Just as He Shu’s second slap was about to land on Prince Jin’s face, Bai Liuli, quick of eye and hand, pulled her back.
“Aiya, my little ancestor, I beg you, show some mercy and stop hitting him, okay? If you keep this up, I’m afraid we really won’t live to see tomorrow’s sun.”
Bai Liuli was truly terrified of He Shu.
“If I’d known there’d be such an explosive scene, I never should have come.”
It was already too late for regrets.
Since Bai Liuli had boarded He Shu’s pirate ship, getting off was no longer possible.
“Why don’t we just leave? There’s no recording array here. Let’s slip away while Prince Jin is still sound asleep.”
Bai Liuli’s heart wavered with the urge to retreat.
She anxiously looked toward He Shu, only to see the latter reveal a smile she could not quite fathom.
“What are you…?”
Just as Bai Liuli was filled with puzzled confusion, He Shu said something astonishing.
She spoke lightly, “Prince Jin, stop hiding. It’s been long enough. You should be able to see our sincerity.”
The moment He Shu’s words fell, the Prince Jin lying on the bed instantly dissolved into countless points of light and vanished.
The real Prince Jin revealed his figure.
Seeing the person who appeared, He Shu thought privately, So it really was a fake. The real Prince Jin has been hiding in the shadows all along.
Prince Jin spoke, his tone showing not the slightest fluctuation.
“How did you discover me?”
“It wasn’t difficult. Besides, you were waiting for us too, weren’t you?” As He Shu spoke, she held up three fingers.
“There are at least two hundred patrolling soldiers around Prince Jin’s mansion. It looks tightly guarded, but in reality it’s a heap of loose sand.”
“Not only that, there are far too few servants in the mansion. Normally at this hour there would be at least two shifts of patrols rotating, yet you only arranged one. On top of that, your window isn’t even locked. If that isn’t deliberately leaving a gap, what is it?”
Prince Jin was silent for a moment, then suddenly smiled.
“Interesting. This prince originally thought the guests from Jade Water Immortal Kingdom would arrive first, but I never expected two guests from Southwind instead.”
Prince Jin found a stool and sat down.
Moonlight filtered through the window paper and illuminated only half of his body.
“From what this prince knows, Southwind Immortal Kingdom would be happy to see Azure Parasol Immortal Kingdom fall into internal strife so it can use that to pin down Jade Water Immortal Kingdom. The two of you coming here tonight surely isn’t just to slap this prince twice, is it?”
He Shu nodded.
It was no surprise that Prince Jin could recognize they were from Southwind Immortal Kingdom.
The imperial sword at Bai Liuli’s waist was far too conspicuous.
“Prince Jin truly has a discerning eye. We infiltrated Prince Jin’s mansion precisely because we wanted to talk with Your Highness.”
He Shu fumbled around for a moment and pulled out a royal command token, gripping it in her hand.
“Does Prince Jin recognize this item?”
The instant he saw the royal command token, Prince Jin’s expression immediately grew solemn, and his back straightened as well.
Seeing Prince Jin’s reaction, He Shu continued, “The royal command token. It can mobilize the three armies, allows one to act first and report later, and is specially authorized by imperial power.”
“Your Highness probably doesn’t know yet. Not long ago, Crown Prince Hu Chi already secretly contacted our country and reached a compromise.”
“He promised that after he ascends the throne, he will cede the city lord positions of three border immortal cities for a period of two hundred years in exchange for Southwind Immortal Kingdom’s full support, as well as help in opposing you, Prince Jin.”
“We came to Prince Jin’s mansion tonight to discuss this with Your Highness precisely to see what Your Highness’s attitude is.”
He Shu lied without a second thought, her face unflushed and her heart unmoved, as if such a matter truly existed.
Of course, all of this was premised on Prince Jin being unable to verify the contents of the information.
Prince Jin could not fully believe what He Shu said, but as mentioned earlier: once the seed of suspicion is planted, it is very difficult to pull out.
After listening to He Shu’s words, Prince Jin’s expression clearly worsened a little.
“Heh. Your country’s attitude isn’t a bit too arrogant, is it? Do you really think this prince doesn’t dare kill you?”
Prince Jin’s tone was icy, yet He Shu could not sense the slightest killing intent from it.
He Shu let out two cold laughs.
“You don’t dare kill us.”
“What wouldn’t this prince dare?!”
“Heh heh. You’re a smart man. You understand that if we die here, it will inevitably sour relations with Southwind Immortal Kingdom. The current Azure Parasol Immortal Kingdom simply cannot bear the consequences of angering a super immortal kingdom.”
“Moreover, if we die here, Southwind Immortal Kingdom will have a pretext in the future to press in with a great army, take over Azure Parasol Immortal Kingdom’s internal affairs, and install a puppet on the throne.”
Once these words were spoken, Prince Jin indeed reined in his aura and sat back down on the chair.
“Fine. You win. Let’s talk.”
“Prince Jin is wise.”
He Shu cupped her hands.
On the surface her expression remained unchanged, but inwardly she was blooming with joy.
Prince Jin at least believed half of what I just said. That’s far better than I originally expected.
The work of sowing division and contradiction was proceeding very smoothly.
However, He Shu understood the principle that going too far is as bad as not going far enough, and immediately changed the subject.
“Does Prince Jin know what happened in Grief Valley Immortal City not long ago?”
Prince Jin did not speak.
He only nodded and listened as He Shu continued.
“Jade Water’s monarch, Hua Yanyun, has not been having an easy time lately. The struggle for Grief Valley Immortal City saw no fewer than four Void Refinement cultivators take the field, shaking nearly half of the Southern Frontier.”
“There’s no need for this humble one to go into the specific details of that battle. Speaking only of the impact, the Lin family headed by Lin Bufan not only gained nothing from it, they can be said to have lost the lady and the soldiers as well.”
“Lin Bufan was personally dispatched by Hua Yanyun. After this battle, the major aristocratic clans headed by the Lin family have all developed cracks of one degree or another with the Hua imperial clan.”
“To resist foreign threats one must first stabilize the interior. Prince Jin has deep ties with Jade Water Immortal Kingdom and would not fail to understand this principle. Hua Yanyun promised to aid Your Highness, but think of it from another angle. She is currently busy settling internal contradictions. After pulling east and tugging west, how much strength can she truly spare to support Your Highness?”
“His Majesty the monarch of Azure Parasol likely has only a little more than a month of lifespan remaining. Once the late emperor passes and the crown prince ascends, the matter will be settled. Will Jade Water Immortal Kingdom still be willing to aid Your Highness then?”
He Shu’s words struck precisely at Prince Jin’s worries.
It was also because of these worries that he was willing to listen to her.
He Shu elaborated fluently and without pause.
One key point after another was thrown out in succession.
Bai Liuli, for her part, was already listening in a complete fog.
In this kind of high-level game of strategy, she could not insert a single word and could only stare blankly.
After He Shu finished speaking, she walked slowly to the bedside, opened the window, and revealed the scenery outside.
It was already the third watch of the night.
Even in Langya Immortal City, only those pleasure houses were still brightly lit.
In the sky, the dark clouds had grown even thicker.
Almost no moonlight could be seen, as if a storm was about to arrive.
He Shu clasped her hands behind her back.
She still had the appearance of someone who had not fully grown, yet she gave Prince Jin a sense that this person was mysterious and unfathomable.