Damn it, I'm in the garbage book I wrote

Chapter 659 Who would believe it if I told them?
The negotiations in Handan reached a stalemate, with both sides sticking to their bottom lines and refusing to budge an inch. The grassland people were betting that their army wouldn't be able to cross the Great Wall, while Emperor Jingtai insisted that they had run out of cards to play.

The two sides were deadlocked here, and the emperor of Northern Han was actually very anxious, because he had not heard any news from the north for a long time. He only knew that Yang Ying had been besieging the city for a long time without success, but he did not know what had happened afterward.

Early that morning, after having eaten, Khan Liu was having his personal maid tidy his appearance. The style of the grasslands required shaving his face clean with a knife.

The accompanying official, Dacheng, sat down beside him and said, "Your Majesty, it seems that if news of the bandits breaking through the city could be received, it would be great news for us."

"Yes, that's for sure. But this morning, after I got up, I felt a little uneasy, and I don't know what's wrong with me."

"Your Majesty, you can rest assured. I guarantee with my life that this plan is unsolvable. Huangya Pass is far away and high up. Wouldn't it be easy to capture that small pass with more than 200,000 men? Although Yang Ying is greedy by nature, he is quite capable. He will not be defeated in such a small ditch."

"Hahaha, I think so too. But you seem to like to use people's heads as collateral. This is between you and me, the sovereign and his subject. If it were in public, I'm afraid the sovereign would truly be a man of his word."

"I am not afraid. If I could still make a mistake in this, wouldn't all my years of serving as the Khan's advisor have been in vain?"

Han Liu immediately averted his gaze, glanced at him sideways, and said coldly, "Fine, then I will grant your wish this time. If it succeeds, I will grant you a promotion and a rank among the Three Dukes. If it fails, I will borrow your head to show my sincerity."

The strategist laughed heartily: "As you wish."

Soon, negotiations resumed today. After nearly a month of talks, both sides were exhausted, repeating the same things day after day. Everyone knew each other's bottom line and rhetoric. Without a breakthrough, there would be no change whatsoever, and they would just keep dragging on like this.

The two sides took their seats and continued their negotiations for the day. After a lot of rambling and arguing, it was almost noon and they were about to have lunch when two people suddenly walked in. They quickly entered the meeting room, bowed down to Emperor Jingtai, and said, "Your Majesty, news has come from the border."

"Border? What border?"

The man said solemnly, "Yang Ying's defeated troops marched north to Huangya Pass, attempting to break through. Later..."

At this point, he lowered his head and said in a low voice, "Later, they were defeated by the Jinling Training Corps, who killed the bandit leader Yang Ying and sent his head here."

Upon hearing this, Emperor Jingtai sat bolt upright: "The Training Corps?! How could the Training Corps be there?"

The messenger hadn't expected Emperor Jingtai to react so strongly. He paused for a moment and said, "It was... it was Lord Xia who traveled day and night."

Emperor Jingtai blinked, not quite understanding at first, then suddenly asked, "What was the next sentence you mentioned?"

"Lord Xia traveled day and night."

"No, the sentence before that."

"The bandit leader Yang Ying was killed, and his head has been sent for comment."

Emperor Jingtai slammed his hand on the table: "Good! Bring it here!"

The Northern Han emperor couldn't understand why Emperor Jingtai was suddenly so excited, but soon he saw someone carrying a box walk in from outside.

Emperor Jingtai was extremely arrogant at this moment. He pointed to the box with a look of disgust and said, "Open it, open it."

The person next to them immediately opened the box. As soon as the box was opened, a strong smell of lime wafted out, followed by a hideous human head. Due to dehydration, the lips had shriveled, revealing grayish-black gums. It was both terrifying and ridiculous.

You can still vaguely recognize Yang Ying from her face.

"Hahahaha... Traitor! Traitor!"

Emperor Jingtai, somewhat out of line, pointed at the severed head and laughed rudely. When Liu Dahan saw Yang Ying's head, his first reaction was that it was difficult to carry out the order. But soon his expression changed drastically, and dozens of possibilities flashed through his mind. However, he could not figure out why, in just a few months, Yang Ying had gone from being a powerful warlord in the Central Plains with an army of more than 400,000 to a severed head on the table.

"Your Majesty, there are more than 75,000 bandit leaders at Huangya Pass in the north, and with the enemy leaders outside Handan, the total number is more than 133,000."

