Lu Mingfei Development Program

Chapter 512: The Strange King and His Stubborn Daughter

Ye Suli explained to Lu Mingfei the current situation of the Eastern countries. Marston was not safe and would be dragged into the war sooner or later. Although the battlefield between the Papal States and Xia State was in the foothills outside Marston, in ancient wars, how could the surrounding cities be absolutely safe? It was only a matter of time before Marston was dragged into it.

Marston, which seems peaceful on the surface, is actually undercurrent. Perhaps spies from the Papal States are active in the city of Marston at this moment, trying to keep the city under the control of the Papal States at all times.

"Really..." Lu Mingfei said that he already understood the situation.

The possibility that Ye Suli deceived him was very low, because Marston's independence itself made people feel very strange. Marston was originally a territory of the old Roman Empire, and was divided into the area of ​​New Rome after the Roman Empire split.

No sovereign state would allow an area within its territory to become independent. Although the territory of New Rome was not as large as that of Old Rome, its emperor was a man with a strong desire for control and ambition, otherwise he would not have launched the Ceylon War.

Marston wanted to be independent from the New Roman Empire, but it was impossible without the permission of the Papal States, which was the sovereign state. Otherwise, the fate of Grand Duke Marston would be the same as that of the King of Ceylon.

Both the Papal States and the New Roman Empire would probably be very happy to see Marston transformed into a strategic front against the East.

Ye Suli looked at the thoughtful Lu Mingfei and asked softly, "Even so, will you still go to Marston?"

"Of course I have to go." Lu Mingfei said, "I have...well, relatives over there."

Adele is a woman who can be his sister, and César should naturally be his brother. It doesn't seem strange to say this... Although Adele probably doesn't know the existence of her brother yet.

"Relatives?" Ye Suli was stunned. This extraordinary warrior actually had relatives, and they lived in the west.

Remembering this, Ye Suli smiled bitterly and said, "However, the passage from the East to the West is currently closed. It may be difficult for you to go to Marston."

Although Marston and Zhongshan Kingdom are both located on the border of the east and the west, they are separated by the tall Caucasus Mountains. One of the two countries is on the west side of the mountains, and the other is on the east side of the mountains.

If it weren't for this natural barrier, a small country like Zhongshan would have been trampled upon countless times by the Western iron golems.

Because of the existence of the Caucasus Mountains, the only way to get to Marston from Zhongshan State was by water. However, because it was during the war, all the passes leading to the west were closed.

It was because of the spies planted by the Xia Kingdom that the Papal States exposed the existence of the Jinlunga Passage, a railway that was intended to conquer the East. Naturally, during the war, they would not easily allow people from the East to enter Marston.

Kinlunga, the primordial chasm in Norse mythology, is the most appropriate name for the railway connecting the East and the West.

"But if you want to go to Marston, there is a way..." Ye Suli thought for a moment and said, "Sir, do you remember what I said before? The King of Zhongshan has received the order from Xia and will follow the Xia army to the Jinlunga Pass."

He looked at Lu Mingfei and said, "If you don't mind the trouble, why don't you go to the capital of Zhongshan and go with the king's guards."

"Go with the army?" Lu Mingfei looked at Ye Suli silently.

Now that he has returned to his body, no one can stop him from going wherever he wants. The Caucasus Mountains can prevent people from the East and the West from interacting with each other, but they can't stop him.

But... Lu Mingfei looked at Ye Suli deeply. If by now he still didn't understand Ye Suli's plan for him to go to Zhongshan Kingdom for a tour, he might as well go back to the big pit and lie down by himself.

"...It seems there is no other way." He nodded at Ye Suli's relieved expression, "Let's go to Zhongshan State where you are first to take a look."

Although Xizel's affairs were important, Lu Mingfei was also very curious about the Xia Kingdom, which he said had resisted the Western mobile armor for a hundred years with its flesh and blood. Zhongshan Kingdom, an ally of Xia Kingdom, seemed to be a good place to learn about this country.

……

Zhongshan State is located on the border between the east and the west, but the appearance of its people is not as exotic as that of people in other western countries. Both the architecture and the clothing of the people here are very similar to those of Xia State.

The capital of Zhongshan State was a smaller Luoyi. Even the name of the country, Zhongshan, was derived from Zhongshan State, one of the vassal states of the Xia State before the Christian era.

