Chapter 270: Attacking the Heart

The surroundings suddenly fell silent. A dry, musty smell of animal hide and dried grass assailed them, mixed with a faint, fishy stench.

The female barbarian pushed him without ceremony. Wang Yang's back struck the tent pole, and the black cloth over his eyes was ripped away violently—

A gleaming curved blade was pressed against Wang Yang's throat, the edge barely half an inch from his Adam's apple.

A short, dark-skinned female barbarian was glaring at Wang Yang with murderous intent, several silver rings flashing coldly around her neck and wrists.

"Are you here to pick up Young Master Liu?" The female barbarian's eyes brimmed with ferocity, and she pushed the blade forward, as if she would kill him the very next moment!

Wang Yang did not hesitate for even a fraction of a second. He asked with a look of confusion, "Who is Young Master Liu?"

"Liu Cheng!" The female barbarian gripped the hilt tighter, her gaze becoming increasingly vicious!

Wang Yang's expression grew even more confused: "Who is Liu Chen?"

The female barbarian could not tell that Wang Yang had made a "slight adjustment" to the nasal sounds; she simply assumed it was a difference in accent. Her sharp, murderous aura suddenly stalled, a flash of bewilderment crossed her eyes, and her blade loosened unconsciously:

"You don't know Liu Cheng?"

"Who on earth is Liu Chen!!!"

Wang Yang looked completely broken and speechless, his voice even cracking slightly at the end due to "anxiety."

The female barbarian was stunned: "Are, are you not an envoy of the Han?"

Wang Yang's eyes were innocent: "I am a Han envoy, but I don't know who Liu Chen is!"

The female barbarian lowered her blade in confusion and took two steps back. Her mind whirred for a moment before she looked at Wang Yang again, suspicious:

"Since you are a Han envoy, how can you not know Liu Cheng?"

Wang Yang countered: "Why must a Han envoy know Liu Chen? Is this person very famous?"

The female barbarian couldn't explain it, but she insisted: "You should know him!"

"Then let me ask you, who are you?"

The female barbarian held her head high and said: "I am the daughter of the 'Zou Ye'!"

Zou Ye meant "Chieftain" in the barbarian tongue. Although Wang Yang did not know the meaning, seeing that the female barbarian could "snatch" him here directly, he guessed a few things and followed her lead: "Does the Wenyang barbarian tribe all listen to your father's orders?"

"Of course!" the female barbarian said proudly.

"Then are you also a member of the Wenyang barbarian tribe?"

"Naturally!" The female barbarian glared at Wang Yang, as if annoyed that he was asking such a foolish question.

"Then let me ask you, do you know every single person in the Wenyang barbarian tribe?"

The female barbarian froze.

After thinking for a moment, she felt—

That makes so much sense!

Looking at Wang Yang again, her hostility was not nearly as great.

Seeing her attitude soften, Wang Yang seized the opportunity to ask: "Who is this Liu Chen you speak of?"

The female barbarian said righteously: "He is my husband!"

Okay, okay...

Wang Yang put on a very puzzled expression:

"Then why would I want to take your husband away? Not to mention that I don't know your husband, even if I did, I couldn't tear a couple apart! Since ancient times, a husband and wife should be together!"

The female barbarian was overjoyed! She immediately put away her blade: "You're not a bad person! You have a good heart!"

Wang Yang immediately asked: "What is your name?"

"My name is Lema! What is your name?"

"I—"

Wang Yang was just about to continue fishing for information when he was suddenly interrupted by the shouting of barbarians outside the tent.

Hearing the shouts, the female barbarian's expression changed, and she said urgently: "I won't talk to you for now, I have to leave."

After saying this, she hurried toward the tent exit. After a few steps, she stopped, turned to the place where dried meat was hanging by the side of the tent, stood on tiptoe to tear off the fattest piece, and shoved it into Wang Yang's hand: "Don't tell my brother you saw me!" Then she ran out of the tent as if fleeing.

Soon, four barbarians entered the tent. Seeing that the black cloth was gone from Wang Yang's eyes, their expressions darkened. One of them picked up the black cloth Lema had casually thrown on the ground and moved to cover Wang Yang's eyes again. Wang Yang's expression turned cold; he flicked his sleeves and put his hands behind his back, his aura changing instantly:

"I have already entered the camp; there is no need for this.

I have come as an envoy, not as a prisoner.

Your master is wise and would not cover my eyes within the camp; this must be someone else acting on their own, damaging the friendship between the Han and the barbarians!

Your master has important matters to discuss with me; lead me to him at once!

Whoever ruins your master's important business is the culprit.

The culprit deserves to die."

After Wang Yang finished, he scanned all four barbarians.

Since arriving at the barbarian camp, Wang Yang had not said a word. Now, he spoke suddenly, every word ringing with the dignity of a superior, leaving the four barbarians stunned.

Wang Yang casually shoved the dried meat into the arms of the barbarian who had picked up the cloth and said calmly: "Lema gave it to me; you help me keep it safe."

The barbarian camp was vast, stretching as far as the eye could see.

Of course, to maintain his aura, Wang Yang did not look around like a tourist; he merely swept his gaze over it once before withdrawing his eyes.

As far as he could see, there were only tents and grass huts. The further forward they went, the more guards there were, and the tents grew larger. The styles of the houses became more varied, appearing as bamboo houses, wooden houses, and even those stilt-style small bamboo buildings with the bottom floor raised off the ground. Although they were not even two stories high, they were the tallest buildings Wang Yang had seen on this journey.

