Diqin Designer

Chapter 412: The Peacock Prince Reluctant to Accept the Facts

Seeing the Peacock Country's envoy staring at Huashi City in a trance, a city gate officer who was in charge of receiving them thought that he had not seen Huashi City for a long time, so he smiled and said, "It has been a while since the ambassador has seen Huashi City, right? It's time to take a good look. You won't see a city as magnificent as Huashi City in Qin State."

But after the city gate official finished speaking, he saw the Peacock Kingdom's envoy looking at him strangely, and the members of the delegation standing behind the Peacock Kingdom's envoy also had strange expressions.

This made the city gate officer feel puzzled. Did he say something wrong?
But he thought about it and didn't find anything wrong. Could it be that his clothes were not straightened? He quickly straightened his clothes, but saw that the way those people looked at him became even stranger.

This made the city gate officer couldn't help but ask: "Why are you looking at me like this? Is there anything wrong with me?"

The Peacock Country's envoy shook his head and did not tell the city gate official that the Qin State's city was not inferior to their Peacock Country, and even won. He just said: "Nothing, maybe you will know soon!"

This made the city gate officer even more confused. What did "nothing" mean and then "maybe you will know soon"?
From this city gate officer, the members of the Peacock Kingdom delegation seemed to see their former selves, who were also like this before going to the Qin State: they believed that the Peacock Kingdom was the strongest country in the world, and there was no country stronger than their Peacock Kingdom; Hua City was the most magnificent city in the world, and there was no city more prosperous than Hua City.

They were once as proud and confident as this city gate official, and regarded many countries as barbarians, such as the Qin State, a remote and wild country that no one had ever heard of, which was definitely far inferior to me, the Great Peacock.

However, their experience in Qin State shattered their confidence in being a superior country. They thought they were a civilized superior country and the other side was a barbarian small country, but they didn't expect that the barbarian was actually me.

As Master Moye and his companions were being examined, a city gate officer whispered to the Maurya Kingdom's envoy, "Are they the people sent to Qin by those people from Tammo Lidi? The ambassador has captured them and brought them back this time, which is a great achievement!"

Upon hearing this, the Maurya Kingdom envoy knew that the city gate officer had obviously misunderstood and thought that Master Moye and others were captured by them from Qin. He shook his head and said, "You masters were not captured by us, but were invited by me to testify for me."

The city gate officer was stunned and looked at the Peacock Nation's envoy in surprise. Evidence? What was the matter that required these people to testify?
But he did not ask any further questions, and seeing that the envoy of the Maurya Kingdom had no intention of answering him, after some inspection, the envoy of the Maurya Kingdom, Master Moye and others were allowed to enter Pataliputra.

After entering the city and seeing the scene in the city which was almost the same as before he left, the envoy of the Maurya Kingdom felt the same emotion as Master Maya when he arrived at Tamalidi: he hoped that these scenes were not familiar to him, and it would be great if there were some changes.

Because change means development and progress, the Qin people were growing stronger, so their city was changing every day and every month, but Hua City was almost exactly the same as when they left, which meant that the city had not made any progress during the time they were away.

After entering Hualien City, the envoy of the Maurya Kingdom and others had no time to rest before they were summoned into the palace by the Maurya King.

They were originally sent by the Maurya King to the State of Qin as envoys, not envoys from foreign countries, so naturally they did not need to go through the series of procedures such as being taught etiquette and then being summoned.

The chief envoy of the Maurya Kingdom led more than a dozen members of the delegation into the royal palace of the Maurya Kingdom. The palace was magnificent and very beautiful, especially the palace where the Maurya Kingdom held meetings with the people, which was extremely gorgeous.

The palace is supported by large white pillars. The floor is flat and bright, painted with neat patterns. The walls are also painted with exquisite murals. The palace is also dotted with various gems. The whole palace gives people a feeling of "luxury", "refinement" and "beauty".

In the past, the envoy of the Peacock Kingdom was also proud of this palace, thinking that there was no more exquisite and beautiful palace in the world. Indeed, in terms of magnificence, even the palace of the Qin people would be inferior to it.

But when the Peacock Kingdom's envoy looked at this palace again, he actually felt that this palace was not as good as the Qin palace. He only thought about it for a moment and understood the reason.

Although this palace is magnificent, it lacks the aura that belongs to a king, just like the Fahrenheit City.

The palace where the Qin Emperor summoned them was far less beautiful and magnificent than this palace, but it exuded an invisible aura.

