Under the double blow of the complaints from the people in various feudal towns and the auspiciousness from heaven, as expected, the reputations of the Ji family and the Meng family in the Lu country plummeted. The reputation of Marquis Lu was increasing day by day, and he was likely to return to the government.
Faced with this dilemma, Ji Sunsu had a headache. On the one hand, the reduction of taxes is directly related to the expenses of one's own staff, large and small, the governors of each city, and the maintenance of private armed forces. Therefore, don't let go no matter what. On the one hand, if the public resentment is too great, it is definitely not what he wants for Marquis Lu to gain power as a result.
As for the auspiciousness coming from heaven, they were even more confused. When the two things merged, Ji Sunsu could only watch helplessly as the people praised and praised Luhou, but he was helpless.
Faced with such a good situation, Li Ran immediately asked Shu Sunbao to step up arrangements for his mission to Jin.
At this time, the Ji family and the Meng family were already extremely busy, and it was a good opportunity for them to go to Jin to ask for help.
Uncle Sunbao also knew that the opportunity was not to be missed, and immediately made arrangements to set off as soon as the time came.
But just five days before departure, a piece of major international news reached Qufu!
"The Marquis of Jin announced to the world that all the princely states should go to Pingqiu to form an alliance."
It turns out that the alliance between the marquises of Jin was due to trouble in Chu State. Prince Bi of Chu State was besieged and threatened by his commander, Prince Yin, and fled to Jin State.
In the Ji clan's villa, Shusun Bao frowned when he heard the news, with a sad look on his face. Because he had already made arrangements for entering the Jin Dynasty, but this time there were many complications, how could he not worry?
"Prince Wei, Prince Yin of the State of Chu, is said to be extremely domineering and arbitrary. There are rumors that Prince Wei has always wanted to usurp power. I think it must be for this reason that his brother Prince Bicai fled to the State of Jin." ?”
That's what happened. The civil strife in Chu attracted Han Qi's attention. Han Qi had always been greedy for profit and fame, so he naturally knew that this was an excellent opportunity.
Taking advantage of the civil strife in Chu to launch an alliance of princes, not only would there be no need to worry about Chu's opposition, but it would also promote Jin's dominance. At the same time, it allowed the Han family to gain a lot of political resources among the vassal states.
Han Qi had to vigorously encourage and encourage such transactions, which were guaranteed to make a profit without losing any money.
As for the Marquis of Jin, he is very different from Han Qi. He is also a person who always likes to save face. Therefore, he went to ask Emperor Zhou for instructions in name only. After getting Emperor Zhou's approval, this was announced to the world.
When Li Ran heard the news, he looked different from Uncle Sunbao's sad face. After thinking about it in his mind, his mind was shaken. A flash of inspiration flashed in his mind, and he suddenly realized that Han Qi was really an "out-and-out" person. Good teammate"!
"how?"
Seeing Li Ran's cheerful expression and knowing that he had another idea, Shusun Bao immediately asked.
Li Ran smiled brightly.
"Does the doctor know that the Ji family has taken possession of Yiyi this year?"
"This matter can be regarded as a major event for our country of Lu. How come Bao Bao doesn't know about it?"
Shu Sunbao was very surprised, because it had been half a year since the Ji family sent troops to capture the city of Ju State. He had never heard Li Ran mention it before, but he suddenly mentioned it today, but he didn't know what the purpose was.
Just listen to Li Ran say in a deep voice:
"Han Qi's request for an alliance is another great opportunity for us!"
"What?"
Shu Sunbao was surprised for a moment, but he also knew Li Ran's magical power, so he hurriedly asked.
"When Li Ran first came to Lu State, he heard that the Ji family had been at war with Ju State and Zhu State in recent years, occupying a lot of their land. And this alliance initiated by Han Zhongjun... Haha, if we make some operations from it , if the monarchs of these two countries are fortunate enough to successfully participate in this Pingqiu Alliance, wouldn't it be a golden opportunity for us to attack the Ji family?"
Ju and Zhu, these two countries are technically just vassals of Lu and are not eligible to participate in an alliance of this scale. But everything has an exception, right?
Li Ran's mind was spinning so fast that it was staggering. When Shusun Bao heard this, he suddenly realized.
"Yes! According to the previous oath of the Song Alliance, countries are not allowed to attack each other. Once the kings of Ju and Zhu ask Lu to return the occupied land during the alliance. In order to demonstrate his dominance, the Marquis of Jin will inevitably force Lu The country will be returned. If this is the case, how can the Ji family dare not to obey? Once it is obeyed, the hard work of the Ji family in the past few years will be in vain!"
"Okay! Great! In this way, it is indeed a good opportunity!"
Shu Sunbao was not a fool. After listening to Li Ran's words, his heart suddenly felt like a mirror.
You must know that Han Qi's purpose of instigating the Marquis of Jin to launch an alliance was to gain political resources. Faced with the well-founded quarrel between Ju and Zhu, he naturally had to agree. How could Ji's family be able to negotiate with Han Qi then? confrontation?
In this case, the Ji family's power in the Lu State will be seriously damaged.
"Now the plan has changed, it seems we have to make other arrangements."
"That's right! Doctor Shusun, you'd better not go on this trip to Jin. You must let this old guy Ji Sunsu go!"
Since Ji Sunsu was going to make a fool of himself, it was natural for him to attend the Pingqiu Alliance.
Shusun Bao also understood this and immediately said with a smile:
"This is easy to handle. If I don't want to go, I can just find any reason."
Li Ran nodded and said:
"That's very good."
