Chapter 606

Xue Shengjing laughed and said, "That's wonderful. Miss Huo is currently in Yongdu; Sir Hu might have a chance to meet her."

Hu Xiaotian, upon hearing this news, was both startled and delighted; since parting in Kangdu, he had lost contact with Huo Xiaoru. They had originally made a one-year agreement, inviting Huo Xiaoru to travel to Azure Clouds together, but who would have thought that after he went to Azure Clouds, such earth-shaking changes would occur. Now meeting again, who knows if things remain the same while people have changed?

At this moment, Tie Zheng walked in, and Xue Shengjing asked, "How is it? Did you find Mr. Liu?"

Tie Zheng said, "Mr. Liu suddenly fell seriously ill; just now someone came to report the news, and he cannot come."

Upon hearing this, Xue Shengjing couldn't help but frown and mutter to himself, "How could this be so unfortunate? How serious is his illness?"

Tie Zheng said, "It's said the illness came on suddenly and is severe."

Xue Shengjing stretched out his big hand and scratched his crotch again; as a prince, doing such an involuntary gesture in front of guests is rather improper.

Hu Xiaotian, watching from the side, secretly wondered, "Does this Prince Yan have some problem with his lower three paths? Otherwise why would he want to meet Mr. Liu of the Shennong Society?"

Tie Zheng said, "Your Highness need not worry; actually, in Yongdu we have more than just Physician Liu Changsheng as a doctor. Since he is indisposed, we can simply choose another renowned physician."

Xue Shengjing said, "Wasn't he fine just yesterday? How did he suddenly fall ill today? Tie Zheng, have someone look into it—see whether Old Man Liu is truly ill or faking it." After saying that, he turned to Hu Xiaotian and put on a smile: "Sir Hu, please take a seat." Since Physician Liu Changsheng was definitely not coming, they no longer needed to wait.

Hu Xiaotian and Xue Shengjing sat down together; Hu Xiaotian paid attention to his sitting posture, which was noticeably unnatural, and formed a rough estimate of Prince Xue's physical condition—surely something was wrong with the lower half of his body.

Xue Shengjing was a smiling tiger. He always appeared very courteous, but after three rounds of drinks he could no longer hold back, grinning as he said, "Sir Hu, what brings you to Yongdu?"

Hu Xiaotian found it strange that the marriage alliance between Dakang and Da Yong, which was common knowledge in Dakang, seemed completely different upon arriving in Da Yong. Even in Yongdu, the most well-informed city, there was no stir over the marriage matter. As Prince Yan of Da Yong, Xue Shengjing should not be unaware of this, especially since Hu Xiaotian had identified himself as the Marriage Envoy from Dakang. Even without mentioning accompanying Princess Anping for the wedding, the prince ought to know something. This must be suspicious—either Li Chen Zhou and others deliberately concealed the fact that Princess Anping had already arrived in Yongdu, or Xue Shengjing was feigning ignorance. In fact, Hu Xiaotian had already grown wary of this seemingly honest, simple-minded fat man, Prince Xue. He had originally planned to use Yang Lingqi's landscape painting as a token to gain entry, and then mention Yang Lingqi's other works to whet his appetite. But after actually seeing Prince Xue's collection, he realized that even if Yang Lingqi's calligraphy and paintings were superb, amidst the prince's abundant treasures they would be merely a drop in the ocean.

Hu Xiaotian further inferred that the Prince Yan's dazzling outward demeanor was nine times out of ten a pretense. Yet he treated Hu Xiaotian with such courtesy; by rights, Hu Xiaotian's status did not warrant such high regard. The more Hu Xiaotian thought about it, the more wrong it seemed.

Hu Xiaotian smiled and said, "Your Highness. I just said that I am the Marriage Envoy sent by Dakang."

Xue Shengjing put on an expression of sudden realization and chuckled, "You see, my memory is terrible—you really did just say that. Marriage Envoy? I wonder what it's for."

Hu Xiaotian could almost certainly tell that Prince Xue was feigning ignorance, but he didn't call him out, smiling and asking, "Your Highness, have you heard of the marriage between Dakang's Princess Anping and your country's Seventh Prince?"

Xue Shengjing said, "I myself am not aware of this matter. I have been traveling since last year and only returned five days ago; I haven't even had a chance to see my elder brother, and today is the first I've heard of Old Seven's marriage to Princess Anping. In that case, I should prepare a great gift." He lifted the Golden Goblet and clinked it with Hu Xiaotian's cup, saying, "Sir Hu, your journey must have been very arduous, right?"

Hu Xiaotian smiled and said, "It's not that hard; the most important thing is to escort the princess safely here."

Xue Shengjing asked, "Sir Hu, did you come to see me for any other reason?"

Hu Xiaotian replied, "No other reason; I'm merely fulfilling a friend's request."

Xue Shengjing praised, "Sir Hu keeps his word to the weight of a thousand gold—truly a man of integrity!"

They exchanged cups and spoke with utmost courtesy, but from beginning to end Hu Xiaotian never spoke the truth, for he saw that Prince Yan Xue Shengjing was extremely insincere, and befriending such a person is no easy task. However, Hu Xiaotian's purpose in coming was mainly to gauge the prince's intentions; seeing his behavior, he had already concluded that Da Yong attached far less importance to this marriage alliance than Dakang did, and Dakang's hope that a single marriage could secure long-term peace and end the war between the two countries was utterly baseless.

