novelden Chapter 272 Reaching Cooperation
Chapter 272 Reaching Cooperation
"Oh?" Lin Shu maintained her composure, picked An Si up from the ground, and gestured for Ulihan to continue.
Ulihan paused for a moment, then approached Lin Shu and said in a low voice, "If Qiqige wants to poison me with the secret medicine of the Northern Wilderness, then let her try it herself."
After saying this, seeing that Lin Shu still had an indifferent expression, Wulihan continued, "This medicine has an incubation period. It will only take effect after we return to the Northern Wilderness, and it will not affect Fengming."
Lin Shu stared at the large man before her, her eyebrows slightly raised, and asked with a half-smile, "Now that we've come this far, I wonder how the Nineteenth Prince wishes for my assistance? Besides, what benefit could I, Feng Ming, possibly gain?"
Uli, seeing that Lin Shu's attitude seemed to have softened slightly, quickly pressed his advantage:
"I have two requests: First, protect me."
Secondly, my Empress is getting old and may no longer be able to handle state affairs. Therefore, after this court assembly, I need your mother, the Prince of Dingbei, and his 300,000 Dingbei troops to help my elder sister, Naoribu, ascend the throne.
"After this is accomplished, I promise to bestow upon you the largest city north of Shuomen Pass, Xiaoxiang City, and to establish a century-long non-aggression pact with Fengming."
Lin Shu nodded, but did not immediately agree. She suspected that Ulihan had taken a liking to Ling Huanan's Dingbei Army from the very beginning, which was why he proposed a marriage alliance with her last night.
Thinking of this, Lin Shu glanced at the camp not far away. She saw several people coming to relieve themselves. Realizing it wasn't safe to stay there any longer, she carried An Si and walked past Ulihan, saying as she went:
"Your sincerity is commendable. However, this matter is beyond my control, especially since it requires mobilizing the Dingbei Army! Therefore, I will inform His Majesty and then contact you. In the meantime, I guarantee your safety!"
After speaking, without waiting for Ulihan's response, Lin Shu walked straight towards the camp. Ulihan watched her back, his eyes flickering with light, before finally settling into calm.
At noon.
The four-nation competition has officially concluded.
Without Naoribu arbitrarily changing the rules, and with Qiqige always behaving in accordance with the rules, Beihuang suffered a crushing defeat this year.
Of the six arts of a gentleman, apart from the initial competitions in calligraphy and mathematics where he achieved some success, he ranked last in all other competitions. In the end, after comprehensive calculation, he unsurprisingly became the last place.
This really angered Qiqige, and her already sickly face became even paler.
Although their primary purpose in coming here was not the competition, they never expected to come in last place.
Besides, even that incompetent Nauribu repeatedly won first place when he led the team in previous years. If it weren't for Lin Shu last year, the championship would definitely have belonged to the Northern Wilderness...
However, no matter how indignant he was inside, Qiqige did not show it on his face. He even forced a smile and pretended to be happy for other countries.
Feng Han spoke encouraging and concluding remarks from the high platform, occasionally glancing subtly at the envoys from the Northern Wilderness, presumably because Lin Shu had already reported her conversation with Ulihan.
After a long while, the officials and envoys left the stage one by one, and the annual grand court assembly came to a successful conclusion.
As the sun slowly sank in the west, its orange-red afterglow gently fell, spreading evenly around Lin Shu and draping her silhouette in a warm golden veil.
Lin Shu had just helped her two husbands onto the carriage and was about to turn around—
Unexpectedly, a burly figure suddenly appeared behind her, like a moving hill, completely obscuring the dazzling light that had been shining on Lin Shu.
Lin Shu could easily guess who was behind her and their intentions; it was nothing more than what happened that morning.
She was just about to tell Feng Han that she had agreed to cooperate, but then she noticed the stares from those around her—some sympathetic, some watching the show, some scheming, and so on…
Lin Shu thought for a moment, then turned around expressionlessly. She saw Wu Li hand her a short knife, ignoring the stares around them, and say in a booming voice:
"This scimitar was a gift from my mother, named 'Blood Oath,' and I'm giving it to you."
