Inside the Governors Mansion,
Led by Siegfried, the Tain Envoy walked down a marble-paved corridor and soon arrived in front of a large door.
At this moment, a young black-haired military officer walked out from inside the door. Shasui immediately recognized him; he was the Human officer who had saved his life after he was shot.
"Siegfried, the boss is discussing design and manufacturing with Sage Ma. The Tain Envoy will have to wait a little longer, they can go in soon."
Upon hearing this, Siegfried nodded and began to explain to the Tain Envoy behind him. Meanwhile, Shasui walked up to the black-haired officer.
"Hello, I remember you. Thank you for saving my life, this is truly the best embodiment of the greater good."
At this, the Ether Elder, several diplomats from the Water Caste, and Shiinyang behind him all showed surprised expressions: "Is that him? Thank you for saving Shasui's life."
Yang Wen-li was a little surprised to hear this, then nodded: "You're welcome. We all have that day coming, and when it does, I hope someone will save my life too... Also, am I that famous now?"
Hearing this, the Ether Elder and the Tau all showed relieved smiles.
Shasui, looking very respectful, said: "Before you met your enemies, your virtues had already spread among them, my friend."
After he finished speaking, all the Tau, including the Ether Elder, bowed slightly to Yang Wen-li. This surprised Yang Wen-li and deepened his interest in understanding the Tau Empire.
At this moment, the door opened, and a handsome blond officer opened it.
"Everyone, Lord Li Feng requests your presence."
As the door opened, the Tau finally saw the interior of the Governor's office... In the center of the Governor's office was a huge model: a stellar sphere surrounded by countless artificial rings.
Lord Li Feng was currently communicating with a red-robed priest of the Adeptus Mechanicus... Seeing the door open, Lord Li Feng patted Ma Yinglong on the shoulder and said: "I'll come find you at the mechanical ark later. For now, you all transport those (Tau) wrecks back to Mars and have them reverse-engineered."
Ma Yinglong bowed slightly, then brushed past the Tau and walked out of the office. Lord Li Feng also stepped forward and approached the Tain Envoy.
"My apologies for keeping you all waiting. As you can see, I am rather busy with official duties here... Come, please have a seat. Would you like anything to drink?"
Seeing Lord Li Feng like this, the Tau had strange expressions on their faces... Are Imperium of Man people this polite? Is he not truly a believer in our the greater good? It is said that this "friend of the emperor" has lived for tens of thousands of years and comes from the capital, Terra. Are people from Terra this polite?
The Tain Envoy exchanged glances and sat down at the long conference table in the office. Siegfried and Reinhard brought cups of prepared tea to each of the Tain Envoy, and even placed a plate of snacks between every two people.
At this moment, the door to the office's recreational area was ajar. Fides, Celestine, Eliette, and Kassia peered through the crack, watching the negotiations. They, too, were puzzled by Lord Li Feng's thorough hospitality.
Earlier, the three members of the secretarial team had asked Lord Li Feng why he had made such arrangements, extending such friendly and courteous hospitality to these defeated Tain Envoy. Lord Li Feng's answer was simple:
"The Zuo Zhuan says: 'Do not rely on strength to bully the weak, and do not become arrogant because of victory.' Forgiveness and magnanimity are the prerogatives of the victor. If you can't even win a war, what's the point of talking about forgiveness?"
Lord Li Feng also sat down in his chair, looking at the Tain Envoy opposite him. Clearly, they were a bit uncomfortable with such friendly hospitality from the Humans. After all, the man in front of them had annihilated one of their fleets in a matter of minutes, severely damaging the Tau Empire, and had also used iron-fisted methods in ground combat.
They had prepared for such a man to be a 'man-eater who doesn't spit out bones,' but now... "Have you all reviewed the terms we've provided?"
At this, the Ether Elder sat up straight and said: "Hello, Mr. Li, I am Priest Boli, the representative of the Tau Empire's Aun Clan."
