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The situation in Great Sum deteriorated very quickly. In less than a month, voices emerged suggesting Seigniors wanted to visit Sum Emperor in the Capital city.

Clear-sighted people could all see that those Seigniors were not only expanding their armies but also stockpiling food and forage. They weren't planning to visit Sum Emperor; they were clearly aiming to compete for that position.

In fact, most Seigniors temporarily harbored no intentions of becoming Emperor themselves, especially those whose blood ties to the royal family were separated by several generations. They were well aware that lacking legitimacy would hinder their aspirations to become Emperor.

Therefore, a portion of the Seigniors proactively contacted the princes in Capital city, secretly forming collaborative relationships with them. In their fight for succession, the princes agreed to the Seigniors' terms, further complicating Great Sum's already chaotic situation.

As Great Sum plunged into disarray, Great Wu wasn't idle either. After Wu Junwan returned from North Country, Great Wu began to deploy troops and commanders, shifting elite soldiers to the borders adjoining Great Sum, ready to seize the opportunity to act.

…

Qi Country.

Meeting Hall.

A corpulent man sat on the throne. The throne was spacious, but due to the man's size, it seemed quite cramped in his presence.

Qi Prince swept a look over the envoy from North Country in the hall and said with a smile, "What a rarity. I didn't expect my nephew to send someone to my feudal state."

Continuing, Qi Prince asked, "Speak, what purpose does my nephew have in sending you to Qi Country?"

North Country's envoy Zhou Tongguang answered unassumingly, "Qi Prince, my king wishes to purchase the entirety of Yongan County."

Upon hearing this, Qi Prince and the chancellors in the hall were all taken aback; they had not anticipated that North Country's envoy came to Qi Country with the intention of buying land, let alone an entire county.

Qi Prince's expression grew a few shades more serious as he studied Zhou Tongguang in the hall for a long while before speaking, "North Prince isn't joking with me, is he?"

Zhou Tongguang responded, "My king indeed intends to purchase the entirety of Yongan County. If Qi Prince finds a transaction with silver unsatisfactory, we can also exchange land for land. If there is any land in North Country that catches Qi Prince's eye, feel free to name it."

Hearing this, Qi Prince snorted internally. He was no fool; how could he possibly exchange Qi Country's land for North Country's, especially when North Country was so impoverished compared to the wealth of Qi Country? Such an exchange would surely be a loss.

Nevertheless, why did North Prince think of buying Yongan County at this time?

Qi Prince was puzzled and called to the soldiers in the hall, "Bring the map."

As he spoke, a large map held up by bamboo rods was brought into the middle of the hall, allowing a clear view of the entire map at a glance.

Qi Prince glanced at the location of Yongan County and found that it lay on the western border adjacent to the Great Wu dynasty, not only abutting Great Wu but also the territories controlled by the Great Sum royal family.

This meant that as long as North Country acquired Yongan County, its army could bypass Qi Country via this corridor and directly access the realms controlled by the Great Sum royal family.

After locating Yongan County, Qi Prince asked with a smile, "I am curious as to why North Prince would wish to purchase Yongan County. This position seems rather sensitive."

Zhou Tongguang replied with a smile, "I believe Qi Prince must have heard of the trade agreement signed between North Country and the Great Wu Dynasty. From now on, North Country will be able to do business with Great Wu. However, the lands of Great Jue and Qi Country lie between North Country and Great Wu, making it somewhat troublesome for goods from North Country to reach Great Wu.

Therefore, my king thought of acquiring Yongan County, to border directly with Great Wu."

"This way, whether it's goods from North Country going into Great Wu, or goods from Great Wu being transported to North Country, it will be much more convenient."

Qi Prince laughed and said, "The reasoning seems quite sound. However, I'm afraid North Prince's intentions are not limited to simply doing business with Great Wu, are they?"

Zhou Tongguang countered, "Then what does Qi Prince think my king is purchasing Yongan County for?"

Faced with Zhou Tongguang's question, Qi Prince was momentarily stumped.

Inside, Qi Prince mused, for what reason?

Wasn't it simple?

It was to bypass Qi Country at an opportune moment, then dispatch a large army to attack the cities controlled by the royal family, wasn't it?

Qi Prince then spoke up, "If Yongan County were sold to North Prince, then North Country's land would border the territory controlled by the Great Sum court. If anything were to happen at that time, should North Country send troops directly into the cities under the court's control, I'm afraid I would have to bear the responsibility."

"Moreover, land transactions between Seigniors require approval from the court; even if I agree, it's useless without the court's consent."

Zhou Tongguang maintained a pleasant smile as he spoke, "Qi Prince worries too much. My king is a prince of the Emperor, and North Country would never dispatch troops into the domains controlled by the court without explicit orders. Moreover, with several hundred thousand soldiers stationed by the court in Qi Country, any movements by North Country can be immediately responded to by the court.

And since Yongan County is merely a passageway, Qi Prince always has the power to shut it down."

"Should a day come when it's necessary for the armies of North Country to head south, my king would directly request passage from Qi Prince, not through occupancy of Yongan County."

Hearing this, Qi Prince's expression darkened instantly.

He was no fool; how could he fail to understand Zhou Tongguang's implication?

Zhou Tongguang meant that if North Country truly intended to move south, Qi Country would be the first to be attacked.

Yongan County is a passageway, should North Country truly send troops from Yongan County, Qi Country's soldiers could at any time cut off the supply lines of North Country's troops. Therefore, if North Country wishes to send troops south, they must first occupy Qi Country to prevent Qi Country from causing trouble from behind.

Of course, to the ears of Qi Prince, Zhou Tongguang's words were nothing but a threat to Qi Country. If Qi Country does not sell Yongan County to North Country, when North Country raises troops to march south, they will inevitably attack Qi Country.

