The Prodigal Son

For the next two days, Feng Shu stayed in Dapan City.

During their discussions, Xiao Baoju warmly took Feng Shu to Dapan City for fun, treating him to fine wine and meat every day, and even introduced him to the literary minister Han Cizhang.

However, Feng Shu never had the chance to meet Xiao Yanguang, who was in charge of military affairs.

After two days, Feng Shu finally couldn't sit still any longer and simply told Xiao Baoju that he was willing to exchange the three prefectures north of Panjiang for grain from Bei Qi and to send troops to attack Ningguo.

After defeating the Ning people, the Yan state can also become a vassal state of Bei Qi and pay tribute!

The conditions offered by the State of Yan were undeniably generous.

However, Xiao Baoju was not entirely satisfied.

Their appetite extends far beyond the three states of Yan!

As for pledging allegiance and paying tribute, that's all nonsense!

He knew all too well the nature of the Yan people.

Even if the Yan state submits to the Qi state and pays tribute, it will still stab the Northern Qi in the back if given the opportunity!

However, Xiao Baoju did not refuse directly, but instead reported it to Empress Murong, who was inspecting this year's harvest on the Fengshou Plain.

Upon receiving the message, Empress Murong turned to Xiao Yanguang, who was beside her: "You guessed right! The Yan Kingdom is only willing to offer the land north of the Panjiang River in exchange for our military intervention!"

"Actually, I've thought about it carefully these past two days, and temporarily taking these three prefectures isn't out of the question!"

Xiao Yanguang chuckled and said, "It will take us time to mobilize our troops. Moreover, once we agree to Yan's conditions, Yan can withdraw troops from the north to fight the Ning people! Let them fight to the death first, let most of Yan's starving people die, and then we can send troops to try and occupy the entire Yan state in one fell swoop..."

Xiao Yanguang still hadn't given up on the idea of ​​conquering the entire Yan Kingdom.

Moreover, as more and more intelligence came from the Yan Kingdom in the past two days, his idea became stronger and stronger.

Beiqi doesn't have enough food to feed so many mouths, so let most of them starve to death first!

The elderly, women, and children starved to death, leaving only the able-bodied!

This will save them the trouble!

If they were to completely occupy the Yan Kingdom, the Ning Kingdom would be surrounded on three sides!

If we can find an opportunity to take over Min territory in Ningguo, Beiqi will be able to obtain a large amount of grain through Chu!

Listening to Xiao Yanguang's vision of the future, Empress Murong couldn't help but secretly shake her head.

It's not as easy as he thinks!

They will make plans, and so will the people of Yan and Ning!

Everyone has their own agenda, and they all try to outmaneuver each other!

After a brief silence, Empress Murong asked, "Do you think we can take advantage of this opportunity to seize Wuguan Pass?"

"Wu...Wuguan?"

Xiao Yanguang's face twitched violently. "Your Majesty wouldn't be planning to attack Wuguan, would you?"

"right!"

Empress Murong nodded slightly, saying with concern, "If we don't take down Wuguan, it will always be a hidden danger!"

Wuguan Pass was important to the people of Ning, and equally important to the people of Beiqi.

As long as Beiqi occupies Wuguan, it will be able to choke the Ning people and prevent them from launching attacks at will.

They could then send troops out from Wuguan and attack Ningguo at will.

Xiao Yanguang frowned deeply, "Why did Your Majesty suddenly..."

Halfway through his sentence, Xiao Yangguang suddenly stopped and asked in a low voice, "Has something happened on the northern ice plains?"

"Um!"

Empress Murong sighed softly, "If we occupy Wuguan, in the event that the crisis in the northern ice plains erupts one day, we can also hold the Ning people by the throat, preventing them from launching a large-scale attack on us from Wuguan while we are dealing with the crisis there..."

Xiao Yanguang remained silent, pondering to himself.

Capture Wuguan!

It can be summed up in just four words.

But in reality, it's incredibly difficult!

Back then, the Ning people were completely unprepared, and internal strife was rampant. The presence of unscrupulous generals and grandmasters at Wuguan made it possible for Tuoba Liuyun to lead his men to successfully seize Wuguan.

But now, the people of Ning must be on guard against them at all times.

The chances of retaking Wuguan using the same tactics as before are slim.

It's better to occupy Zhenzhou and attack the Iron Wall City fortress than to suffer heavy casualties attacking Wuguan!

