Iron Dynasty

Chapter 1105

“A truly great country.”

Rhodes exclaimed sincerely, while Brooke and Henry had complex expressions. They had already foreseen what would happen next.

The cars continued to speed along. Fifteen minutes later, the convoy stopped at the Imperial City gate.

The envoys got out of the cars, still a little mesmerized. The comfort and speed of the cars had left a very deep impression on them.

If possible, they would have been willing to continue riding in the cars and take another lap around Qingzhou.

“Gentlemen, please!” Tang Wenjie made a gesture to invite them in. Everyone followed him into the imperial palace. After walking for about ten minutes along a winding path, they arrived at a beautiful garden.

Here, a hundred flowers were in full bloom, and bees and butterflies fluttered about, as if it were a paradise.

A long table had been set up in the square of the garden. Court maids and eunuchs were setting up tableware. The cabinet ministers and Xiao Ming were already waiting here.

There was no doubt that this negotiation was also very important for the Empire, as it meant how much money the Empire could squeeze out of Europe.

“Your Majesty!”

Under Tang Wenjie’s guidance, Rhodes arrived in front of Xiao Ming and bowed to show his respect. The other envoys followed Rhodes and did the same.

“Hahahaha… Please, everyone, be seated.”

Xiao Ming laughed heartily and motioned for everyone to take their seats. Although he was the victor, he still had to be polite on the surface.

As for the back-and-forth at the negotiating table, that was a different matter.

Everyone took their seats, and the food and wine were brought out one after another. Pang Yukun and the other cabinet ministers immediately used the Empire’s drinking culture to pour wine for Rhodes and the others.

The lunch was purely a luncheon and not the time for negotiation. After all, when it was time to negotiate, they would have to do it one country at a time.

But if they could get these envoys drunk and have them speak the truth, that would be even better.

The Eastern Empire’s cabinet ministers’ enthusiasm caught Brooke and Henry a little off guard, after all, the losers in a war were always the ones who suffered.

What they didn’t know, however, was that they were being set up.

After three rounds of wine, Rhodes and the others were all drunk from the high-alcohol liquor. Their tongues were already twisted when they spoke.

Seeing that everyone was in a daze, Xiao Ming gave Pang Yukun a look. The ministers understood. They immediately led the envoys away. Of course, they did not forget to try to extract the bottom lines for the negotiation.

After everyone had left, a mess was left on the table. At this time, a sixteen-year-old young man stood up from his seat.

It was Xiao Yi.

“Imperial Father, why bother with these defeated people? Why don’t you just lay out the Empire’s conditions?”

Xiao Ming glanced at Xiao Yi. Unbeknownst to him, Xiao Yi had slowly grown up. The sixteen-year-old Xiao Yi was now a student at Qingzhou University. In another two years, he would graduate and officially handle some matters related to the Crown Prince.

“I remember telling you that matters between countries must not be handled with your emotions. A single Japan can cause so many problems, let alone Europe, which has one foot in civilized society. Making these envoys look bad is easy, but the consequences could be that the Empire will have to sacrifice thousands of soldiers to achieve what can be achieved through negotiation. And that can be achieved with just a conversation.”

Xiao Ming’s words were a little stern.

The current Xiao Yi was the Crown Prince. The reason he established a Crown Prince back then was that the Empire was internally unstable, and he was also worried about his own safety.

This was because if anything were to happen to him at that time, the Empire would fall into chaos. Having a Crown Prince would stabilize the people’s hearts.

But now, the Crown Prince’s meaning was different.

After all, with the development of the Empire’s education, the people’s knowledge was becoming more and more widespread, and their thinking was becoming more and more active.

The Renaissance was no longer just talk; it was flourishing. The result of this was that the Empire’s culture had also shed its former feudal ignorance and was moving towards modernization.

The deified imperial power was slowly shedding its mysterious veil and becoming the supreme authority accepted by the entire Empire.

And in that case, the Empire accepting his rule was one thing, but whether it could accept Xiao Yi’s rule was another.

After all, he was the one who built the Empire. His prestige was beyond anyone’s reach, and no one could replace his position. But Xiao Yi had not achieved any merits and would find it difficult to win over the people.

Therefore, if he were to be at the end of his life and genetic technology had not yet achieved a breakthrough, even if he were to pass the throne to Xiao Yi, it would be an unknown whether the Empire’s veteran ministers, who had followed him to conquer the empire, would support him.

But no matter what, he hoped that Xiao Yi would be excellent. After all, Xiao Yi was his eldest son, and he had always had high hopes for him.

What he truly expected was for Xiao Yi to be able to inherit the throne through his own ability, not by relying on his influence as his father.

Xiao Yi shrank his neck when he heard this and did not dare to say any more.

Xiao Ming frowned when he saw this. He said, “Also, when you are in front of me, you must say what you truly think. Don’t pretend to be tough.”

He could tell that what Xiao Yi had just said was not what he really thought. He was just trying to follow his temper, because he often criticized Xiao Yi for being too soft.

“Yes, Imperial Father.” Xiao Yi immediately returned to his gentle and refined self. He said, “Your son believes that the Empire has been fighting continuously for years and should not be spending resources to fight in Europe. The Empire’s population has only just recovered to a hundred million. It is already very difficult to control all of Southeast Asia, East Asia, and Siberia, let alone travel more than thirty thousand kilometers to Europe. Even if we use all the Empire’s ships to provide supplies, it would be very difficult. In your son’s opinion, if we can gain enough benefits in this negotiation, that would be enough. It’s not too late to reconsider after we have the strength to launch an expedition in the future.”

Xiao Ming nodded. He said, “That’s more like it. You are right. It seems you have been studying government affairs well these past few years.”

Xiao Yi’s heart was filled with joy. In his eyes, Fei Yuer and his Imperial Father were the quintessential strict father and kind mother.

It was precisely for this reason that he was a little afraid of his father.

“Your son has not dared to be negligent.” Xiao Yi said honestly.

“Hmm, but there is still much for you to learn. Your Imperial Father will grow old one day, and one day you will have to contend in the vortex of political struggle alone.” Xiao Ming said, “You should go back now. You will be allowed to sit in on the negotiations tomorrow. After you graduate from the academy, I will arrange a position for you to start from the bottom. It is not easy to manage a country.”

“Yes, Imperial Father,” Xiao Yi responded and turned to leave.

Watching Xiao Yi’s figure disappear, Xiao Ming looked at the rock garden on the side and shouted, “Come out now!”

As his voice fell, two young men of similar age walked out.

“Imperial Father.” The two young men, who looked somewhat similar to him, said with a hint of fear.

“You are so audacious. Who told you to eavesdrop here?” The people in front of him were none other than the second imperial prince, Xiao Tong, and the fourth imperial prince, Xiao Qian.

“It was the second brother who insisted on bringing me here. He said that he also wanted to learn the Imperial Father’s way of governing the country.” Xiao Qian said, looking as if he was about to cry.

Xiao Tong glanced at Xiao Qian when he heard this. “You coward. I’m never bringing you with me again.”