Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
The Second Consort stared dazedly at the Dragon King. She was not as confident and ostentatious as usual. After a while, a surprised look surfaced on her face, as if she had just recognized him.
“Sorry, my mind was wandering.”
“It’s okay.” Gu Shenwei had to admit that he didn’t find anything suspicious in her and that she did indeed look like a love-stricken woman. With her unyielding personality, it was likely that she would resort to extreme measures to get whatever she wanted.
“Did Shangguan Ru tell you everything?”
“She didn’t tell me much.”
“Sometimes I feel curious — what kind of hatred could be so strong that you would be willing to even give up the one you love? The Khan was different, though. Manipulating women from opposing tribes was his favorite. He said that he derived a pleasure of dual-conquests from one move.”
Gu Shenwei had heard similar words from the Khan’s mouth. Back then, he had found them unacceptable, and he still did now. “I didn’t come here to discuss this.”
“Ha-ha, I’m just running my big mouth again. But I’m a woman, so I hope that you don’t mind. Why did I invite you here again? Oh, right — Duodun. He’s an adorable guy, isn’t he?”
Gu Shenwei nodded and then blandly said, “He can be adorable when he wants to be, but it’s a pity that I’m not as lucky as you are, Second Consort. I’ve never seen him act adorably.”
“Ha-ha.” The Second Consort gave a laugh as hearty as usual before replying, “That’s right. Duodun’s exactly like that. After all, he was the Khan’s favorite son and this is a talent that he was born with. Everybody else was trying to be as quiet as possible before the Khan, as if even a yawn would be highly disrespectful towards him. But Duodun always acted naturally and he knew his limits. He dared to talk back, act cute, and he would even cry and smile whenever he wanted to. And he turned out to be the Khan’s favorite child.”
“It seems that he learned a lot from the Second Consort.”
Upon hearing this, the Second Consort was stunned. “Yes, he did learn a lot from me. I’m like a… Am I too old?”
“To be honest, I’m not good at guessing other people’s age.”
The Second Consort burst into laughter again before letting out a long string of sighs. “This is what happens after the Norland split and waned — the Dragon King is starting ‘to be honest’ with me. If the Khan were still alive, you would’ve come up with some pleasant lies.”
Gu Shenwei raised his head and debated internally for a while before saying, “That’s true. But I’ll have to ask you to forgive me, Second Consort — the weak’s flattery towards the strong is all fake. After the Khan died, many lords arose, and there were many more people I had to flatter. However, my patience is limited.”
“The truth is not only harsh, but also terrifying.”
“That’s why I hope that the Second Consort can fight back with the truth.”
There was a momentary ferocity in the Second Consort’s mien as she fiercely replied, “The truth is never a woman’s weapon. We have alternatives.”
The two then confronted each other silently. Gu Shenwei was trying to push the Second Consort into talking about her true feelings for Duodun, but his first attempt had failed.
“I’m waiting for you to name your price.” Gu Shenwei tossed the previous failure aside and made another try.
The Second Consort smiled faintly as she replied, “I have many conditions.”
“You can state them one by one.”
“No matter who becomes the Khan, I will be the consort — this is my bottom line. Those ‘honest’ remarks of yours reminded me that I can’t ever afford to lose my status.”
“I’m afraid that that’s not my decision to make. I came to the Norland to ask for help, not to rule everything.”
“Of course you can’t rule everything, but you can still influence Shulitu, my great grandson. That kid knows what he’s doing and maybe someday, he will surprise all of us and become the Khan. I need a promise from him that he will marry me if he becomes the Khan.”
“I can try.”
“Then we can talk about the rest of my conditions after you ‘try.’”
The Second Consort refused to make a single concession.
“Fine.” Gu Shenwei pretended to repeatedly weigh the pros and cons in his head. This was a straightforward negotiation. Whatever the other party’s condition was, he had to affect an air of awkwardness onto it. “I’ll have Shulitu make a statement.”
“In public?”
“In public.”
The Second Consort felt that she had won a small victory, so she smiled happily. “Tell Shulitu that there’s no need for him to be worried. He doesn’t have to ever touch me, and I don’t want to touch him either. I won’t even live in the Royal Court after becoming the new consort, so he can marry any woman he wants to. All I want is the identity of ‘consort.’ Also, he’s not allowed to interfere in the relationship between me and Duodun.”