He felt that capturing Iron Wall City would be easier than capturing Wuguan Pass.

Wuguan used to have two city walls, but now another one has been added!

Three city walls, rising and falling!

Each city wall had many defensive siege weapons such as ballistae and catapults.

Even inside the city walls, there were hidden bunkers, arrow slits, and fire-breathing holes.

In this situation, having a master clear the way can only minimize casualties, but the casualties will inevitably still be very high.

Moreover, even with heavy casualties, it's not guaranteed that we can capture it!

After a moment, Xiao Yanguang sighed softly, "I understand Your Majesty's concerns, but seizing Wuguan is far too difficult! Perhaps we should negotiate with Ningguo, as long as they are willing to hand over the other half of the Nine Dragon Pendant..."

"If the people of Ning wanted to talk, they would have done so long ago."

Empress Murong sighed softly, "Unless we fight until Ning wants to negotiate!"

Xiao Yanguang fell silent again.

He wasn't afraid to fight the Ning people, but he didn't want to fight them at this time!

At this point, they would definitely try every means to extract more benefits from the Yan state!

After pondering silently for a moment, Xiao Yanguang suggested, "Your Majesty, if all else fails, just tell the Ning people about it! If the crisis in the northern ice plains fully erupts, it might not be good for the Ning people either..."

"I wish I could too!"

Empress Murong sighed softly, "But don't you understand the hatred between us and the Ning people? If the Ning people knew about our crisis, they would probably be even less willing to hand over that half of the Nine Dragon Pendant to us. Even if they were to give it to us, they would likely impose conditions that are unbearable for us..."

If the crisis in the northern ice plains were to fully erupt, the Beiqi and Mole people would be the first to be affected.

Their crisis is merely a bargaining chip for the Ning people to make exorbitant demands!

Xiao Yanguang has already said that the full-scale outbreak of the crisis in the northern ice plains may not be good for the Ning people.

But it might not necessarily be bad for Ningren!

If it were her, she definitely wouldn't want to hand over that half of the Nine Dragons Pendant either!

Xiao Yanguang frowned deeply and asked with concern, "Then what does Your Majesty intend to do now? Fight the Ning people until they are forced to hand over half of the Nine Dragon Pendant to sue for peace?"

"I do indeed have this idea!"

Empress Murong nodded slightly, "But I am now worried that if the war goes on and we can't end it, we will have wasted too many troops and we will be unable to cope with the crisis in the northern ice plains in the future..."

I'm so conflicted!

The key point is that even if they win, the Ning people will definitely be suspicious if they ask for the Nine Dragon Pendant!

Even if we win, the Ning people absolutely refuse to give them the half of the Nine Dragons Pendant, which would be an even bigger loss!

Moreover, if the Ning people really abandon Zhenzhou and retreat to Tiebi City, there is a great risk of a mutually destructive battle!

Ever since she learned that something had happened again in the northern ice plains, she had been troubled by it.

No matter how I handle it, it doesn't seem right!

Xiao Yanguang also felt a headache coming on. After pondering for a moment, he asked again, "Has His Majesty sent people to investigate the northern ice plains?"

Empress Murong replied, "My master has already gone to investigate, and we expect to have some preliminary results in the next few days."

Xiao Yanguang sighed softly, silently praying in his heart.

Hopefully, things aren't that bad!

This happening at such a critical juncture is truly disastrous!

As he pondered, Xiao Yanguang's eyes suddenly lit up, and he asked on a whim, "If we besiege Ning's army that is attacking Yan, we can devour them at any time! Does Your Majesty think Zhao Luan would be willing to offer half of the Nine Dragon Pendant to save them?"

Ok?

Upon hearing Xiao Yanguang's words, a divine light flashed in Empress Murong's eyes.

This is a bit difficult, but it should be easier than taking Wuguan or Tiebicheng, right?

Moreover, the Yan people were helping them wear down the Ning army!

If successful, they could also seize a large portion of Yan's territory!

If Zhao Luan is unwilling to hand over the Nine Dragon Pendant even when the two old generals and a large number of soldiers of Da Ning are besieged, then they can basically not expect Zhao Luan to hand it over!

Unless, of course, Ningguo is on the verge of destruction!

Even under these circumstances, Zhao Luan's unwillingness to take out the Nine Dragon Pendant would discourage many soldiers!

Perhaps, we can give it a try!

It might not be effective, but taking this step might be the least risky...