Hu Xiaotian couldn't help but feel a bit regretful; had he known Prince Xue was such a slippery character, he wouldn't have needed to give Yang Lingqi's painting away for free—not because he regretted the painting, but because he realized Prince Xue was nothing like the legendary benevolent lord Mengchang of our times; such a person is difficult to get along with. Hu Xiaotian was never one to back down easily; although he saw that this prince was a tough nut to crack, he did not become discouraged but instead felt his fighting spirit rise.

The reason the delegation did not receive the treatment it deserved upon arriving in Yongdu was certainly partly due to Da Yong's deliberate slight, but fundamentally it was because of Dakang's national strength—rich country, strong people, which has always been the case since ancient times.

Although Da Yong's history cannot compare to Dakang's—having been founded less than a century ago—over these past hundred-plus years Da Yong has been developing quietly, and its national strength has undoubtedly surpassed that of Dakang. With the waxing and waning of fortunes, how could the declining Dakang earn respect from other nations? To make others look at you differently, you must let them fully recognize your strength; this holds true for both state and individual. To earn others' respect, first make them fear you, second make them seek you out, and third win them over with your personal charisma. Hu Xiaotian asked himself whether he possessed such great personal charm or anything that would frighten Prince Yan; since he did not, he could only think of ways to make the other side seek him out.

Using Yang Lingqi's landscape painting would clearly not achieve the goal; Hu Xiaotian glanced at Prince Xue, couldn't help but scratch his crotch again, recalled his earlier conversation with Tie Zheng, and feigned concern: "Your Highness, are you feeling unwell?"

Before Prince Xue's hand could move away from his crotch, he chuckled and said, "Nothing much; my health is excellent."

Hu Xiaotian said, "Actually, the reason I have earned the emperor's favor and been entrusted with important duties is that I know a little medicine and have twice saved the emperor from peril."

From the start, Xue Shengjing had found it strange how this young man could have gained the trust of the Dakang emperor, Long Yelin, to be entrusted with such an important mission as escorting the bride. Hu Xiaotian's explanation exactly cleared up that doubt. However, in this traditional society where humility is a virtue, someone like Hu Xiaotian who openly shows off his talents is rare, and Xue Shengjing naturally would not fully believe him; he laughed, "I never expected Sir Hu to also be a master of state medicine—admirable! Admirable!"

Hu Xiaotian replied, "It's nothing special; I'm just a bit stronger than most of the imperial physicians."

Xue Shengjing felt embarrassed for this young man, saying, "You're fat, you pant just from speaking; claiming you're stronger than most imperial physicians? Look at you—you haven't even tied up your hair, how dare you shamelessly say such a thing."

Having said that, Hu Xiaotian did not linger any longer; he rose to take his leave, and Xue Shengjing did not detain him.

Hu Xiaotian said, "Your Highness, please stay!"

Xue Shengjing had no intention of rising anyway; hearing Hu Xiaotian's words gave him even more reason to stay seated comfortably, and he smiled, "Sir Hu, take care. Tie Zheng, see him out." No sooner had he finished speaking than he felt a strange itch in his crotch and reached out to scratch again.

Hu Xiaotian went out of the Prince's mansion together with Tie Zheng. Tie Zheng stopped at the gate, clasped his fists and said, 'Sir Hu, take your leave; I won't see you off far.' A steward of the Prince's mansion was also very arrogant.

Hu Xiaotian wasn't angry, leading the little gray, he smiled and clasped his hands. Before he walked far, the two gates of Prince Yan's mansion closed behind him.

Zhan Peng stepped out from the cherry blossom forest ahead, walked toward Hu Xiaotian and said, 'Sir, how was it? Went smoothly?'

Hu Xiaotian laughed and said, 'Let's leave this place first, then talk.'

Inside the Buddha Laughing Pavilion, Prince Yan Xue Shengjing had already had someone hang the landscape painting that Hu Xiaotian gave him on the wall. He sat before it, appreciating it for a while, then softly sighed, 'It is indeed a rare fine painting!'

A thin, small Lan-clad scholar quietly appeared behind him. Although Xue Shengjing didn't turn his head, he seemed to have clearly seen his arrival: 'Mr. Ma, what do you think?' This scholar was none other than Xue Shengjing's chief aide, Ma Qingyun.

Ma Qingyun flattered, saying, 'When it comes to appreciating calligraphy and painting, who in the world could compare to Your Highness, Prince?'

Xue Shengjing narrowed his small eyes: 'The Dakang envoy just arrived in Yongdu yesterday, and today they sent a marriage envoy to call on me, even presenting me with a timeless masterpiece. What do you think, Mr. Ma?'

Ma Qingyun said, 'This Hu Xiaotian certainly has an ulterior motive.'

Xue Shengjing burst out laughing: 'This kid is quite a character, so young yet able to keep his composure; from beginning to end he never revealed his true purpose.'

Ma Qingyun said, 'When the Dakang envoy arrived in Yongdu yesterday, some unpleasantness occurred. Li Shen Zhou arranged for them to enter through the side gate, but Princess Anping refused, insisting on entering on foot through the main gate. Now the envoy has been temporarily lodged in the Qi Chen Palace. According to our information, the imperial side has shown no reaction yet; presumably the Dakang side is feeling anxious, feeling slighted, and thus eager to have a member of the imperial family report this to the Emperor and clarify his attitude.' (To be continued~^~)