*
Gao Zheqi merely offered a faint smile, and the servant fell silent.
*
*
「Upper Monarch Hall.」
The servant added some incense and was about to withdraw. From behind the beaded curtain, a lazy voice drawled with a chuckle, "What now? Has that old codger Gao Zheqi arrived?"
The servant startled slightly and quickly lowered his gaze. "A messenger just reported that Mr. Gao is already on his way to the Imperial Palace."
"I am weary. If he arrives, tell him to wait." The voice was nonchalant, tinged with amusement.
The servant quickly acknowledged the order and withdrew.
*
*
The wind picked up.
The Dayong Dynasty's territory was vast. The farther west one traveled, the more barren and desolate it became.
Huge, crisscrossing ravines scarred the landscape, as if a god had lashed the earth with a whip. Carriages and horses jostled over the uneven, rutted ground. Occasional gusts of yellow sand would billow up, making it impossible to open one's eyes.
