CHAPTER 1063: CHAPTER 587: PEACE NEGOTIATIONS

Even the Prince Chen of Marine Road has a certain chance, but considering that Prince Chen is right next to Prince Jing’s army, Prince Jing would almost certainly not allow Prince Chen to negotiate peace.

"What does Your Majesty think?" Zhao Douan asked.

Xu Zhenguan remained silent for a moment, then said coldly, "The crime of treason is unforgivable. But it is feasible to negotiate peace to buy time."

Zhao Douan understood.

The Empress of today is no longer kind-hearted; she has made up her mind and will not spare the enemy.

However... this doesn’t mean negotiations are off the table. If an advantage can be gained at the negotiation table and peaceably have Xiping and Iron Pass return to peace.

Then next year’s decisive battle with Prince Jing will undoubtedly have a greater chance of victory.

At worst, they can slowly settle accounts with the two rebel kings later.

On the contrary, resolutely rejecting negotiations would only push the Princes of Hejian and Yanshan completely to Prince Jing’s side, which would be unwise.

"Your Majesty is wise, but you must prevent the other side from making unreasonable demands. The court cannot show weakness at this time, or the other side will think the court is easy to bully and gain the upper hand." Zhao Douan said calmly.

Xu Zhenguan glanced at him, "Are you teaching me how to do things?"

Zhao Douan chuckled, "Which kind of thing?"

Xu Zhenguan blushed and said annoyedly, "It seems your martial arts training isn’t thorough enough."

Zhao Douan immediately raised his hands in surrender, admitting defeat.

The two had a moment of banter, lightening the heavy mood.

Zhao Douan said with a smile, "It will still take a while to stabilize Jingchuan City on that side; during this time, I can stay in the Capital and focus on cultivation. I might even catch this wave of truce... provided they actually send someone."

After hesitating for a moment, he continued, "Once Jingchuan City is stable, I’m prepared to go to the Eastern Front to join Xue Shence, Mo Chou, and the others to deal with Prince Jing and Prince Chen."

Xu Zhenguan watched him and suddenly sighed lightly, "There’s no need for you to shoulder everything. You can hold the Western Front and let Xue Shence lead the attack..."

Zhao Douan shook his head and said calmly, "This is not just a state affair but also a personal vendetta."

To count it up, since Zhao Douan came to this world and accidentally eradicated the spies of the Prince Jing Mansion, he has already been at odds with Prince Jing.

Afterwards, in the battle at Hu Ting, he was assassinated and faced great danger.

During the Jianning Prefecture trip, he was cursed to be killed by someone sent by Prince Jing, almost losing his life.

In the Sealing battle, he and the Empress were hunted relentlessly, which goes without saying.

In Zhao Douan’s little blacklist book, Prince Jing ranks very high, much more important than Xu Jingtang.

Additionally, what he didn’t mention is that he has planted a mole beside Prince Jing.

Princess Consort Lu Yan’er... this secret cannot be leaked, and even Xue Shence with his letters would find it difficult to mobilize her.

Therefore, Zhao Douan must go personally to resolve this vendetta and eliminate the Jiang father and son duo, this pair of enemies.

As for the Qingshan faction... Hmm, Wu Xiankui is untenable for now, but Duan Shuiliu, who was taken in by Qingshan, is also on his must-kill list.

What’s more, he also needs to bring back the Bodhisattva... not just to heal Lang Shiba’s wounds, but Zhao Douan understands that the faith at the Buddhist temples has already blossomed across the Great Yu dynasty over hundreds of years.

The court can eliminate monks, but it can’t destroy faith.

So, if he can support Bodhi, take in the remnants of the Divine Dragon Temple, and seize the secrets of the old monk Xuan Yin, it would undoubtedly be a good plan.

However, none of this can be rushed; it needs more time, possibly until after this winter, then southward next year.

"Since you have made up your mind, follow your heart to do what you need to do." Xu Zhenguan looked gently at the young man sitting on the ground and said softly.

Amid the cold wind, a fragment of snowflakes danced in the sunlight.

...

...

Xiping Road, the Hejian Prince’s residence.

That day, the news came that Xu Jingtang had died, having gathered a group of martial experts and exchanged moves with Duke Tang. After learning the news, Prince Hejian’s face turned pale as he sat quietly indoors for a long time.

Afterward, he gathered his close aides for a meeting.

Then, the princely heir, who was reading in the manor, was summoned.

The Hejian princely heir was ill since childhood, rather fat, and struggled while walking, so he was not sent to the army.

His appearance seemed simple and foolish; if struck suddenly, he seemed a bit unintelligent.

In fact, he wasn’t very clever, which is why his father, Prince Hejian, did not favor him, but because he was the eldest son, he held the title of "Princely Heir."

"This time, you will follow Mr. Feng into the Capital for the negotiations; everything will be according to Mr. Feng’s judgment, understood?"

Prince Hejian sternly eyed his son, who stood obediently with a silly smile inside the room.

Evidently, the princely heir was just a token of representation for Prince Hejian; the true person in charge was someone else.

"Understood, Father. I...I will make sure everything is done right!" The foolish princely heir thumped his chest loudly.

Beside him, Mr. Feng bowed and said, "Rest assured, Your Highness."

Prince Hejian glanced at his foolish son, his eyelids twitching, and did not bother with him, standing to bow towards Mr. Feng: "This negotiation concerns the safety of the entire princely residence, so it rests entirely on your shoulders, sir."

After a moment.

Mr. Feng and the idiotic princely heir walked out, returning to the manor.

Just stepping into the manor, the chief aide of the Hejian Prince, a respected figure and long-time friend of Prince Hejian, suddenly cupped his hands and said, "Young Master, what do you think of this negotiation..."

Where was there any semblance of stupidity on the face of the fat princely heir?

His eyes were calm, and he smiled faintly, "Let’s wait until we’re in the Capital. Heh, I believe the Yanshan Prince will not sit still either, then... It’s a pity that Zhao Douan isn’t in the Capital, otherwise I’d really like to see how capable this person is."

...

Iron Pass Road, inside the Yanshan King’s residence.

"Father wants this Commandery Princess to negotiate?"

Within the austere royal mansion, a woman wearing a fur cloak, riding a giant white wolf, and holding a purple whip in her hand froze for a moment, looking at the messenger guard.

"Yes, the Prince wants you to go over."

The fierce-looking Bahu County Princess, with quite beautiful features yet very thin lips and a powerful aura, coldly smiled, snapping the whip in her hand, striking a servant who made a mistake to the point of bleeding and crying on the ground. She coldly smiled, "Good, this Commandery Princess would like to see what kind of pretty boy Zhao Douan is and whether he’s fun to play with."

The guard reminded, "Zhao Douan is not in the Capital."

The Bahu County Princess was disappointed: "Is that so."

Then she laughed, revealing a mouthful of cold white teeth, "What a pity, I wanted to taste what kind of man the Empress uses."