When Prince Yan Huisheng of Daliang received the hawk messenger from Su Rong, it was the day of peace negotiations with Dawei. The hawk circled and landed at the negotiation site, directly perching on Yan Huisheng’s shoulder.
Yuan Zhao immediately stared at the hawk, his eyes sharp.
The hawk flinched at his gaze, immediately turning its head and hiding behind Yan Huisheng. Yan Huisheng looked over his shoulder at Yuan Zhao, raised an eyebrow, and said, "Why is Prince Yuan scaring it? It’s just a small hawk. Do you bear a grudge against it too?"
Yuan Zhao had a suspicion that the presence of the hawk at this point was probably not for the best. He stared at Yan Huisheng, "If my guess is correct, is this hawk raised by the Princess of Nanchu, Su Rong?"
He did not mention a grudge, but the implication was clear.
Yan Huisheng reached and pulled the hawk into his arms, not bothered by the dirt. He gently petted it twice to soothe it, "Don’t fear him; a defeated general can hardly be called brave."
Yuan Zhao’s face instantly turned dark.
The hawk was indeed calmed down; it immediately stretched its neck, staring back at Yuan Zhao with a proud gaze.
In that moment, Yuan Zhao saw disdain for him in the hawk’s eyes? He cursed inwardly. Could a person even instill something like this in a pet? Had it gained consciousness and transcended?
He shot a piercing glance at the hawk once again, causing it to shy away fearfully.
Yan Huisheng didn’t bother with Yuan Zhao. He untied the letter on the hawk’s leg, opened it, and read it in front of Yuan Zhao. After finishing, he laughed, saying to Yuan Zhao, "Prince Yuan was right; this hawk belongs to my cousin. She said that she forgot to ask Dawei for grain seeds during the signing of the peace treaty, so she asked me to do her a favor. Could Dawei please supply them?"
Yuan Zhao’s face instantly hardened, "Prince Yan, we have already agreed on the terms, and we’re just about to sign the peace treaty."
"But it hasn’t been signed yet, has it?" Yan Huisheng looked at him, "And besides, it hasn’t been completely settled. You could say it’s about eighty percent settled. You didn’t agree to my request for the second Prince of Dawei, Yuan Chen, as hostage."
Yan Huisheng paused, "So, considering my cousin’s request, if Prince Yuan agrees to offer ten thousand dan of grain seeds, I won’t ask for Prince Yuan Chen anymore. After all, as loving brothers, you surely would not let him go."
"Prince Yan, aren’t you asking for too much? Ten thousand dan was the total grain output of my Dawei last year." Yuan Zhao nearly lost it to anger.
"I’m aware, but Dawei isn’t short on grain." Yan Huisheng stated, "It’s my final condition. If Prince Yuan refuses, then we will continue to fight. After all, my two hundred thousand reinforcements have arrived today. As for my cousin, she is not afraid to continue the fight either. Even though she has returned to the Nanchu Capital, her troops haven’t retreated from the frontier, and her soldiers are still there."
Yuan Zhao took a deep breath, was silent for a long while, then clenched his teeth and blurted out, "I agree."
Prince Yan laughed, "Prince Yuan is straightforward. You do understand that continuing to drag things out will only work against Dawei."
Yuan Zhao hadn’t expected Prince Yan to be this tough to handle. He thought that by resolving the conflict with Nanchu first, then negotiating with Daliang—whose forces were currently weak—, if the fight went on, Daliang would lose. However, Yan Huisheng was extremely confident. After negotiations fell apart, they had fought two battles, but neither side had gained any ground. He didn’t have reinforcements, as Dawei’s troops were still deployed to guard against Nanchu and had not returned. Meanwhile, Yan Huisheng was about to receive reinforcements.
He had to step back, whether he wanted to or not.
Thus, the two countries signed the peace treaty. The twelve cities taken by Daliang were entirely given back to Daliang. Additionally, Dawei ceded three more cities, offered three hundred thousand tael of gold, two thousand high-grade war horses, ten thousand dan of grain seeds, opened up border trade, and provided crossbow modification drawings and such.
The peace treaty was signed for ten years, giving Dawei three months to prepare and hand over everything to Daliang.