“I don’t think that Shulitu’s old enough to be concerned with these issues.”
“Ha-ha, he’s still an innocent boy. It’s kind of cruel to involve him in the fight for the throne already. Alright, here’s the second condition. I want a pasture to the north of the Heavenly Mountain, and to the south of Naihang Tribe. I prefer to stay close to my ‘family,’ and I’m willing to be Dragon King’s neighbor.”
This request was a little unusual, so Gu Shenwei immediately became vigilant. “What makes this any different from splitting the Norland apart?”
“They’re very different. I’m the consort of the Khan. After I die, Shulitu can have the pasture back. You see, all my ambitions are limited to my lifetime. I don’t think that the young king would mind waiting a couple years, right?”
“The Second Consort’s conditions are becoming more and more difficult to meet.”
“I’ve already reminded you.”
“You still haven’t told me what your bargaining chips are. Helping Shulitu defeat Duodun? He’s not even sure to lose yet, so he shouldn’t have to make such enormous sacrifices in advance.”
The Second Consort stared pointedly at the Dragon King as she said, “I’m negotiating with you .” She heavily emphasized the word “you,” and even raised her hand to point at the Dragon King to further make her point.
“Let’s put aside any question of whether or not I’m capable of meeting the Second Consort’s conditions. I think that the Dragon Army’s in a more favorable situation than Shulitu, so it should be even less necessary for me to make any sacrifices.”
“Ha-ha. If all you want is the Western Regions, then there’s no need for us to continue this talk. I’ll help Duodun, you’ll help Shulitu, and we’ll all fight to the death. I’ll figure out another way to keep my man.”
Gu Shenwei was a little perplexed by the Second Consort’s stance. He had no idea whether the Second Consort was bluffing or whether she actually had some kind of trump card at her disposal. “Of course all I want is the Western Regions. The Norland will never accept a foreign ruler, and both of us know this.”
The Second Consort burst into laughter yet again. “Even a man as smart as the Dragon King can be silly occasionally — of course the Norland will not accept foreigners, but it’s not the Norland that needs to change. It’s you, Dragon King. I can definitely make you not a foreigner.”
Gu Shenwei said with a cold face, “I’m not going to admit that my father had an affair in the Norland.”
“You don’t have to reject it so soon,” the Second Consort said with a big smile. “Old general Gu’s reputation is surely important. Besides, it was just a slave girl that the Khan gave him. How much help could she be of to the Dragon King? I’m actually talking about another possibility, where the Dragon King will not only be a ‘native’ of the Norland, but will also have a rightful claim to the Central Plains. Golden Roc Castle’s just a killer organization, and if you want to get your revenge, you’ll have to hold the Central Plains responsible sooner or later, right?”
Gu Shenwei recalled that old rumor: the prince of the Central Plains had killed King Rizhu’s beloved son, who was also the Second Consort’s fiancé when she was young. So, a lot of people believed that the prince had once had an affair with the Second Consort.
The Second Consort was very confident and she straightened her body as she said, “Do you understand, Dragon King? I’ll be your mother. You can accept this, right?”
Gu Shenwei shook his head as he replied, “This is a blatant lie. Not many people will buy it.”
“Of course it’s a lie, but I can guarantee you that a lot of people will buy it. The Dragon King should understand the meaning of the words ‘personality cult’ — everybody believes that the Khan ascended to the Heavens and became a god instead of being cut to pieces by a couple female maniacs. Even if you display his mangled body in public, the people still wouldn’t change their beliefs. Similarly, there are widespread rumors about the affair between the prince and me, and even now, some people still firmly believe it. And some of them even say that I gave birth to the young emperor of the Central Plains — I mean, they don’t even bother considering the age gap.”
This idea was still too inconceivable and Gu Shenwei shook his head. “The people you are talking about are just ordinary people. The nobles and ministers, and especially the Khan’s descendants, won’t believe it.”
