Chapter 571: Yield the Initiative, Still Must Strengthen Oneself, A Single Sentence Awakens |
In any negotiation, one side always holds the initiative.
Liang Hengzhang took the initiative to come, and his posture was so polite. On the surface, the initiative of this negotiation seemed to rest with Great Xia, but in reality, that was not the case.
Cai Qianshan was gravely wounded, Caiqiu’s armies had suffered heavy losses, and more than half of Linchu County had been lost. From the current situation, it looked like Caiqiu was the more eager party to call a truce, since they needed to free up forces to focus on resisting Chencang.
But in truth, Evergreen Valley did not mean much to Caiqiu. With Qinghua City standing as a stronghold, as Liang Hengzhang said, Caiqiu only needed to expend a small amount of troops. Even if Great Xia pulled in all three hundred thousand available soldiers, it would still be hard to break through.
Caiqiu seemed precarious, but everyone knew in their hearts that Wei Bo and Hecang would not sit idly by and allow it to be swallowed by Chencang. Those two feudatories’ armies were not committing yet because they did not see Caiqiu in danger of collapse.
Chu Longteng had kept the fighting within Linchu County, clearly banking on that fact. As long as the two feudatories did not send their main forces across the border, whether rescuing Cai Qianshan or two great lords pressing him, all of those actions would be of little consequence to Chencang.
Caiqiu would not be destroyed. The four feudatories had enough tacit understanding on this point.
Compared to Caiqiu, Great Xia’s need to cease fighting was even more urgent.
The newly expanded southern foothill lands needed to be absorbed and consolidated; the five towns’ total new population of over ten thousand had to be settled and supported; the tens of thousands of soldiers and officers mobilized for this northern campaign were all waiting for rewards and merit distribution…
Great Xia’s strength was not yet enough to found a feudatory, but if these matters were handled step by step and allowed to ferment for a time, establishing a feudatory would not be far off.
“Huff…”
Inside the main tent, seeing Liang Hengzhang turn his head with a hint of pride, Xia Hong understood that the initiative in these negotiations had already shifted to the other side.
They had won the battle, yet the negotiation was being controlled by someone else. To say the least, this feeling was somewhat unpleasant, but thinking of the future, Xia Hong could only grit his teeth and accept it.
He did not indulge Liang Hengzhang, however. He shot Qiu Peng a meaningful look, then stood, taking Li Xuanling and the two children with him and moved to leave toward the rear.
“A safe escort for the Lord!”
Qiu Peng caught the hint and bent with the others to salute. Only after Xia Hong left did he smile at Liang Hengzhang and say, “Since Lord Liang already intends to cease hostilities, then let us first agree on the terms.”
Liang Hengzhang’s brows tightened at the words, but he quickly relaxed and nodded with a smile, then took a seat with the others.
Xia Hong was clearly bluffing—implying that this Caiqiu Grand Steward had no right to negotiate face-to-face with him, the Lord of Great Xia. Had it been a normal town-level camp, Liang Hengzhang would not have indulged the other party.
But not Great Xia.
“If you can’t win on the battlefield, holding the negotiation initiative is useless. The two feudatories can’t be relied upon. If we want to keep Linchu County, we must rely on ourselves. The feudatories’ people are panicked; whether to stabilize the current situation or to consider the future conflict with Chencang, we must first retrieve the hundreds of thousands of prisoners from Great Xia’s hands at low cost.
Great Xia has strength, but not yet at the level to become a feudatory; their threat is far less than Chencang’s. Befriending them to jointly resist Chencang is the wisest course. The Lord of Great Xia is proud, but he is reasonable. Negotiation should not be hard. The difficulty lies in how to get them to concede more, so the feudatories spill less blood…”
Seeing Qiu Peng sitting in silence after taking his seat for half a day, clearly waiting for him and revealing himself to be an especially troublesome adversary, Liang Hengzhang gave a slight sigh and opened the negotiation formally.
