After seeing Ji Yin and the others off, Ling Zhang returned to the imperial palace. Yuwen Tong, who could tell from his sad face that he was upset and dispirited, informed him of something to distract his attention.

"Diplomatic corps of all the three foreign countries sent word that they're leaving."

"All of them?"

Ling Zhang's attention was immediately drawn to this matter. "I'm not surprised that diplomatic corps of the Wan Kingdom and the Luohai Kingdom are leaving. How come the diplomatic corps of the Fangcun Kingdom are leaving as well? Didn't they bring some caravans here? To my knowledge, those caravans haven't returned yet."

Yuwen Tong tapped the table and said, "Hai Feng's explanation is that they need to go back to attend their king's birthday party. He also showed me an invitation bearing their king's signature, saying that their king invited him to his birthday party."

"The King of Fangcun's birthday party? Is his birthday really coming up?"

"Yeah. Still, it might be just an excuse."

Ling Zhang pondered for quite a while before he said, "Maybe I should have my father ask Luo Sang about it. They've been actively cooperating with us, so if there's anything he could disclose, he definitely wouldn't keep it back from my father."

Yuwen Tong inclined his head. "All right."

...

At the same time. In a courier hostel.

There were densely posted guards both in and outside the courier hostel, most of whom were bodyguards brought to the Great Wen by the diplomatic corps of the three foreign countries. Normally, the host country wouldn't station any soldiers in a courier hostel. It was considered to be some kind of token of respect for envoys from foreign countries.

"So what do you say, Your Highness? You have everything to gain and nothing to lose by accepting these terms of the deal. If you don't make a decision soon, the situation will get very unfavorable for our plan."

Guards from the Wan Kingdom and the Luohai Kingdom could be seen standing at short intervals both in and outside this house, keeping potential eavesdroppers away. Shan Congyi was sitting opposite Mu Rongfeng, gazing squarely at the latter. The two of them were the only ones in this room, and nobody but themselves could hear their conversation.

"Prince Yi, let's be honest with each other. On the surface I'll be getting the better end of the bargain by accepting these terms, but the precondition is that the plan succeeds. What makes you so sure it'll work when there's such great risk involved?" asked Mu Rongfeng, looking back at him.

"Are you getting cold feet, Your Highness?" sniffed Shan Congyi. "Yuwen Tong sure as hell craves vengeance for our concerted attack on his country. The only reason why he hasn't taken any action yet is because this country is facing the same trouble that the Wan Kingdom is. He needs more time to rebuild strength, stabilize the political situation and consolidate his position. Once he hits his stride and the Great Wen recovers from the aftermath of the war, we'll come to grief. Surely Your Highness won't just stand by and wait for him to attack?"

"Yuwen Tong is welcome to try if he thinks he stands a chance of winning," observed Mu Rongfeng, a cold look on his face.

Shan Congyi chuckled, "Have you forgotten what else we came here for apart from Yuwen Tong's enthronement ceremony and wedding, Your Highness? You don't really need me to remind you of it, do you?

Yuwen Tong is nothing like his fatuous and self-indulgent predecessor of the Zhou family. He's like a ferocious tiger, one that might bite us at any moment. If we don't deal him a lethal blow while he's not at his full strength, his fangs will sink into our body sooner or later."

"The way I see it, your and your country's confidence and backbone has been destroyed by him, and you've lost the fight you used to have, which is why you're giving the enemy so much credit and giving yourself so little," jibed Mu Rongfeng.

Shan Congyi stared at him. "The Wan Kingdom has fought Yuwen Tong so many years, and nobody can deny how strong we are. There's no need for you to use this kind of words to goad me. Today we came here to talk about cooperation, so why don't we just be honest with each other? Your evasive manner is a sign of cowardice."

Mu Rongfeng fixed him with a gaze, his eyes glinting maliciously.

"Even if it fails, what could we possibly lose? The nightmare scenario would merely be losing some men. But if the plan succeeds, the Great Wen will descend into civil strife which will cost this country a lot of manpower, material resources and money, and it'll rock the foundations of Yuwen Tong's status as well. In that case, it'll take only a single concerted operation of ours to throw the Great Wen into chaos. With such a golden opportunity in front of us, I really couldn't understand why Your Highness are still hesitating," added Shan Congyi.

