The hall fell silent. The King of Nanzhao sat in the main seat, breathing heavily, his face full of anger, his words interrupted midway by the Empress of Dongqin—clearly quite displeased.

Dongqin, Da Zhou, Xijing—these three nations already had countless grievances and disputes between them. Today, he wasn’t here to play peacemaker; today, he had only one goal—wanting to offend no one, only wanting to know exactly what had happened in the naval battle, whether Jun Beiyue had truly received help from the Jiao people, and exactly which faction of Jiao people it had been.

The Empress of Dongqin and Yelu Chenyi sat to the King of Nanzhao’s right. Yelu Chenyi, facing Ziqing’s repeatedly contemptuous glances, remained remarkably composed, not having spoken a single word so far, while the Empress of Dongqin, somewhat pacified by the King of Nanzhao’s “but,” still couldn’t hide her fury—after all, the Jun Beiyue before her was precisely the enemy who had killed her daughter. Her face showed undisguised rage as she glared fixedly at Jun Beiyue as if she wanted to devour him.

Jun Beiyue, leading Ziqing by the hand, paid no attention to the expressions on everyone’s faces or the calculations hidden in their hearts, sitting down calmly and generously to the King of Nanzhao’s left. Though seated to the side, his presence was more than enough to overwhelm anyone else present—handsome and commanding.

Both he and Ziqing wore matching black combat attire. Beside him, Han Ziqing’s petite figure probably only ever looked this delicate and dependent when standing next to him. Her small hand, held in his, rested on his lap.

Clearly, today she was the target of everyone’s scrutiny, the ultimate object the Empress of Dongqin and Yelu Chenyi intended to expose, the person the Nanzhao royal family cared about most of all. Yet she wore an expression of complete ease, truly like a mere bystander—today, regarding exactly how Jun Beiyue planned to handle things, she knew nothing at all; she had simply come to watch the show!

Seeing Jun Beiyue and Han Ziqing seated, the King of Nanzhao cleared his throat lightly and continued from where he’d left off, “But… if this matter is connected to my Nanzhao Jiao clan, then no matter what the connection is, this king will absolutely investigate it thoroughly. Should anyone have violated the taboos of my Nanzhao royal family…”

The King of Nanzhao’s expression turned solemn and serious. He slammed the table with a loud bang, declaring heavily, “No matter who it is! This king will absolutely get to the bottom of it!”

His words carried such weight that when the sound of the table slam died down, the entire hall fell instantly silent!

The corner of Yelu Chenyi’s mouth curved into a cold smile, while the Empress of Dongqin wore an even more provocative expression, raising her chin high, eyebrows arched as she looked at Jun Beiyue and Han Ziqing—it seemed the King of Nanzhao’s words had given them an unshakeable guarantee, as if declaring the outcome already.

A complicated look flashed across the bottom of Ziqing’s eyes. The King of Nanzhao had spoken so heavily—undoubtedly, if this matter had even the slightest connection to the lone island, Jun Beiyue would find things extremely difficult to handle.

Rather than saying Nanzhao was a ticking time bomb for Longyuan, it would be more accurate to say Nanzhao was a ticking time bomb for Da Zhou. When Jun Beiyue had come to Nanzhao, he’d already given the order to prepare for war against Dongqin—it seemed there was absolutely no way he could afford to offend the King of Nanzhao now.

It was just that the Empress of Dongqin and Yelu Chenyi were people pushed to their limits—even a cornered dog would jump over a wall, let alone a person.

Given this situation, Ziqing found herself unable to fathom the man beside her.

She simply gave up trying to figure it out, deciding instead to watch quietly and see how things unfolded!

She had originally thought the Empress of Dongqin would jump in with something, but unexpectedly, the moment the King of Nanzhao finished his warning, she immediately asked, “Beiyue, you killed Xuanyuan Zhaoxi and sent the corpse to Xijing’s Akbachu—why did you do this?”

The moment these words came out, Ziqing was startled, casting a cold glance toward Yelu Chenyi!

So this was it—the Empress of Dongqin had been incited into coming as well. Yelu Chenyi was truly staking everything on this!

