Who put the yellow robe on me?

Upon hearing this, the civil officials' faces suddenly became solemn. They had to admit that this level of worry was justified.

"Thirdly," Jiang Chen's eyes became deeper, as if he could see through everything, "The Northern Qiang army is surrounding us but not attacking. This is not only a threat, but also a sign that they are waiting for our Boxer Mission.

They've clearly been prepared. I suspect the terms of this peace agreement are unacceptable to Daliang. If we compromise, we'll simply fall into their trap, and by then it will be too late to regret."

As soon as these words were spoken, the ministers in the court began to discuss in low voices and reconsider the pros and cons of war and peace.

The ministers discussed the matter. Some believed that the analysis of the Sixteenth Prince Jiang Chen was very accurate and advocated that preparations for war should be made immediately; others believed that Jiang Chen was young and hot-headed, and his words were nothing but exaggerations and could not be trusted.

These different voices intertwined into one in the hall, and the atmosphere in the court became increasingly tense.

Emperor Liang sat on the dragon throne, his gaze deep and steady, silently observing the dispute among his ministers. After some thought, he cast his gaze on a long-trusted old minister and asked in a deep voice, "Prime Minister He, what do you think?"

Prime Minister He Wendao slowly walked out of the court, bowed respectfully to Emperor Liang, and then looked up and said, "Your Majesty, I believe that what the Sixteenth Prince said is indeed reasonable.

"The Northern Qiang's move isn't just about borrowing grain; it's also a test of Daliang. If we compromise easily, we'll be at a disadvantage in the later stages of the game between the two countries, and the combination of these disadvantages will put Daliang in dire straits."

He paused and added, "However, this old minister also believes that we can prepare for a war, but we should not start a war rashly.

We can first contact the Northern Qiang envoys to see what the local army is up to. At the same time, we can order the army to be prepared for war in case of any emergency.

He Wendao's speech was very cautious. He neither denied the necessity of war nor advocated caution. It was recognized by some civil officials and agreed by some military generals.

At this moment, a spy hurried into the hall, knelt on one knee, and reported urgently: "Your Majesty, the Northern Qiang envoys have arrived in the capital. Please give your instructions, Your Majesty!"

A sharp glint flashed in Emperor Liang's eyes, and he smiled coldly and said, "Okay, please come in quickly."

He then turned to General Zhong Xiaodan of Annan and General Zhong Dalu of Anbei and said in a deep voice, "Zhong Xiaodan, Zhong Dalu!"

When the two heard the call, they immediately stepped out and answered in unison: "Your Majesty!"

Emperor Liang's tone left no room for doubt: "You two muster your troops immediately, await the general's orders, and be ready to fight at any time!"

Zhong Xiaodan and Zhong Dalu exchanged a glance, saluted together, and said solemnly, "I obey your command!"

"Where is the Ministry of Rites?" Emperor Liang asked again.

Yu Wenbo, the Left Vice Minister of Rites, bowed and said, "Your humble servant is here!"

Emperor Liang's eyes were deep as he slowly said, "Prepare a state banquet. We want to entertain the Northern Qiang envoys."

The Left Assistant Minister was slightly taken aback, then he understood the Emperor Liang's intention and quickly replied, "Yes, I will arrange it right away."

Emperor Liang nodded slightly. He knew that this banquet was not only to welcome the Northern Qiang envoys, but also a contest of national strength. The momentum of Daliang must not be weakened at this time.

Not long after, Yelü Mengmeng, the third princess of the Northern Qiang Empire, led a group of officials into the banquet hall of Daliang. The entire hall suddenly fell silent, with everyone's attention focused on the princess of the Northern Qiang Empire.

Yelu Mengmeng was tall and possessed a unique aura. Coming from a nation of horsemen, she possessed superb riding skills and exuded a heroic spirit. She was strikingly beautiful, with three-dimensional features and a gaze that shone with an undeniable sharpness and wisdom. Her impressive figure was particularly striking. Dressed in a Northern Qiang cavalry uniform embroidered with gold thread and carrying an exquisite scimitar at her waist, she displayed both her exceptional martial prowess and her elegance on horseback.

