The grand, magnificent city gate slowly opened, with two rows of officers lined up on either side. Whether armor or weapons, all were of the highest standard—one could well imagine how high a standing these two rows of soldiers held within the army!
Longxi City was the main battlefield of the entire western front, and naturally the ones gathered here were the great figures of the army!
Surrender wasn’t a casual process, but an extremely solemn and dignified one.
Raising the white flag was the first step; opening the city gate was the second.
The defeated nation’s commanding general had to personally lead officers of at least the rank of captain out of the city to surrender, while the victorious side likewise had to have its commanding general lead officers of captain rank or above to the foot of the wall to accept the surrender.
And today, Situ Haonan had indeed brought all the officers of captain rank and above from the Xijing army, only…
Wanyan Lie had already made it clear moments ago that he didn’t intend to surrender to Xijing, but to Da Zhou. Situ Haonan watched coldly as the two rows of officers slowly walked out from either side of Wanyan Lie, his gaze furious, his fists clenched tight!
What should he do now?
He should immediately order the horn blown in victory, should immediately command the troops to form ranks, ready to accept the surrender. But at this disadvantageous moment, he only glared furiously at Wanyan Lie, doing nothing at all!
Wanyan Lie had already made his meaning perfectly clear—if he now ordered the ranks formed, wouldn’t that truly make him the fool Wanyan Lie had painted him as? It would give Wanyan Lie yet another chance to humiliate him!
And it wasn’t just him being humiliated, but all the officers and soldiers of Xijing!
This loss of face, he couldn’t afford!
But if he didn’t prepare to accept the surrender, Wanyan Lie would surrender to Han Ziqing instead, and then, back in the Xijing royal court, how would he face the Xijing emperor? He’d face all manner of scorn and curses, and it might even implicate Yelu Qianqian in the blame!
This war—it had been agreed from the very start—wasn’t fought for Da Zhou, wasn’t fought for Jun Beiyue!
It was fought for Yelu Qianqian. How could Xijing not be the victorious nation!
Situ Haonan’s knuckles were practically about to crack from clenching so hard. At this moment, the two rows of Xiliang officers had already come to a stop, and Wanyan Lie strode forward, standing right in front of his two rows of soldiers, a look of arrogant disdain still lingering at his lips as he sized up Situ Haonan with amusement!
There were at least tens of thousands of people present, yet it was so silent one could have heard a needle drop. Everyone’s attention was fixed on Situ Haonan!
Wanyan Lie was clearly, deliberately, waiting him out once more!
The grand ceremony of surrender was about to begin. If Situ Haonan still didn’t speak, it would soon be too late for anything!
At this moment, Ziqing still hadn’t made a sound, but like everyone else, she was watching Situ Haonan. She bit down lightly on her lip—she was waiting, hoping, silently cheering Situ Haonan on in her heart!
“Look over here, Haonan, look over here, and you’ll know what to do.”
“Situ Haonan, if in your heart we’re still friends, if you’re still Jun Beiyue’s brother, then look over here—I’ll show you what to do.”
“Situ Haonan, please don’t disappoint me, don’t disappoint Beiyue, and don’t disappoint Qianqian either!”
…
Ziqing appeared calm on the surface, but inside, her heart was already churning like stormy seas.
Suddenly, Situ Haonan slowly turned his head—he was looking over, looking toward Ziqing!
That gaze was so familiar—the most familiar look Ziqing had seen since arriving at the camp to see Situ Haonan.
It wasn’t a look asking for help. It was the kind of inquiring look shared between friends, between comrades-in-arms, simply seeking advice.
That kind of look, as if he were clapping her on the shoulder, smiling and asking her, “Hey, Han Ziqing, look at that brat Wanyan Lie, isn’t he just asking for a beating? What do you say we finish him off?”
Ziqing smiled, said nothing, but gave Situ Haonan a radiant, calm smile, as if telling him, “What are you dawdling for? Just do what needs to be done!”
