A shadow of gloom had settled over the entire court of Western Zhou.
The civil and military officials huddled on their kneeling mats, not daring to say a single extra word.
Xiao Ao had initially thought that Great Xia was just sitting on the fence and watching the tiger fight, not wanting to let either side dominate.
But he never expected that Shangguan Luoyue, driven by ambition, would actually help the wolf devour its prey.
Did she want to unify the three kingdoms and dominate the entire Beilu Continent?
Wasn’t that exactly what he had always wanted to achieve?
And now a young girl had beaten him to it?
Xiao Ao’s mind was in turmoil, until he saw Yun Chunfeng and “Huo Ci” approaching gracefully, which finally settled his nerves a little.
He deliberately arranged for the two of them to sit on his left and right, to show his high regard.
“Princess Huaiwan arrives!”
“Prince Mengsier arrives!”
Jiang Xingyan cupped her fists and bowed to Xiao Ao: “Your Majesty, since this concerns the fate of the traitor Tuoba Hongxue, why not bring him in as well, so we can decide on his punishment together?”
Mengsier was genuinely worried that Western Zhou might secretly torture General Tuoba. After all, he was a deeply hated enemy.
He quickly bowed: “General Huo is a just and honorable man. Let Your Majesty of Western Zhou’s grace wash away Tuoba’s sins.”
Xiao Ao waved his hand: “Approved!”
Clank, clank, clatter.
Before long, the sound of iron chains clashing grew closer, a heavy noise that echoed through the hall.
It sounded heavy, indeed!
True enough, Tuoba Hongxue, wearing a thirty-pound heavy cangue and dressed in prison clothes, slowly appeared before everyone.
Mengsier’s heart tightened, and he instinctively looked toward Shangguan Luoyue.
Shangguan Luoyue picked up a grape, handed it to a servant beside her to peel, and gave him a reassuring look in between.
“Kneel!”
The jailer delivered a heavy kick to the hollow behind Tuoba Hongxue’s knee.
Tuoba Hongxue’s body was already weak, and he had been forcibly drugged with muscle-weakening powder. This time, he couldn’t hold himself up and fell to his knees with a thud.
But his upper body remained bolt upright, his eyes blazing as he stared at “Huo Ci.”
“General Huo, since when do you stoop to such despicable tactics?”
Jiang Xingyan glanced at him: “All’s fair in love and war. As long as it works, I’ll use it.”
Tuoba Hongxue’s eyes trembled, and he looked at “Huo Ci” in disbelief.
Knowing that she had already aroused his suspicion, Jiang Xingyan stopped looking at him and turned to Xiao Ao:
“Your Majesty, please see clearly. I believe that Tuoba Hongxue has repeatedly violated our borders, slaughtered our people, and committed heinous crimes.
If Beiluo is sincere, they should leave him in Western Zhou for us to deal with as we see fit!”
Tuoba Hongxue’s body shuddered, and his fists were already tightly clenched.
This person is definitely not Huo Ci!
Although he and Huo Ci were mortal enemies, they were also kindred spirits.
He would never massacre a city!
In fact, he had been abandoned by his own king and accused of betraying his lord for severely punishing a general who had carried out a massacre.
Huo Ci had always known that, so why this time—
Tuoba Hongxue’s gaze at “Huo Ci” became suspicious and scrutinizing.
Xiao Ao asked in a deep voice, turning to Shangguan Luoyue, who had just finished eating a grape.
“What does Princess Huaiwan think?”
Shangguan Luoyue’s lips curled slightly. Only after she had finished chewing and swallowing slowly did she speak gracefully:
“Your Majesty of Western Zhou is so eager to silence him. Are you worried that General Huo can’t defeat General Tuoba?”
Xiao Ao’s face was as dark as water, and he didn’t respond.
Jiang Xingyan rose abruptly: “Princess Huaiwan, for one general to achieve glory, tens of thousands of bones must rot.
Are the lives of our two countries’ people not considered lives?
When two armies clash, the people are displaced, and their lives are precarious from dawn to dusk. Is this also the intention of King Shangguan of Beiluo?”
Shangguan Luoyue’s gaze sharpened, and she decided to stop beating around the bush, letting out a cold laugh instead.
“Don’t try to intimidate me with my adoptive father. There’s nothing I want to do that he hasn’t agreed to!”
