He snapped back to his senses, a smile on his face, as if the person in front of him wasn't someone competing with him for subordinates at all.
"The Empress Dowager wants to recruit you. She must have taken a fancy to your erudition. This is already giving you face. Why don't you hurry up and thank the Empress Dowager?"
Lan Xi was a bit surprised. He knew that, judging from the person beside him's personality, he would never easily give him away. There must be other plans.
This smiling tiger was extremely insidious.
With such thoughts in mind, when facing the King of the Western Regions, he became much more vigilant.
"Then this official will accept it respectfully. From now on, I will serve the Empress Dowager and the Emperor."
After he bowed, Shi Muyuan felt that things for today had been mostly settled. She was too lazy to continue facing this hypocritical person.
She casually waved her hand and told the four guards to disperse all the common people around.
"Then the King of the Western Regions shall enter the palace with this old woman. This old woman will have a feast prepared for you in the palace to welcome you."
Hearing this, the King of the Western Regions spoke with a face full of apology.
"I'm afraid I'll have to decline the Empress Dowager's kind invitation today. I'd like to go to the post - house to rest for a few days first."
Although Shi Muyuan had already expected his answer, when she really heard it, she still pretended to be extremely surprised.
"Does the King of the Western Regions not want to attend this feast in the palace?"
"Alas, let's rest for a few days first. After traveling day and night, I've finally seen Lord Lan. I hope to have a good catch - up with him. Empress Dowager, we'll take our leave first."
Shi Muyuan glanced at Lan Xi. Seeing him nod slightly, she agreed with confidence.
"In that case, you two should have a good catch - up. I'm sure Lord Lan has missed you a lot recently."
After she finished speaking, she led the others back to the palace.
And Lord Qi stayed behind to lead the group to the post - house.
In fact, he had always disliked the King of the Western Regions and didn't act very friendly on the surface.
After he escorted them to the post - house, he turned around with a gloomy face. "We're here. I won't accompany the King of the Western Regions in. Anyway, Lord Lan is quite familiar with this place."
The King of the Western Regions was extremely annoyed by his attitude. Just as he was about to flare up, he was stopped.
Seeing him shaking his head, he had to hold it all back.
"Then we won't see Lord Qi off."
As soon as the words fell, he snorted coldly, flicked his sleeve, and walked into the post - house. Lan Xi followed and gave Lord Qi an apologetic smile.
After the two walked into the room, the King of the Western Regions took the initiative to pour a cup of tea for the person behind him.
"Lan Xi, there are only the two of us here. This king won't stand on ceremony with you. Sit down. This king came here specifically to look for you this time. I'm really worried about your safety."
He looked extremely concerned. If Lan Xi didn't know the true nature of the person in front of him, he might really have believed it.
Coldly sneering in his heart, he remained calm on the surface. He sat down beside him, looking terrified.
"Your Highness is overestimating me. I really can't drink this cup of tea. I came here this time without achieving any merits. Instead, I've let Your Highness down."
He knelt on the ground, speaking devoutly, which made the person sitting on the chair even more complacent.
Sure enough, the person he had brought up was still loyal to him.
In that case, his next plan would be easier to carry out.
The King of the Western Regions quickly helped him up from the ground and then pressed him to sit on the chair.
"You just had to do it to survive. If you hadn't made such a wise choice, this king wouldn't have been able to see you even if I came. Don't worry, this king doesn't blame you."
With this reassurance, Lan Xi let out a big sigh of relief, still looking terrified on the surface.
"Granny Lin and Lin Sun are missing. I don't know where they've gone. They've disappeared since I had an accident."
The King of the Western Regions didn't care at all whether those two were dead or alive. He was only eager to ask about the information he had received last time and to determine whether the person in front of him was still useful.
"Before, this king's subordinate saw you looking for an antidote for the people in Changjing City with the Empress Dowager and the national master. Is this true?"
His eyes were sharp, as if he could see through people's minds at a glance.
And Lan Xi was already quite experienced in dealing with such situations.
"Please forgive me, Your Highness. I had no choice before. If I hadn't taken the initiative to help those people look for the antidote, how would they have trusted me? Now I've gained the trust of the Empress Dowager and the Emperor. In the future, if Your Highness wants me to do anything, it'll be easy for me."
When the King of the Western Regions was asking the question, he had indeed had such a suspicion. Now that his suspicion was confirmed, he finally let out a sigh of relief.
"This king knew that you would never be an ungrateful person. After all, it was this king who saved your life back then. Only this king in this world can recognize your value and let you give full play to your abilities."
Hearing his words, Lan Xi felt disgusted, but he still pretended to agree on the surface.
If Shi Muyuan were here, she would definitely mercilessly tease that this was an old master of PUA. She didn't know how many people he had bewitched like this before.
After confirming that he was still loyal to him, the King of the Western Regions couldn't wait to let him do things for him.
So, the King of the Western Regions reluctantly took off the jade pendant on his body and put it into Lan Xi's hand.
"Before, this king always ignored your feelings. I was afraid that you would be in danger on this mission, but I never gave you any reassurance. I thought that you hadn't contacted this king for so many days because you had defected. Now it seems that it was all a misunderstanding. Since that's the case, this king should also show something. This jade pendant has been with this king for many years and has always been treasured by this king. You know that. Now I'll give it to you."
Seeing his eyes glued tightly to the jade pendant, Lan Xi found it ridiculous.
But thinking of the importance of this jade pendant, he still snatched it directly, as if he hadn't noticed the King of the Western Regions' little gesture.
"Your Highness, just give me your orders. You don't have to be so polite. Since it's your kindness, I'll accept it."
Seeing him casually put the jade pendant into his bosom, the King of the Western Regions felt his heart ache.
"This jade pendant has been with this king for many years and has always been well - cared for. So you should treat it well. Don't damage it."
"Your Highness can rest assured. I'm quite experienced in this regard. I will definitely protect the jade pendant well. As long as the jade pendant is intact, I'll be alive. If the jade pendant is damaged, I'll die."
After getting such a guarantee from him, the King of the Western Regions finally felt at ease.
"Good. This king came to you today for another very important matter. Our previous plan must not be abandoned halfway. Fortunately, this king is here this time and can supervise it personally."