Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 185: Departure to Mangshan Mountain
“I’ve come all the way here, how can I refuse!” Li Xian glanced sideways at He Zhiguo. After Li Xian publicly shared his theories in the Great Xia Kingdom, such things had become unavoidable.
He Zhiguo showed no embarrassment and instead proactively poured tea for Li Xian. Then the two of them agreed that in two days, His Majesty the Emperor of the Qi State would prepare a state gift to welcome Li Xian and invited him to the Qi Imperial Palace to give a lecture to the officials.
This was a grand gesture, almost treating Li Xian as an emperor himself, making it even harder for Li Xian to refuse.
However, Li Xian wasn’t idle these days. Merchants from Qi State had shamelessly come knocking to ask for guidance. Well then… let’s have another public lecture! Since he had already given a speech, Li Xian was even more generous now, refusing no one, directly opening the doors of the hall and explaining to the crowd of Qi State citizens who came pouring in.
Through this lecture, Li Xian once again gained immense fortune. His recently solidified early-stage Golden Elixir realm seemed to be making a push toward the middle stage of Golden Elixir.
Two days passed in the blink of an eye. Early in the morning of this day, a grand procession arrived at the front of the hall. At the very front of the procession was a large palanquin carried by eight bearers—judging by its decorations, this was most likely the Qi Emperor’s seat.
“Quite extravagant!” Li Xian sighed softly.
Xu Ren smiled slightly, “It’s nothing. With the Qi Emperor giving such a grand gesture, Young Master cannot hide his talents. At the very least, it must not be worse than the lecture in the Great Xia Kingdom. It would be best if you could refine it slightly. Don’t leave a bad impression here.”
Li Xian nodded slightly, well aware of what to do.
On both sides of the street were countless onlookers. Even on the rooftops, many people were watching, clearly because such a grand procession was a rare sight even in the Qi State.
Sitting in the eight-bearer palanquin, Li Xian was drowsy, too comfortable. Not only was there beast skin in the palanquin, but more importantly, these skins had been inscribed with formations. Many of these formations were at the Golden Elixir stage!
Carefully examining these formations, Li Xian had to admit that the method of engraving formations here was far superior to the talents in the Brilliant Star Group. Although there were plenty of skilled individuals in the private sector, the palace was not lacking in talent either. In fact, one could say that top-tier talents were often found in the palace.
The journey was swaying, almost like floating on clouds, and before Li Xian realized it, the procession suddenly stopped. A faint voice came from outside: “Young Master Li, we’ve arrived.”
Reluctantly, Li Xian left the Emperor’s palanquin, descending from the clouds to the ground.
Looking up, they had already arrived at the Imperial Palace’s main hall. The Qi State had certainly given face, directly bringing Li Xian to the Cheng Tian Hall, where the imperial court meetings were usually held.
This made Li Xian feel somewhat constrained. Under the gaze of countless eyes, he slowly walked into the Qi Imperial Court and met the imposing Qi Emperor.
In contrast to the dying emperor of the Great Xia Kingdom, the Qi Emperor exuded an air of divine majesty, resembling an Emperor of Heaven. Moreover, Li Xian had a faint sense that this emperor might even possess a Yuan Ying stage cultivation! In this regard, the Qi Emperor was far ahead, leaving the Great Xia Emperor far behind.
Indeed, the emperor of a flourishing nation was on an entirely different level from the emperor of a nation on the brink of death.
Straightening his clothes, Li Xian respectfully followed diplomatic protocol and bowed, “I, Li Xian, a subject from afar, greet His Majesty the Emperor of Qi, wishing His Majesty a long life that reaches the heavens.”
The Qi Emperor, stern and unmoving, nodded slightly, “Li Xian, I am very grateful for the ideas you brought from far away, to invigorate our nation through commerce. Someone, give him a seat.”
Soon, a guard brought out a golden throne, a smaller one than the Emperor’s, placed beside him, only one step lower than the imperial throne.
Li Xian felt tremendous pressure as he sat on the Emperor’s left-hand side, almost facing the officials directly, almost as if he were half an emperor himself. It was clear that the Qi Emperor was not only treating him with state honors but also considering him a true guest of honor. However, this treatment made Li Xian feel too embarrassed to hold back any longer.
Xu Ren quickly pulled Li Xian, who was still in a daze. Li Xian could only sigh, thank the Emperor of Qi, and walked straight to the throne to sit down. Sitting in a high place and looking down, even though Li Xian was not the emperor, at this moment, he felt a sense of superiority, looking down upon the common people.
In the grand hall, there was a moment of complete silence.
Li Xian awkwardly cupped his fists and said, “Esteemed officials, I have overstepped. After several speeches, I have organized the ideas for developing the country through commerce and industry into three parts. The first part: the pros and cons of commerce; the second part: the pros and cons of industry; the third part: the combination of commerce and industry.
In general, a country cannot function without commerce; it would obstruct the prosperity of the nation. However, commercial development cannot be excessively laissez-faire, or else the people would suffer. The issue of hoarding grain during times of disaster is something everyone is familiar with.
As for industry, it is the deepened development of agriculture. The iron tools for plowing need to be smelted; the paper for copying martial arts methods needs to be made. These are essential pillars of the country.
However, industry consumes a lot. Without necessary supplementation, industry cannot thrive. This requires the combination of industry and commerce, which is an essential path. You can think of industry as an alternative form of land and commerce as an alternative form of farmers.
As for the specifics…”
Li Xian then began to analyze in depth; the surrounding officials, and even the Emperor of Qi himself, occasionally asked questions. Sometimes, the questions were indeed tricky, and Li Xian often had to honestly admit, “I don’t quite understand this yet.”
Not understanding means not understanding. Pretending to understand only brings ridicule; instead, it was Li Xian’s open and sincere attitude that earned widespread respect.
This discussion lasted for more than three days. The officials of Qi had nearly examined all of Li Xian’s details; by the end, aside from the development of science, Li Xian even touched on the issue of letting merchants be responsible for military supplies. However, he only briefly mentioned this and moved past it, as the officials of Qi clearly still had many reservations about merchants.
On the fourth day, Li Xian finally relaxed, and then he realized the problem—after three days of explanation, he had not received any benefits! Were the high-ranking officials insincere, or had the Emperor of Qi intercepted these benefits? It was unclear. But Li Xian came to a conclusion—officials are stingy. I’ve spent three days talking to you earnestly, and you don’t even have a shred of real gratitude.
In the afternoon of the fourth day, Li Xian finally left the imperial capital of Qi, preparing to head to the real target of this trip—Mount Mangshan!
I won’t forget you all!
The only benefit Li Xian received was the guarantee from the Emperor of Qi that there would be no issues when he went to Mount Mangshan and upon his return.