Mu Rongfeng suddenly smiled, the malevolence in his eyes vanishing instantly. "You overthink it, Prince Yi. I was just trying to confirm whether the Wan Kingdom has really sent some men there. If things do come to that as you said they would, Jiangzhou will be fraught with perils. I value my life very much and I don't want to die there."

Shan Congyi also smiled, "Rest assured, Your Highness, my men have successfully paved the way. As long as you give me a hand, things will soon escalate in Jiangzhou."

"Good. Now that you've done so much, I'll cooperate with you," said Mu Rongfeng.

Shan Congyi's face took on a satisfied expression. "Then I'll wait for your message."

"Well, I've given you my word, so I'll see it done by hook or by crook," said Mu Rongfeng.

"I'm glad to hear that. We've been here long enough. I should take my leave lest anybody become suspicious." Shan Congyi rose to his feet, intending to take his leave.

"Okay, Prince Yi. Pardon me for dispensing with the courtesy of walking you to the front gates, will you?" said Mu Rongfeng.

Shan Congyi gave a nod and then left the room. The moment he disappeared from view, Mu Rongfeng's face immediately fell emotionless and with that a man walked out from behind a screen, who was a member of the diplomatic corps of the Luohai Kingdom and also Mu Rongfeng's henchman.

"Your Highness, are we really going to join hands with the Wan Kingdom and make the situation in Jiangzhou escalate?" asked the henchman hesitantly.

Mu Rongfeng replied, "The outcome might be beneficial to us."

"But our goal is to play the Great Wen off the Wan Kingdom. Only by having them fight each other would we be able to benefit from the situation. If it's Jiangzhou that descends into chaos, the Great Wen will be the only side that suffer losses, and the Wan Kingdom will get enough time to rebuild its strength. In that case, our action would be synonymous with feeding a tiger to our own detriment. The Wan Kingdom's armies are quite strong, and once they get back to full strength, they'll be a great threat to us. Judging from Shan Congyi's words, the Wan Kingdom has a plan to weaken the Great Wen first and then send its armies southwards to subject the Great Wen to its rule. If things do come to that, we'll be in serious trouble," said the henchman.

Face darkening, Mu Rongfeng sniffed, "It won't be that easy for the Wan Kingdom to annex the Great Wen."

"Your Highness, I think you need to reconsider your decision. If our original plan succeeds, the Wan Kingdom and the Great Wen will start fighting. The more they weaken each other, the more beneficial the situation will be to us. In that case, we'll be the only strong country left, and it won't be difficult for us to annex them both. But if we personally nurse the Wan Kingdom back to full strength, it'll grow into a ferocious tiger, one we'll have a hard job to keep under control, one that might turn against us at any moment," commented the henchman.

Mu Rongfeng kept silent for a long moment before he said, "The situation in Jiangzhou could escalate very easily, and now is the best opportunity to make it happen. If we miss it, there will never be a second one. By comparison, driving a wedge between the Great Wen and the Wan Kingdom is not that easy. Yuwen Tong is no fool, and neither is the monarch of the Wan Kingdom. Currently they both need time to rebuild their strength. No matter what happens, they'll always seek to settle it in a non-violent way. If we stick to our original plan, the process will be quite time-consuming, and it's very likely that the two of them will return to full strength before we could make our plan work. In that case, the situation of tripartite confrontation will be restored and we probably won't get any benefits."

"Well..." The henchman hesitated. Of all these words of Mu Rongfeng's, what struck him as the most convincing was the remark "Yuwen Tong is no fool." In terms of Yuwen Tong's astuteness, both of them had learned their lessons previously. How was it possible for a man like him to fall prey to their tricks?

"Moreover, there's also a chance that things in Jiangzhou might not go as expected, so we might as well follow Shan Congyi's plan first. If it works and the Great Wen descends into civil strife, it'll be a good thing for us; if it fails, we'll switch to our original plan," said Mu Rongfeng.

That war had made it impossible for the Wan Kingdom, the Luohai Kingdom and the Great Wen to live in peace, especially after Yuwen Tong's enthronement, for both the Luohai Kingdom and the Wan Kingdom were very defensive with the Great Wen. They must make sure the Great Wen didn't return to its full strength, either by throwing the Great Wen into civil strife or by getting the Great Wen and the Wan Kingdom to fight each other! Otherwise they would undoubtedly end up dead.

