Chapter 156: Negotiations Under Coercion

Valianjing's expression shifted uncertainly, and Sergei took a deep breath and said:

"General, according to all existing clues, this Lu Yuan is the prime suspect, but the only problem is that we have no evidence to prove this. In that case, it seems still insufficient to provide an account to His Majesty the Tsar."

Valianjing's eyes flickered, and after a moment of contemplation, he suddenly let out a cold laugh:

"Evidence? Do you think we need evidence? As long as we need it to be, if we say it is him, then it must be him."

Sergei's gaze shifted abruptly:

"You mean..."

Valianjing said indifferently:

"The deadline given by His Majesty the Tsar has arrived; we must provide an account. Since this Lu Yuan possesses both the motive and the ability, then he is the murderer who assassinated Aojinniezi.

Aojinniezi was, after all, a Cross Star General; he absolutely cannot die in vain. It just so happens that the Shenluo People, whose church was just burned, will certainly not let this rest. We can take this opportunity to act together, make the Jin Dynasty execute the murderer, and then demand satisfactory compensation!"

Sergei's gaze shifted, and he immediately said excitedly with a smile:

"The General is wise. The Sunlight Country previously seized massive benefits in a naval battle, and the Empire has now lost a Cross Star General; in both reason and logic, we should obtain sufficient compensation!"

Valianjing gave a cold laugh:

"Alright, hurry and send a telegram to the Council, explain the situation to His Majesty the Tsar, and obtain permission to act!"

Sergei bowed his head:

"Yes!"

In this current era, besides possessing an absolute advantage in Iron-Clad Giant Ships and Steam Airships, the great powers had also invented wireless telegraphy and had already put it into military use.

Therefore, within that very day, both the Shenluo and the Sha'e sides transmitted the news back to their respective countries, triggering waves of turmoil within their respective Councils and Parliaments.

As for the Jin Dynasty, although they lacked such swift intelligence transmission methods as wireless telegraphy, because of the close distance between Jinjin and the Capital, a memorial personally written by Qi Yuanjiang was delivered to the palace with the utmost urgency before evening.

Of course, as a subordinate official, Qi Yuanjiang also arranged for a copy of the news to be sent to the Governor Nayancheng, who was still stationed in the Capital. Upon learning the news, Nayancheng was also greatly shocked and immediately entered the palace to request an audience.

Slap!

In the majestic and empty side hall of the Cining Palace, Xici threw the memorial in her hand onto the desk, her face gloomy:

"Scoundrels! Jinjin is already a place where the Concessions of three countries converge and the situation is extremely complex. What is Qi Yuanjiang doing as Governor to have stirred up such a massive disaster!"

Nayancheng stood below the hall, his face also looking extremely ugly:

"Old Buddha, please calm your anger. The matter is already a foregone conclusion; now we must think about how to respond. According to what is stated in Qi Yuanjiang's memorial, the Golden Blade Group and a mob of rioters burned the church, killing five Priests, fourteen nuns, and twenty-three believers.

Given the style of the Shenluo People, having suffered such a great loss, they will absolutely not let this rest. It is said that they have wireless telegraphy, and news can be transmitted in an instant. By now, their Parliament has likely already learned of this news and may already be dispatching their fleet. In no more than a few days, Jinjin will face the threat of the Shenluo Ironclad Warship fleet!"

The memorial had limited space, so Qi Yuanjiang did not state too many details, nor did he mention Lu Yuan's involvement.

At this moment, not only Nayancheng, but several Jin Clan Grand Councilors from the Grand Council were also present in the side hall, and they all spoke up urgently:

"The Dagu Fort has long since been dismantled. The Shenluo fleet is far more formidable than the Ironclad Warships of Sunlight. If war truly breaks out, how could Jinjin possibly resist?"

"Old Buddha, the defeat in the Jin-Sunlight Naval Battle is still fresh in our memory. The Great Jin cannot withstand a second failure in such a short time. Your subject believes that under no circumstances must we start a war!"

