Chaos of the Three Kingdoms Summons

Chapter 2693 The Ten-Year Term, the Treaty of Yizhou

Even at the height of his power, Zhu Yuanzhang was merely a regional hegemon in the south.

Under these circumstances, it's easy to imagine what the focus of the Embroidered Uniform Guard's development would be!

Therefore, even at its peak, the Embroidered Uniform Guard had difficulty in promptly ascertaining the situation in the Kushan Empire, let alone the Embroidered Uniform Guard as it is now!
To put it bluntly, even at their peak, the Jinyiwei's network of connections did not extend to the Kushan Empire.

Du Ruhui's words clearly showed his confidence and fearlessness, and he was telling the Zhu and Wu people that they were not afraid of the threat Wu Zixu had mentioned at all.

After learning about the current situation of the Kushan Empire, the atmosphere became somewhat quiet. However, Du Ruhui did not stop his output.

"Furthermore, Your Highness, if our army encounters obstacles in Kushan, where will it turn its attention when it withdraws?"

"Du Keming, are you threatening us with these words?" Zhu Zhanji said with a hint of anger, his fingers unconsciously gripping the armrest of his seat.

Although that's indeed the case, and that's the logic, the other party's bluntness in saying it like that shows they're not giving them the slightest bit of face.

At this moment, Zhu Zhanji truly wanted to kill him at all costs.

However, he wasn't someone who was easily swayed by his emotions.

"It's not a threat, it's just a fact!"

Du Ruhui's gaze was so intense it seemed to be fixed on Zhu Zhanji, and in a low voice he revealed the final and most cruel trump card.

"To be honest, Your Highness, if it weren't for the Kushan incident disrupting our established plans, our Great Jin Navy's next target would have been this Yizhou!"

These words struck Zhu Wu and his ministers like a thunderclap.

Du Ruhui's words were practically a declaration: if their Great Jin Dynasty couldn't defeat the Kushans, they would turn their attention to attacking them instead.

The shadow of the Jin army's siege ten years ago weighed heavily on the hearts of many of the emperor and his ministers present.

Ten years ago, they dominated the entire southern region, commanding hundreds of thousands of soldiers!
But what do they have now?

The population of this small Yizhou is not even as large as the number of its soldiers at their peak!

On the other hand, the Jin army not only conquered the Central Plains and the South, but also unified the North, and later subdued the Southeast Asia.

With their strengths shifting, what chance do they have of winning now?
"The Kushan War is a change for our Great Jin, but for Your Highness, it is no less an opportunity."

Du Ruhui's tone softened as he said, "Do you choose to seize these three years of peace and seek a glimmer of hope for the people and soldiers of Yizhou? Or do you choose to perish together and end this precarious peace prematurely? Your Highness, a single thought can make all the difference."

After saying this, Du Ruhui said no more, but stood there quietly, waiting for Zhu Zhanji and the others to make a decision.

"Three years?"

"Three years is not enough!"

"Three years... I'm afraid the Kushan War won't even be over yet!"

"Our Great Wu wants twenty years of peace!"

"If the Great Jin promises that we will not invade each other for twenty years, then our Yizhou can assist Jin in this matter!" After a long while, Zhu Zhanji finally said solemnly.

"Furthermore, all the gains that Yizhou made in this battle against Kushan belong to Yizhou."

They indeed could not stop the Jin army from attacking the Kushans. Given the current situation, if the Jin army failed to defeat the Kushans, it would indeed be their turn to suffer instead of the Kushans.

Although this seemingly slow death made Zhu Zhanji very uncomfortable, he had no other choice.

In the present state of Yizhou, there is absolutely no possibility of resisting the Jin army.

To put it bluntly, the people of Yizhou were fewer than the soldiers of the Jin army. In fact, they were fewer than the troops of the Jin army stationed in the six southern provinces of Jing, Yang, Yi, Nan, Jiao, and Qiong. Given this absolute disparity in strength, how could they possibly resist?

Therefore, I can only apologize to the Kushuang clan for now!

Anyway, they weren't familiar with the Kushans, and hadn't even had much interaction with them, so they might as well apologize!
Therefore, at this point, Zhu Zhanji had already silently agreed in his heart.

However, if it were only a three-year condition, he definitely wouldn't agree to it!

Putting aside everything else, the Kushan Empire's territory and population are what they are, and their sheer size is what it is. Even if the three great empires joined forces to besiege them, they wouldn't be able to take them down in one fell swoop.

Just as he predicted, it's uncertain whether this battle will even be over in three years!

The Jin army offered a three-year timeframe, which Zhu Zhanji viewed as lacking any sincerity.

The other party's demand for such conditions clearly shows they are being taken advantage of!

"Twenty years is too long!"

"Four years, and I can represent Yunnuoer and others in this dynasty!"

"As for what Yizhou gained from the Kushan Empire, it can all be returned to us. However, if Yizhou passes through our ports, the taxes due must not be reduced in the slightest!" Du Ruhui replied.

He knew perfectly well that when the other party started bargaining, it meant that the other party had already agreed to the matter.

Then, the two sides will directly negotiate the price.

The three-year timeframe was certainly not the bottom line for the Great Jin Dynasty. Guan Zhong never expected that he could get the other party to agree to this condition in three years.

After all, we can't really treat people like suckers or fools.

The reason why the initial conditions were so low was precisely to give both parties the right to negotiate.

As for what the other side calls the Yizhou that was acquired by the Kushan Empire, it is really nothing more than population. Yizhou now lacks everything, but what it lacks most is population.

Fortunately, the Kushan Empire has no shortage of people.

But when two countries engage in a war of words, they can certainly win; they shouldn't give an inch.

Therefore, Du Ruhui immediately demanded taxes from the other party.

Given the distance between Yizhou and the Kushan Empire, such a long voyage would inevitably require finding a port to rest and recuperate, and naturally, the only port available would be that of their Great Jin.

When they go there, they will transport military rations and supplies to the Great Jin Dynasty, and naturally they will not collect taxes.

However, if the other party has personal matters to attend to upon their return, then they naturally cannot evade any taxes owed.

"Four years later, your esteemed envoy is still joking!"

“Nineteen years!” Zhu Zhanji continued.

"No, nineteen years is too long!"

"We, the Great Jin, will be magnanimous and enter into a five-year peace treaty with you!"

…………

After three days of continuous bargaining, the two sides finally reached an agreement on the timeframe, ultimately agreeing to a ten-year peace period.

Furthermore, after reaching an agreement, both parties formally presented their credentials and affixed their official seals.

Because this event took place in Yizhou, it was recorded in later historical records as the Treaty of Yizhou.