Tang Dynasty: To win Yang Guifei, they asked Emperor Xuanzong to die.

Li Mao was in his tent, recalling the instructions that had come from Chang'an.

Li Longji's attitude was clear, but not overly forceful.

He understood that the Wolf Lord's proposal of a marriage alliance was a double test of both Chang'an, thousands of miles away, and himself, who was right before his eyes. If he didn't handle it properly, it would not only jeopardize the peace talks but could also arouse suspicion within the court.

The curtain fluttered slightly, and Li Jingqing entered, breaking the silence of the room. "Your Highness, are you still worried about the Wolf Lord?"

Li Mao sighed softly, "The Wolf Lord's thoughts are unpredictable. Between truth and falsehood, one can easily fall into a trap if one is not careful."

He put down his pen, looked up, and asked, "What do you think?"

"Your Highness, regardless of the Wolf Lord's intentions, all we need to do is remain invincible."

As the two were talking, Afu walked in, bringing a letter. "Your Highness, this is the Wolf Lord's reply."

Li Mao opened the letter and read it carefully.

As expected, the letter stated that the Wolf Lord was willing to further discuss the marriage alliance, and also mentioned the recent movements of the Tang army, which made Li Mao even more certain that the Wolf Lord's intentions were not simply to seek peace.

“It seems that although the Wolf Lord is willing to talk, his conditions are constantly increasing.” Li Mao turned to look at the map in the tent. “We must come up with a more targeted strategy.”

Li Jingqing pondered for a moment, then spoke up: "Your Highness, why not take advantage of the Wolf Lord's implied meaning to guide the direction of the negotiations appropriately? This way, we can ensure that we do not lose our initiative."

“Good idea.” Li Mao nodded. “We will make this our top priority and proceed with the other preparations in secret.”

Afu chimed in, "In this way, we can not only stabilize the peace talks, but also buy more time to explore the Wolf Army's true intentions."

Li Mao looked at the map and came up with a plan. "Afu, go and invite the tribal chiefs who are close to me. We need their support."

"Your Highness, rest assured, I will make careful arrangements." Afu immediately accepted the order and left.

Another sleepless night.

Li Mao was deep in thought.

He recalled the arduous battles of recent days and couldn't help but feel a deep sense of emotion.

At the same time, the movements in Chang'an also closely affected everything on the frontier.

Under the cover of night, Li Longji paced back and forth in his study, deep in thought.

Zhang Jiuling entered the imperial study and, seeing the emperor's back, asked, "Your Majesty, how do you think Prince Shou will respond?"

Li Longji stopped and pondered, "Li Mao has been trained on the frontier since childhood. He is able to understand the situation, but I still need to give him support."

"Perhaps we can take this opportunity to consolidate our relations with the various northern tribes and use our overall interests as bargaining chips in negotiations," Zhang Jiuling said, offering his opinion.

Li Longji nodded slightly. "In this way, not only can we stabilize the northern border, but we can also enhance the image of the Tang army." After pondering for a moment, he continued, "Issue an imperial decree ordering the Duke of Wei to speed up his march to the northern border to assist Li Mao."

Zhang Jiuling understood immediately and began making arrangements.

A few days later, Li Mao received a reply from the imperial court, and his feelings were extremely complicated.

The dispatch of reinforcements is certainly a form of support, but it also signifies that Chang'an attaches greater importance to affairs in the northern frontier.

Soon after, the Duke of Wei arrived at the camp with an elite cavalry unit.

Li Mao personally greeted him, feeling somewhat emotional.

"Your Highness, it's been a long time. How have you been?" Duke Wei bowed respectfully.

"Uncle Wei, you must be tired from your journey." Li Mao stopped being formal and greeted him warmly. "With your help, we will surely win this battle."

"My lords and soldiers are seasoned warriors, and their bravery is unstoppable." The Duke of Wei looked steadily back at the distant barracks, a look of satisfaction on his face. "However, we must still plan carefully before we act."

“Uncle Wei is right. We have already established some frameworks for our initial plan. Let’s go inside and discuss it in detail.” Li Mao led the Duke of Wei into the central military tent.

Inside the tent, Li Jingqing and Afu had been waiting for a long time. Upon seeing the Duke of Wei, they bowed to each other.

"Let's begin the discussion immediately," Li Mao gestured for everyone to take their seats.

Duke Wei looked around and got straight to the point: "Although the marriage alliance is the top priority at present, we cannot forget military strategy. In order to guard against unforeseen circumstances, I have brought an elite cavalry unit."

Li Mao nodded his thanks, "That's exactly what we need. The various tribes are still unstable, and we must seek the greatest benefit from this situation."

"Is Your Highness planning to exchange peace talks for the support of the tribes?" the Duke of Wei asked.

“This is just one part of the process,” Li Mao replied. “I want to unite the strength of the border tribes to jointly safeguard the achievements of the marriage alliance.”

"In this way, we can not only strengthen the alliance between the two sides, but also resolve potential hostility," Li Jingqing added regarding this matter.

“That’s right, we were able to proceed with a cautious approach and win their trust through concrete actions,” Li Mao added, his thinking clear and firm.

Afu also suggested: "We can strengthen our ties with them through some small-scale trade, while also trying to obtain valuable intelligence."

“That’s exactly what I was thinking.” Li Mao looked at everyone approvingly. “It seems that everyone understands the importance of this matter. Let’s proceed with this plan.”

Li Mao then personally led them to hold talks with the Wolf Lord's side, scrutinizing each clause of the agreement.

At the same time, they continuously reported the progress at the front to Chang'an to ensure the emperor's full support.

In the stillness of the night, Li Mao sat at the table, gazing at the extinguished candlelight in the tent, and finally felt a sense of peace.

He knew that many things were gradually getting on track, and all that was needed was to steadily move forward moment by moment.

"Your Highness, you should rest." Li Jingqing pushed open the door and walked in, seeing Li Mao still working diligently at his desk, and couldn't help but remind him.

Li Mao chuckled, "Jing Qing, we might see a new situation tomorrow. They have already made some substantial concessions."

Li Jingqing felt relieved. "It's all thanks to Your Highness's strategy that the situation was turned around so quickly."

“No, it’s all thanks to everyone’s efforts,” Li Mao retorted. “Each of us is key to this situation.”

Li Mao let out a long sigh of relief and finally stood up slowly. "Jing Qing, carefully review every clause of the agreement again to ensure that there are no mistakes tomorrow."

"Yes, Your Highness," Li Jingqing replied, and then did as instructed.

……

Not far away, within the Wolf Lord's tent, a similar undercurrent of tension was brewing. The Wolf Lord rose and took a few steps, then asked in a low voice, "Did their envoy really agree?"

"Yes, I am still investigating the specifics," the subordinate replied.

“Very good, we must continue our actions and not let our guard down,” the Wolf Lord said meaningfully.

Early the next morning, urgent calls came from Li Mao's tent.

"Your Highness, the Wolf Lord has sent a new envoy, accompanied by more attendants," a soldier's voice reported from the camp.

Li Mao was slightly surprised, and he also sensed something was amiss, so he said to the soldiers, "Please invite them to the main tent."

Li Jingqing and Afu also rushed over upon hearing the commotion and found seats inside the tent.