"Once war begins, if there is even the slightest sign of weakness, the other two great powers will become restless, and it is hard to guarantee that the rebellious subjects within our country won't take advantage of the chaos to rise up. Therefore, we must find a way to negotiate and make peace with the Shenluo side as soon as possible!"

"Your subject seconds this! Given the current state of the Great Jin, there is only one path to take: peace negotiations!"

Naturally understanding that now was not the time to go to war with Shenluo, Xici kept a grim face and said slowly:

"What you ministers have said all makes sense. In that case, I wonder who is willing to go to Jinjin to conduct an investigation while also engaging in negotiations with Shenluo?"

Once these words were spoken, several high-ranking Grand Councilors all looked at each other, not saying a word.

These men were all masters of power politics and understood very clearly that going to Jinjin to negotiate with Shenluo was by no means a good errand.

Because there was no need to even think about it: the Shenluo side would inevitably use the church case as a pretext to put forward all sorts of harsh demands and conditions, or even present another treaty that would humiliate the nation and forfeit its sovereignty. Any official responsible for the negotiations who signed on behalf of the imperial court would inevitably become notorious and leave a legacy of infamy for ten thousand years.

Such a situation had already occurred many times, and there were long-standing precedents.

However.

Seeing the silence of the ministers, Xici did not give them a chance to shirk responsibility. Her gaze turned sharp, and she scolded:

"You are all pillars of the state. With a major event at hand, is there not a single one of you with the courage to take responsibility? In that case, Nayancheng, as the Governor of Jinjin, you are duty-bound. This matter shall be handled entirely by you!

I want you to go to Jinjin as soon as possible, investigate the matter clearly first, and then negotiate with the Shenluo Consulate. No matter what excessive conditions they put forward, do not be in a hurry to refuse. In short, stabilize the situation first; do not let the flames of war ignite in Jinjin!"

Nayancheng thought to himself that this was bitter, but as the Governor of Jinjin, he had absolutely no room to shirk the duty, so he could only bow and say dryly:

"I will strictly obey the Old Buddha's command. Your subject will surely do his utmost to pacify the situation in Jinjin."

Xici nodded and waved her hand lightly:

"Very well, you may all withdraw."

The ministers immediately withdrew respectfully.

After they had left.

In the side hall nearby, the two Great Shamans, Cang Jige and Bu Tiansuo, stepped out, their brows furrowed, and they both spoke:

"This is outrageous. At such a critical juncture, such a thing had to happen in Jinjin..."

"Old Buddha, should the plan to set an ambush and kill him be postponed?"

Xici's gaze was gloomy:

"Postpone it for a while. The situation in Jinjin is on the verge of exploding; it is indeed not the time to act. Wait until we have appeased the Shenluo People and the situation has stabilized before executing the original plan."

By now.

After two months of nurturing and refining, she, a Grandmaster of the martial path in the Heavenly Gang Realm, had thoroughly mastered the usage and power of the Abuhulin Spear, making her current strength like a tiger that had grown wings.

Holding this spear, and unleashing the divine might of the spear with full force, even a Grandmaster at the peak of the True Martial Realm would absolutely not be able to withstand a second strike from her!

This also gave her an unprecedented level of confidence, causing her to completely forget the perilous situation she had faced during the initial assassination attempt.

Now that the divine artifact was fully under her control, the plan to lay a trap and capture Lu Yuan could officially begin. However, she had not expected that before her subordinates could even take action, such a turn of events would occur in the Jinjin situation.

Already aware of how powerful Xici was now that she held the Abuhulin Spear, the two Great Shamans, Cang Jige and Bu Tiansuo, both revealed smiles:

"Now that the Old Buddha's cultivation has reached the pinnacle of creation and her strength is peerless in the human world, slaying the rebel will be as easy as turning over one's hand; there is no need to be in a rush."

"Negotiations to stabilize the situation will take at most a month or so. Under the Old Buddha's leadership, this thief will surely be executed, and all his secrets will be laid bare!"

"Yes, let's wait a while longer."

