Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 231: Envoys from Jin Kingdom
Li Xian left, but the battle in Wuyang City had to continue. Everyone had different motives, but they all shared one common goal—to drive the Wang family’s forces out of Wuyang. Only after expelling the Wang family’s power could they sit down and divide the benefits of Wuyang County.
As for Li Xian, he made an arrogant appearance and then left just as arrogantly. After returning to Anyang, he continued to relax, appearing idle and unconcerned with affairs. Anyang was now basically on track, allowing Li Xian to truly enjoy a leisurely rule, embodying the phrase “governing by doing nothing.”
Li Xian set the general direction, while Xu Ren handled the details and planning, and Yan Ze’an managed grassroots affairs. Fang Shijing, Tang Rong, and Xiao Yuquan were responsible for the development of the Brilliant Star Group. Ling Zhifeng oversaw the “national fortune,” intervening only if the country faced difficulties; otherwise, he let things be.
Everyone else was in their respective positions, awaiting the first major “transformation” of Anyang in two years.
However, unexpected events always seemed to occur. Just three days after Li Xian’s return, while he was reviewing the battle situation in Wuyang and planning Anyang’s commercial development, Chen Jinbing delivered a national letter—this time from the Jin Kingdom! Surprisingly, the Jin Kingdom had chosen to communicate with Anyang through such an official, formal, and equal diplomatic approach.
This was a personal letter from the emperor of Jin, expressing a desire to cooperate with Anyang, purchase technology, and even acquire military arms.
The reason behind this was that Jin’s Central Army Commander, Li Lishong, had observed the battle in Wuyang for two days and was deeply impressed. Upon returning, he reported his observations truthfully. Moreover, jade slip recordings of some battle scenes further reinforced his report.
After reviewing these materials, Jin’s emperor and ministers engaged in heated debates. Some, especially civil officials, dismissed the technology as too cumbersome, arguing that a single Nascent Soul-level cultivator could easily destroy such equipment.
However, others—particularly military officials—held a different view. They believed that the cannons were incredibly powerful and, if used effectively, could unleash overwhelming force. Not to mention, Anyang also possessed aircraft, ironclad warships, and many other advanced innovations.
The debate raged for a long time until the emperor of Jin made the final decision: enough arguing—it was pointless. Instead, he decided to send emissaries to Anyang to directly assess the situation. If Anyang’s technology was indeed valuable, they would negotiate; if not, they would drop the matter.
When choosing envoys to Anyang, the emperor of Jin displayed remarkable foresight. He appointed both Prime Minister Sima Xuan and Central Army Commander Li Lishong for the mission. Since negotiations and inspections were necessary, they might as well go all in.
As the emperor of Jin put it: On one hand, this gesture demonstrated respect and importance; on the other, it was meant to put subtle pressure on Anyang—having both the prime minister and the central army commander personally conduct negotiations was a significant show of sincerity. Would Anyang respond in kind?
Furthermore, the emperor of Jin personally wrote a letter to Anyang, formally announcing their visit. This level of diplomatic etiquette was quite grand.
Upon receiving the national letter, Li Xian also wrote a personal reply and had the Jin Kingdom’s messenger deliver it back. This back-and-forth correspondence took more than ten days before the envoys—Prime Minister Sima Xuan and Central Army Commander Li Lishong—finally arrived in Anyang.
Stepping off the train, the two were momentarily dazed as they gazed upon Anyang, a city unlike any they had seen before.
Anyang was developing rapidly, with several high-rise buildings under construction. The city was becoming increasingly “modernized” with bright office buildings, wide streets, an intricate network of vehicles, uniformed patrol officers, and traffic police. Everything seemed almost “unreal.”
To Sima Xuan and Li Lishong, Anyang felt like an entirely different world.
Suddenly, a magnificent convoy approached, with the words “Anyang” written on the vehicles. A man stepped out and greeted them, “I am Xu Ren, here to welcome the esteemed envoys. Please, get in the car.”
“Sima Xuan, did he just say he’s Xu Ren? The so-called top strategist by Li Xian’s side?” Prime Minister Sima Xuan looked at Xu Ren in surprise. As Anyang rose in prominence and Li Xian’s reputation grew louder, key figures from Anyang also became widely known.
Names such as Xu Ren, Yan Ze’an, Beichen Yuqing, Ling Zhifeng, Fang Shijing, and Gongsun Wushang had practically become idols among the new generation of strategists, scholars, and cultivators.
Xu Ren smiled slightly. “It’s just a humble name, not worth mentioning. Please, honored guests, get in the car.”
The Prime Minister of Jin, Sima Xuan, walked along with a smile and said, “This is no mere insignificant name; it is a name of great renown. Nowadays, who does not know the famous name of Anyang’s top strategist, Xu Ren?”
“It’s all thanks to the appreciation of friends,” Xu Ren replied modestly before inviting everyone onto the carriage. The vehicle swayed as it traveled four kilometers, passing through brand-new high-rise buildings before finally arriving at Anyang’s government office. Along the way, the Jin delegation remained in a state of continuous amazement.
As they got off the carriage, Sima Xuan suddenly asked Xu Ren, “The commercial buildings here are even more magnificent and taller than the city lord’s mansion. Are you not afraid that merchants will overstep their boundaries?”
Xu Ren smiled slightly. “Commerce is different from general governance. In ordinary state management, we govern the people by stipulating what they are allowed to do.
However, commerce is the exact opposite—we only define what cannot be done. Anything not prohibited by law is permitted. This approach allows the people to fully unleash their initiative.
To boost public confidence, we built these skyscrapers.”
“How effective has this been?” Sima Xuan immediately followed up.
“Very effective!” Xu Ren’s tone was filled with pride. “So far, everyone is striving to create their own future. Just yesterday alone, 46 new businesses were registered, covering various industries. In today’s Anyang, there is nothing you cannot buy.
Not only do we have specialty products from Cai and Great Xia, but we also offer goods from Qi, Chen, and even your own Jin. We even have a sales and procurement center established by the Mangshan Cultivation Dojo right here.”
“Oh…” Sima Xuan responded, his tone filled with contemplation. Clearly, Anyang’s development exceeded his expectations, and its ideological approach was also unique.
Upon entering the city lord’s mansion, Li Xian personally received Prime Minister Sima Xuan and the Central Army Commander, Li Lisong. Regardless of the circumstances, since the Jin Emperor had personally written a letter, Li Xian had to show some courtesy.
After an exchange of polite yet insincere pleasantries, Sima Xuan got straight to the point. “Governor Li, I have come representing Jin to propose a collaboration with Anyang. What do you think?”
“What kind of cooperation? Let’s hear it,” Li Xian responded.
Sima Xuan pondered for a moment before suddenly declaring with overwhelming pride, “Jin is a great nation. We have the capability to engage in comprehensive cooperation with Anyang.”
Li Xian’s eyes narrowed. There was an implicit threat in those words—Jin is a great power, while Anyang is merely a single prefecture. You had better think carefully.
His mind raced as he weighed his options. Jin had come with ill intentions. Should he reject them outright, or…? Forget it. It was best to talk first and see just how outrageous their demands would be!