As for Henry Lewis, he made it perfectly clear right in front of the two of them: I want to be emperor!

Charles Carter's expression kept changing, and the look in his eyes toward Henry Lewis was no longer as calm as before. There seemed to be some surprise, some curiosity, and even a bit of admiration. But he didn't say anything, just sat there, and after a long while, once he had calmed down, he instead reached out to pick up the water bowl, took a small sip, and then sat there quietly as if he hadn't heard anything at all.

"Are you waiting for me to continue?"

Henry Lewis muttered to himself, while also pondering what to say next.

Actually, the reason he spoke so bluntly earlier wasn't just a momentary impulse. He had thought it over carefully and felt that with someone like Charles Carter, playing mind games or scheming was just asking for trouble—never mind that he had been cultivating for a long time, but scheming was not his strong suit; otherwise, he wouldn't have been tricked and nearly lost his life.

Since the other party would definitely notice, and it might even provoke Charles Carter's displeasure, it was better to just say it outright and show some boldness.

Isn't Charles Carter very bold himself? If you want to win over someone like him, you have to be even bolder!

It was with this mindset that Henry Lewis straightforwardly revealed his intention to become emperor. Of course, he wasn't without a backup plan—if Charles Carter not only refused to help but also wanted to oppose him, he wouldn't mind sending this hero on his way ahead of time.

"Such a hero—if he can't be used, he should be eliminated as soon as possible, to avoid endless trouble in the future!"

Where Charles Carter couldn't see, Henry Lewis's hands were already clenched into fists. Although there was no outward sign, the dragon energy within him was already surging violently. If Henry Lewis wished, he could unleash tremendous power at any moment and kill the man before him on the spot—though this was the last resort, and unless absolutely necessary, Henry Lewis really didn't want to take out Charles Carter directly.

Fortunately, although Charles Carter didn't speak, judging by his expression, he seemed to be weighing his options. As long as he didn't refuse outright, there was still hope.

"I've heard that Counselor Carter's ambition is to become General Who Conquers the West? May I ask why?"

The topic suddenly shifted, turning to Charles Carter's ambitions. Although it was a bit abrupt, it eased the awkward atmosphere in the room quite a bit. Even Paul Carter, who was sweating bullets on the side, felt a weight lift off his shoulders and relaxed a little.

But as soon as he relaxed, he sensed something was off. He hurried to the doorway, listened for a moment, and, after confirming that no one was outside, finally let out a long breath—he hadn't even considered that if someone really had been eavesdropping, they would have been so shocked by the earlier conversation that they'd have run off long ago, leaving no need for him to check.

So from the very beginning, Henry Lewis had secretly sent out that white crane to guard against prying eyes.

When Charles Carter heard Henry Lewis's question, he only thought for a moment before answering directly: "To wipe out the threat of foreign tribes and expand the nation's territory!"

The General Who Conquers the West commands Yong and Liang provinces, faces many tribes in the northwest, and is stationed in Chang'an. Because of the Han dynasty's geographic position, if one wanted to expand the nation's territory, the northwest was the most likely direction. Thus, the General Who Conquers the West was one of the most powerful military positions.

At the same time, Charles Carter's desire to become General Who Conquers the West showed that he was currently more interested in military affairs.

Henry Lewis also knew of Charles Carter's ambitions, and Charles Carter had even mentioned them in casual conversation before. So he wasn't surprised that Henry Lewis knew about his goals; instead, he felt that this crown prince clearly hadn't come to him on a whim, but had done his homework beforehand.

"So, Counselor Carter, what do you think of the current state of the world?"

As soon as this question was asked, Charles Carter immediately fell silent!

If someone else had asked, he might have spoken at length, sharing his views on the state of the world and discussing various strategies. But the person before him had too sensitive an identity, and had just declared his intention to become ruler of the world. The things he wanted to say wouldn't sound good to a member of the royal family.

Henry Lewis also noticed Charles Carter's concerns, but just smiled lightly, looking completely unconcerned, and said, "Go ahead and speak freely—just treat it as a casual conversation!"

Such a simple sentence seemed unremarkable, but unconsciously placed him in a position above the rest. Charles Carter noticed this, but didn't find it inappropriate.

Although the Han imperial family wasn't overly ostentatious—when the emperor met the Three Excellencies or marquises, he had to rise from his seat, wait for them to finish their bows, return the courtesy according to protocol, and only then sit down again—it wasn't as if the royal family had no airs at all.

When facing someone like Charles Carter, who wasn't yet a high-ranking official, putting on a bit of a show was nothing.

Charles Carter thought it over and finally decided it was fine to speak. After all, in the current situation... the other party couldn't do anything to him anyway. After all, the person before him was just a prince—the one with the least presence and the least power. If only he knew that Henry Lewis was already prepared to take his life, who knows what he'd think.

"Bandits run rampant across the land, causing the people's livelihood to wither—this is a sign of great chaos!"