Upon hearing this name, Lord Li Feng's expression instantly froze, then became very playful: "Hello, I am Li Feng Enchou."
Saying this, Lord Li Feng took out a pair of glasses from his pocket and put them on, then opened the treaty document in front of him and said:
"Do you have any comments on our terms?"
The Ether Elder and the Water Caste diplomats exchanged glances. In fact, the treaty Lord Li Feng offered could be said to be extremely lenient. The treaty only required:
1. All Tau garrisons located in Human territory must withdraw. The Tau must respect the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the Imperium of Man, and cease interfering in the internal affairs of the Imperium of Man. (Basic demands)
2. The Tau Empire needs to develop trade ports with the Imperium of Man. At the same time, the Imperium of Man will levy a 30% tariff on the Tau Empire, and the Tau Empire's tariff on any goods from the Imperium of Man must not exceed 8%. (Heavy harvesting!)
3. The Tau Empire will formally establish diplomatic relations with the Imperium of Man. The Imperium of Man invites the Tau Empire to establish an embassy in Terra, the capital of the Imperium of Man, and similarly, Humans will also establish an embassy in Tau, the capital of the Tau Empire. (Since the Tau are willing to talk, then keep in touch often.)
4. Due to this conflict resulting from the Tau Empire's long-term infiltration and garrisoning without the Imperium of Man's permission, the Imperium of Man's military action is considered self-defense. Therefore, the Tau Empire needs to pay reparations to compensate for the deployment and losses of the Imperium of Man's expeditionary fleet. (I went to such great lengths, you should pay some hard work fees.)
5. The Tau Empire must not, in any form, conduct infiltration, ideological warfare, or any other activities that might seriously affect the internal stability of the Imperium of Man through ideology, art, culture, or religious beliefs. (No more proselytizing.)
6. In exchange, the Imperium of Man will exchange several uncultivated and uncolonized planets near the northeastern Ultima Segmentum for those former Imperial worlds occupied during the Tau expansion. The Imperium of Man is willing to provide initial supplies and security support. (You all go to the northeastern edge of the Ultima Segmentum, which is the Segmentum Obscurus. There is a famous Eye of Terror there, a unique feature of the The Galaxy / Milky Way, not to be missed!)
7. The goods required by the Imperium of Man... "In short, these are the terms. We have already made great concessions. What do the Tau think?"
Lord Li Feng said, taking off his glasses and placing them on the table, drinking the tea in his cup. The women peeking through the door all clenched their fists when they saw Lord Li Feng take off his glasses, as if they didn't want him to take them off.
Why? Because when Lord Li Feng wore glasses, he had a very "cultured scoundrel" feeling, and looked "lewd"... There was an urge to go up and humiliate him, or be humiliated by him.
At this moment, Celestine had already decided that tonight she would have Lord Li Feng wear his glasses and a suit to play that so-called "role-playing" game with her.
Meanwhile, the Tain Envoy exchanged glances. They had seen these terms before and thought they were a joke from the Imperium of Man... They didn't expect them to be real.
There was no mention of ceding territory or paying reparations. The only territorial demands were the withdrawal of garrisons and the exchange of planets, and the exchanged planets even came with various subsidy policies.
"Lord Li Feng, these... the terms you've offered are truly... too... good. I want to confirm if this is truly the Imperium of Man's intention?"
"Yes, we hold a 'friendly' attitude towards the Tau Empire, because you are one of the few in the entire The Galaxy / Milky Way who are still willing to talk. So I believe maintaining our 'friendship' is very important. This time, it was purely because you infringed upon our territory and sovereignty, so we were forced to carry out some small 'punishment' to you."
Lord Li Feng felt as if he was playing the role of a "foreign dignitary," coaxing these blue-skinned beings into signing a bond of servitude. Soon, the Ether Elder took the document and scrutinized it repeatedly, checking the Human-Tau bilingual text to ensure he hadn't missed anything.
Finally, he and the Water Caste diplomats exchanged glances... "Alright, Lord Li Feng. We agree."
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