Endless Winter: My Camp Upgrades Infinitely

Chapter 1089: Chapter 379: Awakening, Promotion, and Expansion; Jiangxia Regains Its Lands and Faces a Choice (Part 4)

When Xiahou Zhang mentioned Great Xia, although his tone was full of apprehension, when he thought about the reaction after the Seven Towns learned of Great Xia’s existence, his face showed a continuous cold sneer.

He had already learned the name of the Great Xia Lord from Yuan Cheng, and it was naturally easy to guess that it was the young man in black who saved him last year.

"Lord, there’s no need to dwell on it!

Great Xia’s intentions are not hard to guess — they merely want to expand eastward. Since Xia Hong saved the Lord’s life and now actively shows goodwill to Jiangxia, we should consider them a second Dajue Temple and avoid repeating last year’s mistake.

Yuan Cheng clearly stated that Great Xia would only take Hongguan, and they don’t want other territories. Moreover, they are willing to send troops to help Jiangxia recover lost lands.

And the last mention of forming an alliance is such an enticing condition, what is there left to consider?"

At this point, Jiang Yuanlong couldn’t help but speak up.

Upon hearing his words, Xiahou Zhang and the four others fell silent.

Just before leaving, Yuan Cheng relayed Minister Xia Chuan’s intentions to form an alliance with Jiangxia.

The alliance conditions, as Jiang Yuanlong elaborated, were extremely tempting.

As long as Jiangxia allies with Great Xia, except for Hongguan Camp, Great Xia can help Jiangxia reclaim all lost territories in the past six months, and whenever Jiangxia faces difficulties, Great Xia will dispatch troops to assist. Moreover, in future territorial divisions concerning Bashang Town, Great Xia will ensure Jiangxia gets a share.

The only request Great Xia has for Jiangxia is to resist the threats from the Northern Three Towns together.

For Jiangxia, it’s a business without capital, only gaining without loss.

Xiahou Zhang, Jiang Xinfan, and the others had long internally assigned the blame for Jiang Yinglong’s death to the Eight Towns, especially the Northern Three Towns who stood by, doing nothing. If they can recover lost lands while leveraging Great Xia’s power, why not do it?

Recovering lost territories is not particularly enticing for Jiangxia, thanks to Xiahou Zhang’s swift response. As soon as the Bashang battle ended, he immediately reclaimed Xuyang and Longzhou, and now only Peak Mountain Camp remains occupied by Chui Mountain Town.

The key is the promise that whenever Jiangxia is in trouble, Great Xia will dispatch troops to aid them!

This condition provides sufficient allure for Jiangxia.

The battle with Dajue Temple severely drained Jiangxia’s foundation; the Defensive Army is down to less than three units, and Xianyang Level troops only just exceed two thousand. This strength can’t maintain their previous status. If Chui Mountain presses south at this time without external assistance, their situation would undoubtedly be precarious.

Yangqu and Dragon Valley Towns indeed have history with Jiangxia, but during the battle with Dajue Temple, they already helped once and were severely weakened;

Bashang is gone, Muyin Town’s ownership is uncertain now, and the Central South Three Towns are in panic; who dares assist Jiangxia?

Behind Chui Mountain stands Beishuo, fearless.

As for pledging allegiance to the Northern Three Towns, for Xiahou Zhang, it’s absolutely impossible, even if it’s Jiang Yinglong’s dying wish.

From any perspective, forming an alliance with Great Xia is the only way out.

Xiahou Zhang took a deep breath, turned to the four others, and spoke earnestly, "I’m hesitating, you should understand why. With our current strength, forming an alliance with Great Xia, to put it politely, is an alliance; bluntly, it’s finding a patron. Having a patron often means losing autonomy.

Unless in the coming years one of you can break through to the Xianyang Level, making Jiangxia equal to Great Xia, otherwise, based on my observation, this Great Xia is likely a tiger even more vicious than the Northern Three Towns. Choosing to plot with the tiger means preparing for being devoured.

Are you all prepared for this?"

After posing the question, Jiang Xinfan and the others didn’t respond immediately but instead bowed their heads in contemplation.

"Circumstances force us, cooperating with Great Xia is better than with the Northern Three Towns."

"If it truly is a fierce tiger, Jiangxia being a stepping stone is no harm; besides, we’re powerless to contend with the Seven Towns; survival is our primary concern."

"What are the Seven Towns, really? The battles at Binjiang and Bashang have said enough, haven’t they? To have a reliable ally is rare, why not seize it? Nine Towns sharing a common bond is just nonsense; if they can cheat, so can we. Let Great Xia extend its influence and thoroughly disrupt the situation on the South Slope of Moao Mountain; maybe Jiangxia can rise again."

"In the battle with Dajue Temple, if the Eight Towns had truly wanted to help, Jiangxia wouldn’t have fallen to its current state. I find this Great Xia more trustworthy."

"Good! I understand your intentions."

After hearing their statements, Xiahou Zhang nodded, clearly deciding internally. But just as he was about to speak further, he suddenly turned towards Peak Mountain Camp with furrowed brows.

"Someone’s coming, and not just a few!"