RWNEFE -Chapter 520 Meeting Meng Xiangka: The Ferocious Wolves Turn into Cowed Dogs

The letter of indictment stated clearly:

The men Great Zhou sent were the finest among its sons. The Wolf Tribe unilaterally tore up the agreement, detained our envoys, and violated the terms of peace. Great Zhou will soon send troops to the southwest to exterminate those who defy agreements.

The letter delivered to the Southwestern Army naturally ended up in Bai Qingling’s hands.

Her eyes blazed with fury, her expression ferocious as if she wanted to devour someone, gripping the letter tightly.

“What inspection? Shen Lanxi clearly wants to use this opportunity to seize the prince’s military authority!”

Jiang Wuya frowned. “Princess Consort, that’s four hundred thousand troops. This matter is too serious—we must inform the prince.”

Bai Qingling’s anger only deepened. Compared with Meng Xiangka, the one she least wanted the prince to meet was Shen Lanxi.

“Shen Lanxi is using power to oppress us, forcing the prince—just like she did back in the capital.” In Bai Qingling’s eyes, Shen Lanxi had long harbored hatred toward her and the prince and was taking revenge step by step.

Back when Zhou Ruyuan and Shen Lanxi married, the scandal had been so huge that the prince was forever saddled with the reputation of “calling for water three times in one night.” Jiang Wuya naturally knew this, so he did not dwell on Bai Qingling’s words and instead tried to steer the discussion back to the matter at hand.

“No matter the reason, Shen Lanxi carries an imperial edict. If we refuse her inspection, it would be defying an imperial order.”

Even a prince, once tainted with the crime of defying an edict, could be implicated in treason. Within the imperial family, there was no true kinship—any prince accused of treason faced certain death.

Bai Qingling’s tone sharpened with anger. “So we just let Shen Lanxi enter our Southwestern Army and do as she pleases? Who knows what she’s planning? If she deliberately causes trouble, wouldn’t we be letting a wolf into the house?”

Jiang Wuya took a deep breath. “I still think we should notify the prince and see what he thinks.”

Bai Qingling rejected the idea without hesitation.

“I don’t believe she really brought four hundred thousand troops. Don’t tell the prince yet—we’ll wait until we verify the truth.”

Jiang Wuya tried to speak again, but Bai Qingling cut him off.

“Don’t you trust me, sir? Everything I do is for the prince’s sake. Right now the prince is still undecided. Why not take this opportunity to settle matters once and for all?”

Jiang Wuya raised an eyebrow. “You mean…?”

Bai Qingling said confidently, “I’ve already spoken with the Wolf Tribe’s leader. She’s agreed to bring her tribes to ally with us. When that happens, our Southwestern Army will be like a tiger with wings. Whatever we want to do will be easy.”

Jiang Wuya still looked worried. “A secret letter from the capital said that His Majesty has already recovered.”

Bai Qingling replied, “So what? Right now, among His Majesty’s sons, only the prince has the ability to inherit the throne. At a time like this, whatever the prince does will be perfectly natural and justified.”

Jiang Wuya swallowed the rest of what he had been about to say—clearly persuaded by her words.

On the other side

“Chief, what does Great Zhou mean?”

“They’re the ones who broke the agreement, yet now they’re blaming us.”

“Could they be using this as an excuse to start a war?”

Meng Xiangka’s face darkened as she looked at the letter. Just two days ago, the Princess Consort of the Prince of Zhen’nan had agreed to everything, and now Great Zhou had sent this letter. Who exactly spoke for Great Zhou?

“I know of this Regent of Great Zhou,” Meng Xiangka said. “Our spies have sent many reports mentioning Shen Lanxi.”

“They say she first reclaimed Dongchuan, then the northwest, winning great merit for Great Zhou. A recent report even said she advocated a tax on concubines, reduced agricultural taxes, and supported allowing women to take civil and military examinations.”

Meng Xiangka snapped back to attention, her wolf-like gaze fixed on her subordinate.

“Where are those reports?”

“They were thrown into the barracks… no one read them. I don’t know if they’ve been burned.”

Meng Xiangka glared. “Go get them immediately!”

“Yes!”

The subordinate quickly brought the reports. Since Meng Xiangka could not read Great Zhou’s script, she had someone literate read them aloud.

“Here it is—the one about the Regent’s legend…”

“Shen Lanxi was born into a prestigious family and lived in luxury in her youth. Later, the Shen family was falsely accused and exiled, and through a chain of circumstances…”

As Meng Xiangka listened, she became absorbed.

So Great Zhou really had such a legendary woman. She had always assumed this Regent had risen through men, and she had long despised Great Zhou’s restrictive rules on women, as well as the way women treated their husbands as their entire world. Because of that, she had also been prejudiced against Shen Lanxi.

She hadn’t expected that Great Zhou truly produced a woman unlike the rest—a woman who did not depend on men.

Still, she was not entirely convinced. People of Great Zhou often exaggerated the truth, saying one thing and doing another. She would have to see Shen Lanxi with her own eyes before believing it.

“Send a reply to the Regent of Great Zhou. I, the chief, want to spar with Shen Lanxi!”

Nothing proved a woman’s ability more than strength. Meng Xiangka herself held her position as chief through her own power and martial skill.

If Shen Lanxi wanted her trust, she would have to fight.

If Shen Lanxi could defeat her, she would believe. If not, no matter what kind of regent she was, she would never allow her to slander the Wolf Tribe.

Shen Lanxi soon received the reply.

“Your Highness, we don’t have that many men. If the Southwestern Army and the Wolf Tribe realize it and join forces, we’ll be in grave danger,” a shadow guard warned.

But Shen Lanxi had already sent people to occupy the Moshan camp eighty li away.

“Send five hundred men to garrison Moshan camp. It occupies an entire mountain, and the barracks can house tens of thousands. Spread the five hundred men across several nearby peaks and light signal fires to make it appear that our numbers are vast.”

The shadow guards felt uneasy.

It was the empty-city stratagem. What if it were discovered?

Shen Lanxi said calmly, “Just do it. I have my own plans.”

“Yes!”

Of course she would meet the Wolf Tribe’s chief—but not too quickly. She could not let them think she was too easy to deal with.

Two days later, at the foot of Yin Mountain.

Shen Lanxi arrived at the meeting place with two hundred elite soldiers.

Behind Meng Xiangka stood a dense mass of people—at least five or six hundred, just counting those visible to the eye.

“Awooo…” As Shen Lanxi approached, the wolves raised by the tribe let out fierce howls.

Shen Lanxi walked forward step by step, not even casting a threatening glance—yet the wolves’ howls changed pitch.

The ferocious wolves turned into cowed dogs, tails tucked, trembling as they retreated.

Meng Xiangka cast a cold glance at the wolves, gritted her teeth, and stepped forward to meet Shen Lanxi.

Shen Lanxi introduced herself. “Shen Lanxi, Regent of Great Zhou.”

“Meng Xiangka, Chief of the Wolf Tribe.”

Shen Lanxi spoke expressionlessly, as if stating plain facts: “Previously, the Wolf Tribe petitioned Great Zhou, expressing willingness to negotiate peace. Out of concern for the people of our southwestern border, I agreed to discussions and sent envoys for cultural exchange.”

Meng Xiangka nodded. That was indeed true.

“After the envoys arrived in the southwest, the Princess Consort of the Prince of Zhen’nan sent those men to you as male concubines. I came in good faith to negotiate peace with Great Zhou, yet you have humiliated us in this way.”