We have fought to the Arctic Circle, and you want me to inherit the throne?

Zhuge Zhe did not come back alone, but brought back an entire convoy.

It can be seen that the King of Goryeo was really afraid that Li Che would fight him to the death, so he gathered all the supplies and sent them over in just a few days.

Li Che hurried to the outside of the city, without even looking at the long convoy, and ran straight to Zhuge Zhe and Yue Yun.

"Ziyuan (Zhuge Zhe's courtesy name), Zilong!" Li Che embraced the two men and looked them up and down. "They didn't give you any trouble, did they?"

The two were moved when they saw that Li Che did not care about the convoy's supplies, but instead cared about them first.

Zhuge Zhe quickly bowed and said, "Don't worry, Your Highness, we are fine."

"That's good." Li Che breathed a sigh of relief and then looked at the long convoy. "Has the King of Goryeo agreed to my conditions?"

"Your Highness is very foresighted. The other party signed such a harsh treaty without even thinking about it." Zhuge Zhe showed admiration on his face.

"There are only some minor changes to some of the terms, but they do not exceed the bottom line that Your Highness and I agreed to, so I will agree to it."

"The King of Goryeo also sent a letter to His Majesty."

Li Che took an envelope from Yue Yun, opened it, and saw a complete treaty.

I took a quick look and didn't see any major changes or gimmicks.

Li Che couldn't help but smile and said, "This is a beautiful job. Mr. Zhuge is indeed resourceful and resourceful. He is truly my Kong Ming."

Zhuge Zhe asked in confusion, "What Kongming?"

Li Che then remembered that there was no prime minister in this world, and he had let the cat out of the bag.

It is impossible for Zhuge Zhe to have the courtesy name Kongming. In ancient times, courtesy names were not chosen randomly, but had to correspond to the given name.

For example, Zhao Yun’s name is Yun, and Yun follows the dragon, so his courtesy name is Zilong. The same goes for Yue Yun.

Zhuge Zhe, whose real name was Zhe, and Zhe and Yuan both mean quick-witted and outstanding, so his courtesy name was Ziyuan.

Even if he wanted to fulfill his dream of becoming the prime minister and asked Zhuge Zhe to change his name to Kongming, others would not agree.

"Nothing, nothing." Li Che didn't even glance at the letter. He pulled one person up with one hand and said, "Come on, come on, I'll prepare a banquet to celebrate your success."

Someone had counted the compensation materials from Goryeo, and Li Che called the generals together to celebrate the victory at this moment.

The generals were naturally happy. Li Che had been strictly requiring them to abstain from alcohol and restrain the soldiers in the past few days, but now they could finally relax.

The generals of the National Protection Army were also present. Alcohol always brings men closer together, and with every sip and peck of wine, the relationship between the generals of both sides became much closer.

After three rounds of wine, five flavors of food.

After the banquet, Li Che ordered Qiu Bai to make a pot of hot tea. While drinking the tea, he began to read the letter from the King of Goryeo.

After a moment, he put down the letter with a sneer.

The King of Goryeo was very humble, comparing Goryeo to his son and Daqing to his father.

He also said that Li Che's dispatch of troops was a father educating his ignorant son, and hoped that Daqing would not kill them all, after all, they were all family.

In the letter, he also addressed himself as brother, calling himself the elder brother and him the younger brother.

This King of Goryeo ascended the throne during the previous dynasty. If Li Che calculated correctly, he would be around sixty or seventy years old today, old enough to be his grandfather.

At such an old age, he is so shameless as to call me brother. I can only say that this old guy has really mastered the art of being able to bend and stretch.

As for those words of surrender, Li Che didn't believe a single word of it.

The Koreans have always been ambitious, how could they surrender so easily?

The more humble they are now, the greater the hatred they have for themselves.

Once their domestic situation eases and their relations with Silla and Baekje ease, they will definitely find ways to stir up trouble.

Of course, even if they don't cause trouble, Li Che will have to find a way to deal with them.

One is to fulfill the agreement with Emperor Qing and obtain the hereditary title of prince.

Second, Goryeo occupied large tracts of land in Liaodong and the later Jilin Province. If it wanted to completely control the Northeast region, it would have to avoid conflict with them.

It's just that the time has not come yet, and both sides are just pretending to be cooperative.

Thinking of this, Li Che narrowed his eyes.

I am waiting for the mass production of gunpowder and firearms and the expansion of military forces to cure my ancestral fear of insufficient firepower.

What are you waiting for, Goryeo?

. . . . . .

The next morning, the army set out.

The subsequent compensation from the Kingdom of Goryeo and several tribes has not yet been delivered, and the handover of Andong City has not been determined.

Li Che asked Zhuge Zhe to stay here to take charge of the situation, and then take the remaining supplies back after all the matters were resolved.

He himself returned first with the National Protection Army and part of the Ninggu Army.

After all, the army is too large and they spend a lot of time here every day, resulting in an astonishing consumption of food and grass.

The journey was smooth and unobstructed. Perhaps it was because the Ninggu Army had gained a reputation, but the barbarians on the road were hiding away.

Seven days later, the army finally arrived outside Chaoyang City.

The city wall has been almost repaired, and there is a constant stream of people at the city gate, creating a prosperous scene.

Yang Zhongsi looked at the city in front of him, feeling a lot of emotions in his heart.

"Why don't we go into the city and take a look before leaving?" Li Che suggested.

Yang Zhongsi shook his head: "No, when I left here, I told those people from the aristocratic families that I would never enter this city in my lifetime."

"Confucius said, 'A gentleman's word is as good as gold.' Although I am not a gentleman, I also know how to keep my word."

Li Che shook his head. Although he did not quite understand the ancients' extreme pursuit of trust and loyalty, he also expressed respect for it.

Yang Zhongsi looked at the generals of the National Protection Army, and a touch of tenderness appeared on his usually stern face:

"You wait here, loyally protect the young commander and help him achieve his great cause. Do not have any second thoughts."

The generals' eyes were filled with tears as they responded in unison.

Yang Zhongsi looked at Yang Xuan, who was already in tears, and said, "Xuan'er, I can't take you with me on this trip. I have to walk the rest of the way alone."

"Father..." Yang Xuan choked.

Yang Zhongsi turned his head and smiled freely.

With the whip in his hand raised, the warhorse rushed out neighing, followed closely by more than a hundred personal guards.

Li Che stared at Yang Zhongsi's back in silence.

Suddenly, he turned around and said loudly to himself, "Your Highness."

It was the first time that Li Che heard Yang Zhongsi call him "Your Highness" and he was slightly stunned.

"Next time we meet, I will bring an army of 100,000."

"When that time comes, wherever your sword points, that will be where my heart, Yang Zhongsi, desires. Wherever your gaze reaches, that will be the territory I will conquer for you!"

Yang Zhongsi retracted his gaze and turned around:

"Please take care, Your Highness!"