“Lord Qiu, for this ceasefire, our factionlord proposes five conditions…”
At Liang Hengzhang’s first words, Qiu Peng instantly sat up straight and his expression hardened. Though Xia Hong had not given him explicit instructions, years of following had built a deep mutual understanding; Qiu Peng could roughly guess Xia Hong’s limits.
Besides, putting Xia Hong aside, as the Department Head in charge of finances and supplies, it was Qiu Peng’s duty to secure Great Xia’s interests.
While a round of heated argument began over the terms of the ceasefire inside the tent, Xia Hong quietly took Li Xuanling and their children, sat on the shrunken Beast Emperor puppet, and flew over Guangningshan.
“Liang Hengzhang is obviously bluffing. Caiqiu and Chencang cannot truly cease fighting; Hecang and Wei Bo are glad to see them keep fighting. If we sign a truce with Caiqiu now, it would be like alienating all three feudatories. What do you plan to do about Chencang’s hundred thousand troops?”
Li Xuanling had been hesitant to speak inside the tent, but once outside she couldn’t help voicing her true thoughts.
Xia Hong, holding Xia Yuyao’s hand, looked back and smiled. “Kicking someone when they’re down is worse than giving them aid. I have not contacted Wei Bo and Hecang, so I don’t care about them. Chencang has always been rapacious; befriending them is like bargaining with a tiger—no use. Caiqiu, on the other hand, even aside from their current plight, is squeezed between the other three feudatories. Even without warfare, their position is precarious. Of the four feudatories, they are the ones who most need allies. If Great Xia wants to ensure we are not jointly targeted by the four feudatories, and even in the future to gradually exert influence over Mo'ao Chuan, Caiqiu is the only breakthrough. Giving Caiqiu a favorable deal brings far more benefit than harm.”
Li Xuanling understood quickly. After thinking for a moment she nodded, but she kept looking at Xia Hong, clearly waiting for him to continue.
“The hundred thousand troops of Chencang cannot be solved by outside help; we must rely on ourselves. Caiqiu’s situation is actually similar to ours. The two feudatories’ main armies won’t cross borders to help them. To take back Linchu—or rather, to resist Chencang’s subsequent attacks—they must rely on themselves.”
Li Xuanling naturally understood why Xia Hong had shifted his tone. Caiqiu’s chance of recapturing Linchu was slim now; any further engagement with Chencang would be chiefly to prevent further territorial erosion.
“After being played like this, Caiqiu should see Hecang and Wei Bo’s true faces. It’s not exactly a ‘face’ thing—diplomatic isolation is just how it goes: if your strength is insufficient, you must swallow what you are given. Didn’t Cai Qianshan know that Great Xia lacked the strength to continue fighting when he sent Liang Hengzhang to negotiate?”
Xia Hong smiled slightly. With the long histories of Eastern Zhou and the Warring States eras echoing in his mind, he had a wealth of experience to handle the current situation. His goal now was to secure a wider time window for Great Xia.
“A ceasefire, returning the hundreds of thousands of prisoners at low cost, selling Caiqiu a favor—this both befriends them and lets them focus on fighting Chencang. Moreover, the camel that’s been starved is still bigger than a horse. Caiqiu has managed to maneuver between the three feudatories for centuries in this battlefield region; it wasn’t easy. Losing one Linchu County doesn’t mean ruin yet. Once Chencang’s eastward push is blocked, our opportunity will arise, and…”
He paused, then turned his gaze westward.
Guangningshan sat in the southern section of Evergreen Valley, flanked east and west by the towering Mo'ao Mountain. But Xia Hong’s eyes weren’t on the mountains themselves; his sight seemed to pierce through them to what lay beyond.
“Don’t forget, there’s another force that has stoked the flames between Chencang, Caiqiu, and Great Xia, hiding behind the scenes and not yet showing itself.”
The Abominations from the Blood Mire!
Li Xuanling’s eyes narrowed. Following Xia Hong’s gaze to the west, concern rose on her face.
