Chapter 737: Choice

"Nonsense! How could we in Gaoli beg the Yan Wang for help? The Yan Wang is the enemy of both our Gaoli and the Northern Di; the Northern Di would not be pleased." Li Wancheng pointed at Yin Boming, "Your Majesty, Yin Boming wants to destroy our relationship with the Northern Di; his heart deserves to be punished."

Yin Boming laughed loudly. He pointed at Li Wancheng with a face full of mockery, "Right State Councilor, you are truly pathetic. Even at a time like this, you are still licking the Northern Di's foul feet. Gaoli is about to fall; where are the Northern Di now?"

"That doesn't mean we can betray the Northern Di. Although Khan Mule Hongzhen did not agree to send troops to save us, he has not yet torn up the contract between the Northern Di and Gaoli. Gaoli is still a vassal state of the Northern Di. As long as we flee to the Grassland, the Khan will certainly take us in," Li Wancheng shrieked.

Without the Northern Di, he would lose his backer.

Yin Boming bringing up the Yan Wang now must mean he has colluded with the Yan Wang.

If the Yan Wang drove away the Eastern Earth Allied Forces, Gaoli would be under the Yan Wang's control, and at that time, there would be no room for him in the Gaoli court.

By comparison, he would rather go to the Northern Di; even if he had to carry the night pot for Mule Hongzhen every day, he would be happy.

Yin Boming shook his head, his eyes filled with pity as he looked at Li Wancheng.

He no longer paid attention to Li Wancheng, but knelt before the King of Gaoli, "Your Majesty, going to the Northern Di means living under someone else's roof and living the life of a stray dog. The Northern Di were the first to be unrighteous; it is not that we betrayed them, but that they betrayed us."

Then he emphasized his tone, "In the world today, compared to the Northern Di, the Yan Wang is the only person who can save Gaoli."

The King of Gaoli was still hesitating.

Gaoli had betrayed the Great Song, and during the Ningjindusizhizhan, they had taken the opportunity to occupy quite a bit of the Great Song's territory.

He had a guilty conscience and dared not face the Yan Wang at all.

Just as he was thinking this, a general hurried over and knelt before him, "Your Majesty, Tieyuan City has fallen, and the Eastern Earth Allied Forces are marching toward Rang City."

Hearing this, the King of Gaoli felt his heart jump.

Tieyuan City was a major city in central Gaoli; with the loss of Tieyuan City, Rang City had lost its final barrier.

Within three days, the troops of the Eastern Earth Allied Forces would arrive.

"Your Majesty, there is no time," Yin Boming took the opportunity to say, "The Eastern Japanese have always wanted to take Gaoli for themselves. Once they attack, I fear Your Majesty and the Imperial Concubines will become slaves to the Eastern Japanese and be humiliated by them."

The King of Gaoli shuddered, and he almost cried out, "But we in Gaoli have done so many evil things to Yanzhou; how could the Yan Wang agree to save us?"

Yin Boming looked at Li Wancheng, his eyes cold and stern, "Your Majesty was merely bewitched by a treacherous villain. As long as we eliminate this villain and beg the Yan Wang for forgiveness, the Yan Wang will certainly save us."

After a pause, he said, "I will not hide it from Your Majesty: I have contact with people under the Yan Wang. Whether we can obtain the Yan Wang's support depends on Your Majesty's sincerity."

The King of Gaoli was shocked.

Yin Boming saying this meant that the Yan Wang was waiting for their attitude.

As if grabbing the last straw, he gripped Yin Boming's hand tightly, "Left State Councilor, you are truly the great savior of our Gaoli."

Then,

His gaze sharpened as he looked at Li Wancheng.

Yin Boming's meaning was very clear: it was to push all the blame onto Li Wancheng.

And in fact, many of the insidious ideas were indeed his.

"Someone, drag Li Wancheng, this traitor, out and behead him. Put his head in a box to prepare for begging the Yan Wang for forgiveness," the King of Gaoli said.

