Chapter 344 - 149: Summoning the Emperor with a Single Word

’Thinking about this is useless.’

"We should be thinking, what if His Majesty and the Empress could come to our shop for a bowl of noodles!

That would be incredible!

Our little shop would be a massive hit then!"

The husband and wife who owned the shop began to daydream.

At that moment, the other customers in the shop couldn’t help but burst out laughing when they heard them.

"Hey, you two, you’re really letting your imaginations run wild, aren’t you?"

"His Majesty and the Empress are accustomed to a life of luxury!"

"Why would they ever eat noodles at a small roadside stall like this?"

"What kind of status do His Majesty and the Empress have?"

"Why would they ever come to a little roadside shop like yours?"

They all chimed in one after another.

Everyone was just enjoying the show, treating it all as idle gossip and a joke.

"Shopkeepers, since you want His Majesty and the Empress to visit your shop and grace you with their noble presence..."

But unexpectedly, Xu Lei suddenly spoke up. "In that case, I will grant your wish today.

Consider it a reward for the free side dish you gave us just now!"

Hearing Xu Lei’s words, everyone present was stunned.

"What are you talking about, kid!"

"You think you can summon His Majesty the Emperor and the Empress to this little shop with just a word?"

"What kind of nonsense are you spouting?"

"Miss, you should keep your brother in line. Make him stop this bad habit of spouting such nonsense!"

Then, they all continued to chime in.

"My brother is just fine!"

But Qing Lian retorted, "He doesn’t have any bad habits!"

The entire shop fell silent, stunned once again.

Disdainful looks then crossed their faces; they figured that with an older sister setting a bad example, it was no wonder her younger brother had gone astray.

Xu Lei saw the expressions on everyone’s faces, but he simply smiled without saying anything in rebuttal.

Qing Lian didn’t argue back either. There was no need.

Facts are the best argument!

Because at that very moment, outside...

The massive imperial procession of the Emperor and Empress had come to a halt.

And indeed, the Emperor and Empress had already disembarked from their carriage and were walking towards the small shop!

The reason for this was simple.

Just moments before, while the people in the shop were chattering...

Xu Lei had instructed Qing Lian to use the Sound Transmission Technique, sending a message directly to the Emperor and Empress.

The message primarily stated that they could help the Emperor suppress the Vassal Princes and unify the realm!

And all without consuming much Magical Power!

The Emperor and Empress were taken aback for a moment, then looked at each other.

After a brief discussion, they quickly decided to come over and assess the situation.

And so, the current scene unfolded.

This scene left the many commoners on the street outside the shop both surprised and bewildered.

Inside the noodle shop, the owners and the other patrons were completely dumbfounded, unable to stop themselves from exchanging glances with those around them.

"What’s going on?"

"Why is His Majesty walking over here?"

"The Empress is here too?"

"This is insane! Did he really just say they would come, and they actually came?"

They were so shocked it gave them goosebumps, and their gazes snapped in unison toward Xu Lei and Qing Lian.

With the Emperor’s arrival...

...everyone inside the noodle shop knelt in obeisance.

However, Xu Lei and Qing Lian did not kneel.

After all, they had already revealed themselves to be Cultivators.

In truth, Xu Lei and Qing Lian were currently wearing Human Skin Masks and necklaces to disguise their appearances.

Although their facial features were slightly altered, their figures remained the same.

But it was a disguise nonetheless.

Therefore, they didn’t need to fear karmic entanglement after being exposed.

Ordinary Cultivators, if they lacked a Magical Artifact to disguise their appearance...

...wouldn’t dare to act so boldly.

After all, if their true appearance were exposed...

...even a Cultivator could very well be killed.

For example, the Emperor could find out where you are and have his armies hunt you down.

You might not die the first or second time, but by the third or fourth, you’d be done for.

Even people connected to you could be captured and used against you.

Even if you weren’t killed in the first couple of sieges and managed to escape the third, could you survive the fourth?

If things reached that point, you could forget about cultivation altogether.

And that’s only if you had considerable Power to begin with.

