Frost for a Thousand Years

Chapter 191 I'll only go if you beg me to.

When the King of Wu was summoned by the emperor, it was on the pretext of 'discussing military affairs,' so he was very excited on the way.

After all, this means that his father was really grooming him to be his successor.

Of course, he had already learned his lesson and was unlikely to repeat the same mistake.

Be steady, be steady, you absolutely must be steady!
And so, he went to the emperor's bedroom.

At this moment, His Majesty was not on the bed, but on the dragon throne in front of his desk.

He seemed somewhat tired.

"My son, please see your father."

After the King of Wu entered, he prostrated himself in respect.

"Zisheng, sit down," the emperor said gently.

"Yes, Father."

King Wu thus sat down opposite the emperor as arranged.

However, his actions were very humble, befitting someone in a subordinate position, and he could not possibly act like a lord.

"Show the King of Wu the military report," the emperor said.

At this point, Chen Bao presented both military reports to the King of Wu.

He looked at it very seriously, and as he looked, he began to get angry: "This is outrageous!"

After he finished speaking, he realized that he had been somewhat shouting, so he looked up and was about to apologize to the emperor when the emperor just smiled and held out his hand: "Read it, read it first and then we'll talk."

What did the King of Wu have that the King of Jin had more of?
reality.

At this time, the Prince of Jin dared not reveal himself so directly.

Of course, keeping a low profile doesn't prove anything.

Once the Prince of Jin becomes emperor, he will become more realistic and will occasionally fly into a rage.

But the emperor also has the right to favor his more sincere son.

After reading it, King Wu raised his head and, facing his father, said excitedly, "Father, Kang Xun is courting death! We must send troops!"

"Yes, that's what I think too." The emperor nodded. "If an alliance is really formed, he will definitely be beaten."

"But my son feels there's something fishy about this..." King Wu hesitated.

"Well, you said."

“Even if Kangxun wanted to agree to the alliance, he wouldn’t have gone so far as to kill our envoy halfway through the journey, making such a heartless move,” the King of Wu reasoned. “Father, do you think it’s possible that Ji Yuan sent someone to do it?”

Well, that's pretty quick.

“Even so, the blame must be placed on Conson,” the Emperor said.

"That's what I think too," King Wu said after brainstorming. "The killing of the prefect is indeed a big deal. But the most important thing is the alliance between Yan and Qi. If they form an alliance and put the vast majority of their troops in the south, we will be under great pressure."

"Then what should we do?" the emperor asked seriously.

"We must send troops to intimidate them..." King Wu thought for a moment and then said, "We must fight, or at least make a show of fighting."

"We also have a hostage here. Can we use the hostage to exchange for peace with Northern Yan?" the emperor asked.

"Although it's possible, but..."

"It's nothing, just say it."

“Your Majesty, I believe this would only boost the enemy’s morale and diminish our own. If we give Kangxun whatever he wants, we will never be able to subdue him. Besides, this man is fickle and cannot be easily trusted,” King Wu said firmly.

These words truly came from the bottom of my heart.

The emperor saw through it, and the King of Wu was also filled with resentment.

He was also caught up in his emotions.

At the same time, they are quite responsible.

Advocating for war entails significant responsibility.

"Yes, I agree to go to war," the emperor echoed.

He would eventually have to hand over his empire to his son, and at this point, he needed to let him make the decision.

Of course, he has to bear the consequences of winning or losing on his own.

“Father, even so…” King Wu continued, “War should be a deterrent, not an end in itself. Besides, this person may not have been killed by someone from Yan. We can send a final envoy to warn them before the war begins.”

King Wu was furious that Northern Yan, which had submitted to Dayu, dared to form an alliance with Ji Yuan.

But after calming down a bit, I realized that we really couldn't fight blindly.

If we win, everything will be fine.

But what if we lose peace?
At times like this, a draw is a loss.

Ping means that even if Brother Yu gets angry, it's just a momentary outburst; he lacks the real ability to punish Northern Yan.

This further demonstrates that the Northern Defense Line constructed by the Qi-Yan Alliance is beyond the reach of the Great Yu.

One must be confident and have the belief in victory when fighting a war, but as a politician, one must consider the consequences of losing or drawing a battle.

"Who is qualified to be sent on this mission?" the emperor asked.

"..." King Wu frowned, thinking for a long time, then slowly raised his head and looked at his father. "Father, this person must be both wise and brave, and extremely tough. There are quite a few such people. But I can only think of one."

"Who?"

"Song Shi'an".

The King of Wu had to admit that only Song Shi'an could have a chance to resolve this matter.

Sending someone on a diplomatic mission is a way of showing off one's skills.

Tell Northern Yan not to even think about clinging to Qi; Qi was also a defeated foe of ours.

Praising Song Shi'an is naturally less effective than having Song Shi'an himself do it.

"Is that what you think?" the emperor asked.

"This matter is too big; perhaps only Song Shi'an can change the current situation," King Wu said hesitantly. "But this trip is somewhat dangerous."

"Song Shi'an is your man, it's entirely up to you to decide," the emperor said earnestly.

After some hesitation, the King of Wu said, "Song Shi'an can go; there is no better candidate than him."

The emperor recognized some of the King of Wu's strengths.

That is, no matter how much we cherish Song Shi'an, we should still treat him as a subject. Making him work for us is the first priority.

"Zisheng, you can discuss this matter with him privately."

But this strength can only reside deep within. If revealed, it becomes a weakness. Looking into the King of Wu's eyes, the Emperor reminded him, "But you must show that you are unwilling to let him take such a risk."

