Ye Luyan’s words were reasonable and the Emperor basically agreed to it, but these words could not be uttered by the paying monarch. After all, needing to pay a yearly tribute was nothing worth bragging about.
Prime Minister Song heard the meaning behind the words and immediately slipped into the conversation when he saw an opening. He said some official phrases to Ye Luyan kindly, revealing the meaning of the Emperor was implying. The others who sat closeby also became relieved upon knowing that Beirong was going to be granted 500,000 each year.
That amount was actually not a lot for a country. At any rate, it would be taken into the accounts of the Imperial court in the end. But since the money wasn’t coming out of their pockets and they still get to live peaceful lives, why wouldn’t they be happy?
The sleeves of the dancers on the stage were still fluttering softly and the rest of the people couldn’t hear what the Emperor and Ye Luyan were discussing, but judging from the expressions of the other courtiers above, they probably guessed that the topic was something serious. Prime Minister Song opened his mouth, as if he was about to agree, when Xie Xuanchen suddenly put the wine bottle on the table. He used too much force, and with that, the wine bottle split open and shattered with a bang.
Everyone else was taken aback by this movement as the dancers on the high platform also froze, not understanding what happened on the field. Xie Xuanchen was already suppressing his anger, so he glanced coldly at the dancing women and slightly parted his thin lips, “Leave us.”
These two words were not said very loudly, but the cold air that suddenly spread throughout the place made the entire venue fall silent. The dancers of the Imperial Performance Division were taken aback as they subconsciously stepped aside, terrified.
Xie Xuanchen’s ruckus wasn’t a small one. From the Emperor and Ye Luyan above to the ordinary courtiers and even the noble women who were chatting together all fixed their gazes on him in an instant.
Ye Luyan’s expression changed as he turned cold and asked, “What does Prince An mean?”
Xie Xuanchen seemed to be really angry. His face was cold like a slab of jade and he completely restrained his smile at this moment. The mole under his eyes was eye-catching in an intimidating way as he spoke with a murderous look, “Since the founding of our Ye Dynasty, there have been constant battles held both domestically and abroad as we have our share of victories and losses. But, we have never surrendered without a fight. The people are the most important, followed by the state whereas the ruler’s life is of least concern. Even if the worst thing happens, death is no big deal. At any rate, our Ye Dynasty will never engage in marriage alliances, cede territories or pay tributes, so don’t even think about it.”
The atmosphere of the palace froze. Especially the ones who advocated the peace talks, like Prime Minister Song, were a little dumbfounded at the moment.
It’s only half a million, so what was Xie Xuanchen doing? Why did he have to cause trouble with the Beirong people in public for that little amount of money?
Ye Luyan’s expression quickly sank when he heard Xie Xuanchen’s word and the rest of the Beirong people were also surprised with their eyes agape, but their expressions became guarded.
Ye Luyan didn’t want to make the situation too bad since the negotiations were going to be completed; if it were to completely collapse now, continuing on a later date would be rather shameful. Ye Luyan had some leeway in his words, so took a breath and said, “I admire Prince An for your iron will and righteousness, but fighting can’t solve the problem. The loss of fighting will be huge and it is far worse than a peaceful coexistence that is beneficial to both of our countries. 500,000 is really insignificant for your court and I am afraid it is less than a tenth of your military expenditure. In fact, I think that it is very cost-effective to exchange such a small amount of money in order to maintain peace on the border. I have heard that Prince An has rich spoils and spends extravagantly. Could it be that the same man is not even willing to pay half a million?”
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