A few days earlier
As Atelius and the Imperial delegation were crossing over the contested region near the border, the army of Pol Qo, the Orange Emperor planned to ambush the airship before it departed their lands. Pol Qo had his spies in YiTi inform him of what was the reason with the delegations visit considering the current civil war that was happening.
His spies were not able to inform him about what happened in time, so he was planning to attack the airship and prevent them from returning. But the airship was too far for their Dragon Cannons to reach, so instead he debated with his generals about what to do with their current situation.
(A/N: Considering the fact that YiTi is always known for closely resembling ancient china and has existed for thousands of years. I concluded that them having cannons is not as much of a plot hole as the Royal fleet having them which I admit was a major plot hole that I should have thought more about.)
Pol Qo sat with his chin in his fist, looking at the map stretched across the table. In the old days, the Azure Emperor would never allow a delegation to cross without gifts and a line of courtesans. Yet not only did they allow the airship to pass, but they welcomed them and even invited them into the palace.
Pol Qo felt that he was already justified, but this was something he could use to gain even more support from the population. He could use the ruse of foreign empires getting involved in their war, in order to gain support and hopefully push the Golden Army back.
Standing next to him, Red-tooth Tso, the broad faced general who brought his barbarian cavalry to assist Pol Qo in the war, had something to say about this situation. "We should shoot down every airship from now until the end," he stated. "Allowing those foreigners from the West to get involved will only make our cause harder." Pol Qo agreed with Red-tooth, but before he could state that, another general chimed in.
"We can't shoot those airships down!" shouted General Tang. "You may not know this General Red-tooth, but I went to the Imperial Union, learned their language, their customs, structure, and leadership. If we attack that airship, it will be the end of all of us. The Emperor is very loved by the people to a point where he is considered a messiah to numerous religions throughout the Empire." Red-tooth didn't believe this and thought that General Tang must have been captured by the Imperial ways, therefore his opinions should not be taken seriously.
"You disgrace us General Tang!" rebuked Red-tooth. "We have a million man standing army. Those Imperials won't stand a chance. If we invade them now, we can catch them off guard and completely overwhelm them."
General Tang looked at Red-tooth in disbelief at how stupid a single person could be. "What about their dragons huh Red-tooth, or the hundreds of Wyverns that they have, the hundreds of thousands of elite soldiers that they have. Use that puny brain of yours and think for a second before you open your big mouth." At that, Red-tooth stood up and unsheathed his curved sword, ready to cut down General Tang who did the same.
However, before the two could even fight, Pol Qo decided that he was done entertaining their little argument and slammed his fist, against the table stopping the two of them from fighting. "You both make good points, but that last part was uncalled for General Tang. I hope that you will apologize to Red-tooth so we can move on from this matter.
General Tang couldn't believe what he was hearing right now. He was to apologize to this barbarian?? He turned and looked at Red-tooth who had a massive grin on his face.
Instead of apologizing, he just kept his mouth shut and looked away causing a tense silence to follow. Seeing this silence, one of the others who were silent until now decided to speak.
"I could come up with a plan to take down those Wyverns." Stated the Witch-Marshal, a female witch who was very powerful sorceress known as a witch and granted the title of Witch-Marshal. She was in charge of a 5000 manned army consisting of sorcerers and sorceresses.
"Once I come up with a guaranteed method, I can teach the others and we can successfully combat the Wyverns since they're on the smaller scale, but those Dragons are an entirely different matter. Their much bigger and more powerful than the Wyverns so we wouldn't be able to do much to them." she explained.
"See," shouted Red-tooth. "We can indeed defeat them; we just needed somebody who knew what they were doing." he said casting a glance at General Tang who remained quiet.
"If you say you can do it Witch-Marshal, then I shall place my trust in you. In the meantime, while we wait, we will continue our fight against the Golden Army and gather more support using this foreign delegation as the main topic." The rest of the generals nodded with the plan.
A few days later
On the Southeastern shore in, Carcosa, the Sorcerer lord, Lord Jiang of the Eastern Shores had already rallied his own banners claiming to be the new 69th Yellow Emperor.
(A/N: In a previous chapter I called Pol Qo the 69th Yellow Emperor, but I got it mixed up, so this is the correction to that, and that chapter (Chapter 91) has been corrected)
His citadel, was unlike any court in the Golden Empire. The council of Jiang was a pageant of strangers. There were eunuchs, slopes of marble stairs lined with green-jade coffins, and floor after floor where every slave, priest, and lord wore pale yellow masks.
Lord Jiang himself was considered both a scholar and a demon by the surrounding provinces. He was long-faced, and wore neither crown nor armor, only silks. Instead of speaking, he sat on his throne motioning for each of his courtiers to approach, to deliver news.
His Inner Circle consisted of fanatics and castoffs: a sharp mouthed concubine, an assassin born across the Bone Mountains, and the scholar Ti Liang, a prodigy rumored to have memorized every text in the great Library by age fifteen.
One day, a runner entered and kneeled in front of Lord Jiang. "News from the western marches. The traitor Pol Qo has routed the Gold Army at the Bone Ford. They have summoned help from the Imperial Union, and yesterday, a craft belonging to the western Emperor passed unhindered over our lines." The message that was spreading was not the correct one and it would cause the Imperial Union to become involved because of it.
At the same time, within YiTi, Zhenyi sat on her throne, her expression unreadable as her advisor's brought news of Pol Qo's latest maneuvers.
The Foreign Minister Zhugé Zhī Shēng spoke first. "Your Highness, Pol Qo intends to use the Imperial delegation's presence to galvanize his supporters. It is imperative we issue a statement condemning his false claims immediately and clarify our position to the people clearly."
Zhenyi nodded. "Ensure the Imperial Union knows we value peace and cooperation above all. Offer assurances of our intentions and strengthen diplomatic ties. Send a gift as a token of our sincerity, a shipment of our finest silks and spices."
Zhugé bowed his acknowledgment, quickly leaving to implement her orders.
Another advisor stepped forward. "Princess, with the Imperial Union's attention drawn to YiTi, we must also prepare for their eventual arrival. Pol Qo's ambition will not end at mere provocation. If war comes openly, we must be ready to meet it."
"Mobilize the 2 additional legions," Zhenyi commanded. "Position them defensively along the frontlines. I want Pol Qo to strike first and lose the moral high ground."
The advisors bowed and dispersed to carry out her commands. Alone for a brief moment, Zhenyi's calm exterior started to diminish, worry appearing briefly across her face before she composed herself. She knew fully well the stakes of involving the Imperial Union, and hoped diplomacy would prevail.
Meanwhile, Pol Qo continued rallying his forces, unaware of the careful diplomatic maneuvers happening around him. The Witch-Marshal had made progress with her methods, successfully demonstrating to the sorcerers how to effectively combat Wyverns.
However, General Tang grew increasingly concerned with Pol Qo's disregard for the sheer might of the Imperial Union. Realizing the futility of speaking openly, he covertly sent messages to his own loyal commanders, instructing them to prepare contingencies should Pol Qo push them toward a disastrous war.
Red-tooth Tso, ever eager for glory, continued leading raids against smaller Golden Army detachments, his confidence increased by minor victories that did little strategically but boosted morale amongst their ranks.