Chapter 86 Chapter 86 Sold out and still counting money for the seller...

"I'm here!" came a loud shout from outside the tent.

Xiao Chengying turned around and frowned as she looked at Lu Jinlan, who calmly stepped in and lifted the curtain.

Upon seeing her, the guards beside Xiao Chengying immediately drew their steel knives and glared at her angrily.

Lu Jinlan's gaze swept over everyone's faces for a moment, then she smiled slightly at Xiao Chengying, "I'm just going to relieve myself, why is Your Highness so nervous?"

Xiao Chengying gritted his teeth and said, "You have always been cunning, so I have to be on guard."

Lu Jinlan disagreed, "Although I injured Your Highness, I heard from Henglang that you praised me quite a bit after you woke up. Why pretend to dislike me now? Besides, according to Henglang, I should call you 'Royal Sister'."

"Royal Sister?" Everyone had expressions of schadenfreude, their eyes darting back and forth between the three of them.

Lu Jinlan smiled and flicked the steel knife in front of her with her fingertip. "Royal sister, would you like to sit down and have a chat?"

Xiao Heng's face flushed, and he quickly said to Xiao Chengying, "Royal sister, Jinlan trusts me, which is why she personally escorted me back. She has shown such great sincerity, why are you making things so tense? Anyone who doesn't know better would think you're afraid of her."

Xiao Chengying rolled her eyes at him, "What do you know? With a brain like yours, she can easily fool you. You'll be sold out and still be helping her count the money."

Xiao Heng retorted, "Fine, we won't talk then. Why are you cursing at me? I know you're afraid of her. From now on, just pretend you don't have a brother like me. Let's go."

Xiao Heng grabbed Lu Jinlan's hand and was about to leave when Xiao Chengying frowned. "Alright, since we're already here, let's chat for a bit."

She glanced at the guards beside her and said, "You may all leave."

Xiao Heng winked smugly at Lu Jinlan, when suddenly Xiao Chengying said, "Fourteenth brother, you go out too."

"Huh? What's wrong with letting me hear it?"

Xiao Heng refused to leave, so Lu Jinlan smiled and pinched his cheek, "Good boy, listen to your royal sister."

"Alright, then I'll say something to my elder sister."

Xiao Heng quickly walked to Xiao Chengying's side and whispered, "You should have a good talk with her. I want to be a concubine. If I'm a concubine, I can give her more dowry. If she insists on making me a mistress, you... you help me think of a way."

Xiao Chengying frowned as he listened. What nonsense was this?

Xiao Heng ran out, leaving only Lu Jinlan and Xiao Chengying inside the tent.

A square table, a pot of hot tea, and two people sit facing each other.

Xiao Chengying couldn't help but speak first, "You came to see me, is it to discuss the marriage of the fourteenth brother?"

Lu Jinlan chuckled, "What does Your Highness the Crown Prince think?"

I don't think so.

"Your Highness is wise."

Xiao Chengying rolled her eyes and said helplessly, "My younger brother has been favored by our mother since he was a child. He is good at flattering and behaving in order to be lazy. He is the youngest brother, and we older sisters and brothers can't bear to be strict with him. As a result, he has become spoiled."

"If I had known you had him so infatuated that he was completely out of control, I should have locked him up in the palace and kept a close watch on him."

Xiao Chengying grew angrier as she spoke. She was initially angry that her precious daughter had been taken advantage of. Now, listening to Lu Jinlan's tone, she realized that this "pig" had not only taken advantage of her daughter but also refused to take responsibility, which made her even angrier.

"Since you're not going to talk about marriage, let's cut the small talk. So, what do you want to talk about?"

Lu Jinlan put down his teacup and got straight to the point: "I want to form an alliance with you."

Xiao Chengying sneered and refused directly: "That's impossible."

Lu Jinlan wasn't in a hurry to get angry; instead, she smiled and asked, "Why?"

