Chapter 82 Negotiation
Water gushed out from the hot spring pool, filling the air with steam. Ji Ruxue tightened her pretty face and looked up in surprise. She could see Xiao Yan, who had turned around with a cold face in the warm pavilion and had already strode down the steps.

She hesitated, not knowing whether she should stop him. But even though her thoughts were in a mess, she subconsciously stopped him.

"You can't go."

Xiao Yan looked at her, and the coldness on his face faded a little, "Get out of the way."

At this time, although Miao Chengtian and Fan Yintian had not yet recovered from their shock, they immediately went over to greet him, "Captain, why are you doing this? My King Qi is willing to meet with the Captain at the first opportunity, which shows his sincerity. Why is the Captain saying that Qi is dead..."

Although they were anxious, they did not dare to say anything harsh and could only stand there, hoping that Ji Ruxue could get Xiao Yan to return to the negotiating table.

In fact, they did not think that Qi would really perish if they did not cooperate with the Bad People. However, due to their past friendship, Xiao Yan and Qi became enemies.

Ji Ruxue stood in front of Xiao Yan, pursed her lips, and just looked at him.

The latter frowned and said, "I am a man who beats women."

The girl was confused for a moment, unable to tell whether the words were addressed to her or to Miao Chengtian and the other girl.

Fan Yintian's expression changed, and he threatened subconsciously: "Captain, you have to think clearly. This is Huanyinfang. It's not a place where you can leave or stay as you please!"

"What nonsense." Miao Chengtian pulled her and whispered.

But at the same time, the sword-wielding maids who had been waiting outside the hot spring pool surrounded them, blocking the way out.

In another smaller pavilion in the distance, a surrendered minister who was drinking tea was surrounded by several maids outside the pavilion. It seemed that they would rush in and capture her at the mere command.

However, the surrendered minister didn't care at all. He just slowly sniffed the tea, supported his cheek with his hands, and looked in the direction of Xiao Yan.

Her originally somewhat annoyed expression had now turned into one of interest.

At the side of the covered bridge, Miao Chengtian looked at the maids holding swords and shouted with a stern face: "What are you doing? Get back!"

Everyone hesitated, but just looked in the direction of the warm pavilion.

In the warm pavilion, the empress finally stood up with a frown on her face, then waved her hand, and the maids outside immediately retreated.

She walked to the short steps and said, "Captain Xiao has done many favors for Huanyinfang. If you want to leave, I have no reason to stop you. But for Xue'er's sake, can you tell me what basis the captain has for judging that our Qi country will perish?"

At this moment, Ji Ruxue's heart beat suddenly faster for no apparent reason, but her eyes were fixed on Xiao Yan, as if she wanted to see what decision he would make.

Xiao Yan frowned slightly, but felt that the girl's eyes were so bright that he couldn't bear to avoid them.

Fortunately, he believed that he was firm in character, and he looked at her calmly, then turned around expressionlessly and said, "Zhu Wen wants to conquer Fengxiang, and it won't be long before a large army arrives. By then, will the King of Qi have the confidence to repel the enemy?"

Ji Ruxue had already known this news, and had told Fan Yintian yesterday, but she didn't know whether the latter had reported it to the empress.

However, these words coming out of Xiao Yan's mouth sounded inexplicably sinister, and ultimately overshadowed her somewhat excited mood.

At the back, Fan Yintian's expression changed, and then he snorted coldly, saying, "Captain Xiao, don't exaggerate. Everyone knows that Zhu Wen has already issued a letter to attack Jin, and it was you who caused the trouble. Could it be that he wants to send troops on both sides?"

Xiao Yan ignored her and said indifferently: "Comparatively speaking, King Qi had dealt with Zhu Wen quite a bit in the early years, and he should understand Zhu Wen better than I do. If King Qi also thinks that the Liang army does not want to go west, he does not need to take it to heart."

The empress frowned and said, "Zhu Wen has already put the blame for regicide on Li Keyong. If we don't send troops to Hedong, I'm afraid it will be difficult to stop the people from talking nonsense."

