Soon, Lu Chen came back to the place where they had just negotiated. He once again seated himself on the fur carpet and then said to Yelv Nanyan, "It seems that you have agreed to my conditions?"
"Yes," Yelv Nanyan said, "but we have one more condition."
"Oh, what is the condition?" Lu Chen asked.
Yelv Nanyan didn't answer directly, but instead asked, "Does the Prince really not intend to release those one hundred thousand soldiers? If we join North City, those one hundred thousand soldiers will no longer be captives, but Your Highness's subjects."
Upon hearing this, Lu Chen immediately understood what Yelv Nanyan meant, and then said, "I can release them, but not now."
"I need them to do ten years of labor in North City. If their performance is good, I can release them early, and during this period, I will allow their families to visit them. If their performance is excellent, they can be temporarily allowed to return home and reunite with their families."