The young Prince Liu Yi was at a loss for words. He feared precisely this, which was why he had come to negotiate peace.

Even if in the end they couldn’t be stopped and the two sides would eventually fight, it shouldn’t be tonight, and preferably not tomorrow either. They should wait until their main army had rested sufficiently before engaging.

But would Zhao Hanzhang listen to him?

Zhao Hanzhang turned to ask Fan Ying, who was stoking the fire, “What time is it now?”

Fan Ying said, “The first quarter of the you hour.”

Six fifteen in the evening.

Zhao Hanzhang said to the young prince, “In another two hours and a quarter, but to transmit the message to the ambush forces – even if I have special communication methods, it still takes time. So the young prince still has one hour to consider.”

Liu Yi’s eyes widened.

His guards were also shocked, standing up one after another, hands on their sword hilts.

They hadn’t expected Zhao Hanzhang really planned to night attack Pingyang City tonight. They could follow the young prince into the enemy camp, could die here, but absolutely could not remain idle after obtaining such important intelligence.

The captain of the guards looked at Liu Yi, wanting to rush out and report back, but taking the young prince along, they definitely couldn’t get out.

In the darkness, a dull and orderly sound rang out. Liu Yi looked up and only then realized they were completely surrounded by a large army.

The captain of the guards, gripping his sword hilt, saw the veins on his hand bulge and his face pale slightly.

Zhao Hanzhang smiled faintly and waved at the surrounding army. They all sat down in unison with a swoosh, watching them from afar.

Liu Yi and the captain of the guards were speechless.

“No need to worry – they’re only guarding against your guards’ violent escape,” Zhao Hanzhang said with a smile as she picked up two pieces of roasted meat for him. “You are guests, and we will only treat you well, not harm you.”

Liu Yi slowly sat down, looking at the meat on his plate with no appetite at all.

He put down the white flour steamed bun he’d been eating and asked, “What would it take for Commissioner Zhao to be willing to negotiate peace with me?”

Zhao Hanzhang said, “That depends on what the young prince can offer me?”

Liu Yi smiled bitterly, “I am merely a prince. Though I’ve been enfeoffed as Prince of Beihai, because I’m still young, I have neither military authority nor participation in government. What you want, I fear I cannot provide.”

Being so frank, Zhao Hanzhang frankly asked, “Then how did the young prince dare to come negotiate peace with me?”

Seeing that Zhao Hanzhang wasn’t angry but simply curious, he said, “A reckless act of courage. My father has been unable to sleep at night due to your northern attack. The common people in Pingyang City are fearful and anxious. I don’t have my eldest brother the Crown Prince’s foresight to solve problems for the Han Kingdom, nor do I have my fourth brother’s bravery to establish meritorious service. I only wanted to do my filial duty and ease my father’s burden somewhat.”

Zhao Hanzhang couldn’t help but examine him carefully, finding his expression truly sincere. She couldn’t help but sigh, “If your father knew this is how you fulfill your filial duty, he’d probably be angered to death.”

She sincerely suggested, “Young prince, in the future, if you lack the ability and courage to turn the tide, it’s better not to put yourself in danger. Otherwise, if your body is harmed, your parents will truly worry.”

Liu Yi looked at her intently with bright eyes and requested, “Commissioner Zhao is clearly also a filial person. Please, for the sake of my sincere intentions, grant me this favor?”

Zhao Hanzhang fell into thought.

Liu Yi looked at her with hopeful eyes.

Zhao Hanzhang seemed to be softened by his gaze and sighed, “I can consider it.”

Liu Yi immediately said, “If Commissioner Zhao is willing to negotiate peace, I cannot give you anything now, but I owe you a favor. In the future, when I have the ability, as long as it doesn’t harm the interests of my Han Kingdom, within what I can do, I will certainly repay you.”

Zhao Hanzhang pondered for a moment, then smiled at him, “The Prince of Beihai is truly filial. Hanzhang admires this. Just for your filial piety, what does it matter if I give you some ground?”

Liu Yi was overjoyed, “Truly?”