“As long as the 200,000 Norland cavalry men believe it and Shulitu accepts it, what else do you need, Dragon King? All the other descendants are your enemies anyway. All you have to do is defeat or kill them.” The ruthlessness in the Second Consort’s remarks was revealed so casually that it was amazingly similar to the Khan’s. “Certainly, the Dragon King can’t be the Khan, but you can rightfully stay in Norland, instate yourself a puppet Khan, and then utilize the overall strength of the Norland to take your revenge on the Central Plains. Can you do the same with just the Western Regions at your disposal?”
The Second Consort’s suggestions were far beyond Gu Shenwei’s expectation. With his suspicious mind, he couldn’t give a response right away.
The Second Consort clapped her hands once, and said, “Well, let’s call it a day. There’s no need for me to state the rest of the conditions. To summarize them, compared to what the Dragon King’s going to obtain, they’re just minor sacrifices. And they’re also what a ‘mother’ deserves to own.”
Just like this, the negotiations had concluded.
Gu Shenwei wanted to consult his counselor, but the moment he returned to the tent, Nie Zeng came in to report that Tie Linglong had woken up and wanted to see the Dragon King immediately.
With Shulitu’s consent, Nie Zeng had been standing guard at Tie Linglong’s tent for a whole day and night.
Tie Linglong was still feeling a little listless as if she were suffering from a hangover. Upon seeing the Dragon King, Tie Linglong immediately stood up. “Sister Ru… No, Shangguan Ru’s hiding something from you, Dragon King.”
“I know.”
“You know?” Tie Linglong was dumbfounded.
“Mmm, but she doesn’t want to tell me the truth for now.”
Tie Linglong became even more surprised. As far as she knew, the Dragon King never trusted anyone easily. “Did you know that that woman’s a Golden Roc killer?”
“How do you know? You were caught by the knockout powder of Waning Moon Hall.”
Tie Linglong snorted slightly and was unconvinced that she had been caught by knockout powder. “I stayed in Waning Moon Hall for almost a year. Of course I know that the knockout powder’s from there. That woman wanted to fool me with this trick, but her body movement technique is definitely the Golden Roc Castle’s. Nobody in the Waning Moon Hall could perform it.”
The knockout powder used by a Golden Roc killer was unexpectedly from the Waning Moon Hall. Gu Shenwei slightly regretted not forcing Shangguan Ru into telling him the truth.
“Lotus has sided with Golden Roc Castle,” Tie Linglong speculated. “Therefore, the killer sent by the Unique King to contact Shangguan Ru had knockout powder on her.”
Yet, Shangguan Ru had made it very clear that neither Waning Moon Hall nor Golden Roc Castle had anything to do with this.
“Have a good rest,” said Gu Shenwei. “And don’t tell anyone else about this. I’ll figure it out.”
Tie Linglong nodded.
Gu Shenwei turned around and was about to leave when he felt that it was necessary to reiterate, “Don’t do investigate by yourself. Just stay put in this tent.”
Tie Linglong pouted, but soon nodded again.
Gu Shenwei left the tent and ordered Nie Zeng to keep guarding the tent. There was a Golden Roc killer hidden in the army camp somewhere, and Mo Lin still hadn’t found her yet. So, it was necessary to be prudent.
Upon returning to his tent, Gu Shenwei saw that Fang Wenshi was waiting for him. “How’s it going? What did the Second Consort say?”
“Something that you’d never guess.”
Fang Wenshi didn’t quite believe it, saying, “I think this is an old cliché. The only thing she can do is disgrace Duodun and offer some insignificant help? You didn’t promise her anything, did you?”
“I didn’t.” Gu Shenwei had been considering the Second Consort’s suggestions all this time. It was as if a gate had suddenly appeared before him, and on the other side of it, there was a spacious new area. The more he thought about it, the more necessary he felt it was for him to accept the Second Consort’s proposal. “Never mind. Those were just some wild fantasies of the Second Consort’s. Leaving her aside, how’s everything going with the Naihang Tribe?”
Fang Wenshi noticed that the Dragon King was about to say something, but hadn’t. This reaction surprised him, and he replied, “Er, I think that we’ll find out tomorrow.”
Gu Shenwei wasn’t trying to hide anything from his counselor. But he wanted to first confirm his chances of success.
