Le Luoluo's men cleared away the coarse porcelain bowls on the table and replaced them with bamboo cups. Taking a wineskin from one of his men, Le Luoluo personally poured Wang Yang a cup of Mountain Berry Juice.
"Today's meeting with the Yongning Barbarians was arranged before the truce began. If nothing comes of this meeting, the truce ends. Unless we negotiate another, this will be our last chance to make peace. We truly want to negotiate, but without any Brocade Fabric in hand, we have nothing to give us confidence at the table. All we could do was borrow the weight of your standing, Brother Wang, and see whether it might turn things around. We meant to tell you beforehand and ask for your help, but first, we feared you might have too many reservations to take part; second, we worried that if you knowingly intervened in a conflict between barbarian tribes, you might have trouble explaining yourself to the Imperial Court. You needn't say anything during the talks. Just sit and rest, and leave everything to me. If the Imperial Court asks, tell them the truth: that we tricked you into coming under the pretext of the Mountain God Ceremony. Surely they won't blame you."
Although Wang Yang had prepared himself, hearing Le Luoluo confirm that they were meeting the Yongning Barbarians still set his nerves on edge. The Prince of Badong had long been in league with them; they were the ones who had carried out the ambush. His own side had killed some of their people, too. Although they had left no survivors, wouldn't the Yongning Barbarians strike again if they heard he was an Imperial Court envoy? Or perhaps he was already on their "blacklist." They might even have learned his true background from the