It wasn't long before Sun Liling made her presence known on the hilltop. The princess of the west was not too much different from how she was at the tournament, walking with a sort unshakeable predatory confidence. Her sun darkened skin had shed the handful of scars she had before, the lines that used to mar her face, and her hair was a little longer, bound up in a thick braid that swayed behind her back. She wore a shimmering vest of black scales over a pale green shirt with silver vambraces that pinned the sleeves in place. The high riding boots her silken pants were tucked into were white snakeskin.
She was glad that Bai Meizhen had such a good hold on her temper, because that was just provocative. Indeed, Xiao Fen looked about ready to spit blood and leap over the table. Meizhen merely narrowed her eyes.
Trailing behind Liling was another familiar figure. Ji Rong, who unlike his Liege had picked up new scars, quite a few of them, climbing like lines of lightning up around his bare arms, from beneath the bandage wraps around his hands and wrists. He was wearing an open chested, sleeveless tunic, in similar colors to Liling. His hair had been shorn short, rather than remaining a shaggy mop.
"Yo, looks like you started without us," Sun Liling said, tilting her head as she looked at Ling Qi.
She smelled blood as the princess stared her down. Liling was almost as tall as her now, firmly in the sixth stage of the Green Realm, though there was a potency in her aura beyond that.
Ling Qi showed no reaction, smiling blandly. "Only in making ready the refreshments. It would be terribly rude to make the other guests wait for hospitality when there was no specific time of arrival provided."
Sun Liling cracked a grin. "That's fair. I guess I won't sweat it. It's fine I brought a plus one, right?"
"Of course, I would never refuse our esteemed guests their retinues," Ling Qi said. "Please, find a seat, Princess. SInce you are here, we can get to business if no one has any objections."
Zheng Fu gave her a thumbs up with his mouth full of cider. Xuan Shi inclined his head.
"Everyone present has many duties to see to. I am ready to proceed at any time, Baroness," Bai Meizhen said.
"Yeah sure. I'd like to hear what exactly's been going on down here, rumors have been wild," Sun Liling said casually. She stepped past. Ji Rong followed. He briefly met her eyes, and she had to stop herself from frowning. There was something ragged in his gaze.
The two of them took a seat near Xuan Shi, as close to opposite the Bai delegation as they could manage, and Ling Qi let out a breath of relief. Sun Liling wasn't going all in on antagonizing them then. At least not yet. Ling Qi moved around the table to find an open space as close to equidistant as she could manage from all of the guests here. "I'm sure the rumors have been very outlandish. But with everyone here, I hope I can give all of you, the Cai's esteemed guests, a clear picture of the situation."
Xuan Shi knew all of this, Bai Meizhen most of it, but it was best to treat everyone as if they were on even footing here. "Some months ago, during the Argent Peak Sects assault on the nomad confederation meetings, I encountered an individual who was neither Cloud Tribe nor Imperial…"
Ling Qi made her presentation, laying out the raw facts of the events at the caldera, the journey to the South, the meeting in the iron fortress, and the preparations of the last month or so. She allowed qi to tinge her voice as she spoke, it came easily now, adding clarity and sincerity to her words, granting them a depth that mortal speech couldn't match, image and memory embedded in each syllable.
While she spoke she watched her audience. Xuan Shi leaned forward subtly, listening intently, despite knowing this all. Zheng Fu grinned, rating an elbow on the table while shoveling in snacks with untoward speed. Bai meizhen was unreadable, but Xia Anxi looked disbelieving. As for Sun Liling, she listened with a cocked eyebrow and an unreadable little smirk.
"Hah, you've been running ragged. Bunch of adventure's back to back," Zheng Fu laughed as she finished. "Well I get why you're so intense about this!"
"Prioritizing among enemies and potential enemies is wise, and Duchess Cai's subjugations prove that foreign arrangements are possible here, just as they are on the Seas," Bai Meizhen said diplomatically. That was the official Bai line, Ling Qi knew.
"Yeah I get it, enemies enemies everywhere, gotta pick a direction," Sun Liling said. "Still, gotta ask, I don't feel like you all are really just looking for something perfunctory here? Kinda at odds with everything you're building."
"We would like it to be more, and head off potential conflict in the future, since the Emerald Seas is not positioned to truly control the mountains of the Wall as things stand. Are things different for the Western Territories?"
"Hmmmm…Nah," Sun Liling said lazily. Looking like there's some good mining in the foothills, but we got enough space to fill up. Right Ji Rong? You toured the settlements."
"...Yeah, Need more people first," Ji Rong said.
"Eh, you lot are moving enough stuff that I doubt you're planning to punch and run down there," Zheng Fu drawled. "Hell, I hear your grandpappy's had some real big wigs tearing up open mines down there. Sure sounds permanent to me."
Sun Liling squinted at Zheng Fu, Ling Qi blinked, she hadn't expected that. "There ain't as many tribes in our chunk of mountains, might as well get some use out of 'em," Sun Liling shrugged. "We ain't planning big settlements. Also not really the point of this, is it?"