Xiao Chengying said, "Isn't the reason obvious? First, the Qu and Jiang kingdoms have always been friendly allies, and I have no reason to betray the Jiang kingdom;"

"Secondly, the Jiang Kingdom is powerful. Now that we have joined forces and are aiming for the Prisoner Dragon Pass, victory is in sight. Why should I change my mind?"

"Third, you almost killed me last time. I admire your skills, but let's keep things separate."

Xiao Chengying picked up his teacup and gave her a cold glance. "Acknowledging your abilities and resenting you and wishing you dead are not contradictory."

Lu Jinlan smiled and nodded, "Alright, alright, a real woman, that's straightforward! Since Your Highness is so direct, I won't beat around the bush either."

"I believe none of the reasons you just gave are valid."

“I know that a traitor has appeared in our Hua Kingdom. That person is colluding with the Jiang Kingdom and intends to overthrow our dynasty. There is someone in our internal strife who is acting as your inside man. Moreover, this person has military power and can secretly help you. This is indeed a good time to invade.”

"If I'm not mistaken, this is the reason that Jiang State used to persuade Qu State to join the alliance, isn't it?"

Xiao Chengying nodded. "Yes, so what?"

Lu Jinlan curled the corners of her lips, "Then why are you still talking about your brother? You're the one who got sold out, and you're still counting the money for the seller."

Xiao Chengying asked, puzzled, "What do you mean?"

"Think about it, the reason why your Jiang and Qu kingdoms can be friendly is because of the existence of the Hua kingdom. We are in a tripartite balance of power, and none of us can destroy the others, which is why we have been friendly until now. If you win tomorrow and then march south with the rebels, the Hua kingdom will soon cease to exist."

"At that time, your Qu Kingdom became a piece of fat meat in the mouth of the Jiang Kingdom. Do you think the emperor of the Jiang Kingdom wanted to eat it or not?"

Xiao Chengying paused for a moment, remained silent for a long time, and then said, "To be honest, I also had this worry. But at that time, the Jiang Kingdom told us that if the Qu Kingdom did not ally with the Jiang Kingdom, the Jiang Kingdom would ally with the Hua Kingdom to attack us."

"Your emperor is ambitious. If the Jiang Kingdom were to seek an alliance with her, she would certainly agree. What would happen to the Qu Kingdom then? Do you think I had a choice at the time?"

Lu Jinlan had not expected things to turn out this way. She remained silent for a moment before speaking, "Times have changed. Since Your Highness knows that things will continue in this way and there are many hidden dangers, you should pull back from the brink and completely change this situation."

"The Jiang Kingdom has been at war with the Hua Kingdom for more than half a year now. The emperor of the Jiang Kingdom is now seeking an alliance with our emperor. Do you think they can reach an agreement?"

Xiao Chengying shook his head repeatedly, "An alliance? Hmph, we've already become enemies, how can we form an alliance?"

Lu Jinlan said, "That's right, so the reason why you must form an alliance with Jiang Kingdom no longer exists, because Jiang Kingdom can no longer threaten you with 'forming an alliance with Hua Kingdom'."

"On the contrary, if you continue to ally with the Jiang Kingdom, you will be the one who is threatened, and your Qu Kingdom will be the one who is threatened."

Xiao Chengying thought for a moment, then said, "Continue."

Lu Jinlan smiled and refilled her cup with hot tea. "Your Highness's first reason for refusing me was that you had no reason to betray the Jiang Kingdom. Now, you have a reason."

"Your second reason for refusing me is also invalid. You say victory is in sight. Actually, it's not that easy. I've already sent people to request reinforcements, and General Song's army and the Ling family army will arrive tomorrow to reinforce us..."

Before he could finish speaking, Xiao Chengying couldn't help but roll his eyes and interrupt, "I'm really fed up with you. I just said a few serious things and you started talking nonsense again. Are you trying to fool me again? Do you think I'm an idiot?"

"Song Jingxiao is incredibly wise. Tomorrow's battle is a certain death situation. Why would she send reinforcements? No matter how many come, they will all die. Even if you are her own daughter, she would not bring so many people to their deaths. Moreover, the Ling family army is your sworn enemy. How could they possibly come to your aid?"