When they were summoned by the Qin Emperor, they felt the solemn and majestic atmosphere: This is where the Qin Emperor resides, the highest power center of the Qin Dynasty. Even if you are envoys from foreign countries, you should remain solemn and dignified in this palace!

The Peacock Kingdom felt that the palace where the Qin Emperor lived was the palace that a great country should have. Only that kind of palace could demonstrate the majesty of a king dominating the world and having all the people obey him, rather than being built to look gorgeous and beautiful.

There are many princes and ministers of the Maurya Kingdom in the palace today. Some of them were not there originally, but they came here specially after learning that they had returned from the Qin Kingdom and would be summoned by the king.

It's not that they value the Great Qin, but they are curious and want to know what's so special about the barbarian country called "Qin" and listen to some interesting stories.

The Maurya envoy led more than ten members of the delegation to pay respect to the Maurya King: "Your subject Shapur greets the Raja (King)."

The Maurya King replied, "No need to be polite. What did you see during your visit to Qin? Has the letter I sent to the King of Qin been delivered?"

The Peacock Kingdom's envoy said, "The letter that Your Majesty sent to the King of Qin has been delivered to the King of Qin personally, and the King of Qin has read it in front of you."

Hearing that the King of Qin had read his letter, the Maurya King asked curiously, "What was the King of Qin's reaction when he read the letter? Did he write back?"

He did not write anything excessive in the letter. He just chatted briefly with the King of Qin, mentioned that the monks from Tamolidi came to Qin to preach, and asked the King of Qin to repatriate them.

The Peacock Nation's envoy recalled the scene when they were summoned by the Emperor Qin and said, "The King of Qin did not have any special reaction, nor did he write back to His Majesty."

When the King of Qin had the letter opened, he just glanced at it calmly and put it aside without paying much attention to it.

When the Peacock King heard that the King of Qin had read his letter but had no reaction, nor did he write back to him, he frowned and said, "The King of Qin must be unfamiliar with our language and could not understand the letter, so he did not react..."

But this is not right. Even if the King of Qin really couldn't understand it, he would find someone to translate it for him, such as asking the envoys he sent to translate it. Anyway, the King of Qin would definitely know what was written in the letter!
The King of Qin knew the contents of the letter, but he didn't reply to him?

This made the Peacock King feel uncomfortable, as if he was being ignored by the King of Qin. He asked again, "Why did you return only now? Did you encounter any obstacles?"

According to the time the Qin people told them it took to travel from Qin to Peacock Kingdom, the delegation should have returned several months ago, but in fact they only returned now.

The Peacock Envoy sighed and said, "Your Majesty, it's not that we don't want to return, but the Qin people have been unwilling to let us return." Before the Peacock King could say anything after hearing this, a Peacock King asked, "How dare the Qin State detain you? Don't they know that you are envoys sent by the King?"

Their Peacock Kingdom was one of the most powerful countries in the world, while the Qin Kingdom was just a barbarian country that was far inferior to them. These people were sent to the Qin Kingdom as envoys of their Peacock Kingdom. Not to mention that they should have been received as VIPs, they should not have been neglected at all. However, they did not expect that the Qin people would actually detain them.

Didn’t the Qin people know that detaining the envoys might very likely anger the Maurya Kingdom?
This made the Maurya prince feel incredible.

Another prince said: "What's so strange about this? Qin is a barbarian country. They have never seen the power of our country, so they are so bold. The more barbaric, the more fearless, the more barbaric, and the more ignorant they are!"

These words caused many of the Peacock Kingdom's princes and ministers in the hall to smile and agree. It must be that the Qin State was used to being barbaric and didn't know how powerful the Peacock Kingdom was, which was why they were so ignorant and fearless.

However, some ministers noticed that after the two princes spoke, the envoy of the Maurya Kingdom did not defend them nor laugh. Instead, he looked serious and solemn.

The Peacock Envoy sighed again and said, "The Qin people naturally know our country, and they also know that we are envoys sent by the king. They are not ignorant and fearless in detaining us."

Not long after entering the hall, he sighed twice. The princes and ministers were not stupid, so they knew that the Qin State might not be what they thought.

The Peacock King asked: "What did you encounter when you entered Qin?"

The Peacock Nation's envoy said, "After we entered Qin territory, we were strictly controlled by the Qin people. They did not allow us to go out at will. If we wanted to go out, we had to apply to the Qin people and only after they approved it could we go out. The Qin people also did not allow us to communicate with others at will. Every time we went out, there would be Qin soldiers guarding us."

