Chapter 683 Greed is a Necessity
"You want my whistling arrow?"
Ashina Shali's voice echoed in the spacious tent. His voice was calm, without any inflection, but this calmness, set against the backdrop of the howling wind outside, carried an indescribable sense of oppression.
Prince Zhu Xie calmly replied, "Yes."
After showing surprise, the ministers immediately held their breath upon hearing this.
Lady Jiayuan's brow furrowed into a knot.
Whistle!
This was a type of bow and arrow used only by the Turkic royal family. However, due to improvements made by their ancestors, a movable iron plate was fitted onto the arrow, which would emit a sharp whistling sound when fired. This sound could attract the attention of soldiers even in the midst of a large army, causing all the archers to fire their arrows at the same time, resulting in a massive volley of arrows with astonishing power.
On the battlefield, this whistling arrow is like an invisible royal decree.
Therefore, after that, the Turkic royal family no longer used whistling arrows casually. Only the Turkic Khan could use them, and the whistling arrow was equivalent to a symbol of the Khan's status.
But now, Prince Zhu Xie is actually asking Khan Shali for his whistling arrow?
Then, in the tense, almost suffocating silence, Lady Jiayuan chuckled softly, saying, "The eldest prince's request is quite peculiar—ah."
These words made the atmosphere in the royal tent even heavier.
Especially at the end, she deliberately dragged out her words, as if omitting a few words. But even if she did omit them, no one in the room was stupid. Everyone could fill in the missing meaning of those words. However, the meanings that each person filled in were very different.
Some people might add "important" to their names.
Some people, however, will add the word "dangerous".
Sure enough, after hearing her words, Ashina Shali's gaze gradually turned dangerous, but Ashina Zhuxie remained calm, without even the slightest fluctuation in his expression, and said, "I asked Father Khan for the whistling arrow because the heavy cavalry is too important to me."
Ashina Shali narrowed his eyes slightly: "What do you mean?"
Ashina Zhuxie said, "If I leave nothing with me, Father Khan will not feel at ease."
"..."
“If what I left behind is not important, Father Khan will not be at ease.”
"..."
Upon hearing his words, a light suddenly flashed in Ashina Shali's eyes, and even Lady Jiayuan, who had been on guard the whole time, was somewhat taken aback.
Lei Yu, standing to the side, looked at him with a solemn expression.
The thing Ashina Zhuxie kept by his side, which was what he asked Shali Khan for, sounded like a "fair trade." However, those who were well-versed in political maneuvering understood the deeper meaning behind his words.
Throughout history, emperors have often been suspicious.
Faced with the emperor's suspicion, every move a subject makes is extremely dangerous. How to show loyalty to the emperor is a profound art.
For example, when the First Emperor attacked the State of Chu, he did not trust the veteran general Wang Jian, so he appointed Li Xin instead. As expected, Li Xin could not win the war and was defeated. He had no choice but to appoint Wang Jian again. However, after Wang Jian obtained almost all the power to command the troops in the country, he refused to send troops. Instead, he kept asking the First Emperor for money, fiefdoms, beautiful women, and even official positions for his children and grandchildren.
Everyone thought that his greed would displease the emperor, and they all advised him not to be so greedy.
To everyone's surprise, the emperor trusted him even more.
Demanding money, land, and beautiful women indicates that the person is extremely greedy and lacks ambition. Since his vision and demands are limited to these things, and these are things that the emperor can provide, it will naturally reassure the emperor.
What the emperor truly fears is his subjects demanding what he cannot provide.
Therefore, in some situations, the "greed" of a subject is necessary.
Just like the current situation.
Ashina Zhuxie buried these words deep within this seemingly fair transaction, using this fairness to exchange for his own safety and Ashina Shali's trust.
Just as everyone was silent, and some were even looking at him with surprise, Ashina Zhuxie continued, "So, I asked Father Khan for that whistling arrow, because after losing the heavy cavalry, I also needed something that could accompany me in my campaigns, and that whistling arrow was just right."
"..."
"I hope that Father Khan will grant my request."
"..."
Ashina Shali did not answer immediately, but looked at him deeply for a long time before saying, "You, is that really what you think?"
Ashina Zhuxie said, "Yes."
"..."
Ashina Shali finally said, "Alright, I agree!"
Lady Jiayuan behind her was startled and subconsciously wanted to say something, but before she could speak, she stopped herself. Although the whistling arrow had always been used by the Khan, it was something that even the Turkic royal family could use in the past. Giving it to Ashina Zhuxie was not a particularly rare thing. However, having heavy cavalry in their hands would be a real help.
This deal is indeed "fair".
So she swallowed the words she was about to say, and stared intently at Ashina Zhuxie, as if she wanted to examine him more closely to see if his thoughts were limited to this.
Ashina Zhuye lowered his head and bowed deeply, saying, "Thank you, Father Khan!"
At this moment, Ashina Shali also revealed a slight smile.
He said, "Alright, since it's settled, then there's no going back. In a little while, I'll personally take Iasu there to take command of this force, and I'll personally hand over the whistling arrow to you!"
Ashina Zhuxie and Ashina Yiasu replied simultaneously, "Yes!"
Upon seeing this, everyone around felt a great weight lifted from their hearts. Several ministers, including Shi Shuanyi, breathed a sigh of relief. However, the few who had followed Prince Zhu Xie looked displeased but didn't say much, only frowning and remaining silent.
A major decision has been made.
And the future of the Western Turks seems to be sealed from this point on!
Just then, a series of hurried and heavy footsteps suddenly sounded outside the king's tent. Immediately afterward, the tent door was pushed open, and the relatively harmonious atmosphere inside was instantly dispelled by the cold wind that rushed in.
Ashina Shali frowned, looked up, and saw a soldier running in: "Khan!"
"What's up?"
"Enemy troops have been spotted approaching ten miles from the main camp!"
"What!?"
Upon hearing this, Ashina Shali stood up abruptly, along with the two princes and several ministers around him, all showing expressions of surprise. Ashina Zhuxie immediately asked, "What kind of enemy army is this, and how many people have come?"
The soldier said, "It's the army of the Sheng Kingdom. Judging from the rough estimate, there are at least tens of thousands of them!"
Upon hearing this, Ashina Shali's breath hitched, and a cold, sharp glint suddenly flashed in his eyes. He asked in a deep voice, "Who is leading the troops?"
The soldier replied, "Yes—Yuwen Ye!"
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