Entering Tiandou!

Upon hearing the words of the First Prince, Xue Qinghe, not a single civil or military official in the Heaven Dou Imperial Palace dared to speak.

They all stared at him intently.

Xue Xing's face was also etched with shock.

He truly had not expected that Xue Qinghe would dare to directly confront his statement, let alone do so with such bluntness.

His actions were so decisive.

Hearing his eldest son's words, the gaze of Emperor Xue Ye slowly sharpened.

The Heaven Dou realm, the Heaven Dou Imperial family.

That's right.

He had to prioritize the Heaven Dou realm and the Heaven Dou Imperial family.

If the Great Ming army were to raze Tiandou City within a day, it would surely become a living hell on earth.

The Heaven Dou Imperial family and he himself would undoubtedly become primary targets; it was hard to say if they could even survive.

If he only cared about immediate interests and ended up dead, it would be uncertain whether the Heaven Dou Empire would even bear the name Xue in the future.

Was he actually inferior to a child? Was he truly less clear-sighted than his own son?

In that instant, Emperor Xue Ye felt old.

In a daze, he raised his eyes to look at Xue Qinghe.

He was young, he was decisive, he was ruthless in achieving his goals, and he understood the bigger picture. He knew what he wanted, with the Heaven Dou Imperial family at the center.

How similar, how very similar to himself when he was young...

"Pass the order: I am willing to represent the Heaven Dou Empire and sign the treaty of defeat."

Emperor Xue Ye gritted his teeth.

He decided to do something more.

If this matter were voiced by Xue Qinghe, he would carry the stain; if it were spoken by his own mouth and executed by his own hand, then it would be his own burden to bear.

As long as it was managed well, his son would not only avoid being the one who forced the Heaven Dou Empire to sign a treaty of defeat, but could instead be the heroic ruler who saved the Heaven Dou Empire!

Ten minutes later.

Before the imperial camp of the Great Ming Empire.

"Your Majesty, Emperor of Great Ming, we of the Heaven Dou Empire are willing to sign a treaty of defeat, just like the Star Luo Empire."

"What do you think?"

As the envoy once again approached Xu Nian'an with extreme caution.

Xu Nian'an looked up, his eyes devoid of any emotion.

"You say you won't fight, so you don't fight?"

"You say you surrender, so you surrender?"

"Are the one hundred thousand Dragon Guards who died without retreating at Gulei City of the Great Ming to be simply written off?"

Thud~!!!!

The Heaven Dou envoy was very practiced; without a word, he knelt down.

"We of Heaven Dou are willing to cede territory and pay reparations, just like the Star Luo Empire, compensating for the defeat with one billion Gold Soul Coins!"

Hearing this, there was no expression on Xu Nian'an's face.

Ceding territory and paying reparations—wasn't that what a defeated nation was required to do?

"One billion Gold Soul Coins was the price on the Star Luo Empire battlefield."

"You don't think my one hundred thousand Dragon Guards died for nothing, do you?"

Robbery.

This was what you called daylight robbery.

This was exactly what Xu Nian'an was doing, but did they have any choice?

If they weren't convinced, they could keep fighting, and Xu Nian'an would certainly beat them into submission.

"I understand. I wonder if the Emperor of Great Ming could provide a specific price?"

Tap, tap, tap~!!!

Xu Nian'an's index finger tapped lightly against the Dragon Pattern Chair, and he couldn't help but want to laugh.

Since he was the one asking, he would have to multiply his expectations several times over.

"Five billion."

When the price fell from Xu Nian'an's lips, the Heaven Dou envoy's head roared.

Fi... five billion.

Just how many carriages would it take to haul all that?

To be honest, Xu Nian'an did not want to just let it go at that.

After all, those were one hundred thousand Dragon Guards. If they were to marry and have children in the Great Ming Kingdom, and those children in turn married and had children of their own, the population of Great Ming would expand rapidly. They would lack neither soldiers nor people.

Only then would it truly look like an empire.

But there was no helping it; at least for now, Xu Nian'an had no way to achieve that, as the population base of Great Ming was simply too small.

He could not just slaughter all the people of other nations, and he did not want anyone who lacked the bloodline of Great Ming.

Most importantly.

He could not trigger the special skill: [Awe of Royal Power!: Fifty percent loyalty from the subjects of the Great Ming Kingdom!].

Therefore, Xu Nian'an could only demand money or take women back to allow Great Ming a period of recuperation.

In a dozen years or so, the population could surge to ten million.

Only then would it be time to truly unify the continent. Otherwise, Xu Nian'an did not want Great Ming to fall apart and perish in its second generation shortly after he unified the continent and ascended, much like a certain great empire from his past life.

Or perhaps have some "Great Ming God of War" emerge and squander all of Great Ming's foundations overnight, returning them to square one.

