Tang Dynasty Mingyue Song Dynasty Pass

Chapter 912 Negotiation
While Zhao Dezhao, Yongqing, Cheng Dexuan and others were sizing up Su Chen, Su Chen was also sizing them up. Because he had practiced martial arts for many years and his internal energy was abundant, and he had also led troops into battle and held a high position, his eyes were very deep. When he swept over the peace envoys in front of him, everyone felt pressure and tension.

"Great Song Dynasty, you want to negotiate peace? Do you think, given the current situation, there is any need for my Wu army to negotiate peace?"

Su Chen said something indifferently, and the generals present laughed heartily after hearing it. They felt that what Marshal Su said made sense. In fact, none of them wanted to negotiate peace, because the Song Dynasty was almost within their grasp. What was the point of negotiating peace?

If we fight for another month and capture Bianjing, the Song Dynasty will fall. At that time, the northern lands will all belong to the Wu Kingdom. Why would the Song Dynasty need to negotiate peace and cede territory?

Therefore, all the military generals felt that Wu should not negotiate peace with the Song Dynasty, but should directly break off relations, kill the envoy, and storm into Bianjing City in one fell swoop.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Dezhao's heart sank, as if a heavy stone was weighing on his body, making it difficult to breathe. However, he still insisted on speaking: "Our Great Song Dynasty has been established for thirteen years, working diligently to end the chaos in the north, resist the Khitan at the border, protect the Central Plains, and bring benefits to the north. It is a benevolent and righteous dynasty and should not suffer such invasion and perish so quickly."

"Moreover, the southern soldiers are already facing autumn. If the fighting continues until the cold winter, it will be disadvantageous for the Wu army. The fierce battle between the two sides will only cause the people to suffer. Moreover, your Wu people and powerful clans may not be adapted to life in the north. In that case, the Central Plains will not be a place for you to stay for long. So why fight the Song Dynasty to the death and destroy it?"

"As long as Wu Jun is willing to withdraw his troops, the Song Dynasty will definitely offer generous peace terms, such as ceding territory, paying reparations, annual tribute, cloth, and grain. The Song Dynasty will make concessions."

These views had been mentioned to Zhao Dezhao by Zhao Guangyi, Lu Duoxun, Zhao Pu, and others before he set off.

"Oh, how much territory can be ceded, and how much reparations?" Su Chen asked casually, not really caring at all, because no one could stop his ambition to destroy the Song Dynasty.

His goal was to unify the world, so he would not easily accept any conditions. For this day, he lay low for many years, arming the Wu Kingdom with technology and advanced knowledge, so that he could reverse the disadvantage of the southern soldiers being as brave as the northern soldiers.

If unification is not achieved this time, and a few years later, once the Song Dynasty has recovered and developed gunpowder, the Wu army will no longer have an advantage.

Moreover, his descendants would not have the same innate ability to travel through time as he did. Perhaps two or three generations later, the Song Dynasty would launch another attack on the Wu Kingdom in the south. At that time, it would be the Wu Kingdom that would be destroyed, and the Song emperor would not be soft-hearted.

Zhao Dezhao replied, "South of the Huai River, half of the country will be ceded to the Wu Kingdom. From now on, the Huai River will be the dividing line. The Wu Kingdom will pay an indemnity of 100,000 taels of silver. From then on, the Song and Wu Kingdoms will become brotherly states. For a hundred years, there will be no war between them. They can trade with each other, set up markets, and cooperate between the north and south. In this way, the people of both countries can enjoy the blessings of peace."

“If we continue our attack, the entire Song Dynasty will be our Wu Kingdom’s territory. Why would we need to cede it?” Lin Renzhao couldn’t help but object. He was a bit stubborn, so when he heard Zhao Dezhao’s peace terms, he was unmoved and even worried that Su Chen would waver, so he was the first to object.

"That's right! The existence of the Song Dynasty is an obstacle for our Wu Kingdom to take control of the northern Central Plains!"