Seeing Ziqing smile, after all these days, Situ Haonan finally smiled too, and suddenly barked out sharply, “All officers and soldiers, heed the order—form ranks!”
The soldiers all exchanged glances, hesitant at first, but then Situ Haonan snatched the horn away and personally blew the horn of victory himself.
Amid the rousing, stirring blast of the horn, morale soared. The soldiers’ fighting spirit was ignited once more by this future son-in-law of the royal family, and they swiftly formed two ranks!
No matter how Wanyan Lie tried to make things difficult, no matter to whom Wanyan Lie intended to surrender, at least Situ Haonan had backbone, had courage, had commanding presence!
Situ Haonan donned his commanding general’s helmet, took Yelu Qianqian’s hand with one of his, and behind him more than twenty officers formed two lines, each one standing tall and imposing, radiating overwhelming presence!
Watching this, the Xiliang officers couldn’t help but feel a stir of admiration, while Wanyan Lie, for the first time, truly felt a genuine sense of defeat, one he couldn’t suppress no matter how hard he tried!
But how could he possibly accept this!
Watching Situ Haonan hold tightly to Ziqing’s hand—wait, no, to Qianqian’s hand—a flash of malice crossed his eyes!
Today, no one was going to stop him. There was absolutely no way he’d let Situ Haonan succeed!
Right before everyone’s eyes, Wanyan Lie suddenly turned, his hands closing around a flame-shaped marshal’s order, and he turned to face Ziqing!
“I, Wanyan Lie, Crown Prince of Xiliang, commanding general of the Xiliang army in this campaign, today, defeated at Longxi City, willingly surrender to Da Zhou’s Consort of Prince Yao…!”
Wanyan Lie declared each word heavily, then immediately stepped forward three paces, presenting the marshal’s order to Ziqing with both hands!
In an instant, the already silent scene grew even more deathly still—not just still, but tense, as if brewing a violent storm. Even those directly involved, those at the center of it all, grew tense along with everyone else!
At once, everyone’s gaze fixed on Ziqing, while only Situ Haonan and Yelu Qianqian exchanged a smile and continued looking toward Longxi City.
In the silence, Ziqing glanced at the Xiliang marshal’s order, and suddenly smiled, “Crown Prince Lie, there’s a saying that even in losing, one should lose with dignity. How can you not even get right who you’re losing to? Isn’t that rather beneath you?”
“Heh, my Xiliang was indeed defeated by Da Zhou, so this crown prince surrenders only to Da Zhou. Consort of Prince Yao, could it be you refuse to accept this surrender?” Wanyan Lie shot back.
If she refused to accept the surrender, the fighting would continue. Wanyan Lie simply didn’t believe Xijing could hold out, didn’t believe that once Da Zhou intervened in this war on a large scale, the Xijing emperor would still tolerate Situ Haonan!
Even in the worst case, even if he fought again and lost again, he would absolutely not surrender to Situ Haonan—how could he let Situ Haonan claim both military glory and the beautiful princess!
Who would have thought Ziqing would coldly shoot back, “Crown Prince Lie, are you certain you want to keep fighting?”
“Since the Consort of Prince Yao won’t accept the surrender, then there’s nothing for it but to fight on.” Wanyan Lie shrugged, feigning helplessness, and Ziqing simply said, “Fine!”
Wanyan Lie was overjoyed, “I knew the Consort of Prince Yao was a clever one!”
As he spoke, he immediately presented the marshal’s order to Ziqing once more, but little did he know, he’d completely misunderstood her meaning!
“Wanyan Lie, the western front is Xijing’s territory. You don’t understand the rules, but this consort certainly does. Since you want to keep fighting, this consort can only continue lending support to the very end!”
With that, Ziqing’s lips curved into a mocking smile of utter disdain, and she swung her arm down hard. Instantly—BOOM—
A thunderous explosion shook the earth, erupting from within Longxi City. One had to understand, Longxi City was Wanyan Lie’s greatest conquest—if not to preserve his strength, would he have surrendered so easily?