Once the king and his ministers had settled their plans, they sent an envoy to present a memorial to Yang Guang and pledge their allegiance.
Eighty li from Goguryeo's capital, the envoy encountered the Great Sui army. He hurriedly presented the surrender memorial to Yang Guang and conveyed the king of Goguryeo's request to surrender.
Yang Guang read the memorial and burst out laughing. "Hahaha! Only now does King Gao Yuan think of surrendering? What was he doing before? Yuan Tianzuo drowned hundreds of thousands of our Great Sui men, and he thinks saying 'we surrender' will settle everything? A single memorial is supposed to be enough? Go back and tell King Gao Yuan that within three days, I expect him to appear before me and surrender in person. Otherwise, I will raze Goguryeo's capital."
The Goguryeo envoy hurried back to the capital to report to his king.
Yang Guang turned to Yuwen Huaji. "Minister Yuwen, this king of Goguryeo must take me for a fool. Our Great Sui army will soon be able to raze his capital and destroy Goguryeo, yet he actually thinks he can surrender."
"Indeed, Your Majesty," Yuwen Huaji said. "Destroying Goguryeo and incorporating it fully into our Great Sui territory is better in every way than accepting a vassal state. Besides, Goguryeo was already our vassal."
"Exactly," Cheng Yaojin said. "We've come this far. If we accept Goguryeo's surrender now, wouldn't all our battles have been fought for nothing, and our soldiers have died in vain?"
Yang Guang wholeheartedly agreed and ordered the army to continue its advance toward Goguryeo's capital.
Half a day later, the envoy returned to Goguryeo's capital and relayed the message to King Gao Yuan. The king flew into a rage. "This is outrageous! That incompetent tyrant Yang Guang actually wants