Chapter 170: Definitely a Trap
“Don’t take offense?” Chu Tiankuo’s thin lips curled upward in a sneer.
His peach blossom eyes shimmered with coldness.
He swirled the jade wine cup in his hand and raised his eyelids to look at the Heir Apparent of Zhao, a faint smile playing on his lips. “Heir Apparent of Prince Xiang, hearing your younger sister’s voice, you should know that she has been taken care of very well, right?”
It was precisely because she was well taken care of that she could curse people so righteously and energetically.
At this moment, Zhao Luran walked in, completely unharmed, proving Chu Tiankuo’s words.
The Heir Apparent of Prince Xiang replied nonchalantly, “My younger sister is the Princess of Zhao Kingdom. Naturally, I know she is a distinguished guest in Chu. No one would dare to truly disrespect her. I have never worried about this.”
The implication of his words was that even if you gave the people of Chu a hundred guts, they wouldn’t dare to do anything to the Princess of Zhao!
Chu Tiankuo’s lips curled up. “Indeed, we wouldn’t dare to disrespect a princess worth over twenty million taels.”
He was showing respect to the twenty million taels, not to the person.
The Heir Apparent of Prince Xiang: “…”
Chu Tiankuo, a grown man, was more skilled at verbal sparring than a shrew on the street!
The courtiers laughed inwardly. Competing in verbal dexterity with their Crown Prince?
Their Crown Prince had never lost a verbal battle!
Prince Ding stroked his beard and laughed. “Heir Apparent of Prince Xiang, rest assured. If you give this prince twenty million taels every day, this prince will also respect you. This prince can even call you ‘father’ if you wish. Money talks!”
The Heir Apparent of Prince Xiang: “…”
In your dreams!
Zhao Luran’s eyes lit up when she saw the Heir Apparent of Prince Xiang as she walked in. “Big Brother!” she exclaimed excitedly.
Her big brother had finally come to take her back!
She rushed over, about to take a seat.
Chu Tiankuo glanced at Zhao Luran, a faint smile reappearing on his face. “Zhao Kingdom truly understands etiquette and rules. No wonder they can go back on their word and try to run away after losing.”
Zhao Luran’s face flushed red. “You!”
The Heir Apparent of Prince Xiang scolded with a dark face, “Have you no manners? You haven’t even greeted the Emperor of Chu!”
No matter what, the Emperor of Chu was still the ruler of a nation. Even if their Emperor of Zhao saw him, they would need to exchange greetings and even sit as equals.
Chu was currently lagging behind Zhao, but decades ago, Chu’s strength had always been superior to Zhao’s. Although Zhao was temporarily ahead of Chu, they…
Most importantly, they were on someone else’s territory. Weren’t they afraid of not being able to return if they acted so arrogantly?
Although envoys were traditionally not killed in diplomatic exchanges, there were historical instances of envoys being killed.
Zhao Luran was speechless, but she thought of something and looked at the Emperor of Chu sitting on the magnificent golden throne. “Zhao Luran, Princess of Prince Xiang of Zhao Kingdom, greets the Emperor of Chu!”
Her voice was haughty, without a trace of respect!
The Emperor didn’t bother to argue with a woman, and he was always cowardly. He smiled and said, “Princess of Zhao, you may rise. Please be seated!”
Chu Tiankuo put down the jade wine cup in his hand, the cup making a crisp clinking sound against the table.
Everyone subconsciously looked at him.
He said calmly, “Heir Apparent of Prince Xiang, now you understand why I detained your younger sister, right?”
The Heir Apparent of Prince Xiang: “…”
Of course he knew. His younger sister was arrogant and domineering, and after losing, she even wanted to run away!
But he didn’t think there was anything wrong with that!
The only mistake was that his sister was too stupid!
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She was the Princess of Zhao. Why did she need to run away? If she had proactively promised when she would repay the silver and shown sincerity, the people of Chu wouldn’t have dared to detain her.
From the moment she ran away, she put herself and Zhao at a disadvantage!
If she had first stabilized the people of Chu, pretended to prepare the silver, and waited until she safely returned to Zhao, then they could have refused to repay the twenty million taels!
