Kays Translations

Chapter 282: Anyang’s Conditions

Sima Xuan was confused and had an angry look on his face. After Li Xian read out all the conditions, he immediately saw him off. The so-called “rough negotiation” was nothing more than Li Xian announcing his terms, without allowing Sima Xuan any chance to rebut or discuss.

Forceful, incredibly forceful. Originally, Sima Xuan thought there might be room for negotiation with Anyang given the current situation, but who would have thought Anyang would be this strong. From beginning to end, Sima Xuan didn’t have a chance to speak a single word.

“Send a negotiation team to Anyang within four days to complete the talks. Otherwise, Anyang has the capability to restart the war! Someone, take Prime Minister Sima Xuan to Kin Kingdom with the latest aircraft.”

Sima Xuan, still dazed and filled with anger, was escorted by the guards to the outskirts of Anyang. Needless to say, this was Anyang’s temporary airport; but it hadn’t been opened to private use yet. In the center of the airport stood a plane that stood out among the others, like a crane standing among chickens.

It was no surprise—this was Anyang’s first jet, a test aircraft, or prototype. The reason for using this plane to “send Prime Minister Sima Xuan on his way” was a show of force, a demonstration of power.

Next to the sleek, streamlined aircraft stood a Nascent Soul expert for protection, with over thirty Golden Core experts surrounding it.

When Sima Xuan approached, the Nascent Soul expert came directly to him and coldly said, “Prime Minister Sima Xuan, the Prince of Xian sent me to see you off. Please, board the plane.”

As Sima Xuan neared the plane, his pupils contracted—he realized the plane’s exterior was a magical treasure! Upon closer inspection, the spiritual fluctuations were unmistakable.

The cockpit had side-by-side seating, with Sima Xuan being arranged to sit on the right. He looked at the various symbols and buttons inside the plane, his mind blank. It was the Nascent Soul expert who helped him fasten his seatbelt.

Sima Xuan, somewhat reassured, let the other party handle everything. Taking advantage of the busy moment, Sima Xuan asked, “May I ask, senior, your esteemed name?”

The Nascent Soul expert glanced at Sima Xuan and coldly replied, “Sit tight, the plane is about to take off.”

After that, the expert began operating the aircraft.

Sima Xuan encountered a soft rebuff, awkwardly chuckling a few times before starting to observe what was said to be Anyang’s most powerful plane. The exterior was made from magical treasure materials; how powerful could this aircraft be?

A deep rumbling sound echoed as Sima Xuan felt as though he had sat atop a dragon, and then a force pressed him into the seat—this was acceleration. To demonstrate the strength of the plane, this takeoff didn’t use any formation; it relied entirely on aerodynamic flight. The mechanical power was wild, the most shocking kind.

The plane accelerated rapidly, and Sima Xuan felt everything around him retreating at high speed; the plane sped past over three hundred meters, and in the distance, a flyover bridge appeared in the path…

In Sima Xuan’s mind, there was only one thought: it was going to crash!

But just then, he suddenly felt the ground “sink.” No, it wasn’t the ground sinking—it was the plane lifting off! It was truly flying! Sima Xuan’s mind went blank. How did the plane lift off? There were no traces of any formations or spiritual fluctuations!

A loud roar sounded, and the plane flew over the overpass, rapidly soaring into the sky. After the plane took off, the Nascent Soul expert pushed the control stick to the bottom, and the plane roared even louder, shooting into the sky like a piercing arrow, heading straight for the clouds. The immense acceleration pressed Sima Xuan firmly into his seat, his limbs feeling a bit clumsy.

Of course, this acceleration didn’t affect Sima Xuan, who was also at the Nascent Soul stage, but its psychological impact was immeasurable.

It seemed like only a blink of an eye before the plane pierced through the first layer of white clouds.

Not sure how long they had been flying, but finally, the plane stopped accelerating. Sima Xuan straightened his body in the seat, only to see white clouds rapidly rushing past on either side, much faster than his sword flight. Looking into the distance, all he saw was blue sky and white clouds, and far off, a touch of green—that was the land.

About two quarters of an hour later, Sima Xuan suddenly narrowed his eyes. In the distance, he saw what appeared to be the border wall, and this was clearly the border wall of the Jin Kingdom.

In just over two quarters of an hour, they had flown from Anyang to the Jin Kingdom; the next moment, in the blink of an eye, the plane crossed the border wall and continued flying southeast. After about one hour and two quarters, a magnificent city appeared in Sima Xuan’s view.

It was the capital of the Jin Kingdom! However, the plane was so high that the city appeared very small, about the size of a palm.

In less than one and a half hours, they had flown from Anyang to the Jin Kingdom’s capital.

When they reached the capital, the plane suddenly performed a roll; only then did a formation begin to operate, and the plane rapidly slowed down. After some maneuvers, the plane floated in the sky, and the Nascent Soul pilot directly opened the hatch, saying, “We’ve arrived, please exit.”

Poor Sima Xuan had to disembark in midair; as soon as he left the plane, he felt the violent wind around him, and his spells couldn’t hold. He found that he was unable to fly and could only keep descending. However, Sima Xuan wasn’t panicking. After all, he was a Nascent Soul expert. After falling for a while, his descent slowed, the wind lessened, and his spells began to function again.

Looking up, he saw a jet of flame shooting from the back of the plane, which rapidly disappeared into the white clouds with a loud roar that echoed through the sky and the earth.

