In the seventeenth year of the Great Liang Taiyuan, on October 5th, in the afternoon of late autumn, it was drizzling.

The autumn breeze was wrapped in a little drizzle, beating on Andrew's hat, with the coolness of habit. He tucked his hands into his sleeves, and the horse under his crotch followed the immortal horse in small steps, where the well-trained steed did not need the reins at all. Gia sat behind Andrew, hid her head in Andrew's hat, and put her hands around Andrew's waist.

They had permission from Baili Muyun and were on their way to the post house. Maybe it's raining lightly and there aren't many pedestrians on the streets, or maybe it's because the country is on the edge of Hanyu, and the barren land can't support too many people.

The capital of the country is Xiliang City, backed by the sea, and the terrain is steep. The fishing industry here is thriving, and the carriages and horses of the Chamber of Commerce shuttle all year round through the Lianyu Port of Xiliang City, the most prosperous port in the entire Hanyu. It doesn't grow the same crops as Da Liang, but it produces fruits that are not found elsewhere. The economy of the entire kingdom was supported by fishermen and fruit growers, so in the minds of the people, such a small border state has always been looked down upon by other vassal states.

They were arranged to live in a post house, and it was obvious that Baili Muyun, the monarch of the Yan Kingdom, was not in a hurry to see them. The receiving officer settled them and left, without even a single superfluous word.

She sat in the room, looking out the window at the drizzle. There was silence in the room, and the sound of the rain reached everyone's ears, both familiar and unfamiliar. The quiet artistic conception, the feeling of desolation and loneliness poured into the hearts of everyone.

The breeze brought in a chill and the air became cold. Andrew looked at Immortal and said: "General Immortal doesn't need to think about it, such a moment is more than patience, and Baili Muyun is just grinding our sharpness." Shouldn't we be happy?"

Immortal sank into the chair and twisted her stiff neck. "That's what I said, but when I came, I had already heard that King Wu of Wei, Ying Ziang, had also sent an envoy to the Great Liang Kingdom, and it was very likely that he wanted to make peace with the Great Liang Kingdom. If this is the case, the alliance between the two countries is particularly important to Baili Muyun, but Baili Muyun doesn't seem to be worried that King Wei Wu will free up his hands to attack the Yan Kingdom, what does this mean?"

Andrew smiled and said to Immortal: "No matter how much the general thinks about it, he can't change some things after all. It's better to calm down and think about what role you play in such troubled times. ”

In the palace of Xiliang City, Baili Muyun sat on a throne sewn of white tiger skin, he was already in his sixties, his gray hair was combed in a neat bun on the top of his head, put in a golden crown, and fixed with a white jade hairpin. He wore a purple cardigan with a golden chrysanthemum embroidered on the placket, a collar and cuffs trimmed with silver filigree and moire, and a ribbon with a wide edge around his waist. His grim gaze glanced at the civil and military officials on both sides, and his voice was filled with a cold chill. "Are you all dumb? What does the king of Han want to do now to form an alliance with us? Nagong? Nagong? Who does he think he is? Liu Xuan, you are in charge of intelligence, didn't you tell King Gu that there will be no problem if you take in Ying Zizhen, and now that Wei has sent envoys to Daliang State, what else can you do besides make peace? When the time comes, Wei will free up his hands and raise troops to attack, do you have a strategy to retreat from the enemy?"

Liu Xuan stood up, walked to the crimson carpet in the middle, and said, "Great King, even if there is no such thing as winning Zizhen, I am afraid that the Wei State will not last long." Even if Da Liang agrees to make peace, he will definitely offer high conditions. Will he be willing to spit out the few cities occupied by the Wei State? Therefore, the king does not need to worry too much about the barbarians, but the real thing to worry about is the Han State. They must have thought that the barbarians wanted to encroach on our country, and that they wanted to exchange the reputation of the alliance for our reward. ”

Baili Muyun looked at Liu Xuan coldly, and his pale face turned blue. "Are you saying we can't agree to an alliance?"

Liu Xuan replied: "No! If we agree to them, we are afraid that we will always be led by the nose by the Han Kingdom in the future, and we will not break the insatiable character, but I am afraid that the property we ask for will increase exponentially!"

An old man of His Royal Highness stood beside Liu Xuan, and he arched his hand and said: "The king can't, in the current situation, if you don't form an alliance, I'm afraid it's not appropriate, the king doesn't want to form an alliance, but he can't offend the Han country at this moment." It was they who first proposed the alliance strategy, and it must have their own considerations. We can send men to consult with them and find out their intentions. If we can form an alliance without paying tribute, such an outcome is in everyone's best interest. ”

All the people of His Highness echoed him. "Li Xiangye is right!"

The old man glanced at the crowd and said, "As long as we don't pay tribute, we can form a blood alliance. In the current situation, only the two countries are the weakest, and only by forming an alliance can they survive in the cracks! Just imagine, even a weak country like Han will not look down on us, what will be the result of forming an alliance with the other two powerful countries? I am afraid that we will gradually become vassals of other countries, and the king will definitely not think about this!

Baili Muyun nodded, his expression relaxed. What Li Xiangguo said was very much in line with King Gu's wishes. In this way, the matter of this deliberation is the sole responsibility of the Xiangguo, and the lone king will never pay tribute. ”

In the continuous drizzle, under an oil-paper umbrella, two dwarves walked happily on the street, and Jiya had not been so happy for a long time. Andrew was also in a good mood, Giya pulled him to see the rain, he didn't hesitate for a moment, and followed her out. He said a lot of happy things to Jiya, and the little girl leaned back with a smile.

There were not many pedestrians on the streets, and the crisp laughter pierced through the drizzle and attracted the sideways glances of pedestrians. They didn't care about it at all, as if there were only two of them in the world.

The ghost cry in Jiya's arms trembled slightly, and the two of them became alert. Not far ahead, an orange oil umbrella blocked the intersection, and the faces of the two figures were covered by the umbrella. It can be seen that it is a man and a woman, and the man blocks the woman behind him.

Andrew didn't have to look to feel the cold gaze behind the umbrella. Andrew knew who the man behind the umbrella was, and the badge with the tiger and leopard pattern on his chest had come into view, and he also saw the man unhook the spear behind his back, and the rain slowly dripped down the blade of the spear that came out of the skeleton's mouth. The air seemed to be suppressed by two invisible murderous auras, and became silent, only the drizzle unscrupulously knocked on the lonely oil umbrella, and the sound of ticking was extraordinarily pleasant.