Earlier at the Tianyuan Fragrance Hall, Fu Lingchuan had used his right hand to hold his cup while drinking wine; now in the carriage, there was a set of eight-treasure boxes to his right front, so he used his left hand to take the tea.

On his left hand, he wore a ring.

Lu Ping’s gaze swept briefly over his finger, then shifted to Feng Miaojun.

She lowered her head to drink her tea, her right hand supporting the cup underneath, the jewel on her index finger emitting a lustrous glow that accentuated the slenderness of her fingers.

However, the style of the ring and the shape of the jewel were clearly meant for a man, similar to the style worn by Fu Lingchuan.

Feng Miaojun had just taken a sip of hot tea when she suddenly felt a chill throughout her body as if someone was staring at her ferociously.

That feeling was like being targeted by a vicious wolf.

Startled, she looked up to find Lu Ping smiling at her from across, his smile warm and radiant.

She was confused: “What is it?” How strange, was it just her imagination earlier? But as a cultivator, her sixth sense rarely failed her.

“Your hairpin is very beautiful,” his eyes conveyed complete sincerity, “quite ingenious.”

Feng Miaojun was stunned for a moment, then casually thanked him. Tianyuan Fragrance Hall was currently in the peach blossom season, and the hairpin she wore today was the “Blooming Flowers Under the Moon” that Governor Ke of Golden Rapids City had given her as a bribe. Although it was a silver hairpin, the craftsmanship was exquisite—flowers blooming in pairs under a crescent moon, one blue and one pink, fresh and beautiful.

However, the person who had accompanied her then was now worlds apart from her.

Looking back at Lu Ping across from her, she saw he had returned to conversing with Fu Lingchuan as if his question had been merely casual.

Feng Miaojun stared at him, unblinking.

She stared for so long that even Fu Lingchuan frowned slightly, and Lu Ping turned his head with a smile, saying: “Does Your Majesty have something to say?”

She nodded: “How is Shun Dongfeng doing?”

“Hmm?” The question was somewhat abrupt, and Lu Ping didn’t immediately understand. “Shun Dongfeng?”

“Indeed,” Feng Miaojun smiled somewhat reflectively. “I ate mutton hotpot at Shun Dongfeng once, and it truly was unparalleled. Unfortunately, after that incident the year before last, I wonder how it’s doing now?”

Shun Dongfeng in Yinzi City was a well-known establishment. Yun Ya had once asked Feng Miaojun to impersonate its proprietress, Madam Yao, to provoke a quarrel between Xu Wenlin, the commander of the City Guard, and the Wei envoy. Later, both the Wei envoy and Madam Yao ended up dead.

The reason she brought this up was because the true owner of Shun Dongfeng was Grand Preceptor Lu! The person before her should not be unfamiliar with Shun Dongfeng’s situation.

Lu Ping thought for a moment, then responded with an “Oh”: “It’s still open, and business is better than before.”

“Interesting, why is that?” Although she asked this, she knew Lu Ping was telling the truth. After escaping from Yun Ya at Wufu Snow Mountain, she returned to Jiao Capital and stayed for several months, personally visiting Shun Dongfeng multiple times to ferociously make up for the regret of not having tried the mutton hotpot back then, so she was truly familiar with the situation there.

“People in the city say that Shun Dongfeng’s building has spiritual energy. All other distinguished guests remain perfectly safe, but whenever someone from Wei goes up, they drop dead. With many embellished stories circulating, more customers come out of curiosity.”

Feng Miaojun asked curiously: “Strange, wasn’t the Wei envoy killed downstairs at the time, without even stepping on the stairs?”

“News changes as it passes from one to another.” Lu Ping looked at her without blinking. “Your Majesty seems very familiar with the events of that year, even knowing such details?”

“This is where I must praise our State Preceptor for his precise intelligence,” she lazily pushed Fu Lingchuan forward as a shield.