Jiang Xingyan didn’t yield an inch: “Oh? So Princess Huaiwan insists on protecting Beiluo?”
“Not at all.
A fine bird chooses a tree to perch on, and an ally must choose the stronger side.
I didn’t come here biased toward any one side. I came to weigh the pros and cons, to see which of you has the greater strength and is more worthy of Great Xia’s help.”
Shangguan Luoyue raised an eyebrow, smiled, took a letter with a gyrfalcon feather attached to it from her sleeve, and slapped it onto the table.
“The King of Beiluo did indeed send an envoy to contact me, and he promised me many benefits.
But when you buy something, you compare prices among three vendors, so why not when forming an alliance?
So, I came here to see the sincerity of Your Majesty of Western Zhou.
Unexpectedly, Your Majesty seems to have a bit of a ‘burning the boats’ attitude.”
Shangguan Luoyue smiled carelessly.
But the hidden murderous intent and dissatisfaction within her smile made Xiao Ao suck in a cold breath.
He steadied his nerves.
Their Xiao family had founded their kingdom on horseback.
The Taizu and Taizong emperors had led campaigns personally, beating Beiluo back into a corner.
Now, it was up to him and his descendants to complete the great undertaking.
Even if he were to die in the middle of the journey, he would never grovel and beg for Great Xia’s pity.
He let out a cold snort: “Oh? I wonder how much dignity and honor Beiluo has offered up?”
Mengsier’s face flushed red. He wanted to argue but didn’t know where to start.
His older brother hadn’t hidden anything from him. If Great Xia could support Beiluo in destroying Western Zhou, then Beiluo would bow to Great Xia as a vassal, permanently serving as a subordinate state, and would never harbor rebellious thoughts.
Wouldn’t that break Beiluo’s backbone?
But his brother said he had his reasons.
Mengsier didn’t understand, so he just hung his head dejectedly.
Shangguan Luoyue didn’t mind Xiao Ao’s offensive tone.
“Just some land, some cities.
They don’t need to give them up willingly. If Great Xia wants them, we can take them just the same.”
Her expression was arrogant, but no one felt that she was exaggerating.
Great Xia’s strength couldn’t be diminished by mere words.
Xiao Ao’s face turned ashen. This was a naked threat.
“What I want, Your Majesty of Western Zhou might not be unable to give.”
“Oh? I’d like to hear the details.”
“I only want one person.”
Jiang Xingyan and Yun Chunfeng were both startled at the same time.
How could Huo Ci’s prophecy come true so exactly?
It was happening just as he had said.
Shangguan Luoyue was on the verge of a breakdown. If she didn’t eliminate Jiang Xingyan, she would never sleep soundly again.
Yun Chunfeng’s face was as calm as still water. Facing Xiao Ao’s questioning gaze, he simply shook his head slightly.
Absolutely not!
Xiao Ao stared at her with unfriendly eyes: “I will not give up either my dear minister Huo Ci or the Imperial Scholar.”
Shangguan Luoyue gave a light smile: “How could Huaiwan take away what others hold dear?
The person I want has nothing to do with Western Zhou’s state affairs.
It’s just that I have a greedy palate and love the pastries from Qianshan Su. I would like to invite Madame Jiang to Great Xia, so that my adoptive father can also taste such exquisitely beautiful snacks.”
Xiao Ao furrowed his brow.
What grudge did this woman have against Madame Jiang?
Could it be that she wanted to pull the rug out from under Huo Ci, to kill the cook to silence her?
He carefully observed Shangguan Luoyue again.
On the surface, she seemed charming and innocent, sometimes lively, sometimes sullen. She was truly a scheming and deep-minded person.
As for pastries, Great Xia had every kind of delicacy imaginable. Why would they go out of their way to invite a cook from Western Zhou to make snacks?
Did they think Western Zhou was full of fools?
Xiao Ao shifted his gaze to “Huo Ci,” signaling him to take over the conversation.
Before Jiang Xingyan could speak, Shangguan Luoyue had already grabbed the conversation.
“General Huo, you must think carefully before you speak.
Now that you’ve completely lost your martial arts skills, you probably won’t be able to withstand General Tuoba for many more days.
As long as you hand over Madame Jiang, I guarantee that Western Zhou will crush Beiluo within a month!”
