The image of Elizabeth briefly flashed through her mind. Elizabeth's home was destroyed, her family was murdered, and her world was gone. She was thrown into an unknown environment, sucked into this world's politics, and forced to become the heir apparent of the Alzar Kingdom. Lost and confused, she stumbled and struggled every step of the way. She nearly died half a dozen times too. Yet, she learned from those failures and rose to the challenge. Now, Elizabeth was a respected princess, a Half-Condensed Drop Arcanist, and a key figure in this war! Ming almost failed to recognize her when they met again in Liguang! Who knew how far she would go in five years? Ten years? Her story was truly inspirational and drove Ming to believe her. Elizabeth could be the person they needed to end this war!
Both Xiuying and Ming radiated such conviction and resolve that Lord Lu was briefly intimidated. It was like looking into the suns. Their figures were blinding! And he could tell these were their honest feelings too since their sincerity resonated with him. He felt a little ashamed to test them like this, but that could not be helped. He was the patriarch of the Yen Family, managing one of the largest merchant alliances in the north. Scoundrels and schemers were a daily occurrence. Naturally, that made him particularly distrustful of any bold or grand claims like the ones the Imperial Princesses made. However, what they said cleared up all his doubts. There was nothing to be gained from doing this and it was a losing bet. No one would do the same unless they were ill! And in a sense, the princesses were exactly that. Their magnanimity was almost an illness! They were willing to sacrifice everything for the sake of the world… He sighed. He had a young boy around the same age as them, yet he died in the war years ago. The princesses were as young, yet they bore a much heavier burden. When his thoughts arrived here, he realized he had lost.
The man kneeled solemnly and said, "On behalf of the Yen Family and the Yen Chai Merchant Alliance, I, Lord Lu Yen, hereby pledge our allegiance to Your Highnesses. Please give us your orders."
"Lord Lu?" The others were shocked. They did not expect this shrewd man to commit the Yen Family, much less the entire Yen Chai Merchant Alliance, to this dangerous cause. If things went wrong, then it was not only his life at stake. He was implicating a vast number of people!
"I know what I'm doing," he exhaled.
"What changed your mind?" Lady Hao asked in confusion. This was not the same man she knew.
"I believe the measure of a great merchant lies not in their abilities nor their assets, but in their sincerity. It's what separates a swindler from a respected merchant. Trust is everything. Because of that, I've grown quite good at judging character. I agreed to help because I sensed the sincerity in Her Highnesses' words."
"That's it? You didn't base your decision on benefits or costs, but sincerity?" Lord Meng was dumbstruck. His opinion of Lord Lu dropped significantly.
"Not everything can or should be weighed on a scale, Lord Meng. Feeling plays a large role too."
"You would wager your family and the entire Yen Chai Merchant Alliance on a feeling?" Lord Meng widened his eyes in belief. He failed to believe how this man managed to become the Yen Family's patriarch!
"Not every deal is perfect," he chuckled. "Sometimes, you win and sometimes, you lose. Everything is a gamble in the end. That's what it means to be a merchant! A scholar like yourself wouldn't understand."
"You're right. I think you've lost your mind," he snorted in response.
"Are you serious, Lord Lu?" Lady Hao asked again.
"I am," he replied firmly.
The woman sighed. "Then the Wu Family will join the Yen Family."
"You too?" Lord Meng shouted.
"The Wu Family has worked alongside the Yen Family for generations. Without the Yen Chai Merchant Alliance, my Wu Family would not exist. It's only natural that we would lend our hand now." She turned to face the princesses and kneeled like Lord Lu. "On behalf of the Wu Family, I, Lady Hao Wu, hereby pledge our allegiance to Your Highnesses. Please give us your orders."
"Thank you for trusting in us, Lord Lu Yen and Lady Hao Wu." Ming felt a burden lift from her shoulders. "I swear on my name. When everything is done, I will see to it that your families are well rewarded. Your efforts will not go unnoticed." She looked to the others who were clearly hesitating now. "Would anyone else like to change their minds?"