Prince Ding spoke at this time. “Heir Apparent of Prince Xiang, look at how well the Princess of Prince Xiang has been cared for! This prince sees that she has even gained weight! Now that you see the Princess of Prince Xiang safe and sound, you can rest assured, right? So, when will the twenty million taels be repaid? Both of you siblings are here now. Let’s settle this! Give us a definite time!”
“The Crown Prince is honorable and upright. This prince naturally trusts you. As for the twenty million taels my younger sister lost, I’ll repeat what I said before. I only have silver notes!”
Chu Tiankuo interrupted him. “I’ll make my stance clear today. When the twenty million taels of actual silver are delivered, that’s when the Princess of Prince Xiang can return home! I don’t lack people to serve the princess, but I have no relation to her, and I can’t raise her for free. Living expenses, accommodation fees, these still need to be calculated. Three hundred taels a day! Don’t forget!”
Zhao Luran’s eyes widened. “Transporting twenty million taels of actual silver? Are you crazy? Aren’t silver notes the same?”
She could ask her maternal uncle to print silver notes, but actual silver was different!
If they really had to transport twenty million taels of actual silver, how long would that take?
A round trip would take at least two months. Wouldn’t she have to stay in Chu for another two months?
Chu Tiankuo didn’t even glance at the Princess of Zhao.
She was not worthy of speaking to him!
The Heir Apparent of Prince Xiang ignored the madman Chu Tiankuo and looked at the Emperor on the dragon throne. “Your Majesty, the silver notes of the Qian Family Bank are universally accepted in the Four Kingdoms. Is it excessive to insist on actual silver? During the negotiations the other day, this prince proposed a condition.”
The Heir Apparent of Prince Xiang stated the condition from that day.
“Trading caravans going overseas. The remaining ten million taels can be earned back with one overseas trip. In the future, countless more ten million taels can be earned. Your Majesty, am I right?”
The Emperor’s face showed deep agreement. “Indeed! Overseas trade brings in a flood of wealth. I have long yearned for it! It’s just a pity that the Princess of Zhao owes a debt, and it’s a debt owed to the people of Chu. It’s a private matter, and it’s not appropriate for me to interfere! So, you can discuss it amongst yourselves. I won’t participate.”
The Heir Apparent of Prince Xiang had originally intended to take advantage of this palace banquet to tempt the Emperor of Chu, hoping he would quickly accept the ten million taels in silver notes and release his sister. He didn’t expect the Emperor of Chu to start passing the buck too!
The Heir Apparent of Prince Xiang patiently said, “Actual silver is not a problem. It’s just that transporting twenty million taels of actual silver will take several months and is prone to accidents. After all, it’s a huge sum. Crown Prince of Chu, can’t we use other methods instead?”
The most important thing now was to pretend to negotiate. He would deal with it after he safely returned to his country!
He had sent people to track and investigate the whereabouts of that Master Shen. Not only did they not find him, but he discovered that he and his younger brother were being secretly monitored and followed by a group of people!
Chu Tiankuo knew of their existence!
He thought of how Chu Tiankuo’s maternal grandfather was Marquis Changping, and the Changping Army had been annihilated by his father. Chu Tiankuo must hate his father to death.
This time, his younger sister’s trip to Chu had already cost them over twenty million taels!
This was definitely a trap set by Chu Tiankuo! They had all fallen into his trap!
He was worried that Chu Tiankuo would take this opportunity to deal with him.
It was best to take his younger sister back to Zhao as soon as possible!
After he safely returned to Zhao with his younger sister, he would immediately lead his troops south and fight until Chu ceded land and paid reparations! He would not rest until then!
Chu Tiankuo said calmly, “I can only make decisions regarding one million taels, after all, I only won one million taels. I can exchange that one million taels for something else. As for the rest, Heir Apparent of Prince Xiang, you’ll have to ask others.”
Hearing this, the Heir Apparent of Prince Xiang smiled and said, “Thank you for your understanding, Crown Prince. What condition would you like to exchange for that one million taels?”
“My imperial older sister, the Eldest Princess of Chu.”
