On the other hand, after Li Ran left without saying goodbye, King Xiong Wei of Chu received the news that Laidi had been lost.
He couldn't help being furious. At the same time, in order to pursue a decisive battle with the Wu people as soon as possible, he followed the plan of observing and following and decided to send the Chu army to Suodi.
As mentioned before, the reason why he insisted on going his own way and setting up a stronghold against the water was to inspire the determination of the soldiers of the Chu army and show his determination to defeat Soochow in one go!
Even so, I don't know why, but King Chu has been feeling very depressed since Li Ran left.
It seems that he has become accustomed to hearing one or two "ancient sayings" at such critical moments to guide him when he is currently lost.
Especially like now, when a war is imminent, but his side is so pure, it makes him feel a little bit uncomfortable.
So it was night. In order to relieve the depression in his heart, King Xiong Wei of Chu specially found Zuo Shi Yixiang to chat with him. He hoped that Zuo Shi Yixiang, as an equally knowledgeable person, could say like Li Ran. Some words of wisdom. It can be regarded as a way to cheer myself up and encourage myself.
While King Chu and Zuo Shiyi were chatting, someone suddenly called from outside the camp:
"Your Majesty, Lord Youyin Zige has arrived!"
When the King of Chu heard this, he didn't take it seriously. He just waved his hand and said:
"Invite him to come in and talk."
Afterwards, You Yin Randan was seen walking into the camp with his head held high, and he knelt down and said:
"Chen Dan, I want to meet the king! I wonder why the king called Dan here late at night?"
"Oh, haha, it's nothing else. I just talked with Zuo Shiyi, and suddenly some ideas came to my mind, and I wanted to call you to come and ask."
Ran Dan tilted his head slightly involuntarily, and saw Zuo Shi Yixiang sitting next to him. Ran Dan remained calm and continued:
"I don't know what the king has any doubts about, but I would like to ask the king to make it clear."
Then, King Chu raised his hand again and pointed to the other side, signaling Randan to sit down and talk quickly.
"Just now, I talked to Zuo Shi about the past of our Chu Kingdom. In the past, my late king Xiong Yi, together with Lu Ji, Wang Sun Mou, Xie Fu, and Qin Fu, served King Kang of Zhou. At that time, King Kang of Zhou was partial, and the four kingdoms of Qi, Jin, Lu, and Wei were divided. We were given treasures, but we, the Chu State, don’t have them.”
"But Qing thinks that if I send someone to Luoyi in Chengzhou now to request that the tripod be given to me as a treasure, will the Emperor of Zhou agree?"
King Chu Xiong Wei, why did he suddenly ask Ran Dan this question? That's because Ran Dan, as a native of Zheng, was actually relatively close to the Zhou royal family back then.
Therefore, on the one hand, as a native of the Central Plains, and as a minister of the state of Zheng who had a relatively good understanding of the Zhou royal family, Ran Dan's answer naturally had certain reference significance for him.
When Ran Dan heard this question, he glanced at Zuo Shi Yixiang sitting opposite him, and he already knew it in his heart.
I just heard him smile lightly, and replied:
"Haha, of course it will be given to the king! The reason why King Kang of Zhou did not reward us Chu people in the past was because the late king Xiong Yi lived in a remote place in Jingshan Mountain, riding a firewood cart, wearing rags, and digging through thick weeds. , who traveled across mountains and rivers to serve the emperor. Therefore, when paying tribute, the late king could only use peach wood bows and date wood arrows as tribute."
"And what about Qi? He was the uncle of the emperor back then. Jin, Lu, and Wei were all brothers of the same clan as the emperor. Therefore, Chu did not receive rewards, but they all did. But now, the Zhou royal family We and the Four Kingdoms themselves must submit to the King and obey the King’s orders, how can we still cherish a mere tripod?”
After hearing this, King Xiong of Chu was filled with joy. He laughed three times and continued to ask:
"In the past, our imperial uncle Kunwu lived in the homeland of the Xu State. Now the Zheng people covet the land here and will not give it to us. If we go to ask for it, do you think the Zheng people will give it to us?"
