Chapter 170 proposes peace talks; what is stolen is ultimately not one's own...
Since ancient times, the North and South have been in a state of confrontation. If a Southern regime wants to launch a northern expedition, it needs to stabilize the court, reconcile internal affairs, and ensure that there are no worries about the rear after the army goes to war.
We must also stockpile grain and build high walls, utilizing the abundant resources and developed waterways of the south to accumulate enough money and grain to support a protracted war, train a new army, and wait for internal strife to occur in the north or for it to be restrained by other forces.
Only in this way can we find the best time for a Northern Expedition.
The few successful Northern Expeditions in history all seized the opportunity when the northern regimes were weak or in turmoil.
However, Xiao Daozun had calculated everything meticulously and planned every possible factor into the game.
Inside, the court has been purged, government orders are unified, granaries are full, and morale is high.
On the periphery, within Beiye, the struggle between the gentry and the commoners led to factional infighting, while the Xiutu people were also keeping a great general like Yan Yue in check on the northern frontier.
With favorable timing, location, and human factors, it seemed that everything was under their control.
He offered sacrifices at the Imperial Ancestral Temple and swore an oath to launch a northern expedition, intending to fulfill his ancestors' wishes, unify the world, and achieve universal harmony.
Although the Southern Yin army did not achieve a decisive victory when it first marched north, it subsequently captured many towns.
But he never expected that something like "firearms" would appear on his battlefield.
This was completely beyond his expectations.
It did not belong to any war logic he was familiar with, and its appearance brutally shattered all the advantages he had carefully constructed.
His fortified cities, military formations, and cavalry charges, upon which he relied for victory, became fragile and laughable in the face of the deafening roars and smoke. The pace of the war accelerated infinitely, and the defenses and elite troops that Nan Yin had painstakingly built crumbled in just a few months, so quickly that Xiao Daozun was caught off guard.
The decline came suddenly and violently, chilling him to the bone.
Xiao Daozun had calculated everything, but he hadn't anticipated that he would be rendered helpless by the enemy's firearms.
In the courtyard, Xiao Daozun stood alone, gazing up at the lonely moon in the sky.
Xiao Chengyan stood in the corridor for a moment, then walked towards him.
“Brother.” Xiao Chengyan stopped beside him, followed his gaze to the moon, then looked away: “Brother, are you still thinking about the crossing of the river a few days ago?”
A few days ago, Xiao Daozun originally planned to launch a surprise attack on the Red Armor Guards under the cover of night.
To this end, he dispatched hundreds of fast ships and tens of thousands of elite troops to set out under cover of night.
The result was a crushing defeat, and the firearms of Beiye killed more than half of their troops.
They had far fewer firearms than the Red Armor Guards, and were forced to retreat back to the riverbank.
This was not the end; the battle reports coming from the front day and night were becoming more and more urgent.
The firearms of Beiye were not only powerful tools for breaking through enemy lines on the battlefield, but also for destroying the morale of the army, causing many of the Nan Yin defenders to be intimidated before the battle even began.
Their left flank was breached by a blast amidst days of incessant roaring, and Yan Yue's army was now advancing directly towards a key town in the heart of Southern Yin.
The situation on the right flank was even worse, as the previously solid defensive line crumbled due to internal changes.
Their deputy general, lured by a secret envoy from Beiye, defected on the battlefield, opening up the vital passage to Sishui Pass.
The right wing of the Beiye army passed through the dangerous pass without bloodshed and is now advancing rapidly along the banks of the Sishui River, forming a pincer movement with the left wing army, with their target being Shangjing.
Xiao Daozun spoke, his voice low, yet he remained calm even in this perilous situation.
“Huaichuan,” he said, “I am not thinking about the failure to cross the river.”
"Instead, I was thinking that since the founding of the Southern Yin Kingdom more than three hundred years ago, the two previous Northern Expeditions failed one time due to insufficient supplies, and the other time the commander was too eager for quick success and made the army too isolated and deep into enemy territory, resulting in the annihilation of the entire army."
"It wasn't until the generation of the Great Emperor's grandfather that the two countries exhausted their national strength before finally demarcating their borders, swearing a blood oath, and bringing about nearly a hundred years of peace."
