Chapter 213 Lobbyist

There was a deafening roar of killing outside the tent, but inside the tent it was silent.

Lin Kui looked silently at Xiao Beiheng who was sitting above him.

Xiao Beiheng rested his hands on his chin, his eyes fixed on the ground. However, Lin Kui could tell from the beads of sweat on his forehead that he was nervous and uneasy.

He couldn't understand why the Crown Prince would abandon the Western Rong in the north and return to attack Nanping. This would clearly indicate war with the combined forces of Xiao Zhuo and Xiliang. If they couldn't capture Nanping, the Western Rong behind them would attack, and the Dingbei Army would be in danger of destruction.

"Your Highness," a general rushed into the tent with blood on his face, stumbling to his knees, "I am incompetent and unable to capture Nanping. All my men are dead."

Xiao Beiheng raised his eyes to look at him and said coldly: "Behead."

Several soldiers came in from outside the tent, grabbed the general and dragged him out.

The general was stunned for a moment, then shouted in panic, "Your Highness, I have tried my best. Please give me one more chance..."

"Are you just standing there with your military order?" Xiao Beiheng waved his hand and ordered the sergeant to drag the general away. The general's shouts echoed outside the tent for a long time.

Xiao Beiheng covered his face with his hands and gritted his teeth, "Xiao Zhuo... Xiao Zhuo."

Lin Kui advised, "Your Highness, you must not execute any more generals. You have already executed three. If you continue like this, it will be detrimental to the morale of the army."

Xiao Beiheng said in a deep voice: "We must capture Nanping, otherwise the Xirong will recover and attack us from behind, and we will be completely wiped out."

"The three generals guarding Nanping were the ones who fought alongside Xiao Zhuo in the Northern Di campaign. They must have received instruction from him," Lin Kui paced a few steps. "How about...letting the three armies rest for a day before attacking?"

"There are only 10,000 defenders anyway. We can take them down even if we just pile them up!" Xiao Beiheng interrupted Lin Kui irritably. "Now they only have 6,000 or so left. If we redouble our efforts, Nanping will surely be ours. The problem now is the 30,000 Xiliang troops. They're coming to reinforce us. If they arrive, we'll be in danger."

"If we don't attack Nanping and go around it..." Lin Kui felt that if it really didn't work, he would just give up fighting.

Xiao Beiheng shook his head and said, "By bypassing Nanping, the Nanping defenders can attack the food supply route to our rear. Then the army will be in chaos without a fight."

When he was fighting against Xiao Zhuo, the imperial court had been supplying him with food and fodder at the border. Now that the King of Qi was raising an army, Zhao Mu at the border shouldn't have stopped supplying him, but he and the King of Qi were good friends and didn't cut off the food and fodder.

"Yes... at all costs." Xiao Beiheng seemed lost in thought, "It seems this is the only way."

"Does Your Highness have any plan?" Lin Kui asked in surprise.

Xiao Beiheng has always seen things more clearly than ordinary people, and he is sure to have a way to solve the current predicament.

"This letter," Xiao Beiheng pulled out a letter from his bosom, "is from Consort Mei Dai to Mei Pu."

"Could it be that it was sent by the commander of the guards, Wu Mingzi?" Lin Kui reached out and took the letter.

After Wu Mingzi arrived, he somehow angered Xiao Beiheng and was killed by him with a single sword strike. After hearing the news, he was worried for a while. He felt that Xiao Beiheng's behavior was different from before.

"I don't trust others. You go and deliver this letter to Meipu yourself, telling him not to reinforce Nanping." Xiao Beiheng said, "Leave immediately. I want to know the result today."

"Your Highness, Meipu and Xiao Zhuo are allies. If he doesn't reinforce Nanping, it would be tantamount to betrayal. Can a mere letter make Meipu betray Xiao Zhuo?"

"I don't know, but this is the only way now. Go quickly!" Xiao Beiheng stood up and urged.

Lin Kui knew that the situation was critical, so he hurried out of the tent and, accompanied by a small group of cavalry, bypassed Nanping and rushed all the way to the Xiliang army camp.

