
Mu Yan Mu Di drew a slow breath, nodded, and a look of release appeared on his face.
It seemed as if in that instant, he had let go of all remaining attachment to this world.
He still had wine in his cup; he drank that bowl first as an apology to the Emperor of Great Ning, then had Sama pour him a bowl of the wine they had brought.
Dong Qian Yuan said: “Your Majesty, the wine this subject brought was brewed from the pure snowmelt water unique to Little Moon Lion Nation, blended with snow-grown highland barley native to our land — it is truly the world’s finest wine, and this subject humbly invites Your Majesty to taste it.”
Before his words were even out, Jialou Nation’s deputy delegate Sama said with a scoff: “Hmph… a trifling little place — what good things could come from there?”
He turned to face Li Chi: “Your Majesty, the wine this subject brought is brewed from the purple-leafed sorghum unique to Jialou Nation, drawn with water from a thousand-year-old ancient well — *this* is truly the world’s finest wine.”
Xiahou Zuo let out a sharp laugh.
Li Chi asked: “What are you laughing at?”
Xiahou Zuo said: “He says his is the world’s finest wine, and he says his is the world’s finest wine.”
Xiahou Zuo pointed at Dong Qian Yuan and Sama. “Come then, you two — swap. You drink his, he drinks yours. Let’s see which of you can tell the difference.”
—