Xici, who had been preparing for a long time, could not help but reveal a look of longing, saying quietly:

"I hope that when the time comes, the secret of the immortals on this thief will not disappoint me."

A day passed in a flash.

As for the Jinjin missionary case, the news was still brewing and fermenting, and early the next morning, Nayancheng, accompanied by his staff officers and a squad of personal guards, once again reluctantly headed to Jinjin.

After all, on one hand, negotiating with the habitually overbearing and tyrannical Shenluo People would certainly not be a pleasant process;

On the other, more important hand, he had fled Jinjin in a sorry state under the life-threatening pressure of Lu Yuan not long ago, and now that he had to return to this place, the feeling in his heart was naturally hard to describe.

And as soon as he returned to Jinjin.

He summoned Qi Yuanjiang at the first opportunity and learned about the specific situation.

Upon learning that Lu Yuan had actually appeared and taken action during the riot that stormed the Concession yesterday, even causing a Priest to commit suicide on the spot out of fear of punishment, Nayancheng was annoyed and alarmed, his anger uncontrollable.

Especially when Qi Yuanjiang informed him that the culprits who had led the commoners to burn the church and storm the Concession—Cao Futian and others of the Golden Blade Group—were actually staying at the Guangwu Hall, Nayancheng was so enraged that he felt as if he were ascending to heaven, and he slammed the table on the spot.

Clearly, Lu Yuan had calculated that the government might compromise with the foreigners to settle accounts, so he had protected the culprits in advance; his actions could be described as lawless and arrogant to the extreme.

However, no matter how angry Nayancheng was, there was nothing he could do.

He absolutely did not dare to go and find trouble with Lu Yuan.

The other party had even dared to break into the Forbidden Palace and could retreat safely under the hands of a peerless expert like Xici; if he were to provoke the other party now, even an army of thousands would be useless, and he might lose his head while sleeping.

Consequently, Nayancheng could only hold his nose, ignore Lu Yuan and Cao Futian and the others for the moment, and arrange for Qi Yuanjiang to invite Victor of the Shenluo Consulate in his name to conduct negotiations.

However, unexpectedly, all the official letters he sent out sank into the sea; the Shenluo People did not take him, the Governor-General of Zhili, seriously at all, and ignored his invitations completely.

This situation lasted for three days, and just as Nayancheng was anxious and preparing to visit the Consulate in person, the Shenluo side finally gave a response, claiming that the country had dispatched a minister specifically to handle this matter, who would head to the prefectural office tomorrow morning to negotiate with Nayancheng.

After finally receiving a reply, Nayancheng had Qi Yuanjiang arrange for his subordinate officials to prepare for tomorrow's first round of negotiations.

The next morning arrived.

The entire prefectural office was decorated with solemnity.

Nayancheng, Qi Yuanjiang, and even a group of staff officers and officials were dressed in formal attire, waiting for the arrival of the Shenluo side.

However, suddenly, Prefectural Assistant Liu Guobai was seen walking in quickly from outside, looking pale with fright, and reported:

"Governor-General, Governor, this is bad!"

"A fleet of Shenluo Ironclad Warships has suddenly appeared on the sea outside the port! The three leading ships are all ten-thousand-ton giants, and they are eyeing us covetously on the sea!!"

What!?

Ten-thousand-ton giant ships, with artillery having a maximum range covering forty or fifty li, could basically blast half of Jinjin into ruins from the sea; now that the Dagu Fort had been dismantled, there was simply no means to deal with them.

Under such circumstances, in the main hall of the prefectural office, more than ten officials and staff officers, including Qi Yuanjiang, were shocked and stood up abruptly:

"What is going on? How could this happen?"

"Do the Shenluo People want to start fighting directly without even talking?"

Nayancheng was, after all, the Governor-General of Zhili, and having witnessed the overbearing style of the Shenluo People in the past, he shouted with relative composure:

"What are you panicking about!? This is a show of force by the Shenluo People, done deliberately for us to see, can you not understand that!?"

"Everyone sit down and wait quietly! Let's see what kind of conditions they will actually put forward!"