When Mei Pu learned that Xiao Beiheng's staff had come here, he sneered and said, "The lobbyists are here, prepare the swordsmen and the frying pans."

Lin Kui entered the Xiliang army camp and approached Meipu's tent, where he found him seated in the center. On either side stood a phalanx of swordsmen, their chests puffed out and their bellies bulging, their ghost-head swords gleaming brightly. In the center of the tent stood a boiling pot of oil, a fierce fire burning beneath, and smoke rising from the boiling oil.

If I were to throw myself in there, I would probably explode into pieces.

"Prince Mei, I am Lin Kui, the aide of the Prince of Qi." He secretly swallowed his saliva and stepped forward to greet him.

Meipu wore a metal mask, his expression invisible. His right hand rested on the hilt of his sword, and he said to Lin Kui, "Are you here to be my lobbyist?"

"Yes, I've been ordered to come and persuade Prince Mei to withdraw his troops."

Mei Pu laughed heartily upon hearing this, then stood up and said, "Your Dingbei Army is now faced with Nanping in front and Xirong behind. You are on the verge of annihilation. You actually want me to retreat?"

Lin Kui lowered his hands and said, "Master Mei, you don't see how serious this is. I hope you will listen to me and let me explain."

"Then say it. If you don't say it well, you will be thrown into the frying pan." Mep sneered.

"Everyone knows Xiao Zhuo's intentions. He has long harbored ambitions for Xiliang. If he succeeds, Xiliang will no longer belong to the Mei family." Lin Kui planned to use the issue of Xiliang's ownership to persuade him. "Now our Prince Qi is leading his army to attack Xiao Zhuo. He can assure Prince Mei that he will never harbor any improper ambitions towards Xiliang. Once Xiao Zhuo is defeated, we will immediately return to Zhongzhou."

Mep's eyes flickered behind the mask as he asked, "Why is Xiao Beiheng so persistent in wanting to kill Xiao Zhuo?"

"The world is now rising to fight against the tyrant emperor. Xiao Zhuo is his right-hand man. If he remains, he will be a great threat. He must be eliminated. Does Prince Mei intend to assist the tyrant emperor?"

"Our Mei family has never had any ties with the imperial court," Mei Pu snorted and turned away. "As for Xiao Zhuo, my father promised him that as long as he defeated the Jingzhou army, we would hand over Xiliang to him."

"Are you willing to give the four counties of Xiliang to Xiao Zhuo?" Lin Kui was a little unconvinced. "This is the foundation of the Mei family."

"This is my father's decision. As his son, I must obey." Meipu stood up impatiently and said, "Anything else you want to say?"

Lin Kui asked, "Master Mei, what if your sister doesn't agree?"

"My sister?" Mei Pu was startled and lowered her head. "She's now banished to the cold palace in the capital, and I can't escape."

Lin Kui took the letter out of his bosom and said, "Prince Mei, this is a letter from the virtuous concubine to you. It happened to fall into the hands of our prince. His Highness ordered me to return the letter to you."

After hearing this, Mep immediately stood up, turned the table, took the letter, and unfolded it with one hand.

After seeing it, his body trembled slightly, and he took two steps back, muttering, "It's my sister's handwriting, sure. I didn't expect Xiao Zhuo..."

"Haha, Prince Mei. Do you know Xiao Zhuo's identity now?" Lin Kui said, "He's just a bastard who doesn't even know who his biological father is. Can you tolerate handing Xiliang over to such a person?"

Mep slumped down in the chair, her voice clearly filled with tears:

"Sister, you are a woman, but you have always been helping us. As your brother..."

Seeing that Mei Pu did not mention Xiao Zhuo but was sad for Mei Dai, Lin Kui could not help but shook his head.

"Prince Mei, you already know this. If the Mei family's inheritance were to be handed over to a bastard like Xiao Zhuo, how would you explain this to your grandfather in your grave?" He continued, adding fuel to the fire. "The King of Xiliang doesn't know Xiao Zhuo's identity. If he knew, he certainly wouldn't agree to hand Xiliang over to someone like Xiao Zhuo."

"No need to say more!" Mep slammed the table and stood up.