.........

"No way, absolutely impossible."

In the courtyard of the Prince of Zhongshan's mansion, the two stood together on the long corridor. When Song Shi'an brought up the matter with Wei Wusheng, Wei Wusheng waved his hand and said, "I cannot agree to the mission to Northern Yan. Don't say anything more."

Why are you so touched?

Xiao Wei, you really are.

"Your Highness, please listen to me," Song Shi'an said, standing beside him. "I have some methods that can absolutely guarantee safety."

“I know you have a way, but once Yan and Qi form an alliance, then they will be allies.”

Wei Wusheng looked at him and said very seriously, "Right now, the person Qi fears most is you, and they wish you were dead. Northern Yan also fears someone who can make Great Yu incredibly powerful. Now that the alliance is confirmed, if they are determined to eliminate each other's greatest threat, do you have a chance to survive?"

Xiao Wei's angle is truly novel and powerful.

"But we have leverage."

“Unless we can outbid Ji Yuan’s son, we cannot break their alliance,” Wei Wusheng said confidently.

"How is Kangxun's older brother?" Song Shi'an asked.

“Of course that’s possible, but His Majesty can’t really hand over the hostage. If he does, he’ll really have no bargaining chips left,” Wei Wusheng said.

“These are my conditions for this mission,” Song Shi’an said.

"You want to send the hostage to the Yan state right now?" Xiao Wei asked, puzzled.

“No,” Song Shi’an denied. “I want to take the hostage with me, but I won’t send him to the State of Yan.”

"Then where will you take it?"

"Nanshuo Prefecture".

After saying those three words, Wei Wusheng was stunned and stared at Song Shi'an in astonishment.

This person is seeking personal gain.

They want to further strengthen their Northern Liang.

Placing this secret weapon in Nanshuo County is tantamount to strangling the throat of Northern Yan.

This further increased the amount of things they had in their hands.

"Moreover, the reason is perfectly justified," Song Shi'an said. "Placing it in Beiliang is precisely to constantly deter Kang Xun and prevent him from invading the south."

"Wouldn't that make it obvious?" Wei Wusheng asked.

“Your Highness and I have never had such thoughts,” Song Shi’an said. “But I feel that we are always being suspected. But does being suspected mean we shouldn’t tell the truth or do the right thing?”

Wei Wusheng looked at Song Shi'an with a somewhat subtle expression, wondering why he was being so hypocritical.

Does the Zhongshan King's faction actually exist? Why are they still avoiding the question?
“The purpose is correct, the process is correct, and the result is correct,” Song Shi’an said. “That is correct. There is no obvious truth to it, only the unity of knowledge and action.”

We don't know what Cao Cao was thinking.

Does he only want to be the General Who Conquers the West, or does he want to become the successor of the Great Wei?

But Cao Cao must have held a belief that he himself adhered to at some point in his life—I only want to be the General Who Conquers the West.

I only think of good things, and I only do good things.

In the end, he became a powerful minister. What could be done?
There's nothing we can do about it.

“In that case, wouldn’t it be enough for me to go?” Wei Wusheng said.

"Wouldn't His Highness then become a hostage?"

"..." Wei Wusheng was speechless for a moment.

"Your Highness, going is worthwhile, and the risks are not great."

“But I don’t think we should take any risks,” Wei Wusheng said, still harboring resentment. “Before, we had nothing, so we had to gamble. Now, we don’t need to do that anymore.”

Xiao Wei has regained consciousness.

“Your Highness is right.” Song Shi’an felt gratified, but still reminded him, “However, we must not lose our fighting spirit.”

“Then let’s fight,” Wei Wusheng said.

“We are not in a position to decide whether or not to fight,” Song Shi’an said, looking into Wei Wusheng’s eyes. “But behind me is Your Highness. If anything happens to me in Northern Yan, or if I am forced to stay, please lead your troops to pacify Liaodong.”

Song Shi'an said he was going to take a risk, but Xiao Wei definitely wouldn't agree.

But if you bring Xiao Wei in and say, "You'll protect my safety," he'll agree.

Clenching his fists, Wei Wusheng was still conflicted: "His Majesty hasn't given you any orders yet, so you mustn't act impulsively."

"Yes, ma'am."

Song Shi'an smiled.

Wei Wusheng laughed and patted him on the back: "Yes, sir. What orders did I give you?"

“But His Highness the King of Wu has given the order, so let’s go to the King of Wu’s residence first,” Song Shi’an said.

Today, King Wu originally wanted Xiao Wei and Song Shi'an to come over to discuss matters, so the two of them met first.

"Okay." Xiao Wei nodded.

The two then prepared to leave the mansion together.

At this moment, Xiao Wei suddenly thought of something and said jokingly, "Shi An, are you going to bring Xin Yue along?"

"She's a woman, she doesn't need to show her face in public like that," Song Shi'an waved his hand and said casually.

After he finished speaking, the two looked at each other and exchanged a knowing smile.

"Great, looks like I'll be attending your wedding banquet." Xiao Wei joked.

"When the feelings are strong enough, we'll naturally hold a banquet." Song Shi'an didn't shy away from the fact that Xin Yue was his girlfriend.

"Speaking of relationships."

At this point in the conversation, Wei Wusheng's expression suddenly turned serious. He stopped and solemnly said to Song Shi'an, "If Fourth Brother only cares about the country and not your safety, then don't go."

(End of this chapter)