This was simply a naked threat, leaving no room for negotiation whatsoever. They were forcibly demanding his woman, and Wu Gongling hated it so much his teeth itched.
If he truly agreed to this, where would he put his face?
But Meng Shanming had personally arrived at the front lines, and the deterrence he posed was no small matter. Wu Gongling's face was grim, his gaze shifting uncertainly as he sat there, no one knowing what he was thinking.
"May I ask, Your Majesty, what is the situation?" Chancellor Zi Pingxiu cautiously asked.
Wu Gongling said nothing. With a wave of his hand, the military report and Meng Shanming's proclamation were passed around among the civil and military officials.
After everyone took turns reading them, their hearts likewise pounded in alarm. Meng Shanming had personally come to the front lines and had declared in no uncertain terms that war would begin, placing immense pressure on them all.
To the entire Song Kingdom, Meng Shanming was a dark cloud hanging over the hearts of the Song people. Time and again, he had inflicted tremendous damage upon Song, and Song had seemingly never had anyone capable of stopping him.
After a stretch of silence, Wu Gongling suddenly asked, "What do you all think?"
What else was there to think? Words once spoken were like water spilled from a basin—there was no easy taking them back. Changing their tune would be slapping their own faces, so no one lightly altered their stance. The two opposing views continued to clash.
One side believed that even Meng Shanming had gone to Bo Prefecture. Bo Prefecture was not Niu Youdao's territory, which showed that Purple Gold Cave had reached a unified internal decision; they might very well truly go to war. The other side believed that