Chapter 675: Chapter 304: Negotiating Peace and Relocating Seals_3

These two enemies in different directions could each deploy hundreds of thousands of troops, both of which were formidable opponents for Zhou Country.

With so many enemies entangled, it was not easy for Zhou Country to fight Chu State with full force.

Of course, all of this was just speculation made by Lu Yuan based on the intelligence gathered from various parties.

Whether it was correct or not, he would have to lead the troops north and meet the Zhou People to find out.

…

When the messenger from Hanzhong had arrived crying and left excitedly, he quickly returned to Jianmenguan with the good news that Chu State was willing to send troops.

Shortly after his departure, on the tenth day of the ninth month, Lu Yuan officially inspected the troops outside Jinguan City, reviewing the various armies.

After leaving a newly-built forbidden army and county soldiers from Xichuan, a total of more than 40,000 people remained behind.

He personally led the remaining 80,000 forbidden troops and 70,000 civilian workers and marched north toward Jianmenguan.

On the 20th of the ninth month, Lu Yuan arrived at Jianmenguan with his troops. King Qiao Kangquan of Hanzhong personally went 10 miles out of the city to welcome him, treating him like a minister.

The next day, after receiving news that Chu army had arrived in large numbers, Zhou army made a slight probe, confirmed the enemy was tough, and immediately sent messengers to Chu camp.

“I, the foreign minister, meet the King of Chu.”

In Chu camp, after being led into the big tent, Zhou People’s messenger paid respects to Lu Yuan.

“Now that our two armies are fighting each other, what’s the matter with the messenger coming to the camp at this time?”

Lu Yuan looked up and down the Zhou army messenger named Xia Qingxuan. He appeared to be a gentle scholar in his early thirties, but there seemed to be some sharpness hidden under his gentle exterior, and his temperament was quite extraordinary.

After bowing his hands, Xia Qingxuan solemnly replied, “Reporting to King Chu, I am here to negotiate peace and call for a ceasefire with your army.”

Lu Yuan’s expression moved: “Negotiate peace?”

Although he had already guessed Zhou Country’s choice, he was still somewhat surprised by their decisiveness.

“Yes, to negotiate peace.”

Xia Qingxuan nodded and then calmly said, “This time our army went south for the sole purpose of reclaiming the lost territory of Hanzhong and had no intention of fighting with Chu State. Now that the three prefectures of Hanzhong have been reclaimed, our goal has been achieved, and we can say that it is perfect.

Actually, there is no major conflict between Chu State and Zhou Country.

We, Zhou Country, are content and don’t want to continue the war. Having newly consumed two prefectures, King Chu must also need time to recover.

Since this is the case, why should both sides continue the fight? Isn’t it better to call for a ceasefire and negotiate peace?”

When these words fell, the face of King Qiao Kangquan of Hanzhong, who was sitting on the side in the tent, immediately became gloomy.

Zhou Country was happy to have reclaimed their lost territory, of course.

But their happiness came at the expense of Hanzhong losing nearly half of their land.

With only two prefectures now, Hanzhong’s strength is now similar to that of the small countries like Hui Chuan and Nong Dong in the southwestern Yi region, with less than 300,000 people and no more than 30,000 soldiers.

With such a weak foundation, they no longer had any bargaining chips.

That’s why even when Zhou People came to negotiate peace, intending to turn their occupation of Hanzhong into a fait accompli, Qiao Kangquan could only watch helplessly without saying anything.

And in fact, Zhou People didn’t even care about him at all.

Previously, the half-prefecture-backed Hanzhong was worth wooing.

But now that they had shrunk back to Xichuan, left with only the two prefectures ‘s lands, it was completely dispensable.

Even in Zhou Country’s eyes, Hanzhong, which now seemed like a floating duckweed in the wind, might be directly annexed by Chu State within a month or two, completely perishing.

In this case, what is the value of such a power that is on the brink of collapse?

Not only Zhou Country but even Lu Yuan didn’t think much of Hanzhong anymore.

He was determined to reclaim the two prefectures that Hanzhong currently occupied.

Having weakened to this point, Hanzhong no longer had any value as a buffer between Zhou and Chu States, and Chu State no longer needed them.

On the contrary, controlling Jianmenguan, the gateway to Xichuan, was more valuable and meaningful to Lu Yuan.

Otherwise, he would worry that Zhou Country might enter Xichuan again at the drop of a hat if he left the gateway to such a weak Hanzhong.

If that were to happen, it would hit Chu State’s Achilles heel.

In order to prevent this from happening, he naturally wanted to nip the potential trouble in the bud as soon as possible.

But all that lay ahead.

For now, it was more important to reach an agreement with Zhou Country as soon as possible and end this war that both sides didn’t want to fight.

Therefore, as soon as Lu Yuan heard Xia Qingxuan’s words, a smile appeared on his face, “The messenger’s words are indeed in line with my intentions. Chu and Zhou families…”

Following that, the conversation of harmony, hidden danger, and compromise carried back and forth in the tent with strength and resilience.

It wasn’t until nearly dusk that Xia Qingxuan and Lu Yuan reached a relatively consistent understanding of various principles and details on peace talks after several hours of negotiations.

Seeing that his goal had been achieved, Xia Qingxuan promptly took his leave.

After sending him off, the atmosphere in the tent immediately eased, no longer as tense as before.

The Chu State generals present were mostly pleased.

After more than two years of fighting, even the war-loving warriors like them were somewhat weary, just like Lu Yuan.

At this time, not having to go to war with a big enemy like Zhou Country and not having to bear the enormous pressure of death naturally cheered them up.

The only one who was out of tune with the atmosphere around him was Qiao Kangquan, who was thoroughly sold out and had become the ultimate loser.

But even with so much resentment and anger in his heart, facing the colossal Zhou Chu States, which he couldn’t resist, he dared not express any dissatisfaction.

He even had to put on a stiff smile on his face, trying to blend in with the crowd as much as possible so as not to appear conspicuous.

Despite this, Lu Yuan looked at him after Xia Qingxuan left, and then smiled, “King of Hanzhong, now that Chu and Zhou have ceased fire and negotiated peace, the war in the north has subsided, and Hanzhong is safe.

At this opportune moment, I also have a matter to discuss with you.

For example, relocation…”

At the last two words, Lu Yuan’s tone suddenly became heavier, and his expression solemn.