17th of November, Sanjiang Town.
Ten li north of the town, there was a small hill. There were three different territory steles erected on three sides of the hill, forming a triangle. It was the intersection of the three provinces.
Three days ago, this place had been under martial law.
The Leopard Army, the Northern Sichuan City-State Coalition Army, and the Southern Xiang-City-State Coalition Army each guarded one side. This didn't look like signing an agreement. Those who didn't know would think it was a gang fight.
On the top of the hill, there was a table and three wooden chairs, one in the south and two in the north. Whether it was the table or the wooden chairs, they were of the simplest structure. One could see through them at a glance, and nothing could be hidden.
Around nine in the morning, three groups of people converged on the small hill from three sides.
The one leading the way from the south was Ouyang Shuo riding Little Blue. Xu Chu followed behind Ouyang Shuo on his cyan beetle horse. He looked around fiercely, making people not dare to approach.
Behind him were the guards and the three thousand Divine Martial Guards.
At the foot of the hill, Ouyang Shuo dismounted and only brought Fan Li to the top of the hill.
At the same time, Official Ximen and South of Rosy Clouds also came from the two sides. Behind them, there was a lord and an official. The lord was arranged by the city-state and was responsible for routine internal supervision. The official was a financial official like Fan Li, responsible for interpreting the provisions of the trade agreement.
Ouyang Shuo smiled and took the lead to greet, "Lord Ximen, Lord of Rosy Clouds, it's an honor to meet you. Please sit!" Then he sat down on the wooden chair in the south. Fan Li stood behind Ouyang Shuo.
Official Ximen and South of Rosy Clouds looked at each other and smiled bitterly.
It wasn't the first time they met this person, but it was the first time they really interacted with him. He was indeed powerful. In this way, they seemed to be guests, and the relationship between host and guest was immediately established.
At this time, the two couldn't argue. They greeted him stiffly and sat down on the north side. The lords and officials who came with them also stood behind them.
Ouyang Shuo frowned. He sensed that the lord behind South of Rosy Clouds was a little nervous.
"Is it because of today's big scene?" Ouyang Shuo muttered to himself.
He couldn't guess why the other party was nervous, but he secretly put up his guard. There were many people who were dissatisfied with today's signing ceremony, and Ouyang Shuo couldn't allow it to be ruined.
"Let's begin!"
Ouyang Shuo turned his head and gestured to Fan Li. There was not a trace of peculiarity on his face.
Fan Li understood and placed the trade agreement he had prepared in triplicate on the table.
Negotiations on the trade agreement had begun a few days ago, and the details had already been finalized. Ouyang Shuo had no objections to the two clauses that Fan Li emphasized, and so it was decided.
The two city-states did not have much room for bargaining. Even if Shanhai City set a threshold, they would still be able to reap huge profits from this trade agreement.
There were countless territories in the Wilderness that were begging to cooperate with Shanhai City.
Ouyang Shuo decided to cooperate with the two city-states and establish trade channels. In addition to strategic considerations for the security of the Northern Region, there were also other hidden "ambitions". Ever since he entered the wilderness, he had never stopped using his "Gu Raising" strategy.
It was just that there were different variations at different stages, and they were even more secretive.
Whether it was the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom or the Lingnan City-State, they only started harvesting when Ouyang Shuo felt that they had fattened up.
Although there were risks in the process, the rewards were huge. The counties that they conquered had a good foundation, and after a period of operation, they would be able to reap huge returns.
At this stage, the "Gu Raising" strategy was still going on, but the target had quietly shifted to the two city-states. If their territories were developed in trade, Shanhai City would naturally benefit from them in the future.
The surrounding territories would "grow together" with Shanhai City, and when they "matured", they would harvest them. This was the essence of "Gu Raising".
Otherwise, the difference between these territories and Shanhai City was too great. Even if they conquered them, they would have to spend a lot of effort to manage them.
This was an overt plot, and there was no way to break it.
"Do you have any objections to the contents of the agreement?" Ouyang Shuo asked with a smile.
"No problem."
Lord Ximen and South of Rosy Clouds did not know what kind of trade agreement Shanhai City had signed with the other territories, so they could not see anything fishy at all.
Even if they instinctively felt that something was wrong, they could not refute it.
"That's good. Let's sign it!"
Ouyang Shuo picked up the brush and signed his name.
This trade agreement had legal effects, and it was not a joke. Any party that breached the agreement would have to bear a huge risk.
Such an agreement was also a bargaining chip to make the two city-states feel at ease.
"With this, we won't be attacked by Shanhai City." This was what the feudal lords thought.
However, how could it be so simple?
Ouyang Shuo did not know how the two city-states operated, but Shanhai City had hidden pawns in the two city-states. It would be too easy to create the illusion that the two city-states had breached the agreement.
Therefore, even if it was a trade agreement with legal effects, in the eyes of smart people, it would not be a protective talisman forever.
This was the wilderness, and there was no such thing as lasting peace.
Just as Ouyang Shuo was about to sign the third agreement, something unexpected happened.
