Ning Chen's eyes narrowed.

"The Zhaohe Kingdom has the nerve to send someone to talk peace?"

This was not the first time the Zhaohe Kingdom had joined Prince Rui in invading the Great Xuan, or the second.

Those animals had trampled the people of Chongzhou into the mud and left them no way to live. And now they dared come asking for peace?

When Prince Rui had been brought back to the capital in chains, the Xuan Emperor had ordered him flayed alive on the spot.

The score with the Zhaohe Kingdom hadn't even been settled, and here they were sending someone to talk peace.

Ning Chen said, "Father Emperor, with a country as rotten to the root as the Zhaohe Kingdom, we absolutely cannot make peace... Strong, they will certainly rob and raid; weak, they will certainly grovel. It's in their bones, and it doesn't change.

If they want peace now, it isn't because they're afraid. They want to lie low, build up their strength, and wait for their chance to strike."

The Xuan Emperor nodded. "This emperor doesn't know much about the Zhaohe Kingdom, but judging by the way they behave, you're absolutely right... This emperor will issue an edict right now telling them to get lost."

Ning Chen said, "Father Emperor, your child has already petitioned for an edict telling the Shipbuilding Office to speed up work on the warships.

The Zhaohe Kingdom keeps provoking us. A country as rotten to the root as that can't be allowed to survive... Once we have enough warships, your child wants to cross the Eastern Sea and wipe the Zhaohe Kingdom out.

But the time isn't ripe yet. We might as well play them for suckers first."

The Xuan Emperor looked at him and smiled. "What scheme have you cooked up this time?"

Ning Chen grinned sheepishly. "Money, of course. We use their money to build the warships, and then we use the ships to beat them up.

Father Emperor can issue an edict saying peace is no problem, but the Zhaohe Kingdom has to pay the Great Xuan a…