You were taken hostage, why pursue the Enemy's Empress?

"Can I have the commercial seal?"

What kind of talk is this!

What kind of talk is this?

Everyone was a little confused. Although the twenty lashes only caused Ying Wuji physical pain and did not touch his fundamental interests, it was still a severe punishment. If it made Ying Yue unhappy, there would be another twenty lashes, until he was subdued.

But after Ying Wuji symbolically gave Ying Yue face, he actually asked for the commercial seal. Wasn't he being too arrogant?

Ying Yue leaned forward and looked down at Ying Wuji: "Do you think I will give the commercial seal to a person who has no ruler or father and disrespects the law?"

Ying Wuji smiled: "Since it's called the commercial seal, it should naturally be given to someone who can make money for Da Qian. Can loyalty to the ruler, love for the country, and adherence to the law make money?"

"Hmph!"

Ying Yue snorted coldly, preparing to say something.

But Ying Wuji rudely interrupted: "Da Qian has always emphasized agriculture and suppressed commerce, but now the commercial guilds are spread throughout the various countries. Your Majesty, as the ruler of a country, cannot be unaware of the reasons behind this! There are more than five hundred commercial guilds in Da Qian, but most of them are in deficit. Your Majesty cannot be unaware of this situation."

Ying Yue remained silent, his gaze becoming more severe.

This kid was negotiating with him. Although he was not cursing at him like he did earlier, his attitude was becoming more and more tough.

Ying Yue was well aware of the situation of the commercial guilds in Da Qian. As the only principality among the many feudal states that was distinctly focused on agriculture and warfare, the advantages and disadvantages of Da Qian were clear.

The advantage was that everyone was a soldier, with sufficient logistics. As long as there was a war, Da Qian could mobilize five times the manpower of other countries with the same population. As long as they were not killed, they could fight to the death. Therefore, all the surrounding countries were terrified, and even the neighboring Li Kingdom, which had a small border area but had been on good terms for generations, never relaxed its guard against Da Qian.

If cultivation did not require resources, Da Qian's development would inevitably grow stronger step by step, and there would be no need to consider anyone's face.

But unfortunately, Da Qian was located in a remote area and needed to purchase cultivation resources from afar.

And in recent years, due to constant warfare, Da Qian had almost exhausted its resources. This year, there was another reason that required a large amount of money...

As for commercial guilds, there was nothing inside Da Qian. How could they make money? It was already a blessing if the income and expenses could balance out.

Other countries' commercial guilds were willing to suppress Da Qian, which was actually giving Da Qian face.

Ying Wuji pointed at his own nose: "This child is nothing special, but happens to be the only person who can make money for Da Qian. Moreover, I heard that several cities on the border between Da Qian and Li Kingdom have suffered from a severe drought this year! Your Majesty, you don't want your people to starve, do you?"

Ying Yue: "..."

Gongsun Di: "..."

Xun Zhiyin: "..."

Zhao Ning: "..."

Was this a threat?

A son threatening his father, a prince threatening the king, this kind of thing was not uncommon in history, but it usually involved princes who held great power and military forces.

But you... as a hostage in a foreign country, isn't it a bit too audacious to say such things?

But there was really no way to refute it. In the past few years, Da Qian had been at war year after year, facing attacks from the Qianrong, Di Kingdom, and Flame Kingdom from three sides. Although they had defeated the three countries, the country's finances were in a terrible state.

And now they were facing a severe drought, which would make it extremely difficult to obtain enough food this year.

Ying Yue's brows furrowed, and his emotional bar slowly rose. He was really angry now, breaking through to 80 and continuously gaining attribute points.

His gaze became colder: "So the people in the four cities in the eastern part of Da Qian are just bargaining chips for you to negotiate with me?"

Ying Wuji looked directly at him and immediately asked in return: "So Your Majesty would rather let the people in the four cities in the east starve to death than allow me to pose the slightest threat to Ying Wuque's position?"

"How dare you!"

