The candlelight flickered, and the bright gleam in Bai Qingyan’s dark eyes also wavered. After a long moment, she lifted her eyelids and said, “If that’s the case, then let Xiliang show their sincerity first!”
“Please, Your Majesty, draft an alliance treaty. You may write that after driving away Tianfeng Nation, Xiliang will submit to the Great Zhou and pay tribute. I will seal and sign it immediately.”
“Prince Yan will sign it?” The corners of Bai Qingyan’s lips curved upward.
Li Zhijie raised his eyes to look at Bai Qingyan: “Our Majesty said that as long as Great Zhou can join hands with Xiliang, everything will be entrusted to me, Li Zhijie. Xiliang… will spare no cost! Your Majesty once defeated Xiliang so thoroughly that we had no power to fight back. All of Xiliang knows of the Great Zhou’s Empress’s prowess. If we submit to Your Majesty, no one in Xiliang would refuse to yield.”
Bai Qingyan’s smile remained unchanged as she looked at Li Zhijie, walking in a half-circle around him. She stopped before the auspicious beast bronze brazier glowing red-hot with charcoal, extending her slender, pale hands like scallion stems from her wide sleeves to warm them by the fire. Gazing at the faint lantern light visible under the corridors beyond the partition screens, she asked: “Does Xiliang have any spies or secret agents in Great Zhou?”
Li Zhijie’s fists clenched tightly as he knelt on both knees, pressing his forehead firmly to the ground. In a muffled voice, he said: “Your Majesty, Xiliang has never had any spies or secret agents in Great Zhou. Please, Your Majesty, see clearly!”
Li Zhijie’s dishonesty showed he still held expectations for that hidden chess piece, Guan Zhangning—meaning he was absolutely not sincere in his willingness to submit.
Bai Qingyan’s eyes narrowed. Guan Zhangning had been infiltrating the Bai family army for quite some time, and both Li Zhijie and Yun Poxing were confidential ministers of the Great Zhou’s Empress. If Li Zhijie claimed to know nothing, Bai Qingyan would never believe it.
It seemed… Xiliang also had their calculations.
Perhaps Xiliang’s Empress and Li Zhijie wanted to first use the pretense of submission to trick Great Zhou into action, utilizing Great Zhou to drive Tianfeng Nation out of Xiliang and stabilize Li Tianjiao’s throne. Whether they could truly submit to the Great Zhou in the end would depend on how Xiliang ultimately used their hidden chess piece—the one using the false name Guan Zhangning, planted in the Bai family army for years.
There had once been Chancellor Qin’s Zhang Yi, who fooled King Huai of Chu with six hundred li of territory. How much more so with Li Zhijie, who was originally Xiliang royalty—what did personal reputation matter for Xiliang’s sake?
But King Huai of Chu was fooled by Zhang Yi because he believed Chu was strong and the Qin people wouldn’t dare oppose them, and also because of greed, wanting to gain the six hundred li of Shangyu territory from the fierce Qin people without bloodshed. Bai Qingyan dared not be so arrogant as to believe that the Xiliang people, as Li Zhijie claimed, had truly been beaten into willing submission by her in the Nanjiang campaign.
However, winter was indeed the best time to oppose the elephant army—this was true.
Xiliang harbored thoughts of using Great Zhou, but couldn’t Great Zhou also use Xiliang?
The Huoyun Army was, after all, trained using the methods of their Bai family army’s Huying Battalion. Having the Huoyun Army serve the Great Zhou was only natural.
She spoke with clear articulation: “Rise. Have Weizhong take you to see Master Liu—Liu Rushi. Discuss properly how this alliance should be established.”
Bai Qingyan didn’t expose Guan Zhangning, letting Xiliang believe they hadn’t been discovered yet. This way, Guan Zhangning could be used by Great Zhou.
Hearing these words, Li Zhijie closed his aching, swollen eyes, feeling a great weight lifted from his shoulders. He had finally achieved the purpose of this trip to Pingyang City.
