Negotiator Ming (Part 3)
As peeved as she was, Zuo Suniang decided to finish stating her last demand. “Lastly, I want my son, Muye, to return to my side. A date must be set for him to inherit the rank of Prince, as well. To that end, I would like to ask if His Majesty could kindly set up a nice marriage for him prior. This is my last demand.”
“Right, right, my son, Muye… inherit the rank of Prince…”
“My son!’
“Right, your son, your son.”
“With my son!”
I scrubbed my head. “Whose son is he, exactly?”
“Move! I’ll write it myself!”
I passed over the sheet of paper without hesitation. “Feel free.”
She snatched the sheet over, set it down flat and grumbled under her breath, “As mighty with the sword as he is with the brush. Now I wonder if it was all a fluke. Can’t even write ‘to’ and this handwriting is…” She made three attempts to put brush to paper, only to succumb to the red flushes that dyed her cheeks. In the end, she passed the sheet back and said, “You write.”
“Mm? You do not want to write it now?”
“Cut the nonsense!”
Though she grew up in a strict household, the majority of the northern border’s martial arts community were focused on martial arts, not academic excellence. Therefore, while she was literate, her handwriting might not have been the greatest. Were she to be juxtaposed against someone who was forced to learn to write from childhood – and won the top prize in the special exams – then she’d look bad.
“Write!”
I finished writing Zuo Suniang’s final demand properly, blew it dry and courteously told her, “I will pass this on to His Majesty. Please remember what you said and fulfil your end of the deal. All the requests are reasonable and easy to fulfil. Considering His Majesty’s respect for your family, it will go smoothly.”
Her demands were a little, no, very much excessive. A relative of the imperial family had a secret passage to infiltrate the imperial palace, and here they were demanding prestige, a privilege to raise their own warriors and Prince rank. It was blatantly demanding authority. That being said, she had the bargaining chips for those privileges.
I was the only person who could negotiate on behalf of His Majesty for the reason that others, including His Majesty, had yet to realise the importance of Northern Wondrous Warrior Manor in the whole equation. Based on our agreement, I had to keep the fact a secret. Therefore, it would take anyone else several visits and attempts to pry if they were to dig up Zuo Suniang’s trump card, which would mean that they’d walk away today without anything accomplished. By my estimations, they’d only reach the point I had reached in the middle of the exams. By then, she’d have turned on His Majesty – or even allowed a few members of the White Princes in as a warning. Obviously, she’d be even more demanding then since the circumstance would be His Majesty needing a way out from a crisis.
“Fuma, it should go without saying that you cannot mention a word of what you said to His Majesty. Else, our conversation was never had, and I will support the other side. Please bear that in mind.”
In other words, I had to persuade His Majesty to accept her demanding terms without divulging the value of Northern Wondrous Warrior Manor in the status quo. It was a test of my abilities, not their stance.
The man at the back asked, “Fuma, are you certain that His Majesty will oblige?”
“You can rest assured. I am an expert in this field.”
“Can you guarantee it?”
“You do not trust me?” With a smile, I said, “I heard Mount Tian’s Teacher Wen was a famous gentleman. I never thought you would have such a paranoid personality?”
“You know me?”
“Who does not know Mount Tian’s matriarch’s uncle?”
The two of them saw each other’s shock when they exchanged eye contact. Mr. Wen hid his identity whilst staying here for the sole reason of remaining as a hidden trump card. Anyhow, I went on to voice my true demand.
“I will fulfil my promise as I said I would. In turn, I hope you can fulfil one demand, as well, Your Highness. Could you please fulfil the first promise now?”
“No.”
“Why?”
“We do not know if you can persuade His Majesty. You think I am a three-year-old kid to just divulge the secret?”
“When can you fulfil it, then?”
“At least after Muye returns and His Majesty decreed our return.”
“So, a few days from now?”
“Naturally.”
I shook my head as I sighed. “I see.”
I took out a sheet of paper from my shirt, picked up my brush and started writing whilst reading aloud, “To Your Majesty, Her Highness wishes for a broken home, three dead dogs, to admit guilty, to forfeit a Prince rank…”
Zuo Suniang’s fury grew to the point that she couldn’t find the words to say by the time I was done.
“What is the meaning of this?!” thundered Mr. Wen.
“What else do you think? Is this not expected? I told you: I can convince His Majesty regardless of the circumstances.” I blew the ink dry and flapped the two sheets with a smile. “If you can be so sure, tell me the White Princes’ plot right now, and this sheet will be yours. A luxury abode, rich fields, loyal warriors, enviable prestige, clean name, glory, united family, Prince rank and a nice wife fit for His Highness that I will personally request from His Majesty.” I put one sheet on the table, slammed my hand onto it and adopted a cold aura. “Should you refuse, it will be a house made of straw, a tarnished name, a son taken hostage in Beijiang and a scarecrow for a daughter-in-law.”
With shaky shoulders, Zuo Suniang uttered, “You are a bully.”
“I have been sincere, so I hope you will reciprocate the respect. If you do not immediately sever your ties to the White Princes, our alliance is a castle in the sky. If I cannot leave with their secret today, you will not have another visitor from the imperial court. Your Highness, it is true that you have bargaining chips, but let me be honest…” I held my gaze against hers and asserted, “When it comes to the welfare of the kingdom, there is no room for error.”
Once she reacted with a stern face, I smiled and added, “Plus, your son is still in my hands. So, give me a definitive answer.”
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