Servini read through the booklet slowly and carefully, almost word by word.
Although the booklet was thin, it contained quite a lot of text. It took Servini a full half hour to finish the last word.
After finishing it, Servini closed her eyes slightly and pondered for a full ten minutes before speaking.
"Xu Yi, everything written here describes the benefits energy standardization would bring to our Lampari Kingdom. Can you tell me what benefits it would bring to your Xinfei Merchant Guild?"
Xu Yi smiled faintly. "Your esteemed Majesty, would you like to hear the truth or a lie?"
Servini shot Xu Yi an irritated glare. "Maliciously deceiving the monarch is a capital offense."
Xu Yi chuckled. "What if the deception isn't malicious? Or at least... doesn't have any significant consequences?"
"That won't do either," Servini said solemnly. "If they don't know how this energy standardization benefits your Xinfei Merchant Guild, the members of the Kingdom Parliament will never feel comfortable following your proposal and implementing this policy."
"Does that mean you trust me, Your Majesty?" Xu Yi asked.
"If I didn't trust you, would I waste so much breath talking to you?" Servini suddenly sighed softly. "There's no one else here. Stop calling me Your Majesty all the time. Can't we call each other by name like we used to?"
Xu Yi considered this for a moment, then nodded slowly. "All right, Servini. The benefits of energy standardization for the Lampari Kingdom mainly lie in unified management and allocation of energy, which would strengthen its administration and control over local regions. I explained all that clearly in the report. As for its benefits to our Xinfei Merchant Guild, would you believe me if I said it would save us a great deal of effort?"
"Oh?" Servini grew curious.