Chapter 388 The Two Countries Negotiate Peace! Battle of Longtan!

The Northern Barbarians are the elder brother, the Central Plains are the younger brother.

As soon as these words came out, the Fengtian Hall suddenly fell silent, and then many civil and military officials quickly began to scold the Northern Barbarian envoys with an "angry" look on their faces.

"How dare you, the bold barbarians, bully our Great Zhou like this!"

"How can you, the barbarians, be brothers?"

"How dare you, the Northern Barbarians, call yourself brothers? Even if we are all brotherly countries, the Great Zhou should be the elder brother and the Northern Barbarians should be the younger brother."

Although all the officials present knew that the current situation was indeed that the Northern Barbarians had the upper hand and knocked on the gate every year, and the Great Zhou court could only station heavy troops on the border for defense.

It was almost impossible to organize an effective counterattack. After nearly a hundred years, the other side still pushed thousands of miles of territory.

But even though they knew this, they did not dare to agree to this.

Whoever agreed would be cursed.

Anyway, it was just a few words of opposition, which could increase their reputation for them and leave a strong impression on the people outside.

Emperor Yuan Kang, who was at the top, naturally considered more than just some empty reputation. What he wanted was actual benefits. As long as the northern barbarians withdrew, he could instantly free up hundreds of thousands of troops.

This force could help him suppress the southern border, deal with the threat of Li Chengguo, and wipe out the forces in the martial arts world that have increasingly escaped from testing the court in recent years.

It could also free up his hands to deal with the Qingtian Sect.

Or increase troops at the border of the East China Sea to prevent the invasion of the demon tribe.

It can be said that this matter is a hundred benefits and no harm for the Great Zhou court.

He has great ambitions, but there are too many constraints. There are forces headed by Ji Chengdao inside, which prevents his ambitions from being realized, and there are rebels outside who are still determined to rebel.

Under internal and external troubles, he can only try his best to maintain the stability of the Central Plains.

Now the opportunity he has been waiting for has finally come, and he can't hide his excitement.

But after all, as an emperor, he still has some skills in cultivating his qi. On the one hand, this is just a possibility, which does not mean that he will definitely negotiate peace. On the other hand, he needs to see the conditions of the northern barbarians.

As for the third, it is naturally affected.

Looking at the excited emotions of the court officials below, if he agrees directly, he will undoubtedly be branded as a tyrant. Even if he wants to negotiate peace and bow his head, he should let the people below take the blame.

Following his eyes, the Minister of Rites below secretly groaned in his heart, knowing what the emperor meant. He will bear the blame, and the emperor will take the benefits.

But he had no choice.

"No noise in the hall!"

When the officials were excited, Li Chengzhong immediately shouted.

The faces of Zagumu and others were not very good. They could understand the language of the Central Plains and knew what the "barbarians" meant.

However, being here, they could not argue with so many Central Plains officials.

As soon as the hall fell silent, the Minister of Rites jumped out and said:

"Our Great Zhou has been established for 600 years, and its military power is at its peak. We have a million troops under our command, and there are strong men like clouds and generals like rain. Even if we negotiate peace, both sides should be treated equally.

How can we be inferior to the Golden Saint King Court?"

"Your Majesty the Emperor of the Great Zhou, please calm down. This is the order of my father Khan. We are just explaining it. If His Majesty the Emperor of the Great Zhou does not want to negotiate peace, we can also go back and report."

Zagumu smiled faintly, seemingly asking for forgiveness, but in fact, it seemed that he had taken the Central Plains court for granted.

Of course, they were well aware of the plight of the Central Plains Dynasty, and knew that negotiating peace was the most in line with the interests of the Central Plains court. They did not mention it before, just because they did not reveal their attitude in this regard.

"You"

The Minister of Rites was choked.

Emperor Yuan Kang narrowed his eyes: "It's okay, I'm not angry. The peace talks between the two countries will benefit the people of the world. I am not so magnanimous. If it is just a brotherly alliance, it is not impossible to negotiate."

"Of course it is more than that. Father Khan once said that the peace talks between the two countries will benefit the Great Zhou, so the Great Zhou court must show its sincerity."

"What sincerity?"

Ji Chengdao suddenly spoke.

Zagumu bowed first, then said:

"First, the Great Zhou court needs to withdraw 300,000 troops from the northern border and hand over three important border towns for trade. These three important towns should be guarded by the Great Zhou and the royal court together.

Second, the Great Zhou court needs to recognize that the 5,000-li territory occupied by the grassland in the north of Youzhou belongs to the grassland. The Great Zhou court needs to give the royal court one million Yuan crystals every year.

