Isolated town in northern border region

When the news reached the capital, the borders of the Chu Kingdom were already engulfed in flames of war.

The eastern, southern, and western borders are all under attack simultaneously.

The Chen army stormed in from the south, the Yan cavalry pressed in from the east, and the Shu army attacked the pass from the west.

The three armies, like three sharp knives, simultaneously pierced the vital border defenses of the Great Chu.

The first to fall was Jingzhou in the south.

The army of Chen broke through the border with lightning speed, and the defending troops were crushed on the city wall before they could even light the beacon towers.

Then came Liangzhou to the west. Under the pressure of the Shu army, the garrison commander of Liangzhou's border city deserted in the face of battle.

Xuzhou in the east is still struggling to hold on, but the Yan cavalry has bypassed the front line of defense and begun to plunder villages in the rear.

The urgent military reports from three directions piled up on Zhou Xun's desk. He read them three times and only dared to present them to Xiao Lie after confirming that they were correct.

When Xiao Lie took the military report, his fingers tightened slightly. Zhou Xun noticed this and frowned, muttering to himself.

"Even when Your Highness ventured into the northern frontier alone, you weren't this nervous!"

"It seems that even His Highness is unsure this time..."

After reading the military report, Xiao Lie closed his eyes, tilted his head back, took a deep breath, and then placed the report on the table.

After a moment of silence, he asked a question.

"How many people were evacuated from the east, west, and south sides?"

Zhou Xun answered immediately.

"The west and east are alright. The Shu and Yan kingdoms are relatively restrained and have not carried out large-scale massacres. They mainly looted property and machinery in the factories."

"But to the south..."

He paused for a moment.

"Where the state of Chen passed through, almost nothing grew."

"They killed and burned, looted grain and people. A group of young and strong men from the border town were kidnapped, and the rest were scattered in the mountains and forests."

"According to the battle reports, the death toll has exceeded ten thousand!"

Xiao Lie sat in the imperial study without saying a word.

He leaned back in his chair, his eyes filled with conflict and anger, his mind preoccupied with only one question—where in the Great Chu, besides the northern frontier, could he find any soldiers to fight?

Bisu brought in a bowl of porridge, placed it on the table, and then took it away after it cooled down.

Jiang Min stood at the door for a while, but ultimately did not go in.

The second day's gathering at Chengtian Hall saw the largest number of attendees since the founding of the Great Chu Kingdom.

All thirteen councilors were present, and civil and military officials lined up on both sides. Even several retired officials were invited back.

Xiao Lie stood in the center of the hall, not in the main seat. Facing the silent faces of the entire hall, he spoke first.

"We are surrounded by enemies on three sides, as you all know."

"The reason I've gathered you all here today is to discuss how to break this deadlock."

No one answered immediately. After a moment, Xie Anlan stepped forward. His voice was hoarse, and his forehead was covered with boils.

"Your Highness, I believe... it is not advisable to fight."

He didn't wait for anyone to refute him and continued speaking.

"Although the State of Chu has a vast territory, its only capable soldiers are the elite troops from the northern frontier."

"The troops in the northern frontier are more than capable of defending one corner, but insufficient to defend three sides."

"If we divide our forces to defend against the enemy, we will be unable to hold any front!"

"If we concentrate our forces on one side, the other two sides will be easily penetrated..."

He sighed and then said.

"In my opinion, peace is the best course of action!"

"Even if it means ceding territory and paying reparations, we must endure this temporary humiliation!"

Zheng Boyong then stepped forward.

"I second that proposal!"

"The State of Chen is tyrannical, the State of Yan is fierce, and the State of Shu has elite troops. If the three states join forces to attack, the State of Chu is far beyond its current ability to resist."

"I dare to say... During Xiao Mu's ten-year reign, the military preparedness of Great Chu had long since fallen into disrepair, as evidenced by the fact that the Northern Barbarians were able to seize five states in the north!"

"Although the troops in the northern frontier are now elite, they are too weak to hold the line alone."

