Chapter 848: First Volume, Chapter 848: Far From Home, Still Undefeated

First Volume, Chapter 848: Far From Home, Still Undefeated

The guests present had already been on edge, and upon hearing these words, they immediately grew tense.

The crowd exchanged uneasy glances, none daring to speak up; even Jing Ci furrowed her brow slightly, unsure what Qin Feng was actually up to.

Feeling Qin Feng's powerful presence, Qi Ya could not help muttering to herself.

"Is this the Di Kingdom, or the Liang Kingdom?"

"How does a foreign envoy have such audacity on Di Kingdom soil?"

Qin Feng waited a while, and seeing the hall still utterly silent, he stopped wasting time, picked up his chopsticks, and continued turning over the thick, undercooked whole chicken.

As he turned it, he said casually, "I've already given you all a chance. Since you've chosen to give it up, let's not waste any more time—let's speak plainly with the windows thrown open."

"I know perfectly well what my reputation is in your kingdom. The lot of you who came to this wine-tasting gathering today may not be doing me a favor, and probably aren't here for Her Highness the Princess either. The only reason you came is to cause me trouble."

"Whatever schemes you've prepared, whatever thoughts you're nursing—frankly, I don't care."

"What just happened, you all witnessed. The facts prove that before absolute power, any plot or trick is pale and powerless."

"The Vice Minister of Works and his son, the Patrol Security Captain, and the city gate guards have all been beheaded. With so many precedents before you, I trust you can take the lesson to heart. If anyone still refuses to give up and wants to test the law with their own body, go right ahead. However, if any of you wish to coexist peacefully with me, Qin Feng welcomes you with open arms."

Wang Fugui lowered his head and couldn't help swallowing.

Logically speaking, Qin Feng was only a foreign envoy; whatever status he held in the royal capital depended entirely on the attitude of those in power.

But the facts clearly showed otherwise.

Qin Feng's honor or disgrace was unaffected by anyone. The killing of the Vice Minister of Works and his son was proof enough that even the Bei Di Wang Du feared Qin Feng.

In other words, whether in the Liang Kingdom or the Di Kingdom, there was really no difference for Qin Feng.

The money, soldiers, and generals in his hands could shake the entire Heaven; anyone who dared to provoke Qin Feng would die without a burial place.

Wang Fugui raised his head and glanced at the guests present.

These people were all notorious troublemakers in the royal capital, but at this moment they were unusually well-behaved—some with heads lowered in silence, others pretending to casually stir the copper pot, neither speaking up nor causing trouble.

It seemed the crowd had reached a consensus: they could not afford to offend Qin Feng.

Qin Feng was also very satisfied with the reaction in the room—at least this would save a lot of trouble.

"Are there any officials among you? Raise your hands and let me see."

Hearing this, three middle-aged men in the room hesitated again and again, but finally mustered their courage and raised their hands.

Qin Feng smiled and nodded: "What positions do you hold?"

The three introduced themselves in turn.

"I am a Secretary of the Ministry of Revenue."

"I am the Vice Commander of the City Patrol."

"I hold an idle post in Jingzhao Prefecture."

Just as Qin Feng had expected, everyone who came tonight was nothing more than an insignificant underling.

He pressed his hand down to signal the three not to be afraid, and said amiably, "If the three of you wish to stay, stay; if you want to leave, I won't force you. It's entirely up to you."

At these words, the three felt as if granted a great reprieve. They hurriedly stood, bowed with cupped hands, and fled as if escaping.

The remaining dozen or so guests watched, their faces full of envy, jealousy, and hatred.

Why were those three allowed to leave while they had to stay here keeping this fiend company?

Just as everyone was puzzling over this, Qin Feng's voice rose again.

"Since there are no longer any officials present, we can get down to business."

"I came to your kingdom with two tasks this time. The first is to promote the Two Nations' Peace Talks—this is common knowledge, so I needn't elaborate."

"The second task is to develop commerce and promote the economy."

"Thanks to Her Highness the Princess's generosity, she found me a shopfront. However, the situation is clear, and I harbor no illusions. If I personally went into business, even if your people starved to death in the streets, they still wouldn't buy a single thing from me. I have absolutely no doubt about your kingdom's backbone."

"Therefore, tonight's wine-tasting gathering, apart from tasting wine, has one most important purpose: to find partners."

Hearing Qin Feng's true intentions revealed, the room grew even quieter.

Cooperate with Qin Feng? What a joke!

Just as Qin Feng himself said, even if they starved to death in the streets, it would absolutely never happen!

Beyond distrust of Qin Feng, the greater reason was that no one wanted to touch this bad luck and be stabbed in the back by others, cursed as a traitor.

Qin Feng was not at all surprised by the crowd's reaction. If they had agreed cheerfully, that would have been suspicious.

Qin Feng put down his chopsticks, picked up the brewed millet wine, poured it into a cup, and held it in his palms. The warm heat drove away much of the chill—it was indescribably comfortable.

"Since none of you hold office or titles, the fact that you can sit in the Wang Family Mansion means you all have some background. Whether you're merchants or sons of aristocratic families, I'll give you one piece of advice: if you don't seize the chance now, when you're so poor you can't even lift the pot lid, don't come crying to me!"

Jing Ci could hold back no longer. She asked softly, "Marquis Qin, have you come here to cooperate in trade, or to steal our饭碗?"

"Why does your tone sound so unfriendly?"

Facing Jing Ci's questioning, Qin Feng patiently explained.

"It's not that I'm unfriendly—trade itself is cruel. Big fish eat little fish, little fish eat shrimp. Survival of the fittest, natural selection."

"Tonight, with Her Highness the Princess present, I'll speak from the heart. Once trade opens, countless merchants will surely come to Military Siege Luedi."

"If local merchants don't make proper preparations, they'll inevitably be eaten down to the bare bones!"

"As a subject of Shedynasty, I would love to see your kingdom devoured clean. But personally, I don't want your kingdom to suffer too badly—at the very least... I don't want to leave Qian Ying a riddled, broken mess."

Jing Ci absolutely did not believe Qin Feng would kindly help the Di Kingdom recover its economy. However, if Jing Qianying were implicated, things would be different.

Just as Qin Feng said, even if he didn't care whether the entire Di Kingdom lived or died, he had to care about Jing Qianying.

Jing Ci thought for a moment, then mustered her courage to ask, "What exactly is this cooperation you speak of?"

Qin Feng answered without hesitation: "Mutual benefit and win-win. As the source supplier, I provide the commodities; you gentlemen act as downstream sellers and handle sales. Of the profit margin, I take seven, you take three."

At these words, before Jing Ci could question him, some of the merchants in the room could no longer hold back.

A middle-aged man with a thick beard, wearing a deep blue cotton robe, stood up despite his nervousness.

"Marquis Qin, this so-called win-win cooperation — isn't that a bit too prettily phrased?"

"The profit margin is split seven parts for you, three for us. Isn't that just funneling all the gold and silver of our Great Di straight into your pockets?"