Her words sent a ripple through the crowd. The interesting thing about people was that they tended to follow the popular opinion, regardless of their own personal beliefs or thoughts. Perhaps, it was out of safety or maybe cohesion. Either way, when the 'leaders' of the group, Lady Hao and Lord Meng, voiced their disapproval, everyone else followed suit, thinking it was the best decision. Ming understood how hard it would be to change their minds once they all agreed on something. This difficulty multiplied on the group size, compounded by the dangerous request she was making. However, that same cohesion had a major flaw. Convince one person and that could cause a tidal wave! The entire group's decision might change in an instant! Although Ming knew she played a slight trick, she had no regrets. It had to be done. The fate of the empire could depend on it! And like she predicted…
"The Muying Family pledges our allegiance."
"The Xiao Family pledges our allegiance."
"The Duyi Family pledges our allegiance…"
Aside from Lord Meng, the other seven voiced their approval. One second, they were adamant on refusing, and the next second, with a little convincing from Lord Lu and Lady Hao, they were practically stumbling over themselves to pledge their allegiance. It was like magic! Ming and Xiuying thanked them one by one with smiles. There were a few scary moments, but everything worked out as planned.
Lord Meng gave Princess Ming a look of resignation. He had to admit she outsmarted them. Without a choice, he bitterly said, "The Tien Family also pledges our allegiance to Her Highnesses."
Ming nodded. "Thank you, everyone. The following will be my instructions. Since we can't write them down, please commit them to memory."
"Understood!" the ten replied after she was done.
"Who's the general responsible for the Tailong River on the Li Family's side?" Imperian Qiang asked Lord Xai on the side.
"Unit Commander Yi of the Loon Family."
"The brother of the Loon Family's matriarch… Can you arrange a meeting with him?"
"I can try. Should I mention your name?"
"No, use your own. I don't want the elder council or the Imperial Council catching wind of this."
"As you wish."
Imperian Qiang looked to his nieces and sighed, wondering if this was enough. The next battle would happen very soon!
***
Aside from the Tailong River and the Maelstrom Gulf, the Quiton Gates of the North was one of the few official ways into the Samfeng Province. It was originally built to withstand a northern invasion in the early years of the First Great Kingdom War, but it became obsolete after the construction of the Yunyun Stronghold. In recent years, it was used as a simple checkpoint between provinces, manned by the Li Family. They could inspect the flow of goods and personnel into their territory, and impose their own rules and regulations, sometimes at odd with the empire's own laws. This authority was unique to the Li Family as not even the other three Great Nobility Families could do so with impunity. As for why, the Xingyuu Empire had to turn a blind eye because of the Li Family's unimaginable military prowess! They possessed the strongest civilian army in the human world, one that could rival the empire's Tai Feng Army! Fighting the Li Family would court disaster from the Alzar Kingdom, which was shown by the current situation. Now, the Li Family retreated from the Samfeng Province entirely, leaving the Quiton Gates to the Imperial Council. This was where Unit Commander Haea and the council's main armies resided.
The true wall which bordered the south of the Samfeng Province was the Quiton Ridge, a long series of tall mountains that stretched from west to east. It acted as a natural barrier and a dividing point between the Li Family's territories and the rest of the empire. The Quiton Ridge spanned three provinces in total from the Samfeng Province to the adjacent Shenzhou Province and finally the Qianwing Province, which was where the Li Family's main residence was located. It then branched south, becoming a part of the Jizhu Ridge, as it snaked towards Yongtein, the empire's capital. The Quiton Gates was a series of interconnected fortresses that sat between the Quiton Ridge in a low gully. These fortresses and walls were not particularly threatening, but the terrain made it exceedingly difficult to stage an attack. An enemy army would be forced to funnel their forces through the main road where the main fortress laid. Therefore, while the series of fortresses and walls were collectively the Quiton Gates, people usually referred to the main fortress as the Quiton Gates of the North.