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Chapter 481: 240: Triumphal Return

After all, the two countries were originally enemies, and Lu Yuan had deep hatred for the other side. There was simply no trust between them.

Now they had agreed to exchange Nanzheng City for Xiangyang City.

But the method of exchange was definitely worth considering.

Otherwise, if he handed over Nanzheng City while Zhou Country refused to hand over Xiangyang City, wouldn’t he be a fool, giving away a prefectural city for free?

Lu Yuan would never make such a losing trade.

Fortunately, He Basheng had anticipated Lu Yuan’s concerns, so when he raised these points, He Basheng promptly replied, “If Your Majesty is worried, my country can hand over Xiangyang City first. Your Majesty can send people to take over the city and its defenses. After that, Nanzheng City can be handed over to my country.”

Compared to Lu Yuan’s concerns, Zhou Country’s worries about the territorial trade were much smaller.

After all, if Zhou Country obtained Nanzheng City and later refused to hand over Xiangyang City, Lu Yuan would naturally be unable to do anything about it.

But if Lu Yuan obtained Xiangyang City and refused to hand over Nanzheng City in the end…

That would be the case under the backdrop of the ceasefire negotiations between the Zhou and Yue camps following the end of the Northern Expedition.

Lu Yuan’s Changsha State alone had no power to confront the whole Zhou Country.

So, if he were truly audacious and greedy, taking Xiangyang City and still refusing to hand over Nanzheng City…

Zhou Country had the strength to retaliate.

By then, the two countries would be at war, and Lu Yuan would not only fail to secure the cities, but also lose all the gains made during the Northern Expedition.

Therefore, Zhou Country was not afraid of Lu Yuan breaking his promise and not handing over Nanzheng City after taking Xiangyang City.

Faced with such sincere conditions, what more could Lu Yuan say? He gladly accepted: “In that case, I have no issues.”

Seeing this, He Basheng drank the last sip of tea, got up, straightened his clothes, and said, “In that case, let’s settle the matter of exchanging cities. After I return to camp, I will send a message back.

Your Majesty can now send someone to Xiangyang to take over the city.

Since the army’s withdrawal is imminent and I have many official duties, I will not stay any longer. I will take my leave first.”

He Basheng slightly bowed and then turned to leave.

Lu Yuan hurriedly escorted him out of the small gazebo. When the other man’s figure disappeared into the field outside, he stood still for a moment, lost in thought.

It took him a while to snap out of it, his face breaking into a smile as he muttered, “This is really good news.”

Just by coming out, he had gained a prefectural city for free.

How could such great news not make him happy?

Feeling joyful, he glanced at the now empty gazebo and hurried back to Nanzheng City with a light step.

Back in the city, he immediately summoned Lan Cai’er and informed her about the matter.

Upon hearing that her husband had reached such an agreement with Zhou Country, Lan Cai’er could not help but be surprised. She quickly realized the benefits and advantages that this could bring.

So, when Lu Yuan asked her to lead thirty thousand soldiers to Xiangyang and take over the city, she immediately agreed, “Your Majesty, rest assured. With me, I will definitely defend Xiangyang City well.”

Lu Yuan hugged Lan Cai’er, feeling very satisfied with his queen, and assured her, “My queen, you go ahead to Xiangyang first. Once I finish dealing with matters here, I will lead the army to join you. Then we will return to Changsha together to hold our unfinished wedding ceremony and officially get married.”

Since their engagement, Lan Cai’er had been a great help to Lu Yuan’s career.

With her assistance, he had been able to force the court to compromise and establish Changsha State. During the Northern Expedition, he could focus on defeating the enemy without worrying about the safety of the rear.

Therefore, Lu Yuan remembered and appreciated her help and friendship.

Moreover, their marriage had been delayed for more than half a year, and although foreign envoys had stayed in Changsha City out of respect for his successive victories, they might not stay indefinitely.

Thus, he wanted to get the wedding ceremony done as soon as possible and not delay any further.

Upon hearing this, Lan Cai’er’s face turned red with embarrassment. She just nodded slightly and replied, “This consort will listen to Your Majesty.”

Seeing this, Lu Yuan could not help but laugh out loud.

Following the agreement with He Basheng, the speed of the Zhou People’s military withdrawal had accelerated considerably in the following days.

Clearly, with such a favorable alliance in place, Zhou Country was not worried that Lu Yuan would turn on them at this time.

With both parties assured, by the 20th day of the ninth month of Hongdao’s eighth year, Zhou Country’s 300,000-strong army had completely withdrawn from Nanzheng Prefecture.

Even 200,000 of these troops had begun to return to Zhou Country along the same route they had come from.

In Hanzhong Prefecture, Zhou People left behind only 100,000 soldiers for local defense.

It was at this juncture that Lu Yuan instructed Lan Cai’er to lead 30,000 troops eastward to Xiangyang Prefecture to prepare to take over the city.

At the same time, he ordered Zhou Qing in the rear to gradually relocate the conscripted militia’s family members and move them to Wushan, Linjiang, and Yuzhong Prefectures.

Now that there was a ceasefire and peace talks with the Zhou People, six thousand of the militia still remained in Lu Yuan’s army.