Xiao Baoyue regrouped and began by openly admitting:
"I am the Jingzhou Envoy, but I also came bearing the Imperial Court's wishes-"
At first, she too had assumed the Yongning Barbarians had long since sided with the Prince of Badong. Only after arriving did she learn that the prince had always used the Imperial Court's name when buying weapons from them. He claimed the Imperial Court had ordered Jingzhou to secretly procure arms for a northern expedition. As this concerned military and national policy, it was classified intelligence of the utmost secrecy, so the Yongning Tribe had to serve as an intermediary to avoid prying eyes. Moreover, trading with the Barbarian Tribes violated established regulations and would certainly meet resistance if submitted for public deliberation at court, hence the order for Jingzhou to handle it covertly. This was also a trial run for trade with the barbarians. If the Yongning Tribe delivered on schedule and guaranteed quality, they could establish a long-term partnership, perhaps even lift the trade restrictions outright.
Xiao Baoyue surmised that the Prince of Badong had arranged this, first, to prevent the Yongning Tribe from using the deal as leverage to threaten him, and second, perhaps to drag them into the mire without their realizing it. For Xiao Baoyue, however, this had conveniently become a bargaining chip with which to counter Wang Yang's attempt to suppress her standing.
Having regrouped, she changed tack and went on the offensive:
"Though Young Master Wang answers directly to the Imperial Court, you have disregarded procedure, bypassing Jingzhou to enter barbarian territory in secret. How do you explain that?"
Just as Wang Yang had planted a fallback in his words, Xiao Baoyue had planted one in hers. Both had hidden their contingencies too deeply for anyone else to guess. The surface