"Does Zhu Wen care?" Xiao Yan said, "You and I both know that Zhu Wen just usurped the throne of the Tang Dynasty. He lost Luzhou two years ago and failed to conquer Cangzhou last year. His prestige has been greatly damaged. He wants to establish his prestige with a world-shaking achievement and establish an imperial lineage..."

Then, he stared at the empress and said, "The King of Qi has been in military service for many years. Can't he see which is stronger, Qi or Jin?" Fanyintian and Miaochengtian felt a jolt in their hearts and understood what Xiao Yan meant.

Zhu Wen was not a fool. Hedong had the Yellow River as a natural barrier and was mountainous. Luzhou was not in his hands. If he sent another large army but still failed to capture Luzhou, his prestige in the hearts of several princes in the south who were attached to Daliang would probably decline.

In comparison, if the Liang army attacked Fengxiang, it would be almost a smooth journey.

The empress frowned.

She thought for a moment, then raised her hand to invite him: "Just now, it was my fault. If Tian Anxing is willing to put aside your grudges, can you come into the pavilion and talk in detail?"

"The secret agent of Zhongyuan in Huanyinfang, I, the Bad People, need to be able to operate and use it independently. The cooperative relationship is not restricted by your Huanyinfang." Xiao Yan did not move. He pondered for a moment and said this.

The empress did not hesitate this time and agreed immediately: "Okay."

Xiao Yan knew that he had a long time to live and didn't want to eat too much, so he accepted the invitation and took a seat.

Ji Ruxue secretly breathed a sigh of relief and clenched her fists lightly.

Fan Yintian turned around in dissatisfaction and snorted, "If I had known he was so strong, I should never have agreed to his conditions that time in Bianliang..."

"Don't say anything. If there were no bad guys, could the sisters escape from Bianliang?" Miao Chengtian frowned secretly, and then thought that Fanyintian handled the affairs of the town in detail, but he was a little too stupid. He might suffer in the future. He should find an opportunity to report it to the empress.

Although Fanyintian was a little conceited, she also knew that she was in the wrong, so she put on the attitude of the leader of the saints and began to scold Miaochengtian.

In the distance, the surrendered minister still didn't see Xiao Yan take action. He yawned, feeling a little bored.

……

The empress sat down again, and then thought for a moment, and asked Ji Ruxue to go into the pavilion to make tea.

But Xiao Yan was not much moved, and said: "Whether the Liang army will go west depends entirely on Zhu Wen's decision, but his attack on Jin is indeed very likely to confuse the world. At that time, he will attack from the east and attack from the west, and the troops will go out of Qi. Qi has no strategic location to defend, so the King of Qi can only retreat to Fengxiang?"

The empress did not answer, but only covered her eyes and asked, "Does Tian Anxing have a plan to prevent Zhu Wen from sending troops?"

The atmosphere in the pavilion suddenly became stagnant.

Ji Ruxue also slightly turned her head and looked at Xiao Yan with an imperceptible gaze.

However, the latter just asked her for a cup of tea, and then sipped it slowly without saying a word.

The reason why he stayed to talk was not really for Ji Ruxue's sake... Although there was a little bit of that, but more of it was because Qi Country was profitable for him. Nowadays, even though the Buliang people were deployed extensively by Buliang Shuai, most of them could not be used by him. Only Huanyinfang could still cooperate with him.

As for whether the empress would be on guard against him? I don't know, but right now, she doesn't have many choices.

Moreover, Xiao Yan knew that although the empress was not afraid of the Liang army's invasion, she was afraid that the people of Qi would be displaced and unable to rest because of the war. If the Liang army went west, even if Qi could repel the enemy, it would take a long time.

In this case, the only ones who will suffer are the people of Qi.

This is the source of his confidence in returning to the negotiating table.

On the opposite side, the empress looked into his eyes and instantly understood what he was thinking.

　Please give me a ticket~

　　
　
(End of this chapter)