Qin Dynasty: Who offended my frail and sickly minister?

As soon as the King of Qi finished speaking, two guards in the hall stepped forward, their postures solemn, and landed on either side of Tian Zhong, bowing respectfully:

"Master Tian, ​​please forgive me, please come in!"

Tian Zhong froze abruptly, his eyes widening in disbelief as he stared at the throne.

He never expected that his own king would be so incapable of distinguishing right from wrong, and would actually banish him in public in order to appease the anger of the Qin people!

Overwhelmed with grief and indignation, Tian Zhong suddenly broke free from the guards' restraints, staggered forward half a step, and his voice suddenly became hoarse and high-pitched, reverberating throughout the palace:

"Your Majesty—!"

King Qi had been bothered by him several times and was already impatient. He frowned, and finally showed some of the sharpness of a monarch. His eyes swept over him with a cold and sharp gaze.

The guards dared not hesitate any longer and immediately stepped forward to grab Tian Zhong's arms tightly. They were so strong that they did not allow him to say another word and forcibly dragged him out.

"Your Majesty! Your Majesty!"

Bound and unable to walk, Tian Zhong refused to bow his head. His eyes were bloodshot and bulging, staring intently at the monarch on the throne. His words, each uttered with blood and grief, echoed through the hall like a ripple:

"Your Majesty! I am a senior member of the Tian clan! A member of the Qi royal family! How can you treat a loyal minister so poorly! How utterly foolish! How utterly muddle-headed!"

Unable to break free, his pent-up indignation transformed into a furious rebuke. He turned and glared intently at Hou Sheng, who feigned indifference, and fiercely cursed him:

"Hou Sheng, you treacherous villain! You blindly flatter Qin, bewitching the king and ruining the country, destroying the foundation of Qi for your own selfish gain! You will surely be punished by heaven and die a terrible death, Your Majesty, Your Majesty!"

"To blindly submit to Qin is tantamount to cutting off one's own flesh to feed a tiger. Our great Qi, with its thousands of miles of rivers and mountains and its centuries-old state, will sooner or later be completely destroyed under the iron hooves of the tyrannical Qin! Your Majesty! You should think twice!"

The mournful and indignant echoes reverberated through the hall, lingering for a long time until the gates closed again, the noise abruptly ceased, and the hall fell into a deathly silence, so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Hou Sheng's face turned pale and then red. He had been publicly denounced as a treacherous official, but he dared not retaliate. He could only suppress his anger and quickly turned to Qin Xi, bowing and smiling obsequiously, trying his best to salvage the already escalating situation.

"Please forgive me, Qin envoy! Lord Tian is completely drunk and has uttered wild and absurd words. He has lost his integrity as a subject. I hope you will not take it to heart and will not let this affect the friendly relations between Qin and Qi."

King Jian of Qi was already annoyed by the argument earlier and just wanted to settle the matter as soon as possible so he could end the banquet and return to the palace to enjoy himself.

He raised his hand, his tone calm and decisive:

"Don't take Lord Tian's drunken ramblings seriously. Prime Minister, immediately order the Jixia Academy to have its Chancellor personally accompany the distinguished guests from Qin to study and discuss the Dao, with all proper etiquette. This matter is settled."

Hou Sheng bowed slightly: "Yes."

With the king's words spoken, the outcome was decided.

At the banquet, Fusu and Yao Jia frowned slightly, their eyes revealing a hint of displeasure.

They were subjected to a barrage of sarcastic remarks, but the other party reacted quickly and was dragged down just as fast, leaving them no chance to retaliate.

However, although Tian Zhong made a veiled criticism, he did not make it explicit. Now that the King of Qi had already shown the highest level of courtesy, if they continued to dwell on the verbal disputes, it would only make Qin appear narrow-minded.

Moreover, they did not want to antagonize the State of Qi in the first place.

After weighing the pros and cons, everyone had no choice but to suppress their displeasure and accept the arrangement for the time being.

Liu Bang stood at the very end of the banquet hall, behind Zhou Wenqing, watching the man who had glared at him being dragged away. He pursed his lips, lowered his head slightly, and whispered:

"Sir, what did that old man mean? Was he insulting us? That old scoundrel..."

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This chapter is not finished; I'll add more later tonight. (⊙ω⊙)

The previous chapter has been added. The extra chapter will be released later. Thank you for your comfort, everyone. Don't worry, I won't abandon the story or stop updating.

So everyone, relax after the exam, or continue studying hard. Good luck! Don't worry, don't change your study schedule because of this. Stock up if you want, catch up if you want.

The data decline is due to platform issues, coupled with some anxiety about graduation. Thank you all for your unwavering support. I will adjust my mindset quickly and continue to work hard!