Xie Lanzhi said, "Zhang Ju, you go back and keep an eye on things first."
Zhang Ju thought about how difficult it was for him to come to Tianjingdu. He had to avoid Xiwei and certain people who were watching him. It was not easy for him to come to the front line.
Going back now to keep watch will likely yield no valuable intelligence.
He said, "Marshal, there's something I'm not sure if I should say."
“Speak,” Xie Lanzhi said. “Since you were able to leave Tianjing, it means that someone deliberately let you out of the city.”
It might have been at Little Phoenix's behest.
Zhang Ju nodded: "Your subordinate requests that you prioritize the foundation of Tianjing in all matters."
Upon hearing this, Xie Lanzhi glanced at him but remained silent. It seemed that even Zhang Ju could sense the changing political landscape of the new Tianjing, a time when she no longer held absolute power.
Zhang Ju believes that she may be stripped of power, and others may share the same thought.
Perhaps for some, it would be better if she died in Tianjing. That way, everything would be over, and they could legitimately support Little Phoenix.
Actually, they were wrong. They didn't dare to openly follow their master because they couldn't see her clearly. Instead, they played both sides between her and Little Phoenix, and were infatuated with one another.
Unlike Li Ling and his son who steadfastly followed him, and unlike Si Bogong who was easygoing and only cared about fulfilling his duties, he was different.
Those who are adept at navigating social situations are inherently restless. Xie Lanzhi never imagined that coming to the front lines would be like a mirror, revealing the treacherous hearts of those back home.
At this moment, her little phoenix is struggling in the darkest corner of human nature.
Xie Lanzhi felt a sudden pang of pain in her heart: "Zhang Ju, if I am ever gone, just go and seek refuge with Her Highness. She will not mistreat you."
"What...what are you saying?" Zhang Ju was astonished.
Xie Lanzhi lowered her hand and changed her words, saying, "Don't worry, I will live to be a hundred years old. I was just joking with you."
Zhang Ju felt that this joke, coupled with the marshal's extremely serious expression, sounded remarkably real.
"When do you plan to return to Tianjing?"
"Three days later."
Zhang Ju decided to return to Tianjing first to monitor the people of the Western Guard. Recently, it was these people from the Western Guard who had been secretly working to arrange a meeting between that scoundrel and His Highness. Especially his younger brother, who had always been unconventional and rebellious, might very well come up with some bad ideas for His Highness.
Although Your Highness is exceptionally intelligent and adept at politics, she has little experience with such sordid matters. Men, in particular, are still a novelty for someone of Your Highness's age.
He had to keep an eye on things for the marshal.
Xie Lanzhi sent someone to deliver the poem to the battlefield.
In the blink of an eye, she had someone prepare a horse, then her long halberd, and then a letter—a letter to contact Aba.
Xie Lanzhi wanted to see what kind of heirloom that Aqina had prepared for the giant. What was it that could capture her and Aba in one fell swoop? What kind of heirloom could capture them from a great distance?
Could that thing be a sniper rifle?
Xie Lanzhi found it amusing that sniper rifles only appeared during World War II, and that was the first sniper rifle equipped with an optical sight. That's at least three hundred years ahead of its time.
She slowly suppressed her smile, realizing that if she could see Aqina from her dreams, then the appearance of a sniper rifle that was three hundred years ahead of its time was nothing new.
After all, it's already a mystical phenomenon, so what's the point of worrying about whether it's a reasonable phenomenon?
Xie Lanzhi immediately realized the seriousness of the situation; Aba Na was going to die, but not now.
She had a letter prepared and then decided to meet on Jiguang Island. She was not wearing a military uniform, but rather civilian clothes.
Qiankun noticed that the marshal's right hand still had a splint, but the bandage was gone. She even used her wide sleeve to hide her injured right hand.
"She's going to negotiate."
"Keep an eye on it; negotiations might not be a bad thing."
At the same time, Aba received Xie Lanzhi's letter, and he was overjoyed. He immediately took ten people, dressed in refugee clothes, and went to the island.
Xie Lanzhi rode her horse towards Jiguang Island.
The mercenaries were incredibly excited to learn that the two generals were about to meet. They disguised themselves as refugees and approached Jiguang Island. However, firearms were difficult to conceal, and entering Jiguang Island would require a body search, making them easy targets. So, the mercenaries found a place to hide their guns and then sneaked off the island. Their job was simply to lead the way.
I wonder just how capable the man the King sent is? He only needed them to set off smoke over Jiguang Island.
The smoke signal was a way of confirming that Xie Zhu was on Jiguang Island.
When Aba and his ten men arrived at Jiguang Island, they encountered Zheng Xiu, who was on patrol and trying to calm the hearts of the people on Jiguang Island. Despite his personal intervention, many islanders still fled to the open sea.
Zheng Xiu had heard of the infamous Black Bear Island in the outer sea, where pirates from different countries were stationed, specializing in robbing merchants from various countries and occasionally sailing into small countries to burn, kill, and plunder.
Jiguang Island is far from Heixiazi Island, and the presence of the Vietnamese navy deterred pirates from landing on Heixiazi Island.
Now the navy is either deserted or dead, and has long since lost its coastal defense capabilities. If news of the fighting here reaches Heixiazi Island, who knows, those murderers and arsonists might dare to come to the coast and cause trouble.
Zheng Xiu was secretly worried. He was so distracted that he brushed past Aba Na that he didn't even notice when Aba Na specifically glanced at him.
As Aba watched Zheng Xiu lead a group of Xie soldiers past, he whispered, "Is this the Seventh Prince supported by Lord Xie, Zheng Xiu?"
