Chapter 624

Tang Yin was unable to make the most accurate judgment on the amount of compensation that Ning Guo would negotiate for peace. He could only transfer the matter to Qiu Zhen and Shangguan Yuanji for discussion. With their shrewdness, the peace treaty drawn up must be able to Striving for the greatest benefits for one's own side, Ning Guo can reluctantly accept the latest chapter.

Xiao Muqing, Liang Qi, and Ziying all retreated, leaving Tang Yin alone in the tent. He paced back and forth in the tent and began to think about how to retreat. At this time, Yuan Fang came and brought some simple food and wine. In terms of food, the two guardian generals Shangguan Yuanwu and Shangguan Yuanbiao were very careful. They first tried the food and wine brought by Yuan Fang with silver needles, and then let the guards taste it to confirm that there was no problem. Place it in front of Tang Yin.

Yuan Fang walked up to Tang Yin, first bowed deeply, and then said with a smile: "I think the king must still be worried about tonight's battle, so I asked someone to prepare some wine and food to bring over."

Tang Yin smiled bitterly. After struggling for most of the night, he failed to achieve any results and lost countless soldiers. By now, he was really hungry. He waved his hand towards Yuan Fang and said, "Mr. Yuan Fang, sit down and eat together!"

"Yes! Your Majesty!" Yuan Fang sat down opposite Tang Yin, picked up the wine pot, poured two glasses of wine, handed one of them to Tang Yin, and asked: "I wonder what your Majesty's plan is now? Is it war or peace? "

Tang Yin did not answer immediately, but asked: "Mr. Yuan Fang, I want to hear your advice first."

When Tang Yin talks to people in Feng Kingdom, he rarely uses self-titles like 'this king' or 'gu', so talking to him is like talking to ordinary people, allowing people to speak freely without any worries. This concern has invisibly shortened the distance between everyone and him, making Tang Yin appear approachable. Everyone in the Feng Army has long been accustomed to this and did not notice this detail. However, Yuan Fangke noticed it and nodded secretly. Tang Yin, who was born as an ordinary soldier, was able to draw so many talents from the Feng Kingdom to his side, making people desperate for him. He doesn't do things just by luck. Tang Yin is indeed outstanding in winning people's hearts.

While thinking secretly in his heart, Yuan Fang said calmly: "Wei Chen believes that peace negotiation is the best."

"Oh?" Tang Yin smiled and asked, "Why?"

"With Changsun Yuanhong here, Ningguo's Zhanghe River is impregnable. It is difficult for our army to cross the thunder pool. If we continue to fight, our army's advantage will be gradually exhausted. By then, Changsun Yuanhong will definitely take the opportunity to counterattack Hedong. Our army will be unable to resist.”

Tang Yin picked up his wine glass and listened carefully to Yuan Fang's analysis, nodding while listening. Yuan Fang continued: "Also, in about twenty days there will be the day of the Holy Sacrifice Ceremony. If we start a war at this time, I am afraid it will cause resentment and panic among the people in the country."

The Holy Sacrifice Ceremony mentioned by Yuan Fang is a traditional festival of the Haotian Empire, and it is also a major festival. It involves worshiping the heaven, the earth, and the ancestors, and praying for peace and prosperity in the next year. Before and after the Holy Sacrifice Ceremony, all the vassal states will try their best to avoid war. It will be considered an ominous omen, and the next whole year will be spent in chaos.

Hearing that Yuan Fang mentioned the Holy Sacrifice Ceremony, Tang Yin patted his head. He had really forgotten about it. Of course he doesn't believe that offering sacrifices to heaven, earth, and ancestors can ensure peace and prosperity for the country and the people in the next year, but that doesn't mean that others don't believe it. He must take into account the feelings of the entire Feng Kingdom people.

Seeing Tang Yin's expression of sudden enlightenment, Yuan Fang burst into laughter. The only one who could forget such an important day as the Holy Sacrifice Ceremony was Tang Yin, a war madman. He continued: "As the king of a country, the king must return to the capital to preside over the holy ceremony. If the king is not in the country, I am afraid it will panic people and cause unrest among the people."

Tang Yin nodded and said repeatedly: "Yes! What Mr. Yuan Fang said makes sense!" As he spoke, he drank the wine in the glass.

Yuan Fang's eyes lit up, then returned to normal, and asked: "So, your Majesty has decided to negotiate peace with Ning Guo?"

Tang Yin didn't answer immediately. He squinted his eyes and looked down, thoughtfully. Seeing that Tang Yin was stunned, Yuan Fang couldn't help but ask again: "Your Majesty?"

"Oh? Ah! Yes, I have decided to negotiate peace with Ning Guo." As he spoke, he picked up the wine glass and played with it back and forth in his hands.

Yuan Fang said with a smile: "Now I can rest assured! Your Majesty, please rest early, I will leave!" He stood up, bowed deeply to Tang Yin, then turned and walked out.

Seeing Yuan Fang's back disappear outside the tent, Tang Yin turned around and waved to Shangguan Yuanwu and Shangguan Yuanbiao. The two Shangguan brothers hurriedly stepped forward, approached Tang Yin, and asked, "What are your orders, your Majesty?"

Tang Yin whispered a few words into their ears. The two brothers were stunned for a moment, then hurriedly responded and walked out quickly.

After the two brothers left, Tang Yin sat on the collapse and took a deep breath. Without any warning, white mist suddenly appeared around his body, and then the mist was sucked back into his body.

