Nine dragons fight for the throne, I don't want to sit on this throne

The night was as dark as ink. Thick clouds blocked the moonlight. It was pitch black outside the Tang army camp. Only sporadic torches swayed in the wind, reflecting the stern faces of the patrolling soldiers.

In the quiet of the night, a secret letter was quietly delivered to the tent of Sima Yi, the emperor of Wei.

This place is about forty miles away from the Tang army camp, and we can get there in a few hours by riding fast!

Sima Yi unfolded the letter, glanced at the invitation written by Li Shiming, and frowned slightly.

He pondered for a moment, then put on his outer robe and whispered to the guard beside him: "Prepare the horses, I want to go see Liu Che."

Soon, Sima Yi appeared in the Han army camp.

Liu Che seemed to have anticipated this and was already waiting in the tent.

Seeing Sima Yi stepping in, he raised his hand and signaled his left and right companions to retreat, leaving only two people in the tent.

"The Emperor of Wei came to visit you late at night. It seems that you have also received Li Shiming's letter." Liu Che spoke lightly, with a sharp flash in his eyes.

Sima Yi nodded slightly, sat down, and said in a deep voice: "Li Shiming invited us to meet at noon tomorrow. What does the Emperor of the Han Dynasty think he wants to do?"

Liu Che sneered and tapped the table with his fingertips: "Since he has already signed the document with Chu Ning and is even willing to release Princess Jincheng, I'm afraid he has the intention to break the contract."

He paused, his eyes becoming more serious. "At the beginning, the four countries formed an alliance and agreed to attack the State of Chu together. But now that the State of Jin has been destroyed, if Li Shiming wants to save himself, he can just betray the alliance and even... turn against us."

Sima Yi's eyes flashed coldly: "The Emperor of the Han Dynasty means that Li Shiming might really agree to Chu Ning's request and send troops to our Wei Kingdom?"

"Not impossible."

Liu Che said in a cold tone: "Chu Ning is a cunning man. If Li Shiming is bewitched by him, he may do something that is disadvantageous to us."

The tent fell silent for a moment, with only the flickering candlelight illuminating the solemn expressions of the two people.

After a long while, Sima Yi slowly spoke: "If this is the case, how should we deal with it when we meet tomorrow?"

A sharp light flashed in Liu Che's eyes, and he whispered: "Since Li Shiming dared to invite us to meet, he must have something to rely on.

We might as well take the initiative and put pressure on him directly to force him to take a stand.”

"Pressure?" Sima Yi's eyes moved slightly.

"good."

Liu Che sneered: "We can ask him directly what the purpose of his secret agreement with Chu Ning is. If he really has ulterior motives, we will expose him on the spot and leave him no room for excuse."

Sima Yi pondered for a moment and nodded slowly: "The Emperor of the Han Dynasty is right. If Li Shiming really has second thoughts, tomorrow will be the day when he reveals his flaws."

Liu Che narrowed his eyes slightly and said in a grim tone: "What's more, even if he denies it, we can take this opportunity to test his bottom line.

If he gives in out of guilt, it proves that he does have other intentions. If he responds forcefully, we can prepare for it early."

Sima Yi's eyes flashed with approval, and he said in a deep voice: "Okay, we will act according to this plan tomorrow."

The night wind gradually picked up, blowing the curtains and bringing a hint of coolness.

The two looked at each other and saw deep calculations in each other's eyes.

The meeting tomorrow at noon is destined to be a game with turbulent undercurrents.

Liu Che stood up, walked to the front of the tent, looked at the dark night sky, and said slowly: "After tomorrow, the situation in the world may change completely."

Sima Yi also stood up, stood with his hands behind his back, and smiled coldly: "No matter what Li Shiming chooses, we can't just sit there and wait for death."

If Li Shiming really sides with Chu Ning, they can only strike first!

The next day, noon

The promised valley was shrouded in scorching light, and wherever the scorching sun passed, it brought a hint of murderous air.

Li Shiming had already been waiting in the valley, with only a few personal guards accompanying him.

He stood with his hands behind his back, looking calmly towards the valley entrance, as if waiting for something.

Soon, the sound of horse hooves came closer and closer, and Sima Yi and Liu Che, each leading their elite guards, slowly entered the valley.

The three people's eyes met, and an invisible sense of oppression instantly filled the air.

Sima Yi spoke first, his tone stern: "Emperor of the Tang Dynasty, I received your letter last night, and I rushed here without stopping."

""I just don't know what your intention was in signing a secret agreement with Chu Ning?"

Li Shiming smiled calmly, "Why is the Emperor of Wei so aggressive? Everything I did was just to save Princess Jincheng."

Liu Che snorted coldly, his eyes sharp as a knife: "Save the princess? Then why did you agree to Chu Ning's dispatch of troops to Wei?

"Have you forgotten that the four nations had agreed to attack Chu together?"

Li Shiming sighed and said slowly: "Of course I remember the covenant, but Chu Ning used Princess Jincheng as a hostage, so I had no choice but to pretend to be compliant."

He paused, glanced at the two of them, and continued, "I invited you two here today to discuss important plans together."

Sima Yi frowned slightly: "Oh? What does the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty think?"

Li Shiming's eyes flashed with a gleam of light, and he said in a deep voice: "My plan is very simple - agree to Chu Ning's request on the surface, and send troops to the border of Wei State as agreed."

"what?"

Sima Yi's face suddenly changed color, his hand pressed on the hilt of the sword, and murderous intent suddenly appeared in his eyes.

Li Shiming raised his hand to signal him to calm down, and continued: "Brother Sima, please don't be anxious, just listen to me."

"I sent troops to Wei only to show Chu Ning. If he sees that I have fulfilled my promise, he will definitely let down his guard and may even take the opportunity to send troops to Han."

Liu Che's eyes narrowed. "You mean... to induce Chu Ning to take the initiative to attack?"

"Not bad!"

Li Shiming nodded, his tone firm, "Chu Ning is a man of great strategy. If he sees that the Tang Dynasty is at war with the Wei Kingdom, he will definitely think that we have started an internal conflict. At that time, he will most likely mobilize his main forces to attack the Han Dynasty."

"Then, I can secretly join forces with you and besiege the Chu army from three directions! Even if his White Horse Cavalry is strong, there is no way they can withstand the combined attack of our three dynasties' coalition forces!"

Sima Yi's expression relaxed slightly when he heard this, and a hint of intention flashed in his eyes.

He pondered for a moment and said, "This plan... is somewhat feasible."

However, Liu Che still had doubts on his face: "Chu Ning is very cunning and may not be fooled. If he does not move, won't we lose our troops in vain?"

Li Shiming sneered: "I believe both of you know that Chu Ning has mobilized 160,000 troops and is heading towards Maple Leaf City and Yanzhou respectively."

"He clearly wants to start a war. If we hesitate any longer, he will defeat us one by one!"

Liu Che frowned, and after a while, he slowly raised his head and looked at Sima Yi: "Emperor of Wei, what do you think?"

Sima Yi looked deep in his eyes and said slowly: "Although the plan of the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty is risky, we really can't sit and wait for death in the current situation."

Liu Che was silent for a moment, and finally nodded: "Okay, in this case, I will trust the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty once, I hope this plan can succeed, otherwise..."

Li Shiming smiled slightly, with a gleam of light in his eyes: "Don't worry, as long as we act according to the plan, Chu Ning will definitely lose!"

The three of them looked at each other and saw determination in each other's eyes.