Situ Haonan was, in truth, someone even more single-minded, more stubborn, more one-track-minded than Yelu Qianqian herself!
In this moment, he was immersed in the joy of victory, watching his soldiers cheer and celebrate—over half a year of hard effort had finally paid off, after all!
Not only had he cleared his own name of the accusation of “eloping with the princess and sparking a war,” he had also won recognition from everyone in Xijing, from military officers to civil officials alike!
This war, he had personally led as commanding general. Before long, when he returned in triumph to Akbachu, he would surely be celebrated by the entire nation!
Standing in his stirrups, Situ Haonan couldn’t help waving the victory banner with great force, utterly lost in the joy of triumph!
But just at that moment, someone pulled him back to reality.
“Haonan, are we waiting for Han Ziqing to arrive before accepting the surrender?” General Gudu asked in a low voice.
Whether intentional or not, those three words—Han Ziqing—struck Situ Haonan like a sudden blow, instantly jolting him out of his victorious daze!
He looked down at General Gudu, momentarily stunned, but quickly recovered. Without a word, he slowly settled back into his saddle and turned to gaze at the great gates of Longxi City.
The white flag fluttered—the signal of the enemy ceasing hostilities and surrendering.
Regarding surrender, Longyuan had established customs. Once the opposing side raised a white flag, it signified surrender, and surrender required the commanding general to personally hand over his command token.
If Situ Haonan nodded to accept the surrender, then Wanyan Lie would have to personally, and alone, leave the city and present the command token with both hands, as a sign of conceding defeat.
But if Situ Haonan refused to accept the surrender, he need only sound the horn of attack, and the enemy would understand—they would need to prepare to fight to the death.
Who wouldn’t want to fight to the very end, to expand their territory and power to the fullest?
But whether to accept surrender or not had to be weighed against many factors.
Given the current situation, whether from Da Zhou’s perspective or Xijing’s, accepting Xiliang’s surrender was clearly the wisest course.
Yet Situ Haonan, gazing at that fluttering white flag, showed no reaction at all.
Seeing this, General Dugu didn’t dare speak further for the moment.
Meanwhile, inside Longxi City, Wanyan Lie stood behind the general who had raised the white flag, clad in bronze-colored armor, his short hair cropped handsomely and neatly. Over a year of campaigning had settled a certain masculine ruggedness onto his young, handsome face.
He looked coldly at the general waving the white flag. Though his expression showed displeasure, there was no trace of the desperation or disgrace of a defeated man about him.
So what if he’d lost!
So what if he was surrendering!
At least, he, Wanyan Lie, hadn’t lost to Xijing’s army—he’d lost to the husband-and-wife pair of Jun Beiyue and Han Ziqing.
At least, not a single inch of Xiliang’s territory had ever been invaded by Xijing’s troops!
A real man had to be able to afford to lose, in order to one day be able to afford to win!
There would always be another day to start over. At the very least, he knew his true enemy wasn’t Xijing—it was Da Zhou, it was the husband-and-wife pair of Jun Beiyue and Han Ziqing.
Wanyan Lie was a man who dared to act, and who could afford to lose.
He accepted it with calm and openness. As a defeated man, he felt no shame.
He strode forward, snatched the white flag from the general’s hand, and raised it himself, shouting down at Situ Haonan below the walls, “If you have the guts, give me a straight answer!”
But down below the city, Situ Haonan’s face remained dark and unreadable, giving no response at all!
Wanyan Lie looked carefully and, seeing no sign of Han Ziqing, immediately lowered the white flag, deliberately provoking him. “So the real decision-maker isn’t even here! Since you can’t make up your mind, we’ll just wait until Han Ziqing arrives to negotiate with this crown prince!”
With that, he planted the white flag firmly and ordered everyone to retreat from the gate!
Wanyan Lie’s words drove a wedge not only between Da Zhou and Xijing, but also between Situ Haonan and Han Ziqing!
“Heh, seems like he only acknowledges Han Ziqing. She really is something, isn’t she—managing to get past the northern desert…”
General Gudu muttered under his breath, a cold smile playing on his lips.
For Ziqing to pass through the northern desert, she’d have to go through Nangong Castle’s territory first—those words, deliberately said loud enough for Situ Haonan to hear.
Situ Haonan’s expression shifted again and again, but he still said nothing at all, only staring coldly at the white flag.
“Haonan, once we accept the surrender, everything becomes settled. If you’re planning to…”
General Dugu didn’t finish the thought outright, pausing when Situ Haonan still gave no reaction, then pressed further, “You’ll need to strike first if you want the advantage—this matter can’t wait much longer!”
Left with no choice, having said as much as he had, Situ Haonan still said nothing—but his silence was no small thing, for General Dugu could clearly see the anger in him.
“Haonan, if you need anything… I will do everything in my power to help you!”
“Whatever the lord of Nangong Castle did, he was still your grandfather, still your family. Whatever reason Han Ziqing might have had, at the very least, she should have consulted you first! The fact that she acted so brazenly shows she never took you seriously at all! And even if she didn’t understand the implications, surely Jun Beiyue should have at least informed you! I suspect this whole thing was Jun Beiyue’s doing—taking advantage of your trust in him!”
“Haonan, in my view, we don’t need to wait any longer. Let’s use this opportunity—I’m certain she’ll arrive within the next day or two. Let’s plan together how to handle this quietly, without anyone knowing…”
…
No matter how General Dugu tried to persuade or provoke him, Situ Haonan remained unmoved, showing no reaction whatsoever, his face dark and cold from start to finish.
But he didn’t stop General Dugu from continuing to speak either!
No reaction at all was the most frightening thing of all—because no one could tell what he was really thinking, no one could predict what he might do.
Finally, as General Dugu’s mouth grew dry from talking, Situ Haonan spoke flatly. “Hold the troops. We wait for the Princess Consort of Yao to arrive.”
“My lord consort!” General Dugu suddenly changed his form of address, his tone earnest and weighty.
Situ Haonan paused slightly, and General Dugu pressed on, “My lord consort, you must think of Xijing, think of yourself, think of the princess’s future! Once Han Ziqing arrives, it will be too late for anything!”
Situ Haonan glanced at him but still showed no reaction, turning his horse’s head and heading back to camp.
General Dugu had no choice but to follow closely behind, continuing to urge him the whole way. At least Situ Haonan didn’t seem to mind his persuading, so he kept talking, hoping to get him to finally speak his mind.
But who could have expected—this wait would stretch on for a full two days. On the matter of the feud with Nangong Castle, Situ Haonan said not a single word, leaving even General Dugu unable to guess his thoughts.
What was even more unexpected was that in those two full days—enough time to circle the city three times at a brisk pace—Han Ziqing never once appeared.
What was going on?
Hadn’t the letter clearly stated they would meet outside Longxi City to accept Wanyan Lie’s surrender together?
Where was Han Ziqing?
Not only did she not show up, she hadn’t even sent word!
Could something have happened to her? But what could possibly happen here? Wanyan Lie had already surrendered, the entire western front had been secured, and the various battlefronts had all gone quiet.
“Haonan, why don’t we send someone to look for her—we can’t let her slip away!” General Dugu reminded him worriedly.
“Slip away?” Situ Haonan suddenly spoke. “Why would she run? She’s always been bold—what would she have to fear? If she were afraid, she wouldn’t have killed my grandfather without so much as a word to me in the first place!”
Situ Haonan nearly ground the words out through clenched teeth, saying coldly, “We wait. I refuse to believe she won’t come.”