Ran Dan continued to answer:
"Haha, I will give it to your Majesty too! Since Emperor Zhou won't even spare a tripod, how can we Zheng people dare to cherish earth and fields?"
Hearing this, King Chu Xiongwei laughed three times and continued to ask:
"In the past, the princes thought that Chu was remote and were afraid of Jin. Now we have built Chen and Cai, as well as two ungrateful walls. There are thousands of chariots in each place, so the princes should be afraid of us. ?!”
Ran Dan no longer thought about it at this moment and still answered:
"They must be afraid of the king! These four cities alone are enough to scare people. If the power of Chu is added to it, how can any of the princes not be afraid of the king?"
Ran Dan followed the King of Chu's words and made seemingly mindless remarks. In fact, anyone with a discerning eye could see that Ran Dan was being a typical "flattery".
"Your Majesty, Gong Yinlu has invited you. He said that he has broken open the jade used to decorate the ax handle in accordance with your king's order. He is now preparing to carefully cut the axe, so he hopes that your Majesty can go and have a look."
"Oh? Okay, in that case, please wait a moment. I will come back as soon as I go."
After the King of Chu finished speaking, he got up first and went outside the camp. Taking this opportunity, Zuo Shi Yixiang asked Ran Dan:
"Master Zige, you are considered a well-known person in the Chu State. Now when Master Zige talks to the king, his answers are like echoes. What will the Chu State do?"
Ran Dan heard this question, but he just said briefly:
"Haha, I have sharpened the blade and am waiting here. When the king comes, my blade will also be chopped off. Lord Zuo Shi, please be patient. If you come in again later, Lord Zuo Shi can excuse you. , then Dan will have something to say to the king."
Zuo Shiyixiang didn't know what was going on, but he also knew that Randan was not a flatterer on weekdays. Therefore, there must be another reason for saying this today, so he just nodded slightly in agreement.
After a while, when the King of Chu came in from outside the camp, Prime Minister Zuo Shi Yi made an excuse to leave early. The King of Chu didn't know what was going on, so he agreed.
After Zuo Shi Yixiang stood up and walked away, the King of Chu saw the back of Zuo Shi Yixiang and said with emotion:
"This man is really a good historian. This man is proficient in the Three Tombs, Five Codes, Eight Suo, and Nine Hills. He knows the past events of our Chu Kingdom like the back of his hand."
Ran Dan smiled slightly again and replied:
"Actually, I also asked him for advice. In the past, King Mu of Zhou wanted to indulge his selfishness and traveled around the world, hoping that his tracks would be everywhere in the world. Ji Gongmou's father once wrote "Prayer" He wrote this poem to stop King Mu's selfish motives, and King Mu was able to do well and finally die in the palace. The minister once asked him about this poem, but he didn't know it."
When the King of Chu heard what he said, he was a little interested in the literary competition between the two of them, so he couldn't help but ask:
"Oh? Then did you remember?"
Ran Dan cupped his hands and made a bow, and replied:
"That's natural. His poem says: "The prayers are astonishing, and the postures are virtuous. Thinking of my king, the postures are like jade, and the postures are like gold. It shapes the power of the people, but does not have a drunken heart.'" ( Praying for peace and joy, expressing the voice of a virtuous person. Thinking of the demeanor of our king, his appearance is like jade or gold. Preserve the power of the people, and I have no desire to be drunk.)
Obviously, Ran Dan said so many flattering words before, which was actually intentional. What he did was to make King Chu Xiongwei realize what it means to be "loyal and loyal".
He provoked Li Ran away, and now it's like a mirror is missing. There were no more "disharmonious" sounds around him, and only "echoes" were left.
This is the dilemma that the King of Chu is facing now. However, Ran Dan's last poem, as the last word, can only end his admonishment in this way.
After finishing the Dan Fu, he stood up and knelt down to the King of Chu again. Then, he hurriedly and silently exited the camp.
When the King of Chu came to his senses, he also bowed to Zi Ge and watched him leave.
And after he heard Ran Dan's remarks, King Chu became even more depressed. In the next few days, I didn't eat anything and couldn't sleep. His heart became even more empty.
