My brother entrusted his child to me, and I livestreamed raising the baby, making the Empress cry wi

Ashina looked at him, his gaze lingering on his face for a moment.

Then he nodded in satisfaction. This Fujiwara no Tsuruhito was quite perceptive.

They are quite composed, knowing their current position and what they should and shouldn't fight for.

"That's good. We can really use it more often in the future," Ashina thought to himself.

It seems that this appointment of the prime minister, which was originally just a temporary measure, has brought quite a few unexpected surprises.

Da Shiman stood aside, taking in all of this.

He looked at Fujiwara no Shūjin's calm and composed demeanor and sneered inwardly.

He really is a cunning old fox.

Instead of arguing or fighting, he went along with it and said something quite nice.

In this way, one can demonstrate one's magnanimity and tact in front of Ashina.

Da Shiman pressed the tip of his tongue against the root of his teeth, suppressing the surge of sour, astringent sensation that made his teeth ache.

A faint bitter taste lingered in my mouth; I couldn't tell if it was the lingering scent of frankincense on my tongue or the lingering sense of resentment.

Never mind, no rush.

Fujiwara no Shūjin was no ordinary person, given that he led Japan to remain the largest country in the South China Sea for many years.

It won't be easy to completely crush him.

We'll see what happens in the future!

Outside the window, another gust of wind rose, slightly stronger than before, shattering the sunlight in the puddles under the eaves into pieces of silver scales.

The rainwater that had accumulated on the leaves of the poplar trees on both sides of the road was shaken off by the wind and fell onto the stone slabs below, making a fine, rustling sound, as if it had rained lightly again.

A gray cat appeared under the eaves at some point, squatted at the top of the stone steps, licked its front paws, and then slowly wiped its face with its paws.

Its ears twitched occasionally, catching the faint human voices emanating from inside the hall; its pupils shrank to two thin vertical lines in the midday sun.

Dashiman withdrew his gaze from Fujiwara no Shojin, his eyes returning to calm, as if the myriad thoughts that had surged within him just moments before had never existed.

He had already begun to plan the specifics of his trip to the grasslands.

He had to figure out all these details before setting off, including how many people to take, which route to take, what gifts to prepare, and who to meet first and who to meet later on the grassland.

Ashina was not one to listen to excuses; he only cared about results.

Therefore, this time, there is only one possible outcome for the answer to the question. That is—

success!

We must succeed!

Now that the leader had been chosen, Ashina tapped the red agate one last time with his finger, and was about to raise his hand to order Dashiman to immediately prepare for departure.

The words were already on the tip of his tongue, and his gaze habitually swept over everyone in the hall—

From the composed face of Dashiman, to the bowed head of the Javanese elder, to the hands hanging at his sides of Elder Yari, and Fujiwara no Shojin…

In that instant, a thought suddenly popped into his mind.

His raised hand stopped abruptly as he suddenly remembered something!

Previously, after Fujiwara no Shujin stayed behind with the elders of Java and Yari after the council meeting and proposed cooperation with the northern grassland tribes, he pointed at the three of them and said that they had a secret weapon.

At the time, he didn't take it seriously, thinking that they were just a few surrendered officials, and the only value they brought to the Western Regions was those tens of thousands of surrendered soldiers. What secret weapons could they possibly have?

Until the identities of the two elders from the great powers were revealed—

The elder's younger brother was the Khan of the Balin tribe on the grasslands, commanding tens of thousands of cavalry. The Balin tribe was one of the most powerful tribes on the northern grasslands.

Elder Yali had a past relationship with the Khorchin princess, who still wields considerable influence on the grasslands and is a highly respected tribal shaman.

The Khorchin tribe was also a powerful steppe force no less formidable than the Balin tribe.

These two truly deserve to be called secret weapons.

Ashina had to admit that he had indeed underestimated these people from the South China Sea.

If these two relationships are used properly, they can bring two powerful grassland allies to the Western Regions, thus contributing to the great cause of attacking the Great Flame.

Now that the secret weapon of the elders of Java and Yali is their hidden identities and past, it has been revealed.

So, what about Fujiwara no Shojin's own "secret weapon"?

Does he have some hidden identity? Or does he have something else that could be called a "secret weapon"?

Ashina, having thought of this, slowly lowered his hand back to the armrest, which was originally about to give the order.

He shifted his weight to the other side and looked down at Fujiwara no Shojin.

Those eyes were already deep-set, but now that they were slightly lowered, the shadows cast by their brows became even deeper, and all the light in their pupils was contained within them.

"To the Prime Minister of Renguo," he began, his voice lower than when he had spoken earlier, with a slight upward inflection at the end, carrying a hint of probing.

Everyone in the hall held their breath in unison, and Dashiman was also taken aback.

Could it be that something else has happened?

For a moment, the air seemed to thicken, and the sunlight streaming through the high windows flowed slowly through the dust.

The trajectory of each dust particle was clearly visible, as if someone had drawn pale golden lines in mid-air with an extremely fine pen.

The lines intertwined, yet no one could decipher what they depicted.

The wisps of smoke rising from the bronze incense burner at the corner of the hall lingered in the air, taking on a faint bluish hue when illuminated by the sunlight, like a semi-transparent veil suspended there.

"I suddenly remembered that you once said that the three of you all have secret weapons."

As he spoke, he kept his gaze fixed on Fujiwara no Shojin's face, not daring to miss any subtle changes in him.

"The secret weapon of the Javanese elder and the elder of Yali has now been revealed—one is the elder brother of the Khan of Balin, and the other is an old friend of the Khorchin princess."

As Ashina spoke, he slightly raised his right hand and pointed his index finger at each of the two men. The movement was casual; his finger traced the air, creating a faint rustling sound.

He paused, then spoke again, his tone tinged with approval and a touch of感慨: "These two cards are indeed rare and excellent cards."

To be honest, if it hadn't happened right before his eyes, he would never have imagined that things could develop this way.

"So——"

His eyes narrowed slightly, his curiosity piqued, like a lit fuse hissing and sparking, burning towards the unknown answer.

"Prime Minister Chou Ren, what is your secret weapon?"

The moment those words were spoken, the atmosphere in the hall subtly shifted.

The Javanese elder and the elder of Yali exchanged a glance, but quickly looked away, their faces showing no extra expression.