Lu Jinlan chuckled, "Haha, Your Highness is a smart man, how could I possibly lie to you?"

"But I did send people to ask for reinforcements. To be honest, whether the Ling family army can be mobilized is an unknown, but the Song family army will definitely take action."

Xiao Chengying still didn't believe it, "Nonsense."

Lu Jinlan smiled and shook her head, "Your Highness is wise, but unfortunately you only understand my mother, the commander, but not me. Since you say I am treacherous, you should have thought that I am unpredictable and will not sit idly by and wait for my death."

Xiao Chengying pondered for a long time, then murmured, "The situation has deteriorated to this point, and death is almost certain. Do you have any other way to break this deadlock?"

"Your plan is to ally with me?"

Lu Jinlan said, "One of the plans."

“But I haven’t agreed yet. Even if I did, you wouldn’t have time to tell Song Jingxiao. By the time your reinforcements arrive, the Jiang people will have already taken Qiulong Pass, and it will be too late.”

Lu Jinlan quickly replied, "It's not too late."

Xiao Chengying felt her brain couldn't keep up and hurriedly asked, "What do you mean?"

Lu Jinlan said in a low voice, "I might as well give Your Highness a sneak peek. Before I left, I had already ordered people to prepare red, yellow and green smoke signals at the Prison Dragon Pass. Once the smoke is up, it will rise straight into the sky and can be seen from twenty or thirty miles away."

"So what?"

"My letter to my mother should have reached her by now. Does Your Highness want to know what I wrote?"

Xiao Chengying urged, "Speak quickly!"

Lu Jinlan said, "I told her that I would come to negotiate with His Highness. If yellow smoke is released, it means that the negotiations have failed. You are going your own way. The Jiangqu Alliance is unbreakable, and there are unexpected dangers beyond my foresight. Please ask the Song family army to hold back."

Xiao Chengying said, "It seems you'll be setting off yellow smoke tomorrow."

Lu Jinlan shook his head. "If green smoke is released, it means I have cleared the obstacles and the Jiangqu Alliance has been broken. Xiao Chengying has turned against me and is doing everything he can to help me. Please ask the General to lead troops to our aid and fight the Jiang Kingdom to the death."

Xiao Chengying was stunned for a moment. "What kind of dream are you having? Even if I don't help Jiang Guo, I'm not going to help you fight Jiang Guo. Do you think our Xiao family members are so easy to fool?"

Lu Jinlan waved his hand, "Your Highness, please calm down and let me finish."

"Don't forget, I've also prepared red smoke. If red smoke rises at the Prison Dragon Pass tomorrow, it means you, Xiao Chengying, are unwilling to help me, and you're busy leading your troops to join the Jiang Kingdom in the fun. But you've brought all your troops here; your Chizhou City only has forty or fifty thousand old, weak, and disabled soldiers at most. How can they withstand the powerful Song family army?"

“My setting off the red smoke means…” Lu Jinlan raised an eyebrow triumphantly, “that the Mother Commander is requesting that the troops be taken from Chizhou City.”

"Lu Jinlan!" Xiao Chengying slammed his cup down, spilling half the water.

The person outside the tent hurriedly asked, "Your Highness, what has happened?"

Xiao Chengying calmed his anger and gritted his teeth, saying, "It's nothing."

Lu Jinlan took out a handkerchief and wiped the tea on the table, saying gently, "Don't be angry, I haven't lit the cigarette yet. I know you're a little confused right now, so I'm just trying to help you analyze the situation."

"As I said before, you won't gain anything by fighting alongside Jiang. Once Jiang finishes defeating Hua, their strength will increase significantly, and they will definitely destroy your Qu Kingdom."

“Our country has produced traitors and rebels; we’re just unlucky. But don’t forget, my mother-in-law leads a righteous army. How could she stand by and watch her homeland be ravaged?”