Turning past a fence made of crossed deer antlers and wild boar tusks, the area ahead suddenly opened up. A large animal-hide tent stood in the center, with nine tall pillars erected in front of it, each hanging the skull of a different wild beast. Guards stood in a circle around the tent. Seeing Wang Yang and the others, they immediately stepped forward to inquire. After reporting, they lifted the tent flap and let Wang Yang enter.

Inside the tent, a barbarian youth sat cross-legged, holding a bamboo slip. His eyes were very close to the slip, and his lips moved silently, as if he were reading with some difficulty. Seeing Wang Yang enter, he set the bamboo slip aside, sized Wang Yang up for a moment, then suddenly stood up straight and glared with wide eyes:

"Are you that loyal... of the Liu family?"

Wang Yang's expression was calm: "It is I."

The youth frowned: "Why did you come?"

Wang Yang smiled: "The imperial court knows that you and I are old acquaintances, so they sent me to see the Young Chieftain."

The youth's expression was wary: "How do you know I am the Young Chieftain?"

Wang Yang smiled without a word.

The youth leaned forward slightly, staring at Wang Yang, his large eyes flashing with a beast-like brilliance: "Are you truly the Wang of Langya?"

"I am." Wang Yang's expression was natural as he met the youth's gaze.

The youth stared at Wang Yang for a while, then sat back down.

"I don't care who you are. Three thousand brocade robes, three thousand crimson jackets—bring them, and I will release the prisoner."

"There is no rush for that—"

The youth interrupted directly: "I only ask you for the brocade robes and crimson jackets; say nothing else."

"Does the Young Chieftain know—"

"If you have them, bring them; if not, leave." The youth picked up the bamboo slip again and stopped looking at Wang Yang.

"Farewell."

Wang Yang turned and walked away.

The youth ignored him, but when he saw Wang Yang about to walk out of the tent, he shouted: "Stop!"

The guards at the tent entrance immediately raised their spears, blocking Wang Yang's path.

Wang Yang turned around and looked at the youth calmly.

The youth asked coldly: "Where are you going?"

"Back to Han territory."

"You aren't saving Liu anymore?"

"I cannot save him."

"Fine! Today, I will behead Liu!"

Wang Yang nodded indifferently.

The youth slammed the bamboo slip onto the table and shouted sternly:

"You Han people do not want to save Liu; you Han people want war! Do you think I don't know that Wenyang Commandery is transporting grain and gathering troops? Do you think I don't know that you are moving border residents into the city and reinforcing the garrison forts? But my tribe does not fear you! The blades of my tribe's sons can sever Han heads! The arrows of my tribe's sons can pierce Han hearts! Go back and tell your imperial court: if you Han want war, then come! The day your army reaches Wenyang Gorge, I will send back Liu Cheng's head! You may leave now! I will not behead an envoy!"

The barbarian guards shared the same hatred, thrusting their spears forward and glaring, wanting to escort Wang Yang out of the camp. If not for the youth's order not to kill the Han envoy, they would have loved to pierce Wang Yang through the heart on the spot.

Wang Yang, faced with several spears pointed at him, remained calm and looked at the youth:

"Since the Young Chieftain is so well-informed, I will not hide it from you. It is true, the imperial court does indeed want war. However, the Young Chieftain said one thing wrong. You said we want war—that is not so. It is someone else who is forcing our hand."

The youth sneered several times: "You say I am forcing your hand? You deceive me, kill me, trap me, and surround me, yet now you say I am the one forcing your hand! Fine, fine, fine, you people are always good at turning black into white—"

"I am not talking about the Young Chieftain."

The youth was about to vent his anger, but hearing this, he was suddenly choked off: "... Then... then who are you talking about?"

Hmm, he's in the zone now.

From the moment Wang Yang entered the tent, he had been setting traps, first calmly shifting the psychological pressure onto the other party, then deliberately provoking their emotions to lead them into misunderstanding. When their anger rose, he suddenly threw out an unexpected twist, leaving them in bewilderment while planting suspense and guiding them to ask questions. In this way, he unknowingly took control of the conversation's rhythm, making the other party follow his train of thought, shifting from a hard confrontation to an active search for a solution. This subtle psychological shift created favorable conditions for the subsequent negotiations—this was what Wang Yang called being "in the zone."

Now that he had the listener in the right state, the next step involved the specifics of how to negotiate. Depending on the negotiation target, the strategies employed would differ. Negotiation is, in fact, an attack on the heart; when the heart is different, the strategy must also be different:

For the cowardly, intimidate with power; for the arrogant, flatter with sweet words. For the righteous, trap them in a dilemma; for the self-preserving, show them the face of death. For the cunning, hide your edge to dull their wit; for the sentimental, move them with the past. For the stubborn, follow their will to guide their actions; for the indecisive, force a decision to hasten their change.

Therefore, there is no fixed method for strategy; it bends according to the heart. There is no constant state for words; they swirl according to the situation. The key lies in observing their nature, measuring their heart, attacking their weaknesses, and breaking their defenses. If Wang Yang were facing someone else today, he might have had to engage in a game of capture and release; but in this situation, facing this barbarian youth, Wang Yang decided—

To throw a straight pitch!

That is, to move people with sincerity and gain trust with frankness. However, this so-called "sincerity" was a "sincerity" with hidden motives; this so-called "frankness" was a "frankness" that had been meticulously designed.

"Actually, I shouldn't have said this clearly, but since things have come to this, I might as well tell the Young Chieftain everything today..."

Wang Yang let out a long sigh and began his "confession session."