Chapter 192: Negotiations, Part Two

Fei Changliu said, “Everyone here knows perfectly well what happened. Why pretend ignorance?”

“Set that matter aside for now.”

Niu Youdao had no intention of discussing it. That was not why he had invited them here, and there was no way to negotiate the issue anyway. The goods had already been sold off cheaply. He could neither return them nor produce enough money to compensate the losses.

“Song Jiuming said that if I were killed, he could return to office. He promised Liuxian Sect benefits and drove your people around doing his work.”

“Am I wrong?”

Uncertainty appeared in Fei Changliu’s eyes. He had no idea how the other side knew. Zheng Jiuxiao and Xia Hua both looked at him suspiciously and cursed inwardly. As expected, the Song family had always favored Liuxian Sect. Why had no one contacted them? Peng Youzai, seated on the other side, knew a little more about the matter. Shang Chaozong seemed to have planted an informant inside the Song family. The information Shang Chaozong passed to Niu Youdao had itself been relayed through Tianyu Sect.

So Peng Youzai knew something of it.

Fei Changliu said, “I have already said it. Compensate Liuxian Sect for the losses to our shop and everything else can be put behind us.”

Niu Youdao said, “Sect Leader Fei, Liuxian Sect could not kill me before.”

“I also dare state plainly that Liuxian Sect will not be able to kill me now, nor at any time in the future.”

“In that case, how exactly will Song Jiuming return to office?”

“And how will he honor the benefits he promised Liuxian Sect?”

Fei Changliu said, “Do you not understand what I am saying?”

“Compensate Liuxian Sect for its losses. Out of respect for the Ice and Snow Pavilion, Liuxian Sect will no longer pursue anything else.”

Niu Youdao simply refused to engage with that point.

“Forget returning to office. Let me make a wager with you.”

“The Song family is on the verge of destruction.”

Fei Changliu said, “Stop dragging the Song family into this, and stop playing these games with me.”

“In the past, everyone served their own master. If Liuxian Sect suffered deaths or injuries while helping the Song family, we accept that.”

“But the enormous wealth in that shop belonged collectively to every disciple in Liuxian Sect. If such a huge deficit is simply left unaccounted for, I have no way to explain it to the entire sect.”

“Of course, if you can make the Ice and Snow Pavilion come out and say this matter may no longer be pursued, then I will accept that too.”

“Otherwise, the account can only be settled with you.”

Niu Youdao answered a different question entirely.

“Liuxian Sect originally depended on the Song family. Now the Song family has fallen. Liuxian Sect must be wondering what road to take next.”

Fei Changliu said, “That is Liuxian Sect’s affair. You do not need to concern yourself with it.”

Niu Youdao swept his gaze across everyone present.

“I invited all of you here this time to discuss dividing the interests of Nanzhou in the State of Yan.”

“How do those interests compare with whatever the Song family promised?”

“If Sect Leader Fei has no interest, you may leave now. I will not force you.”

“Whether we live or die in the future, I will be available at any time.”

“...”

Everyone present froze.

Divide the interests of Nanzhou?

Fei Changliu, Zheng Jiuxiao, and Xia Hua looked at one another. Peng Youzai recovered first and sneered.

“Divide Nanzhou? Such a grand tone.”

“Is this the will of the Ice and Snow Pavilion?”

Niu Youdao merely gestured toward Fei Changliu.

“I already said I will not force anyone. Sect Leader Fei may leave whenever he wishes.”

Fei Changliu said with feigned indifference, “There is no harm in listening.”

Niu Youdao snorted and looked around.

“Is that reasonable?”

“You want to settle accounts with me. Why should I allow you to listen to confidential matters?”

Wu Shaohuan, standing behind Fei Changliu, bent down and whispered several sentences into his ear before straightening again. Fei Changliu’s rigid face tightened. He lowered his gaze.

“If there truly are enough interests in Nanzhou to compensate Liuxian Sect for its losses, then I would have an explanation for the disciples of the sect.”

“In that case, putting the old grievances behind us would not be impossible.”

Niu Youdao turned toward the other two.

“And Sect Leader Zheng? Sect Leader Xia?”

“Do we settle accounts first, or what?”

Zheng Jiuxiao stroked his beard.

“We will listen first, then decide.”