Of course, my royal court will also give a large amount of fur, monster bones, and grassland spirits to the Central Plains court every year, and will not let the Central Plains court suffer."

"What, withdraw troops? This is absolutely not allowed!"

"Since we want to negotiate peace, why do we have to withdraw troops? What if you take the opportunity to mobilize troops?"

At this time, several military generals in the court spoke out.

The several important towns on the border are war fortresses built by the court at the cost of huge resources for hundreds of years. They are also the forefront of facing the northern barbarian cavalry. Once several important towns are abandoned.

The entire Youzhou will be undefended, and the Northern Barbarians can march straight in.

This is the price they cannot tolerate the most.

Many civil officials have come to their senses at this moment and scolded.

The following conditions are not out of the question. After all, the Great Zhou court can provide a huge amount of Yuanjing, not to mention that most of the resources of the Northern Barbarians are complementary. Even if there is a loss, it will not be much.

Thousands of miles of territory have long been occupied by the grassland. It is okay to give it to the other party, but withdrawing troops is absolutely not allowed.

Emperor Yuan Kang's face also sank, and the joy that just rose up disappeared in an instant. He just wanted to gather strength, but he was not foolish enough to give up the important towns on the border.

"If Beiman is so sincere, then there is no need to talk anymore."

He waved his hands, looking unhappy.

Seeing this, Su Feng immediately stepped forward and said:

"It is difficult for us to make the final decision on the peace negotiation. However, if His Majesty the Emperor is dissatisfied, he can also put forward his own conditions. Although Su Feng is a grassland man, he also yearns for peace."

Emperor Yuankang's face softened slightly and nodded:

"In that case, let's discuss it later, but withdrawal is absolutely impossible."

Ji Chengdao glanced at the emperor on the dragon throne and said nothing more. As the patron king of Zhou Dynasty, he would never allow the emperor to make such a foolish decision.

As for peace talks, he also didn't believe it.

Nowadays, the Northern Barbarians are strong, while the Great Zhou Dynasty is weak.

The matter of peace talks, even if it is talked about, should not be brought up by the Northern Barbarians. There must be some problems in this.

"The foreign minister will contact the royal court immediately to discuss the matter."

Su Feng continued.

He knew that people in the Central Plains were very polite, and even if they suffered a loss, they could not say it on the surface, otherwise it would cause infamy.

"My envoys, you are tired from traveling and traveling. It is better to rest in the capital for a few days." Emperor Yuankang said calmly.

Seeing this, Zakumu immediately took a step forward:

"Your Majesty the Emperor, I have been practicing in the grassland for decades and have rarely met an opponent. Now I have entered the Central Plains. I have seen many methods of Central Plains warriors along the way, but none of them are satisfactory.

I hope His Majesty the Emperor can send a few strong men to fight Zakumu. In this way, it can be regarded as a competition between the Central Plains warriors and the grassland warriors. I wonder what His Majesty the Emperor thinks? "

"Do you want to compete with me, a warrior from the Central Plains?"

Although he already knew the purpose of Zakumu and his party, Emperor Yuankang still pretended not to know.

"It is said that the Central Plains is rich in resources, strong as the clouds, and has countless geniuses. Zakumu has long had the idea of ​​​​competing, but along the way, hehehe, there are not many warriors in the same realm who can perform a few moves in Zakumu's hands.

It really disappointed the foreign ministers. "

"Shu Zi is so arrogant. How can I, a strong man from the Central Plains, be guessed by barbarians like you? I just defeated a few great masters, how dare I be so arrogant?"

"Yes, I have so many geniuses in the Central Plains, how can I be inferior to you?"

Several military attachés spoke one after another.

Zakumu smiled calmly, looking extremely confident.

"Okay, since you are willing to compete and I have no reason not to allow it, let's go to Yanglongtan outside the city tomorrow. I will send a few young heroes from our dynasty to compete with you."

"Thank you, His Majesty the Emperor!"

Zakumu crossed his arms and bowed.

Jiang Che has always watched the debate above Fengtian Palace with a cold eye, like an outsider. This is indeed the case, even though he is a third-rank official.

But in the court, there are many people with higher official ranks than him, and it is not his turn to take charge of state affairs.

As for the peace negotiations between the two parties, he could also see that it would be beneficial to the court, but the conditions of the Northern Barbarians were a bit excessive.

Although the imperial court was at a disadvantage in the battle with the Northern Barbarians, it was not without the ability to fight back. The situation did not deteriorate to the most difficult moment, and it was impossible to give up any important towns.

However, he also saw the emperor's interest in negotiating peace. If he only compromised at some price, he estimated that the emperor might really sign an alliance with the Northern Barbarians.