A Cultivator with ordinary Power would be killed easily by an army siege.

Of course, with his twice-accumulated cultivation base and the explosives he carried, Xu Lei could handle a certain degree of karmic repercussion.

That was why he remained unmoved.

Meanwhile, the other customers in the noodle shop watched, shocked that Xu Lei and Qing Lian hadn’t knelt.

Their faces were once again filled with shock.

However, the Emperor and Empress naturally didn’t put on airs or fly into a rage.

Instead, they walked forward to face Xu Lei and Qing Lian.

They sat down opposite them.

They naturally asked Qing Lian what sort of Dharma Gate she possessed that could help them unify the realm.

After all, Xu Lei had asked Qing Lian to send the message, not doing it himself.

This was because Xu Lei was still too young.

He didn’t want to appear too conspicuous.

It was better to have Qing Lian take the lead.

However, Qing Lian didn’t know what to say at that moment.

It had all been so sudden; Xu Lei had abruptly told her to summon the Emperor and Empress for a meeting.

At the time, Qing Lian hadn’t actually thought the Emperor and Empress would come. After all, to mortals, their status was incomparably noble.

But Xu Lei had accurately gauged the Emperor and Empress’s mindset, so of course, it worked.

But Xu Lei hadn’t yet told Qing Lian what to say to them.

"Let’s eat our noodles first."

Xu Lei spoke up, "Sister, the noodles will get soggy if we don’t eat."

Qing Lian took the opportunity to gracefully sidestep the question.

She said they should eat first.

Seeing this, the Emperor and Empress didn’t press the matter.

They really did just sit there in the shop, across from Xu Lei and Qing Lian.

The husband and wife who owned the shop also served them noodles.

However, the Emperor and Empress didn’t eat.

Nevertheless, the very fact that the Emperor and Empress had visited was enough to make the shop famous.

After finishing their noodles, Xu Lei and Qing Lian left the shop.

From the moment the Emperor and Empress arrived, Xu Lei and Qing Lian hadn’t spoken another word to the shop owners.

There was no need to.

Their relationship with the Emperor and Empress was one of impending negotiation; there was no guarantee they would become friends.

’If the negotiations with the Emperor and Empress fall through later, what if the shop owners get dragged into it?’

That was why Xu Lei didn’t say another word to the couple.

This way, it would seem as if Xu Lei and Qing Lian had just happened to eat at their shop by chance.

Then, no matter the outcome of their negotiations with the Emperor and Empress, the shop wouldn’t be affected.

After finishing their noodles, Xu Lei and Qing Lian left with the Empress and Emperor.

The other customers in the shop could only watch in shocked disbelief.

「Half an hour later.」

Xu Lei and Qing Lian arrived near a villa on the outskirts.

They were, of course, traveling with the Emperor and Empress.

It turned out the imperial couple had been on their way to a summer retreat!

They couldn’t possibly stay in that noodle shop forever.

It wasn’t a suitable place for discussion.

"Divine Nun," the Little Emperor asked, "about that Steel Refining Technique you mentioned, what materials does it require?

I will have my people prepare everything by tomorrow.

If the materials aren’t anything special...

...if they’re relatively common and easy to find...

...we might even be able to have them all ready by tonight."

This was because on the way over, Qing Lian, following Xu Lei’s instructions, had expressed their intent to offer the Steel Refining Technique in exchange for a group of craftsmen from death row.

The Emperor and Empress were somewhat underwhelmed. In their view, a Steel Refining Technique probably wouldn’t increase their army’s combat effectiveness by much.

The steel produced by the existing carburization methods was already quite good, even if the process wasn’t very efficient.

Of course, after exchanging a glance, they remained respectful toward Xu Lei and Qing Lian.

Qing Lian made the excuse that she was a little tired.

She said she wanted to rest first and would talk later.

The demonstration could wait until tomorrow.

"Senior, I think I feel a strange, evil Qi in this villa."

But just as they reached the villa’s entrance, Qing Lian sent a secret sound transmission to Xu Lei.