The Nine-Bend Blood Corridor and the Bone-Erosion Path were both intentionally left open by those Abominations. In other words, those creatures had been watching the entire series of battles across Mo'ao Chuan and the southern foothills from the sidelines.
Abominations grow stronger by killing. By normal logic, after so many large battles, the total participating forces should now exceed a million; counting the populations affected by the wars, the total numbers should be at least in the tens of millions. If so much blood had been spilled, the Abominations should have already shown themselves.
Their continued absence now can only mean one thing: they have a bigger scheme. What could be more important than tens of millions of people to them?
That thought sent a chill down the spine.
“As soon as the negotiations wrap up, you should return. Guangningshan’s built city is only an outpost. If we truly want to guard against Caiqiu, we must control the Bone-Erosion Path. It was previously under the Black Wind General’s control. I need time to thoroughly investigate, in case they’ve left traps. You take Yuyao and Sheng’er back. I’ll return after I finish.”
“Understood!”
Li Xuanling answered immediately.
The two little ones were reluctant and wanted to speak, but when they felt their mother tighten her grip slightly, they shut their mouths.
Xia Hong smiled but did not indulge them further.
Three years ago, when he passed through the Bone-Erosion Path, he had clashed with the Black Wind General. That entity already had strength exceeding a hundred jun back then; it had only grown stronger since. He now knew that the Black Wind and the Abominations of the Blood Mire shared a common origin, which made his reconnaissance far riskier. He could not let the children run wild.
“Just after stopping hostilities with Caiqiu, Evergreen Valley still needs the Sacred Cauldron for a while. This is a perfect chance to thoroughly check the Bone-Erosion Path’s risks and set up countermeasures to prevent future trouble.”
When human camps clash, you ultimately depend on top-tier experts and hard military strength. But fighting Abominations is completely different; Great Xia had more than a few methods to handle them.
…
Ninety thousand Great Xia troops had passed through the Bone-Erosion Path. After Guangningshan’s final battle, ten thousand remained in Valley Village to guard the prisoners, while the remaining eighty thousand were all stationed in the mountain camps.
Fortunately, Guangningshan had been Caiqiu’s garrison site, so the mountain already had barracks and tents. The eighty thousand Great Xia troops, together with the tens of thousands of newly captured Caiqiu prisoners, were all stationed in good order.
Because Lord Xia Hong was present, the summit’s camp centered on the main tent. The headquarters tent for commanding the army was instead set to the right, becoming an accompaniment.
Though secondary, the headquarters tent now handled many of Great Xia’s regulations and wartime affairs, especially the Military Department which enforced strict rules. With Xia Hong leading by example, wartime military matters were decided at the headquarters tent, so besides the main tent, the most bustling area on the mountain top camp was the right-side headquarters.
Yet the normally busy headquarters was unusually quiet at this moment.
The headquarters was a nerve center guarded by elite troops. Because there were so many Caiqiu prisoners at Guangningshan and Great Xia forces were stretched thin, some of the Dragon Garrison Captains who normally guarded the lord’s encampment had been reassigned to the headquarters.
Outside the headquarters gate, Su Xing’er and her three elder brothers stood straight as arrows, their gazes fixed on the tent door, their expressions extremely anxious.
Buzz…
Though they couldn’t see or hear anything inside, occasional surges of strong auras emanating from the main tent made Su Xing’er realize she had likely stirred up a bit of trouble.
“The position of Commander-in-Chief Hou within the Xia forces might not be that high. In other words, this assault on Guangningshan was likely his personal initiative. The surge of martial energy inside indicates that the commander named Yuwen Tao is blaming him. That means taking Guangningshan might be considered useless or even a fault. If that’s the case, we’ll be even less likely to see our master…”
Thinking this, Su Xing’er’s face turned bitter.
After the battle at the valley mouth, she had been overjoyed, thinking she would soon meet Master Xia Hong. But in Qingtan Village, Xiang Liang’s words doused her hopes.
“Based on your talents, it’s unlikely the Lord will favor you.”
