After dawdling for a while, Chu Qian straightened his clothes, took his staff and the emperor's edict in his hand, and followed behind the Xianbei soldiers toward the direction of the Tanshihuai King's tent.

Four Xiliang soldiers also closely guarded Chu Qian's back.

As Chu Qian walked, he turned his head and waved to the captain behind him. Upon seeing this, the captain quickly stepped forward.

Chu Qian said in a low voice:

"Tell the brothers that we represent the Great Han and His Majesty on this mission. No matter what happens, we must not back down or be afraid. Let them see the majesty and pride of the Great Han!"

The captain nodded solemnly, "Don't worry, Taihang Minister, they're just a mere Xianbei; the brothers have never taken them seriously!"

"Heh, that's good!"

Chu Qian smiled and nodded.

With Tan Shihuai's royal tent right in front of them, Chu Qian and several Han soldiers immediately raised their heads and puffed out their chests, adopting an arrogant and domineering demeanor.

Upon reaching the royal tent, the leading soldier hurriedly stepped forward and lifted the tent flap.

"Han envoy, please come in!"

Chu Qian nodded indifferently, glanced at Tan Shihuai sitting inside the tent, and then stepped into the tent, followed closely by several Han soldiers.

"Wait!! You need to hand over your weapons before you can receive payment!!"

Just as Chu Qian and his entourage approached the royal tent, the Xianbei soldiers guarding the tent suddenly reached out and blocked several Han soldiers behind Chu Qian.

"You're telling us to hand over our weapons...?"

The captain's expression changed, and he immediately reached out his right hand to grasp the hilt of the sword hanging at his waist, looking coldly at the Xianbei soldier who had blocked his way.

"That's right!! According to our rules, outsiders are not allowed to bring weapons into the royal tent!"

The Xianbei soldiers were initially startled by their captain, but they quickly recovered and brought out their so-called Xianbei rules.

In fact, all of this was ordered by Tan Shihuai. On their side, disarming and handing over weapons to the other party meant surrender and obedience. Therefore, Tan Shihuai wanted to use this method to give Chu Qian and the others a warning.

"Ha! Your rules?? Do you even know the rules of our Han army?"

The captain couldn't help but sneer, then said loudly:

"If you want us to hand over our weapons, either let my longsword plunge into your chest, or kill us and cut off our arms. Otherwise, these weapons... no one but our emperor can take them away!!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the other Han soldiers gripped their sword hilts and stepped forward.

"How dare you!!"

Startled, the Xianbei soldier immediately drew his scimitar, and the other Xianbei soldiers quickly surrounded him.

"You dare to challenge my Han army with weapons?!"

The captain also shouted sharply and immediately drew his long sword, the tip pointing directly at the opponent's chest. The other Han soldiers also drew their long swords without showing any weakness and confronted the opponent.

The captain's words were clearly heard inside the tent, and Tan Shihuai's face immediately darkened. He clenched his fists in anger, and his gaze toward Chu Qian and the others was filled with murderous intent.

Chu Qian turned around, glanced indifferently at the Xianbei soldiers, then took his staff and came to the middle of the two opposing sides, looking calmly at the Xianbei soldiers.

Chu Qian held his staff horizontally in front of him and said, word by word:

"This weapon represents the weapons of hundreds of thousands of soldiers of my great Han Dynasty. Do you dare to take it?"

The Xianbei soldiers looked at each other, none of them daring to answer. The leader couldn't help but turn his head to look into the tent.

"Hmph!"

Chu Qian snorted coldly, then turned to look into the tent and said loudly, "It seems that Chief Tan Shihuai has no sincerity in uniting with my Great Han!"

Tan Shihuai, sitting inside the tent, had a somewhat uncertain expression upon hearing Chu Qian's words.

"Chief, a small act of impatience can ruin a great plan, Chief..."

Seeing this, Han Sui quickly spoke up to advise him.

Tan Shihuai narrowed his eyes, listened to Han Sui's advice, offered his clenched fist, and then nodded.

"All of you, stand back!!"

At Tan Shihuai's command, the Xianbei soldiers confronting the Han army also hurriedly put away their weapons.

"Han envoy, please come in!!"

Upon hearing Tan Shihuai's invitation, Chu Qian turned around, holding his staff, and slowly walked into the tent. Several Han soldiers also gathered their weapons and followed closely behind Chu Qian.

After exchanging greetings, Tan Shihuai said politely, "I was busy with other matters some time ago and neglected the Han envoy. I hope the Han envoy will not take offense!"

Chu Qian smiled and said, "You flatter me, leader! How could I possibly hold it against you?"

"Well, that's good! May I ask what brings the Han envoy here?"

Tan Shihuai nodded, looking at Chu Qian with curiosity.

"By order of the Emperor of the Great Han, I have come to discuss with the leader the matter of jointly launching an attack to annihilate the Xiongnu!"

"Destroy the Xiongnu??"

"Exactly!"

Chu Qian nodded, and then said:

"Over the years, the Xiongnu have constantly harassed the borders of our Han Dynasty and killed our Han people. For many years, your Xianbei have also suffered oppression and humiliation at the hands of the Xiongnu."

"It can be said that the Xiongnu are the common enemy of our great Han and your Xianbei! Now that the Xiongnu are weak, why doesn't our leader join forces with our great Han to wipe out this cancer on the grasslands?"

"The Han envoy is right. For so many years, the Xiongnu have been oppressing and humiliating the various tribes on the grasslands. We have long wished to eliminate them!"

Hearing Chu Qian's words, Tan Shihua nodded in agreement.

Chu Qian nodded. "Alright! Since the leader is willing to send troops, let's discuss it..."

Before Chu Qian could finish speaking, Tan Shihuai quickly interjected:

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!