Li Xiong pondered for a moment before looking at Fan Changsheng.

Fan Changsheng, after some contemplation, nodded, "It is indeed a method worth trying."

If it doesn’t work out, we can always find an excuse to mend the situation later.

Li Xiong was about to mobilize his troops immediately when Fan Changsheng reminded him, "Your Majesty should meet with Zhao Xin first. It would be best to use a façade to stall him."

Unbeknownst to them, Zhao Hanzhang had sent Xie Shi to lead troops to Han Zhong two days earlier. Not only that, Zhao Hanzhang also telegraphed Jingzhou, ordering Wang Xuan to lead twenty thousand troops across Wujiang to support Fuling County.

Two days earlier, Zhao Xin had written down Li Xiong’s demands and sent them out, instructing the radio operator to relay the message back to Luoyang.

Zhao Hanzhang received it the same day.

She had always been prepared, and once Li Xiong’s demands were confirmed, she immediately ordered Xie Shi and Wang Xuan to mobilize.

This time, their goal wasn’t to engage in battle, but to deter Li Xiong and stabilize the area.

Of the three conditions proposed by Li Xiong, Zhao Hanzhang told Zhao Xin that her bottom line was one and a half: first, recognizing Cheng Country; second, opening a tea and horse market between the two countries for mutual exchange.

However, the relationship between the two countries would not be like that of brother nations, but rather like that of sovereign and vassal, with Jin State as the sovereign and Cheng as the vassal state to Jin.

Therefore, Cheng Country could indeed be a country, but there would be no Emperor Cheng, only King Cheng, the King of Shu!

As for the condition of removing the remaining Jin Minister forces from the Shu region and handing over the Ba Shu area entirely to Cheng Country...

Zhao Hanzhang snorted coldly. She indeed intended to remove those Jin Ministers, but not to hand the area over to Cheng Country. Instead, she planned to send new people to govern it.

Unfortunately, the Shu Road is difficult, and it’s hard to get into places like Fuling County without passing through the Ba Xi and Guanghan areas. The path from Jingzhou via Wujiang and Wushan is treacherous. Who knows if Wang Xuan and his men can arrive safely?

It’s difficult for people to enter, and the same goes for supplies.

Judging by the large number of refugees leaving Shu, resources within are severely lacking, especially in the conflict zones and areas under current Jin Minister control, which are in poor conditions.

They need external aid; otherwise, the people will either flee or perish. Relying on external help to defend the city is nearly impossible; they must depend on the local population.

With these thoughts, Zhao Hanzhang sent a telegram to Wang Si Niang, instructing her to calm the refugees from Shu and persuade them to return, "Allow them to take supplies back. If possible, organize mule teams to transport goods into Shu."

After making these arrangements, Zhao Hanzhang said to Fu Tinghan, "Princess Hongnong and Uncle Fu may not be able to attend our wedding. I’ll strive to have them return to Luoyang by next spring."

Fu Tinghan was actually unprepared to face them mentally. Upon hearing this, he felt relieved and asked, "Are they safe?"

Zhao Hanzhang nodded, "Safe."

Even if they are not safe now, once Xie Shi appears in Han Zhong County, they will be safe.

Han Zhong County belongs to Liang State, within the Ba Shu region. After Fu Zhi arrived in Chang’an, he dispatched troops to contend with Li Xiong for control over the counties of Liang State. The first reason was to prevent Li Xiong from launching an attack from within Ba Shu; the second was to leave a foothold for the court to reclaim Ba Shu in the future.

However, due to a food shortage, his control over Han Zhong County wasn’t strong. The soldiers and civilians there only occasionally listened to him because of his occasional aid.

When Xie Shi arrived with a large army, Fu Zhi only hesitated briefly before withdrawing his forces, handing Han Zhong over to Xie Shi.

Xie Shi brought with him a batch of relief supplies. With these supplies and Zhao Hanzhang’s decree, he swiftly gained control over Han Zhong County.