Lin Shu was stunned when she saw the knife being handed to her.
However, when she caught a glimpse of a carriage belonging to the Northern Wilderness envoys that had stopped, with the curtain slightly lifted and the people inside seemingly paying attention to them, Lin Shu unconsciously thought of the name of the knife and quickly realized what it meant.
Blood oath!
Ulihan was unable to speak, so he used the knife to inquire whether their cooperation could be achieved.
Thinking of this, Lin Shu met the darkness in Ulihan's eyes, then with a cold face, she jumped onto the carriage shaft.
Just when everyone watching thought Lin Shu wouldn't pay any attention to Ulihan, she suddenly grabbed the dagger.
The people around them all looked like they'd just eaten shit, staring incredulously at the carriage curtain that Lin Shu had lowered, as if trying to see what Lin Shu was thinking through the curtain.
Ulihan was stunned for a moment, then looked at his empty hands, and then at the carriage that was gradually moving away. A hint of joy flashed in his eyes. There were many emotions in this joy, but the most prominent one was hope.
Lin Shu's ability to catch the knife proved that the cooperation was successful. Not only was his life safe, but his elder sister, Naoribu, could also ascend the throne.
The officials who hadn't left yet shook their heads helplessly when they saw Ulihan's ecstatic appearance. Sigh! Another man bewitched by Lord Lin!
At this moment, the carriage that was not far away slowly stopped beside Ulihan. The joy on Ulihan's face immediately disappeared, and a shadow flashed in his eyes. Then he stepped into the carriage.
Inside the carriage, the four people remained silent. Apart from Qiqige and Ulihan, the other two were Gongbu and Wenshi, who had been relatively inconspicuous throughout.
Qiqige sized up Ulihan, a burly man almost twice her size, and after a long while, she spoke with a painstaking expression:
"Nineteenth brother, Lin Shu is not the right person for you! The Grand Court Assembly is over, and we cannot stay in Fengming for too long. We must not delay the Empress's important business!"
"It's none of your business." Ulihan glared at Qiqige fiercely, then said impatiently, his voice sounding both loud and muffled, as if it came from his chest.
“You…you don’t know what’s good for you. Do you really think no one dares to touch you?” Gongbu said quickly, his hand on the curved sword at his waist, as if he could cut down Ulihan at any moment.
"Gonpo! You've overstepped your bounds!" Qiqige clenched his fists, two faint red lines rising on his cheeks, clearly from anger.
Just as Gonbu was about to apologize, Ulihan glanced contemptuously at Gonbu, who was a head shorter than him, stretched his muscular arms, threw him off the carriage, and spoke with a fierce expression:
"I am the most beloved son of the Empress Dowager. How dare a mere servant dare to defy his superior? Don't you know your own limitations!"
The change happened so fast that before Qiqige and the scholar could react, Gongbu was already outside the carriage.
However, still seemingly unsatisfied, Ulihan glanced at Qiqige with a mocking look and let out a cold snort: "Like master, like dog."
Qiqige frowned in displeasure, her soft voice taking on a stern tone: "Nineteenth brother!"
Ulihan rolled his eyes, then said meaningfully, "Qiqige, that dog servant seemed to want to draw his sword and kill me just now. Could it be that you instructed him to do so?"
"Ulihan, stop talking nonsense." Qiqige cursed Gombu as an idiot in his heart, but his tone contained a warning.
Ulihan showed no fear, meeting her gaze with an arrogant expression, as disdainful as hope itself.
"Don't think that just because you got a job as an envoy, you can rise to the top overnight. You think you can teach me how to do things? No way."
Having said that, he lifted the curtain and jumped out.
Qiqige glared angrily at the still swaying curtain, a sinister glint in her eyes. Although she had been angered by Ulihan since she was a child, she had never thought much of it before.
But ever since she took power in the first half of the year, she found it increasingly difficult to tolerate Ulihan's arrogant demeanor!
"Your Highness, shouldn't we stop the Nineteenth Prince?" the scholar beside her asked at the opportune moment.
Qiqige suppressed his anger and shook his head: "No need! Just have a few people keep an eye on things secretly."
"Yes," the scholar replied, giving the order outside.
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