"Fi... Fifty billion!!!"

"That's impossible!"

In the Heaven Dou Imperial Palace.

Upon learning of the figure Xu Nian'an had put forward, everyone was shocked.

Fifty billion Gold Soul Coins—let alone fifty billion, even though the Heaven Dou Empire was wealthier than the Star Luo Empire, they could not even scrape together one billion Gold Soul Coins.

They had been prepared to pay a certain amount, seeing that their old rival, the Star Luo Empire, had been forced to cough up so much.

But for the price to suddenly increase by four billion for no reason? They truly lacked the funds, even if they had the heart to pay.

"Father, since Great Ming is willing to loosen their stance, it means there is still room for negotiation. This son is willing to go and mediate!"

At the critical moment, Xue Qinghe stepped forward. He did not want the Heaven Dou Empire to drop the ball at such a crucial time, especially with nightfall approaching.

It was him again; at the critical moment, it was Xue Qinghe who stepped forward once more.

Watching this, Emperor Xue Ye could not help but feel a pang of heartache.

He had failed this son of his.

"Good, very good. You are truly worthy of being my son."

Pulling Xue Qinghe into an embrace, Xue Ye whispered a few words.

"No matter what, you must ensure your own safety."

"Negotiate if you can; if you can't, then forget it. Prioritize the Heaven Dou Imperial Family. In the future, this world will have to rely on... you."

Hearing this, Xue Qinghe's pupils constricted slightly.

He already had a guess in his heart.

After all his hard work, this old bastard was finally planning to name him Crown Prince.

However, this matter had to be handled beautifully.

He had to ensure no one could find fault with it, and he had to give Xue Ye a reason to bestow rewards upon him.

"Xue Qinghe of the Heaven Dou Empire pays his respects to the Emperor of Great Ming!"

Hearing this voice and this form of address, the corners of Xu Nian'an's mouth curled up slightly before he quickly composed himself.

This small movement was instantly observed by Xue Qinghe.

It seems the relationship between those two truly exceeds my expectations.

Xue Qinghe bowed respectfully.

"Your Majesty, Emperor of Great Ming, fifty billion is too much. If you would consider..."

Xu Nian'an waved his hand.

"Since my cousin has come, let's make it a bit less: forty billion."

To be honest, it was absolutely impossible for the Heaven Dou Empire to produce that much money in a short time. By the time they finished paying off the debt, a hundred years would have passed. Such a long period would be more than enough for Xu Nian'an to wipe them out again and unify the continent.

Therefore, what Xu Nian'an wanted was for the two great empires to provide a blood transfusion to Great Ming in the short term, supplying money so that once Great Ming developed, he could destroy them and unify the continent.

Thus, whether the Heaven Dou Empire paid more or less was merely a matter of a single word from Xu Nian'an.

Upon hearing Xu Nian'an's words, Xue Qinghe was secretly delighted.

It seemed it had indeed worked.

"Cousin, forty billion is still a bit... too much for Heaven Dou. So..."

"Come, let's drink. We can talk over the table."

After saying this, Xue Qinghe waved his hand, and a spread of delicacies appeared.

Xu Nian'an shook his head, his eyes fixed on the other with a playful gaze.

"Thirty-five."

Xue Qinghe pursed his lips; it was getting close.

"Cousin, didn't you say last time that you wanted to bathe in my palace?"

Hearing this, Xu Nian'an swept a glance at him.

"Thirty."

"If you want to continue, it depends on whether your sincerity is enough, cousin."

Xue Qinghe gritted his teeth and turned to look at the Great Snow Dragon Cavalry surrounding them.

"Everyone, it's cold outside Tiandou City. I invite you all to enter the city and enjoy the festivities!"

At a signal from Xu Nian'an, the commander of the Great Snow Dragon Cavalry quickly led his men to the gates of Tiandou City.

"We have not received orders to open the gates."

Hearing this, the commander of the Great Snow Dragon Cavalry curled his lips into a cold sneer.

"Orders?"

Swish, swish.

He scribbled two characters and flung the paper directly into the guard's face.

"This is the order!"

Swish!

"Welcome the Northern Expedition Ming Army into the city!"

Before nightfall, the entire Ming Army had entered Tiandou City, taking control of all key locations and skillfully replacing the banners with the Great Ming Flag.

Having taken control of Tiandou, at least for now, Tiandou City belonged to Xu Nian'an.

"Cousin, two billion is my bottom line. Any less, and our relationship will start to sour."

"Therefore, this hundred-million-scale project ends here."

"The relationship between you and me could have gone further, but unfortunately, you destroyed it with your own hands."

Having said that, Xu Nian'an's expression shifted violently, and he shoved away the hand Xue Qinghe had tried to drape over his shoulder.