To answer this question would inevitably drag Yan Zi and his own doings into the open. In that case, she, Jun Beiyue, Yelu Chenyi, and Yan Zi would all be unable to escape blame. What a Yelu Chenyi this was—he intended to go down together with them!

Sensing Ziqing’s tension, Jun Beiyue squeezed her hand tightly. His handsome, cold face showed little sign of nervousness, as if what he’d heard were merely an ordinary question. He simply looked coldly at Yelu Chenyi.

But how would he answer?

Not only was the King of Nanzhao waiting, the Empress of Dongqin and Yelu Chenyi were waiting too, and Ziqing was waiting as well.

Da Zhou had helped Xijing win a complete victory over Xichu—it hadn’t even been half a year, and Jun Beiyue had, without any apparent reason, sent the Dongqin princess’s corpse to Xijing as a “great gift”!

The King of Nanzhao wasn’t foolish—without sufficient justification, this matter simply couldn’t be explained away no matter how one tried!

Seeing Jun Beiyue remain silent, the Empress of Dongqin couldn’t hold back any longer, shouting angrily, “Jun Beiyue, why drag Xijing into the grievances between you and me? You declared war without warning, wiped out my navy, killed my princess, refused my negotiations—do you truly believe yourself to be the law of Longyuan?”

At this point, Yelu Chenyi also spoke up, “Prince Yao, Xijing, Dongqin, and Da Zhou are all friendly nations. Even though Da Zhou and Dongqin are at odds, my Xijing was also involved in that conflict. I truly don’t understand—why did you send the Dongqin princess’s corpse to my Akbachu, and moreover deliver it during the Sand Sacrifice Ceremony? What exactly was your intention? Exactly who was it meant for?”

“Dongqin princess?”

Suddenly, Jun Beiyue spoke up without any warning, his cold, clear tone carrying a hint of both disdain and confusion, “The Dongqin princess’s corpse? This king doesn’t understand what you’re all talking about.”

The moment these words came out, the Empress of Dongqin was instantly enraged, “Jun Beiyue, you’re still trying to deny it!”

Ignoring the Empress of Dongqin’s fury, Jun Beiyue took his time, sipping a mouthful of tea, then asked in return, “Your Majesty, it’s fortunate you have only one daughter—otherwise, if you lost even one more, wouldn’t you come demanding an accounting from this king? Wouldn’t this king be troubled to death?”

“Still denying it! My daughter was killed by you, her corpse sent to Xijing—the Xijing emperor and crown prince can both testify to it!” The Empress of Dongqin was so furious she nearly jumped to her feet. She had anticipated countless possible responses from Jun Beiyue, but never imagined he would simply refuse to admit it at all!

Jun Beiyue’s brazen denial caught even Yelu Chenyi off guard. Without arguing, he immediately said coldly, “Bring it in!”

“Jun Beiyue, just you wait!” the Empress of Dongqin said sharply, too furious to even sit back down, remaining standing.

The King of Nanzhao exchanged several glances with the three clan chieftains across from him, not having expected matters to take such a turn. Suspicion immediately rose in his heart. Based on his understanding of Jun Beiyue, this fellow wasn’t one to shy away from what he’d done!

Could it be that something was amiss here? He glanced suspiciously at the Empress of Dongqin, then at Yelu Chenyi, his eyes full of complicated thoughts. After hesitating for a moment, he chose to remain silent for the time being.

While waiting, Ziqing glanced at Jun Beiyue several times, lost in thought, the corner of her mouth curving slightly, as if she’d guessed something.

Soon, Dongqin guards carried in a large, sealed water vat.

“This is…” the King of Nanzhao couldn’t help but ask.

“King of Nanzhao, this is precisely the corpse of my poor, unfortunate daughter—precisely the ‘great gift’ Jun Beiyue sent to Xijing!” the Empress of Dongqin said, her anger turning to sobs, weeping.

Seeing this, the King of Nanzhao looked somewhat awkward, glancing toward Yelu Chenyi, who nodded solemnly, his face showing grief.

The King of Nanzhao looked again at Jun Beiyue, seeing him still drinking his tea, seemingly indifferent.

Helplessly, he took a deep breath and said flatly, “Open it.”