The changes in the sky naturally attracted the attention of many experts in the Jin Empire’s capital. The loud roar could be heard throughout the entire capital. When they looked up, they saw a figure slowly descending from the sky.

The Tai Wei, Zhao Youde, was sharp-eyed and shouted, “That seems to be the Prime Minister?!”

“It really is the Prime Minister!” As Sima Xuan descended, more and more people recognized him.

Needless to say, after Sima Xuan landed, countless people gathered around, asking all sorts of questions.

But Sima Xuan, his mind full of shock and anger, had no time for these things. He made a direct visit to the emperor to discuss the negotiations. However, the emperor was also curious about the way Sima Xuan returned, “Prime Minister, your return made quite an impression. I believe the whole capital heard it.”

For this small joke, Sima Xuan didn’t smile, but instead, with a grave expression, said, “Your Majesty, that was Anyang’s subsonic plane. It took less than one and a half hours from Anyang to reach our Jin Kingdom’s capital.”

Suddenly, the surroundings fell silent. Everyone instantly thought of Anyang’s “boast”: to throw a bomb into the Jin Kingdom’s royal palace! In light of this, Anyang sending Prime Minister Sima Xuan back on a subsonic plane was an unabashed show of force!

The Emperor of the Jin Kingdom fell silent for a moment, then finally exhaled a deep breath, “What is Anyang’s stance on the ceasefire?”

This is about a negotiation issue, but His Majesty the Emperor is too embarrassed to speak too directly.

Sima Xuan hesitated for a moment, took out a piece of paper, and was about to hand it over.

The Emperor of Jin Kingdom grunted, “Speak.”

Sima Xuan gave a wry smile and could only answer truthfully, “Your Majesty, Anyang’s attitude is strange and stubborn. The strange part is that their seating arrangement is east-west, not north-south. But Anyang’s posture is extremely strong.

Li Xian even said something like this: everyone has the right to start a war, but the right to end the war is in the hands of the victor.

Moreover…”

“Good courage!” The Emperor of Jin slapped the dragon throne, interrupting Sima Xuan’s words. He was clearly enraged once again by Li Xian’s reckless speech. With the Emperor of Jin’s political wisdom, how could he not recognize the strong and sticky scent of threat in those words? But after his anger subsided, he suppressed his fury, “What else?”

“Also, there are these conditions.” Sima Xuan held the paper, his face bitter, “Li Xian read out these conditions, then directly sent me out, using a subsonic aircraft to return me.

Furthermore, Li Xian also said that he would only give us four days to organize the negotiation delegation. By noon, 12 o’clock, four days later, the delegation must be present in the City Lord’s Palace Grand Hall.”

“Good, good, good Anyang, good Li Xian!” The Emperor of Jin’s veins bulged. As the Emperor of Jin Kingdom, he had always been lofty and never subjected to such humiliation. “Tell me, what are Anyang’s conditions?”

Sima Xuan swallowed a mouthful of saliva, his throat dry, and began reading:

“First, Jin Kingdom acknowledges its defeat.

Second, Anyang’s various expenditures for this war total 38.7 million taels of gold; because of the war, Anyang has suffered a social loss of more than 15 million taels of gold. The total is 53.7 million taels of gold. Anyang only wants gold and silver; based on the exchange rate of one tael of gold for ten taels of silver. The purity of the gold and silver must be above 99.95%.

Payment is to be made within 365 days; any overdue payments will incur an annual interest rate of 20%, compounded.

Third, Anyang demands to lease 17 cities with a 10-kilometer radius; and two ports by the sea. The lease period is 100 years, with a rental fee of 10,000 taels of gold for each city and port.

Fourth, railway construction rights. Anyang will build an ultra-long railway connecting Anyang to the capital of Jin Kingdom and extending south to the border of Liu Kingdom. The total length is expected to be 3,000 kilometers.

Anyang will have full rights to the railway for 100 years, after which it will be handed over to Jin Kingdom; but Anyang will still enjoy 50% of the profit sharing rights.

Jin Kingdom must ensure the railway is unobstructed and undamaged. Anyang can use the railway to help Jin Kingdom transport goods and move troops, but they will need to pay fees.

Fifth, trade plan. Anyang merchants will be allowed to trade and build factories in Jin Kingdom, and will enjoy the best commercial treatment.

Supplement to the fifth item: Tariffs, and so on. Jin Kingdom’s current tariff is ‘one tax out of ten’ (10%), and from now on, all Anyang goods will be subject to this standard, and no other taxes will be levied.

Sixth, if Anyang merchants or commoners commit crimes in Jin Kingdom, the interrogation must be accompanied by an Anyang judge, and the trial will be based on Anyang’s laws.

Seventh, mining rights. Especially for minerals that no one else has discovered but Anyang has located, Anyang has the priority to purchase them. The purchase cost is fixed at 200 taels of gold per square kilometer, for a hundred-year mining period.

Eighth, air rights. Civilian planes from Anyang can freely enter and exit Jin Kingdom’s airspace.

Ninth, Anyang will establish a permanent embassy in the suburbs of the capital, Lequan City, in Jin Kingdom, covering an area of three square kilometers.

Note 1: This embassy belongs to Anyang’s territory.

Note 2: Jin Kingdom can establish an embassy in Anyang to facilitate friendly exchanges between the two parties.

Tenth, Anyang will teach Jin Kingdom the Wanjian Formation, the Eight Wastes and Six Heavens Sky Gang Formation, and other battle formations.

End.”

Sima Xuan finished reading all the terms and handed the paper to the Emperor.

The hall was silent for a moment, with not a single sound.

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