"We've both read history. Leaving aside my Southern Yin, throughout history, when the North and South were in opposition, there were very few Northern Expeditions that truly succeeded in unifying the country from the South. Most of the time, they relied on the natural barrier of the Yangtze River to maintain a secluded corner, or they launched long and arduous expeditions, ultimately returning defeated."
"Although victory and defeat are common occurrences in war, there is always a cause and effect to follow, which is nothing more than the right time, the right place, the right people, the bloodshed on the battlefield, and the strategic games between generals."
At this point, Xiao Daozun's voice was filled with incomprehension and anger as he turned sharply towards Xiao Chengyan.
"But now we are fully prepared, the timing is perfect, and our soldiers are fighting with their lives on the line. What we are facing is not any of the battle tactics recorded in history books. The firearms of Beiye are not within the scope of military strategy simulations, nor within the cause and effect of the rise and fall of dynasties throughout history."
"I believe I have accomplished everything that my ancestors wanted to do but were unable to fully achieve."
"But what we are facing is a weapon that can destroy cities and mountains from hundreds of paces away. Our soldiers are killed before they can even see the enemy's face. This is beyond human resistance, and all my plans have become a joke."
As he spoke these words, Xiao Daozun did not tremble, but only showed anger at the injustice of Heaven.
His words, filled with resentment and indignation, dissipated in the wind, leaving behind a heavy silence.
The number of firearms in Nan Yin was far less than that in Bei Ye, so even if they had gunpowder manuals, it would be useless.
Perhaps what is stolen is ultimately not their own, and their production speed is very slow.
Xiao Chengyan listened in silence. His elder brother, who had always been resolute, was now experiencing an unprecedented shock. Failure itself was not terrible; what was terrible was this kind of failure that was completely incomprehensible and unmanageable.
It shook the foundation.
After a long silence, Xiao Chengyan took a deep breath and broke the silence.
His voice was low as he hesitated before uttering his thoughts: "Your Majesty."
He paused for a moment: "The two armies of Beiye, on the left and right, are advancing rapidly thanks to their firearms. At this rate, it seems inevitable that their forces will fully penetrate into the heart of Nanyin, and even reach Shangjing. The situation is so critical that ordinary tactics cannot save it."
Xiao Chengyan raised his eyes and carefully observed Xiao Daozun's expression before cautiously continuing, "For the sake of the nation and to save the people from suffering, I dare to suggest that we consider sending an envoy to negotiate peace with Beiye."
The moment he uttered the words "peace talks," the atmosphere instantly turned icy cold.
Xiao Daozun stood with his hands behind his back, not responding immediately, exuding an oppressive aura as if a storm was brewing.
He turned around, his features clearly defined in the moonlight, exuding the absolute majesty of an emperor.
He stared at Xiao Chengyan, as if trying to read something from his younger brother's face.
After a long silence, he finally spoke softly, his voice eerily calm: "What did you say?"
Before Xiao Chengyan could respond, Xiao Daozun said coldly, "The defeat in the night raid is a disgrace, but my empire cannot be shaken by a few defeats."
As he spoke, his tone suddenly rose: "The people of Beiye set foot on the territory of Nanyin, suffering setbacks on both the left and right, but so what?"
"Huan Xun and Yan Yue think they can destroy my country with just a few ingenious firearms? What wishful thinking!"
"They may succeed temporarily with their firearms, but it is absolutely impossible for them to fully enter Nan Yin and annex my empire!"
"A defeat or the loss of a few cities won't bring the sky down. You want to negotiate peace now? What are you going to tell the hundreds of thousands of soldiers at the front?!"
Xiao Chengyan did not back down; he met Xiao Daozun's gaze and persisted.
"Brother! The soldiers at the front are using their flesh and blood to hold off the firearms of Beiye. We have already lost too many men! At Lianyun Mountain and Qianpi Pass, so many brave young men were blown to pieces before they even saw the enemy's face!"
"Your Majesty has witnessed the power of firearms firsthand. How can flesh and blood compare to gunpowder in a head-on collision?"
After speaking, Xiao Chengyan lifted his robes, knelt down, and kowtowed in pleading.
“If this continues, every city we defend will cost us tens of thousands of lives. We do have hundreds of thousands of soldiers left, but we don’t know how many firearms Beiye still has. If this continues, our Nan Yin will be exhausted and we will never be able to turn the tide.”
