The two drank tea in silence for three minutes, savoring cup after cup. After the sixth, Zeng Mu could drink no more.
"How is the tea?" Ying Zheng set down his cup as well and suddenly asked.
"Excellent. It is the best tea I have ever had-not because the leaves are precious, of course, but because you brewed it yourself," he said.
"Heh. I thought you were a blunt fellow, but perhaps not. It seems even I can misjudge people." He chuckled and said no more.
"May I now tell Your Majesty what I came here to say?"
"Of course. What is it you risked your life to come and tell me?"
"It is a long story, but it comes down to two areas and six main points."
"Oh? Then speak plainly. I dislike people who talk in circles and dress everything up in literary language."
Zeng Mu rose, formally clasped his hands, and bowed. At that moment, he looked like a minister offering counsel at court. Anyone watching would hardly have imagined he was merely a man from another country.
Once the other man nodded, he sat down and began in earnest. "How does Your Majesty view the continent's current situation?"
Ying Zheng had expected him to launch straight into his advice, not suddenly ask this question.
Still, Ying Zheng answered without hesitation. "The continent's situation is simple enough to describe, and not especially complicated in truth. To put it briefly: the Holy Temple Knights ride fierce steeds; Viking ships and wagons strike hard on water and land; the Seven Kingdoms, united, are no less formidable, but alas, that last alliance harbors divided hearts."
He summed it up. "That is the situation overall. Those fellows from the Holy Temple fare poorly on water, so they are constantly at war