Fu Lingchuan certainly knew he had never passed any intelligence about Shun Dongfeng to her, but of course, he wouldn’t deny it, merely smiling faintly.

Changle’s attitude toward this envoy from the Jiao Kingdom seemed somewhat strange. Rather than mere curiosity, it contained more elements of probing.

Fortunately, they soon arrived at the guest house.

Lu Ping politely thanked the two of them before getting out of the carriage.

After his departure, the carriage immediately felt more spacious, no longer cramped as before. Fu Lingchuan looked at her and said: “Changle seems very interested in this Young Master Lu?”

“I just feel like I’ve met him before, perhaps it’s my imagination.” Feng Miaojun rubbed her temples. “But what about Zhao Yun? Why did he come personally?”

They had reached an agreement with Zhao Yun in Taiping City not to discuss marriage. This way, Zhao Yun could remain in the capital, close to the throne.

Feng Miaojun had secretly fled from Yan Capital, using the corruption case as cover, but the King of Yan knew the cause and effect and was surely furious. However, this man was truly a formidable hero with a broad mind. Despite his anger, he still sent an envoy with congratulatory gifts to demonstrate Yan Kingdom’s support for New Xia to the world.

After all, the little queen had fled, and that was that. He couldn’t control her personally, but he didn’t want to break relations with New Xia because of it. Otherwise, all his previous efforts would have been wasted.

What she was curious about was why the King of Yan had sent Zhao Yun as his envoy.

“New Xia has been established for a full year now, and it’s time to fulfill the agreement,” Fu Lingchuan smiled bitterly. “For this first trip, the King of Yan naturally wanted to send someone he trusts.”

“Fulfill the agreement?” She felt uneasy just hearing those words.

“Initially, when Feixuan and I persuaded the King of Yan, we obtained large amounts of money, spirit stones, magical artifacts, and military equipment from him, which allowed us to support An Xia’s resistance against Wei.” Revolution burns money fastest—although his forces were the largest in An Xia, they were still far from unifying the territory and expelling the Wei people.

“At that time, An Xia’s wealth had been almost completely plundered by the Wei people, leaving only devastation, large tracts of farmland abandoned, and many cities and villages turned into ghost towns. The only option I could think of was to seek external aid.”

Feng Miaojun nodded. She could understand that when a region’s economic system completely collapses, patriots like Fu Lingchuan find it almost impossible to raise sufficient funds locally, and the only solution is to seek foreign assistance.

“In return, after New Xia’s establishment, we must pay Yan Kingdom nine hundred catties of purple gold sand, fifty thousand spirit stones, and thirty percent of the tax revenue from six western cities, including Hubo City, every year.”

Feng Miaojun drew in a sharp breath. “The King of Yan’s appetite is too large!” What did these conditions mean? New Xia would have to hand over more than half of its annual income to Yan Kingdom!

“Without sufficient benefits, why would he offer assistance?” Fu Lingchuan sighed deeply. “My aspiration to revive An Xia seemed crazy and uninteresting to others. Since the King of Yan invested, he now demands returns.”

High risk demands high returns. The King of Yan had shown foresight back then, making an investment that others would have considered a loss, and now he not only wanted to recover his investment but also demanded high interest.

“Zhao Yun is entrusted with taking back the first year’s payment. Of course, it may not be him in the future.” Fu Lingchuan was equally pained but knew these payments couldn’t be avoided for now. “Fortunately, there are purple gold sand mines and spirit stone veins in the eastern and central regions. The output of these two resources isn’t abundant, but it’s enough to pay Yan Kingdom.”

“New Xia needs them for its use as well,” Feng Miaojun frowned. “How long will this agreement last?”

Fu Lingchuan held up two fingers: “Twenty years, and it’s sealed with a blood contract, so it can’t be broken.”

Burdened by this agreement, New Xia was essentially carrying a giant leech on its back, facing the risk of anemia even when trying to run quickly.