In the next few days, Tang Yin rested and reorganized the entire army and recruited new soldiers, while at the same time dealing with Shi Tinghan and Tan Yi. Since he had not yet received a reply from Qiu Zhen and Shangguan Yuanji, Tang Yin was undecided on the details of the peace treaty, so he could only delay and wait for Yancheng's reply.

The wait lasted for three days. Within three days, there was no reply from Yancheng. Tang Yin was also very anxious and asked whether Xiao Muqing's letter to Yancheng was sent by flying pigeons or sent by someone. Xiao Muqing's face was full of innocence and she replied: "The matter is urgent, of course Fei Ge will send the message."

Tang Yin frowned and said: "Since it was sent by flying pigeons, the letter should have arrived in Yancheng long ago. Why are Qiu Zhen and Yuan Ji's replies so slow?!"

Xiao Muqing smiled bitterly and said: "Your Majesty, the matter of peace negotiation has far-reaching implications and will also affect our country's future national policy. I think Prime Minister Qiu and Prime Minister Shangguan also need time to discuss it!"

"Yes!" Tang Yin nodded and did not continue to ask any more questions.

On the fourth day, Letian came to Tang Yin's sleeping tent early in the morning, and also brought a reply from Yancheng that Tang Yin had been looking forward to for several days.

This reply was written by Qiu Zhen himself, with only one short line on it. At this time, Tang Yin had just woken up. He picked up the note and looked at it. He wondered if he had read it wrong. He rubbed his eyes and looked carefully. Yes, it clearly said: Your Majesty, the peace talks are over. I can't agree to it. We will discuss the details after the minister arrives.

He had begun to prepare to withdraw his troops, but at this time, Qiu Zhen came from Yancheng. This was quite unexpected by Tang Yin, but what surprised him the most was the first half of Qiu Zhen's sentence, which said that the peace negotiation must not be allowed. , he couldn't understand, now that his side could no longer fight, what else could he do if he didn't negotiate for peace? Even if you want to fight, you don't have the tools to cross the river. Do you need to rush to build a batch of rafts?

Tang Yin really couldn't understand Qiu Zhen's intention, so he smiled bitterly while holding this reply. Seeing this, Letian couldn't help but asked: "Your Majesty, what did Prime Minister Qiu write in his reply?"

"See for yourself!" Tang Yin held the note and handed it to Letian, who hurriedly took it and looked at it carefully. After looking at it, Letian was also dumbfounded. It felt like Qiu Zhen could stand and talk without pain, but there was still a glimmer of hope. , who is willing to give up the war? Now we have no choice but to accept the peace talks.

Letian frowned and asked: "Your Majesty, why is Prime Minister Qiu so firmly opposed to the peace negotiation? The peace negotiation will do more good than harm to our army..."

Tang Yin smiled bitterly, fell back, and lay back on the bed. He said quietly: "How did I know?!" After a pause, he added: "However, Qiu Zhen's brains are a hundred times better than mine. He said so. , there must be a reason for it." After saying this, Tang Yin seemed to think of something again and asked: "The carrier pigeon will not go wrong on the road, right?"

Letian smiled. It seemed that the king said he was confident, but in fact he was unsure in his heart. He replied: "Your Majesty, our country's carrier pigeons are all marked with special markings, so they will definitely not go wrong. In addition, the handwriting on it is indeed Prime Minister Qiu's handwriting."

"That's right! I was worrying too much." Tang Yin rubbed his aching forehead and sighed helplessly.

Tang Yin had originally planned to have detailed discussions with Shi Tinghan and Tan Yi on the specific details of the peace treaty. On the other hand, he had ordered the entire army to be prepared to retreat at any time. However, Qiu Zhen sent a reply with a few digits to Tang Yin's plan. All plans were disrupted, the withdrawal of troops was postponed, and the peace talks continued to be delayed.

From this point, it is not difficult to see how important Qiu Zhen is in Tang Yin's mind. His words can even influence Tang Yin's intentions, which is far beyond the reach of others.

Qiu Zhen wanted to get to Zhanghe from Yancheng, which was really a long way. Even if he rode a fast horse and traveled day and night, he would not be able to reach it in less than ten days and a half. However, the Holy Sacrifice Ceremony is getting closer. If Tang Yin still stays in Hedong at this time, it will be difficult to make it back to Yancheng on the day of the ceremony.

Tang Yin did not dare to withdraw his troops because of Qiu Zhen's words. If the army did not withdraw, how could he leave the camp with peace of mind and return to the capital alone? At this time, Liang Qi gave him an idea to move the imperial sacrificial ceremony to Hedong. The first is to celebrate the return of Hedong, the second is to appease the people of Hedong, and the third is to pay homage to the Feng Kingdom soldiers who died in Hedong and pay homage to the dead. Especially the third point, not only can it seal the reputation of the people in the country, but it will also make people think that the king is a good monarch who cares about his soldiers and loves his soldiers and people.

After listening to Liang Qi's suggestion, Tang Yin was overjoyed and immediately made the decision to hold the Feng Kingdom's holy ceremony in Qingyuan, the county town of Hedong.

In the following time, part of the Feng army evacuated the Zhanghe camp, entered Qingyuan, and began to build an altar in preparation for the ceremony. The remaining Feng army began to build fortifications on the east bank of the Zhang River, assuming a posture of long-term battle with the Ning army. The situation in Hedong and Hexi, which had just been eased, took a turn for the worse and became tense.

Shi Tinghan and Qin Yi, who stayed in Fengying, could naturally feel this change. They were as anxious as ants on a hot pot and repeatedly asked to see Tang Yin, but Tang Yin was also resolute and avoided seeing him. , he made up his mind to wait until Qiu Zhen is there.