As he passed through the halls of the building, Guoxing made note of the peasants that had lined up. At first he believed it to be hand outs of free food, but then as they neared the main chamber, he came to the conclusion that they had sought parlay with the King. It intrigued him why a man of the Kings position and stature would stoop to dealing with the affairs of peasants. Certainly there were bureaucrats within the administration who should deal with such affairs... then again, maybe there weren't. Or perhaps the King wished to take the people's needs seriously... or perhaps he simply wished for them to believe that.Xiang Zhuang wrote:The attendant nods, and provided the guards see no other weapons on the man, he is led into the building. They went down the hall a short ways, passing a line of what appeared to be peasants waiting to speak with the king. They had to wait at the entrance for a moment as a somewhat unhappy-looking peasant was being led away. The attendant walked past the others, and seeing no reason to wait, walked into the large room in the center. There, Xia Xi and his daughter sat behind a desk, upon a dais slightly elevated from the rest of the room. The room had a few guards about, and a few attendants, with one scribe in the corner. The attendant from the gates walked a few steps, then gave the king and his daughter a bow, before stepping to the side. He said, "Your majesty, I announce Shi Guo Xing, an invited guest of yours." He gave the visitor a small bow, then moved to the site.
Xia Xi gave the visitor a small nod. "Welcome to Zhaoge, Shi Guo Xing. I am pleased that you have chosen to respond to my summons. I hope that the journey here was without incident."
Whatever the case was, he soon fogot about it as he entered the chamber and was greeted by the King himself. Pulling back the hood of his cloak, revealing a youthful looking man with long, dark hair tied and pinned into a topknot, the traveler then bowed low in response to the King's recognition. When he raised his eyes, they wandered to the woman at the King's side. He wondered who she was. An aide? A relative? It intrigued him, but as soon as his gaze went into her direction, he realized the perception of such a folly and immediately turned his eyes back to the King.
"Your Highness," he began, keeping his gaze near the King's shoulder, "I could not refuse a summons from someone such as yourself... and no, I did not encounter any troubles in my travels." Giving pause, he thought of the letter he had received. "Excuse my words, your Highness, but why is the King of Yin currently involved in Zhao to such an extent that my services would be required. I have been traveling outside the Empire and am ignorant of what has transpired as of late."