At Nayancheng's words, the negotiating officials present calmed down somewhat and hurriedly sat back down to continue waiting.

And a moment later, soldiers hurried in to report:

"My lords, the Shenluo People have arrived."

In this negotiation, the imperial court, which only wanted to avoid war and seek peace, was undoubtedly in a weak position, and Nayancheng was completely unable to put on the airs of a Governor-General, so he could only sigh deeply and stand up, saying:

"Everyone, come with me to welcome them."

And so.

Qi Yuanjiang and the other officials followed one after another, walking out of the main hall of the prefectural office and passing through the front hall to wait at the main gate.

Just as the group came out, a motorcade was slowly driving along the road not far away, with elite Shenluo soldiers jogging alongside the motorcade.

Soon, the motorcade stopped in front of the prefectural office, and the Shenluo soldiers pulled open the car doors one after another; immediately, tall and arrogant Shenluo People stepped out, their gazes sweeping over everything with an air of superiority.

Among this group were Consul Victor, whom Nayancheng had an impression of, and Chief Knight Williams stationed by the Holy See, but the most eye-catching was a tall Shenluo man in a cape and white naval general's uniform, whom both of them treated with respect.

This man was about fifty years old, burly, holding a pipe, his face full of deep lines, and his pair of blue eyes were sharp like an eagle's, filled with an indescribable dominance and arrogance.

After he got out of the car, his gaze merely swept over Nayancheng and the others casually, and then he said in rather broken Chinese:

"Among you people, who is in charge?"

The few words were filled with the arrogance and contempt of a strong person looking down on the weak; Nayancheng's eyelid twitched, and he revealed a forced smile:

"I am Nayancheng, the Governor-General of Zhili in Jinjin, appointed by the Old Buddha to be fully responsible for handling the Jinjin missionary case. May I ask who you are, sir?"

"Old Buddha?"

Jonathan revealed a playful smile and did not answer Nayancheng's question, only saying:

"I heard that this Empress Dowager of yours has lived for over one hundred and twenty years and is still full of vigor and ruling from behind the curtain to this day. Is this true or false?"

The other party's words and actions did not take the Jin Dynasty or even Xici seriously at all; Nayancheng suppressed his anger:

"Of course it is true, but this has nothing to do with our negotiation today. Who are you, sir, and can you represent Shenluo?"

Consul Victor immediately stepped forward and said proudly:

"The person before you is our Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Navy Fourth Fleet, Admiral Jonathan, and also a Seventh-rank Holy Bauhinia Knight personally conferred by His Majesty the Pope, more powerful and noble than your so-called Martial Arts Grandmasters of the Jin Dynasty! Entrusted by His Majesty the Pope, he will act as our representative of the Shenluo People to negotiate with you!"

"So it is Admiral Jonathan, I have long heard of your name."

A Seventh-rank Holy Bauhinia Knight meant that the Admiral before him possessed extraordinary martial power; Nayancheng's eyelids jumped with a hint of apprehension, and then he raised his hand with a stiff smile:

"Outside is not a place for conversation; the negotiation venue has been prepared, please come inside to discuss in detail."

Jonathan nodded slightly, and with his pipe in his mouth, he walked into the prefectural office with a dragon-like stride, as if he were the master of this place.

The group filed in, arrived at the main hall of the prefectural office, and then took their seats on both sides of the long table.

Nayancheng feigned calmness, looked at the Admiral Jonathan opposite him, and said:

"Admiral Jonathan, you should have also heard about what happened in Jinjin. I believe this was purely an accident, not worth our two nations breaking the peace and turning to arms. I wonder what you think?"

Jonathan tapped the pipe in his hand lightly and said unhurriedly:

"An accident? Your lowly Jin Dynasty mobs killed so many believers of the Lord, their actions no different from devils; no one from the top of the Empire to the bottom thinks it was an accident. My fleet is anchored near the coast; if the handling of this matter cannot satisfy the Empire, all of Jinjin will pay a bloody price."

(End of chapter)