"Very well, very well." Emperor Jingtai waved his hand: "Reward them, reward them according to their merits, everyone will be rewarded! Get out of here, can't you see that our Great Khan Liu is still here? You have no manners."

After dismissing everyone, Emperor Jingtai's attitude suddenly took a 180-degree turn. He draped one arm over the back of his chair and casually placed the other hand on the table, his expression subtle, a half-smile mixed with a hint of mockery.

"Great Khan Liu, let me put it more plainly. You know this hanged man on the platform. There's something between you two, but unfortunately, he's now stuck here. I wonder what the Great Khan should do?"

Liu Dahan felt a chill run down his spine. Yang Ying's death had completely ruined his plans. Now, not only could he not use Huangyaguan to exert pressure, but he might not even be able to continue implementing his future plans for the Northeast.

Some people ask why we have to go through Huangyaguan Pass, why can't we go somewhere else? Well... Huangyaguan Pass is located on the only passage between the grasslands and the Lesser Khingan Mountains. Even if you had the guts, you wouldn't dare to venture into the old forest, that would be a death sentence.

Now, his last hope has been shattered. Liu Dahan felt like the sky was about to fall. He still fantasized about using Yang Ying to break through Huangya Pass and then letting him pass through. In this way, he could take over the land outside the pass without disrupting the balance between the grasslands and the Great Wei, and make it his granary.

However, Yang Ying died. He died just like that. His head, like a salted pig's head, was placed on the table. His dry eyes were open unwillingly, and his curled eyelids made him look like a clown.

Emperor Jingtai was strutting around, looking incredibly arrogant.

"Alright, Khan Liu. Now we should talk about returning the three provinces. Ah, this is something I shouldn't even be discussing with you. I could just have a chat with a couple of my men. It's such a waste that people of our status have been wasting so much time on this tiny piece of land. What do you think, Khan Liu?"

They didn't say that before, but now that Yang Ying is gone, it's like the grasslands' left and right arms have been cut off, leaving them with no more opportunities to cause trouble.

If they don't act arrogantly now, who knows when they'll ever get the chance?

"I need to think this over carefully."

With a forced smile, Liu Dahan waved his hand and said, "The three provinces are too vast; I alone cannot make the decisions."

"Alright." Emperor Jingtai tapped his fingers on the table. "Since that's the case, there's nothing more to discuss. Why don't we meet somewhere outside the Great Wall, where Khan Liu sets up his troops and we can have a real battle? A friend of mine once said that what you can't get on the battlefield, you can't expect to get at the negotiating table. In that case, let's meet on the battlefield. I wonder how many cavalry Khan Liu has left?"

Emperor Jingtai raised his head, and although his tone was gentle and polite, his words carried an air of unyielding arrogance.

Liu Kehan ​​lowered his eyelids and held up two fingers: "Two provinces, at most two provinces."

"Three provinces." In fact, both sides knew why the other was stuck on that last province, because the proven coal reserves in that place were staggering, and they were all high-purity, high-quality coal, most of which could be mined in open pits.

This is a considerable income for the grasslands, accounting for more than 20% of their national treasury revenue last year. It is self-evident who basically paid for this 20%.

To put it bluntly, there's no romance or love involved in the conflicts between the two countries. Once you peel back the layers, it's all about petty scheming and self-interest. The lofty ideals are just for show; the real money is what's in your pocket. The annual income might only be two or three million taels, but the crucial point is that it's not just about money; it's also about the potential for being held hostage in critical moments.

The two emperors almost developed a bond over this little thing.

"Two provinces is the most we can say; there's no point in saying more."

"Let's start the war." Emperor Jingtai finally stood up for himself: "Since we have nothing more to say to each other, let's just do it this way. Go back and tell the army that we will each bring our men and settle this with the ancestral methods."

This was the first time in nearly thirty years that Emperor Jingtai... or rather, the Great Wei Dynasty, had adopted such a tough stance in negotiations with foreign tribes.

However, when the same thing happened to them before, the Great Wei always endured it, retreating again and again, from the Luo River to the Yangtze River.

But now, they're not backing down; they're going to fight back.

Xia Daosheng said: Dignity resides on the edge of a sword, and truth lies within the range of a cannon.

The value of this statement is still increasing.

"Let's each take a step back. After all, there's still the Li Tang dynasty watching us with predatory eyes. Although the Li Tang is currently in turmoil, it will eventually restore order. If our war is still not over by then, I would like to ask His Majesty the Emperor of Great Wei, how should we deal with it?"

