"This is Jinling City!"
"The center of power in the Yu Dynasty!"
"I came here when I was young."
Yan Liangze and his delegation of 100 people arrived in Jinling at 3:00 PM on the third day of the twelfth lunar month. Their convoy was parked at the east gate of Jinling. Standing in the heavy snow, Yan Liangze pointed at the city and spoke eloquently:
"I still remember that year when I was eight years old. After seeing Jinling City, I made a great ambition - one day, I would stand on this tall city wall and look down on all living beings!"
He sighed deeply and exhaled a long puff of white mist, "Since Heaven gave birth to me, Yan Liangze, why did it give birth to Fu Xiaoguan?"
"If it weren't for the might of that red-coated cannon, our Yi army would have already captured the important town of Lanling and would have been ready to march eastwards in no time... And now I have to come here to endure this humiliation. It's time, it's fate!"
As he sighed, the deputy envoy and chief staff officer of the Yi State Council Hall, Bian Muyu, who was standing beside him, had a bad feeling in his heart - the news that the peace delegation would arrive in Jinling today had already been passed on to the Honglu Temple of the Yu Dynasty in advance!
According to the rules, the officials of the Honglu Temple should naturally be here to welcome their arrival!
But it was getting dark, and there was not a single ghost outside the east gate. What was going on?
So he interrupted the prince's reverie, bowed, and said, "Your Highness... has never met an official from the Yu Dynasty."
Yan Liangze was stunned. Yes, this prince came here in person, but where is the person from Yu Chao who came to welcome him?
He frowned, thinking for a moment, but his heart gradually calmed down. "The Yu Dynasty prides itself on being a superior nation, the birthplace of sacred learning, and a nation of etiquette. They care about their reputation and will never look down on the Yi Kingdom just because we defeated them. Perhaps the Honglu Temple is making arrangements. Don't worry, just wait a little longer. I know the Yu people well, and I promise we'll have good wine and food tonight."
When Bian Muyu heard this, he realized that this made sense.
Although he had never been to the Yu Dynasty, as a high-ranking official of the Yi State, he had a very deep understanding of the Yu Dynasty.
The Yu people were different from the Yi people. They occupied fertile land, and their people, well-fed and well-dressed, had nothing to do but study the sacred teachings. This study continues to this day, and it is said that even the farmers of the Yu people knew etiquette, something the Yi people could not compare to.
So when they came to Jinling to negotiate peace, the Council of State adopted their negotiation strategy: flattery, relentless flattery! Flattery in a humble manner!
As long as the chief negotiator of the Yu Dynasty is flattered and the emperor of the Yu Dynasty is praised highly, then not only will they not have to pay a single ounce of silver in this defeat, but they may even be rewarded by the emperor of the Yu Dynasty - this kind of thing has happened several times in history!
The Yu Dynasty claimed to be a superior country, so it naturally had the majesty of a superior country. However, if the Yi State called it "big brother" in a low voice, the big brother would not hit the younger brother in the face, but would even reward the younger brother generously to show the magnanimity of the superior country.
Are you stupid?
In the eyes of the Yi people, the Yu people are really stupid!
But in the eyes of the Yu people, this is not stupid at all, it is also the style of a great country!
For Yan Liangze, this personal mission to the Yu Dynasty was a gilded journey—so what if we lost? This prince had achieved remarkable success in the negotiations. The eastern border troops had withdrawn, and Ximayuan remained a neutral territory. The Yi Kingdom could rest and recuperate, and once the Red Cannon was developed, he would strike a blow against the Yu Dynasty!
This prince, no, by that time this prince will have already ascended the throne and ruled the world!
When the time comes, I will personally lead the Red Feather Legion to destroy the Yu Dynasty. I will incorporate the territory of the Yu Dynasty into the territory of the Yi Kingdom!
Yan Liangze, full of confidence, pointed at the towering city walls and said, "Jinling boasts a population of three million, while our Yi Kingdom's capital, Tailin City, has only a mere one million. Therefore, Jinling's commerce is extremely prosperous, with various industries flourishing. This is something our Yi Kingdom should learn from."
"After the negotiations are over, I will take you to see the beauty of Nanjing, the sacred place of literature, Lantingji, the cultural and elegant Qinhuai River, the source of sacred learning, Jixia Academy, and so on and so forth."
"I'm not bringing you here just to see the fun. What you want to see is the gap between my Yi Kingdom and the Yu Dynasty."
"Stones from other mountains can be used to polish jade. They reveal the strengths of the Yu Dynasty and the weaknesses of the Yi Kingdom. When making policies in the future, use these as a reference to make up for our dynasty's shortcomings and extend our strengths!"
"Only in this way can the Yi Kingdom surpass the Yu Dynasty in all areas, including economy and culture... Only then can the Yi Kingdom win in the next battle!"
Upon hearing this, the officials finally understood the Crown Prince's good intentions and bowed in greeting, "We, your Highness, will certainly live up to your expectations!"
They talked for a long time. Yan Liangze frowned and raised his head. A few snowflakes fell on his face, which was very cold.
This day...it's really getting dark!
Where is the person who was supposed to come and greet me?
Because of this war, the Yi Kingdom withdrew its envoys stationed in Jinling, so there is no Yi Kingdom embassy in Jinling City today.
Could it be that the person who delivered the letter yesterday didn’t deliver it?
This is impossible. The messenger is still in this team.
Yan Liangze looked at his guard Zhou Shan, who was also bewildered. He hurriedly saluted and replied, "Yesterday morning at 9:00 PM, I personally delivered Your Highness's letter to Mr. Huang, the Junior Secretary of the Honglu Temple of the Yu Dynasty. Mr. Huang said he would report the letter to the Minister of Rites, and that the Ministry of Rites would arrange all reception matters."
The scale of this reception has been raised to a higher level. It seems that Yu Chao attaches great importance to it. But at this time, where is the person who comes to welcome me?
"The mastermind behind this negotiation with the Yu Dynasty is the Minister of Rites Xu Huaishu?" Yan Liangze asked with a frown.
"Your Highness, it is said that... the Emperor of the Yu Dynasty has replaced the chief negotiator with Fu Xiaoguan."
Fu Xiaoguan? !
Yan Liangze's heart skipped a beat, and the expression on his face gradually froze.
Damn Fu Xiaoguan, why don’t you just die?
How nice it would be if you died under the snowy mountains?
Why did you survive again?
If you had survived, you could have become the emperor of the Wu Dynasty. Why the hell did you have to run back to the Yu Dynasty?
This psychopath!
They had already learned that Fu Xiaoguan was alive on their way here.
Yan Liangze just couldn't understand why the Wu Dynasty was so big, with a strong national power and extremely high combat capability, but all the royal family members died out, leaving only you, Fu Xiaoguan!
Emperor Wen has already issued a clear decree announcing your identity. You don't have to struggle at all. The people of the Wu Dynasty will naturally support you to ascend the throne. How comfortable it is to be an emperor!
But why don’t you do it?
As for this matter, not to mention that Yan Liangze didn't understand it, even if all the officials in the Yi State's Council Hall discussed it for several days, they still couldn't come to a conclusion. In the end, Yan Liangze had no choice but to attribute Fu Xiaoguan's death to a serious brain disease.
This Fu Xiaoguan is the chief negotiator. Is he trying to stir up trouble?
The soldiers guarding the east gate looked at the group of people standing outside and wondered, are you going to come in or not?
Never mind, it’s time to get off work——
"The time has come, close the city gates!"
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