At this moment, the people of the Great West Empire were naturally not at peace either. Seeing that the people of the Frostwest Empire had approached Zhang Fei, the person in charge of diplomacy, even a fool could tell that something was wrong.
Alusi's expression was also grim. He had finally managed to maintain his advantage, and he didn't want it to be wiped out by this move.
He said in a deep voice, "Lord Morandi, this Ashley is still as shameless as ever, actually trying to curry favor with Zhang Fei. I'm afraid it's not a good thing!"
If we can win over Zhang Fei, the Grand Master of Ceremonies, it might just change the emperor's mind.
"Hmph, it's not that easy!"
A hint of mockery flashed in Morandi's eyes. If the course of three countries could be decided so easily, it would be far too hasty.
It would be more plausible if Ashley had curried favor with the Emperor of Great Liang, but a foreign minister can't make any decisions at all; he's just a tool for the Emperor of Great Liang.
No matter what the Frostwest Empire says, once the Frostwest Empire borders the Great Liang, this is not something that can be resolved with mere words.
Unless a war breaks out, or one side voluntarily backs down and pays a huge price, the two sides will remain deadlocked.
Teeth and tongue are things that even family members often bump into, let alone two sovereign nations.
Both sides are arrogant and domineering; this is not something that can be achieved by mere words.
He reviewed a large amount of intelligence about Great Liang, where Emperor Lin Yi Nine Tripod Cauldrons and made all decisions with his word.
Once you convince him, everything will be fine. It's much better than trying to persuade that bastard Zhang Fei.
That guy's always pulling out his weapon; he's not someone you can easily talk to.
He said in a deep voice, "Ignore them. Prepare the gifts we have made for the Emperor of Great Liang. We will go to pay our respects to the Emperor of Great Liang tomorrow."
"That's right. As long as the emperor is satisfied, everything will be fine." Alusi nodded and said in a deep voice.
However, he was somewhat worried, as Lin Yi's previous gift list was outrageously demanding, and his own emperor might not be able to meet it.
"Don't worry, the Emperor of Great Liang has huge ambitions and will set his sights on the Frostwest Empire sooner or later, so allying with us is their best option," Morandi sneered.
Every ambitious person has their own ambitions, and none of them are immune to coveting other people's territory.
Just like some men who don't like their own wives but instead stare at other men's wives, it's a kind of habitual thinking.
The destruction of Great Ning, the Jackal Kingdom, the Northern Region Barbarians, and the Western Regions —this series of actions clearly demonstrates the character of the Emperor of Great Liang.
He absolutely didn't care about destroying another Frostwest Empire, so he was certain that Great Liang would definitely go to war with the Frostwest Empire.
"Report! The Emperor of Great Liang has sent an invitation, inviting us to attend the ceremony!"
"The Emperor of Great Liang?"
Upon hearing the guard's words, Morandi's expression changed. How could Lin Yi's invitation arrive just as he was about to present a gift? What a coincidence!
He asked in a deep voice, "What ceremony?"
"After the great victory in the Western Regions, the former leader of the Western Regions Jite, was captured alive and presented as a gift to the Emperor of Great Liang. The Emperor of Great Liang decided to reward the army at the city gate and deal with Jite in the process," the guard explained.
Damn it!
Morandi's face instantly turned ugly upon hearing this. What kind of solution was this Jite? This was clearly aimed at both of their countries.
Why wait until our own two countries arrive to reward the troops? This is clearly a case of making an example of someone.
This is definitely not a good thing.
He said in a deep voice, "Go back and tell the person who delivered the invitations that we will be there on time."
"My lord, it seems the Emperor of Great Liang is up to something." Alusi, who had met Lin Yi twice, couldn't help but frown.
Morandi sneered. Right now, the one who was most anxious wasn't him, but Ashley.
He naturally understood this diplomatic tactic; to put it bluntly, it was about demonstrating one's own military strength, flaunting one's achievements to suppress the enemy, and demanding more benefits through pressure.
The Frostwest Empire borders the Great Liang Empire, making them the first to be affected.
In comparison, things are much easier for us.
Even if they cannot unite, Great Liang cannot directly threaten the Great West Empire, so they still have a way out.
The only problem is that we can't get the Great Liang and the Frostwest Empire to join forces against the Great West Empire. Once we get that sorted out, the problem will be much simpler.
Thinking this through, he said in a deep voice, "Right now, we can only take it one step at a time. As long as he doesn't go too far, we can still accept it."
The following morning, Lin Yi skipped the morning court session and led all the civil and military officials to the city gate to await the arrival of the army that was to present the prisoners.
The city gate was packed with people from Great Liang. Except for the main road in the middle, the rest of the area was completely blocked.
"So many people! It seems like the whole city has come. They all have plenty of free time."
"Isn't that obvious? The Western Regions are now part of our Great Liang. If we don't come to witness this, wouldn't we have no sense of honor at all?"
"I heard that even the most powerful king in the Western Regions was captured alive this time. That bastard even tried to trick us, wanting to join forces with the Frostwest Empire to deal with us, but he didn't even last until reinforcements arrived; he was already defeated."
"Hmph, they dare to provoke my Great Liang with their Western Regions? They're simply courting death. They're completely finished now!"
The people were full of vigor and high spirits. These great victories filled them with confidence in Great Liang. This was a nation that had grown from the corpses of others, and the people were convinced of this.
So when people heard that prisoners were being presented at the city gate, they all flocked to the scene to witness this glorious moment.
This great victory in the Western Regions was the first major victory for the Great Liang since its founding, and it was the kind of victory that directly destroyed the country, which made the people's sense of belonging to the Great Liang explode.
Lin Yi was very satisfied with the people's reaction; this was how a country should behave.
His gaze swept around the room, landing on the guest seating area, and he said in a deep voice, " Mengde, have the envoys from those countries all arrived?"
Without an audience, it would be much less impressive.
Holding such a ceremony serves two purposes: it is an international custom, it shows respect for military heroes, and it also serves to intimidate surrounding foreign tribes.
"Your Majesty, rest assured, they've all come. Your humble servant had Zhang Fei put some pressure on them, so they dared not disobey." A smile appeared on Cao Cao's lips. Here, who would dare disobey the Great Liang? No matter what kind of envoy from another country, it wouldn't matter.
Lin Yi nodded in satisfaction, his gaze drifting towards the distant Western Regions. He murmured, "Judging by the time, they should be arriving soon!"
Bang bang bang!
No sooner had the words left his mouth than the sound of galloping warhorses echoed in the distance, clearly indicating that they had returned.
A plume of dust rose high and drew ever closer; they had finally arrived.
"Play music!"
At Cao Cao's command, the sounds of ceremonial music instantly filled the air, a welcome to those returning victorious.