Xia Hua gave a quiet sound of agreement and nodded.

“Since that is the case, then listen first.”

Niu Youdao gave a faintly mocking snort, then looked toward Peng Youzai.

“This has nothing to do with the Ice and Snow Pavilion.”

“Surely Sect Leader Peng does not believe Commandery Prince Yongping’s ambitions extend no farther than little Qingshan Commandery?”

Had it been the intention of the Ice and Snow Pavilion, then the matter might indeed have held great promise. But the moment Peng Youzai heard that it was not, disdain immediately appeared on his face.

“Who beneath Heaven does not wish to climb higher?”

“But no matter how lofty your ambition, you still require strength to match it.”

“Empty boasting here accomplishes nothing.”

Niu Youdao answered tit for tat.

“Better than accomplishing nothing at all!”

“Think about it. If Commandery Prince Yongping had not come to Canglu County and acted, Tianyu Sect’s holdings inside Nanzhou would amount to nothing more than Guangyi Commandery.”

“The moment Commandery Prince Yongping arrived, he immediately helped Tianyu Sect—after years of merely defending what it already had—seize all of Qingshan Commandery.”

“Does Sect Leader Peng believe Commandery Prince Yongping is a man of empty boasts?”

The words carried a trace of mockery at Tianyu Sect’s impotence. Naturally, Peng Youzai did not enjoy hearing them. He sneered repeatedly.

“Without Tianyu Sect’s support, what would he have used to seize Qingshan Commandery?”

Niu Youdao said, “Then why did Tianyu Sect not take Qingshan Commandery earlier?”

“Why did it have to wait until Commandery Prince Yongping arrived?”

“Could Tianyu Sect see the future? Did you already know Commandery Prince Yongping would escape imprisonment and come to Qingshan Commandery, so you waited there respectfully for him?”

“Is Sect Leader Peng not afraid people will laugh at such words?”

“Heh.”

“If Commandery Prince Yongping had not already settled matters with every side, would Tianyu Sect have dared support him?”

“If Commandery Prince Yongping had not arranged everything and given Tianyu Sect the courage to act, I fear Tianyu Sect’s influence in Nanzhou would still be curled up inside Guangyi Commandery.”

“Insolence!”

An elder standing behind Peng Youzai shouted angrily. Niu Youdao lifted his teacup, gave the elder a sidelong glance, and slowly raised it to his lips.

“When people sit down to negotiate, they rely on reason, not on who can shout the loudest.”

He gently blew across the hot tea, took a slow sip, then continued.

“If, when Commandery Prince Yongping first arrived in Guangyi Commandery, he had announced that he intended to seize the entirety of Qingshan Commandery, I imagine the situation would have looked much like today.”

“Sect Leader Peng probably would have laughed at him in exactly the same way, mocking him for overestimating himself.”

“And yet what happened?”

“I doubt Tianyu Sect ever dreamed back then that Commandery Prince Yongping would become master of Qingshan Commandery.”

“Today’s ridicule looks very much like an old illness relapsing.”

Fei Changliu, Zheng Jiuxiao, and Xia Hua all grew thoughtful. There did seem to be some truth in that. Back then, who could have imagined Shang Chaozong would seize Qingshan Commandery so quickly? Peng Youzai raised a hand and stopped the enraged elder behind him.

“You truly have a sharp tongue.”

“If Shang Chaozong genuinely has a way to seize Nanzhou, Tianyu Sect will naturally support him with all our strength. We would applaud, not obstruct him.”

“But how large is Qingshan Commandery? And how large is Nanzhou?”

“Even if Tianyu Sect spares no cost and fights to the death to hold off the other sects, so what?”

“Guangyi and Qingshan Commanderies have only so many troops between them.”

“Even if every last soldier were placed under Shang Chaozong’s command, Nanzhou covers an enormous territory.”

“Once those troops were scattered across it, could they hold the ground?”

“And if one forcibly occupies an entire province, would the court of the State of Yan simply let the matter go?”

“You boast so grandly here. Has Commandery Prince Yongping already discussed some reliable method with you?”

Having spoken this far, Peng Youzai’s own earlier words remained true. If Nanzhou truly could be taken, why would Tianyu Sect not want it? Stopping the enraged elder had also been partly because Peng Youzai wanted to hear the rest. As the master of a sect, he had to consider the interests of the entire sect. There was no need to let a verbal quarrel delay something important.

