Early the next morning, the Marquis of Lu announced an edict in the court hall. Since Dr. Shusun, who had been responsible for diplomatic work, had recently contracted an illness and could not go with him to the Jin Kingdom for pilgrimage, he hoped that Ji Sunsu could accompany him.
Here, Shu Sunbao had also sent a letter to Ji in advance, requesting him in a tactful way to accompany the prince to the Kingdom of Jin on his behalf.
As expected, just as Li Ran expected, Ji Sunsu readily agreed without much thought. Moreover, he took the initiative and requested to make arrangements in person to ensure that the monarch's pilgrimage to Jin State would be smooth and worry-free.
In fact, it is not difficult to understand that Li Ran would have been so confident before. This is all because the relationship between the Ji family and the Jin State has been very delicate since the incident of offering sacrifices to heaven.
On the one hand, they were very resentful of this "double-faced" Han Qi; but on the other hand, they couldn't afford to offend this man. So I have been thinking about any opportunity that I can take advantage of to repair the relationship between myself and Han Qi.
Shusun Bao has always been in charge of diplomacy. This time when Marquis of Lu went on a mission to Jin, he was naturally the one accompanying him.
No matter how sophisticated Ji Sunsu was, he could not blatantly overstep Shusun Bao's duties. But Shusunbao suddenly fell ill and couldn't go, so it was naturally an excellent opportunity for Jisunsu.
First, the relationship with Han Qi can be repaired.
Secondly, the new ruler of Lu was established, and the Ji family could use this opportunity to publicize Ji's merits in the Lu state in front of the princes.
With these two benefits, how could he be unhappy?
"Grandpa, this time I went to the Jin Kingdom, I happened to be able to attend the Pingqiu Meeting. God is really helping me! As long as these two things can be completed smoothly, after our relationship with the Jin Kingdom returns to normal, no one will be able to hinder us anymore! "
Of course Ji Sun Yiru also wanted to go, but the Ji family was currently in a lot of troubles in the Lu State, and the public grievances in various fiefdoms had not yet subsided. If he and Ji Sunsu both went to the Jin State, who among the Ji family would be in charge of the overall situation?
And what he said was quite right.
Accompanying the princes on their pilgrimage to the Jin Kingdom, and then participating in the meeting in Pingqiu, no matter which one you choose, it is something that can add points to your family.
Now, if these two things are successfully completed, Ji's reputation will grow, which will have endless benefits for Ji's future development.
Ji Sunsu smiled when he heard this, stroking his long beard and said:
"Humph. My grandson may not have expected it. Although this has two advantages, it also has a pitfall! Uncle Sunbao, that old man, thought that I really couldn't see through it! He didn't want to go to the Jin Kingdom. In fact, he didn't want to participate in the Pingqiu War. It’s just that I know how to do it, so I got such a bargain for nothing, haha, from this point of view, this Li Ran isn’t that good either.”
"Uncle Sunbao doesn't want to attend the meeting in Pingqiu? Why is that?"
Ji Sunyiru was a little puzzled. After all, the meeting in Pingqiu might be an excellent opportunity to show his face in recent decades.
In recent decades, the Shusun family has been unsatisfactory in the Lu State. In particular, the previous suzerain of the Shusun family, Shusun Bao's brother Shusun Qiaoru, failed in the political struggle with Ji Wenzi, the former suzerain of the Ji family, and eventually fled to Qi. Since then, the reputation of the Shusun family has been far inferior to that of the Ji family.
In this case, why does the Shusun family not want to participate in this alliance?
"Yi Ru, don't just look at one side of things. There are always two sides to everything. Grandpa will teach you this today."
"Did you know that we are not the only ones who will go to this Pingqiu alliance? All the princes and kingdoms in the world, except Qin and Chu, should be going there at the moment."
The State of Qin was far away from the customs and had rarely interfered with the affairs of the Central Plains since Duke Mu. As for the Chu State, which has been the target of criticism in previous alliance meetings, of course it will not come.
As for whether the Qi National Congress would go to the alliance, Ji Sunsu was not sure for a while. Because everyone in the world knows that Qi State, as the earliest overlord of the world, has never stopped dreaming of one day regaining its dominance over the princes. Therefore, the relationship between Qi and Jin has not been very good. Small-scale frictions between the two countries have never stopped.
Except for these few countries, no one among the other Central Plains princes can openly disobey Jin's alliance edict.
Therefore, since all the princes in the world will go, then Ju and Zhu will definitely go too.
"Whether they go or not has anything to do with whether Shusun Bao is willing to participate in this alliance?"
Ji Sun Yiru still didn't understand.
"This is the other side of this alliance. What Uncle Sun and Li Ran are planning must be the Ju and Zhu countries!"
"The reason why they gave up so easily this time is that there must be a trap waiting for me. They will definitely encourage these two countries to go to the alliance to appeal to the Jin State, intending to force us to return the city! "
"This alliance, for Ju and Zhu, is the best opportunity for them to ask for the city from us in the name of Song Alliance. At that time, in order to demonstrate his dominance, the Marquis of Jin will definitely uphold justice for them and demand justice from us. Ask for the city."
Ji Sunsu had a vicious vision that few people in the world could match, and he saw this almost immediately.
When Ji Sun Yiru heard the sound, he thought about it carefully and was very frightened. He immediately said in surprise:
"If that's the case, what should we do?"
It is absolutely impossible for the Ji family to return the captured cities.
In Ji Sun Yiru's own words, "The things I snatched belong to me. It is a matter of course. You want to go back? Send troops to fight!"
