General Cui glanced at his deputy.
The deputy commander understood and shouted down, "Who goes there? State your name immediately!"
One of the riders raised his head and shouted in broken Chinese, "This is our prince. He has come to surrender to the Great Liang. The two hundred warhorses behind him are our sincere offering to the Great Liang."
Although the man's Chinese was awkward, the soldiers on the city wall still heard him clearly and stared at him in surprise.
Did they hear me right?
The Xiongnu have come to surrender? And their prince even brought two hundred warhorses with him.
General Cui was also somewhat surprised.
Coming to his senses, he frowned.
The Xiongnu are eccentric, have always coveted the Liang region, and frequently harass the border. Would they really come to surrender? Don't be ridiculous!
This must be their trick.
Once they believe it and open the city gates to welcome them, the Xiongnu soldiers hiding in the shadows will surely swarm in, and Suzhou will fall without a fight.
The deputy general didn't believe the Xiongnu would be so kind either. Without General Cui's orders, he shouted down, "If you want to fight, we're ready anytime. Save your tricks, we won't fall for them."
Upon hearing this, the Hun who had been shouting at the front quickly turned to the man beside him and asked, "Prince, they don't believe us."
Yelü Qi was not surprised. He looked up at the city wall and immediately locked his gaze on General Cui. "We do not wish to be enemies with Daliang again, much less to fight with them. We have come here only to seek peace with your country." He paused, probably thinking that the two countries had been at odds for a long time, and that no matter what he said, the other party would think he had ulterior motives, so he said directly, "I have actually met your emperor once, and your empress also knows me. If the general does not believe me, you can write a letter and send it back to the capital, saying that... my old friend Aqi has come to visit."
General Cui was quite surprised to hear that he spoke fluent Mandarin and even claimed to know the Emperor and Empress.
Before he could say anything, Yelü Qi continued from below, "General, please send a letter to your emperor first. I will return in half a month."
This means giving him time to verify whether what he said is true or false.
Seeing Yelü Qi with his entourage, and about to leave without hesitation, General Cui suddenly said, "Please wait, sir. Give me two quarters of an hour, and I will give you an answer shortly."
Upon hearing this, Yelü Qi's heart skipped a beat. Could it be that the young lady had come to Suzhou?
How could he not have thought that with Prince Su seriously ill, how could the eldest daughter not come?
"Okay." He replied good-naturedly, pulled on the reins, and stood still.
The soldiers on the city wall and General Cui all looked at him with suspicion upon seeing this.
Where is the barbaric and ferocious Hunnic people? This person in front of me is not ferocious at all; on the contrary, he seems to have a very gentle temperament.
Could they be imposters?
Yelü Qi sat calmly on his horse, but his attendants were uneasy. One of them said in the Xiongnu language, "Prince, are we really going to wait here? What if it's a trick of theirs..."
"No," Yelü Qi interrupted him, his tone firm.
Seeing this, the attendant knew there was no use in worrying, so he had no choice but to shut his mouth.
They didn't have to wait long. Soon after, General Cui returned and led a man up the city wall.
The deputy general had met Rong Qingqing at the Protectorate General's residence. Upon seeing her approach, he immediately knelt on one knee and said, "This humble general greets Your Majesty the Empress!"
The other soldiers, before they could even express their surprise, also knelt down, saying, "We greet Your Majesty!"
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