Familiar Feeling

To be granted lands and crowned king—within the Blood Qin Empire, only members of the imperial family received such treatment. For those of other surnames, the highest title they could obtain in the Blood Qin Empire was no more than a hereditary duke.

The treatment accorded to a duke and a king was worlds apart. Given fiefs of the same size, a duke could only enjoy the tax revenue from that land. But a king granted territory could decide the life and death of all subjects within it, and could establish his own local laws so long as they did not violate imperial law.

A king could even levy private troops within his own domain. So long as he could afford to support them, the Empire would not care how many private soldiers he possessed!

Take Xiong Wanjin's brother-in-law, the Sea Stabilizing King, for example. He maintained a private army of three hundred thousand men in Sea City—Sea City was prosperous and rich, one of the great port cities of the Eastern Continent and one of its most important commercial centers. If the Sea Stabilizing King had not been so timid and fearful of trouble, the annual tax revenue Sea City brought him would have been enough for him to raise several million soldiers, just like Dragon City.

To grant lands and crown him king—Ying Zheng was willing to offer such terms, make such a promise. It was clear how highly he valued this osmanthus tree. Lin Qi and Hu Xinzhu stared blankly at it, unable to speak for a time.

After coughing violently several times, Ying Zheng bent over and wiped the blood he had coughed up from the corner of his mouth with a white handkerchief. Then he said coldly, "But let me speak plainly first. If you