He then comforted the disaster victims, repaired projects, ensured they could work, earn money, and buy rice to prevent unrest; at the same time, he stationed troops at the border, letting the soldiers of Cheng Country see the newly raised "Zhao" flag.

The Cheng Country soldiers were startled and hurriedly sent military intelligence to Picheng.

By the time Li Xiong in Picheng received the news, his ministers were fiercely debating with Zhao Xin over the three conditions.

After reading the military intelligence, Li Xiong clenched the paper in his hand, almost crumpling it.

Everyone sensed Li Xiong’s anger and displeasure, gradually falling silent and looking around in confusion without speaking.

Zhao Xin remained composed, smiling as he looked at Li Xiong.

"Impressive nerve," Li Xiong’s gaze fell sharply on Zhao Xin, "Does Zhao Hanzhang not fear that I’ll execute you, her cousin brother?"

Zhao Xin replied, "Standing here is not the cousin brother of the Great General but the envoy of the Jin State. I also believe that His Highness King Cheng is not a cruel and belligerent person. Our Great General knows well that His Highness loves the people of Shu, which is why she is willing to make a concession, allowing His Highness to manage Ba Shu himself. Otherwise, if the Zhao Family Army could pacify Shi Le and repel the Xiongnu, is it truly unable to traverse the Shu Road?"

Upon these words, the civil and military officials of Cheng Country all changed their expressions. A hot-tempered military officer immediately rolled up his sleeves to attack Zhao Xin.

Zhao Xin remained unmoved, casting a light glance at the charging man, "I will not fight back."

The civil officials of Cheng Country urgently stopped the military officer. If someone were beaten to death in the court, Zhao Hanzhang might indeed march in.

However, even as they intervened, they didn’t want to accede to Zhao Xin, so they retorted, "Our majesty declared independence long ago, Jin State is unjust, and the people of Cheng Country willingly follow our majesty. You claim it belongs to you, but where do you get the nerve?"

Zhao Xin said, "There are many ignorant people in the world. Though they don’t know, doesn’t the sovereign know? Liang State is one of the Nine Provinces. If you declare independence here, are you not dividing the Nine Provinces, yearning to repeat the century-long chaos of the Pre-Qin period?"

"Temporary peace does not equate to enduring stability. King Cheng, gentlemen, if you truly care for the people of Ba Shu, you should accept the Great General’s pacification, change the title of emperor to king, and establish a vassal state."

"You talk nonsense, saying whatever. I don’t understand. All I know is that if Ba Shu returns to Jin’s governance, our people of Shu will be oppressed to death. Isn’t that right, your majesty?"

Li Xiong sat in silence, not speaking.

The yelling military officer was startled by the lack of response from Li Xiong and hurriedly approached someone, "Prime Minister, you should say something. What does His Majesty mean by this?"

Fan Changsheng raised his eyelids to look at Zhao Xin and asked in a deep voice, "If Cheng Country surrenders, will we answer to the edicts of a yellow-haired child or follow the directions of General Zhao?"

Zhao Xin calmly replied, "Currently, all edicts in the court come from the Three Departments. The little emperor is being personally taught by the Great General and Grand Tutor Xun. He possesses not only the Great General’s benevolence but also Grand Tutor Xun’s knowledge and talent. I hope Prime Minister Fan does not insult the Emperor."

Fan Changsheng observed his expression and said, "The people of Cheng Country have found it hard to live in peace. If General Zhao cannot provide assurances, please forgive our offense."

So, Zhao Hanzhang, are you planning to replace the little emperor as the ruler, or will you yield power back to the little emperor?

Fan Changsheng stared intently at Zhao Xin.

Zhao Xin wasn’t flustered, for he had already moved beyond that initial stage of panic. Such questions were discussed, if not in Luoyang, then quietly within the Zhao Family itself.

Even his father had once snuck into his room at night to ask, "Is Third Lady going to become the emperor someday?"