Chapter 2544 - 2542: Peaceful Resolution
The atmosphere in the grand hall was tense for a while, and the Yunmeng Marsh Dragon King thought the deal wouldn’t go through.
He hoped for it to be so, otherwise, wouldn’t he be Liangshan Island’s accomplice this time?
In the future, how could he have any face left to mingle within the Dragon Clan?
At this moment, unexpectedly, the Dragon Mother suddenly spoke up, straightforwardly agreeing to the Little Kirin, "We in the East Sea accept these terms."
The Little Kirin and his four brothers exchanged glances, a knowing smile curling at the corners of their mouths.
The Heavenly Court matter he had just leaked was something Long Fei instructed him to say.
No matter if he said it or not, the Heavenly Court would figure it out eventually.
So he might as well reveal it now to pressure the East Sea Dragon Palace.
He smiled and raised his cup, addressing the Dragon Mother, "Then let’s wish for a pleasant cooperation. However, words are not enough; regarding the mountain mine we are to be compensated with, we still have to sign and seal an agreement with the East Sea."
The Dragon Mother thought that she’d let them show off for a while; they, a group of wild demons, thought they could block the Heavenly Court’s army.
Signing, sealing—whatever it takes.
By the time the Heavenly Court’s forces annihilate this group of wild demons, whatever is signed will ultimately be a worthless piece of paper.
She was certain that Liangshan Island could not oppose the Heavenly Court, and adeptly ordered all the Dragon Palace’s mining deeds to be brought forth, allowing the Little Kirin to select one from them.
The Yunmeng Marsh Dragon King also came forward, marveling at these various mining locations.
He thought to himself, this is the East Sea’s confidence—having these legitimate mines means an endless supply of Spirit Stones to support so many soldiers.
In contrast, their Yunmeng Marsh, with an annual spirit ore output of barely a million, was insignificant.
What the Dragon Mother gave to the Little Kirin was naturally the leftover scraps of the mines.
The Little Kirin, following Long Fei’s instructions, signed for a mine positioned at the estuary.
This mine was the closest to Liangshan Island, crucially also an open-pit mine.
For the Ocean Clan, its output was minimal, not to mention extremely inconvenient to extract.
In the documents, this mine’s annual yield was only a hundred thousand Spirit Stones, negligible to the East Sea Dragon Palace.
The Dragon Mother had prepared for substantial losses, but did not expect the Little Kirin to ignore the larger, high-quality underwater mines in favor of choosing such a barren island.
She was secretly pleased, thinking that the Little Kirin and his group were indeed a bunch of ignorant country bumpkins.
The two parties cheerfully signed and sealed the documents, completing all the compensation matters.
However, the Dragon Mother added, "Last time, our East Sea Dragon Palace already compensated you a huge sum, and our treasury is depleted, needing three months to replenish. For this compensation, I hope to pay in installments. Every day, we will provide the respective compensation, to be fully repaid within three months."
According to her estimation, the Heavenly Court would make a move within a month.
By that time, before they could finish the compensation, this wild demon island would be wiped out.
The Little Kirin knew her intentions but raised no objections and readily agreed.
The Dragon Mother felt much happier, thinking to herself that although this gang of wild demons was strong in force, their intelligence was truly too low and too easy to fool.
She even pretended to be magnanimous, saying, "Now that this matter is resolved, I hope that our two sides can coexist peacefully in the future and not engage in any disputes. I’ve had a music and dance banquet prepared in the rear garden; if the emissaries are free, you are invited to enjoy it."
She initially thought these people wouldn’t agree out of face.
Who knew, the Little Kirin readily agreed, "Then thank you, Dragon Queen."
The Dragon Mother’s expression changed repeatedly, standing up with a forced smile and inviting, "Please!"
Under the maid’s watchful eyes, she led the Little Kirin and his group away.
She cursed these people inwardly for being shameless, unable to discern good words from bad.
The Dragon Maidens outside saw that an agreement was reached and happily approached, surrounding the Little Kirin and his group, asking directly, "Little brother, are you eligible for marriage?"
"Sister said you have a Kirin’s body, is that true?"
"Our Dragon Clan and the Kirin Clan have always been friendly; if you’re still single, could you consider us sisters?"
"..."
The Dragon Maidens spoke frankly, making the Little Kirin and his group blush with embarrassment.
The Dragon Mother, frustrated, covered her face, thinking to herself how these Dragon Maidens were so unseemly, losing all propriety over a man.
These Dragon Maidens in the Dragon Palace were all from the Dragon Clan, not her biological daughters.
She had only nine biological daughters.
Among them, only the Ninth Princess was by her side.
As everyone headed to the banquet, a maid whispered something in the Dragon Mother’s ear.
The Dragon Mother’s brow furrowed, instructing her subordinates to entertain the Little Kirin group first.
She went to the Ninth Princess’s palace, where her daughter wore sackcloth and a white cloth band, wielding a longsword, burning paper for her husband in the prepared mourning hall.
After burning a stack of paper money, she raised her sword to leave.
The Dragon Mother happened to run into her, stopping her with a shout, "What are you going to do? Haven’t the disturbances in the Dragon Palace been enough for you?"
The Ninth Princess, her eyes red, replied resolutely, "Mother, the enemies are right before us; why don’t you have someone kill them? With Father absent, how can you make such decisions on your own, signing such disgraceful terms with them? My husband died fighting for the Dragon Palace, yet you show no regard, wanting to reconcile with the enemies. I cannot swallow this grievance. You may fear them, but I do not."
The Dragon Mother scolded, "You are aware that your father is not here? We, as a mother and orphaned daughter, are without support now. If I did not act thus, tell me, how should we get through this crisis? Our Dragon Palace’s resilience is not built on fighting, but on strategy; do you understand?"
"I do not understand; I only want to kill them now and avenge my husband’s death!"
The Ninth Princess, not heeding her nagging, was about to leave with her sword.
The Dragon Mother grabbed her, "Enough! Haven’t the troubles you’ve caused been sufficient? Wasn’t this disaster caused by your self-important husband? The Dragon Palace has cleaned up after you twice; have you not reflected at all?"
"Reflect on what? I only know the Dragon Palace was shamed, and only my husband stood up. In my eyes, he is a hero; he is a man, worthy of being called a member of the Dragon Clan."
The Ninth Princess broke free from her hand, left with the sword.
The Dragon Mother urgently instructed others, "Quickly, stop this girl."
She wasn’t afraid that the Dragon Maiden would kill those emissaries, but rather that the emissaries would kill the Dragon Maiden.
At the banquet in the rear garden, the Yunmeng Marsh Dragon King continuously toasted the Little Kirin and his group, acting as though he had facilitated the agreement, feeling quite honored.
The Little Kirin showed him respect as well, constantly complimenting him, saying that he was indispensable to the process and that Liangshan Island would surely thank him generously.
With goblets interchanging and music enchanting.
The dancers in the Dragon Palace, indeed, were extraordinary.
Their bodies were flexible, playing the pipa with one hand, half veiling their face, dancing elegantly like fairies, like butterflies flitting before the eyes.
At this moment, a sound of a sword rang out.
With a crisp sound, a longsword shot straight at the Little Kirin’s forehead.
The Yunmeng Marsh Dragon King, frightened, tossed his cup aside and retreated swiftly, "Assassin, there’s an assassin!"