"Greetings, Lord Long Yang." Sei Itō cupped his hands in greeting.
"Marquis Julu, I've missed you so much!" Lord Long Yang smiled 'charmingly' and said coquettishly. That look directly made Ito Sei's body have a layer of goosebumps, and it was very uncomfortable.
"I've troubled you, Lord Long Yang." Sei Itō laughed dryly.
"It's no trouble, no trouble at all. Who asked me to fall in love with you?" Lord Long Yang smiled charmingly and even winked at Sei Itō.
Sei Itō's lips curled up slightly as he ignored him. If it was possible, he really wanted to strike right now and slap Lord Long Yang to death on the spot, completely eliminating this demon who could bring disaster to the kingdom and its people.
Fortunately, at this moment, someone spoke up to help him out.
"Is this Marquis Julu, Mr. Chen Yi?" A pleasant female voice sounded from the crowd of Wei Kingdom's ambassadors.
"Marquis Julu, this is the world's most talented woman, Miss Ji Yanran. Usually, it's extremely difficult for others to meet her. I didn't expect her to take the initiative to ask about you. Marquis Julu's luck is really enviable." King Zhao quickly introduced.
"Miss Ji, you can just call me by my name. I don't deserve to be called Mr. Chen." Sei Itō, who was freed, quickly moved closer to Ji Yanran and cupped his hands in greeting.
"Marquis Ju Lu created calligraphy and white paper. He used a secret method to create a book of the hundred families so that the people of the hundred families could pass it down to the world and be seen by the world. He also created cement and opened a school so that the children of the commoners could study and learn. His actions are admirable, so Marquis Ju Lu is definitely worthy of the title 'Mister,'" Ji Yanran said with a smile.
"Miss Ji, you flatter me." Sei Itō chuckled.
His gaze was calm, and he did not show any desire like other men when they saw her. Furthermore, his attitude was calm, and he did not have the arrogance of a noble or a hero. Ji Yanran's eyes flashed with a strange light. She had a rough impression of Sei Itō.
"Would I have the honor of inviting Marquis Ju Lu after the banquet?" Ji Yanran asked.
As soon as he said this, whether it was the officials of the State of Zhao or the men of the State of Wei, they all looked at Ito Sei with jealousy in their eyes.
"I have just returned to the city today, and I still have a lovely wife to accompany. I hope Miss Ji will forgive my rudeness. I can't accept your invitation. "Sei Itō smiled apologetically.
In an instant, Zhao Ya and Zhao Ni, who were sitting on the right side of the hall, revealed a happy expression on their faces, becoming incomparably bright and beautiful.
Looking at Zhao Ya's reaction, Lord Xinling clenched his fists under the table and a trace of jealousy flashed in his eyes.
Ji Yanran, who did not expect her invitation to be rejected, was shocked, but she quickly recovered. She looked at Sei Itō with admiration and said, "I did not expect Marquis Ju Lu to be someone who loves his family. Yanran was too presumptuous."
Then she changed the topic and continued, "Then when can Marquis Ju Lu find time to meet with Yanran?"
"After tomorrow, anytime is fine." Sei Itō smiled.
"After tomorrow? Then Yanran will wait for the good news. "Ji Yanran smiled.
Sei Itō smiled and turned to look at the others. At this moment, King Zhao was very tactful. He then introduced Sei Itō to a few other important people that he should introduce.
After getting to know everyone, Sei Itō walked to the right side of the hall and sat down between Zhao Ya and Zhao Ni.
Zhao Ya gave Sei Itō a charming smile and raised her hand, taking the initiative to pour a cup of wine for Sei Itō.
The wine that King Zhao used to entertain the people of Wei was none other than the wine. It was the high-purity, low-strength special white wine that Sei Itō had people sell to the outside world. At the same time, Zhao Ya's charming performance caused Lord Xinling to be enraged. This caused Xinling Jun to feel a burst of jealousy, and he gritted his teeth.
Next, the banquet started again. The Zhao Dance was performed by the Zhao Kingdom's palace dancers. Everyone began to exchange toasts and talk freely.
After a while …
However, at this moment, Lord Xinling suddenly put down the wine in his hand.
"Lord Xinling, why are you like this? Did I not treat you well?" King Zhao, who noticed Lord Xinling's change, asked in surprise.
"Your Majesty's treatment was very appropriate. Wuji did not feel anything wrong." Lord Xinling shook his head.
"Then why?" King Zhao asked curiously.
"It is because there is something I do not understand and cannot understand. Wuji is not in the mood to enjoy the banquet." Lord Xinling raised his head and looked at King Zhao with a burning gaze.
As soon as these words were spoken, besides the song and dance that continued to revolve endlessly in the hall, the sounds of everyone's discussion suddenly went silent as they paid attention to the matter at hand. Everyone knew what Lord Xinling meant by something he did not understand.
"You may all leave," Queen Han Jing said to the dancers in the hall.
The dancers stopped dancing and bowed their heads along with the musicians who had stopped the accompaniment. They slowly left the Auspicious Hall.
