Chapter 61: Ceasefire

Their eldest son Jochi, second son Chagatai, third son Ögedei, and youngest son Tolui are all in their hands; if anything untoward happens to them, it would sever Temüjin's lineage.

Facing Temüjin's threat, Guo Jing sneered and said, "Very well, you want war? We'll fight then. You may not be able to swallow us; who will win and who will lose remains to be seen."

"Uriyangkhai, Töregene, when the battle begins, kill these seven to dedicate them to the banner."

Nie Huai pointed at the seven captives brought forward and instructed the two division commanders behind him.

"No, I think there is no need for us to go to war. Besides, why must we fight to the death?"

Temüjin quickly urged the two with kind words, for once war broke out, his losses would be far too heavy; he was now nearly forty years old.

How much longer would it take to father another son? How much longer would it take to raise a son to adulthood to continue his legacy?

Nie Huai and Guo Jing were constantly discussing within the group chat at that moment.

Nie Huai: "Should we kill these people now? If they die, it will certainly inflict heavy losses on Temüjin."

To be honest, Nie Huai was quite tempted to kill these few, for if they died, figures like Batu, Möngke, and Kublai, who would later become renowned throughout the Mongol Empire, would never exist.

After all, calculating the timeline, the eldest among them, Batu, would not be born for another eight years.

Guo Jing: "No, as long as Temüjin is alive, he will surely lead the Mongols to rise again. At this moment, what is most important for us is to accumulate strength and wait for the next opportunity to strike down Temüjin."

Nie Huai: "The next opportunity you mention must refer to the time Wang Han ambushed Temüjin, correct?"

Guo Jing: "Exactly. On that occasion, due to Temüjin's carelessness, he had only around four thousand men beside him. If we bring a large force to attack at that moment, we can certainly put him to death."

Nie Huai: "Very well, let's keep these few here as hostages. With them here, Temüjin will surely not dare to rashly start a war with us, after all, all his sons are in our hands; if he starts a war with us, he faces the risk of having no heirs."

After Guo Jing and Nie Huai discussed this, they exchanged a smile and said to Temüjin:

"Your proposal, we have just considered and found reasonable; we agree that both sides shall cease hostilities."

Hearing this, Temüjin breathed a sigh of relief; as long as negotiations were possible, it was good, for if anything untoward happened to these seven, it would be utterly unacceptable to him.

Thinking thus, Temüjin said to the two: "Since both sides shall cease hostilities, should you not release our people? After all, we have already ceased fighting."

Regarding Temüjin's words, Guo Jing and Nie Huai could only respond with a dismissive chuckle; you expect us to release the hostages in our hands with just one sentence?

Do you take us for children to fool? If we release these few, once your strength grows and you eliminate the remnants of the Tatar tribe, you will be free to turn against us?

Guo Jing coldly refused: "Temüjin, you are considered a hero of your generation; do not speak such childish words. These people are all our captives; how could we possibly release them?"

"Then state your terms; how many cattle and sheep do you want to release them?"

For Temüjin, as long as he could ransom them back, he was willing to pay any price.

"These six cannot be returned to you; they must remain here as hostages. As for the Golden Wheel Dharma King, I can return him to you, but it will require two thousand warhorses in exchange."

Nie Huai clearly could not let Temüjin have his way; these people were all first-rate talents and could not be released to strengthen Temüjin.

As for why he was willing to release the Golden Wheel Dharma King, it was because in Nie Huai's view, the Golden Wheel Dharma King was merely a martial man; the only thing worthy of praise about him was his martial arts.

At that time, he would cripple the Golden Wheel Dharma King's martial arts, break all the meridians in his body, and cut off any possibility of him practicing martial arts.

At that time, exchanging a cripple for a large number of warhorses—what could be more pleasing?

But Temüjin clearly was unwilling and refused on the spot:

"No, either you release all of them to us, or we continue the war."

"Very well, if you want war, then let there be war."

Guo Jing said without fear; these people could not be exchanged back. For them, even if they lost all ten thousand cavalry under their command, this operation would still be worth it.

Although they did not kill Temüjin, they had destroyed nearly twenty thousand of his troops; moreover, exchanging the cost of ten thousand cavalry for Temüjin having no heirs, how could they possibly lose?

Temüjin glared fiercely at Nie Huai and Guo Jing, but the two did not care at all; at worst, they would fight. Whether they won or lost, they would not suffer, so what was there to fear?

Both sides remained deadlocked for a long time; ultimately, Temüjin chose to yield.

Starting a war would cost him too much; he could not afford it. Temüjin sighed and said:

"Very well, since you insist on keeping them as guests, I cannot refuse. However, if anything untoward happens to them, I will personally lead a great army to slaughter you all."

After Temüjin finished speaking, he ordered two thousand warhorses to be brought over to exchange with Nie Huai and the others for the Golden Wheel Dharma King. At this moment,

Guo Jing secretly used the Five Thunder Orthodoxy to guide electric current to destroy all the meridians within the Golden Wheel Dharma King's body, completely cutting off the Golden Wheel Dharma King's path to the martial Dao.

After receiving Temüjin's two thousand warhorses, Nie Huai and the others waved their hands and led their troops away.

The entire army, after departing, erupted in cheers like mountains calling and seas roaring; this was completely different from previous wars of annexing small tribes.

This time, they had defeated the famous Temüjin, far beyond comparison with the previous small tribes that had only a few Battalion Commander.

Here, Temüjin was in the exact opposite situation; just a short while ago, he and his adoptive father Wang Han had thoroughly defeated Jamukha's coalition army, and subsequently annihilated the Taichigu tribe, avenging the shackles of years past.

Just when he was at the height of his spirits, he was ambushed by an unknown small tribe; the great generals Bo'orchu, Khubilai, and Subutai were killed.

The great generals Chila'un, Jebe, and all his sons were captured; he himself was driven to the brink of death several times, yet he could only let these people depart.

Watching the figures of this group depart, Temüjin sighed to Muqali beside him:

"Such an orderly army is indeed rare on the steppes. These two, besides possessing martial power unmatched by ordinary people, also possess extraordinary military command abilities."

Muqali, standing nearby, agreed: "Exactly. Compared to them, whether the Kereit tribe, the Naiman tribe, or Jamukha's coalition army, they can only be considered a rabble."

"Ignoring them was the greatest mistake we made."