This is because Zhongshan was founded by immigrants. The capital of Zhongshan was originally a desolate desert with few people. After gold mines were detected, immigrants from Xia built this emerging country.

In terms of age, Zhongshan State and the Papal State are actually of the same generation. But in terms of national strength, one is in heaven and the other is in the ground.

It is said that among the many vassal states of the Xia Dynasty before the Common Era, there was a saying of the Seven Heroes of the Warring States Period, which naturally described the seven most powerful vassal states. The eighth hegemon after them was Zhongshan State.

In ancient times, the Xia State used the phrase "a country with ten thousand chariots" to describe a great country, which meant that the country had ten thousand chariots and was a military power. The Zhongshan State, with only a few thousand chariots, fought against the great countries with ten thousand chariots several times, which was enough to make it admired by the small countries in later generations.

Zhongshan State is a small country now, but it has not forgotten its ambition to compete with the great country. But in fact, no one in the East or the West takes Zhongshan State seriously.

Outside the capital, the current ruler, Hara Makoto, was waiting at the nearest post station. Unlike the rulers of the Eastern countries who wore traditional Xia national costumes, the ruler of Zhongshan wore a white suit, even his leather shoes were white.

The ministers were also called out and stood behind the king, wearing all kinds of clothes, both Eastern and Western. Influenced by the king, the nobles and ministers of Zhongshan also learned to dress in the West, but many of them also followed the traditions of Xia.

The beard on the king's face, which represented wisdom and bravery in the eyes of Oriental people, was shaved clean. He looked fair and did not look like the father of several adult princes, let alone a usurper of the throne.

The current ruler of Zhongshan State obtained his position by usurping the throne, which was not uncommon among the rulers of Zhongshan State. Yuan Cheng was originally a businessman who sent the gold of Zhongshan State to the eastern countries and brought back a lot of wealth. Then one day, he found that no matter how much money he made, as long as the person in power was still there, he was not the real owner of his wealth.

So, after years of planning, he joined forces with other ministers to successfully usurp the throne and took over Zhongshan Kingdom.

Countless people scolded him for gaining power unjustly, but that could not change the fact that Zhongshan State became stronger and stronger before his rule. He himself was known for being shameless and dishonest, and he didn't care no matter how he was scolded, so those who scolded him scolded him even more, and those who didn't like him disliked him even more.

It was the same at this moment. The king had no dignity as a king. As the ruler of a country, he came out in person to welcome the returning foreign minister.

But the reception should be done in a proper manner. Before leaving the palace, the Minister of Rites had advised that the Foreign Minister was just returning home and there should not be such a big fuss. But since he had come out, the reception should be solemn, so that the returning Foreign Minister could feel the importance of the country to him.

But what is the difference between the king's posture as he leans on his mount and those of the hooligans in the lower-class urban areas?
The Minister of Rites cried out that rituals and music were in disarray, but the King ignored him. According to him, he was born in the lower class, so what if he didn't have any manners?
The ministers who came out with the king had no complaints. Facts had proved that although their king was a little shameless, a little shameless, and a little bit of a spoiled child, he still had the vision to see things. The fact that Zhongshan State's strength increased several times under his rule was the best proof of this.

Those who are still willing to stay with him now are all people who have great faith in him, and they are naturally happy to come out to greet him with the king.

By the way, the king's mount is not a BMW with a precious pedigree, but a replica of a Western Stein heavy motorcycle. This two-wheel drive machine, which can run on any bad road, replaced the precious colt and became the first choice of Western knights.

A king who likes rare things will naturally not miss this kind of thing. If the Western countries were not so defensive about the technology of mobile armor, the king probably wouldn't mind showing off in the city with mobile armor.

The welcoming team was very long, far exceeding the standard for receiving returning ministers, and reached the level of entertaining the monarch of an allied country. However, ordinary allied countries were not qualified to have the leader of a country personally come out of the city to receive them. Only the Xia Kingdom could allow them to mobilize such a large army.

So half of the welcoming team was wondering if the imperial duke of Xia had arrived. If he did, he would be qualified to have the king personally come out of the city to receive him.

The other half of the ministers were just watching the fun, because in the front of the welcoming team, in addition to the king and his sons, the pure princess who was famous in the eastern countries was also there.

