That day, Ning Chen was playing with Lone Stride.

Yuan Long hurried in to report. "My lord prince, someone's come from Xiliang's imperial house!"

Ning Chen laughed. "So Xiliang's imperial house knows what's good for it... Who did they send?"

Yuan Long bowed respectfully. "The Prince Who Holds the West!"

Ning Chen paused. That name rang a bell. Fang Pu had once passed himself off as this same Prince Who Holds the West.

"Where is he?"

"Outside the camp!"

Ning Chen thought for a moment. "Bring him to me!"

"Yes!"

Yuan Long withdrew.

About half an hour later, Yuan Long's voice came from outside the tent. "My lord prince, he's here!"

"Come in!"

Yuan Long brought the Prince Who Holds the West inside.

Ning Chen sized up Xiliang's Prince Who Holds the West. The man was about fifty, a little heavy, richly dressed, and carried himself with real presence.

The Prince Who Holds the West looked at Ning Chen and marveled inwardly... What a sight! Bright clothes and a spirited horse and a boy still in his youth!

"Greetings to the Prince Who Holds the Realm of the Great Xuan."

Ning Chen got straight to the point. "You're here on behalf of Xiliang's imperial house?"

The Prince Who Holds the West nodded. "I have come for one reason only: to negotiate peace."

"Negotiate?" Ning Chen frowned and gave a cold laugh. "Then there's nothing to negotiate. This prince accepts only surrender."

The Prince Who Holds the West paled slightly.

Ning Chen went on. "Let me lay out my demands. First, your ruler presents a letter of surrender with his own hands and calls himself a vassal."

"Second, there's the matter of compensation. More than a hundred thousand of the Great Xuan's soldiers have endured every hardship to march ten thousand li into Xiliang. Men eating and horses chewing—that doesn't come cheap."

"Third, you send a prince to the Great Xuan as a hostage."

"Fourth, Xiliang's military is weak now. If you call yourselves our vassals, the Great Xuan has a duty to protect you... so I'll station fifty thousand troops…