Chapter 85: Let’s Negotiate

Li Xian, Xu Ren, and Ling Zhifeng stood on the city walls gazing into the distance, while Beichen Yuqing followed the generals out to engage in battle. No, it shouldn’t be called engaging in battle; it should be called “taking credit.”

After the series of chaotic explosions, the over a thousand foundation-building experts from the Cai Kingdom armed with firearms basically had no chance of escaping. Even those who weren’t killed were left gasping for breath.

Wang Jian shouted loudly, “Bind all the survivors and seal their true essence. Haha, let these bastards suffer. Once they recover, we’ll beat them up every day—no, we’ll beat them up twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening. Haha…”

Chang Lin led his team forward to assault, “Quick, chase after those who can’t run. Don’t let any of them escape; we need to wound them at least twice on the thigh to be sure.”

With Chang Lin’s command, many Cai soldiers lying on the ground pretending to be dead got up and fled.

“Haha, these bastards still think they can stab us in the back? How naive! Chase them down; don’t let a single one escape!”

Around them, Liu Lei led 60 vehicles bouncing along. The snipers on the vehicles specifically targeted those dressed elegantly or those who seemed out of the ordinary. These 60 vehicles were like a pack of hungry wolves, circling around and scanning for their prey.

A minor general attempting to rally his subordinates and stabilize his position just called out a few words when his head suddenly exploded.

A higher-ranking officer from the Cai Kingdom, a Golden Core expert, attempted to act, but was met with a barrage of sniper bullets and crossbow bolts from the sky. The Golden Core expert had to flee in a panic—the collective strength was overwhelming.

As more and more minor generals suffered casualties and the Anyang army continued to drive them away, a rout ensued once again.

“Damn it!” Cai Kingdom’s Prime Minister Yan Zean’s face turned pale as he stared furiously at the three generals in front of him, wishing he could execute them.

General Wang Qisheng’s face was ashen, his true essence greatly depleted. General Yan Zhengqing fared the worst, having been hit in the chaos with five sniper bullets lodged in his body; if not for relying on his Golden Core true essence for support, he would have long been dead. Lu Chenggang was in the best condition, but facing a scene with tens of thousands of soldiers, the capability of a Golden Core expert was quite limited—just moments ago, he had been the one chased around by the foundation-building experts.

Yes, a Golden Core expert could easily kill hundreds of Qi Refinement stage fighters, but when faced with an army of Qi Refinement stage experts and a multitude of foundation-building minor experts leading them, even a Golden Core expert had to tuck their tail and flee.

“Let’s withdraw the troops!” Prime Minister Yan Zean ultimately closed his eyes in pain. It was over; having suffered two consecutive defeats in battle, he could no longer hold his position as prime minister.

This chase lasted until sunset, and after leaving behind countless corpses and prisoners, fewer than ten thousand of the Cai Kingdom’s troops managed to escape back behind the border.

In the evening, all the generals gathered on the walls of Anyang. Wang Jian was the most proactive, saying, “Young Master, let’s launch a night attack!”

Cheng Jiming shouted, “Yes, yes! Let’s launch a night attack. Our 40 war artifacts equipped with powerful crossbows are more than enough to breach their city defenses. The Cai Kingdom’s border initially had around thirty thousand soldiers, but now there are barely ten thousand left, and they’re all injured. By tomorrow morning, we can counterattack into the Cai Kingdom!”

The other generals’ eyes lit up as well.

Li Xian was tempted but had some concerns. He turned to look at Xu Ren, Fang Shijing, and Beichen Yuqing beside him.

Fang Shijing spoke first, “Young Master, war is about wealth. We can’t sustain a prolonged battle right now. The workers in Qingyun Valley haven’t slept for four days.”

Beichen Yuqing added, “Young Master, I also do not support continuing the battle. The previous fight has already caused significant casualties, and our soldiers haven’t yet recovered.”

Finally, Xu Ren spoke, “Young Master, we should focus on recuperation at this moment.

First, you have just taken over Anyang; there’s much to be done. We cannot endure long-term warfare.

Second, we lack sufficient supplies to support further battles. Anyang is merely a county; its potential for war is limited.

Third, we need to show weakness. We should appear weak to the internal factions of the Great Xia and conceal our true strength while developing quietly. Haven’t you said before that development is the hard truth?

Therefore, we should send envoys once again to initiate peace negotiations. The Cai Kingdom’s prime minister is right at the border, which is an excellent opportunity.

However, we cannot cease our harassment of their border until Cai Kingdom agrees to negotiations. Let Liu Leigang lead the 60 vehicles and snipers to continue the harassment. We’ll send a letter along with them.”

Liu Leigang was overjoyed. “Alright, alright! No problem. I’ll go right away.”

Li Xian wrote a letter, and Liu Leigang took it and left. Soon, the 60 vehicles set off cheerfully, leaving a trail of envious gazes behind.

Meanwhile, within the Cai Kingdom’s border, the prime minister, three generals, and over ten minor generals looked at each other in silence. General Yan Zhengqing had temporarily escaped danger; after all, a Golden Core expert is powerful. Yet everyone appeared dejected.

The scene of the massive explosion from the gunpowder had nearly become a nightmare. In an instant, a thousand elite foundation-building experts were reduced to ashes, along with over ten thousand soldiers. Then came the relentless pursuit.

At that moment, there was a commotion outside. Prime Minister Yan Ze’an immediately stood up, “Is it the Xia Kingdom’s counterattack?”

A personal guard entered, holding an arrow in both hands, with a letter attached to it. “My lord, it’s a letter.”

The prime minister took the letter and read it carefully several times, his expression somewhat strange, as if a mix of anger, helplessness, amusement, and worry all blended together.

Everyone watched the prime minister, waiting for him to speak.

Finally, Yan Ze’an put down the letter and forced a smile, “Li Xian’s literary talent is truly exceptional; there are even two typos, missing a few strokes.”

The generals were taken aback by the prime minister’s unexpected remark, the tense atmosphere turning slightly bizarre.

“It’s a letter for negotiations. Anyang can’t hold out any longer.”

Phew…

The generals finally breathed a sigh of relief. But the next moment, the familiar sound of explosions echoed outside—everyone recognized that sound too well.

“Why are they still attacking?” Wang Qisheng fumed.

The prime minister remained relatively calm, “Someone go to the city wall and shout that we agree to negotiations.”

Indeed, after shouting several times from the city wall, the sound of explosions finally ceased. Soon, a voice came faintly from outside: “You may send two thousand people to collect the bodies.”

After hearing this, Yan Ze’an looked at the border guard Lu Chenggang beside him, “General Lu, you go and arrange it. Also, inform the people of Anyang that I will visit in person tomorrow.”

“Yes.”

That night, the Cai Kingdom felt sorrowful; they had only recovered a little over ten thousand bodies. The rest were either captured or torn apart by the explosions of gunpowder. As for the specific number of captives and the bodies that were completely obliterated, they would need to communicate with Li Xian to find out; clearly, negotiations were necessary.

The next day, Yan Ze’an tidied himself up, took a dozen servants, and set off in a carriage towards Anyang.

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