Zhao Hanzhang nodded and, in front of him, turned to Fan Ying and said, “Pass the message to the vanguard. Have them pull back twenty li. We won’t make a move tonight.”

Fan Ying also very seriously acknowledged this and stood up to withdraw.

Liu Yi was delighted. His backside shifted closer to Zhao Hanzhang, and he himself picked up the wine jar to fill her cup. Raising his wine bowl, he said, “From now on, Commissioner Zhao is my friend Liu Yi.”

Zhao Hanzhang clinked bowls with him and laughed heartily, “Friends!”

Fu Tinghan, sitting to the side, was speechless.

Ji Yuan withdrew his gaze, picked up the fire tongs to stoke the wood. The fire popped, and the flames roasting the lamb leg immediately blazed red again.

Wang Siniang, who had run over to watch the excitement, was dumbfounded. She was the logistics officer – yesterday and today she hadn’t prepared dry rations. The number and timing of camp cooking fires were all according to regulations, with nothing unusual. So when had the night attack troops departed?

Or perhaps…

She stared at Zhao Hanzhang’s face.

Fan Ying went out for a stroll and came back. Seeing her standing dazed to the side, she approached and said, “Commissary Wang, why not sit down and warm yourself by the fire?”

Wang Siniang turned to glance at her, then silently stepped forward to find an empty spot and knelt down. She watched as Zhao Hanzhang and Liu Yi became close friends after three bowls of wine.

Zhao Hanzhang said, “The people I, Zhao Hanzhang, admire most in this life are filial sons and daughters. If people in this world don’t even have filial piety toward their parents, what moral character can we expect them to have?”

The Xiongnu actually followed the principle of might makes right. Because of power and position, sons killing fathers and younger brothers killing elder brothers was entirely normal. But Liu Yi, having received Han governance education from childhood, felt that Zhao Hanzhang was right. With the expression of having met a kindred spirit, he looked at her, “Being able to meet Commissioner Zhao is the greatest fortune of Yi’s three lifetimes.”

This trip to the Zhao family army camp was not in vain!

Zhao Hanzhang clinked bowls with him and drained the wine in one gulp. Only then did she gently rotate her bowl and say, “Seventh Prince, it’s not that I’m unwilling to negotiate peace with you, but circumstances force my hand. Otherwise, who would want to fight a war?”

She said wistfully, “Now that the world is in great chaos and the people’s livelihood is in decline, even Luoyang still lies in ruins. I too wish to settle down and let the common people properly rest and recuperate.”

Liu Yi asked, “Then why do you attack us?”

Zhao Hanzhang said, “Liu Kun of Jinyang is a close friend of mine. That place is the last breathing space for the Han people of Bing Province. Your Han Kingdom attacks Jinyang, so I had no choice but to besiege Wei to rescue Zhao.”

The common people of the Han Kingdom were also called Han people, but they all knew that the Han people Zhao Hanzhang spoke of didn’t mean Han people in the sense of the Han state. There, Han people mostly referred to the Xiongnu and other non-Han peoples.

Han people in Xiongnu territory had very low status, almost equivalent to slaves.

Liu Yi felt somewhat ashamed and said, “My father wanted to treat both non-Han peoples and Han people equally. There are also many Han ministers in the court, but Grand Tutor and the others don’t like Han ministers and exclude them.”

He said, “Especially after Wang Mi’s rebellion, Grand Tutor and the others became even more wary and hostile toward Han ministers. Previously, Han ministers in the court could still participate in discussions, but now they’re nowhere to be seen.”

Zhao Hanzhang sighed along with him, “Wang Mi is inherently a fickle and unprincipled petty man. We Han people also greatly despise him. How can your ministers deny all Han people based on one person’s character? Look back at history – how many virtuous Han people have there been?”

Liu Yi nodded repeatedly, “Father says the same thing, but they’re stubborn and won’t listen. However, I think this is only temporary and will certainly improve in the future.”

He said, “Regarding the commanderies and counties you captured in this campaign, my father has no intention of holding you accountable. I think from now on, why don’t we divide and rule by boundaries, not invading each other – how about that?”