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

Hearing Luo Yueniang's question, Li Lin remained calm and said, "The late emperor's edict bequeathed the throne to Your Majesty. It is written in black and white and is witnessed by all under heaven!"

"My sixth brother's succession to the throne is legitimate and indisputable!"

"As for the false emperor in the south, he is nothing but a clown who has stolen the divine artifact. He will be wiped out sooner or later!"

It would have been better if Emperor Qing hadn't been mentioned. Upon hearing the words "the late emperor," Luo Yueniang couldn't help but snort coldly, and was about to speak.

Just then, a Shu army general ran up and interrupted their conversation: "General! We have found the corpse of the chief of the Duzhang barbarians. It has been blasted beyond recognition by artillery fire."

The leader of the barbarian tribes was that burly man with the giant axe. He charged ahead with his mere courage, and if he didn't die, who would?

"The leader of the Baicao Qiang is still alive, but he is seriously injured. He was hit in the chest by shrapnel and he probably won't last much longer."

Luo Yueniang's eyes flashed, and she temporarily suppressed her argument with Li Lin, ordering in a deep voice, "Bring him here."

"Yes!"

Two Shu soldiers dragged a bloodied person over and placed him in front of Luo Yueniang and Li Lin.

The leader of the Baicao Qiang was an old man with white hair and beard, who was so weak that he could not even kill a chicken. He must have been an elder of the tribe.

There was a horrific wound between his chest and abdomen, likely embedded with mortar fragments, and blood was still gushing out.

His face was ashen, and he was barely breathing, but his deep-set eyes burned with a venomous flame, fixed on Luo Yueniang.

Luo Yueniang, however, remained unconcerned, looking down at him with an icy voice: "The Baicao Qiang have been allied with Shu for decades, and we have lived in peace ever since. Why are you rebelling again now?"

Upon hearing this, the old man grinned, revealing his blood-stained teeth, and let out a mocking laugh.

"Heh... Hahaha! What 'rebellion' you're talking about? What a joke!"

"You Qing people, have you ever truly treated us like human beings?!"

He spoke the Xia language exceptionally fluently, clearly having long been dealing with the Shu government.

“You keep encroaching on our hunting grounds, you cut down our forests, and the young men of our tribe are forced to leave their homes to serve as slaves for the nobles in your cities, building them magnificent houses and gardens, yet they can’t even get a full meal!”

“Our children are starving and freezing in the mountains, while your children are living in luxury in the city. What kind of submission is this? This is slavery!”

"If we don't rebel and fight back, you will eventually devour my Baicaoqiang people until there are no bones left!"

Luo Yueniang frowned and coldly rebuked, "Even if the government is unjust, at least they gave you a way to live and designated a place to live. They did not exterminate you!"

"But what about you? You slaughtered cities and plundered territories, burned villages, leaving no one alive in your wake!"

"How innocent were those unarmed women and children? Must your anger be repaid with the blood of countless civilians?!"

The old man gasped for breath, a grim smile twisting his face: "The victor is king, the loser is villain... It's always been this way, isn't this the way of you Qing people?!"

"How could I possibly stop the anger that has been building up in the hearts of my people for generations?"

"Besides... why should I stop you? I'm angry too, and I want you to taste the bitterness of losing your families!"

The old man was extremely crazy, clearly having given up all hope, and Luo Yueniang could only remain silent.

She knew very well that the hatred between the two races was deeply rooted and could not be measured by simple right or wrong.

It's just a difference in perspective; both sides are prejudiced, and there's no truth to it.

She suddenly turned her head and looked at Li Lin, who was silently observing from the side: "Your Highness, if your Emperor were here, how would you deal with them?"

Upon hearing this, Li Lin revealed a meaningful smile and said confidently, "My Emperor has always been benevolent and virtuous, benefiting all people. Naturally, he would not do anything to exterminate the people."

Upon hearing this, the dying White Grass Qiang leader on the ground trembled slightly, and a will to survive rekindled in his cloudy eyes.

He struggled to sit up and looked anxiously at Li Lin:

"You...you are Emperor Daqing's man. I've heard that you are fighting against the Shu army. Why are you attacking us as well?"

"We are also enemies of Shu. The enemy of my enemy is my friend, but it doesn't matter..."

"Please inform His Majesty Emperor Qing: We, the Baicao Qiang, are willing to surrender and submit to the Great Qing for generations, becoming His Majesty's most loyal subjects!"

"I swear, we will not hold this against you, we only ask... we only ask for a way to live!"

Luo Yueniang, who was standing to the side, frowned deeply and a sense of vigilance rose in her heart.

She couldn't help but interject, "Let them go? Such indecisiveness is not the way of an emperor!"

Li Lin glanced at Luo Yueniang, whose face was filled with displeasure, and suddenly grinned: "Release? Of course we'll release her."

He spoke slowly, his gaze returning to the face of the Baicao Qiang chieftain: "However, this way of survival isn't given away for free; there are conditions."

Upon hearing this, the old man's face instantly lit up with ecstatic joy, as if his pain had lessened somewhat, and he nodded repeatedly in agreement:

"There are conditions! Good! Tell us, what are the conditions? We'll agree to them all!"

Faced with the imminent threat of annihilation, even if Li Lin wanted the heads of his entire family, he had no choice but to agree.

Li Lin's smile grew even more benevolent. He leaned down slightly, stared into the old man's eyes, and spoke slowly and deliberately:

“Our Emperor once said something that I have always regarded as a guiding principle.”

He paused, his tone suddenly turning cold:

"Kill one of my men, and you'll slaughter a hundred; massacre one of my cities, and you'll annihilate a thousand of your generals!"

"It's very simple, isn't it?" Li Lin straightened up, spreading his hands like a bear. "Don't you like to keep accounts? Then settle this debt for me, one by one!"

“We’ll talk about forgiving you once this debt is paid off.”

Upon hearing this, a deathly silence fell over the surroundings, with only the mournful sound of the wind whistling across the blood-stained earth echoing through the valley.

The ecstasy on the face of the Baicao Qiang leader froze instantly, then crumbled like broken porcelain, leaving only bottomless despair.

He stared blankly at Li Lin, trying to understand the meaning of his words.

Kill one man, slay a hundred? Slaughter a city, annihilate a thousand generals?

During this rebellion, they captured eight cities, and how much of the Qing people's blood did they shed on their hands?

Even a rough estimate shows that those are terrifying numbers.

Even if you tied up all the men, women, and children of all the Qiang and Man tribes together, it still wouldn't be enough to compensate them!

The other Shu generals also looked at Li Lin as if he were a monster.

"You...you..." The old man stretched out his blood-stained finger, pointing tremblingly at Li Lin.

"You butcher! You devil! Are you trying to exterminate us Qiang people?!"

Seeing his devastated state, Li Lin's smile only grew brighter.

He nodded approvingly and said, "Hmm, at least you said something smart."