While those words were discouraging, they sparked determination in her heart. After seeing many of Great Xia’s young talents, she knew she lacked the qualification to formally become Xia Hong’s disciple, but she refused to believe he had no affection at all for her and her siblings.
Four months in Evergreen Valley and half a year in Linchu County—a long time of living side by side—followed by reunion in Yanling Commandery: Su Xing’er was certain Xia Hong cared for them. She believed that if she could contribute enough merit to Great Xia, she could meet him.
For that reason, when Hou Bing sent word, she had decided to lead the Frost Ash Society’s core members to assist him, stirring the rebels to aid Great Xia and continue the attack on Guangningshan.
Though Guangningshan had been taken smoothly, the outcome now seemed quite different from what she’d expected.
“Great Xia’s upper levels surely have internal struggles. Commander-in-Chief Hou led troops to take Guangningshan without authorization. Though it benefited Great Xia, it offended the commander Yuwen Tao. If even he is reprimanding Hou, we’re even less likely to see Master or the Lord. Our hope of meeting them has probably dimmed further.”
Su Xing’er sighed softly, and then her attention shifted.
Someone was watching her!
She turned toward the source and met a pair of appraising eyes.
The young officer wore black-and-silver armor. Handsome, just in his early twenties, his strength was unfathomable—her forty-four zong power could not see through him.
“Black Scale Silver Armor—Dragon Garrison Captain attire. I heard that the Dragon Garrison soldiers are some of the best second-generation Great Xia youths, mostly from noble families. They would likely not know me…” Su Xing’er thought, but to her surprise, the young captain walked straight toward her.
“Have you four received instruction from the Lord?”
At the question, Su Xing’er realized he had heard of them and blushed, nodding sheepishly.
“No need to be like that. When I was young I also received the Lord’s instruction, and like you I once dreamed in joy of becoming his disciple. But after seeing more and more geniuses and understanding the Lord’s greatness more, that desire long faded…”
The young captain paused, his face showing a touch of reminiscence. He tapped his head as if recalling something and then smiled, cupping a hand in greeting. “I forgot to introduce myself. I am Luo Cheng, Dragon Garrison Captain of Great Xia, commander of the Ninth Battalion!”
In the first year of Great Xia, before Longyou was annexed, Xia Hong had snuck alone into the Hive’s subterranean base and formed a kind of master-disciple bond with Luo Cheng.
Many years had passed. Luo Cheng did not know whether the Lord remembered that time, but he never forgot. He cherished the memory and remembered the details vividly.
In his youth he had clung to the wish that his talent and diligence might impress the Lord and allow him to become a formal disciple. But as Great Xia produced more rising stars, his own talent became less outstanding and his diligence less remarkable. His obsession slowly loosened.
If the prodigious talent of Young Lord Xia Yuzong had once struck him hard, then when both princes publicly appeared, he was truly resigned. The idea of becoming the Lord’s disciple was almost impossible.
Being fortunate enough to have had a stint of master-disciple camaraderie with the Lord was blessing enough; he should not ask for more.
As a Dragon Garrison Captain and battalion commander, Luo Cheng held significant authority and access to information, especially handling defenses for both the main tent and the headquarters. He already knew most of what concerned Su Xing’er and her siblings.
Having long since let go of his desire to become the Lord’s formal disciple, seeing the four siblings reminded him of his younger self, and he felt a natural closeness that compelled him to speak.
Of course, Su Xing’er and the others didn’t know all that.
Seeing the confusion on their faces, Luo Cheng did not explain further. After thinking a moment, he spoke calmly.
“With the Lord’s strength, nothing that happens in the Guangningshan camp can be hidden from him. He also saw your performance at the valley mouth. If he wants to see you, you don’t need to do anything; just wait for the summons. Understand?”
Su Xing’er trembled at the words.
If he wanted to see them, they needed to do nothing—just wait. In other words, if he didn’t want to see them, no action on their part would help.
Tears instantly stung Su Xing’er’s eyes.