Ouyang Shuo suddenly felt a killing intent coming at him. What shocked Ouyang Shuo even more was that this killing intent was not directed at him, but at Fan Li, who was standing behind him.
"Not good!"
Without thinking, Ouyang Shuo stood up and stood in front of Fan Li.
"Bang!"
Accompanied by the sound of a gunshot, a bullet tore through the air and pierced into Ouyang Shuo's left shoulder. At this time, Ouyang Shuo had not even fully stood up.
The bullet was just a little bit away from entering his head.
Ouyang Shuo immediately felt a heart-wrenching pain, and his entire left arm could not move. He could clearly feel that the bullet had pierced into his skin, torn his muscles, and almost shattered his shoulder blade.
If Ouyang Shuo had not cultivated to perfection, and the Inner Canon of the Yellow Emperor had strengthened his skin and bones, his bones would have been shattered by the gunshot at such a close distance.
"Swish!" Ouyang Shuo pulled out the Scarlet Night Sword from his waist.
Raising his head, he saw that the attacker was indeed the feudal lord standing behind South of Rosy Clouds. The white smoke emitted from the western handgun in his hand had not completely dissipated and was still floating in the air.
"How dare you!"
Ouyang Shuo took a step forward and activated the Wandering Dragon Body that came with the Cloud Dragon Nine Stripes Battle Boots. His body turned into a series of afterimages, and in the blink of an eye, he had bypassed the table and appeared in front of the person. The Scarlet Night Sword was already on the other party's neck.
"If you dare to move, I'll let you see the King of Hell immediately!" Ouyang Shuo said coldly.
The feudal lord was also a young man. He seemed to have not recovered from the unforeseen event. Looking at the treasured sword on his neck, he did not know how to react for a moment.
According to the plan, he would be able to kill Fan Li with one shot. The weapon in his hand was a custom-made western handgun. It was a quasi-divine weapon that his master had spent a lot of money to obtain.
Fan Li was a Saint of Commerce and one of the four giants of Shanhai City's civil official group. Once he was killed in such a public place, Wei Yue Wuyi would definitely be furious. Naturally, the scheduled signing ceremony would not be able to proceed.
The furious Wei Yue Wuyi would probably immediately start a war with the two major city-states.
In this way, his master's goal would be achieved.
This person would never have thought that Wei Yue Wuyi's perception would be so sharp. He could detect even the slightest hint of killing intent and save Fan Li in the nick of time.
As for crippling one of Wei Yue Wuyi's arms, it would be of no use.
For players, any injury could be healed. At the very least, they could be restored to normal through reincarnation. In their opinion, a feudal lord like Wei Yue Wuyi would definitely have a substitute doll on him.
From the beginning, they had locked the assassination target on Fan Li. They did not expect that they would fail in the end.
"Since it failed, there's nothing more to say." The young feudal lord regained his composure. Since the beginning of the plan, he was very clear that regardless of the success or failure of the assassination, there would be no place for him in Xiangnan City.
His escape route had already been arranged by the master behind him.
…
It was not until Ouyang Shuo subdued the assassin that the others present reacted.
"Lin Fen, what are you doing?"
South of Rosy Clouds was very angry. His eyes were burning. South of Rosy Clouds was angry not only because of the assassination, but also because of the unwarranted betrayal. Such a thing happened in the city-state, which made him lose face.
Looking at Ximen's gloomy expression, one could tell how angry his ally was.
"I know what I'm doing." Lin Fen, the assassin, looked calm.
"You." South of Rosy Clouds was angry and said fiercely, "I'll settle the score with you later."
South of Rosy Clouds turned to look at Ouyang Shuo and said sincerely, "Lord Wuyi, I swear that this is completely Lin Fen's personal action. It has nothing to do with Xiangnan City. If you want to kill this person, it's up to you. "
South of Rosy Clouds now only hoped to clarify the misunderstanding and distance the relationship between Lin Fen and the city-state.
Before Ouyang Shuo could speak, the guards and the Divine Martial Guards at the foot of the mountain were already in an uproar. Without thinking, under Xu Chu's lead, they rushed to the top of the mountain.
Seeing this, the city-state coalition forces that were arranged in the other two directions were also ready to go. The main forces further away received the news and were also quietly moving.
If they were not careful, it would probably cause a big battle.
Seeing this, Ouyang Shuo temporarily had no time to care about South of Rosy Clouds. He shouted to the foot of the mountain, "All of you, stop!"
"Lord!" Xu Chu was a little anxious.
Ouyang Shuo had to emphasize again, "Don't come up."
"Yes!"
Xu Chu gritted his teeth and nodded. He vigilantly looked around and was ready to fight at any time.
South of Rosy Clouds and Ximen also reacted at this time and stopped their respective coalition forces from rushing up in time. Only then did they resolve the crisis.
Thinking back, they felt a chill in their hearts.
The consequences would be unimaginable if something went wrong. The intentions of the person behind it were really sinister.
Ouyang Shuo's shoulder was still bleeding, but he didn't care. There was even a smile on his face. He said to South of Rosy Clouds, "Lord of Rosy Clouds, don't worry about it. I can still see through this little trick. This little episode won't affect our cooperation."
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