So Qi Ling and Bibi Dong then rushed to the Heaven Dou City Imperial Palace. When the people in the palace saw that Prince Qi Ling had returned, their faces were filled with undisguised joy, and someone hurriedly went to inform Xue Ke.
Everyone in the Heaven Dou Empire knows that the difficulties the empire has recently encountered have threatened the very foundation of its existence. Once the five great duchies completely break ties with the Heavenly Heaven Dou Empire Heaven Dou Empire, the Heaven Dou Empire will face the crisis of splitting apart at any time.
Meanwhile, everyone was even clearer about one fact: the one who could solve this problem was not the current Queen Xue Ke, but the Protector Prince, Qi Ling!
So now that everyone has seen Qi Ling, they feel that the country is finally saved, and they no longer need to worry about it day and night. For a time, everyone even felt that the crisis had been half resolved.
Bibi Dong, standing to the side, shook her head helplessly at the situation. Even though Qi Ling had not appeared for half a year, the situation remained unchanged. Qi Ling's prestige and status had not diminished in the slightest; on the contrary, they had become even more prominent.
If this happened in any other country, it would be an absolute disaster. The fact that the meritorious official overshadowed the ruler would inevitably lead to a falling out between the monarch and his subjects, and cause widespread suffering.
However, such a disaster did not occur in the Heaven Dou Empire. Xue Ke completely trusted Qi Ling. In fact, if Qi Ling had such intentions, she could have given up the throne to Qi Ling and simply stayed by his side.
But now that she is the Queen of the Heaven Dou Empire, she cannot let down her teacher's expectations, nor can she let down the people's expectations. The Heaven Dou Empire is already fortunate enough to be in Xue Ke's hands.
Upon seeing Qi Ling again, Xue Ke was naturally overjoyed and couldn't help but act coquettishly towards Qi Ling. Qi Ling felt helpless; if anyone saw Xue Ke like this, they wouldn't believe that she was actually the high and mighty Queen.
After Xue Ke calmed down, Qi Ling had her tell him about the five duchies so that he could know the details before taking action against them.
After Xue Ke's narration, Qi Ling understood the ins and outs of the matter, which was basically consistent with what Bibi Dong had said. Moreover, these duchies were indeed quite ambitious, having already sent their own envoys to negotiate with Xue Ke before this.
Their demands were for greater autonomy and for the Empire to recognize their independent status. They would continue to refer to themselves as a vassal state, but their connection with the Heaven Dou Empire would be virtually nonexistent.
Xue Ke naturally could not accept this approach, otherwise she would be the culprit who caused the Heaven Dou Empire to split. The five duchies insisted on their own views and had no intention of backing down, so the matter was dragged on until this negotiation meeting was held.
"Teacher, that's the situation. Do you think it's because I'm not capable enough to solve this problem?" Xue Ke said sadly.
In front of outsiders, she is a queen of high status, and naturally cannot easily show her weakness. But in front of Qi Ling, she can be uninhibited, because Qi Ling is her teacher.
Qi Ling patted Xue Ke's head and smiled, "You've done very well. It's just that these people are greedy and insatiable. People like that always have to pay the price!"
"Leave the rest to me, Xue Ke. When it's time for the negotiations, my sister and I will go with you."
With Qi Ling's assurance, Xue Ke finally felt relieved. After all, no matter how difficult the matter was, as long as her teacher said there was a way to solve it, then it could definitely be resolved.
And so, the date for the negotiation meeting soon arrived, and the location was a city that did not belong to Heaven Dou City or the five major duchies. Geographically speaking, it could be considered to be in the middle of everyone's territory.
Qi Ling knew that the reason these duchies made such demands was to create an atmosphere that their relationship with the Heaven Dou Empire was one of equality and even rivalry, rather than one of subordination.
Qi Ling didn't say anything about this. She arrived at the meeting place on time with Xue Ke and Bibi Dong, leaving the imperial guards outside, and the group went inside together.
Upon entering the venue, Qi Ling immediately noticed that none of the representatives from the five major duchies had arrived. The meeting was already scheduled to begin, yet their absence was clearly a show of force intended to intimidate Qi Ling and her group.
"Damn it! These people have gone too far! Who do they think they are!" the captain of the Imperial Guard said angrily. To him, the humiliation of the Queen and the Prince Protector was an insult to himself.
Qi Ling sat down and said slowly, "Don't rush, let's wait here and see what these people are up to."
It wasn't until half an hour later that the people from the five duchies arrived at the scene. Moreover, all five duchies arrived at the same time, such a coincidence that everyone knew it was intentional.
With Queen Xue Ke of the Heaven Dou Empire arriving in person, the kings of the five great duchies naturally had to come as well; otherwise, there would be no point in continuing the negotiations.
As soon as the five kings entered, they immediately apologized to Qi Ling and Xue Ke, explaining that they were late because they had encountered some trouble on the way, or had forgotten the time or remembered the wrong place, and that it was absolutely not intentional.
Qi Ling paused for a moment, then said to everyone, "Please, no need for such formalities. It's only natural and understandable. Please have a seat."
Seeing Qi Ling's expressionless demeanor, the five kings felt a chill in their hearts. Indeed, the one who could decide the fate of the Heaven Dou Empire was still this man!
So, no longer bothering to hide it, he immediately expressed his intentions after sitting down, reiterating his previous conditions and demanding a complete separation from the Heaven Dou Empire.
Xue Ke couldn't help but say, "This is unacceptable! We cannot agree to this! Don't forget, you are all people of the Heaven Dou Empire. How can you bear to divide your own country for your own selfish desires!"
Of the five kings, one named Otto said, "Your Majesty, times have changed. Although we are subjects of the Heaven Dou Empire, the Heaven Dou Empire can no longer meet our needs!"
"That's right, exactly!" "Our needs are not to continue like this, but to change!" The other kings echoed.
Xue Ke naturally disagreed with this statement, and thus began a debate with the kings. However, no matter what she said, none of them were willing to change their demands.
Finally, Otto, in a roguish manner, said, "In that case, let's pause the negotiations for now, so we can have more time to prepare!"