After kowtowing to Bai Qingyan, Li Zhijie stood and looked at the woman before him with calm, restrained features. When he first met Bai Qingyan, he never imagined that one day… he would kneel before her like this. This world… truly couldn’t be predicted in how it might change.
“Weizhong!” Bai Qingyan called out.
Weizhong entered at her call, and Bai Qingyan explained her intentions to him, having Weizhong take Li Zhijie to see Liu Rushi.
Only after Weizhong had taken Li Zhijie away did Bai Qingyu approach Bai Qingyan’s side, saying in a low voice: “If elder sister decides to cooperate with the Xiliang people, I’m afraid you’ll need to find a way to control them.”
“I’m afraid the Xiliang people think… they have someone controlling our Bai family army!” Bai Qingyan lifted the hem of her skirt and stepped across the threshold together with Bai Qingyu.
Chun Zhi and the others kept a distance of ten paces from Bai Qingyan and Bai Qingyu, not disturbing the siblings’ conversation.
“I haven’t had time to tell you yet—General Guan Zhangning under Fifth Uncle’s command has been found, but… Guan Zhangning is a hidden chess piece that the Xiliang Yun family planted in our Bai family army many years ago. His original name should be Yun Lan.” Bai Qingyan lowered her voice to speak with Bai Qingyu. “Qing Zhu has already investigated this matter in Xiliang. Though we can’t be completely certain, we’re ninety percent sure…”
Bai Qingyu’s steps halted as he stood under the red lanterns of the long corridor, looking at Bai Qingyan and asking in a low voice: “Was the Nanjiang campaign related to Guan Zhangning?”
Seeing Bai Qingyu’s tightly clenched fists and his murderous aura, her heart ached. She walked to Bai Qingyu’s side and gently grasped her brother’s clenched hand.
Regardless of whether it’s related to this Xiliang Yun Lan, we must still avenge the grievances between our Bai family and Yun Poxing! Ayu, the Nanjiang campaign is over. The Bai family’s tragic fate wasn’t solely due to one or two traitors in the Bai family army, but also because of Emperor Jin’s intentions, the storms in Jin’s court, Grandfather’s unreserved loyalty, his wholehearted planning for Jin’s future, and enemy nations’ fear of the Bai family army!”
“Now, keeping Guan Zhangning alive is more valuable than having him dead. Spies and hidden chess pieces… are most useful to us when they haven’t realized they’ve been discovered!” She gently opened Bai Qingyu’s clenched fist, lowering her eyes as she said, “Moreover… our Bai family army never doubted their comrades whom they trusted to guard their backs. This way, Guan Zhangning will be even more defenseless and better used by us.”
Bai Qingyu nodded: “I understand elder sister’s meaning.”
“Now that Great Zhou is newly established, what we can do… is ensure that Great Zhou’s court doesn’t produce another Bai family!” Bai Qingyan smiled at her brother, the corners of her lips curving upward.
The suffering the Bai family once endured, Great Zhou’s court could not let loyal ministers of Great Zhou bear again.
The difficulties the Bai family once faced, the Great Zhou’s court could not let the soldiers who shed their blood for the nation experience again.
Bai Qingyu’s eyes reddened slightly as he nodded. If it were his elder sister… he believed that his elder sister would never let the Bai family’s tragedy play out again among Great Zhou’s court officials. He trusted even more that his elder sister could maintain absolute trust in court officials, which was why his elder sister dared to follow what was described in the bamboo slips left by Empress Ji, actively reducing the emperor’s power and delegating authority to officials.
In all the world, aside from his elder sister as emperor, there probably wasn’t another emperor with such spirit and courage, not even Empress Ji’s descendants.
Bai Jinzhi, covered in wind and snow, had a neck wrapped with thin cotton cloth slightly stained with blood. Her face bore injuries, and she clutched her arm as she ran frantically toward the inner courtyard. Seeing Bai Qingyan and Bai Qingyu standing under the red lanterns of the long corridor from afar, Bai Jinzhi leaped from the corridor, braving the wind and snow as she rushed toward them…