Doesn't this mean that they were treated like criminals as soon as they entered the Qin State?
The envoys from the Peacock Kingdom were actually treated as criminals by the Qin people!
A minister of the Peacock Kingdom said angrily: "The Qin people are so bold. What's the difference between doing this and treating you as prisoners?"

The Peacock Nation's envoy said, "That is different. The Qin people do not treat us harshly in terms of food, clothing, and shelter. When we are sick, they will send doctors to treat us. They just strictly restrict our freedom."

King Kongque was curious and asked, "Why did the Qin people treat you like this?"

The envoy sighed again and then said, "Because the Qin people do not allow us to preach in their country. They think that all religions in our country are harmful and do not allow us to preach in their country."

As soon as he finished speaking, a burst of laughter was heard. Everyone looked in the direction of the laughter and saw that it was a prince who was laughing. Seeing him laughing, the Maurya King asked curiously, "Why are you laughing?"

Seeing everyone looking at him, the prince laughed and said, "Your Majesty, I am laughing at the Qin State, which is really a barbarian country. The reason why the Qin State is afraid of our country's teachings being spread to it is that it has never produced saints like Mahavira and Buddha, so it is naturally inferior to our country!"

"Therefore, if our country's teachings were introduced to the past, the people of Qin who had never heard the words of saints like Mahavira and Buddha would be..."

As he was talking, the prince noticed that the Maurya Kingdom's envoy and the members of the delegation had strange expressions, as if they were about to break down.

He couldn't help but feel angry, and the smile on his face faded. He stopped talking and looked at the Peacock Nation's envoy, saying indifferently: "The ambassador seems to have something else to say. Why don't you listen to him?"

The Peacock Country's envoy said helplessly: "The Qin people do not allow us to preach in their country, just because they think our religion...has more disadvantages than advantages and is harmful to their country, so they prohibit it, not because the Qin people do not have saints like Buddha and Mahavira."

"I dare not hide the truth from you, Your Majesty, that the Qin people have produced many great sages who far surpass those of our country. There are also several who can be compared with Mahavira and Buddha. These great sages are called 'Zhu Zi' by the Qin people!"

"impossible!"

As soon as the Peacock Envoy finished speaking, a prince of the Peacock Kingdom glared at him and shouted "Impossible!" Their Peacock Kingdom was the most civilized and powerful country in the world, with many saints and wise men. No country could compare with them.

This is also a point that they are proud of, but according to this person, the Qin State has also produced saints who can be compared with Mahavira and Buddha, and even in terms of quantity, it seems that there are more.

If this were true, it would not only overturn their long-held view that the Maurya Empire was the most civilized country in the world, but would also undermine their sense of pride stemming from this view.

Their pride in considering themselves a civilized and superior country has become a joke: You are not the most civilized and powerful country in the world at all. There are countries that are more civilized and powerful than you. What are you proud of?
For the princes and ministers of the Maurya Kingdom in the hall, this was obviously a very difficult thing to accept. It was as if they had always thought that they were the best in the world and were very proud of it, and showed off to others everywhere, but one day they were told that their title of the best in the world was fake and they were actually just a rookie.

Someone else said, "You are lying. How could Qin have a saint who can be compared with Mahavira and Buddha?"

Some even accused the Peacock Envoy of being bribed by the Qin people: "Your Majesty, he must have defected to the Qin people, so he speaks for the Qin people and wants to confuse us. Please investigate!"

Listening to these rebuttals and accusations, the envoy of the Peacock Kingdom just stood calmly in the hall and did not refute anything.

The Peacock King raised his right hand on the throne, pressed it lightly, and shouted, "Quiet!"

Everyone in the hall suddenly fell silent, returning to peace from the noise.

The King of the Maurya Kingdom looked at the Maurya Kingdom's envoy and did not order him to be arrested for investigation. Instead, he asked: "You said that there are sages in Qin who are comparable to Mahavira and Buddha. How do you prove it? What exactly happened to you in Qin? What kind of country is Qin?"

As the Peacock King asked questions, everyone in the hall also looked at the Peacock Envoy, but many people looked at him with unkindness, suspicion, and anger.

The Peacock Envoy seemed not to feel these gazes. He did not immediately answer the Peacock King's questions, but dropped another bombshell: "Your Majesty, based on what we have seen and heard in Qin for several months, Qin is much stronger than our country!"

This bomb shocked everyone in the hall again, and the uproar it caused was even more intense than when he said just now that Qin had saints who were comparable to Mahavira and Buddha. Waves of "Impossible!", "You are lying!", "He is a running dog of the Qin people!" echoed in the hall.

(End of this chapter)