"I hope that our efforts can be coordinated, if only to avoid any unnecessary mistakes or conflicts," Ling Qi said. "I have knowledge that indicates that the Polar Nation who live south of the western territories has some contact with a 'flower demon?' from the north, which sounds like the old inhabitants of your kingdom, for example. Have you found any passes that would facilitate that?"
Sun Liling hummed to herself. "Well, now we're really getting off track huh? Since I'm feeling generous though… Yeah there's something like that, a place where the mountains go low. Sealed off though, some real nasty growth there. Good thing Gramps hasn't decided to chop through it yet, huh?"
"Probably," Ling Qi said slowly. "My apologies princess Sun, I do really hope to speak with you more on those matters later."
"And I might be inclined to listen, why don't ya get back to explaining the barbarians right now though," Sun Liling dismissed.
"My lady's current plan for negotiations is to establish nonagression, a mutually acceptable dispute resolution mechanism, and agreement over territory maps, and to maintain in this area a small 'foreign quarter' similar to the Xuan's port," Ling Qi said, after a moment. "Any trading at scale is still some time away, but we are considering offering some mutual academic access to keep interest."
Xuan Shi tilted his head curiously.
"Oh? The observatory then? I suppose that awful light in the south means these people have some experience with the sky," Bai Meizhen said.
"Just so," Ling Qi said. "Some tentative investigation indicates that they may have difficulty producing glass as fine as ours, so our telescope might be of interest. Similarly I have observed their astronomical maps and they are not too inferior to Imperial ones."
"Guess, offering mostly irrelevant stuff is a good plan for bait," Sun Liling drawled.
"One who lives 'pon the shore never shall ignore the stars," Xuan Shi said, frowning.
"I don't think you need to sink a cities worth of stones into a fancy looking glass to make a star chart," Sun Liling replied. "But guess there is some funny stuff going on down south, so maybe it is worth it. Anyway, if you're looking for approval, I don't care, Gramps won't either."
"It is unorthodox, and not done, to share imperial knowledge with barbarians, but… Princess Sun is correct that a… tertiary field like astronomy will not cause too much upset," Bai Meizhen looked like she had bitten into something deeply sour saying even that much.
"Ehhhhhh… It's fine? Like sounds like a solid plan, not that I have any idea for this stuff," Zheng Fu offered. "Don't know that the capital spooks will see it that way."
"The isles will trust in the judgment of of our friends, and approve the scholarship of the stars," Xuan Shi said.
"Lady Cai will be pleased. We have hope that the academic mission will serve as the seed of a tradepost, through which wealth may flow into the Empire, but that is much further away. Now, the first subject I would like to speak to everyone on is how you our honored guests, are able to interact with negotiations. Lady Cai feels it is important that everyone come to an agreement on our behavior to prevent any misunderstandings."
"Hah, we're just observers aren't we. Just need to sit in our pretty little rustic palaces while you jaw off with the savages, no?" Sun Liling said idly drumming her fingers on the table. Her fingernails were bright green and sharp and made a noise not unlike daggers tapping on the stone.
"Of course, you are free to do so. But I know that the worthies of the Empire are rarely happy sitting passive for long," Ling Qi said smoothly.
"Hah, that's right. I'd go nuts just sitting around like that, plus I kinda want to chat with that old crow guy again," Zheng Fu said. He took a deep drink from the bottle of wine he'd pulled his way and let out a satisfied sigh. "But you don't want me wandering on my own and spooking them into jumping me, I get it."
"It is not the Bai's interest to be involved with barbarians, until they have proven themselves otherwise," Bai Meizhen sniffed. "But yes, It would be terribly dull, merely sitting and reading reports rather than witnessing your work first hand. Of course, others may have further interests."
Xia Anxi bowed his head. "If Lady Cai might allow, I may like to speak with the geomancers, if only to set my Lady's mind at ease on the safety of the projects here."
Xuan Shi. "Consultation with Lady Ling is already my purpose, to ease understanding, and bring about friendship."
Sun Liling snorted. "Suppose you got me there. So what are you proposing?"
Ling Qi took a deep breath. She and Cai Renxiang had spoken on this, even if the members of the ducal clans had no desire at all to interact with the summit beyond observing having a system in place. A system for all of them, that could not be seen as pushing one or more out was vital, even if the actual people, like Meizhen would never undermine her on purpose, they still answered to their clans. To that end…
[ ] She proposed that any ducal representative wishing to speak with the White Sky ask her to arrange an appointment, which she would personally mediate. (Reduce chances and severity of diplomatic insult. Claims some of Ling Qi's 'free' negotiation time)
[ ] She proposed that meetings could take place in the still being constructed meeting hall at specific times, when the primary negotiations were in recess. She would merely coordinate appointments. (Does not claim any of Ling Qi's time. No penalties or bonuses to diplomatic insults)
[ ] She would not propose to limit her ducal guests so crassly, indeed if they wished to speak with the foreigners they could speak as part of the Empire (No separate chances of diplomatic insults, may complicate the main negotiations.)
