Yun Shu took the surrender letter and skimmed through it quickly, her eyes darting over the lines.
She had intended only to get a general sense of things. At this stage, she thought, even with their defeat, Pugan should be seeking surrender. Yet, to her astonishment, they still dared speak of negotiating peace. What sort of confidence were they clinging to?
When she finished reading, she suspected she had misunderstood something, so she read it again—this time more carefully.
Then she laughed, not from amusement but sheer disbelief.
"Do you even know what is written in this letter of surrender?"
"I do."
The Pugan Crown Prince, Ye Nai, lowered his gaze. Though his expression remained composed, there was a faint undercurrent of suppressed bitterness beneath it.
"Your Highness may rest assured. I am willing."
"Willing? Who cares if you're willing or not?"
What kind of nonsense was this? As if she were some bandit forcing a good man into her hands.
"You lot from Pugan started this war. Now that you've lost your city in battle, you show up not to surrender, but to talk peace? And not a single word about ceding territory or paying reparations? Instead, you toss out a Crown Prince like a bargaining chip and expect that to suffice? Do you truly believe dressing yourself up like a gold ingot makes you worth your weight in gold?"
Yun Shu genuinely could not comprehend the logic at work here.
She flung the surrender letter straight at Ye Nai's feet.
"Take that letter back and tell your royal father this—if he does not wish to write a proper surrender, so be it. This Princess is more than capable of marching in and taking it herself."
"You refuse?"
Ye Nai was momentarily stunned. He lifted his head, incredulous. As Pugan's Crown Prince, he possessed power, status, and striking looks. The women of Pugan all dreamed of becoming his consort.
Yesterday, when his father ordered him to sacrifice himself for the survival of their kingdom, he had endured a long and painful inner struggle before finally deciding to swallow his pride and agree to be married off into the Tian Sheng imperial family.
Yet now... now he discovered that the Tian Sheng Crown Princess was already seventeen years of age—considered well past prime for marriage by Pugan standards—and she dared to turn her nose up at him?
Ye Nai flushed a deep crimson, his pride smarting.
"Why do you refuse?"
"Why should This Princess agree?"
What a joke.
So any man who showed up at her tent declaring his willingness to marry her should be taken seriously?
And who did he think he was, exactly?
Yun Shu had little patience left. She lifted a hand and pointed toward the tent entrance.
"Will you leave, or shall This Princess have someone escort you out?"
"You..."
Ye Nai wanted badly to throw back a defiant reply, to say he would leave of his own accord.
But he couldn't.
Pugan had lost the war. His presence here was meant to secure a path of survival for his country.
Ye Nai drew in a long breath, forcibly tamping down his anger and frustration. He steadied his voice.
"I spoke out of turn earlier. Since Your Highness finds fault with the peace terms my royal father proposed, might I ask what terms would satisfy you and bring an end to hostilities?"
"Did Annan not already show you the way?"
Yun Shu's voice carried a cold edge.
"Surrender to Tian Sheng. Become one of our own. Then, naturally, there will be no more need for war."
"Is there truly no other way?"
Ye Nai clenched his fists tightly, his voice low with barely masked rage.
"Is Tian Sheng so determined to bare its ambition, to swallow all under Heaven? Do you not fear that such tyranny will rouse the wrath of the realm?"
"And hearing that from you is not the least bit laughable?"
Yun Shu tapped her fingers against the table, a slow and deliberate motion.
"This war was not of our making."
As she spoke, she tilted her head slightly, her gaze falling on the Dragon Shadow Guard that appeared at her signal.
"Escort the Crown Prince of Pugan out."
"As you command."
Without a word, the Dragon Shadow Guard stepped forward, seized Ye Nai by the arm, and vanished from the tent in a blink, golden robes trailing behind him.
"Your Highness!"
General Wei Yuan had rushed over from another section of the camp upon hearing that the Pugan Crown Prince had brought a letter of surrender. He had just reached the entrance when a flash of black and gold zipped past him.
Alarmed that something might have happened to Yun Shu, he hurried inside, only to find her calmly seated behind her desk, composed as ever.
Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.
"Your Highness, I heard the Pugan Crown Prince came bearing a letter of surrender. Where is he?"
"This Princess had him thrown out."
"Thrown out?"
General Wei Yuan blinked. Recalling the flash of colors just now, realization dawned, and the corner of his mouth twitched.
"So the Pugan delegation lacked sincerity?"
"They offered not a single city, refused to pay even a tael of silver, and instead presented their so-called Crown Prince as tribute. Is that what they call sincerity?"
Yun Shu's lips curved in a cold smirk.
"Though, to be fair, that Crown Prince was wearing at least ten jin of gold."
General Wei Yuan: "?"
"Your Highness was right to throw him out!"
Having grasped the full extent of Pugan's delusion, General Wei Yuan's blood boiled.
"Truly shameless. I have never seen such greed and gall. I shall return at once to consult with General Gu about resuming the offensive against Pugan."
"We will indeed continue the assault."
Yun Shu nodded.
"And we will strike at Kedian City."
"Kedian?"
General Wei Yuan considered the name, then quickly caught on.
"Kedian City borders the territory of Shan. If we take it using gunpowder, it will surely send shockwaves through Shan."
He grew more animated as he spoke.
"Perhaps we can kill two birds with one stone. If Shan is sufficiently intimidated, they might think twice before opposing us."
"It is not only Shan that must be shown Tian Sheng's strength."
Yun Shu's voice remained steady.
"Elsewhere, they might be able to replicate our weapons eventually. But the longer the delay, the more of our soldiers will be sacrificed."
"What This Princess desires is to strike Kedian hard enough to silence the entire realm."
"You hope to quash the chaos of all Seven Kingdoms with a single blow?"
It was an admirable vision—but one not so easily realized.
"Among the Seven Kingdoms, only Annan and Shan lie near Pugan. The others are still quite a distance away. Even if we send word, it may not achieve the effect Your Highness seeks."
"Then let them see it for themselves."
Yun Shu allowed a faint smile to play across her lips.
"There are still soldiers in the camp whispering about the gunpowder weapons, are there not?"
"Well..."
General Wei Yuan looked a little embarrassed.
"I did issue orders forbidding such talk. But the effect of the weapon that day was so astounding, some men cannot help themselves. Still, whenever I catch them, I order punishment under military law. If Your Highness finds this insufficient, I shall increase the penalties..."
"That will not be necessary."
Yun Shu's voice was slow and deliberate.
"Quite the opposite. Now This Princess wants everyone to know that the battle against Pugan a few days ago was merely our first trial run of the new weapon.
And the results were promising. Therefore, This Princess has already ordered mass production within the army."