"Sun Wu, you rush to Ju and Zhu immediately and be sure to lobby them in front of the Pingqiu Alliance!"
The national strength of Ju and Zhu is not as good as that of Lu. They have been suppressed and beaten by the Ji family in recent years and dare not say a word. If they want to regain their land, this Pingqiu alliance is obviously an excellent opportunity.
It's just that the monarchs of these two countries have always been timid. Li Ran was worried that they were not courageous enough, so he asked Sun Wu to give them a shot in the arm.
When Sun Wu heard that he actually still had a mission, he was overjoyed and immediately handed over his hand and said:
"Sun Wu understands what brother Ziming means, and this trip will definitely fulfill his mission!"
"slow!"
Sun Wu said this and turned around to prepare, but unexpectedly Li Ran stopped him again.
"You may not fully understand what I mean."
"Huh? Doesn't Brother Ziming mean to ask Wu Qian to lobby the kings of Ju and Zhu to ensure that they will demand their land from the Ji family at the Pingqiu meeting?"
Somewhat confused, Sun Wu frowned and looked at Li Ran.
Li Ran shook his head slightly, and then a flash of hope flashed in his eyes, which was the most holy expectation for future military strategists.
"Just asking Ji's family is not enough."
"Do you know the art of war?"
Li Ran suddenly smiled mysteriously.
In fact, Li Ran had higher expectations for Sun Wu than for himself.
Because he knew that Sun Wu was a figure who could influence Chinese civilization for thousands of years, but he himself was just a time traveler. Whether he could stay in the long river of history in the future and let future generations know about his existence was unknown.
So when Sun Wu appeared in front of him for the first time, he already had a plan to make Sun Wu the sage of military strategists!
It's just that during this period, he has been busy dealing with the Ji family and the Meng family. Sun Wu is just a bodyguard at best and has not had a chance to shine.
And this time, it is a perfect opportunity to train Sun Wu!
"The Art of War? What does Brother Ziming mean by this?"
Does Sun Wu understand the art of war?
The time when Sun Wu wrote "The Art of War" cannot be verified, but one thing is certain, that is, "The Art of War" was by no means imagined out of thin air, but must have been summarized based on actual combat experience.
Therefore, before writing "The Art of War", Sun Wu must have experienced a lot of wars.
It's just that at this time, only he knows whether he understands the art of war.
Sun Wu did not answer Li Ran's question directly because he was a little excited about this question.
He was a person who always advocated shrouding corpses in horse leather and traveled across the battlefield. The reason why he came to Lu State was precisely because Lu State had constant friction with neighboring countries, and he hoped to flex his muscles here.
Some people may ask, why didn't he go to big countries like Jin, Chu, and Qi? Why did he come to a small country like Lu?
This is where Sun Wu's arrogance lies.
Using the big to defeat the small and winning without using force was something Sun Wu disdained.
And using small things to achieve great things, using the weak to defeat the strong, was what Sun Wu wanted in his heart.
In other words, for him, there is no point in bullying the weak and winning. Instead, use the weak to attack the strong. If you lose, you won't lose, and if you win, you will gain blood.
"When you go to Ju and Zhu this time, you not only want to persuade the monarchs of the two countries to ask for land from the Ji family. It is also best to lead the remaining soldiers of the two countries and try your best to attack the cities occupied by the Ji family! It doesn’t matter whether you win or lose, but the movement must be big.”
How can Li Ran be satisfied just by causing Ji's face to be ruined?
This was such an excellent opportunity. If Li Ran didn't let Ji get hurt, he would be really sorry for Han Qi, a "good teammate".
"Leading troops as a general?"
A sharp light flashed in Sun Wu's eyes, and his energy level suddenly rose to a higher level.
"Chang Qing, do you dare to give it a try?"
Li Ran asked, playing hard to get.
When Sun Wu heard this, he immediately said with great pride:
"Haha, brother Ziming may not know something, but there is nothing in the world that I, Sun Wu, would not dare to do!"
"Sun Wu has understood what Brother Ziming means, so he would like to ask Brother Ziming to wait for the good news!"
After saying that, Sun Wu only asked for another token from his uncle Sun Bao, then turned and left. His cool and firm back was really fascinating.
This made Uncle Sunbao on the side very puzzled. He originally wanted to add a word or two, but Li Ran never gave him a chance. At this time, after Sun Wu asked him for a token and left, he He opened his mouth and asked:
"Can this kid do it?"
After all, Sun Wu had not been in Qufu for a long time, and he had not shown any fighting skills.
Apart from his own good martial arts, Shu Sunbao really couldn't think of any reason for Li Ran to let him lead Ju and Zhu to fight against the Ji family. It was natural for him to have doubts about Sun Wu.
"This man is truly an extraordinary person. Doctor Shusun can wait and see!"
I will tell you that this Sun Wu is the military sage who is regarded as the originator by countless generals in later generations?
If he can't do it, who else in the world can do it?
Li Ran was ecstatic in his heart. There is no doubt that if Sun Wu can shine this time, it will be of great benefit to him in the future.
When Shusun Bao heard what he said, he immediately stopped talking.
"Send someone to the Ji family and tell Ji Sunsu about the mission to Jin. I think he won't refuse."
This time he was on a mission to Jin, and at the same time he was going to attend the Pingqiu meeting. Of course Ji Sunsu will attend. Otherwise, who would Li Ran perform this good show for?
And based on Li Ran's current understanding of Ji Sunsu's character, he was convinced that Ji Sunsu would definitely agree.
Upon hearing this, Shusun Bao immediately nodded and made arrangements.
Li Ran immediately said goodbye to Shusun Bao and went straight to Lu Palace.