The problem facing Mu Rongfeng right now was which plan to choose. Before he came to the Great Wen, their main plan had been to hoodwink the Great Wen into fighting the Wan Kingdom. After arriving in the Great Wen, Mu Rongfeng had found that the situation in the Great Wen was different than what he'd imagined it to be, and Yuwen Tong was also not exactly the same as the kind of person he'd expected him to be. This man was so shrewd and had enough military power at his command. Would it really be that easy to trick the Great Wen into fighting the Wan Kingdom?

Mu Rongfeng's uncertainty had been the reason why he'd chosen to cooperate with Shan Congyi.

Seeing Mu Rongfeng had made up his mind, the henchman came to realize that it was no good trying to dissuade him, that what they needed to do was make sure the situation in Jiangzhou escalated to the level they wanted it to reach!

"Your Highness, Shan Congyi is even more cunning than Shan Congwen. If we're to cooperate with him, we'll have to be extra careful."

Mu Rongfeng said, "I know. Shan Congyi might be able to fool the others with his pretence of fragility and harmlessness, but he doesn't fool me."

The henchman felt a slight sense of relief in the knowledge that Mu Rongfeng was also aware of it.

...

Meanwhile, the expression on Shan Congyi's face also disappeared immediately after he walked out of Mu Rongfeng's room, his eyes flashing with anger. Although Mu Rongfeng had agreed to cooperate in the end, Shan Congyi had perceived something from his hesitant attitude. Escalating the situation in Jiangzhou to throw the Great Wen into civil strife was obviously a perfect move which would do them only good and no harm, but Mu Rongfeng had still hesitated as though it was not to his liking, which suggested that Mu Rongfeng had another plan which he found more appealing.

Though unable to divine what kind of plan Mu Rongfeng had, Shan Congyi had a hunch that it was against the interests of the Wan Kingdom, which was why he was quite annoyed.

He thought, 'Mu Rongfeng is not content with annexing the Great Wen. Is he planning to annex the Wan Kingdom as well, by any chance? What a greedy bastard. It's true what they say, 'A man whose heart is not content is like a snake which tries to swallow an elephant."

"Please calm down, Your Highness. Now that Mu Rongfeng has agreed, all we have to do is follow the plan and make sure he meets his end in Jiangzhou. In that case, you'll get your vengeance on him," said Shan Congyi's henchman.

Shan Congyi sneered, "You're right. Since Mu Rongfeng dared covet our land, that will be the consequence he deserves to suffer. The Luohai Kingdom want to play us off the Great Wen and profit from the conflict. Humph. We'll see if they could live long enough to do that."

"Mu Rongfeng is the crown prince of the Luohai Kingdom. If he dies in the Great Wen, his father would definitely go berserk. The old monarch of the Luohai Kingdom has always been rather bitter about the defeat he suffered in this war. If we add a little bit fuel to the flames of his anger, he would sure as well send his armies to the Great Wen. As long as he attacks, the Great Wen will have no choice but to fight him. In that case, the Great Wen will lose its opportunity to rebuild strength, and the Luohai Kingdom's troops, material resources and wealth will dwindle perpetually as well. When they are at their weakest, we'll make our move and reap the fruit."

"Humph," Shan Congyi sneered. "You'll see. I'll get my vengeance on each and every single one of them. This time I'm going to make Yuwen Tong pay for what he did. Luohai dared plot against us, and they shall find the price for it quite heavy."

"You're truly a wise leader, Your Highness," remarked his henchman obsequiously.

...

In another house of the same courier hostel.

Hai Feng, the Prime Minister of the Fangcun Kingdom, was playing Chinese chess with an envoy. After a while, someone walked inside to deliver a message to him.

"Your Lordship, their meeting's over. Shan Congyi has returned to his room."

Hai Feng fingered his mustache. "How did he look when he left?"

"Shan Congyi didn't look very happy when he walked out of the house, but he was not as angry as he was the last time either."

Hai Feng and the envoy looked at each other for a moment before the former said aloud, "I see. You may leave."

"What do you think Shan Congyi and Mu Rongfeng are up to exactly, Your Lordship?" asked the envoy.

Hai Feng pondered for a little while and then replied, "As for their specific plans, your guess is as good as mine, but considering the overall situation, I think they'll either do something in Jiangzhou, or tamper with something in Cangzhou, or resort to assassination."