So when he heard that the Marquis of Jin would do "justice" for Ju and Zhu, he panicked immediately.
Unexpectedly, Ji Sunsu smiled and said:
"The Marquis of Jin cannot be together. The only ones who can be together are Zhao Wu and Han Qi. These two people are the head and heart of the Jin Dynasty today. If the Marquis of Jin does not get the approval of these two people, even Ju and Zhu will form an alliance. The altar has been overthrown, and even the Marquis of Jin would not dare to demand the city from us."
After the words fell, Ji Sunsu's face showed confidence.
"Grandpa, does he have a way to deal with Han Qi and Zhao Wu?"
Ji Sun Yiru understood immediately.
The Marquis of Jin is nothing. Now in the Jin Kingdom, as long as Zhao Wu and Han Qi can be dealt with, nothing will matter!
"Zhao Wu is ill, so he may not necessarily participate in this alliance. However, Han Qi has been in charge of the overall situation of the Jin state in the past two years. He mentioned this alliance to the Marquis of Jin, so he will definitely go there in person."
"This person is a greedy person. I still have some ways to deal with this person."
Ji Sunsu was full of confidence and his face was filled with contentment.
Although he didn't say it clearly, Ji Sunyiru could tell from his tone that he had no worries at all.
Although Han Qi had previously sided with them on the matter of offering sacrifices to Heaven, this time when faced with such an important meeting of the princes, Ji Sunsu was confident that he could deal with this person, and he would not offer sacrifices to Shusun Bao and Zheng Guo. Any chance.
.......
On the other side, Li Ran was also making final preparations before going to Jin as an envoy.
This time, the news that the Ji family disagreed with tax reductions and exemptions was spread throughout the cities, which made the reputation of the Marquis of Lu grow.
With this shareholder style, it was naturally impossible for Li Ran to let Marquis Lu just walk away without doing anything.
Before leaving for the Kingdom of Jin, he suggested that the Marquis of Lu should visit various cities and towns to express condolences to the people who had worked hard this year and to gain the hearts of the people. At the same time, it can be regarded as a warning to the governors and staff of each city, thus achieving the effect of knocking the mountain and shaking the tiger.
Li Ran had planted the seeds for Marquis Lu before, and now it was time to harvest them.
Once the Marquis of Lu proposed the idea of going out on an outing to the court, no one in the civil or military officials objected. Even the Ji family and the Meng family readily agreed.
First of all, they knew that Marquis Lu just loved to play.
Secondly, according to their inherent thinking, it would be inappropriate for someone with the status of Marquis Lu to go among the people. What dignity can there be? Some are just reduced points.
Therefore, under Shusun Bao's secret arrangement, the Marquis of Lu only selected a few people whom Shusun Bao was more trustworthy, and deliberately added a few insiders from the Ji family and Meng family, and accompanied him to inspect the cities in various parts of the Lu state. .
But what Ji and Meng never expected was that Marquis Lu was patrolling all the way, returning to having fun and making trouble. The more interested Marquis Lu was in playing, the more respectful the people became towards Marquis Lu!
The dirt on Marquis Lu's face when he was in the fields made the people think that this was a sign that the monarch was getting close to them, but they did not feel that as a monarch, Marquis Lu would lose his status by playing such a child's play.
Coupled with Lu Hou's character, he was always very kind to others. Wherever he went, he would check the living conditions of the people in detail, and lamented that he could not reduce taxes or reduce their burdens, which was a failure to live up to their high hopes. These seemingly "absurd" measures actually attracted praises from the people.
"My king is virtuous and virtuous, and with the blessing of God, his blessings will surely continue!"
For a time, wherever Marquis Lu went, the local people would line up and sing praises, and Marquis Lu's prestige would rise again.
At this time, in the Jishi Villa in Qufu City, Shusun Bao laughed out loud again.
"Hahahaha, they say that old man Ji Sunsu is a fox, but now it seems that he is just a blind fox. Now he dares to let the king go to inspect the city. He is really an old fox. , the old fool is a fox, hahahaha!"
The prestige of the public office is growing, which will play a vital role in weakening the strength of the Ji family and the Meng family in the future.
In this era where everything you do needs the support of the people at the bottom (after all, the people at the bottom pay for everything you eat, drink, and have sex with), public support is really important.
How did Jie and Zhou die? Although there are thousands of reasons, there is one general truth, which is that it has lost the support of the people.
So it’s not that those in power don’t know the importance of people’s hearts, but when it comes to taking advantage of this, those in power in this era are not as smart as those who came later.
In other words, Ji Sunsu still didn't listen to what Li Ran said at the Xialiuhe rally. If he really listened, he would definitely agree to Marquis Lu's proposal for tax reduction and exemption, and he would not let Marquis Lu go on inspection tours of the city anymore, which would have made Marquis Lu gain a lot of fans for nothing.
"This is the effect we want."
"It's just that after this incident, the Ji family will definitely be more vigilant against Marquis Lu in the future."
"Next, let's see if Pingqiu Zhihui can kill him with one move."
Li Ran's eyes were very calm.
Weakening Ji's prestige is only one aspect. If you want to truly weaken Ji's strength, you have to look at this Pingqiu meeting.
After all, if you want to deal with the Ji family, the key depends on the attitude of Jin.
Uncle Sunbao said seriously:
"I have just given the news to Han Qi and Sheep Tongue. Even if the Marquis of Jin does not want to stand up for Ju and Zhu, I think Han Qi will consider it for himself and will not let it go so easily at the Pingqiu meeting. Ji family."
Regarding this matter, Shu Sunbao seemed extremely confident.