Qi Prince snorted coldly, then said, "Are you threatening me?"

Zhou Tongguang replied, "I dare not, I am merely stating the facts."

Qi Prince then said, "If North Country truly wishes to purchase Yongan County, it is not impossible. However, you must first speak with the imperial court. Once the imperial court agrees, then you may come to me to discuss the price for the purchase of Yongan County."

Feudal states generally have the obligation to defend the frontier. Qi Country borders the Great Wu dynasty to the west, and when the Great Wu dynasty invades Great Sum, Qi Country must bear the burden of repelling the invasion by Great Wu.

If they sell Yongan County, which borders Great Wu, to North Country, then it will be North Country that borders Great Wu, and the duty to defend against foreign enemies will fall upon North Country. Qi Prince is more than willing to offload Yongan County to North Country.

The last time Great Wu and Great Sum went to war, and the imperial court requested that the various seigniors send troops, Qi Country lost many soldiers. This led to a situation where, later, when the imperial court said they would station troops in Qi Country, Qi Prince had no choice but to agree.

If Qi Country still had a standing army of fifty thousand soldiers at that time, the court's decision to garrison troops in Qi Country would have been met with more resistance from Qi Prince; he wouldn't have agreed to the court's request so easily.

Hearing Qi Prince's words, Zhou Tongguang instantaneously understood the implication. Qi Prince was shifting all responsibility to the imperial court. By doing so, he neither offended North Country nor could be blamed by the imperial court if North Country actually sent troops from Yongan County to march south.

Of course, the most important point was that Qi Country currently had hundreds of thousands of the imperial court's troops stationed there. They truly dared not make any rash moves. Although it was said that Sum Emperor was gravely ill and various seigniors were frantically increasing their troops, only Qi Country dared not make any moves.

With tigers to the north and dragons to the south, Qi Country, sandwiched between the two, could only tremble in fear. Any rash action could mean the instantaneous disappearance of Qi Country.

Zhou Tongguang said, "If that's the case, then I will write to my king immediately and have him report this matter to the court forthwith."

"If Qi Prince has no other issues, I will take my leave."

As soon as these words fell, Zhou Tongguang turned and left directly.

After Zhou Tongguang had walked out of the Meeting Hall, Qi Prince, who had been suppressing his emotions, could no longer hold back. He swept everything off the table in front of him with one swipe of his hand, scattering it all onto the floor, then roared, "This is simply outrageous! One after another, they treat Qi Country as if it were nothing!"

At that moment, a minister stepped forward and said, "Prince, are we really going to sell Yongan County to North Country? If we sell Yongan County, we may no longer be able to have direct dealings with Great Wu, right?"

Hearing this, Qi Prince fell into silence.

Indeed, although Yongan County borders Great Wu, and Qi Country has to share part of the duty to repel Great Wu's invasions in times of war, if they lose Yongan County, it would be difficult for Qi Country's merchant caravans to directly interact with Great Wu during peacetime.

In the future, they would have to pass through areas controlled by the imperial court, which wouldn't be advantageous for Qi Country.

Some of Qi Country's business dealings with Great Wu aren't exactly legal; if they had to go through areas controlled by the imperial court, it would be easy for others to detect something suspicious.

But if they don't sell Yongan County, North Country's envoy had just now issued a threatening declaration. If they do not sell, and one day North Country marches south, they will surely move against Qi Country. With their conventional army strength not even amounting to fifty thousand, Qi Country is now fundamentally incapable of resisting North Country's southward advance.

After a moment, Qi Prince thought of a good solution and said, "Yongan County can be sold, but not in its entirety, only half of it to North Country. That way, not only will North Country be unable to directly reach the areas controlled by the imperial court, but Qi Country's own merchant caravans will also be able to continue trade with Great Wu."

Hearing this, a sigh of relief went through the ministers in the Meeting Hall. The ministers present were mostly from Qi Country's Aristocratic Families, and nearly every one of them had some form of trade with the Great Wu dynasty. If the trade routes to Great Wu were truly cut off, it would certainly not be a favorable outcome for them.

Half a month later, news of North Prince's intent to purchase Yongan County reached the ears of the officials of the Great Sum court.

In the court, officials buzzed with discussions about the matter.

At this time, Prince Lu Yi, sitting on a chair beside the Dragon Throne, asked, "Gentlemen, you must have all heard about North Country's intention to buy Yongan County from Qi Country, right?"

With Prince Lu Yi temporarily assuming the Crown Prince's position and managing the affairs of the nation, it was up to him to make a decision on this matter.

No sooner had Prince Lu Yi finished speaking than an official stood up and said, "Your Highness, this matter must not be agreed to!"

"If we approve Qi Country selling Yongan County to North Country, then North Country will directly border the lands controlled by the imperial court. If North Prince harbors ulterior motives, North Country's troops could drive straight through Yongan County and attack the Capital City!"

As these words fell, another minister also spoke up, saying, "North Prince's actions reveal his cunning and ambitious nature; we must stop North Prince and prevent Qi Country from selling Yongan County to North Country!"

Prince Lu Yi then said, "Qi Prince has submitted a memorial stating that if Qi Country does not sell Yongan County to North Prince, North Country might very well send troops south and conquer Qi Country."

Hearing this, the great hall instantly erupted into chaos.

"North Prince is completely lawless now, how dare he!"

"This is troublesome. With various seigniors expanding their forces, now North Country is also preparing to march south."

"North Prince really does not take the court's four hundred thousand troops seriously. If you ask me, we should send our troops directly to quell the rebellion."

"Send troops? Are you mad? If we send troops now, the seigniors from the southern regions will definitely lead their armies northward, directly threatening the Capital City!"

…