The envoy was taken aback by these words. "So they're bent on making trouble for the Great Wen?"

Hai Feng responded, "I'll be surprised if they're not. Yuwen Tong is too formidable an opponent. He took the throne from the Zhou family with barely any bloodshed and then stabilized the political situation within a very short time. Currently he only needs some more time to rebuild strength. Under no circumstances would the Wan Kingdom or the Luohai Kingdom allow such a strong enemy to return to full strength. The two countries have both fought Yuwen Tong and been defeated by him before. They fear Yuwen Tong, and there's no doubt they'll do something to hinder Yuwen Tong from strengthening his position."

The envoy was secretly startled. "Your analysis sent a chill down my spine, Your Lordship. No wonder you're in such a hurry to get out of this country. I really admire your insight."

Hai Feng gave a chuckle at the compliment. On the surface, he looked like a rich merchant, and his smile was genial and seemingly inoffensive, but the envoy sitting opposite him was aware that Hai Feng was definitely a formidable political figure as well. Although he didn't work in the capital city of Fangcun, he had long since heard about Hai Feng's reputation.

"My unwillingness to be dragged into the upcoming rough-and-tumble between the three countries is indeed part of the reason why I'm leaving in such haste, but His Majesty does want me to return as soon as possible," said Hai Feng.

On hearing this, the envoy hastened to smile, "I should've thought of that. Please pardon me for my lack of perception, Your Lordship."

Hai Feng asked, "I heard that Luo Sang's trading fleet and the Ling family are pretty close. Is that true?"

The envoy hadn't thought that Hai Feng would suddenly bring this up, but he didn't dare keep anything back. "Yes. The Ling family own a large herb farm in Tanyang, and a lot of the herbs they plant there can't be found in our country. In addition, the Ling family have Ling Zhang at their back, so their businesses will no doubt thrive. Luo Sang has always been in cooperation with the Ling family, and this time he took advantage of the opportunity and furthered their partnership. I can't say for sure how things would turn out in the long run, but in the next few years, the Ling family will rely on Luo Sang's trading fleet to do business with our country."

After saying this, the envoy, seeing Hai Feng was silent, asked, "Is there anything particular you want me to do about it, Your Lordship?"

Hai Feng responded, "Disclose to Luo Sang the secret talk between Mu Rongfeng and Shan Congyi. Tell him there's a very high chance they're conspiring against the Great Wen. Have him intimate it to the Ling family if the occasion arises."

"Are you saying that we'll give Yuwen Tong a word of warning?" asked the envoy.

Hai Feng smiled, "You still haven't got the point. You don't seriously think Yuwen Tong needs me to forewarn him of this? I'm just doing him a favor that costs me nothing. No matter where the Great Wen will be standing with the Wan Kingdom and the Luohai Kingdom in the future, our friendship with the Great Wen will make things a lot easier for us during our future dealings with it."

The envoy's eyes lit up. "You're so visionary, Your Lordship. I really admire you. I'll go and repeat this to Luo Sang."

...

Ling Zhang had someone deliver a message to Ling Zhaowu, who gave it some thought after receiving it and then sent Luo Sang an invitation.

Luo Sang, who had just finished his talk with the envoy when Ling Zhaowu's invitation came, instantly broke out in a cold sweat. 'The emperor of the Great Wen has indeed become suspicious. This matter might be the very reason why Ling Zhaowu sent me an invitation,' he thought.

Luo Sang went to the appointed place at the agreed time with unease. At the sight of Ling Zhaowu looking at him with a smile, he hastened to greet him. "It's an honor to bow before you, Earl Taichang (AKA the Earl of Prosperity). There's no need for you to be so courteous, Your Lordship. You could've just summoned me. Had you done that, I would immediately go to your abode to visit you."

Ling Zhaowu said, "You're being too polite, Captain Luo. We're business partners, so you may see me as a businessman. 'Earl Taichang' is nothing but a fancy title. It's unnecessary for you to bother with the formalities because of it."

With frequent, polite chuckle, Luo Sang chatted with Ling Zhaowu for a while and then inquired, "May I ask what it is that Your Lordship want to see me about? Have there been any changes in our cooperation?"

"Don't worry, Captain Luo. Our partnership is very solid. It's not about business," answered Ling Zhaowu.