Emperor Jingtai pursed his lips, then smiled: "Then I wonder what the Khan thinks is the best way to back down?"

"The cession of two provinces remains unchanged, and the remaining province will be jointly governed by you and me. Let us establish a pact of mutual respect and cooperation to jointly resist the Tang Dynasty."

Emperor Jingtai stroked his chin: "How about this, you give me another princess, do you have one?"

The Khan immediately felt insulted, and his expression changed. This request was an insult to his bloodline.

"Your Majesty the Emperor of Tian Wei, you have gone too far."

"Khan, you misunderstand." Emperor Jingtai waved his hand. "That's not what I meant. I have a close brother who has been married for almost ten years and still has no children. Alas..."

The Khan's eyes darted around, but he didn't speak. His expression showed his reluctance, because in their culture, women held a very high status, and they couldn't accept this.

“We can arrange a marriage alliance, but we need to make him marry into our family.”

"Xia Lin? You want Xia Lin to marry into the grasslands? I can't make that decision."

Liu Dahan was taken aback: "Xia Lin?"

"Yes, you should be familiar with it too."

The two fell silent for a moment. Liu Dahan stroked his chin and said, "Then I'll go back and make some arrangements. I have a niece who is the most beautiful pearl on the grassland. She has admired Brother Xia for many years and has always longed for him."

"Then it's settled." Emperor Jingtai held up two fingers: "Two provinces will be jointly governed by one province, plus a good sister for my brother."

"She's my brother's good sister." Liu Dahan chuckled. "I was just afraid he wouldn't want her. I've been wanting to set them up for a while now."

"Hmm...no, if he doesn't want it this time, it will affect the relations between the two countries."

Although they argued for more than a month, the two of them reached a rare consensus on this matter: they really had to find a girl who could have children for Xia Lin.

However, Emperor Jingtai and Liu Kehan ​​had different ideas. Emperor Jingtai simply wanted to make things difficult for Xia Lin, while Liu Kehan ​​thought more deeply. He felt that if he could send one of his women to Xia Lin, he would at least no longer suffer such humiliation.

But Emperor Jingtai was not worried about this, because he understood that trying to use the old methods of the aristocratic families to control Xia Lin was pure wishful thinking; Xia Lin simply wouldn't listen to that approach.

"By the way, Khan, do you know who killed Yang Ying?"

"Who? Is there such a brave man on the border? This Yang Ying threatened me several times, and I had no choice but to submit for the sake of the people's peace. Who would have thought that he would be killed by your country's border general?"

"Haha, to be honest, he's not a remarkable person, just a junior officer on the frontier. But he was once the top scholar in the imperial examination."

Emperor Jingtai's boasting made Liu Kehan ​​secretly unconvinced. He knew that they had been promoting a similar imperial examination system to that of the Central Plains for years, but the quality of the candidates was simply appalling. Not to mention a few geniuses, the gap between them and ordinary students in the Central Plains was greater than the difference between a human and a dog.

And what about them? The top scholar was sent to guard the border...

What a waste!
At the same time that the two emperors reached a ceasefire agreement, Xia Lin, far away at the border, was looking at a topographical map of Shanhaiguan.

He no longer needs the Li family to guard such an important pass. This is just like the National Revolutionary Army back then. When friendly forces are surrounded, they just stand by and do nothing. What use is such a force?

Regardless of whether they are a meritorious army or not, not only will they not spare the Shanhai Army, but they will also not spare the Polu Army and Xia Lin.

"This kind of thing is most taboo between friendly forces, and we must not encourage this unhealthy trend. This time, if they are willing, we will resolve it peacefully; if they are not willing," Xia Lin pointed forcefully at the location of Shanhaiguan, "I will take it down. Rather than leaving them to become a menace, it's better to be decisive. I don't want to commit more bloodshed, but now it has truly come to the point where we have no choice but to sort things out."

Mentioning Shanhaiguan, Xiao Chenzi next to him was so angry that he coughed up blood. He also pounded the table forcefully: "I informed them well in advance, but they were cowards the whole time."

Xia Lin stood up and patted Xiao Chenzi on the shoulder: "I'm giving you a mission. There will be a lot of bandits inside and outside the pass these days, understand? Go and take care of them all. A large part of those fleeing soldiers will become outlaws."

Xiao Chenzi stood up: "I'll take care of it right away."

(End of this chapter)