“I’ll send her to attack Chizhou City, and she’ll understand my intentions. Once Chizhou City falls, you’ll only have two choices: intervene or not.”

“I have already told my mother that if you return to rescue, tell her not to worry about it and to keep fighting. Now that the Qu Kingdom is weak, she can lead 300,000 troops straight in. By then, before the Jiang Kingdom can destroy you, you will be almost wiped out.”

"I've done the math for you. The speed at which you lead your troops back to reclaim territory will definitely not be as fast as the speed at which she captures cities. By the time she takes Fengdu, you'll be almost there. By then, your mother will be dead, and you can directly ascend the throne."

Xiao Chengying was so angry that he was practically fuming. He gritted his teeth and said, "Lu Jinlan, watch your words."

Lu Jinlan laughed and said, "Alright, let's not talk about that for now. Let's look on the bright side. Even if you manage to win by chance, Qu Kingdom will already be in ruins everywhere. Once Jiang Kingdom has destroyed Hua Kingdom, destroying you will be even easier."

Xiao Chengying took a deep breath. "What good will it do you to do this?"

Lu Jinlan shrugged. "There's no benefit to it! What good would doing this do me?"

"If the city falls and I die tomorrow, by the time the Song family army reaches Fengdu, my grave will be overgrown with weeds. What does what happens after I die have to do with me?"

Xiao Chengying asked, puzzled, "Then why did you do that?"

Lu Jinlan's eyes turned cold. "Because I am extremely vengeful. If you cause my country to be destroyed and my family to perish, I will also cause your country to be destroyed and your family to perish."

The atmosphere inside the tent became heavy. Lu Jinlan poured himself another cup of tea, gently blew away the foam on top, and changed the subject, "However, I think that we don't necessarily have to die together; we can achieve a win-win situation."

"Total destruction is a last resort. But frankly, it makes no sense that our two countries are fighting to the death, yet the Jiang Kingdom reaps the benefits."

She glanced at Xiao Chengying's conflicted expression, took a couple of sips of tea, and slowly said, "As long as you are willing to switch sides and help me defeat the Jiang Kingdom, then we can cease hostilities and negotiate peace. I will take two cities from the Jiang Kingdom and give you one. What do you think?"

Xiao Chengying frowned. "Let me think about it."

Lu Jinlan smiled and said, "Let me think of something for you. Right now, you seem to have three options: either help Jiang Guo fight me, help me fight Jiang Guo, or stay neutral and retreat on your own."

Xiao Chengying sighed, "The Jiang Kingdom will not allow me to withdraw my troops. Their envoy has made it clear that my troops will be the vanguard tomorrow."

Lu Jinlan smiled and said, "I guessed so. Jiang Guo would love for you to expend more troops now so that they can deal with you later. But in this way, you seem to have two paths, but in reality you only have one."

"How so?"

"Because I just blocked your other path."

Xiao Chengying's eyes widened in panic. "What did you do?"

"The envoys from the Jiang Kingdom who came to see you tonight are of high status. I overheard them talking about someone who is some kind of king."

A hint of doubt flashed in Xiao Chengying's eyes. "Impossible, they've already left."

Lu Jinlan curled her lips into a smile. "You saw it with your own eyes? You didn't send anyone to escort them outside the camp."

Xiao Chengying's heart skipped a beat. "What happened to the envoy from Jiang Kingdom?"

Lu Jinlan calmly replied, "I killed them all. If you don't believe me, you can send someone to the stables to look for the bodies."

Xiao Chengying's eyes widened in anger, "Lu Jinlan, you...you..."

Xiao Chengying was so angry that he couldn't speak. Lu Jinlan quickly said, "Look how anxious you are. Don't be angry. Let me explain slowly."

"I'm doing this for your own good. I was mainly worried that you'd be conflicted. Now it's all right. Jiang Guo must think you've already chosen me. You don't need to be troubled anymore, just help me directly."

Xiao Chengying angrily flung his sleeves and declared, "I won't help!"