Ying Yue couldn't contain his anger anymore. He overturned everything on the table, propped himself up with both hands, and glared at Ying Wuji, panting heavily: "Both you and Wuque are princes of Da Qian. Instead of thinking about how to work together for Da Qian, you are scheming against each other!"

Ying Wuji laughed: "Your Majesty! If the prince who climbed the throne by stepping on your corpse were to hear this, wouldn't he be furious? Working together for Da Qian? Do you smell the fart you just let out? Please take a good look at this Da Qian embassy. Besides me, who is my person here?

I don't even dare to sleep in the embassy now! I'm afraid! I can't sleep! Your words are so easy, as if both of us can work together for Da Qian. Instead of saying this, it would be better for me to break a rib and stew it to help Ying Wuque recover his strength. This way, I can also contribute to the revival of Da Qian under his future leadership!

Damn it! I came here tonight to talk business seriously, and you're teaching me how to be a dog! I'm not serving you anymore. Do as you wish. Goodbye!"

After speaking, he grabbed the wrist of the little maid and left!

Gongsun Di immediately tried to stop him with his whip, while another prisoner appeared at the same time.

But Ying Wuji and Bai Zhi reacted faster. They directly confronted them, and Ying Wuji's true energy surged as he slapped the golden prisoner's cage. The special rhythm instantly shattered the golden prisoner's cage, while Bai Zhi's sword energy turned the whip into fragments.

Gongsun Di's expression changed drastically. Only a master who had a deep understanding of prisoners could do this. He... he also practiced the Legalist spells?

He didn't have time to think too much. Two swords were raised against his neck at the same time.

Although he had broken through to the twelfth layer of Qi Condensation, the gap between him and other cultivators would only widen after reaching the Embryonic Breathing Realm. It was quite difficult for him to face Bai Zhi and Ying Wuji at the same time, especially Ying Wuji... his true strength far exceeded expectations. Based on his performance just now, he probably already broke through to the eleventh layer of Qi Condensation!

Cold sweat dripped down as he feared that Ying Wuji would act impulsively and kill him.

Ying Wuji glanced at him and then put away his sword. He turned to look at Ying Yue: "Father! The bookstore has been established today, and other businesses will also be established in the future. Da Qian can take them away at any time, but the condition is that all of Ying Wuque's people in the embassy must leave! Also, I don't just want one commercial seal, I want all the commercial seals of Da Qian to be in my hands!

Today's business negotiation failed, but it doesn't hinder you from considering this bigger business. Of course, if you are dissatisfied with me, you can send me back to Da Qian at any time. You can also wait until our national strength recovers and send someone to assassinate me while seizing the opportunity to attack Li. I'm waiting for your reply, goodbye!"

After speaking, he held Bai Zhi's hand and left the Da Qian embassy in a grand manner.

Although he didn't get the commercial seal he wanted this time, he thoroughly understood Ying Yue's true intentions.

When you know a person's bottom line, even if they roar and threaten, they are just paper tigers. Just like Ying Yue today, even if he was scolded to his face, he could only use "twenty lashes" to save face.

As long as they made another deal, the commercial seal would definitely fall into his hands, and those flies jumping around would have no choice but to leave.

After leaving, Ying Wuji gasped heavily, and cold sweat dripped down from his forehead.

Pretending to be cool was originally enjoyable, but pretending to be cool while facing the pressure of the Wushen Realm was really exhausting, especially after receiving twenty lashes. His body couldn't bear it anymore.

His vision darkened, and he fell down, unexpectedly landing in a soft embrace.

"Wuji, what happened to you? What's going on? How did you get beaten like this!"

"Hua Chaojie, why are you here?"

Ying Wuji slowly opened his eyes and saw Hua Chao's eyes full of concern.

Hua Chao's eyes turned red, with tears shimmering: "I was worried about you! I followed you as soon as you left. The gatekeeper wouldn't let me in, so I had to wait outside. What happened? You..."

Ying Wuji felt exhausted and smiled as he waved his hand: "It's nothing serious. Let's go home!"

"Yeah!"

Hua Chao nodded heavily: "Let's go home!"