"Everyone in the hall is knowledgeable. Lord Xinling, if there is something you do not understand, why don't you tell us and let everyone help you think about it? Perhaps you will be able to understand." After the dancers completely left the hall, not far from Ito Sei, a graceful and beautiful woman who looked much younger than her actual age due to good maintenance said. She looked like she was in her thirties from afar, and the shallow wrinkles under the corners of her eyes could only be seen when looking closely. However, she didn't lose any of her elegance. She was a beautiful and graceful woman.
"She is Lady Pingyuan, Lord Xinling's elder sister." Zhao Ya moved her head close to Ito Sei's ear and introduced the identity of the person who spoke in a low voice.
Lady Pingyuan's hair was combed into a horse bun. Her hair rose high and fell to the side, seeming to fall but not fall. She wore a flower-embroidered skirt and silk shoes. Her hairpin was inlaid with tortoiseshell, and she wore pearl earrings. Her radiance was dazzling, and it was difficult to compare her to an ordinary woman who had given birth to a child.
Hearing Lady Pingyuan's words, King Zhao's expression immediately turned ugly. He hated Lady Pingyuan's lack of tact. At the same time, he hated her for speaking up for her country's people even though she was a woman of Zhao.
Because in this era, although there was no explicit rule that a married woman should obey her husband, in some etiquette, there was a rule that a woman should be loyal to her husband. Therefore, Lady Pingyuan's behavior was completely seen as a rebellious woman, and the husband's family had every reason to divorce her, sell her, or even directly execute her by lynching her.
Unfortunately, Lord Pingyuan, who could execute all these, had already died in battle. Naturally, no one could control her.
"That's right. Lord Xinling, if there is anything you do not understand, why don't you tell us and let us think about it?" Lord Longyang said lightly.
"That's right, that's right." The other Wei people also agreed.
"Then, alright." Lord Xinling pretended to hesitate and sighed. Then, he sat up straight (that is, his legs were already kneeling on the cushion) and cupped his hands towards King Zhao. "Your Majesty, Zhao and Wei are allies. In the past, we even came from the same family. Logically speaking, we should be extremely close. Why did Your Majesty suddenly go back on your word two months ago and privately marry the princess to a noble official? What kind of reasoning is this? Could it be that Your Majesty is not afraid that this matter will cause animosity between Zhao and Wei? Is Your Majesty not afraid that this matter will cause a rift between our two countries? "
"This …" King Zhao's expression froze. He was speechless. He couldn't possibly tell Lord Xinling that it wasn't that he didn't want to marry, but that his master had taken a fancy to his daughter, right? Putting aside whether anyone would believe him, the storm that would follow was not something that King Zhao wanted to see. If that happened, what would happen to him, the King of Zhao on the surface?
"Could it be that after marrying the princess, the two countries will truly be close neighbors?" At this moment, a voice suddenly rang out in the hall.
Everyone turned their heads and their gazes landed on the person who spoke. — It was Sei Itō!
"Marquis Julu, what do you mean by this?" Lord Xinling asked in a low voice.
"From what I know, King Wei is very unwilling to let the princess marry him," Sei Itō lightly said as he lowered his wine cup.
"Marquis Julu, please be careful with your words. Do not cause animosity between Wei and Zhao." Although he knew that Ito Sei was telling the truth, Xinling Jun still had a stern expression on his face as he reminded Ito Sei in a deep voice.
"Animosity? Do you think that there is little animosity between our two countries? Don't tell me that you, Lord Xinling, are not behind the bandits in Zhao, "Sei Itō said with a cold smile.
"Impudent!" As soon as he finished speaking, before Xinling Jun could say anything, a man in a tight suit behind him suddenly stood up and glared at Ito Sei as he yelled.
"Impudent? You are the impudent one. What is this place? A lowly servant like you dares to cause a ruckus here? Men, drag this vulgar person away! "Sei Itō sneered and roared.
"Yes," the soldiers outside the hall acknowledged and quickly walked behind Lord Xinling, preparing to drag that person away.
"Wait!" At this moment, Xinling Jun finally lost his patience and called out loudly.
In an instant, the soldier paused and stopped.
Lord Xinling narrowed his eyes at Sei Itō, a cold glint flashing in his eyes as he said in a low voice, "Marquis Julu, you are slandering the king of Wei. Could it be that this one wants to start a war between Wei and Zhao?!"
"Is this not what you want, Lord Xinling?" Sei Itō asked with a mocking expression.
Lord Xinling's pupils constricted, and his expression darkened.
Wei Wuji turned to King Zhao and said, "Your Majesty, Marquis Julu's actions and words. Your Majesty, are you not going to say anything?"
King Zhao looked at Sei Itō and then at Wei Wuji. In the end, he decisively chose Sei Itō. He raised his wine cup and happily drank from it, ignoring Lord Xinling.
"Your Majesty." Han Jing, who didn't want another war in Zhao, frowned and called out.
King Zhao indifferently looked at Han Jing and then closed his eyes, ignoring her. Queen Han Jing paused, and an indescribable feeling rose in her heart. There was disappointment, anger, unease, and weakness. It was very complicated.
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