After the next court.

Jiang Che and Chen Qingfang were walking on the steps together, discussing the debate that had just occurred in the court. After the Northern Man envoys withdrew, the court was still arguing over the peace talks.

Some officials felt that the peace negotiation was beneficial and they could take this opportunity to eliminate hidden dangers in the court. After that, they could gather all their strength and lead the army in the Northern Expedition, even if they gave up some benefits.

Some officials felt that this was just a trick of the Northern Barbarian Royal Court. As soon as they gave up the important border town, what they would usher in would not be a peace negotiation, but the Northern Barbarian cavalry marching straight in.

Most of the officials joined in the debate.

The final result was that as long as the important border towns were not given up, the rest of the conditions could be compromised. On the contrary, peace could never be negotiated with the Northern Barbarians.

"What do you think of what happened just now?"

Chen Qingfang asked solemnly.

"Of course, stand and watch."

"Tell me what you think." Chen Qingfang ignored Jiang Che's joke.

"The peace negotiation is indeed beneficial to the court, but it is not yet known whether it will succeed or not. In fact, the final result discussed is the best and what His Majesty wants."

"Jiang Che."

While they were discussing, suddenly, Ji Chengdao, who was walking in front, stopped suddenly and turned his eyes to him.

"God King."

"In tomorrow's battle, Lu Jieyun will be the first to fight to test the strength of this Zakumu. You will appear as the finale. No matter what method you use, I must defeat him."

Compared with the first meeting, Ji Chengdao this time fit the image in Jiang Che's mind, with a coercive aura of a superior person emanating from his whole body.

"I obey my orders!"

Jiang Che nodded heavily.

After taking the things, do your own thing.

This can be considered one of his flexible principles.

same day.

The news about the Northern Man envoy's request for war quickly spread in the capital, causing quite a stir and arousing the interest of countless people. They even immediately went to Yanglong Pond that day to prepare for a good position.

But when they arrived, they discovered that the place was already heavily guarded.

If you want to watch the battle, you can enter tomorrow.

It was obvious that the imperial court had already prepared and made arrangements for the battle.

Also that night, Jiang Che did not go to Ji Changsheng's mansion for the banquet as rumored, which greatly reduced Ji Changsheng's prestige. Under the promotion of several princes, it even caused some waves.

However, since most people's attention was attracted by the battle at this moment, not many people paid attention to this matter at this moment.

This made Ji Changsheng a little unhappy, but also relieved.

His face was already lost.

It was a blessing to minimize the impact.

But at the same time, he also had a lot of resentment towards Jiang Che.

Not only did he lose face, but he also contradicted his mother.

As a son, how could he tolerate it?

But now he also knew the importance of Jiang Che and did not dare to act rashly at this moment.

That night.

Jiang Che received the imperial edict of Emperor Yuan Kang.

In short, there was only one sentence.

That is, only victory is allowed, not defeat.

The next day.

Since the beginning of the morning, it can be seen that countless people from all over the capital have turned into a stream of people, gathering towards Yanglongtan outside the city. There is a black mass of no less than 200,000 people.

It is boundless, and you can't even see the end at a glance.

And their status is not enough to get too close.

Under the arrangement of many officials, a large number of people were diverted to the area outside Yanglongtan, and the area really close to Yanglongtan was occupied by civil and military officials and their families.

Although it is not uncommon for warriors to fight, it is rare for great masters at the level of gods to fight, especially the identities represented by both sides, the Central Plains and the grasslands, two major countries that have fought for thousands of years.

There is almost no time when either side can completely defeat the other side.

Under such influence, the people and warriors on both sides are naturally angry.

Especially the Northern Barbarian envoys, since entering the pass, have been fighting all the way, defeating nearly ten great masters in the Central Plains, and the limelight is unparalleled, almost having the limelight of one person suppressing a country.

This also caused a lot of people to worry, fearing that Lu Jieyun and Jiang Che, who had just broken through, would lose to the other side, which would be a huge loss of face.

Therefore, they were very concerned about this.

As time went on, many officials and their families also arrived at Yanglongtan, including Jiang Che and Lu Jieyun, who were the real fighters in this battle.

In fact, in the eyes of some people, it was the most appropriate for Jiang Che to take action directly.

But most people refuted it.

It was said that Zagumu was just one person. If Jiang Che, the most recognized genius in the Central Plains, was sent directly, it would seem that the court had no confidence. Once defeated, the court would lose face.

Lu Jieyun was different. His reputation was not as good as Jiang Che. Even if he lost, it was understandable, and it could weaken Zagumu's strength.