Xu Mingyuan also cupped his hands in greeting.

"I second that proposal!"

"Rather than perish together, it is better to retreat temporarily, preserve our strength, and plan to retake it later."

Cui Chengye and Lu Tingzhi exchanged a glance and then stepped forward to second the motion.

The hall was filled with voices pleading for peace.

Some soldiers clenched their fists, some lowered their heads, and some gritted their teeth, but no one stood up to refute them.

Because they knew in their hearts that what those civil officials said was true.

Xiao Lie stood in the center of the hall, listening to the voices. He neither interrupted nor refuted them, but simply listened quietly.

He only spoke after the last person had finished speaking.

"You are all right."

The hall fell silent for a moment.

He continued.

"It is a fact that during the ten years of the late emperor's reign, the military preparedness of the Great Chu fell into disrepair."

"Although the troops in the northern frontier are elite, it is indeed insufficient to divide them into three sides, that is a fact..."

"But... if I hadn't spread the technology so quickly, and hadn't rushed to dump goods on the three kingdoms..."

"They might not join forces so quickly..."

"It was my fault!"

He paused for a moment, his gaze sweeping across the entire hall.

"I believe that as long as we adopt the methods from the northern frontier, the Chu Kingdom will naturally become stronger."

"But I forgot that when I was in the northern frontier, I first subdued the northern barbarians before I started building roads, mining, and factories."

"Military strength is the foundation of everything. Without a fist, no matter how good your goods are, they will only be stolen."

Xiao Lie's tone was full of self-reproach; in the end, he had underestimated the importance of national affairs!

Just then, a young sixth-rank official from the Court of State Ceremonial rushed into the hall, his face ashen, carrying a document.

"Report! Letters from the states of Yan, Shu, and Chen have arrived!"

All eyes in the hall fell on the document.

The governor unfolded the first document, his voice trembling slightly with nervousness.

"The State Letter of Shu denounces the Prince for using commercial tactics to plunder the wealth of Shu, causing the people of Shu to suffer and the merchants to decline. Shu has reached its limit of tolerance and has therefore launched a military campaign to punish him."

"The Shu Kingdom demands: the cession of the entire Liangzhou region to the west of the Great Chu Kingdom, and an indemnity of three million taels of silver."

"If Your Highness agrees, the Shu Kingdom will immediately cease hostilities."

A low gasp rose from the hall.

The governor unfolded the second document.

"The State of Yan's letter—also citing the plundering of Yan's wealth through merchant tactics, demands that Great Chu cede the entire territory of Xuzhou in the east and pay an indemnity of three million taels of silver."

"If Your Highness agrees, the Yan Kingdom will immediately cease hostilities."

The breathing in the hall became heavier, and some of the military officers had already started cursing.

When the governor unfolded the third copy, his hands began to tremble.

"The State Letter of Chen..."

He paused for a moment and swallowed.

"The State of Chen demands: the cession of the entire southern provinces of Jingzhou, Yuzhou, and Yanzhou, a reparation of ten million taels of silver, and the surrender of all technology in the northern frontier."

"At the same time, Your Highness must personally go to the capital of Chen Kingdom to apologize."

"Chen Guoke may consider a ceasefire."

When the governor finished reading the last few words, his voice was so soft that it was almost inaudible.

The hall was silent for a moment, then erupted as if it had exploded.

"Ten million taels? Three prefectures? And the Prince has to apologize? What is the Chen Kingdom anyway!"

"The three southern provinces are the granary of Jingzhou; handing them over to Great Chu would be like cutting off one's own arm!"

"The Chen state slaughtered my people and destroyed my villages and towns, and now they dare to be so outrageous?!"

"Forcing the Prince to personally go to the State of Chen to apologize is no different from utterly submitting to the throne!"

Some people slammed their fists on the table, some threw down their official tablets, and some clenched their fists with red eyes.

But after the shouting subsided, the hall fell silent again.

No matter how fiercely you curse, it won't change the current predicament.

Xiao Lie exhaled a breath of stale air and looked at Zhou Xun.