“Yes, Your Highness,” said a Xiongnu soldier. “I have heard that Lord Xie prefers to appoint people of high moral character and prestige. Among all the people of Yue, the Seven Wise Kings are the most beloved.”
A note from the author:
Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 2022-01-27 20:22:49 and 2022-01-28 20:28:04!
Thank you to the little angel who threw the landmine: Hongyan (1);
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: Hongyan (5 bottles); Xinxin (3 bottles); Liu Yinghui (my wife) (2 bottles);
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 175 The Little Phoenix Takes the Lead, Lanzhi Rushes to the Capital
Zheng Fu was even jealous of his younger brother at one point. There were even rumors in Yue that Zheng Fu would kill Zheng Xiu one day. Zheng Fu had such thoughts, but he cared about his reputation, so he always maintained the image of a good older brother and a good ruler, protecting and giving important positions to his younger brother in order to show his magnanimity.
Therefore, the people of Yue dispelled their doubts about Zheng Fu.
Now Zheng Fu has instead let the wolf into the house, plunging the Yue Kingdom into chaos. No matter how well he was once the king, now he is being called upon by everyone.
Aba judged Xie Lanzhi to be a shrewd person based on her ability to appoint people to positions of authority.
Why would a shrewd person insist on fighting to the death before negotiating?
Although he also suffered heavy losses, the Yue army suffered the most.
Zheng Fu and the Yue Kingdom were the biggest losers in this war.
The refugees on Fuguang Island lived in makeshift wooden shacks, their eyes vacant and bewildered. If it weren't for Zheng Xiu occasionally bringing them food, the refugees would have thought they wouldn't survive until tomorrow.
Most people live with the mindset of "today is tomorrow," while only the children, innocent and unaware, run around in various parts of the island.
Just then, a child fell at Xie Lanzhi's feet. She bent down to help the child up, and the child, frightened, turned and ran away in a flash.
Xie Lanzhi chose to meet in the coconut grove of Fuguang Island, where the seawater kept lapping against the shore, brewing even bigger waves.
Aba came over with ten people and saw a tall woman standing on the beach with her hands behind her back, gazing at the horizon. She was accompanied by only two people.
"All of you, step back!" Aba felt a bit out of place with so many people around him.
After all, Xie only brought two people, which shows that he is very confident in this negotiation.
All ten people stepped back. Aba Na took the initiative to walk to Xie Lanzhi's side and said, "Are you the head of the Xie family?"
Xie Lanzhi turned her head to the side, then turned back: "You are the prince of Aba."
The two fell silent for a moment. In truth, any man or his men with a modicum of intelligence would have harbored secret plans to deal with each other. As long as the leader is captured first, the war is far simpler than they imagined. Therefore, for the two men, and even their accompanying soldiers, this negotiation, lacking a negotiating table and being so crude, offered absolutely no security.
Moreover, the risks they face are the greatest.
For Xie Lanzhi and Aba Na, this meeting was not just about negotiations, but also about reaching a consensus with each other for the first time.
Negotiations cannot succeed if they do not reach a consensus.
It now seems that Xie Zhu and he were thinking the same thing: it doesn't matter how many people accompany them, as long as both sides have a backup plan that can only be used for negotiations.
Both sides felt they had a backup plan.
The two negotiated without a negotiating table, only the sound of waves crashing against the shore for company. They drew up no written agreement and had no notary present.
Can an alliance be established based solely on the other party's guarantee?
Xie Lanzhi took the initiative to speak, saying, "The Second Prince is more sincere than I imagined."
“The Marshal is more trustworthy than I imagined,” Aba said. “Our alliance doesn’t need any written agreement for now. I just want your stance.”
"Marshal Xie, do you think you can destroy my army just because you want the entire Yue Kingdom?"
Xie Lanzhi said, "You are the spark that ignited this war; you are the unjust side."
"And I have every reason to annihilate you."
"Does the Marshal really intend to turn a blind eye?" Aba Na quickly grabbed Aqina to negotiate: "My firearms came from my brother. Coming to Yue Kingdom was merely to thwart my brother's conspiracy ahead of time."
“Even if I don’t start a war, my brother will not let Yue go.”
"But you are now facing me, the King. As long as I am here, everything is negotiable. I can agree to any conditions you propose."
After Aba Nadun, he raised his hand and pointed into the distance, following Xie Lanzhi's gaze: "Before you put forward your conditions, listen to my conditions first. I don't want any Yue Kingdom. What I want is to disrupt my brother's business in Yue Kingdom three years ago."
"As long as you allow me to set up a camp in Yue, I am willing to submit to you."
Xie Lanzhi did not agree. Aba was a fish that slipped through Aqina's net due to his negligence. He was carrying Aqina's fate, so naturally he could not be treated as an ordinary person.
She asked a question: "Why do you insist on staying in Yue?"
"The delta that Yue Kingdom has given you will satisfy you."
Aba didn't elaborate, but emphasized: "As long as you agree, Marshal, I will answer. But if you try to change the subject, I will not answer."
Just as Xie Lanzhi was about to speak, a wave crashed over them, engulfing both of them. The force of the wave knocked them back several steps.
Bang! A gunshot rang out, striking the spot where Xie Lanzhi had just been standing. Xie Lanzhi quickly hid behind the rocks on the shore. Aba Na was still somewhat confused when a second shot hit him directly in the right arm. Aba Na's right arm went numb, blood flowed, followed by intense pain. He immediately realized someone was shooting at him.
Aba was about to lie down on the ground.
Xie Lanzhi shouted at him, "Lying on the ground is no use, quickly hide behind the rocks and don't show your face!"
Aba Na: ? ? ?
He was stunned for a moment, then subconsciously turned to the side, and his left arm went numb again, blood soaking his sleeve.
When Aba's two hands stopped responding, he immediately ran away.