Niu Youdao said, “If you want to hold Nanzhou, the most reliable method is naturally a powerful army.”

“Relying on Tianyu Sect itself would be useless.”

“Tianyu Sect may have many people, but if you scattered all of them across a province as vast as Nanzhou, they would not even fill the gaps between its teeth.”

“So in the end, the answer still depends on Commandery Prince Yongping.”

Chen Tingxiu—the elder behind Peng Youzai who had shouted angrily earlier—sneered.

“Feng Lingbo is perfectly capable of governing a territory. Why must it be Shang Chaozong?”

“Naturally,” Niu Youdao replied. “But I support only Shang Chaozong. It is that simple.”

Chen Tingxiu mocked, “You support him? With what?”

Niu Youdao said, “I do not understand warfare.”

“When I was chatting with Commandery Prince Yongping and Lan Ruoting, I once asked them how many troops would be required to capture Nanzhou.”

“They said that if the task were merely conquest, three hundred thousand elite troops would be enough.”

“As for governance and garrisoning after the territory was taken, manpower could be recruited locally.”

“The actual army used for the campaign did not need to be too large. Too many troops would instead become a heavy burden.”

“So, counting it out: remove the one hundred thousand elite troops already in Guangyi Commandery, and another two hundred thousand elite soldiers would still be needed.”

Everyone looked at him. They did not understand why he had suddenly shifted into troop numbers instead of answering the question. Peng Youzai snorted.

“Guangyi Commandery is already at its limit supporting one hundred thousand elite troops.”

“And that is only because Guangyi Commandery is a rich land of fish and rice.”

“Add another two hundred thousand elite troops and the money and grain required would be far beyond what Guangyi and Qingshan Commanderies can bear.”

Niu Youdao slowly took another sip of tea.

“That is exactly where my support comes in.”

“I can provide the financial backing.”

Peng Youzai said, “Do you even know how much one elite soldier consumes in a day?”

“Even the simplest food and drink costs at least ten copper coins.”

“He also has a family to support. Each soldier must receive at least three hundred copper coins a month just to cover the basic living needs of his household.”

“That works out to another ten copper coins a day.”

“And this does not include clothing, armor, or weapons.”

“It does not include warhorses or officers’ pay.”

“It does not include training costs or treatment for the wounded.”

“Nor does it include compensation for unexpected deaths.”

“At the barest minimum, each soldier costs twenty copper coins a day.”

“For two hundred thousand elite troops, that means four million copper coins every day.”

“Converted into gold coins, that is four hundred.”

“In reality, the cost is far more than four hundred gold coins.”

“Once the other expenses are added, maintaining two hundred thousand elite troops would cost at least three times that amount.”

“Without fifteen hundred gold coins a day, you simply could not support them.”

“That is only one day.”

“Ten days is fifteen thousand.”

“A month is forty or fifty thousand.”

“A year comes to roughly five hundred thousand gold coins.”

“And do you know how many craftsmen must be maintained behind an army of two hundred thousand elite troops?”

“Do you know how many horses must be purchased?”

“And that is without an actual war.”

“Once fighting begins, merely preparing and transporting the enormous quantity of supplies requires vast amounts of manpower and money.”

“Add compensation for the large number killed in battle, and every other category of expense piled on top, and the total becomes even more enormous.”

“Boy, talking about taking Nanzhou sounds easy.”

“War is not so easy to fight.”

“It requires enormous financial strength.”

“You say you will support it?”

“Where are you going to get that much money?”

Fei Changliu said indifferently, “Perhaps after stealing from the shops of our three sects, he finally has enough capital to speak like this.”

Niu Youdao said, “There is no need to list every item for me.”

“I do not care about all that miscellaneous nonsense, and I do not understand all that miscellaneous nonsense.”

“I only provide the financial support.”

“How the money should actually be spent is Commandery Prince Yongping’s problem.”

Peng Youzai simply held out his hand.

“Where is the money?”

“If you can produce enough money for Shang Chaozong to recruit troops and buy horses, then forget attacking Nanzhou.”

“If he wants to attack the whole State of Yan, Tianyu Sect will have no objection.”

[End of Chapter 192]