After signing the treaty, Yuan Zhao asked Yan Huisheng, "Prince Yan has yet to have his Crown Princess, do you truly not want my sister, renowned for her beauty and grace, to become your wife through a marriage alliance with Daliang?"
"The Crown Prince really is a great brother, loving towards his brother yet giving away his sister." Yan Huisheng said mockingly.
"What a waste it is for Prince Xie Lin to reject such a charming creature as Lady Su Qi." Yuan Zhao ignored his taunt. Throughout history, a beauty has often been used to ruin a nation and he did not think there was anything wrong with that. If it could save Dawei, he would make any sacrifice.
"The Crown Prince can keep her for himself!" Yan Huisheng turned around and left with his men.
Yuan Zhao watched as Yan Huisheng left, cradling the falcon in his arms with a look of deep affection. His gaze was brooding.
Yuan Chen, who had come to negotiate peace, did not dare utter a word from start to finish. He was moved by Yuan Zhao’s defense of him, berating himself for his past blindness and swearing absolute loyalty to his brother from then on, resolving to make up for today’s shame.
After the people and horses of Daliang had disappeared, Yuan Zhao folded the letter of negotiation and held it tightly in his hand before turning to Yuan Chen and said, "You heard it too, one million seeds, you will oversee this task and send them to Nanchu promptly."
Yuan Chen nodded, "I understand."
On the journey back to the city, Yan Huisheng, holding the falcon in his arms, was asked by Xie Lin, "Why is this falcon so close to you?"
"This falcon was given to me by our cousin when she left Daliang, to serve as our messenger. It has delivered countless letters over the past six months, performing exceptionally." Yan Huisheng replied, "We are quite familiar now."
"This falcon truly has a spiritual nature. Lady Su Qi really knows how to raise them." Xie Lin exclaimed.
"She is now a Princess of Nanchu." Yan Huisheng corrected him, then, laughing, corrected himself again, "No, actually, now she is the Crown Princess."
"Ah?" Xie Lin was taken aback.
"The King of Nanchu has already announced to the world that he has established the Crown Princess and her consort." Yan Huisheng was in high spirits, "My cousin mentioned it in her letter, but the news has not yet spread across the world, and Daliang has not yet received the happy letter."
"I’m familiar with the Crown Princess, but who is her consort?" Xie Lin asked, savoring this new title.
"Of course, it is Lord Thursday." Chen Zhou interjected on the side as if Xie Lin was being quite dense, "Who else could it be?"
Xie Lin slapped his forehead, "Ah, how foolish of me, it’s him."
He chuckled, "Why is she the Crown Princess? I thought she would directly ascend to the throne and the King of Nanchu would abdicate immediately."
"It’s because she doesn’t want to rush things. With the King of Nanchu still in power, some of the veteran courtiers won’t rush to retire and can continue to contribute to the court for another year." Thinking of Su Rong’s few words in her letter about the numerous troubles waiting for her in Nanchu, and that she was so short of staff that she almost had to grab passersby to help, Yan Huisheng couldn’t help but laugh. He turned to Su Xingze and asked, "Xingze, will you be able to attend the Crown Princess’s grand wedding in six months’ time?"
Since Su Xingze had not yet received this news, for the Falcon messenger was limited in number and his sister would not use it unless the matter was urgent. His letter was likely en route via a fast horse relay station or an escort agency. Of course, he wanted to attend the wedding in Nanchu. He replied, "If the Crown Prince grants me leave in six months, I would certainly wish to go."
Yan Huisheng nodded, "Good, if the court affairs are not busy and you can afford to spare some time, you may go."
Daliang’s court affairs were also piled up. Although the situation was not as bad as Nanchu’s, it was not looking optimistic either. His father had been manipulating power and balancing the court situation these past few years. After Su Rong had helped him stabilize the internal strife, then she went to Nanchu. He had not yet had time to deal with many matters before starting a war with Dawei. Now that this war has ended, he could finally handle those matters. Once he returned to the capital, he would be busy too.
Thinking of Su Rong complaining about the King of Nanchu in her letter, saying she wanted to wash her hands of the situation, he couldn’t help but feel amused. Such words, he would never say, because from a young age, he was singularly focused on one goal - the throne.
She took away quite a few people from Daliang and still lacked manpower, showing just how messy Nanchu was. She must be so stressed that she felt like killing someone.
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