Xiao Chengyan's words completely ignited the suppressed anger in Xiao Daozun's heart.
"You!" His chest heaved violently, his sharp eyes burning with a terrifying fire.
He no longer stood still, but paced back and forth restlessly like a caged lion. Anger and disappointment consumed his reason.
Suddenly, he stopped abruptly, turned around to face Xiao Chengyan, who was kneeling on the ground, and kicked him hard in the shoulder.
The kick was quite powerful. Xiao Chengyan groaned and staggered to the side, but he immediately braced himself with his hands to keep from falling.
Han Jie, who had been waiting far away under the corridor, changed his expression drastically. He disregarded his status and rushed forward, kneeling on one knee to block Xiao Chengyan. He clasped his hands and said urgently, "Your Majesty, please calm down! His Highness did not do it on purpose. He was thinking of the country and its people."
"Get out!" Xiao Daozun shouted angrily without even looking at Han Jie.
Han Jie was stunned by the emperor's imposing aura and stood frozen in place, not daring to say another word.
Xiao Daozun's gaze was fixed on Xiao Chengyan, his words like knives, raining down on him.
"Xiao Chengyan! I am not dead yet, the sky over Nan Yin has not fallen, and the soldiers at the front are still fighting bloody battles. You, as a prince and my younger brother, instead of thinking about how to defeat the enemy, are here boosting the morale of the enemy and diminishing our own prestige, openly advising me to negotiate peace?!"
"You want me to bow down to those Northern Ye tribes who run rampant with demonic weapons? How will I face my ancestors after I die?"
Xiao Chengyan was kicked in the shoulder, and it stung terribly, but he ignored the pain.
Hearing Xiao Daozun's rebuke, he looked up and explained, "Your Majesty! Your Majesty, I am not afraid of war! Nor am I trying to embolden the enemy! It is precisely for the sake of this country, and to prevent the foundation left by our ancestors from being destroyed, that I have resorted to this desperate measure."
"Even though we have hundreds of thousands of troops, rushing in now would only lead to more deaths. Negotiation is not about surrendering, but about preserving our national strength and waiting for the right opportunity. We need time, time to find a solution. If we exhaust all our elite forces now, the kingdom of Nan Yin will be in danger."
"Enough!"
Xiao Daozun wouldn't listen to him at all, and the anger in his eyes burned even brighter.
He waved his arm, no longer looking at Xiao Chengyan, and summoned the waiting generals: "Men!"
The sound of hurried footsteps rang out, and the general on duty knelt down.
Xiao Daozun: "Issue my decree, ordering all armies along the front to launch a series of attacks, advancing step by step. Even if it means fighting to the last soldier and shedding the last drop of blood, exhaust the morale of Beiye. They shall not retreat until death!"
After saying that, he didn't look at Xiao Chengyan again, but suddenly flicked his sleeves, turned around and strode away.
His silhouette stretched long under the palace lanterns, resembling a solitary mountain.
Xiao Chengyan remained kneeling in place, the pain in his shoulder far less intense than the turmoil in his heart.
He looked in the direction Xiao Daozun had left, gripped by an unprecedented sense of fear and powerlessness.
To him, Xiao Daozun's decree was tantamount to pushing the remaining hundreds of thousands of elite troops of Nan Yin and the fate of the entire nation into an abyss.
After Xiao Daozun had walked away, Han Jie whispered to his master, "Your Highness, please get up. You know His Majesty's temperament; once he's made up his mind, no one can change it."
Xiao Chengyan remained silent.
He simply got up in silence.
The moonlight illuminated his pale, worried profile.
He couldn't help but wonder, was the centuries-old foundation of Nan Yin really going to be destroyed in this meaningless head-on collision?
No, he wouldn't allow that to happen, nor could he watch his brother head towards utter ruin.
But what should he do?
After much thought, an idea slowly began to take shape in my mind.
This absolutely cannot continue.
Someone has to be that "coward," that person who bears the infamy but might preserve a glimmer of hope for Nan Yin.
Thinking of this, Xiao Chengyan raised his eyes and looked north, his gaze resolute.
He thought to himself, "Let him bear this humiliation."
He didn't tell Han Jie his thoughts, but simply said in a calm tone, "Let's go back."
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