Behind her, there was a group of Northern Qiang entourage, among whom was a white-haired wise man with a sharp gaze, who was obviously the think tank of Northern Qiang.

There were also two masters with sturdy build and sharp eyes, wearing armor and looking imposing. They were obviously her personal bodyguards.

Yelu Mengmeng stepped forward, stopped in front of the crowd, smiled slightly, and knelt on one knee to salute. Her voice was clear and majestic: "Greetings to the Emperor of Liang. I am Yelu Mengmeng, the third princess of the Northern Qiang Empire. I have come to Daliang specifically to promote peace and cultivate a century of peace between our two countries."

Emperor Liang sat upright on the high throne, his expression impassive, but a strange glint flashed in his eyes. He then smiled and said, "Princess Yelu, please take a seat."

Yelu Mengmeng rose calmly and, guided by his attendants, took a seat below the Liang Emperor. The Northern Qiang entourage also took their seats, scattered on both sides of the banquet table.

After three rounds of drinks, the atmosphere in the hall relaxed slightly. Emperor Liang casually picked up his wine glass and suddenly spoke with a sharp tone: "Yelü Mengmeng, let me ask you, if you came to Yihe, why did you accumulate 300,000 troops at Shanhaiguan and threaten Daliang?"

These words were like a stone dropped into a calm lake, instantly stirring up ripples. Everyone in the banquet hall's expressions changed slightly, and their gazes all turned to Yelu Mengmeng.

Yelu Mengmeng smiled slightly, without any panic on her face, but instead seemed more calm and composed.

She gently put down her wine glass, stood up, and bowed slightly, her voice full of playful innocence: "Unjust, Your Majesty! We are not stationing troops at Shanhaiguan to threaten Daliang. These 300,000 cavalrymen escorted me to Daliang because they were afraid that I, a girl, would be bullied in Daliang!"

She spoke these words with perfect precision, as if she was considering the stability of Daliang and her own safety.

After hearing this, all the ministers could not help but secretly marvel at her clever response. She neither denied the existence of 300,000 cavalrymen, nor did she cleverly transform the significance of this army into protection for her, a "weak woman".

These words left Emperor Liang speechless. Although he knew that Yelu Mengmeng's words were just excuses, the other party cleverly avoided the sharp edge, leaving him unable to find suitable words to refute for a while.

Emperor Liang was silent for a moment, his tone growing colder: "Third Princess, you said you came to borrow grain, so how much grain do you plan to borrow?"

Yelu Mengmeng answered without hesitation: "Three hundred thousand shi!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the entire banquet hall exploded.

The ministers exclaimed in surprise and then talked in low voices, and the scene suddenly became noisy.

Some people looked shocked, while others were indignant. Yelu Mengmeng's request was too high, which was obviously not the purpose of a normal negotiation.

You should know that one stone of grain is approximately equal to 120 jin, and 300,000 stones of grain is approximately 36 million jin.

Even if all of it were given to an army of 300,000, it would be enough to feed them for two months.

Minister of Revenue Cao Shouku was the first to react. He hurriedly stepped forward and said with a trembling voice, "Third Princess, these 300,000 dan of grain are far too large a quantity. Daliang..."

Before he could finish his words, Yelu Mengmeng interrupted him with a chuckle: "Sir, the Minister of Revenue, this princess has come from afar, so of course I must bring back enough food for the soldiers. What is 300,000 dan of food?

"Could it be that the great Kingdom of Daliang would be so reluctant to give up such a small amount of food? If our soldiers are not well fed, I wonder what terrible things they will do."

threaten! The threat of Chi Guoguo!

These words made the faces of the civil and military officials of Daliang even uglier, and they secretly hated Yelu Mengmeng's arrogance and unreasonableness.

However, faced with the threat of 300,000 cavalrymen from the Northern Qiang, they did not dare to respond rashly, for fear of bringing disaster upon themselves.

"How about this, we Northern Qiang are not the kind to rob or seize things by force. I have three test questions that any Northern Qiang child can answer. If anyone in the Daliang court can answer them, we Northern Qiang will immediately withdraw our troops and try our luck in other countries!"

Yelu Mengmeng said to Emperor Liang with a smile.