The ministers who were familiar with the Zhongshan court knew that as long as the king and Princess Chun appeared in the same occasion, it would be a lively scene.

"Why are you making such a sullen face? Didn't I tell you to smile? Otherwise, when distinguished guests come, what will happen if they see our princess with a sullen face and think she is not taken seriously and turns away?" The king, Hara Makoto, reprimanded his daughter in dissatisfaction.

Princess Chun glanced at him and said, "Respect? The king has come out like a lapdog. I'm afraid Chu Shunhua must feel flattered when she comes."

Chu Shunhua was the name of the Duke of Daxia who was ordered to go to war. In the Xia Kingdom, there is an old saying that the emperor guards the country's gates, but in the Xia Kingdom, it was Chu Shunhua who guarded the country's gates for Daxia.

Yuan Cheng looked disdainful: "What's Chu Shunhua? I gave him the qualification to be my consort, but he didn't cherish it. I am showing respect to Da Xia by not giving him a hard time."

The King of Zhongshan once asked the Duke of Daxia for marriage, and naturally he wanted to marry his children so that he could have a quiet life. As expected, he was rejected, which was enough to show how powerful the Duke of Daxia was.

There was a queen in the South who was willing to use her country, which was much larger than Zhongshan, as a dowry and begged Chu Shunhua to marry her, but she was ignored in the end.

Yuan Cheng was not disappointed after being rejected, after all, it took him a long time to usurp the Zhongshan Kingdom. However, after being rejected repeatedly, he looked at his daughter carefully and found that she had no advantages except that she looked decent.

He shook his head, sighed, and said that the girl had fallen into his hands, so the marriage with Daxia was called off.

Princess Chun sneered: "What's the point of showing off in front of me? Why didn't I hear you say this in front of him?"

"You don't understand this, do you?" Yuan Cheng said smugly, "You should only say this when he's not around. If he really hears it, I'll have several heads to burn off."

Chu Shunhua is certainly not the kind of person who would chop off someone's head for a bad word said by others, otherwise, those ministers in the court of Daxia would have had several heads chopped off.

But he has many loyal followers, and these loyal followers will not tolerate anyone saying a bad word about their master. They can't touch the powerful people in the court of Daxia, so how can a small country like Zhongshan be afraid of you?
"Stop talking nonsense." Princess Chun never gave her father face, even if she had to block many ministers. "Even if Chu Shunhua really came, you might not make such a big show. Who is your distinguished guest?"

Without answering immediately, Yuan Cheng looked at his daughter jokingly: "The ministers of Zhongshan State all say that Princess Chun is the one who is most like me. So why don't you guess who is the one who made me mobilize so many troops?"

Unexpectedly, this time the princess did not say anything sarcastic, but thought seriously: "With your character, even if you really went to the court of Daxia to meet the Emperor, you would probably have the courage to point at his nose and curse him in front of the world."

"Then you really overestimate me. I don't have the courage." Yuan Cheng shrugged.

Princess Chun glanced at him. All the ministers, including her brothers, might not know that her father, the ruler, was still not satisfied after usurping the position of the ruler of Zhongshan.

Because he was not willing to be inferior to others, he thought that after becoming the ruler of Zhongshan State, no one in the world would be able to ride on his head. But he was wrong, there was Xia State above Zhongshan State.

Over the past thousands of years, the Xia Kingdom fought against all the countries in the East on the grounds of not communicating with the Xia Kingdom and not submitting to the king's rule, and only then did it gain the status of being paid tribute by all the countries. Zhongshan Kingdom was one of these countries.

During the Warring States Period, Zhongshan State was known as the eighth most powerful state in the country, which is still quite remarkable today. But Princess Chun knew that her father, the ruler of the country, would never be willing to be ranked eighth!
She glanced at the king who was speaking in a sensational manner but showed no fear at all, and sneered on her beautiful face, "I think there must be no one else but a celestial being who can make you mobilize so many troops."

The legend of celestial beings has existed in the East since ancient times, but no one has ever been able to truly prove that they have seen celestial beings. In other words, celestial beings do not exist, and something that could cause Yuan Cheng to mobilize an army naturally does not exist either.

"Guess what? You guessed it right." Yuan Cheng looked at the dust rising from the road outside the post station, "That person really fell from the sky."

(End of this chapter)