With a million soldiers, the empress begged me not to rebel

The king stood up suddenly and glared at his old minister.

"You want me to give my sister to that thief? Are you crazy?!"

"Your Majesty, at this point, this is the only solution."

The old minister said with a bitter face:

"Lu Yan is very ambitious. If we don't agree to his terms, he will definitely march south."

"Then Java will face a devastating disaster."

"This..." The king hesitated.

Although he loved his sister, he also understood that if the Javanese Empire was destroyed, Aisha would not be spared.

"Your Majesty, I second this motion!"

Another minister stepped forward.

"For the future of Java, we must make sacrifices!"

"I also second the proposal!"

"I also second the proposal!"

More and more officials came out to express their support, and the king's expression became increasingly grim.

"Ridiculous! Even if I die in battle, I will never give Aisha to Lu Yan!"

The Javanese king roared, his body trembling slightly under his dragon robe.

He flicked his sleeves suddenly, sweeping the memorials on the table to the ground.

"What a bunch of short-sighted fools! To survive, they're willing to sacrifice my own sister!"

The ministers in the hall were silent as a mouse, not daring to make a sound.

The old minister who had just proposed the marriage was so frightened that his face turned pale.

He fell to his knees with a thud, kowtowed and begged for mercy:

"Your Majesty, please calm down! This old minister is also concerned about the country and the people!"

Just then, hurried footsteps were heard outside the hall.

A guard rushed in and reported loudly:

"Your Majesty, Duke Wu Jin Xuanming is back!!"

"Let him in!"

The king waved his hands impatiently, as if grasping at straws.

"If he brings back the snow lotus, I can spare his life. Otherwise..."

Jin Xuanming walked into the hall, looking exhausted.

He knelt on one knee, and before he could open his mouth, the king asked impatiently:

"Where's Xuelian? Did you find Xuelian?"

Jin Xuanming's expression changed, and he stammered:

"Your Majesty... I... I am incompetent and have failed to find the snow lotus..."

"what?!"

The king stood up suddenly, grabbed Jin Xuanming by the collar and roared.

"You useless piece of shit! I sent you to find Xuelian, but you returned empty-handed! Now that Haixia Pass has been lost, what crime will you be punished for?"

When Jin Xuanming heard the news that Haixia Pass had fallen, he was struck by lightning and was completely stunned.

He never imagined that Haixia Pass would fall into Lu Yan's hands after he had been away for only a few days.

His legs went limp and he collapsed to the ground, his face pale, his lips trembling, and he couldn't speak for a long time.

"Hai...Haixiaguan...how...how is it possible..."

He muttered to himself, his eyes full of disbelief.

Haixia Pass is easy to defend but difficult to attack, and it is heavily guarded. How could Lu Yan break through it so quickly?

He raised his head, looked at the king with dull eyes, and asked in a trembling voice:

"Your Majesty...is this...is this true?"

The king was furious and pushed him to the ground, roaring:

"How dare you ask me this? I ask you, why did Haixia Pass fall?"

"As the Duke of Wu, you neglected your duties, causing Haixia Pass to fall into enemy hands. What crime should you be punished for?"

Jin Xuanming was frightened by the king's roar and kowtowed to beg for mercy:

"Your Majesty, please spare my life! I...I know my crime! I deserve death!"

He quickly explained:

"Your Majesty, I did not mean to delay, but...but..."

"But what? Tell me!"

The king was so furious that he wanted to kick to death this guy who was more of a hindrance than an advantage.

Jin Xuanming's eyes turned, and he suddenly thought of something, and said quickly:

"Your Majesty, I remember now! The fall of Haixia Pass must have been caused by that Night Owl! He must have been a spy sent by Lu Yan!"

"Nite Owl?"

The king frowned, the image of the taciturn man emerging in his mind.

"He saved Aisha, how could he be Lu Yan's spy?"

"Your Majesty, you don't know!"

Jin Xuanming said hurriedly:

"The timing of Night Owl's appearance is too coincidental, and he is a highly skilled martial artist. There must be something fishy going on!"

"I suspect he deliberately approached the princess, waiting for an opportunity to seize Haixia Pass!"

The king pondered for a moment and shook his head:

"If Ye Xiao is really Lu Yan's spy, he could just hold Aisha hostage and use it to threaten us. Why bother with this?"

When Jin Xuanming heard this, he immediately became anxious:

"Your Majesty, you must not be deceived by him! Lu Yan is very cunning, maybe this is his conspiracy!"

"He first let Ye Xiao gain our trust, and then he joined forces with us to seize Haixia Pass!"

"This……"

The king hesitated a little, although he did not completely believe what Jin Xuanming said.

But this possibility cannot be completely ruled out.

"Your Majesty, I think it is better to believe it exists than not to believe it exists!"

Jin Xuanming continued to fan the flames, "If we don't take precautions soon, it will be too late to regret it!"

In the court, the ministers began to discuss.

Some people support Jin Xuanming's point of view and believe that the night owl is indeed suspicious.

Others thought that the king was right, that the Night Owl saved the princess and should not be a spy.

For a moment, the court was in chaos, with all kinds of voices intertwined together, making people dizzy.

"enough!"

The king slapped the armrest of the dragon throne, and the hall fell silent instantly.

"Let's put this matter aside for now and wait until I find out the truth! Jin Xuanming, you deserted your post, causing the loss of Haixia Pass. Your guilt cannot be escaped. Take him to prison and await your punishment!"

Two guards dragged Jin Xuanming out. The hall was so silent that you could hear a pin drop.

The king sat dejectedly on the dragon throne, rubbing his aching temples.

The news of the fall of Haixia Pass was like a bolt from the blue, shocking him utterly.

He knew in his heart that although Jin Xuanming was wrong, his crime did not deserve the death penalty.

What's more, now is the time when we need people, and losing a general is tantamount to cutting off one's own arm.

"Wait!"

The king shouted in a deep voice, and the guards immediately stopped.

Jin Xuanming collapsed on the ground like a puddle of mud and raised his head in horror.

The king sighed.

"Jin Xuanming, I will spare your life for now, in recognition of your past contributions. Now that Haixia Pass has been lost, do you have any good plan to recapture it?"

Jin Xuanming felt like he had grabbed a life-saving straw and kowtowed quickly:

"Your Majesty is wise! I... I have a plan that may work..."

In order to save his life and to make amends, he had no choice but to take the risk.

"tell me the story."

The king rubbed his brow, looking tired.

"I...I think I can perhaps take advantage of...take advantage of Her Highness the Princess's feelings for that Night Owl..."

Jin Xuanming chose his words carefully, observing the king's expression.

The king's brows were furrowed, and his face was terribly gloomy.

"What exactly do you want to say?"

"I...I think we can...we can use Her Royal Highness the Princess to lure Night Owl here and capture him, and then use this to threaten Lu Yan and force him to return Haixia Pass!"