"Back then, when the Song army invaded Huainan and Jiangnan, they burned, killed, and looted indiscriminately. Now they're pretending to be pitiful?"

Other Wu generals also opposed the peace talks and were unmoved by them.

Zhao Dezhao, Cheng Dexuan, and the others looked rather grim upon hearing the intense reaction from the surrounding generals, as they felt immense pressure during the negotiations.

Yongqing also became nervous, her eyes fixed on Su Chen, hoping that Su Chen would accept the peace talks so that the Song Dynasty could be preserved. After all, the Song Dynasty was built by her father with great effort.

But would he agree? Yongqing looked at Su Chen at this moment and felt that the other party seemed to be exceptionally tall and mighty, capable of changing mountains and rivers with a single thought and destroying all living beings with a single thought!

That's right. With a single thought, Su Chen could bring about the downfall of the Song Dynasty and the unification of the world; or he could ensure that Wu and Song could live in harmony and friendship.

Su Chen glanced at the envoys and smiled faintly. These conditions really couldn't sway him. However, when his gaze fell on a person dressed as a minor official, he noticed something unusual. The person's eyes were bright and captivating, with exquisite features. They didn't seem like an envoy there to negotiate; the way they looked at him was more like that of a devoted fan.

When Su Chen's gaze met Yongqing's, Yongqing's heart beat even faster. She lowered her head in fear, but couldn't help glancing up again. Her shy and timid expression was exactly that of a young girl.

"Oh no, will Su Chen find out I'm a woman? Will that affect the negotiations?" Yongqing was worried.

However, Su Chen was no ordinary man and obviously wouldn't dwell on such a trivial matter. He withdrew his gaze and continued to look at Zhao Dezhao, saying, "Did you hear that? Don't say I'm unwilling. We soldiers have been preparing for war in Wu for three years and then fought a year in the north, all for the sake of entering the Central Plains. You think you can make my Wu army retreat with just the Huai River as the boundary? You're oversimplifying things."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Dezhao and the others felt even more disheartened. Judging from Su Chen's words, it was clear that he did not want to accept the peace talks!
"Does Marshal Su want to increase the stakes further?" Zhao Dezhao couldn't help but ask.

Su Chen smiled slightly, calm and composed, maintaining control in every gesture.

Cheng Dexuan anxiously added, "We can cede five prefectures in Huaibei to Wu, as long as the Wu army retreats!"

The peace terms continued to be tightened, but they did not sway Su Chen!

Seeing that Su Chen remained silent, Zhao Dezhao steeled his resolve and gritted his teeth, saying, "Besides ceding territory, the Song Dynasty is willing to offer 100,000 bolts of silk, 20,000 warhorses, and also, we can marry a Song princess to us—the daughter of our founding emperor, my own sister!"

Yongqing was stunned. He never expected that his elder brother would suddenly propose a marriage alliance at this moment, bringing her into the negotiations.

She wanted to refuse, because it would be too embarrassing, but the words caught in her throat, and she dared not speak, for fear of disrupting the peace negotiations.

Su Chen couldn't help but laugh. Was a princess really that valuable? He already had a large number of wives and concubines, and he had deep feelings for all of them. After that, he did not seduce any new women or have any new relationships because he was not a womanizer, but a man of affection and loyalty who would not accept any woman as his woman casually.

Just as he was about to refuse, Su Chen noticed that the little attendant's eyes were darting around, her face showing a mixture of nervousness, annoyance, redness, and anger, as if she were the person involved. This made Su Chen's heart stir, and he couldn't help but joke, "Oh, what does the Song princess look like? If she's an ugly woman, wouldn't that be an insult to this general?"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Dezhao quickly replied, "Not ugly at all! This Princess Yongqing, who is about to be married, is only seventeen years old and has a beautiful face; she is definitely a lovely lady."

Su Chen glanced at the petite attendant and asked, "How can you prove it? The army is preparing to attack the city now, and I don't have time to wait for you to bring the princess to see me!"

Zhao Dezhao shook his head and said, "No, she is here. She came with the peace delegation!"