Volume 1: Chapter 3 -The Reception Feast Unveiled the Alliance Secrets

 Nightfall transformed Fengze Lake into a realm of extraordinary beauty. The multicolored lights from the six encampments reflected on the vast waters, creating a shimmering, resplendent world. Military banners fluttered in the breeze, and the rhythmic clang of night patrols' gongs echoed across the lake. The scene exuded the grandeur of an army camp yet lacked the grim aura of impending battle. In the cool early summer breeze, Fengze radiated an air of opulent extravagance. 

Fengze Lake was nourished by two great rivers: the Yellow River to the northwest and the Ji River to the southeast. During the Warring States period, the Yangtze, Yellow, Huai, and Ji Rivers were revered as the Four Great Waters of China. Situated between the Yellow and Ji Rivers, Fengze occupied the heartland of Central Plains civilization. Though far smaller in size than the Yunmeng Marshlands of Chu, Fengze's cultural significance eclipsed even that famed region. As the foremost power of the era, Wei had chosen Fengze for the alliance not only for its strategic advantages but also as a symbol of Central Plains' civilized splendor. 

The alliance's central tent stood on a hillside slope north of the lake, overlooking the encampments of the five other states. Lit like a beacon, it commanded a position of prominence, surrounded by the five rulers' camps arranged in a crescent formation. Guards lined the hillside, and the grand tent blazed with light. 

Inside the tent, no music or attendants disturbed the solemn atmosphere. The five rulers sat rigidly at their respective tables, awaiting Pang Juan's address. Pang Juan, Wei's Supreme General and envoy for the alliance, stood before an empty table reserved for the King of Wei. With a deep bow to the assembled monarchs, he raised a bronze goblet and declared: 

"Pang Juan, envoy of the Six-State Alliance and Supreme General of Wei, greets the Kings of Chu, Qi, Yan, Zhao, and Han. On behalf of the Alliance Leader, the King of Wei, I welcome you to Fengze. Though unskilled in drink, I toast to our unity in stabilizing the realm!" He drained the vessel, coughing violently yet maintaining composure as he wiped his mouth with a silk cloth. 

Zhao's Marquess Cheng laughed heartily. "If the General drinks, Zhao Zhong joins!" He emptied his cup in one gulp. 

King Wei of Qi raised his goblet. "To the renowned general—Tian Yingqi drinks with you!" 

Marquess Zhao of Han impassively lifted his cup. "I shall partake." 

Duke Wen of Yan sipped slowly with aristocratic reserve. "This duke follows custom." 

King Xuan of Chu slammed his table. "Wei's envoy hosts this feast! How could this king refuse?" After draining his cup, he waved impatiently for attendants to fan him. 

As tensions simmered, Han's Marquess Zhao broke the silence. "General, Wei's missive spoke of 'stabilizing the realm.' How precisely?" 

Marquess Cheng of Zhao added, "Alliances require terms. What shall we covenant?" 

The young King Wei of Qi observed keenly but remained silent. Yan's Duke Wen masked his disdain for Pang Juan's ostentatious attire, while King Xuan of Chu calculated how to leverage the alliance against Qin. 

Pang Juan, prepared for dissent, unveiled Wei's plan: "Three pillars shall uphold this alliance. First: A sworn pact of non-aggression. Second: Division of minor states into spheres of influence, to be absorbed within three years. Third—" his voice hardened, "—the dismemberment of Qin. This barbarous western state shall be erased from the Warring States map. Wei, though mighty, seeks no monopoly—let Qin's lands be divided equitably among us." 

Silence gripped the tent as rulers weighed implications. Chu's King Xuan broke first, demanding Qin's fertile Wei River plains. Han's Marquess Zhao countered by claiming all Qin heartlands. King Wei of Qi shocked the assembly by demanding full control of Lu, Song, and Xue—prompting Chu's retort over Song's strategic position. 

As arguments erupted, Pang Juan skillfully mediated: "Noble rulers, must we squabble like dogs over bones while Qin remains intact? Let primary focus be Qin's partition. Minor states can be settled later." 

Through calculated concessions—offering Chu Qin's southwestern ranges, allotting Qi compensatory territories from other states—Pang Juan balanced grievances. Chu gained saline lands perfect for future battlefields, Yan secured northern pastures, while Qi obtained strategic footholds. 

When dawn approached, consensus emerged: Qin would be carved like a feast, its territories divided to feed six appetites. With false camaraderie, the rulers retired, their true ambitions veiled beneath pledges of unity. 

Thus, beneath Fengze's glittering surface, the seeds of Qin's destruction were sown—and with them, the unspoken truth that no alliance could long contain these wolves of war.