The State Banquet

After Gongsun Qiong explained, Ma Feifei finally understood what it meant.

It turns out that every five years, King Chu Heng would hold a state banquet, inviting people from various countries to the Chu Kingdom to attend this so-called state banquet.

The timeframe is set for May 15th to the end of May, a total of fifteen days.

During the month surrounding this period, no force is allowed to hold any activities within the territory of the Great Chu.

Nothing is acceptable; everything must give way to the state banquet.

Therefore, according to the rules of the Great Chu, Ma Feifei's plan to hold Pokémon Championship five months later is not permitted.

Simply put, it's illegal.

"Does this mean that if we want to hold the Pokémon Championship, we can only either move it forward or postpone it?" Ma Feifei said, stroking his chin.

That damn King Chu Heng of Chu is really something else! You can hold your state banquet all you want, no one's stopping you if you want to court disaster; but to forbid others from holding any kind of event—isn't that a classic case of double standards?

"Yes, Zhenguan Academy used to hold its entrance exams for new students every year in May; but ever since King Chu Heng ordered a state banquet, Zhenguan Academy has moved its entrance exams to March." Gongsun Qiong seemed afraid that Ma Feifei would be stubborn, so she briefly mentioned Zhenguan Academy.

Ma Feifei shook his head. "Postponing is impossible, and bringing it forward is also unrealistic."

Currently, the first batch of cultivators who obtained Pokémon only numbered slightly over seven hundred. Even if another seven hundred people were to enter next month, that would only amount to fourteen hundred.

But you have to exclude those who don't want to participate in the competition, right? After all, there are quite a few people who make a fortune quietly.

Then we also need to eliminate those who resell the Pokémon, that is, those who buy and sell the Pokémon a second time, right?

With this back and forth, it's hard to say what the standard of one thousand people is.

Therefore, we must go in again to ensure that the number of participants reaches the required level, which means three times.

This means it took more than two months just to catch the Pokémon. And once you catch one, you need to take it to fight monsters and level it up, right? Especially for those who got their Pokémon later, you need to give them some time to catch up, right?

So, five months is actually a bit tight; going ahead is completely impossible.

But if we don't plan ahead, it will clash with the state banquet. Dubian Town is part of the Great Chu territory. If you don't behave on their territory, they might send troops to take you down.

But is Ma Feifei the kind of person who backs down?

"Is there no other way?" Ma Feifei asked.

Gongsun Qiong shook his head and said, "The state banquet has been held for many years, and no one has ever dared to Taunt the majesty of King Chu Heng at such a time."

As the former leader of the five kingdoms, the Chu Kingdom, even in its declining years, is not one that anyone can Taunt.

"Unless..." Gongsun Qiong paused, then said hesitantly.

"Unless what?" Ma Feifei asked curiously.

"Unless the competition is held in the Qin State or the Zhao State," Gongsun Qiong said.

Dubian Town is on the border, only a hundred miles from the Qin State and just across the Silk Road from the Zhao State, so it would be easy to hold the event in a different location.

"It's too far." Ma Feifei shook his head.

Ma Feifei will definitely be watching the competition live. He's never been to Qin State, but it's still about a hundred miles away. What if he encounters any unexpected situations on the way, or someone tries to assassinate him? You know, that Phantom Organization is always ready to assassinate him.

The Zhao State was even more out of the question.

"If you really don't want to change the date, we can try holding this Pokémon Championship outside Dubian Town," Gongsun Qiong said hesitantly.

"Outside the town? Isn't that within the territory of the Chu Kingdom?" Ma Feifei asked, somewhat puzzled.

"Of course it belongs to them, but if we have to Sheer Force conclusion, it doesn't," Gongsun Qiong explained. "In fact, within the territories of the five states, border disputes have always been endless; but precisely because of this, each state uses its own towns as the boundary line; for example, the road 100 li north of Dubian Town does not actually belong to any state, but nominally, Qin and Chu each have divided 50 li of it."

To put it bluntly, this road is a buffer zone, Sheer Force the territories of the two countries from contiguous.

"Okay, let's hold the competition outside of town." Ma Feifei clapped his hands, confirming the plan.

Ma Feifei still had no intention of opposing King Chu Heng; however, the match time could not be changed, as this was a matter of principle.

"I'm just worried that if King Chu Heng finds out, he might be unhappy," Zhao Xiaodao said anxiously from the side.

Although they had actually left the territory of the Chu Kingdom, they were nominally still around Dubian Town. In addition, the organizer was the Wantong Chamber of Commerce. If King Chu Heng really wanted to make a fuss, he could really use this as an excuse.

"Yes, what will your Wantong Chamber of Commerce do if King Chu Heng really takes it to heart?" Ma Feifei asked.

The Wantong Chamber of Commerce is the number one chamber of commerce in the Great Chu. It's impossible for it to be without official backing. When news of the Pokémon Championship spreads, King Chu Heng might just order the Wantong Chamber of Commerce to cancel the competition.

Wouldn't it be truly hopeless then?

Seemingly sensing Ma Feifei's concerns, Gongsun Qiong smiled and said, "Although the Wantong Chamber of Commerce has shares held by the royal family, it doesn't represent the entire Wantong Chamber of Commerce. I'm still confident in hosting a Pokémon Championship."

"As for whether King Chu Heng will be displeased, what does that have to do with me?"

Although Gongsun Qiong spoke slowly and gently, his tone carried an air of utter disdain, as if he were facing the king of the Great Chu without the slightest Rattled.

Ma Feifei could only admire Gongsun Qiong's domineering presence.

"Okay, it's decided then." Ma Feifei clapped his hands, relieved that this important matter was resolved. He looked at the two of them and said, "The Bookstore got a lot of books today, would you like to take a look?"

"Of course, I haven't read a book in a long time," Gongsun Qiong said.

"Are there any books on increasing cultivation level?" Zhao Xiaodao asked curiously.

Ma Feifei thought for a moment and said, "Yes, but I need to look for it."

After the system upgrade, Ma Feifei can now see the basic introduction of each book. In other words, the capabilities of each book and the benefits it can bring to readers will be displayed in Ma Feifei's mind.

"Come on, let me show you around and help you pick out some books, but you still have to pay for them." This is the Bookstore's rule, and no one is allowed to break it.

"You're such a cheapskate." Zhao Xiaodao rolled his eyes.

Ma Feifei shrugged, seemingly unconcerned, and got up to lead the two out of the private room.

"There are no seats outside. You can go to the private room to read later. It will cost more inside than outside, but it will also help you in some ways, such as improving your comprehension while reading and helping you understand the content of the book more quickly." Ma Feifei introduced to Gongsun Qiong and Zhao Xiaodao as they walked out of the private room.

Gongsun Qiong nodded, not saying much. It was just reading a book; she wasn't short of money.

Zhao Xiaodao, however, asked, "How much does it cost?"

"One hundred Spirit Crystal per hour."

Zhao Xiaodao's mouth gaped slightly, her face filled with shock. Before she could even complain, Ma Feifei, seeing her reaction, quickly interjected, "Don't worry, it's definitely worth the price." (8)