Fifteen li south of Daqing Pass.
Du Qi's army was hurrying toward Pyongyang. But there was still a long way to go from Daqing Pass to Pyongyang, and Gao Di had already made his way to Pyongyang. Thus, Du Qi's army was in no hurry.
Now that Du Qi was on the march, the captured Goguryeon soldiers were temporarily detained at the rear of the army. This was because he was worried that once the Goguryeon soldiers returned to Pyongyang, they would affect Gao Di's operation. Thus, it was best for them to remain in the army for now.
Du Qi rode his horse and slowly made his way.
Shangguan Yi, Ma Zhou, and the others were also at Du Qi's side.
All of them appeared very relaxed.
As the army continued on its way, a soldier came up to Du Qi and reported, "Your Majesty, an envoy from Yeon Gaesomun requests an audience."
Du Qi ordered, "Bring him over."
"Yes!"
The soldier immediately went to pass on the order.
Shangguan Yi smiled and said, "Your Majesty, Yeon Gaesomun probably wants to make peace by sending someone to request an audience. In the battle of Daqing Pass, we completely destroyed Yeon Gaesomun's strength. We won a complete victory in this battle. Yeon Gaesomun can't stop us, so his only way out is to make peace. "
Ma Zhou agreed. "Pavilion Master Shangguan is right. Yeon Gaesomun's only way out is to make peace. However, this subject believes that Yeon Gaesomun's request for peace is not necessarily true. It's just to stabilize the situation for now. "
With a smile, Du Qi said, "The reason why I led the army to attack Goguryeo wasn't to subdue it but to swallow it whole. Thus, we have to annihilate Goguryeo in one fell swoop. "
"Your Majesty is wise!"
Shangguan Yi, Ma Zhou, and the others spoke in unison.
Their current attitude was the same. They had decided to completely destroy Goguryeo, then take down Silla and Baekje, unify the entire Liaodong Peninsula, and turn Liaodong into a province in the Xia Xia.
Not long after, the soldier brought Cui Joongki over.
This time, Cui Joongki had brought a translator with him. After all, although he knew some of Mr. Xia's official language, he was not fluent in a lot of things. It was best to bring a translator with him.
When Choe Joong Ki saw Du Qi, he bowed and said, "Goguryeo envoy Choe Joong Ki pays respect to His Majesty Xia Xia."
Du Qi nodded and said, "Speak, what is it?"
Cui Joongji said sternly, "Reporting to the Xia Emperor, I have come on this diplomatic mission because my master, Yeon Gaesomun, has already been intimidated by the Xia Emperor and is willing to submit to the Xia Emperor. My Goguryeo is willing to submit to Xia Xia and worship Xia Xia as our sovereign state. I beseech Emperor Xia to show mercy and forgive Goguryeo for their mistakes. "
Du Qi sneered and said disdainfully, "Yeon Gaesomun still wants to protect Goguryeo. This is impossible. We must destroy Goguryeo. "
Whoosh!
Cui Joongki's face paled.
Du Qi's resolute attitude was extremely disadvantageous for Goguryeo. Even if Cui Joongki wanted to stall for time, he would not be able to do so. If he could not stop Du Qi from heading south and buy enough time, it would be very difficult for Yeon Gaesomun to unite the forces of Silla and Baekje.
Cui Joongki sternly said, "Emperor Xia, my Goguryeo is not only submitting to the Xia Emperor and worshipping Xia Xia. Moreover, my Goguryeo is willing to send hostages to Xia Xia. In addition, Goguryeo can pay tribute every year. Henceforth, the succession of my King of Goguryeo will require Xia Xia's conferment to take effect. "
"Hahaha …"
Du Qi laughed heartily at these words.
His laughter was filled with disdain.
Yeon Gaesomun had truly paid a heavy price to keep him here, even resorting to sending hostages away. But Du Qi did not take Yeon Gaesomun's pleas to heart. There was no way he would agree.
Du Qi sternly said, "Cui Joongki, Goguryeo is doomed."
Cui Joongki's heart sank.
It's over!
He would not be able to complete his mission.
Cui Joongki took a deep breath and gritted his teeth. "Emperor Xia, what will it take for you to let my Goguryeo go and agree to our request for peace?"
Du Qi said, "We will not rest until Goguryeo is destroyed. Right now, my army is bound to destroy Goguryeo. Cui Joongki, Goguryeo's destruction is already unstoppable. Yeon Gaesomun's defeat is close at hand. If you follow Yeon Gaesomun, you won't have a day of success. You can only follow Yeon Gaesomun to death. Are you willing to pledge your allegiance to the Xia and serve the Xia? "
Du Qi was doing this on purpose.
He wanted to see what Cui Joongki would say and understand Yeon Gaesomun's plans through Cui Joongki.
Cui Joongki found himself in a dilemma.
What to do?
Submit to Du Qi, or continue to follow Yeon Gaesomun. The problem was that everyone knew that Yeon Gaesomun would not be able to hold on. Even though Cui Joongki had given Yeon Gaesomun some advice, these strategies were only on the surface, and it was impossible to judge whether or not they would succeed. Of course, his plan to delay Du Qi had already failed.
Du Qi saw Cui Joongki's reaction and sneered. "Forget it. Since you're not willing to submit, you can die. Men, push Cui Joongki down and kill him. "
Cui Joongki was dumbfounded.
It was said that envoys were not to be killed in a war, so why kill him?
"Don't kill me!"
Cui Joongki dropped to his knees and begged, "Emperor Xia, I'm willing to submit. I'm willing to serve you. I, Cui Joongki, am willing to serve you. "
"Cui Joongki pays respects to Emperor Xia."
Cui Joongki kowtowed and begged for mercy.
His heart was filled with fear.
He was afraid that Du Qi would kill him.
Du Qi saw Cui Joongki kneeling and begging for mercy, so he continued, "Since you're willing to serve Us, tell me. What is Yeon Gaesomun's side planning? "
Cui Joongki said, "Reporting to Emperor Xia, Yeon Gaesomun's current plan is to retreat to Pyongyang and defend it. Then, he will work with Silla and Goguryeo so that the three countries can send out soldiers to resist Emperor Xia. "
Hearing this, Du Qi raised his eyebrows in surprise. He had not imagined that Yeon Gaesomun was already planning to work with Silla and Baekje to resist Du Qi's attack.
Du Qi's thoughts turned, and he suddenly came up with an idea.
He had an idea.
Du Qi immediately ordered for Cui Joongki to be taken away. Cui Joongki panicked and hurriedly said, "Emperor Xia, I'm willing to submit to you. I'm willing to serve you. I implore Emperor Xia to give me a chance. I'm willing to submit to Emperor Xia. "
Du Qi waved his hand, and the soldiers dragged Cui Joongki away. Du Qi turned to Shangguan Yi, Ma Zhou, and Guan Zhilan and said, "Just now, Cui Joongki said that Yeon Gaesomun is preparing to work with Silla and Baekje to resist us. We feel that this is an opportunity."
Shangguan Yi said, "Your Majesty's plan is to encircle the enemy and attack the reinforcements? We'll leave Yeon Gaesomun alive for now, and then once Silla and Baekje's forces reach Pyongyang, we'll take them down and deal them a heavy blow. "
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