"Go to the border, protect the people!"
"If Pei Changying wants the plague city, give it to him."
"The people of the plague city are ultimately his people. As long as the plague city belongs to him, even if he loses his mind and wants to kill the people of the plague city.”
“The literati and warriors in the court would stop him, as long as the plague city and the people are still there, one day, I will come back!”
"But if the Xiongnu step into the central plains, not to mention Pei Changying, even me, even this world, who could live in peace? When a country perishes, every family perishes.”
“I need to guard the country to protect the people of the world.”
Suddenly, Gu Sang remembered that the Elder Princess had told her earlier that the military strength at the border had been reduced by half.
They guessed at the time that the other half of the army might have gone back to the border ahead of time.
But Pei Changying, arrogant and haughty, would rather destroy himself than let his enemy benefit. If he hasn't subdued the plague city, he wouldn't let his soldiers return.
So, it is likely that the commander knew well the risks of leaving the border, hence decided to divide the troops.
On one hand, they could rush back in time to prevent the Xiongnu from discovering their plan.
On the other hand, keeping half of the soldiers also absolves him of insubordination.
"Elder Princess, I think we should talk to their commander about this."
"I guess the commander doesn't know about the Xiongnu massacring our people in the central plains."
"If we could reach a temporary truce, the plague city wouldn't have to worry about General Guan taking advantage of our weakness. Although I don't think General Guan is that kind of person."
Hearing this, the Elder Princess had a sudden realization and nodded:
"Sang Sang, thank goodness you reminded me, I actually forgot that the commander on the other side is General Guan!"
"I believe in General Guan's character, he would agree to temporarily make peace with us."
"But, I need to take care of this myself."
Hearing that the Elder Princess was going personally, Gu Sang nodded in agreement.
If she were in her place, she would also personally go to handle this matter to be reassured, one, to show her sincerity, and second, to convince General Guan about the matter.
What is internal strife in the face of the national righteousness?
"Alright, I will go with you, we will plan our strategy based on General Guan's response."
Regardless of whether General Guan agrees or not, they are all going to protect the country at the border.
As a ruler, who could stand to watch tens of thousands of people die under the sword, watching their homes being destroyed, killed, robbed, and burned.
Only a fool like Pei Changying would only focus on the throne!
The country is about to be broken into.
Where does the throne come from?
This time, the Elder Princess let Zhou Qichen and the female guards go to see General Guan, and the Elder Princess put on the uniform of the female guard, mingling among the women.
When they arrived at the place where the imperial army was stationed again.
The soldiers stared dumbfounded at the group, all holding long spears, unsure of what to do.
What? They're here again?
They're here again?
They are clearly enemies, but they come and go as they please.
With the same excuse, under General Guan's angry cursing and teeth grinding, Zhou Qichen led the group in a swagger into the camp.
"General Guan, I have something I want to discuss with you privately."
When the two commanders met, Zhou Qichen stated frankly.
Just as General Guan felt like berating Zhou Qichen for being lunatic, his gaze fell on a woman standing behind Zhou.
General immediately recognized who the woman was. After his pupils flashed with astonishment, he allowed the couple to enter his tent for a private conversation without showing any emotional change.
Wait, what?
Is he really insane?
Why is she here?
And so openly?
What’s going on?
Should he take them into custody or not?
While General gulped under his complex and shocking gaze, the Elder Princess removed her hat, revealing her wise and calm face.
General Guan took a gulp of cold air and questioned:
"Princess, why are you coming to meet me privately?"
"You brought so few people, aren't you afraid that at my command, your arrest will be imminent?"
"Just by capturing you both, the plague city will fall on its own!"
The Elder Princess replied calmly, each word staring at General Guan: "Last night, the Xiongnu slaughtered an entire city, and not a single civilian survived."
"What!!!" cried the General.
"What did you say?!"
Fury filled General Guan's face.
The alarming aura made Zhou Qichen alert, subtly shielding the Elder Princess behind him, prepared to protect her from any sudden outburst by the General.
The Elder Princess realized that the murderous intent on General Guan's face was not targeted at her.
Thus without a hint of panic, she sharply taunted:
"Didn't half of your army pre-emptively return to the frontier?"
"If you don't believe it, you can wait here for a few days, you may receive a secret report from your subordinates."
"However, the news from the court ordering you to withdraw your troops back to the frontier may never arrive!"
"The court has spent a lot of thought in coordinating with Miss Gu, blaming us covertly and overtly for causing the chaos."
"In the aftermath of the event, the first thing Pei Changying did was not to mobilize troops immediately or thwart the Xiongnu by gathering all the troops in the city, but to blame me and Miss Gu."
"General Guan, I expect you to know what Pei Changying means."
General Guan's face, illuminated by the flickering candlelight, alternates between fury and desolation, a mix of emotions.
However, before he could say anything, a screen appeared in front of him.
Seeing the figure appearing on the ghostly screen, General Guan's emotions were immediately drawn away.
He had never seen what the people referred to as a live broadcast, but with a figure appearing seemingly out of thin air, he inferred that this was precisely the so-called live broadcast.
Gu Sang seemed to predict what the General was thinking, said:
"This is not a live broadcast, this is a private connection, and the content of our conversation is known only to the four of us here."
After a pause to let the General process the phrase 'private connection', Gu Sang continued:
"The Elder Princess and Zhou Qichen hold respect for your character. They are willing to take such considerable risks to meet you privately, even wagering their lives in your hands."
"They trust you, believe that you can distinguish priorities."
"The Elder Princess wants to cooperate with you, not to betray the country, but to reach a temporary alliance. I urge you not to reject it hastily."
"I believe that in the face of an enemy invasion, all internal conflicts can be put on hold to resolve the external issues first."
"The Xiongnu have been slaughtering the people of our central plains, and anybody would be angered by this. I imagine even generals like you would want to go and kill them immediately."
"The court has been battling with the Xiongnu for hundreds of years, with neither side gaining an advantage – we've been at a stalemate."
"But things are different now. The Elder Princess has cannons and hand grenades. As long as we work together, we will definitely drive the Xiongnu back to where they came from."
"When that time comes, the court and the Elder Princess can break their ties and fight it out to determine the victor, what do you say?"
