Tiger Owl

Chapter 176 Negotiation Showdown
The courtyard was filled with captured warriors, servants, and wives and concubines, but none of Xu Qian's three sons were found, and the wealth found was far less than they had anticipated.

The slightly overweight head steward was brought in. The corpses and bloodstains on the ground terrified him, and when he saw a tall, young general walking up to him with a sharp knife in his hand, his legs went weak and he knelt down with a thud.

"Strip him naked!" Wang Xiaoman ordered.

Several soldiers stripped the head steward of his shirt, leaving him shirtless. Wang Xiaoman held a sharp knife to the steward's heart and said coldly, "I'm giving you one last chance. If you don't talk, someone else who doesn't want to die will!"

The dagger pierced gently, and blood flowed. The head butler broke down, crying out, "I'll talk! I'll tell you everything!"

"Say it!"

"The master is hiding in the secret cave."

Wang Xiaoman was taken aback. He had only been pressing for information about where the wealth was hidden. She hadn't expected that Xu Qian was also on the island.

"Xu Qian is here too?"

The head butler said in a tearful voice, "Master is here!"

Where is the secret room?

"In the backyard!"

Wang Xiaoman gave a signal, and two strong soldiers grabbed the head steward and carried him to the backyard.

The mansion had more than twenty courtyards. They came to a relatively remote and desolate courtyard on the west side. The door was a bit rotten and was originally locked, but it was kicked open by the soldiers who were searching.

The courtyard was overgrown with weeds, the house was dilapidated, and the eaves and corners were covered with cobwebs. The steps were covered with broken tiles. It was clearly a courtyard that had been abandoned for many years. The soldiers searching the courtyard only looked at the entrance and did not go in. Most people would never have imagined that there was a different world inside.

The head steward led the soldiers to an abandoned fishpond in the courtyard. The fishpond was completely dry, and a huge artificial mountain stood next to it.

The head steward pointed to the artificial hill and said in a trembling voice, "There's a cave inside the artificial hill, and you can find the entrance to a secret chamber on the ground. General, take me with you!"

The head steward dared not see his master. Wang Xiaoman waved her hand, and several soldiers took the head steward away. Wang Xiaoman and the soldiers searched around the artificial hill, and soon a soldier discovered a very hidden cave.

"General, we've found it!"

Wang Xiaoman perked up and rushed over. Sure enough, she found a cave in the innermost corner, about three feet wide, which she could easily enter by bending down.

Wang Xiaoman, holding a torch, crawled into the cave. Once inside, she discovered a completely different world. It turned out that the two-zhang-high artificial mountain had been hollowed out, and the inside was like a room.

"Search for me!"

At Wang Xiaoman's command, dozens of soldiers began searching inside the artificial hill.

Wang Xiaoman, holding a torch, looked around and noticed that the ventilation was excellent; it wasn't stuffy at all. Upon closer inspection, he discovered something else: the artificial hill had actually been cut in two, the two halves pieced together. The gaps on the outside were sealed with mud and planted with moss or weeds, making it undetectable. However, the inside showed clear signs of the piecing together. The artificial hill had been cut open to transport large sums of wealth into a secret cave.
"General, we've found the entrance!"

The soldier shouted, and Wang Xiaoman quickly stepped forward. Sure enough, she saw a large hole that had been torn open in the ground. It was pitch black below. Wang Xiaoman put her torch down, but the flame did not extend further in, indicating that there was no other exit inside.

"Throw a few Molotov cocktails down."

The soldiers lit several Molotov cocktails and threw them down. Thick smoke and flames immediately filled the cave. After a moment, someone shouted, "Stop burning! Stop burning! I surrender! I'm willing to surrender!"

Soon, several people emerged from the cave. The leader was a middle-aged man around fifty years old, Xu Qian. Behind him were his three sons, and several women were holding his grandson. The soldiers tied up Xu Qian and his sons, and took them, along with the women and children, out of the mansion.

Wang Xiaoman arranged for hundreds of soldiers to use ropes to lasso the artificial hills and pull them together. The two artificial hills were split in two as if peeled off their shells. Once the artificial hills were pulled apart, the large hole in the ground looked particularly abrupt.

Underground was a natural cave, covering a large area. The soldiers carried out large wooden crates, totaling more than six hundred crates.

Xu Qian was originally one of the three powerful families in Jiujiang County. After his rebellion, he accumulated a large amount of wealth, which was eventually seized by the powerful. The Yuzhang Army confiscated wealth worth hundreds of thousands of strings of cash.

In addition, according to the steward's testimony, three hundred warhorses were found in a mansion on the north bank of Chaohu Lake.

At this moment, Jia Xu arrived at the temporary military headquarters in Hefei County with several attendants. A soldier went in to report, and soon after, one of Gan Ning's personal guards came out and said, "Military Advisor Jia, please come with me!"

Jia Xu was brought to the front of the commander's tent, where Gan Ning had been waiting for him for a long time.

"Military Advisor Jia, it's been a long time!"

Jia Xu smiled and cupped his hands in greeting, saying, "General, you should have known I was coming!"

Gan Ning also laughed and said, "Sorry, I was a little too fast and took Hefei first."

Both of them knew the truth and burst into laughter.

Upon entering the main tent, the two took their seats as guests.

Jia Xu pondered for a moment and said, "Actually, we both know the truth, so let's not beat around the bush and just be frank with each other!"

Gan Ning nodded, "As you wish!"

Jia Xu smiled and said, "I know you don't actually want Jiujiang Prefecture. You just want to use it as a bargaining chip to negotiate with me. Tell me your minimum requirements!"

Gan Ning said calmly, "I want to remind Military Advisor Jia that after I have occupied Lujiang County, my next step will inevitably be to target Jiujiang County. Why would Military Advisor Jia say that I don't want Jiujiang County?"

Jia Xu shook his head. "At least you don't want to now. If you really want to go further, you would choose to attack Danyang County instead of Jiujiang County."

Gan Ning sighed inwardly. As expected of a cunning fox, he had seen through his intentions.

Gan Ning nodded. "My condition is simple: Sun Ben must withdraw from Danyang County."

Jia Xu looked troubled. In fact, he was not confident that he could get Sun Ben to withdraw. He pondered for a moment and said, "The Sun Ben of today is not the same as the Sun Ben of the past. This time he attacked Danyang County without telling me beforehand. It was entirely his own decision. If I simply order him to retreat north, he will ignore me."

"He certainly won't listen to ordinary persuasion, but Strategist Jia should have a way to force him to withdraw his troops!"

Jia Xu lowered his head and hesitated without speaking. Gan Ning then laughed and said, "Military Advisor Jia, you don't think that your 50,000 troops plus Sun Fu's 20,000 troops can defeat me, do you? If Military Advisor Jia doesn't believe me, we can try!"

Jia Xu sighed inwardly. He really dared not break off relations. Once they did, not only would Jiujiang County be lost, but Guangling County would also be lost. More importantly, how could he explain this to his lord? Especially now, at this crucial moment for his lord's northern expedition, if trouble broke out in the south, it would ruin his lord's plans.

"General, you jest. Without Lord Cao's orders, how could I possibly start a war with you? Alright! I'll give it a try and force Sun Ben to withdraw his troops."

(End of this chapter)