Lu Jinlan kindly advised, "Don't speak in anger. You said you allied with Jiang Kingdom back then because you had no other choice. In fact, you allied with me now because you also had no other choice."

"You can't choose Jiang Guo anymore. If you don't choose me, what else can you do? Besides..."

Xiao Chengying, calming his angry breathing, pressed on, "What else?"

Lu Jinlan lowered her voice: "Besides, we first met on the battlefield. I tried to assassinate you, and with so many people helping you, I almost succeeded. And now, you're sitting even closer than that day. Taking your life would be a piece of cake for me."

Xiao Chengying remained silent for a long time. She had fought with Lu Jinlan before, and she knew that this statement was true.

However, she never imagined that Lu Jinlan, who had ventured deep into enemy territory and risked his life, would actually make assassination one of his objectives.

"You really want my life?"

"I don't want to!" Lu Jinlan answered firmly, "I admire you very much. If we fight side by side, I am willing to risk my life with you. But don't force me. If you insist on being my enemy, I will have no choice but to kill you. It's the only way out."

Xiao Chengying closed his eyes and remained silent for a long time. "Alright, you win. I really have no choice. I can only help you."

"But I want to ask you, you are so shrewd in your calculations, treating me, my fourteenth brother, your mother, your friends, and soldiers from various countries as pawns on your chessboard. Do you think you can stop at nothing to win?"

Lu Jinlan sighed, "Yes, you're right. But I'd like to add one thing: I'm also on the game."

“I am not the one playing chess; I am merely a piece on the board. Because I am in the game, I have no choice but to seek a glimmer of hope amidst the deadly situation. I may seem to have many options, but when the heavy responsibility rests on my shoulders, I can only do my utmost to turn the tide and save the situation.”

"As for what you call 'using any means necessary,' I admit that. But let me ask you this: does the Jiang Kingdom's collusion with our traitorous ministers count as using any means necessary? Everyone can use any means necessary, so why can't I?"

"You are indeed upright and honest; I have never heard of you resorting to any unscrupulous means. But if you had so many methods, why would you be forced into a corner by someone like me at this moment?"

"Your Highness, am I right?"

Xiao Chengying looked at Lu Jinlan with complicated emotions, as if he had a thousand words to say, but in the end, they all turned into a sigh.

She picked up the teapot and refilled Lu Jinlan's cup with hot tea, saying gently, "The night wind is chilly, drink some more hot tea before you go back."

Lu Jinlan's smile finally turned sincere. "Thank you, Your Highness."

Xiao Chengying sighed, “After saying so much, I now believe you have the ability to turn the tide. You are more resourceful than me, and you understand people's hearts better than I do. You are more arrogant, more haughty, and more cunning than I am... Of course, I suddenly feel that cunning is not such a bad thing after all.”

"In short, I have to admire you because you have a better way of doing things than I do."

"But I have another question for you. I'll help you tomorrow, and the Song family army will help you tomorrow, but what about the Ling family army? How exactly do you plan to persuade the Ling family army to send troops for you tomorrow?"

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Author's Note: Here I am, a little delayed, this chapter is super long. I suddenly realized that the word "奸" (jian, meaning cunning or ruthless) can sometimes be used to describe a woman who is very capable and competent. In my hometown, we sometimes say to someone, "You're so cunning!" It's like, "You're so powerful that it makes me angry, but I can't do anything about it." Here, we can reinterpret the meaning of the word. I don't think I explained this before, but when I used the words "嫁娶" (jiaqu, meaning marriage), I didn't think about replacing them because I understood them both as: 嫁 (jia), meaning to marry into a woman's family; 娶 (qu), meaning to take a woman away. By the way, I changed the title today. The original title was "After Transmigrating into a Male-Oriented Gender-Swap Novel, She Was Overjoyed," which was often mistaken for a female transmigrating into a male. Now it's changed to "After Receiving Male-Oriented Treatment, She Was Overjoyed." The final battle is tomorrow, almost over!