He looked at Yin Boming again: "Left State Councilor, the fate of Gaoli is now in your hands. Please go to Yanzhou immediately to beg the Yan Wang for help."

Yin Boming shook his head, "Your Majesty, I fear my weight is not enough. Does Your Majesty not know about the matter of the Heir of Ryukyu? Because he personally requested it of the Yan Wang, the Yan Wang helped the Heir of Ryukyu restore his country some days ago."

The King of Gaoli naturally knew of this matter, and he instantly understood Yin Boming's meaning, "You mean for me to go to the Yan Wang in person and beg the Yan Wang for forgiveness?"

Yin Boming nodded, "Only in this way can Your Majesty's sincerity be shown. As long as Your Majesty agrees, the Yanzhou Warship will head to Ancheng Port to pick Your Majesty up and take you to Yanzhou."

The King of Gaoli pondered for a while; fleeing to the Northern Di meant being a stray dog, while kneeling to the Yan Wang might allow him to keep his wealth and status for a long time.

He said, "Fine, fine. For the sake of the common people of Gaoli, I will make a trip to Yanzhou."

Yin Boming was overjoyed upon hearing this.

He said to the Gaoli guards beside him, "What are you still stunned for? Why haven't you dragged Li Wancheng out and killed him?"

Li Wancheng's face was like paper, and his whole body went limp on the ground. Pointing at Yin Boming, he said tremblingly, "After fighting for decades, I ultimately did not defeat you. If I had known today would come, I should have killed you back then."

Yin Boming sneered, disdaining to say a single word to Li Wancheng.

Li Wancheng had relied on the Northern Di to reach the pinnacle of officialdom.

Now it was his turn to rely on the Yan Wang and hold power over the court.

The guards received the order and dragged Li Wancheng out.

A scream rang out, and before long, the guards walked over holding a bloody box.

The King of Gaoli said to Yin Boming at this time, "There is no time to lose; we will head to Yancheng immediately."

Then, he ordered the Gaoli troops to escort the Imperial Concubines, the Heir, and the Princesses to retreat to the north.

Yin Boming nodded. Ever since the Eastern Earth Allied Forces set foot on Gaoli soil, he and Chai Wu had been in secret contact.

The news that the Yanzhou Warship would anchor in the waters off Ancheng Port was also told to him by Chai Wu.

As long as he went to Ancheng Port and lit a bonfire, the Yanzhou Warship would dock.

After a day of trekking, the two arrived at Ancheng Port.

Lighting the bonfire, a pillar of smoke shot into the sky, and sure enough, a Yanzhou Warship appeared on the sea.

The King of Gaoli was overjoyed to see this; Yin Boming had not lied to him.

Arriving before the massive Yanzhou Warship, the King of Gaoli suddenly felt a sense of insignificance.

A feeling of awe toward the Yan Wang could not help but rise in his heart.

This betrayal by the Northern Di had completely chilled his heart.

Calming down, he suddenly realized that he did not know when the Yan Wang had become so powerful; continuing to follow the Northern Di was undoubtedly foolish.

Boarding the warship, the two headed toward Yanzhou.

A day later, they arrived at Jinghai, and after another two days of trekking, they reached Yancheng.

The Prince's Mansion.

Zhao Xu had learned in advance the news of the King of Gaoli arriving in Yancheng.

Putting on his official robes, he went straight to Wuji Palace.

After more than a year of construction, the Ministry of Works officially handed over Wuji Palace these past few days.

Zhao Heng and Imperial Concubine Mi Fei had already moved there three days ago.

This Wuji Palace is divided into an Inner Palace and an Outer Palace.

Just like the Imperial Palace, the Inner Palace is the residence of the emperor, while the Outer Palace is the government office where the ministers conduct their work.

Therefore, ministers like Liu Fu also moved from the former Government Office to Wuji Palace.

Chang Wei and Yang Feng also moved from the General's Mansion at the North Camp to there as well.

In this way, all the important institutions are gathered together, facilitating the handling of government affairs.